Why Valentines Day is Healthy

Newswise – Chocolate, wine?and sex! It turns out that Valentine’s Dayis one of the healthiest days of the year. A cardiologistsays these Valentine’s Day traditions are the way to ahealthy heart. Cardiologist Melvyn Rubenfire says this is”one day of celebration that we should continue on a dailybasis.”

He says, “Chocolate has good antioxidants that are cardiac-or vascular-protective.” These antioxidants ? known asflavonoids ? are also found in fruits, vegetables, tea, andred and white wine, and they reduce the risk of blood clotsand heart disease. The more colorful the fruits andvegetables, the more antioxidants they contain. Red winecontains more of them than white wine, which is made fromskinless grapes.

The amount of flavonoids in a particular type of chocolatedepends on processing. White chocolate has the fewestflavonoids, while dark chocolate has the most. Rubenfiresays it isn’t clear whether milk or dark chocolate is betterfor you, “but there are benefits to chocolate that go beyondtheir good taste.”

In addition to protecting the heart, chocolate also mayalleviate coughing. A recent study found that cocoa, themain ingredient in chocolate, contains a substance that isthree times more effective in stopping persistent coughsthan codeine.

“Wine and other spirits are actually associated with abetter long-term prognosis in adults. Longevity is increasedwith moderate use of alcoholic beverages of all types,” saysRubenfire. Also, alcoholic beverages increase the amount ofthe “good” cholesterol, or high-density lipoproteins ?HDLcholesterol? in the blood. “As you raise the levels of HDLcholesterol, the risk of heart attacks and strokes candecrease,” he says.

There’s good evidence to show that regular sexual activityis beneficial for both men and women. Research has shownthat, for men, having sex at least three times per week cutsthe risk of stroke and heart attack in half. Rubenfire says,”We’ve all heard of the married couples who are married formany, many, years and when one of them dies, the other diesshortly thereafter.” Chronically ill people who are married livelonger than the sick who are single.

Photo Credit: http://www.freeimages.co.uk

There’s all kinds of love, and one of the most important ismother love! Learn how a woman in the Midwest found herselfmothering a family ofghostchildren?and how she reunited them with their real mother.Subscribers canstill listen to this wonderful Mysterious Powers interview.

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