Are you happy with your body? Do you do enough exercise? Do you feel like you should be eating better? These are the sorts of questions that begin to flood the daily thoughts of people entering into that midlife period. Doctors believe that after 45 natures countdown clock kicks in and it’s all down hill from there; our cells slowly stop multiplying at a fast rate and several vital chemicals needed for the maintenance of our body’s health stop being produced in large amounts.
It’s not all doom and gloom, but old age is a reality that we all must face. Researchers have found that the best way to slow down this process is to keep active, both mentally and physically and also be selective about what you put into your system. Lots of raw foods like vegetables and fruit, as well as nuts legumes and plenty of that good old H2O should keep your system fresh and revitalized.

One snack that is popular in many countries and readily available in every supermarket and food store has been making the headlines recently. Sunflower seeds have been found to have the potential to slow down the aging process; by lowering the chance of heart related illness, cutting your cholesterol in half and providing you with a good source of antioxidants. Eating a handful of these tasty snacks each day provides your body with good levels of fiber, protein, vitamins B5, vitamin E, magnesium and phosphorous, not to mention a fair quantity of folate, selenium and iron. In less developed countries these seeds have been nicknamed the poor mans multi vitamin, which is true as daily doses of sunflower seeds makes for a good supplement to any diet.

Researchers have found that this valuable food product contains high amounts of phytosterol, which is a substance with a similar structure to cholesterol. Phytosterol can effectively reduce the absorption of bad cholesterol into our bodies and in turn lower the risk of heart related illnesses and strokes.
If you’re not a fan of eating them raw, there are various recipes that use sunflower seeds as the main or extra ingredient.