When you push through a tough workout, your muscles are constantly challenged, and their fibers begin to break down and sustain damage. The process of repairing and rebuilding those fibers, called muscle protein synthesis, uses amino acids from protein to encourage healthy recovery and muscular growth.

Being sick can wreak havoc on your appetite and your ability to stay properly nourished. But when you're ailing is the most important time to give your body a variety of nutrients and extra calories.

Pretzels are crunchy, low in fat and portable, but they're not necessarily healthy. A quick glance at the nutrition label on a package of pretzels reveals that they're quite low in fat, but many consumers choose to stop there and opt for pretzels as a supposedly healthy snack.

Prosciutto might look like thinly sliced deli ham, but it has a much bolder flavor that's part smoky, part tangy and part salty. The meat is often added to pizza or wrapped around fruits or vegetables, and that's fine every once in a while.

If you eat oranges for their vitamin C, bananas for their potassium and apples for their fiber, you may want to pick up some kiwifruit on your next shopping trip.

Pickled ginger, sometimes called Japanese pickled ginger or Gari, is white-beige to pale pink. Made from thinly shaved pieces of young ginger -- before ginger develops its papery skin -- pickled ginger is commonly served alongside sushi.

It's easy to forget about your tongue — unless it is sore. Every bite of food or sip of liquid is potentially painful when your tongue hurts. Foods that are highly acidic, spicy or salty typically provoke the most pain when your tongue is sore.

Protein is an essential nutrient that your body can use every day, so you’re not likely to eat so much of it that you’ll experience significant negative effects.

Eat a protein and carbohydrate snack within 15 minutes to two hours after your workout, depending on the intensity of your workout and your fitness goals.

Drinking alcohol, even in moderation, can have profound effects on the way your body absorbs vitamin B-12 and, if you are deficient in this vitamin, your health may suffer.

A well-balanced diet and proper hydration can help keep you and your breast-feeding baby healthy. Although vegetables provide rich amounts of vital nutrients and water, the American Pregnancy Association recommends avoiding certain varieties to prevent excessive gassiness in your little one.

You've been advised countless times about the dangers of too much sun, but you got a sunburn anyway. Now what? Here's everything you need to know about healing your sunburn.