by Ameenah Gumbi | Jan 19, 2022 | Health & Wellness
Moringa is a plant known as Moringa oleifera and also known as “Zogale” in Northern Nigeria. This plant is medicinal from the leaves down to its root. Moringa plant benefits include; use in treating “tired blood” or joint pain, as an antioxidant and treatment of many other illnesses.
People use Zogale in its natural form or powdered form or the oil extract. The plant can be eaten as a soup or garnished which is known as “Kwaɗan Zogale” in Northern Nigeria.
Every part of this plant is beneficial to humans. Here are some Moringa plant benefits to humans that we found useful for you.
10 Moringa Plant Benefits
1. It Is Good for Diabetes Patients
High sugar levels can risk your health conditions. It also gives you heart problems or diabetes over a period of time. Zogale fights diabetes by lowering blood sugar levels according to food scientists.
This plant improves the protein content in your urine. And regulate the haemoglobin content in our urine thereby treating diabetes. An increase in insulin and blood sugar levels can lead to the risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes.
The leaves of Zogale can reduce lipid, glucose levels, and oxidative stress in your body
2. Moringa is Good for the Liver
The liver cleans the blood and metabolizes the fat in your body. Zogale has high concentrations of polyphenols to reverse oxidation in the liver. It also increases the protein levels in the liver. The consumption of Zogale can reduce liver fibrosis and protect against liver damage.
It can also protect the liver from damages if you are suffering from tuberculosis. Zogale can also help reduce the negative effects of the drugs you are taking.
Another way you can also improve your liver health is by taking green tea.
3. Moringa is a Good Source of Nutrients
Zogale is known as the superfood. Since it is a good source of riboflavin, potassium, vitamin E, and magnesium. The leaves have more vitamin C than the rest of the plants.
Its leaves are also rich in vitamins A, C, B1, B2, B3, B6, and Folate. Zogale is also rich in magnesium, iron, calcium, phosphorus, and zinc.
4. Zogale is Good for the Skin and Hair
Zogale oil is good for protecting hair, keeping it clean and healthy. Since it contains protein that is helpful in protecting skin from damage. It also has hydrating and detoxifying elements, which also benefit the skin and hair.
Read: Loss of Hair Can Mean Something Serious
The leaves of Zogale improve the health and appearance of your skin. By decreasing the appearance of wrinkles on your skin. Since it has antioxidants and nutrients. Applying Zogale seed oil reduces dandruff, adds life, and bounces to dull hair by strengthening your hair follicles. They are also good for treating oedema and are present in a lot of skin and hair products.
5. Moringa Plant can Cure Stomach Aches
The powder of Zogale has about 30% fibre – and insoluble fibre that you need only for digestion purposes. This plant is a natural antibiotic and antibacterial plant. It may also help inhibit the growth of certain pathogenic bacteria in your body.
The extracts of Zogale can help treat some stomach disorders. Like constipation, gastritis, and ulcerative colitis. Since it is high in vitamin B content, it can assist people with digestion problems.
6. Zogale Aids in Weight Loss
The leaves of Zogale increase the rate of fat burn in your body. This is essential if you want to slim down without losing energy reserves. It helps in reducing cravings for food and boost metabolism. They also help in reducing cholesterol.
7. The Plant is Good for The Cardiovascular System
The Moringa plant has the ability to lower blood pressure and improve heart function. One of the benefits of Zogale is the reduction of inflammation, lowering oxidative stress, and relaxing arteries to improve blood flow in your body.
The antioxidants found in the extract of Zogale might help prevent cardiac damage. It is also known to help in maintaining a healthy heart. The extracts can help lower cholesterol and improve heart health.
8. Moringa is a Good Antioxidant
Zogale has anti-oxidative properties and protects against the effects of free radicals. It is rich in vitamin C and beta-carotene that act against free radicals.
They also have Quercetin which that can lower blood pressure and chlorogenic acid that can regulate blood sugar levels after taking your meals.
9. It Also Helps with Inflammation
Inflammation is the way your body responds to cellular injury. Zogale has anti-inflammatory effects in humans. Food scientists have seen Zogale significantly lower inflammation in cells. The inflammation that lowers polyphenols and isothiocyanates.
Zogale reduces the inflammation in your body by suppressing inflammatory enzymes and proteins in the body.
10. Moringa Plant can Boost Sexual Activity
Stress can affect your sex life since it can affect your hormone levels by increasing cortisol and decreasing dopamine. Researchers believe it can bring down cortisol levels and also boost testosterone levels.
Zogale is used to treat erectile dysfunction as a traditional medicine eating as an aphrodisiac food option.
Conclusion
The Moringa plant benefits (Zogale) are quite vast. These benefits include being nutritious, lowering blood sugar levels down to help your skin. There is a variety of dishes that you can make with Zogale.
How do you like to use your Moringa (Zogale) plant? Kindly leave your comments below or share them with your loved ones to let us know if you prefer using the leaves, powder, or prefer using the oil.
by Umar Farouk Kabir | Jan 18, 2022 | Tech & Innovation
I am quite sure you have at some point in time heard about clean energy. Perhaps you have heard about but you don’t know what it actually is. ‘If there is such a thing as clean energy, does that mean an unclean energy exists?’
If you need answers to these questions, then you have come to the right place. So, what is clean energy?
Clean energy is energy that comes from renewable, zero-emission sources that do not contaminate the atmosphere when used.
What Does Clean Energy Mean Exactly?
Clean energy is regarded as clean simply because it is energy that is gotten from sources that do not produce greenhouse gases or any other pollutants. Often at times, clean energy is mistaken for green energy. Although they may have similarities, they are not the same in fact. While clean energy is gotten from sources that do not produce contaminants or greenhouse gases, green energy is energy that is gotten from natural sources. There is a subtle difference between the two types of energies regardless of the similarities.
We also have to talk about renewable energy.
Renewable energy is energy generated from sources that are constantly being recharged or replenished. The ideal clean energy combination occurs where green energy combines with renewable energy. The perfect example of this is wind energy.
Below is a simple cheat sheet to help remember the difference between the three energies.
- Clean energy = clean air / no air pollution.
- Green energy = natural sources.
- Renewable energy = energy that is replenished.
How Does Clean Energy Work?
Its working principle is quite simple actually. Clean energy works by utilizing renewable energy and virtually inexhaustible sources like the sun and wind to create energy that has zero negative impact on the environment. On top of all that, I can have a positive impact on climate change.
What Are the Benefits of Clean Energy?
Clean energy provides a variety of benefits that are both economic and environmental.
When talking about the environmental benefits of clean energy, the first thing to highlight is the massive reduction of air pollution. Thanks to the massive rise in technology, there are more factories now than there ever were at any point in history. While this certainly sounds like awesome news, it is not without cause for concern. Factories burn a lot of fossil fuels and chemicals which have byproducts that are quite detrimental to our atmosphere. With clean energy though, the scary statistical digits regarding the slow death of our planet will be significantly reduced.
When talking about the positive economic impact of clean energy, we must understand that a diverse supply of clean energy will most certainly reduce the over-dependence on fossil fuel which in turn will cut short fuel importation and the associated financial costs it incurs.
Another economic advantage is that, with clean energy, there is no need to spend money on manpower and machinery trying to extract and transport fuel as is the case with oil. Renewable clean energy replenishes itself naturally.
Also, clean energy will provide job opportunities as it will need manpower to manufacture and install.
How It Is Used
Definitely, you will wonder “What is clean energy used for?” well, clean energy is used for a lot of things. Earlier, we made mention of wind energy as a prime example of renewable clean energy, let us dive in a little bit deeper.
Wind power can be harnessed using a windmill and a generator; this is one of the most common ways of doing it. The windmill is attached to the generator. The turning of the windmill blades is converted to useable energy by the generator. This type of energy harness has been used for ages to do all sorts of mechanical tasks. This clean energy is also used to generate electricity, although on small scale.
Another way of using clean energy is through the use of solar panels. Clean energy in the form of solar energy is used for heating, lighting buildings, generating electricity, and cooling. The solar energy from the sun is collected, stored, and transformed into usable energy through the use of solar panels.
We also have clean energy in the form of hydroelectricity. The kinetic energy from the flowing rivers and streams is used the turn turbines which in turn generate electricity.
Are All Renewable Sources of Energy Clean?
An energy source has to be by definition ‘clean’ in order to be considered as clean energy. That means it has to emit zero toxic byproducts when used.
To answer the question above, not all renewable energy sources are clean. A simple example is the burning of wood or charcoal. The wood itself that is used as fuel is renewable, but the byproduct emitted in the form of carbon is by far not clean. This is where solar energy, geothermal energy, hydroelectricity, and wind energy are regarded as truly clean energy.
Conclusion
This is a field that is still very much in its early stages, and each day, more breakthroughs are being discovered through extensive research and experimentation. While this is the case, it is not farfetched to say that clean energy is the future of the power and energy sector across the globe.
As the endeavour in the pursuit of clean, green, and renewable energy intensifies, work will be created and costs will fall.
People around the globe are increasingly becoming aware of the environmental and economic benefits of clean energy. It is time to ditch the old ways go clean!
If you enjoyed this write-up, visit Northpad Nigeria for more eye-opening articles on finance, technology, personal wellbeing, and so much more.
by Johnson Temiloluwa | Jan 17, 2022 | Business & Finance
Starting a business in Nigeria is quite overwhelming and as such, some processes are necessary to be kept in place. In order to function with near-zero technicality hassle, one of the essential things to do as a businessman or a company owner is to register your company in Nigeria. More so, With CAC.
What are the benefits of registering your company in Nigeria? Who or what is CAC? How can you register your company in Nigeria? Your questions will be answered below, stay with me.
CAC is an acronym for Corporate Affairs Commission. The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) of Nigeria was established in 1990 vide Companies and Allied Matters Act No. 1 (CAMA) 1990 as amended, now on Act cap C20 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria. Its establishment, structure, and funding are now governed by the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020. It is an autonomous body charged with the responsibility to regulate the formation and management of companies in Nigeria.
Benefits of Registering Your Company With CAC In Nigeria.
- With a certificate from CAC, you can open a corporate bank account.
- When you register a company in Nigeria, you can apply for loans and grants.
- It places your company in a good structure
- Your company name legitimately belongs to you
- You have access to interns from NYSC once your business is registered
- Customers are rest assured of a traceable account that they pay into.
- Everyone sees your business/company as a legit one.
- Breeds opportunities
- Investors look at the branding of a company before showing interest, if you register your company, you are well-positioned for investors.
- Improves the reputation that your business might already have.
- When you die, so long as your business structure is set and you have registered your company, your company business can continue.
How to Register Your Company With CAC
A business can be registered in two forms:
1. Registering with a Business Name
This name is registered by a sole proprietor with a maximum limit of two people. The liabilities of the company rely on you – the owner of the company.
2. Registering and a Limited Liability Company
Before now, registering a company as a Limited Liability Company (LLC) is usually done for a company/business with two directors and a secretary. However, a new development has allowed one person to be able to register as an LLC. The liabilities of the company are carried by the company.
So back to the point, how to register a company with CAC. By and large, there are two ways to do this:
1. Register with CAC E-Portal
As long as you understand the requirements and process of registering online, doing this with the CAC e-portal is easy. The initiative has made registering a company in Nigeria a near easy-peasy-squeezy experience. Such that you can reserve your company name so it doesn’t get picked by another. The name would be reserved for 60 days while you continue your registration process.
Below are the steps involved:
- Log on to CAC portal – services.cac.gov.ng
- Sign up with CAC (or log in if you already have an account with them)
- Type in your preferred name to see if it hasn’t been picked yet. If it hasn’t, reserve the name and if it has, make another choice of name. Approval will be sent in an hour or a day.
- Fill and follow through with the other procedures as directed. Input the columns with the necessary information.
- Pay filing and Stamp duty fees.
- An electronic Certificate of Registration and Certified Extract of Registration information will be sent to you.
If the process is well-executed and all conditions are met, the CAC will register the business and issue the certificate and other registration documents electronically. A query will be sent if the application is not rightly and properly filled.
However, the whole process may need a CAC agent or a legal practitioner. You’ll see in the procedure where it is needed.
2. Register with the help of Mediahooch
Mediahooch is a branding and marketing hub that is interested and willing to help your brand. If you are someone like me that doesn’t like stress, then your sure bet is having Mediahooch handle it for you.
Conclusion
With all of this said, your business is better protected when registered with CAC. I have a feeling this is not the first time you are seeing this. If it is, then, you are on the right path.
You could also check the 6 Things to Consider Before Starting a Business
by Umar Farouk Kabir | Nov 10, 2021 | Health & Wellness
Why don’t you switch that morning cup of coffee with a nice cup of green tea? Why you may ask, well, it’s fairly simple. Green tea is a superfood!
Green tea has been around for centuries. Originating from China, it quickly gained popularity as its many benefits were discovered by the rest of the world.
Green tea is made from unoxidized Camellia sinensis leaves and is one of the least processed types of tea. This is why it contains the most antioxidants.
Those that already take this beverage, already know of its many benefits. For those who are new, allow me to enlighten you about the numerous benefits of green tea, you’ll surely be a regular consumer of this tea by the time you’re through reading this!
The 10 Benefits of Green Tea
Here, we shall discuss the major and scientifically proven benefits of regular green tea consumption.
1. Green Tea Is Useful for Weight Loss
One of the most efficient and healthy ways to speed up your metabolism is through the consumption of green tea. When your metabolism is high, you break down calories from foods quite quickly. When the body burns calories fast, it inhibits weight gain.
Green tea helps in bumping up the speed at which food is broken and absorbed by the body. The more fat the body burns, the better the circulation of blood due to the reduced cholesterol levels. Enjoy a cup of tea and relish the fact that the pesky excess fat is being put to good use!
2. It Helps with A Healthy Heart
One of the many benefits of green tea consumption is that it improves cardiovascular conditions. Through a high amount of consumption of some foods, one develops fatty deposits in the blood vessels, this is called cholesterol. This cholesterol is a waxy type of fat that tends to restrict blood flow in the system. When there is too much of this cholesterol, it builds upon the walls of the arteries thereby making it narrow and reducing blood flow to the heart; this is what causes coronary heart disease.
Green tea helps in reducing these cholesterol levels that play a part in several heart diseases. Consumption of green tea reduces the amount of LDL( low-density lipoprotein) which is sometimes called bad cholesterol.
Give your heart a fighting chance. Go get that green tea
3. Green Tea Aids in The Prevention of Cancer
Another major benefit of green tea is that it contains some elements called flavonoids. These metabolites fight and to some extent kill off cancerous cells in the body.
Research has been conducted in countries where green tea consumption is high. In this research, it was discovered that some cancer rates tend to be lower in such countries.
Furthermore, the research showed some evidence of the benefits of green tea consumption for lowering the risk of cancerous cell generation within the body.
Some of the cancers green tea impacts positively include:
Breast cancer
Lung cancer
Prostate cancer
Skin cancer
Colon cancer
Ovarian cancer
Bladder cancer
Oesophagal cancer
Green tea has a lot of antioxidants majorly because it is unprocessed and unoxidized. Here’s a pro tip; avoid adding milk to your green tea as studies show that milk reduces the antioxidants properties.
4. It Has Healthy Skin and Anti-Aging Properties
For those that are extra enthusiastic about skincare routines, this is great news. Green tea is a tasty and cheap way of maintaining that youthful and fresh look without having to rely heavily on expensive cosmetics.
The primary agent responsible for this is polyphenol. This agent found in green tea has been shown to slow and to some extent reverse skin ageing and repair skin damage. The ultraviolet rays that we expose ourselves to daily hurt the overall health of our skin.
The carcinogenic activity of the ultraviolet radiation from the sun and other man-made sources causes what is known as photoaging. Photoaging refers to those pesky wrinkles and spots that appear on our skin as we grow older.
A regular cup of healthy green tea is what you need to help you maintain a youthful and exuberant look.
5. Green Tea Improves Brain Activity and Improves Mood
Another great benefit of green tea consumption is that it helps boost brain function and improves mood. A lot of tea drinkers look to their cups whenever they feel distressed and need a little ‘pick-me-up’. This isn’t just because of purely sentimental reasons. There is a genuinely scientific and logical reason behind that. One of the main components thought to be responsible for this is the caffeine content found in green tea.
Green tea goes as far as improving brain activity by increasing alertness, improving memory retention and even reducing anxiety. I’m sure now you really want to add green tea to that shopping list if you aren’t a fan already.
6. Green tea Helps to Repair Cell Damage
The DNA in the body’s cells are destroyed by what are known as free radicals. Free radicals are basically oxygen-containing molecules that are naturally produced by the body as a byproduct of metabolism. These molecules are highly unstable and cause damage to the cells of the body.
Green tea contains micronutrients called polyphenols, which are antioxidants that help the body to eliminate these free radicals swimming in your system.
7. Green Tea Fights Against Diabetes
The Benefits of green tea just keep getting better and better, don’t they?
You’ve learned how green tea fights cancerous cells and cholesterol levels, now, you’ll learn how it fights against diabetes.
Diabetes is a disease associated with high blood sugar levels. High blood sugar levels may result in damage to several precious organs including the kidney.
Green tea helps to control and lower the blood sugar level of the body through polysaccharides and thermogenic properties consequently controlling and preventing type II diabetes in adults.
8. Green Tea Helps Maintain Healthy Kidneys
Frequent consumption of green tea has been proven to be beneficial to the overall health of the Kidneys in several ways.
It protects the kidney from oxidative reactions of the free radicals in the body
Green tea improves blood supply to the kidney
It neutralizes the toxicity of heavy metals in the kidney
9. One of The Benefits of Green Teas Is That It Improves Liver Health
Another great benefit of this amazing tea is that it improves liver health.
The antioxidants in green tea help the liver to function effectively in the eradication of toxins from the body.
Catechins found in green tea react with and neutralize the harmful effects of heavy metals freeing the liver from their adverse effects.
10. It Helps Get Rid of Bad Breath
Let’s face it, nobody likes bad breath.
If you’re suffering from it or know someone who is, you’ll find this benefit of green tea especially interesting.
Green tea contains antimicrobial agents acting against bacteria and other microorganisms that cause bad breath. Catechins in green tea inhibit the growth of streptococcus mutans which is a common bacterium that causes mouth bad breath.
Conclusion
For the movie lovers, the avid readers of fiction, you all must have heard of the fictional substance called the elixir of life said to give eternal life and cure all diseases. That sounds amazing, doesn’t it? Well, it is not far-fetched to think of green tea as an elixir of life. While it does not give immortality, it does help in preventing and fighting a lot of diseases and generally improving the quality of one’s health.
Try adding green tea to your daily diet, you will be delightfully surprised by the positive effects and changes you’ll notice to your overall health.
by Ajibike Maryam Olaitan | Jul 11, 2021 | Personal Growth
One sensible thing you can do for yourself when everything happening around you seems chaotic is to write, keep a journal. But surprisingly, when we hear the word “journal”, what comes to mind is an image of a teenage girl on her bed, writing about all the boys in her class. But the definition of a journal is way more than just a teenagers’ diary.
A journal is a record of your daily life, events, experiences, thoughts, feelings, ideas, achievements and happenings around you, more like your “amebo or gist partner” doesn’t matter your age, so why shouldn’t you have one? Before we look into reasons why you should keep a journal, let’s take a look at few types of journals, and trust me I would chip in some reasons to convince you before the end of this article.
Food Journal
Whether you are a foodie or not, you should definitely keep a food journal. This would help you keep track of what you eat during the day, eliminate the ones that are not healthy, in case you are struggling to lose weight. A food journal would also help you to determine what foods to eat to increase your metabolism or what foods are bad for you.
Travel Journal
A travel journal helps you keep track of the places you have been to, the experiences, challenges you embarked on and also fun moments.
Fitness Journal
Keeping a fitness journal is really important as it helps you monitor every single workout, how your body reacts to the exercises and also how your body feels on the rest days.
A fitness journal also helps you know what workout works best for your body type.
To-Do List
This is the most important type of journal, as it helps you stay organized. Instead of bombarding your brain with a lot of things to do, write them down and at the end of the day cross out the ones you were able to complete and try to figure out why you couldn’t complete the rest.
The list doesn’t just end with the above types listed, you can keep whatever type of journal you want, be it an appreciation journal, goal tracker journal or a dream journal. Now, let’s dive into those reasons I promised you and I am sure that at this stage, you are already thinking about what type of journal to keep.
Why You Should Keep A Journal
1. Keeping a Journal Improve Writing Skill
Journaling helps to improve your writing skill, this is because the more you write, the more perfect you get at writing. You probably might want to ask “do I just write anything?”, heck yes, as long as you write, it doesn’t matter what.
2. It Helps Keep Track of Your Progress
Keeping a journal such as a fitness or a to-do list journal, helps you keep track of your progress and what to do in order to get better.
3. A Journal Improves Your Memory
When you write something down, it lets your brain know that you want to remember it again. It is proven that students who take notes during a lecture retain information better because the act of writing lets your brain know that it should pay attention.
4. Keeping a Journal Helps Achieve Goals
When you write down your goals, it serves as a reminder of what and what you need to achieve at what specific time, it also helps you stay accountable to your set down goals.
5. Journals Improve Communication Skill
You learn to express yourself effectively when you keep a journal, which in turn helps you communicate better. Writing leads to a clear mind, which leads to clear communication.
6. They can Serve as Record For the Future
A good journal is like wine; it gets better as it gets older.
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7. Keeping a journal is a gift you give the future you, reading what you wrote can give you an insight into how far you have come. It also makes you appreciate the moments you have had, either good or bad and how they have helped you become who you are.
7. Inspiring Creativity Is One of the Reasons You Should Keep a Journal
You should keep a journal because it helps you harness your inner creativity. The more you write, the more you discover different thoughts, expressions and ideas you never knew you had in you.
8. A Journal Reduce Stress
When you write your thoughts and feelings, you decongest your mind and make it easier for your brain to process those thoughts and feelings that formed up throughout the day.
This act will help you sleep better at night.
9. Journals Help You Heal
Writing serves as a tool for emotional, physical and psychological healing. When you put your traumatic experiences into writing, it helps you free yourself from the experiences, which might lead to depression.
10. It Helps to Boost Self-Esteem
The more you write about positive experiences and results, the more your brain relives those moments and builds a mental shield when doubts try to prevent you from achieving your goals.
Conclusion
Always remember that journaling is not hard, what is hard is starting the habit. But, when you do start, no matter what type of journal you decide to keep, what’s most important is the fact that you made that choice to connect with your mind, body and soul.
