Soup to Nuts

Turning to medications to treat sickness is always an option (believe me, drug companies aren't going away any time soon). However, there are sometimes more natural ways to help remedy what ails you. Here are two examples:

1 - Weight Loss. Instead of trying out Alli or any other popular weight loss drug on the market, try this little weight loss tip. Whenever you go out to dinner, eat a cup of broth-based soup (i.e. chicken, tomato) as an appetizer. New research into people's restaurant eating habits shows that people who consume a cup of soup as an appetizer tend to eat 20-percent less of their entree. The key is to stay away from cream soups of any kind, and to opt for a cup rather than a bowl. You may also want to add a little chili powder, especially since capsaicin, the compound found in chili pepper, has been shown in lab tests to actually kill fat cells.

2 - Lower Blood Pressure. While there are many trusted medications available to treat high blood pressure, you may also want to consider eating pistachio nuts. Penn State nutritionists discovered that eating one and a half ounces of pistachios daily for one month helped keep test subjects' blood pressure down. What's more, eating three ounces per day also showed signs of arterial relaxation, allowing for better blood flow and making the heart's job that much easier.