Great Eats: 5 Healthy Drinks to Accompany Your Meals

Experts say it is important to drink eight glasses—or about 64 ounces—of fluid every day. It aids your bowel movement, and gives you better hydration. Furthermore, it actually helps cuts down on wrinkles, too, because you hydrate your skin when you take fluids internally. Dehydration is harmful to your health, and can lead to myriad health challenges, from tiredness, migraine, constipation and muscle cramps, to irregular blood pressure, kidney problems, dry skin and, at 20% dehydrated, risk of death. Thankfully, drinks make our meals complete! Here are 5 great drinks that are good for your health. 5. Red Wine Red wine has a chemical in it called rezveritrol, which is a very strong antioxidant (antioxidants protect your cells from damage, thereby reducing your risk of disease and memory loss) that’s also been shown to be heart-healthy. Why red and not white?  Rezveritrol is contained in the skins of the grapes. White wine has that skin stripped away, while red wine contains the material from the skin of the grapes. So if you must drink wine, red is best. 4. Coffee Coffee lovers stand up and cheer! Experts say coffee is actually good for you in reasonable amounts. Coffee actually has been shown to reduce liver cancer and to be effective with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, and their symptoms. Coffee has been labelled “bad” because it does have side effects such as migraine headaches and heart palpitations, but if it’s not giving you those, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t enjoy it in moderation. It’s good for your bowel movements too! 3. Orange Juice Citrus juices are generally known to contain flavanoids (especially in the pulp), that may have health benefits. A cup serving of raw, fresh orange juice also supplies potassium, thiamin, and folate. A study published in the April 2010 “The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition,” states that the intake of orange juice, together with a high-carbohydrate, high-fat meal, prevents the occurrence of inflammation within the body, making it a good preventive measure against the development of insulin resistance and atherosclerosis. The same journal also suggested in 2011 that regular orange juice consumption may improve diastolic blood pressure, because orange juice is also a source of the antioxidant hesperidin. And of course, orange juice is rich in Vitamin C, making it a great drink for children and adults!   2. Milk There’s a reason our mothers made us drink large quantities of milk; the health benefits of milk are countless. Milk contains calcium which builds healthy bones and teeth, and maintains bone mass. It is also rich in protein which serves as a source of energy and helps build and repair muscle tissue. When it comes to vitamins, milk is packed full of them; VitaminB12 for healthy red blood cells and nerve tissue, Vitamin A to maintain the immune system and normal vision and skin, and Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) which converts food into energy. Milk also contains Vitamin D, a cancer-fighting vitamin that helps build strong bones. Add to that the presence of niacin to metabolize sugars and fatty acids, potassium to help maintain a healthy blood pressure, and phosphorus which strengthens the bones and generates energy, and you have in milk a super-healthy drink!   1. Water Water is, simply put, the ultimate drink. It is the main component of all drinks, but water has even greater health benefits when taken on its own- without anything else added. Our tissues and organs are made up mainly of water; muscle consists of 75% water, brain consists of 90% of water, bone consists of 22% of water and blood consists of 83% water. Water moisturizes the air in our lungs, transports nutrients and oxygen into cells, helps with metabolism, protects our vital organ (including the skin, which is the largest organ), helps our organs to absorb nutrients better, regulates body temperature, detoxifies, and protects and moisturizes our joints. Water is also the dieter’s darling; while it doesn’t have any magical effect on weight loss, substituting it for higher calorie beverages can certainly help. Also, a cup of water before dinner can reduce the tendency to overeat. There we are. Drink up, and enjoy your meal.