Food is our Common Ground

WHAT IS PREBIOTICS? Prebiotics are sorts of fiber that feed the friendly bacteria within the gastrointestinal system. Humans are not able to digest these types of fiber, but your good gut bacteria can digest them. These sorts of fiber provide nutrients to the bacteria that support healthy digestion and immune function. Before you leave and buy expensive prebiotic supplements, remember that a lot of foods naturally contain them.  Foods that are high in prebiotic fiber include legumes, beans, peas, oats, bananas, garlic, onions, and asparagus. BENEFIT OF DARK CHOCOLATE Eating chocolate doesn’t only make you happy; it also helps to keep the beneficial bacteria in your intestines happy and healthy. Cocoa beans are high in a type of antioxidant called polyphenols. Beneficial bacteria in your colon feed on these antioxidants, break them down and the resulting small metabolites get absorbed into your bloodstream, where they have their beneficial effects. The darker the chocolate, the uppe...

GMO (genetically modified) Apples Or Arctic Apples It’s one of the first foods engineered through genetic  engineering and developed by a Canadian biotech company Okanagan Speciality Fruits (OSF).  They are commonly known as GMO apples. The Arctic Apple, is genetically modified in such a way that, is strategically missing an enzyme so it doesn’t gets brown when you take a bite of it and leave it sitting out on the counter OR when you cut it in pieces and leave the pieces in plate for sometime. Their ability to resist browning after being cut protects its flavour and nutritive values. Browning also results in food waste due to appearance of bruising surfaces (due to browning) on perfectly edible apples. Food waste, especially for fruits and vegetables, is a major problem worldwide; consumer behavior significantly contributes to the wastage of apples by this way. Therefore, arctic apples are a way to lessen a major source of food waste. In February, the USDA’s Animal and Plant H...

Ever thought of edible cutlery?  Narayana Peesapaty the founder and directing manager of Bakey's, an Indian cutlery company, has a possible solution—spoons and forks you can eat.  Bakeys launched the world’s first edible cutlery line made of three flours: rice, wheat, and sorghum (Jowar). We all support to change the way we eat and think about waste! BAKEYS’ was established in 2010 in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, to provide an alternative to plastic disposable cutlery and the bamboo disposable chopsticks.  I NGREDIENTS USED!  The ingredients are as simple with absolutely no preservatives. The lack of water, moisture, or fat in the product allows it to have a long shelf life without the need for extra preservatives. They include: sorghum (Jowar) flour, rice flour, and wheat flour. However, because they knead dough through a certain method, the final product contains less than 10 ppm in gluten. Though they are not yet certified gluten free, but they are working on it, an...

We usually eat three types of chocolates which are white chocolate, dark chocolate, and just plain milk chocolate…finally after so long and after 10 years of struggle we got a new variety of choclate and that is ruby chocolate, the stuff of Instagram dreams. Yes, you read that right—pink chocolate does exist, and it could hit the market soon. The fourth type of chocolate offers a totally new taste experience among the varieties of chocolate, which is not bitter, milky or sweet, but a tension between berry fruitiness and luscious smoothness. “It’s natural, it’s colorful, it’s hedonistic, there’s an indulgence aspect to it, but it keeps the authenticity of chocolate,” Saint-Affrique said. “It has a nice balance that speaks a lot to millennials.” Swiss manufacturer Barry Callebaut introduced the very first pink-hued cocoa, called ruby chocolate in 2017. It was unveiled at a private event in Shanghai on 5 September, 2017. Each bite has a fruity, berry-like flavor, thanks to the Ruby cocoa ...

Mamma beer is alcohol-free! For chemotherapy patients, the phase can be a big trouble. Common side effects of chemotherapy include weakness, nausea, hair loss and cognitive decline. But one phrase called dysgeusia which means “chemo mouth,” is  a phenomenon that causes food to taste bland, bitter, metallic or simply disgusting. It is the kind of side effect for which many people aren't prepared for! To combat this unappetizing side effect, an effort of Czech brewery has crafted a beer especially for breast cancer patients undergoing chemo. The idea for the beer came from two breast cancer survivors—Jana Drexelerova, the CEO of Prague-based advocacy group Mamma Help, and Tereza Sverakova, who works at the ad agency Y&R. The brew, made in partnership with the Žatec brewery and breast cancer advocacy group Mamma Help, with the help of advertising agency Y&R Prague, is aimed at those battling breast cancer, but could be beneficial to anyone undergoing chemotherapy. One could ju...

Do Vegan Diets Lead to nutritional deficiencies? Veganism is the terminology referring to the exclusion of animal based diets such as meat, eggs, dairy etc. in order to support animal rights. Being a vegan solves many problems from animal cruelty to the risk of having chronic diseases. A Vegan diet is a very healthy diet of all. Research suggests that the Vegan diet can improve heart health, lower the risk of type 2 diabetes, osteoarthritis, obesity, high blood pressue and can also protect against cancer. Healthy intestinal flora is also supported by vegan diets. Vegan diets are rich in nutrients and low in saturated fats. However, people having vegan diets should be attentive about certain nutrients which generally come from omnivorous diet such as iron, calcium, vitamin B12. They should be more aware  about incorporating these nutrients in their diets to have a balanced combination of nutrients on their plates. In this blog, we'll talk about having a vegan diet  which elimi...