Champion Foods

What we eat can have a real impact on how healthy we are. And among our everyday foods, there are many super foods that can help us ward off disease.

Avocadoes are packed with ‘good’ monosaturated fats that help with heart health. They also contain B vitamins and are rich in magnesium, calcium, phosphorus and other minerals that are important for maintaining healthy bones and nerves.

Broccoli is brilliant. It contains phytochemicals that may detox cancer-causing substances before they do any harm. It’s also rich in vitamins B and C, as well as folate, calcium, iron and potassium.

Spinach was Popeye’s choice for a reason. It’s full of iron, which is great for energy, and it contains magnesium, plus vitamins A, B6 and E.

Tomatoes are a rich source of lycopene, a substance that helps to prevent heart disease and certain cancers. You may absorb it better with fat, so add a dash of olive oil to tomato salads and sauces.

Yoghurt is a good gut antibiotic that my help boost immune function. Aim to eat a small tub each day.

Medical research acknowledges that eight glyconutrient sugars are needed at the cellular level for optimum immune system function. Considering that six of these glyconutrients are often lacking in modern diets, Mannatech sought new and better sources of the nutrients. The effort culminated in the Ambrotose complex. Twenty patents – including one from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office – have been issued to Mannatech for technology related to the Ambrotose complex.

Balance=Wellness

What does it mean to be healthy anyway? Health is a state of complete physical, mental and well-being and not merely the absence of disease. Health promotion is the science and art of helping people change their lifestyle to move toward a state of optimal health. Being healthy is about being in balance. Balance = Wellness.

Did you know that 80% of American children and 68% of American adults fail to consume the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables each day?

To strengthen your immune system, you must address the needs of the systems in your body starting at the cellular level. A strong immune system is essential for health. The human immune system is a very complex system of the human body. The immune system involves your skin, intestines, nasal mucosa, blood, lymph, white blood cells, stem cells, b-cells and many other organs and tissues. Factors that impair the immune system include nutrient deficiencies, contaminated air, water and food, unhealthful lifestyles and too much exposure to harmful microbes.

The immune defense system is a body-wide network of organs, tissues, cells, and protein substances that work together to defend the body against attacks by "foreign" invaders. Those invaders are primarily germs—tiny, infection-causing organisms such as bacteria and viruses, parasites and fungi.

The immune system is amazingly complex. It can recognize millions of different enemies, and it can enlist specialized cells and secretions to seek out and destroy each of them.

Medical research acknowledges that eight glyconutrient sugars are needed at the cellular level for optimum immune system function. Considering that six of these glyconutrients are often lacking in modern diets, Mannatech sought new and better sources of the nutrients. The effort culminated in the Ambrotose complex. Twenty patents – including one from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office – have been issued to Mannatech for technology related to the Ambrotose complex.

The Basics

Glyconutrients—

While scientific understanding of how the human body uses saccharides is still far from complete, researchers have already made significant progress in understanding how saccharides affect normal cell function. We have also learned that most of us today consume inadequate amounts of plant saccharides, which are important not only as an energy source, but for the structural and functional roles that they play within our bodies.

To understand the potential consequences of not eating properly, let’s consider four reasons everyone (yes—everyone!) can benefit from glyconutritionals:

1. Our bodies were designed for much higher levels of saccharides than most of us get.

We’re virtually genetically identical to our hunter-gatherer ancestors, and we’re designed to eat the kinds of foods they ate. Studies show that our ancestors had no access to the foods that are our key saccharide sources today—refined sugar, milk (beyond infancy), breads and pastas. These foods primarily supply three saccharides—glucose, fructose and some galactose. What did our forebears eat?

Forty to 80% of their foods came from plant sources, including a wide variety of roots, beans, seeds, nuts, tubers, fruits, flowers and edible gums. Their diets included about 100 grams of polysaccharide fiber daily. Today, however, we generally consume less than 14% of this amount.

2. Very few people eat enough fresh fruits and vegetables.

Plants are the ultimate source of saccharides. They use the energy from sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into a simple sugar (monosaccharide). The number and complexity of saccharides found in fruits and vegetables is staggering— so large, in fact, that the total number is unknown. These include the components of both water-soluble and non-soluble polysaccharide fibers that give structure to the plant cell. These fibers typically contain glucose and fructose, but can also contain various monosaccharides, including galactose, mannose and xylose. Since we do not consume enough fresh fruits and vegetables, we get fewer plant saccharides in our diets than we need to sustain good health.

3. Fresh fruits and vegetables have significantly lower saccharide content than they did as recently as 30 years ago.

Detailed saccharide analyses were not performed on fruits and vegetables 50 years ago, so very little data are available on their saccharide content. But we do have ample research data that clearly shows that today’s fruits and vegetables are not as nutrient-rich as they were as recently as the early 1970s. The reasons for this significant depletion include less nutrient-rich soil, more pollution, wider use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers, and premature harvesting that brings fruits and vegetables to market before they have had time to reach their natural peak of nutrition.

4. Cooking and processing deplete foods of their saccharide content.

Research has produced overwhelming evidence that fresh, unprocessed fruits and vegetables are the most nutrient-rich. Nutritionists have measured the quantity of only a few nutrients in cooked or processed foods since these analyses are both difficult and expensive. Instead, they’ve focused primarily on nutrients where deficiencies are widely recognized. For example, vitamins C and B1 (thiamine) have been studied at length. Part of the reason these vitamins are vulnerable is that they’re water-soluble and therefore prone to losses when foods are chopped, washed or cooked in water. Nutrition scientists generally believe that if these vitamins are depleted, other important nutrients may also be at risk.

Overall wellness begins with cell-to-cell communication which promotes optimal health throughout your body. The Mannatech Optimal Health System is designed to deliver the nutrients, including glyconutrients--or plant-based monosaccharides--that your cells need to "talk" to one another and to support your immune system. The Optimal Health System protects your cells with antioxidants, nourishes your body with vitamins and minerals and supports your hormonal systems to keep your body in balance. Choose the option that is right for you for total wellness!

Finding Time to Exercise

Exercise is the silver bullet or the magic pill for fat loss, reduced stress and improved health.

However, many people don't exercise because they think they don't have time. They're waiting for work to slow down, for the kids to go back to school, confirmation of an up-coming event or just waiting for next Monday to start! They have many excuses but no real reasons.

I really want to exercise but....

Exercise is boring. If you don't look forward to your workouts, it's no wonder you skip them. Ensure your activity is something you enjoy - you'll last longer!

Nothing major will happen if I skip my workout. It's not like you'll gain 5kgs or suddenly get heart disease if you miss one day, but it's easy to let the time get away from you until pretty soon it's been a month since you last worked out or participated in some physical activity. Then you're faced with the consequences: weight gain, low energy and increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

You're waiting for things to slow down. Life doesn't calm down as we get older. Jobs, kids, family, social obligations - they're never going to go away. If you're waiting for a clear schedule, you just won't start. Make the start now - don't put it off!

You get frustrated by lack of results. It takes time to see results, so be patient and don’t obsess over what you see on the scales. Focus on what you're getting NOW - energy, stress reduction, personal satisfaction, and looser-fitting clothes.

You don't have huge chunks of time to do all this exercise. You don't need lots of time. Just

30 minutes two or three times a week and you've got yourself an exercise program!

Finding fun in exercise

Exercise and physical activity is fun and could be as simple as changing your perspective a little. For example, exercise offers a different kind of pleasure, a “wow, my life is better” kind of pleasure! In addition, regular physical activity will give you:

Satisfaction. When you achieve any small goal, you will enjoy the warm fuzzy feeling. Just by committing yourself to an exercise time and doing it, you’ll gain a sense of achievement.

Relaxation. If you do it right, a good workout will leave you both energised and relaxed. You’re alert, but not stressed and you’re able to accomplish more.

Weight loss. Follow a structured and regular program and your clothes will fit you better.

Better health. There’s no better prescription for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and other poor health conditions than a sedentary lifestyle.

Confidence. Exercise is a confidence builder. You become comfortable in your own skin and you typically become more balanced.

Find the time to exercise now... or find time for illness later!

Validated science is at the heart of every Mannatech product. Since introducing their first nutritional breakthrough, Ambrotose® complex, in 1994, Mannatech has maintained a leadership position in the worldwide dietary supplements industry. Mannatech offers naturally derived patent-pending and proprietary nutritional products that no other company can offer.

Oil to Burn

OMEGA-3 oils are good for you. But evidence is mounting they could help us lose weight, too.

Since their discovery in the 1970s, omega-3 fatty acids have been firmly under the scientific spotlight: the subject of discussion. speculation and multiple studies of their potential health benefits.

A type of polyunsaturated fat found in fish, seafood and several types of plants and plant oils, omega-3 fats have been hailed as a wonder oil for preventing and treating myriad life-threatening conditions. These include everything from heart disease and stroke, to a host of psychological disorders, including bipolar and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

But one area that hasn't received much attention is the role of omega-3 fats in weight loss.

The idea that fatty acids may contribute to weight loss isn't new. Dr Udo Erasmus, an internationally recognised authority on the role of fats and oils in human health, has been an advocate of their benefits in weight management for years.

He says essential fats help to keep us slim. "They act like hormones that increase fat-burning and decrease fat production in the body," he says. "They shift the body from carbohydrate-burning mode to fat-burning mode. But only the essential fats, especially the 'missing' omega-3s, accomplish these functions."

Source: The Sunday Telegraph

Offering a solution for overall wellness is Mannatech's commitment. Mannatech’s products help to build and maintain total health by balancing chemistry, nutrition and development through cell-to-cell communication. These individual units work together to promote optimal health. This disruptive-technology creates a unique opportunity for optimal health.

Safeguard your Health

Nobody wants to get sick. That's obvious. But you may not be aware of all the important reasons to safeguard your health.

1. Getting sick makes us look bad. This is obvious!

2. Getting sick makes us feel bad. People who eat right, exercise, and get adequate rest feel better and enjoy a higher quality of life.

3. Getting sick is expensive. How expensive? Health care spending now accounts for 14% of the gross domestic product in the U.S.

4. Getting sick means lost time at work and school. Let's consider respiratory infections, which are the most common illnesses worldwide. The economic burden due to lost productivity from the common cold is roughly $25 billion annually. Colds can also exacerbate asthma, a growing health problem. Children and adults with asthma miss more days of work and school than healthy individuals, and this disease often compromises their ability to perform optimally at school or work.

5. Getting sick lowers our defenses, putting us at risk for developing more serious illnesses. Our overall health and nutritional status clearly affects our vulnerability to infections.

6. Getting sick increases our chances of requiring medication, and there are significant risks when we take correctly-prescribed medicines.

7. Getting sick increases our chances of being hospitalized, which introduces the possibility of hospital-acquired (nosocomial) infections.

8. Getting sick increases our chances of being hospitalized, and many hospitals are challenged with severe nursing shortages.

9. Getting sick increases our chances of being hospitalized, and hospitals are sometimes staffed with fatigued nurses and resident physicians.

10. Getting sick increases our chances of being subjected to medical errors. This issue is beyond the problem discussed earlier regarding adverse reactions to correctly prescribed drugs. Fatigue and staffing shortages certainly contribute to treatment and medication errors. Between 44,000-98,000 Americans die each year because of such mistakes.

Unfortunately, our affluent society undermines good health. Temptations to consume unhealthy fat- and sugar-laden foods surround us. The automobile relieves us of the need to walk. Television, computers, and video games are our sedentary pleasures. Many of us sit down to work. It is not hard to see where this is leading-straight to a very unhealthy lifestyle!

Good choices require willpower. To remain healthy, we must set aside time for adequate exercise and rest. We must consciously choose to eat a healthy diet including an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables. Dietary supplementation can help ensure that we are provided adequate nutrition.

Sooner or later, we all do get sick and we shouldn't hesitate to go to the hospital when we need to. Further, we should remember that our health is not completely within our control. Each of us has a unique genetic constitution, and a personal history of exposure to environmental insults, and past dietary practices that cannot be changed. Nevertheless, if we develop and adhere to a healthy lifestyle beginning this very day, we can make a difference tomorrow. There is no question that good nutrition and a healthy lifestyle will decrease our chances of getting sick and, thus our need for interventional drugs or hospital care. If we resolve to care for ourselves, the rewards are great. If we don't, the risks are many. The choice is ours!

At Mannatech and other visionary companies in the dietary supplements industry, they’ve be able to develop nutritional products that meet individual needs, custom-tailored to an individual’s specific requirements at any given time. Since human nutritional needs sometimes vary (for example, during times of stress), Mannatech can focus on discovering what our diet lacks so that we can furnish it immediately to sustain wellness and prolong the healthy period of life.

Making a Choice

Health is related to nutrient consumption. The body needs the correct raw materials to continually rebuild itself, power itself and maintain health. In recent years, science has begun to demonstrate the long-term effects of incorrect food choices. Diabetes and heart disease are just two nutrient-related diseases that come immediately to mind. As scientific data connecting nutrition and health has grown, more attention is being given to the subject of nutrition. The secrets of good nutrition are written in the life style of our ancestors. They consumed more than 100 different foods, fresh, unprocessed and therefore rich in vitamins and minerals. The hunter-gatherers also consumed a much greater quantity of food to support their comparatively vigorous life styles. The industrial revolution drastically reduced man's energy requirements. Modern man eats much less food, and the food he eats contains fewer nutrients. Missing food ingredients (nutrients) can often be provided by dietary supplementation.

Physicians and nutritionists are increasingly convinced that the dietary habits adopted by Western society over the last 100 years are mainly responsible for the increase in coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and some types of cancer. These conditions emerged only in the past century, and are virtually nonexistent in the few hunter-gatherer populations remaining in the world today.

Given our modern understanding of disease, how healthy could we be if we, as a society of people, consumed the nutrients of our pre-agricultural ancestors?!

Mannatech announced its flagship product, Ambrotose, 1996 based on the discovery that the body’s immune system needs eight plant-based sugars – also known as glyconutrients – to function properly. Medical research has shown that cells use these glyconutrients to communicate with each other so the immune system, when confronted, can mount a coordinated response to foreign invasion. These sugars are plucose, fucose, mannose, galactose, xylose, N-acetylglucosamine, N-acetylgalactosamine and N-acetylneuraminic acid. According to Mannatech, six of these eight glyconutrients are deficient in the modern diet, largely because foods today are heavily processed and balanced meals have succumbed to fast food. Mannatech scoured the world to find new, rich sources of the missing nutrients.