As we all have learned by now, hydration is not only vital for your professional voice, but it tops the list of nearly every overall health or diet regimen. Getting our eight-to-ten glasses of water per day can be a horribly boring chore but there’s good news for those of you who never seem to hit your daily intake – FOOD has water and that counts!
Fruits and vegetables are packed with water and a multitude of vitamins and minerals that not only help keep you hydrated, but their many health benefits can be applied to your beauty regimen.
One of our favorite and most versatile foods is the cucumber. Made up of over 95% water, cucumbers are one of the best ways to reach your daily hydration goal without limiting yourself to boring old H20. Cucumbers have natural anti-inflammatory properties that help the brain and our under-eye-circles, and can even freshen your breath – all major benefits for the busy professional.
Here are some of the many reasons you should keep cucumbers well-stocked in your kitchen, office or tour bus:
Vitamin B Beauty Boost
Cucumbers are rich in vitamins B1, vitamin B5, and biotin, which help relieve stress and ease anxiety (which is particularly important if you are a busy performer or in a high-stress professional speaking role). Biotin is essential for fat production in the body and cell production. This is a great beauty regimen addition, as a healthy amount of Biotin can help your hair and nails grow.
Add slices of cucumber to your water to create a healthy, delicious detox drink.
Slim Your Waistline
Cucumbers are almost entirely made of water (95%), which means they are extremely low in calories - one cup of chopped cucumber is under 20 calories! The remaining 5% is high in fiber, which helps you feel satiated longer and curbs hunger cravings. Cucumber is also rich in potassium, which helps rid your body of toxins. That, combined with cucumber's anti-inflammatory properties make it a natural tummy-slimmer.
Fresh Breath
Excess heat in the stomach and liver can contribute to bad breath. The cooling effect cucumbers have on the inflammatory response in your body also helps cool off your stomach. The antibacterial properties of cucumber also help kill off odor-causing bacteria in your mouth that lead to unpleasant breath.
Fresh-Faced
Ever wonder what exactly why cucumbers are always used on your eyes? Not only is the cooling sensation instantly stress-relieving but cucumbers also contain ascorbic acid and caffeic acid, which help decrease water retention in the eyes and reduce the under-eye puff.
Brain Power
Cucumbers contain the flavone fisetin, which has demonstrated significant effects on improving memory and protecting nerve cells from the effects of aging. In addition to improving your memory, fisetin has been studied for helping in the fight against degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease. So the next time you have a recording session or need to remember lyrics or a speech, amp up the cucumber to give your memory a boost!
Antioxidant Properties
Cucumbers are packed with antioxidant nutrients including the flavonoids quercetin, apigenin, luteolin, and kaempferol, vitamin C, beta-carotene and manganese. All of which help fight free radicals that cause aging and the breakdown of cells.
A cucumber gazpacho is a delicious, healthy way to get your daily intake of water and nutrients.
Find our recipe, here: http://professionalvoiceblog.com/2015/06/24/healthy-recipes-to-keep-you-hydrated-part-1/[/caption]
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For any ENT-related questions, contact your local ENT specialist. Colorado residents contact the Colorado Voice Clinic.