Cinco de Mayo is less than two weeks away, so get ready for the celebration. There's a cool restaurant called Tortilla Flats that I usually visit on Cinco de Mayo, but I'm not sure if I'll be making it there this year. Either way, I'll still be sure to sip on a few Coronas and enjoy some salsa and guacamole. These foods, at first blush, may not exactly seem like the most appropriate choices for someone who writes about health and fitness. However, thanks to some research from The Journal of Nutrition and Penn State University, I feel I can enjoy this fare without feeling like a hypocrite.

Staring first with the beer; Penn State researchers found that drinking moderate amounts of alcohol can help thin the blood, thus preventing against the formation of heart attack-causing clots. So, barkeep, crack me open another one of those Coronas, if you don't mind. And yes, I'd like to run a tab.

As for the salsa and guacamole, eating these two foods together actually makes for a healthier meal than eating each separately. Allow me to explain. In order to fully benefit from the beta-carotene, leutin, and lycopene found in abundance in salsa, you should eat a good source of fat at the same time. According to the journal article, fatty acids help dissolve these cancer and heart disease-fighting components in your intestines, increasing their rate of absorption. And, since avocados (the primary ingredient in guacamole) contains a high amount of healthy fat, it's the perfect compliment to this spicy topping.