Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)

25 Amazing Uses for Apple Cider Vinegar: Health, Home & Beauty!

The many uses of Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) are ancient and well known. Anyone can replace his or her daily cleaning, beauty, and cooking items with apple cider vinegar and make their lives more healthy and chemical free.

Beauty and Hygiene Uses

1. Facial Cleanser and Toner

Because of apple cider vinegar’s natural antibacterial properties, it is a perfect face cleanser. It will reduce breakouts and normalize pH levels. Dilute the apple cider vinegar with water and apply it to any blemishes.

2. Bad Breath Treatment

Use apple cider vinegar as a mouthwash to remove bad breath. All one has to do is swish it at night before bed and let it work through the night.

3. Bruise Fading

Swelling and inflammation from bruises can be easily removed with an application of apple cider vinegar. It will also remove some of the discoloration.

4. Healthier Hair

To remove hair product build up and grease, a rinse of ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar and 4 cups water is perfect. Rinse after shampooing and follow with cold water. Also, for dandruff, spray the scalp with equal parts apple cider vinegar and water.

5. Deodorant

The chemicals found in most commercial deodorants are toxic and unsafe for long-term use. Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) will help reduce underarm smells and will no longer smell like vinegar once it dries.

6. Teeth Whitening

Treating your teeth with one part apple cider vinegar and two parts water will help to remove stains. Also, it will help with bad breath as we mentioned earlier. However, those with sensitive teeth, affected by acids, cannot use vinegar.

7. Foot Treatment

For smelly feet, apple cider vinegar is a must use. All one has to do it soak his or her feet for about ten minutes and then rinse. Bye bye foot odor!

Home Uses

8. Odor Neutralizer

Apple cider vinegar acts as an odor neutralizer. Just put a dish of it near the offensive smell and it will be no more.

9. Weed Killer

Mix ½ gallon apple cider vinegar with ¼ cup salt and 1 teaspoon dish soap. This mixture will kill almost any plant.

10. Cleaner

Equal parts water and Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) will create a chemical-free home cleaner that will remove grime and bacteria. Use it on any surface imaginable and don’t fear the smell. It will go away as it dries.

Uses for Food

11. Baking

Add fluffiness to cakes, cookies, or anything else by adding apple cider vinegar. An amount for any recipe can easily be found, and the taste will go away while it bakes.

12. Soups

Adding apple cider vinegar to soup gives it a brighter flavor. Careful! Not too much.

13. Juice

Adding apple cider vinegar to juice will give anyone incredible health benefits without the strong taste. Again, careful! Not too much.

14. Sauces

For tangy sauces, use apple cider vinegar. It is great with barbecue sauce, marinades, or just regular condiments.

15. Salads

Buying salad dressing is unnecessary. Mix ACV, organic olive oil, and herbs, for the perfect homemade salad dressing.

Health Uses

16. Weight Loss

Consuming Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) makes one feel full and unable to eat as much as normal. It is also known to restrict fat buildup. Sneak apple cider into your diet whenever possible.

17. Cleansing and Detox

The acids in apple cider vinegar bind with toxins and help to remove them from the body. It also improves circulation, contributes to removing mucus and clears out the lymph nodes. Try it out today!

18. Sore Throat

Remove painful sore throat bacteria by gargling with apple cider vinegar. You may be astonished to discover your sore throat gone in no time.

19. Sunburned or Itchy Skin

Remove itchy skin from bug bites, poison ivy, or jellyfish stings with apple cider vinegar. Also, treat sunburn pain with a cup of apple cider vinegar added to a tub of water.

20. Energy Boost

Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) is a great daily energy drink. Dilute 1 to 2 tablespoons in a big glass of water, and sip it along with your meals one or two times a day.

  

21. Prevent Diabetes

Apple cider vinegar consumption is shown to reduce blood sugar levels. Take some before bed and let it work overnight. Some people see as much as a 6% blood sugar drop in the morning.

22. Lower Cholesterol

It is possible that taking apple cider vinegar will help to reduce harmful types of cholesterol. Some studies have shown reduced LDL levels in rats that are given AVC as part of their diet.

23. Clear Sinuses

Sip a mixture of water and apple cider vinegar to clear the sinuses, prevent infection, or stop a cold. It will help anyone to breath a little easier.

24. Improve Digestion

If someone is suffering from an upset stomach or fears an upset stomach in the future, all they need to do is sip a combination of water or juice and apple cider vinegar. Digestion requires acids and the acids in apple cider vinegar help.

25. Remove Warts

Apple cider vinegar is an excellent wart remover. Soak a cotton ball in vinegar and hold it in place over the wart with a bandage or medical tape overnight. Continue until the wart falls off.

Green Tea Benefits

 Healthy Benefits of Green Tea

1. Chock Full of Antioxidants

Antioxidants, why are they good for us anyway?
Well, when we eat, our bodies have to turn food into energy. As a result, this generates some byproducts within our bodies called free radicals. These chemicals are pretty awful, and can severely damage our bodies through a process called oxidation. Free radicals are also, theoretically, the main driver in aging.
But have no fear, we can combat the negative effect of free radicals by consuming antioxidants, and one great way to do this is by drinking green tea.
In clinical trials published by the American Society for Nutritional Sciences, scientists found that numerous studies suggested that the consumption of tea may bring positive health effects. The hypothesis behind these benefits stems from the high levels of flavonoids, antioxidants that scavenge free radicals.
Benefits of flavonoids include, but are not limited to:

• Fighting Viruses
• Helping Prevent Cancer
• Preventing Inflammation
• Helping with Allergies

2. Cancer Fighter
 A cup of tea keeps the doctor at bay? According to cancer.gov, definitely possible!
Green tea has been shown to activate our internal detoxification enzymes which may hinder tumor growth. Many teas are packed with antioxidants, but the direct mechanism of cancer prevention hasn’t yet been fully established. The good news is there is a relationship between cancer prevention and tea consumption.
According to livescience.com, an ongoing study of women with breast cancer showed that polyphenols in green tea may slow down proteins that are part of tumor cell growth.
Dr. Katherine Crew, assistant professor of medicine and epidemiology at Columbia University, also conducted a study in men with prostate cancer and found that green tea drinkers had markedly lower prostate-specific antigen, which is linked to prostate tumor growth.
So see?
Evidence suggests that both sexes can enjoy the cancer fighting benefits of green tea.

3. Brain Enhancement

Drink tea and be smarter! Sound too good to be true?
Well according to a study from the Department of Psychiatry, University of Basel Switzerland, sipping on green tea enhances memory. Until last year, the effects of green tea on cognitive function were speculative, but with the improvements in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), Dr. Stefan Borgwardt could view the increased connectivity in the cortices of the brain after consumption of green tea. Specifically, green tea drinkers showed increased connectivity in key parts of the brain associated with memory.
The study used healthy male volunteers and found that when given a soft drink containing green tea extract, those consuming green tea extract not only showed increased connectivity in parts of the brain, but improved performance on working memory tasks as well.
Let me go brew a mug real quick before I finish the rest here!
4. Anti-Anxiety and Relaxation

A study published in the Journal of Trends in Food Science & Technology by Dr. Juneja and team states that theanine acts as a neurotransmitter that increases alpha waves in the brain. Alpha waves are considered to be an indicator of relaxation. Human volunteers were given 50-200 mg of l-theanine and were shown to have increased alpha waves without drowsiness.
So it appears you can drink green tea to help mellow you out, without falling asleep. I better gift some to my buddy.

5. Heart Health

According to the Harvard Heart Letter, Japanese adults who drank more than five cups daily were at 26% lower risk of heart attack or stroke. While research around mechanisms of action is limited, there were no red flags, so it can’t hurt.
In another study, Athens Medical School took 14 volunteers and had them either drink green tea or caffeinated hot water. Using blood pressure cuffs and ultrasound to check whether arteries were widened or not, the doctors found that those that drank green tea had significantly wider arteries, meaning lower risk in heart diseases like atherosclerosis.

6. Fat Burner

“Green tea has thermogenic properties and promotes fat oxidation beyond that explained by its caffeine content per se”. That’s what Dr. Abdul G. Dulloo, author of a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition said to WebMD.

While caffeine has been shown to help burn fat and increase metabolism, it’s good to know the effect of green tea on metabolism is much more than that, because simply ramping up caffeine intake will definitely give you the jitters.
Another piece in the Journal of Advances in Nutrition mentioned that a number of studies have witnessed how green tea can improve fat burning.
While overall research is still limited, given the health benefits of green tea, if it is a fat burner to boot, why not?
We already know that green tea is full of antioxidants, is good for both the heart and brain, and can help fight cancer, so why shouldn’t we drink it?

7. Anti-Bacterial
Get sick, and the doctor gives you antibiotics. We’ve all been there, but are prescribed antibiotics the way to go? I think not! What about a natural remedy? Now I’m not saying green tea will cure you once you’re already infected (probably not), but it certainly can’t hurt.

Green tea contains other antioxidants called catechins. According to a study published in the Food Science Technology Bulletin, these catechins, specifically epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and epicatechin gallate (ECG), can hinder development of many bacterial species. These catechins can stick themselves into the films that cover the bacteria. By lodging into the outside layers of bacteria, EGCG and ECG may upset the bacteria from doing what it is supposed to, which is make you ill.

8. Cholesterol Control
High cholesterol is pretty common, 73.5 million adults have high LDL cholesterol, which I mentioned in my article on coconut oil. So odds may be that many of us are looking for ways to lower ‘bad’ cholesterol. Not only is green tea basically amazing so far, but it can also help us with cholesterol levels.
According to healthaliciousness.com (sweet name), research shows that drinking up to 10 cups of green tea a day has a large effect on cholesterol.
Granted, 10 cups is a whole lot, but no worries, each cup you drink may reduce your cholesterol! So coupled with eating healthy and exercising, you’ll be in the lower cholesterol range in no time.

9. Oral Health
We all love food right? Why else are we here reading nutrition secrets?

Well, I love food. The problem is when you eat food (which is all of us), we may introduce substances like bacteria into our mouths that may cause cavities. Oh, and if we eat sugar, that’s a whole different ball game because some bacteria use sugar to multiply, and this may potentially increase cavities.
Ok, so cavities are no fun but how can green tea help keep the inside of our mouths healthy?
Here’s a quick synopsis of items listed by besthealthmag.ca:

• Cavities – Green tea is anti-bacterial, as mentioned above. It may help reduce bacteria and acid in the mouth.
• Gums – Green tea’s antioxidants are anti-inflammatory. As such they may aid in controlling gum disease.
• Tooth Loss – A study in the Journal of Periodontology showed that green tea may markedly reduce enamel loss.
• Oral Cancer – Not only can green tea help prevent breast and prostate cancer as mentioned above, but may slow the progression of oral cancer as well.
• Stinky Mouth – Bacteria and other microbes make our breath smell, and green tea’s anti-bacterial properties fight stinky bacteria too!

10. Stomach Health
Stomach issues are very common. If I could have a dime for every time someone told me they have inflammatory bowel disease or heart burn, I’d have…well I guess I’d have a couple bucks.

But according to Medscape, the CDC posted in 2012 that about 20% of people have either ulcerative colitis, or Crohn’s disease. And according to Florida Hospital, more than 40% of Americans suffer from heart burn at least once a month. Youch.
The anti-inflammatory effects of green tea mentioned above may also help with stomach issues like colitis. A study at the University Of Cincinnati College Of Medicine found that EGCG found in green tea may help both colitis and Crohn’s disease. Not to mention that green tea’s anti-cancer properties also apply to colon cancer.

11. Nectar of Youth

Not only this, but the anti-inflammatory and fat burning aspects mentioned above, and resultant better health, would likely improve life span as well.
Free radicals also affect our skin, and the antioxidants in green tea may help inhibit free radicals from breaking down collagen, the protein in our skin that keeps us looking young.
One thing I’ve noticed about green tea, is that when I drink it in the morning without eating anything, it gives me a little upset stomach. So what I do now is I put a little creamer or milk into it after it has steeped.

 (Source: http://www.nutritionsecrets.com/health-benefits-green-tea/)