Health

You don't need to go on a diet to lose weight

2007-12-07T21:54:00.000-08:00

You don't need to go on a diet to lose weight

by: Julie Tucker

You are reading this article probably for one of two reasons.

1. You want a weight loss program that works
2. You are a serial dieter, because you can never lose weight and then keep it off.In fact you seem to end up heavier and more depressed than before

Possibly a third reason would be that you have become very cynical about all the new diets promoted by the 'stars' of television and the movies!!
Perhaps like me, you just see it as a means for fading stars making money by endorsements.

Most female stars are thin, and if you knew how much they starved themselves because they believe thin is beautiful, you might, or might not be surprised!!

Perhaps I'm just an old cynic too!!

There are a number of excuses we make for ourselves so we program in defeat before we begin a weight loss program.

The first thing to note is, that we are all on a diet all the time, so why go on a diet to lose weight!!

Our diet is what we are eating now, and all we really need to know is that if we eat 3000 calories per day, but only expend 2800 calories per day, then we will get heavier, until our increased weight means we need to expend 3000 calories just to lumber around!!

This may be simplistic, but it is a very simple principle.

Taking the whole thing in reverse, it should therefore be possible to lose weight by reducing the calorie intake on a daily basis.

Unfortunately this doesn't work for long.
Supposing you decrease your calories from 3000 per day to 2000, then logically you will lose weight, and for a while you do.
Two things happen, and the first is that you need less calories for your daily energy requirements because you weigh less, but secondly and more importantly the internal computer we all have detects that starvation is on the way, and it automatically reduces our energy use, so we only expend 2000 calories a day.
In addition it lays down fat deposits, as a 'rainy day' store anticipating a future without enough food.

Low calorie diets just don't work for this reason.

In fact 'diets' don't work because of the association the word 'diet' has. Diet means pain and torture, and it is interesting to discover what springs into your mind when you hear the 'D' word.
Excuses, and reasons pour out, and phrases like
1. You just put all the weight back on again
2. I'm too busy to eat healthily
3. I can't keep track of my eating
4. It takes too long to see results
5. The food on a diet is boring!!

The main comment seems to use the words 'willpower' - as in I don't have any!!

So let us examine some simple principles.

Suppose you are 28 pounds overweight, how happy would you be, if it took you a year to lose it, and then it stayed off permanently?

You would be less than sensible to say that is too long a time span, because it almost certainly went on slowly, a pound at a time, at first unnoticed!!

Forget the word ‘diet’.

Just do the following:
1. Write down everything you eat and drink over a seven day peiod.
2. Let a close friend see it, and ask them to circle your ‘vices’. We all have them, whether it is cookies, or chocolate, or wine. It may be biscuits, or two pints of milk a day – whatever.

All you need to do is find an easy way to eat less of them!!

Do this now.
Think of something that really makes you feel sick.
In my case it would be finding a cigarette end in a can I was drinking at a party
It would be imagining all the hairs that stick in the plug in the wash hand basin being in a glass of milk.
It might be finding a fly in your mouth when you drink cola.

Then do the following.

Take your thumb, and rub it against your four finger in small circular motions, whilst thinking of the thing that makes you nauseous, and you will feel really sick.

All you have to do, is to associate that with the item of food, be it milk, chocolate, cookies, wine or whatever. Every time you are tempted just rub your thumb and forefinger together, and temptation will vanish!!

Just by doing that you will begin the process of slow weight loss.

You are not on a diet – never forget, all you want is weight control, and that simple step will go a long way towards helping you to achieve your ideal weight, whilst painlessly cutting out your ‘vices’.

You Can Lose Weight on a High Carbohydrate Diet

2007-12-07T21:53:00.002-08:00

You Can Lose Weight on a High Carbohydrate Diet

by: David Snape

A startling fact is that carbohydrates are not responsible for making people fat.
Don't feel too badly though, you are not the only person who was sold on the idea
that a high protein, low carb diet was the only way to lose weight.

Here is a simple way to demonstrate this fact. Think about the vegetarians you know,
are there any overweight problems among them? The high protein diets rely on a lot
of animal fats and proteins, but these vegetarians don't eat them. Startling indeed, isn't it?

Maybe you don't know any vegetarians. They certainly are hard to find, especially in
the Midwest, where I live.

You may wonder about the science involved here. After all, many of those folks
promoting the low carb diets are medical doctors, aren't they? Being a medical doctor doesn't mean that you don't ever make any mistakes. Besides, the same science that supports the low carb diet also supports the high carb diet. They didn't get it wrong, they just didn't consider the whole story.

That might sound like a contradiction, but it isn't. I'm going to explain why in just
a moment. Fist, let me give you the science on this. You most likely are not a
biochemist or a physiologist and neither am I. But I have studied the subjects a
bit. Don't focus on the technical jargon in the next paragraph, just try to grasp the
overall point. You don't need to be a scientist to use common sense and basic
reasoning skills. Ready?

Consider this bit of biochemistry. Malonyl -CoA exists in high amounts when there is plenty of metabolic fuel present. Thus, carnitine acyltransferase is inhibited and this in turn prevents acyl-CoA from crossing into the cell’s mitochondria. Another enzyme is inhibited by the presence of NADH and Thiolase is also inhibited by the presence of Acetyl-COA. In short, when a lot of glucose is present, fatty acid metabolism is inhibited.

It is the last sentence that clues us in here. Basically, a cell will not convert
fats into energy if there is glucose present. When the cell has carbs and sugar to work on, it will not convert the fat to energy, thus the fat gets stored.

This is why the low carb diets work, with little to zero carbohydrates and subsequently glucose to work on, the fat will be used for energy. This is exactly why the high carb diet works too. When no or little fat is present, it won't be stored as fat.

In addition to this, it is important to realize that it costs the body quite a bit of energy to take carbs and store them as fat. This alone is actually a positive. There really needs to be some form of fat present to make it easier.

This should help you understand that whatever your diet consists of, if you want to remain or get thin, you need to avoid mixing fats and carbs together. A fat consists of a fatty acid head and a carbohydrate tail. This means when you mix your fat and carbs together you are asking for trouble, assuming you care about weight, that is.

So now it should be clear why so many people in North America have a weight problem as the NIH was happy to point out a few weeks ago. Think about the typical American diet. It generally consists of lots of combinations of fat and carbs.

As Dr. Neal Barnard points out in his book, "Foods That Cause You To Lose Weight", It is fat that makes people fat.

Don't want to be a vegetarian? I don't blame you. Really, you don't have to be one. Just quit mixing your proteins/fats and carbohydrates together.

Don't overlook the obvious, there is ton of candy and desserts out there that are a mixture of fat and sugar. Meat and potatoes - perhaps this classic is a serious blunder in seperating proteins/fats and carbs. You can probably come up with dozens of examples of potentially fattening mixtures of food on your own.

There are a number of factors to consider when changing your diet.

This article is for information only. It is not intended to prescribe, treat or diagnose any health problem. Consult your physician before changing your diet.

Why the Low GI Diet is the Key to Your Weight Loss Goals

2007-12-07T21:53:00.001-08:00

Why the Low GI Diet is the Key to Your Weight Loss Goals

by: Wesley Atkins

Losing weight is one of the hardest goals Americans annually seek to accomplish. The weight loss industry is huge and incorporates every type of fad diet, pill, cream, and lotion possible. Instead of falling prey to one of these "lose weight quickly" fads, entrust your weight loss into something that will guarantee you results: a low GI diet.

This diet is certainly nothing new and does not require purchase of any expensive diet foods that are usually packed with preservatives. A low GI diet is much more than a typical diet- it is truly a change in your lifestyle, health, and overall well being.

What does GI Stand for Anyway?

The "GI" in GI diet stands for Glycemic Index. The Glycemic Index is based on the carbohydrate content of food and how quickly those carbohydrates affect your blood glucose level. Foods with a high Glycemic Index are quickly digested and turned into sugar. It is no surprise that these foods usually lack necessary vitamins or nutrients and contain needless calories and fats. Foods with a high Glycemic Index (foods ranking 70 or greater on the scale) include:

* Foods high in sugar or glucose
* Baked or mashed potatoes
* White Rice
* Regular (not whole grain) bread
* Cookies, cakes, muffins, doughnuts
* Junk foods

A Little Thought and Preparation Make a Big Difference

The method of food preparation also affects the Glycemic Index. Foods that are cooked or pre-cooked have a higher GI. For example, instant oatmeal or grits have a higher Glycemic Index than the same foods cooked in a more traditional manner. Due to this reason, individuals who are on a low GI diet tend to put more thought into foods consumed and tend to consume less pre- cooked, pre-packaged foods filled with preservatives or additives.

It's All About Choices

By choosing to consume foods with a low Glycemic Index, you are making a conscious effort to consume foods that are nutritious and good for you. This diet is also critical for individuals with diabetes or other conditions that make it necessary to monitor their blood sugar levels. Make the conscious commitment to embark on a low GI diet and create a healthy lifestyle.

What foods are classified as low GI? You will certainly be surprised with the incredibly long list of options available to individuals currently pursuing a low GI diet! These low GI (55 or less) foods include:

* Most fruits (apples, pears, oranges, berries, etc.)
* High fiber grains (bran, whole grain wheat's)
* Pastas
* Whole milk
* Low-fat yogurt
* Lentils
* Whole grain cereals (Special K, All Bran, etc)

These foods are readily incorporated into a daily diet and intermixed with foods that have a medium rank on the Glycemic Index between 56 and 69. These foods should be eaten sparingly, thoroughly mixed with the low GI foods. Such medium GI foods include:

* Boiled potatoes
* Dried fruits (raisins and apricots)
* Ice Cream
* Shortbread cookies

Where's the Meat?

If you are wondering where fresh meat, eggs, cheese, and vegetables rank on the Glycemic Index, it is because these foods do not contain carbohydrates. For this reason, they are deemed suitable to consume and still abide by the guidelines of the low GI diet. Whether you are a bona fide meat eater or a staunch vegetarian, you are sure to succeed on this great diet.

A low GI diet is excellent for any individual wishing to lose weight without giving up the foods they love. This diet will allow you to joyfully consume beloved breads and perfect pastas without guilt! If you find yourself wanting a lifestyle change and are ready to lose weight, you'll definitely want to look for more in-depth information on the easily adaptable GI diet.

Why The Low GI Diet Is The Key To Your Weight Loss Goals!

2007-12-07T21:52:00.002-08:00

Why The Low GI Diet Is The Key To Your Weight Loss Goals!

by: Wesley Atkins

Losing weight is one of the hardest goals Americans annually seek to accomplish. The weight loss industry is huge and incorporates every type of fad diet, pill, cream, and lotion possible. Instead of falling prey to one of these “lose weight quickly” fads, entrust your weight loss into something that will guarantee you results: a low GI diet.

This diet is certainly nothing new and does not require purchase of any expensive diet foods that are usually packed with preservatives. A low GI diet is much more than a typical diet—it is truly a change in your lifestyle, health, and overall well being.

What does GI Stand for Anyway?

The “GI” in GI diet stands for Glycemic Index. The Glycemic Index is based on the carbohydrate content of food and how quickly those carbohydrates affect your blood glucose level. Foods with a high Glycemic Index are quickly digested and turned into sugar. It is no surprise that these foods usually lack necessary vitamins or nutrients and contain needless calories and fats. Foods with a high Glycemic Index (foods ranking 70 or greater on the scale) include:

• Foods high in sugar or glucose
• Baked or mashed potatoes
• White Rice
• Regular (not whole grain) bread
• Cookies, cakes, muffins, doughnuts
• Junk foods

A Little Thought and Preparation Make a Big Difference

The method of food preparation also affects the Glycemic Index. Foods that are cooked or pre-cooked have a higher GI. For example, instant oatmeal or grits have a higher Glycemic Index than the same foods cooked in a more traditional manner. Due to this reason, individuals who are on a low GI diet tend to put more thought into foods consumed and tend to consume less pre-cooked, pre-packaged foods filled with preservatives or additives.

It’s All About Choices

By choosing to consume foods with a low Glycemic Index, you are making a conscious effort to consume foods that are nutritious and good for you. This diet is also critical for individuals with diabetes or other conditions that make it necessary to monitor their blood sugar levels. Make the conscious commitment to embark on a low GI diet and create a healthy lifestyle.

What foods are classified as low GI? You will certainly be surprised with the incredibly long list of options available to individuals currently pursuing a low GI diet! These low GI (55 or less) foods include:

• Most fruits (apples, pears, oranges, berries, etc.)
• High fiber grains (bran, whole grain wheat’s)
• Pastas
• Whole milk
• Low-fat yogurt
• Lentils
• Whole grain cereals (Special K, All Bran, etc)

These foods are readily incorporated into a daily diet and intermixed with foods that have a medium rank on the Glycemic Index between 56 and 69. These foods should be eaten sparingly, thoroughly mixed with the low GI foods. Such medium GI foods include:

• Boiled potatoes
• Dried fruits (raisins and apricots)
• Ice Cream
• Shortbread cookies

Where’s the Meat?

If you are wondering where fresh meat, eggs, cheese, and vegetables rank on the Glycemic Index, it is because these foods do not contain carbohydrates. For this reason, they are deemed suitable to consume and still abide by the guidelines of the low GI diet. Whether you are a bona fide meat eater or a staunch vegetarian, you are sure to succeed on this great diet.

A low GI diet is excellent for any individual wishing to lose weight without giving up the foods they love. This diet will allow you to joyfully consume beloved breads and perfect pastas without guilt! If you find yourself wanting a lifestyle change and are ready to lose weight, you’ll definitely want to look for more in-depth information on the easily adaptable GI diet.

Why the HAPPY DIET works

2007-12-07T21:52:00.001-08:00

Why the HAPPY DIET works

by: Kacy Carr

Understanding why and how the happy diet works.

There is a simple explanation and that being is you get to choose what you want to eat. Most diets today prove to be very stressful for many men and women in their quest to lose weight. This is because they are following instructions from others on what they should and should not be eating. How do these people know? What tickles your fancy?

Discover how the happy diet can work for you, what is the happy diet you ask. It is a diet carefully devised by youself with all the things that you like to eat. You get to choose your own meats fresh fruit and vegetables

Diets definitely work if you adhere to all the rules, break them then no results. Now let us get cracking on a diet that makes sense and guaranteed to put a smile on your face
Just imagine your own diet with all the juicy ingredients and succulent meats that suit your palette

Always consult a doctor if you are thinking about dieting or exercising as we individuals all differ in many ways.

A little research on daily intake of carbohydrate protein and fat is an important factor when devising your own diet. I suggest you browse magazines or approach slimming informational centres to find out about your chosen foods.

Find a list of all the foods that you know you are going to enjoy using in your recipes and that are good for helping you to shed those excess pounds. Then narrow it down to the ones that you want to have on your menu.

This part of the happy diet can prove to be very educational and fun to say the least. People accept diets and all the ingredients. This way you get to delve more intimately into the choices you have made for your own personal plan.

After checking all the important factors as in i.e. consulting the doctor and daily intake of fats etc. we are now ready for the physical side of things. A few ideas to help speed up the process (exercise) try dancing round the kitchen table with the kids they make think you are mad but who cares you are on a mission to find the new you.
Spring clean not once a week maybe twice. This will help hurry things along and into the bargain a cleaner house. Remember this is your plan so do it when it suits you. Results will only come if you stick to what you started out to do.
Walking a great form of exercise, why not consider salsa lessons it all helps. Do not expect results over night

For starters (Excuse the pun) throw out the frying pan.
Less grease on the plate to lose weight
Grilling with out a doubt is a far healthier and tastier option.

Cut down (YES) cut out (NO) you can still nibble on little goodies. Just cut down? Watch where others go wrong, most diets of course will not work if the rules are broken. Now why would you want to break the rules on the happy diet when all that is on the menu was chosen by you?

Why Many Fat Free Diets do not Work

2007-12-07T21:51:00.002-08:00

Why Many Fat Free Diets do not Work

by: Protica Research

Most people understand that it is wise to limit the amount of fat grams in their daily diet. The dietary reference intake amount for an adult ranges from 20% to 35%[i] of daily calories; or about 44 to 55 grams per day[1]. Since a single slice of pecan pie carries with it 27 grams of fat, and a mere tablespoon of thousand island salad dressing contains 8 grams of fat[ii], it is not surprising to see more and more people checking food labels and “passing over” an order of onion rings[2] as they try to lose, or maintain, inches and pounds.

However, the relentless avoidance of fat – even of healthy unsaturated fat – is creating a troubling scenario for many individuals. Instead of losing weight when they go “fat free”, they are actually gaining weight.

Many people on the road to weight loss forget – or simply do not know – that the words “fat free” do not also mean “calorie free”. As a result, many people ingest far too much “fat free” food, believing that it will not add weight, since, alas, it is dubbed “fat free”. Yet it is the calories in these fat-free foods that cause the weight gain; not the fat grams themselves[iii].

A single gram of fat contain nine calories, which is more than double the amount of calories in a gram protein or carbohydrate. Therefore, mathematically speaking, an eater can consume twice as many protein or carbohydrate grams than fat grams, and achieve the same caloric intake. Since many high-fat foods contain an excessive amount of fat grams – such as onion rings – it has become a staple of dieting wisdom to reduce fat intake and avoid such oily, greasy foods[3].

Yet it bears repeating that the reason to avoid fat-rich foods is not because of the word “fat”; it is because each fat gram contains a scale-tipping 9 calories. In other words: the weight-conscious reason for avoiding excess fat grams is because it leads to a higher caloric intake.

Dieters who neglect to realize this basic nutritional fact – that weight gain is about calories and not about fat grams themselves – fail to realize, and often at their eventual dismay, how the body actually gains and loses weight.

The typical adult male American diet calls for 2000 calories per day because this is how many calories are collectively use and burned (i.e. converted into energy) by the body each day. As an example, an average male dieter who consumes 1800 calories a day will “save” 200 calories per day. As there are 3,500 calories in a pound, the dieter in this scenario will “save” 3,600 calories over the course of 18 days (18 x 200 calories). This translates into a loss of one pound. Similarly, if this dieter consumes an excess 200 calories per day, a pound of weight will be gained in 18 days.

A dieter who is not aware of this mathematical formula may indeed avoid fat altogether and consume, for example, 6 tablespoons of “fat free” caramel topping per day; believing that this is not a part of the weight gain equation, because it is labeled as “fat free”. This is not false advertising, as fat free caramel topping contains no fat grams. However, fat free caramel topping delivers 103 calories per two tablespoon serving[iv].

If this dieter is adhering to a diet regimen of 44 fat grams per day -- and does not count calories -- then he will simply not know that in these 6 mere tablespoons are a substantial 309 calories; or 15% of the total daily caloric intake for a 2000 calorie/day diet.

In fact, a dieter could subsist entirely on “fat free” foods, and easily exceed their target daily caloric intake by their second meal of the day. These excess calories are obviously not deriving from fat grams; but they are coming from another source, most probably carbohydrates.

Again, the message here that many dieters do not receive from the advertising and marketing media is that fat grams in and of themselves do not necessarily “cause” weight gain. Rather, fat grams contribute to the total caloric intake, and they should be counted alongside carbohydrates and proteins.

Adding an unnecessary layer of complexity here is that many “healthy foods”, such as energy bars, contain an excessive amount of calories. A chocolate chip Energy Bar™, for example, contains 230 calories; which is actually only 40 calories less than a Butterfinger™ candy bar[v]. Unfortunately, because the Energy Bar contains 2 grams of fat and is therefore “low fat”, some dieters eat several per day; and pack on 230 calories each time, despite the fact that virtually none of those calories come from fat. It does not matter; the dieter will still gain weight if his or her daily caloric intake threshold is surpassed. Dieters who expect yogurt-covered bars to be “healthier” are also misled; the yogurt-berry Balance BarÔ contains 200 calories per serving, despite the fact that only 25% of the calories come from its 6 grams of fat.

However, there are some responsible nutritional supplement products on the market that are engineered to be both low fat/fat-free and low-calorie. These foods are of benefit to dieters when they are losing weight, and also in the vulnerable period after the weight has been lost. Regrettably, many very well intentioned dieters who have made tremendous strides and sacrifices to lose weight regain it within the first few “post-diet” months. While a number of factors influence whether a dieter will regain weight, including environment and genetics, one major culprit is that dieters are not provided with low-fat, low-calorie, and palatable food sources once they have achieved their weight loss goals. They consequently return to previous eating habits, and the unwanted weight returns within weeks.

However, as mentioned, there are intelligent nutritional supplements on the market that do fill this void, and ethically serve dieters – and post-dieters – with foods that they need to stay healthy, and fend off weight gain. For the sake of current and future dieters who are going to struggle with misleading “fat free” marketing, it is hoped that such intelligent companies, and their products, quickly become the norm of the future, rather than the exception of today.

Why Isn't My Diet Working?

2007-12-07T21:51:00.001-08:00

Why Isn't My Diet Working?

by: Hiram Perez

Have you been on a new diet for a couple of weeks and found that you STILL can't lose weight? Have you actually GAINED a pound or two since you've been on it? Are you just about ready to throw this diet out the window and try something else? Well, hold on a minute. There might be something else going on that's preventing your diet from working.

Getting your diet to work is like planting a seed in a garden. In order for the seed to grow, you have to plant it in good soil. You have to water it, fertilize it, and protect it from weeds. In other words, a seed needs a good environment if it's going to have any chance at all to sprout, take root, and grow.

Similarly, in order for your diet to start showing results for you, it also needs a good environment. Here are 10 "weeds" that will prevent the success of any diet and may actually be the reason that yours isn't working.

1. YOU'RE NOT REALLY SERIOUS ABOUT LOSING WEIGHT

For your diet to work, you obviously have to be serious about losing weight. You need to have the right mental attitude about weight loss. In other words, you have to get your "head right." This includes:

a. Making a firm commitment to lose the weight, no matter what.
b. Making sure you're doing this for the right reasons. Trying to lose weight to please someone else never works.
c. Convincing yourself that you CAN lose the weight--and that you WILL!

If your diet isn't working, it could be because you're not really serious about losing the weight in the first place.

2. YOU'RE CHEATING ON YOUR DIET

Cheating on your diet and cheating on love both end in disappointment. Consistent weight loss requires, well, consistency. Most of us work so hard to stick to our diet during the week that we convince ourselves that we can splurge on the weekend. Or we think that because we skipped breakfast, we can have dessert with lunch. Both are a bad choice.

It's easy to convince yourself that having a small snack won't hurt, or that you'll work it off later. The problem is it does, and you never do. If your diet isn't working, it could be because you're not following it consistently.

3. YOU'RE NOT EATING FEWER CALORIES

I heard of someone that started one of those protein shake diets. He actually gained a couple of pounds. When he was asked how often he was drinking the shakes, he said, "I drink one with every meal." It never occurred to him that the shakes were supposed to replace his meals, not supplement them.

Many dieters buy low-cal foods, and then eat twice as much. Don't be one of them! The only way to lose weight is to reduce your total caloric intake. Make sure you reduce the size of your portions and cut out all snacks that are not part of your diet plan. If your diet isn't working--or if you've actually gained a pound or two--it could be because you're not eating fewer total calories.

4. YOU'RE NOT EATING THE RIGHT FOODS

Eating fewer calories is only part of the battle. You need to make sure that the foods you do eat are the right types. A good rule of thumb is to make sure you get plenty of fruits, salads, and dark green vegetables. Stay away from refined foods and starches and eat meat in very small amounts (sorry, I'm not an Atkins fan).

Leafy, green, water-rich vegetables will aid digestion, help keep you healthy, and will actually help your body get rid of excess fat. If your diet isn't working, it could be because you're not eating the right foods.

5. YOU'RE NOT DRINKING ENOUGH WATER

When you go on a diet, your body goes into overdrive to get rid of the excess fats and toxins that the diet liberates. Many diets (especially the protein ones) put a strain on your body's organs, especially the kidneys. Because of this, it's vital that you drink plenty of water.

Drinking 8 or so full glasses of water every day helps to flush out the excess fats and toxins your body is trying to eliminate. Drinking plenty of water has other benefits including reducing headaches and improving your hair and skin. If your diet isn't working, it could be because you're not drinking enough water.

6. YOU'RE NOT EXERCISING ENOUGH

The best way to increase the number of calories you burn is through exercise. Pick walking, running, playing sports, swimming, or whatever--just make sure that when you exercise, you actually exercise. Some people go to the gym to socialize, not to exercise. Make sure you're not one of them! Get to work and make sure you stay with it long enough to burn off some excess calories.

To lose weight, shoot for 20 to 30 minutes of aerobic exercise, every other day. Note that these 20-30 minutes do not include stretching, warm ups, cool downs, or checking yourself out in front of the mirror. Sure, these are an important part of your exercise routine but you're not going to lose any weight by stretching. At least 20 to 30 minutes of aerobic exercise, every other day.

If you've reduced the amount of calories you're eating and your diet isn't working, it could be because you're not exercising enough.

7. YOU'RE EXERCISING TOO HARD

This may be counterintuitive but it's true. If you exercise too hard, your body goes into an ANAEROBIC state (without oxygen). This is when you get so out of breath that you can't seem to take in enough air. When the body is in this state, it burns mostly carbohydrates and very little fat. This is why runners "carb up" before a big race--and also why runners have just as much body fat as the rest of us.

Slow your exercise down to no more than 85% of your maximum heart rate (subtract your age from 220 to get your max heart rate). At this pace, your body is in an AEROBIC state (with oxygen) and most of the calories that are burned are from fat, not carbs. An added benefit is that aerobic exercise tends to be low impact making it easy on your joints.

If you already get plenty of exercise and your diet still isn't working, it could be because you're exercising too hard.

8. YOU'RE NOT GETTING ENOUGH REST

We all live stressful lives. Dieting typically changes your eating and exercise habits-- two more stressor's your body has to deal with. The only chance your body has to relieve tension, rejuvenate and rebuild itself is during sleep so it's important to get enough when dieting.

Not getting enough sleep can actually slow your metabolism making weight loss difficult. It can also make you feel "groggy," which means you probably won't make the best food choices throughout the day. If your diet isn't working, it could be because you're not getting enough rest.

9. YOU'RE FIGHTING TOO MANY BATTLES AT ONCE

Weight loss requires both consistent effort and focus. You won't have either if you're trying to diet and deal with other "major events" in your life at the same time. Major events include things like changing jobs, moving to new house or city, trying to stop smoking, a death, accident, or sickness in the family, and so on. All of these things create a disruption in our lives and cause us to put everything--including our diets--on hold. To make matters worse, how do most of us deal with the stress caused by these major events? By snacking! Your diet doesn't have a chance.

So don't even try. Give yourself permission to put your diet on hold until you can give it the consistent energy and focus it needs. Choose your battles carefully and fight only one at a time. If your diet isn't working, it may be because you're trying to fight too many at once.

10. YOUR WEIGHT LOSS GOAL IS NOT REALISTIC

Like all good things, healthy weight loss takes time. Make sure you're not setting yourself up for disappointment by setting a weight loss goal that is totally unrealistic. This includes not only the amount of weight you want to lose, but also the amount of time you think it will take. If you're doing all the right things and your diet isn't working, it may be because your weight loss goal-or the time required to reach it-isn't realistic.

Once you get all of these issues resolved, you've cleared the way to get your diet back on track. As your diet takes root and begins to work, you should start to see the weight come off easily and naturally.

Why fad diets don’t work!

2007-12-07T21:50:00.001-08:00

Why fad diets don’t work!

by: Adam Waxler

The answer is simple...fad diets are not natural.

Fad diet is the term that describes an array of diet approaches used to temporarily lose weight through unsafe and unrealistic methods. Quick fix programs do not work...although millions of dollars are spent each year. These programs offer a quick loss of weight but sadly the weight is gained right back because people return to their old eating habits and old life style.

There are many kinds of fad diets. Avoid those types of diets that recommend a certain nutrient, or combination of foods encouraging you to loss weight fast. Fad diets do not teach lifestyle habits for long-term weight management, they do not help people gain the will power to change a lifestyle with another.

Diets promoting a very low calorie system, approximately 1,000 to 1,500 calories per day and with no exercise program cause the body to become less efficient at burning fat, making it easier to store fat and regained weight each time a diet is stopped. In the long run this fad diets makes a person fatter instead of leaner. Ultimately these fad diets are not safe.

Only your weight and exercise level determines the number of calories that is right for your diet program and only healthy lifestyle habits will maintain long-term weight control. Healthy lifestyle habits include regular exercise, behavior modification, and a healthy, nutritious diet with a wide variety of foods.

People should be aware of their health problems before engaging in a diet program. All diets should include a warning to check with a specialist before trying a diet. Also most fad diets make no mention of physical activity, which is essential in the process of weight loss and some of these diets can actually harm one’s health.

The majority of fad diets involve a 10 day to 1 month period in which your diet is restricted to a select collection of bad-tasting, inconsistent health foods or recipes. The fads diet is generally advising you to completely avoided fats.

Due to water loss from this period, as a reaction to the starvation process, you will quickly lose weight. And, as you continue to starve, your body starts working in order to keep up with the energy needs. But you are still not burning fats and as you avoid fats in your diet, your body will try to preserve the fat that it has in its store. And if you continue your diet up to a month your body will burn its stored fats having no other alternative to stay alive.

After this period the dieter starts getting weaker and he is not able to feel well and perform its normal duties because it requires a lot more effort and time for the body to produce energy from fat rather than from muscle.
At a certain time the dieter is back to his normal eating habit but it will take some time before the reconstruction of your muscle occurs and during this time, the body stores most of the food intake as excess fats. Therefore at the end of the reconstruction process, the dieter is back to his initial weight gaining back the weight he lost in the starvation process and little bit more.

A diet regards the proper nutrition for a normally developed human and it should contain vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates AND fats. An imbalanced process may cause starvation or excessive reserves of body fat.

By using fad diets in your weight loss process your body will experience both starvation and weight gain in a short amount of time.

Why Diets Lead to Failure

2007-12-07T21:49:00.000-08:00

Why Diets Lead to Failure

by: Nathan Latvaitis

Ever thought of, known someone, or gone on a diet? You probably have. The word diet seems like a common word for someone who is unsatisfied with their current physical condition. The problem is that most diets usually end up failing…in the long run. Going on a “diet” usually refers to eating alot less food, in the hope that it will make us lose those unwanted pounds of fat. Although there are different types of diets, 90% of them stress a strong reduction in calories one way or another.

Everyone has a certain amount of calories that they require per day to keep themselves alive and to perform bodily processes. This requirement of calories is known as Resting Metabolic Rate or RMR for short. For the purpose of this article, we will use my body as an example. My RMR is about 2500 calories/day. I will eat about 2500 calories to just keep myself alive. Note: You can calculate your RMR at http://www.weight-loss-resources.com/calculators/rmr.html

On another note, our bodies adapt to the stimuli that they are exposed to. For instance, when one lifts weights their body adapts by growing muscle, when one runs long distances their bodies adapt by building more capillaries to enhance blood flow, when one is exposed to cold temperatures their body begins to shiver in an attempt to create heat through muscle contractions, etc. The point is our bodies adapt to essentially everything that they are exposed to, including how many calories we eat per day.

So, when our bodies are exposed to a calorie deficit (a lower number of calories than our RMR) they must adapt. Let’s say that I want to go on a diet and I begin to eat 1000 calories a day instead of the normal 2500 (Actually, I eat more than 2500 calories because I exercise and perform daily activities. 2500 only accounts for the calories needed to keep my body alive. Although for the sake of simplicity, we are only using the RMR. If the message within these parentheses confused you, simply ignore it.) One of the first ways my body is going to adapt is by using up my fat stores to make up for the lack of calories. This is why most diets seem to work in the beginning. The thing is, the body does not want to keep using its precious fat stores for energy. The human body does not see fat as a bad thing; it is a backup mechanism for when a calorie deficit is introduced.

Now here’s the kicker. Since my body is not going to want to keep using up its fat stores, it is going to adapt by lowering how many calories my body needs per day to keep itself running (RMR). One of the main ways it accomplishes this is by eating away at it’s own muscle. Instead of requiring 2500 calories a day to keep my body running, my body will eventually adapt over a period of time and only require 1000 calories to keep running. Back when our ancestors lived they needed this calorie adaptation to survive when food was short and they were starving. The trouble is, the body cannot tell the difference between starvation and dieting.

Now that my body’s RMR has adjusted to the new number of calories that I’m are eating, it no longer needs to use its emergency fat stores to keep itself alive. This is when your fat loss stops from a diet. In addition to this, if I decide that I want to go off of my 1000 calories a day diet and begin to eat 2500 calories a day again then there is a calorie surplus. The body does not need these extra calories so it will store them as fat. The exception to storing them as fat is when the body needs to build muscle because it has been exposed to some type of exercise or weight lifting, and even then all of the calories are not used for muscle growth.

Now that I have changed my RMR to 1000 calories per day, I have really wrecked my metabolism and it’s going to be harder to get to my goal of actually losing fat. That is, unless of course If I want to stay on my diet forever.

Why Diets DON'T Work

2007-12-07T21:48:00.004-08:00

Why Diets DON'T Work

by: Aaron M. Potts

One of the biggest scams ever successfully pulled on the American public is - somewhat appropriately - a 4-letter word. That word is, of course, Diet. By now you have seen advertisements for more diets than you can easily remember, and have also most likely seen an article or television show debunking some of those diets. Unfortunately, the art of shooting holes through the credibility of a diet plan is normally done by ANOTHER diet company, solely for the purpose of getting you to use their product instead. Well, this article has nothing to sell, nor really anything to gain, save the knowledge that hopefully the reader - that's you - will put down the Diet Madness Menu, and get a real world point of view on why diets don't work, and what you can do about it.

Eating, the Lost Art

If you are considering a diet, or have in the past, your primary motivation was most likely to lose weight. What if I was to tell you that in order to lose weight, you actually need to eat MORE than you have in the past? You would probably shake your head at that crazy idea, and think that it was some new fad that could in no way assist you in your weight loss goals. Of course, the fact that every diet you've ever heard of was at one point "some new fad" would probably never even cross your mind. Nonetheless, the fact remains that most people do need to eat more than they presently are in order to lose weight, but the trick comes in eating the right kinds of foods, in the right ratios of nutrients, and at the right times of day. Sound tricky? Perhaps, but I assure you, it is really quite simple. However, the purpose of this article is not to inform you of the benefits of eating, but merely to let you know that eating is indeed a very effective way to lose excess bodyweight, and to explain how diets keep that from happening.

Stating the Obvious

Although most people do not think of the "latest diet" in these terms, hopefully the following question will make you consider what is pretty obvious if you stop to think about it. If the new "Last Diet You'll Ever Need" was really that good at making you melt away pounds while sitting on the couch munching "Carbo Craze Chips" or was even remotely effective at burning off your spare tire while inhaling the sweet scents of "Aerospace's Aromatic Air Baubles", then why isn't everyone already thin??

Seriously - think about it. Every time you hear about the latest diet or the most up to date exercise device that only takes 20 minutes per day, they always say that you will never need another system! The advertised system - no matter how logical or even outlandish as it may seem - is always touted at being better than ever, and the last system you will ever need. Well, if that were true, don't you think that the manufacturer of that system would not only become wealthier than anyone in history, but would also become famous as the person who FINALLY solved the obesity problem in our world? Don't you think that person could also afford to advertise their product during prime time on TV, instead of late at night? Don't you think that system would become known throughout the world - throughout history itself - as a turning point in human development?

So, I'll ask you the same question again: If the solution is already out there, why do we need to keep coming up with new solutions?? The answer is, of course, very simple - these systems don't work, and the human populace is simply looking for a non-existent quick fix to getting rid of too many late night excursions to the local burger joint, or to the fact they should have taken stock in beer while they were in college. Then what does work? Human physiology.

Metabolism

Metabolism is defined as the rate at which your body processes food. In other words, how fast your body burns calories. The faster your metabolism, the more food you can eat without gaining weight. How do you control your metabolism? By eating a nutrient-dense meal every 3 to 3 ½ hours. This practice "stokes your internal furnace", for lack of a better analogy. Think of your body as an old-style locomotive that had coal shoveled into the combustion chamber one shovel at a time. If you didn't shovel in coal fast enough, the locomotive would slow down, and your body is no different. If you don't eat often enough, your metabolism slows down and you don't burn through calories very quickly. In addition, not only does your rate of calorie consumption go down, but your body starts storing almost everything that you do eat as bodyfat! So, in essence, every time you starve yourself in your honest effort to "stick to your diet", you are actually slowing down your metabolism as well as making your body more efficient at building padding for you to sit on at baseball games.

Muscle

"I don't care" you say. You believe that in order to lose weight you need to starve. Okay, that's wrong, but I'll explain why that thinking is flawed. Your body needs energy so you can live through any given day. The amount of energy that you need is determined by your Basal Metabolic Rate, and by your activity level for that day. For most people, this amounts to between 1,500 and 2,500 calories per day. Well, if your calorie-restricted diet doesn't allow you that many calories, your body will find a way to survive anyway. It does this by breaking down your muscle tissue and using it for energy. "So what?" you say. You don't care, as long as the scale says you are losing weight, right?

What if I told you that the ONLY place on your body that you can burn bodyfat for fuel is your muscles? What if I told you that the more muscle tissue you lose on a calorie-restricted diet, the fewer calories you can eat after the muscle loss? What if I told you that after losing 20 lbs on a calorie-restricted diet, your total bodyfat level will have dropped very little, if at all? What if I told you that by using muscle mass for energy, you have literally crippled your body's ability to burn bodyfat in the future, and that by the laws of Nature (which we can't change, by the way), you will absolutely put the weight back on, and probably gain more weight than you ever had before?

If I told you all of that, would you still want to burn muscle tissue for energy while starving yourself to stick to your diet, paying $8 a bag for Carbo Chips, and $20 a session for Aromatic Air Baubles?

On the other hand, perhaps the laws of Nature don't apply to you. In that case, be sure to tune in tonight - I believe the "Lose Weight While You Eat Butter Fried Bacon" diet is going to be featured on a new infomercial. It is, after all, The Last Diet You Will Ever Need!

Where's The Beef?

2007-12-07T21:48:00.003-08:00

Where's The Beef?

by: Michael Ottman

…It's now on top since low carb recipes have turned the food pyramid upside down.

The craze over low carb recipes is one of the major reasons why beef is back! Until recently, the beef industry leaders had about as much interest in celebrity doctors and their low carbohydrate recipes as I do in thinking about eating liver...ugh! But thanks to The Atkins Diet recipes, Dr. Phil's Diet,and Hollywood's Hottest Diet- The Zone Diet, low carbohydrate recipe program, red meat sales are skyrocketing. And you know what that means! The wholesale price of beef is up
100% in less than two years. Soooooo, now you know to thank the craze over low carb recipes for skyrocketing beef prices! For heaven's sake, beer manufacturers and ice cream makers are even marketing low carb products these days.

Everyone's body chemistry is different, and a diet rich in low carb foods that works for
one person may not work for another. You need to know the best way for
YOUR PARTICULAR BODY to lose fat.

Ready -- Set -- Lose!

In the past decade, Americans have had, and used, every excuse not to diet. Low Carb Diets and weight loss programs, they reasoned, almost always fail. Unless, like Oprah, you hire your own personal chef to feed you with low carb recipes and a personal trainer for exercise. However,
this time it's different. The popularity of low carb recipes is changing the way we eat forever. Whether you're a life long weight watcher, new to the world of low carb recipes, or a weight loss programs veteran, there are thousands of free resources for low carb diet advice and free low carb recipes. These resources are designed specifically to help guide you down the path to better health and a happier lifestyle.

Perhaps you're a busy executive, a harried mom, or someone who travels frequently, if so, check out online dieting and weight loss program recommendations. You'll even find companies that provide daily delivery of high quality prepared meals using low carb recipes directly to your door. The significant growth of online diets and weight loss programs in recent years clearly indicates the demand for low carb foods and low carb recipes is here to stay.

What is the South Beach Diet?

2007-12-07T21:48:00.001-08:00

What is the South Beach Diet?

by: Phil Wiley

So you’ve heard about The South Beach Diet. You know people on the South Beach Diet. But just what is it?

The South Beach Diet teaches you to choose what you eat more carefully, encouraging you to eat the right fats and the right carbohydrates. It is not a low carbohydrate diet and it is not low fat.

The South Beach Diet is a clinically tested diet that was masterminded by renowned cardiologist Dr. Arthur Agatston, and is designed to improve your overall health as well as help you to lose weight.

So just what kinds of things can you still eat while you’re on the South Beach Diet? You can still eat eggs, cheese, chicken, fish, fruit and vegetables, beef and a wide range of other things including nuts and healthy oils. You can even drink tea and coffee. Having said that, you are allowed these foods at different times throughout the program.

While undertaking the South Beach Diet you eat three balanced meals per day and are encouraged to eat morning tea, afternoon tea and dessert. As with any kind of diet you also need to drink plenty of water!

Those on the South Beach Diet are also encouraged to take part in online forums, fill in food journals and use other online interactive materials to help keep on track and find support from other people also using the South Beach Diet.

What Is The Atkins Diet?

2007-12-07T21:47:00.001-08:00

What Is The Atkins Diet?

by: Kirsten Hawkins

The Atkins weight loss diet is based on one simple principle: Your body burns both carbohydrates and fat for calories. If you reduce the amounts of carbohydrates available, it will burn more fat and you will lose weight.

According to Atkins, calories are unimportant. The key to losing weight is to restrict the carbohydrates that you eat and force the body to turn to its stored fat as an energy source. As proof of this, proponents of the Atkins Diet point to the following facts derived from research:

* When the body doesn't have enough carbohydrate, it will use ketenes derived from fat as energy.
* You can eat more food and lose more weight on a low carbohydrate diet than you can on a low fat diet.
* You crave less food when you eat fewer carbohydrates.
* By eating fewer carbohydrates, people tend to eat fewer calories without counting them.
* The greater the difference between fat and carbohydrate, the greater the weight loss.

In short, if you restrict your intake of carbohydrates, you will most likely also restrict your intake of calories. By lowering your carbohydrate intake, you will encourage your body to turn to fat for energy.

The Atkins diet has provoked storms of controversy since it was first published. The recommendation to eat a high-protein, low-carbohydrate flew in the face of all the dietary recommendations by established medical institutions. The diet was denounced as unsafe, particularly if used as a life-long weight maintenance plan. Over the past five to ten years, there have been numerous studies that come down on both sides of the equation, and Atkins last version of the diet included the admission that calories do matter, and the advice to 'eat only enough to satisfy hunger'.

A typical menu for a meal on the Atkins Diet might include:

Portobello and Ricotta Crostini
Chicken Milanese over Spring Salad
Lemon Vinaigrette dressing
Warm Lentils and Celery
Raspberry Cheesecake in a Cup

The eating plan recommended by the Atkins diet contains very low portions of carbohydrates, deriving the majority of carbohydrates from vegetables high in fiber and low in carbs, and unrestricted portions of proteins, including high fat proteins like beef, pork and cheese.

Follow up research on people who have used the Atkins Diet to lose weight show a fast initial weight loss that eventually levels off. The Atkins Diet has four phases to account for it:

1. The Induction Phase, which restricts carbohydrates severely.

2. The OWL (Ongoing Weight Loss) Phase, in which you add in limited carbs and tailor the eating plan to your tastes

3. Pre-maintenance, with ten pounds or less to the target goal, deliberately slows weight loss to begin adjusting the body to after-weight-loss diet.

4. Lifetime Maintenance, a long-term eating plan that emphasizes low carbohydrates and healthy, long-term eating

Who should use the Atkins Diet?

While the Atkins Diet seems on the surface to be directly counter to what is recommended by most medical institutions, many of the principles are actually the same. Unless you are under the care of a physician for a chronic medical condition like diabetes, high blood pressure or coronary problems, you can use the Atkins Diet. Do pay attention to the portions recommended in the menus and plans at , despite the reassurances that you can 'eat all you want and still lose weight.'

Wellness versus Ignorance

2007-12-07T21:46:00.002-08:00

Wellness versus Ignorance

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

If you ask most Americans whether wellness is important, most will agree. Parents will usually say that family health is one of their major concerns. Yet most are rather ignorant about nutrition information. Blame our public education system, false or misleading reporting, and ads, ads, ads.

Recent news increasingly reports that obesity is epidemic in the United States, and that it is the major cause of early
death, after tobacco. Yet the solution is really simple.

It used to be that people who claimed the simple life is the key to anti aging would be met with a big yawn, or strong doubt, or rude noises. Now, such reliable sources of health information as Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are saying that good diet and moderate exercise really are the keys to long life.

The same ad blasters who helped get us into health troubles are eager to sell us pills, potions, books, quack cures that dance all around the truth. After all, folks really want magic bullets to fix problems, so they won't have to take responsibility for the consequences of their own choices. It's not the merchants' fault if they get rich off public stupidity. Or is it?

People, WAKE UP!

America is a country in which even the poor people are FAT. History tells us that this is a very unusual situation.

It is a principle of physics that matter-energy can neither be created nor destroyed. Therefore, if our weight exceeds
the medical ideal, it can ONLY be from consuming more calories than we need. The only healthy solution is to be more careful of what we eat, and to increase our exercise. Drugs or surgery to cheat on this equation are life threatening. Wild claims to "turn up your fat burners" are total NONSENSE, even though some of the "experts" telling this are physicians and nutritionists who really should know better.

One advantage of wise food choices is that we can eat as much as we want and still not get fat. Another is that good diet can help protect us against common scary diseases that can lower quality of life and cause early death.

"Low Carb diets" are a red herring. Taking the hamburger out of the bun, but keeping the fatty meat and oily toppings, is
utter madness.

The other part of the story is that even easy exercise can stimulate the body to health, help prevent those scary diseases, and make us feel better, while helping us to live longer.
* If you don't like army calisthenics, at least walk 1 to 2 miles a day, 5 to 7 days a week.
* If back pain or shoulder aches plague you, do some simple exercise routines at home, workplace, or while walking.
* Head off wrist problems by frequent breaks to stretch them in all directions.
* If you don't have time or money for a gym membership, buy a twelve foot piece of rope for isometrics and skipping.

"We don't stop exercising because we get old. We get old because we stop exercising."

The CDC tells us that 7 out of 10 deaths are caused by chronic diseases, 1.7 million per year in the USA, and that these early deaths can be prevented by good diet and easy exercise. We can save billions of dollars per year just from good diet and moderate exercise. Now that's a bargain!

Weight Loss Tips: Get Free and Effective Weight Loss Tips!

2007-12-07T21:46:00.001-08:00

Weight Loss Tips: Get Free and Effective Weight Loss Tips!

by: Ashley Green

Looking for Diet Programs on net is like looking for water in an Ocean. But trust me, looking for good Diet Program is like finding a pearl in the ocean. Me and my team have traveled from shore to shore and short listed few highly effective diet programs and weight loss programs. But, no matter what Diet Program we choose for ourselves, we have to be careful about our normal diet habits. This helps us a lot in shedding off the weight and keeps us healthy and happy.

Here are some effective weight loss tips for all kinds of weight watchers.

1) Metabolic rate is one thing which is very crucial. Metabolism is a process by which the body burns the calories and convert them into useful energy. High metabolic rate uses up the energy stored in the form of fat.

Know more about Metabolism and how to increase Metabolism at http://www.weightloss-health.com/Metabolism.htm

2) Exercise Regularly. Building muscles also burns the extra calories and helps in keeping you fit.

3) Don't rush in. Lose weight slowly and continuously . Advisable limit is 1-2 lbs per week.

4) Drink plenty of water. It cleans up your body, makes your digestion good and increases your metabolism.

5) Have Low Fat Diets. Avoid oily stuff.

6) Studies have shown children of over-weight parents specially mothers are more like to be obese by the age of 6. Read more about the study at http://www.weightloss-health.com/Obese_mothers_kids.htm

Weight Loss Survey: Why Dieters Fail To Lose Weight

2007-12-07T21:45:00.003-08:00

Weight Loss Survey: Why Dieters Fail To Lose Weight

by: Anne Collins

Current levels of overweight and obesity, together with weight-related disease, have made weight control a major health priority throughout America. Yet statistics indicate that average weight reduction on conventional diets adds up to a mere 5-8 pounds per year. So why do we find dieting so difficult? According to a new survey(1), the answer seems to be: because we make 3 crucial mistakes. We don't have a good enough incentive; we allow ourselves to go hungry; and we can't cope with "bad days".

The weight loss survey conducted by annecollins.com asked dieters to select the three biggest problems they faced when dieting. The most common problems reported were: "Inadequate incentive to lose weight" (76%); "Hunger" (72%); and "Bad days" (70%). Although these results will come as no surprise to most dieters, they highlight the importance of motivation in the dieting process. We examine how these problems occur, and what steps can be taken to overcome them.

Why Do We Need an Incentive?
We gain weight because we take in more energy than we use. Either because we eat too many calories, or burn too few, or both. So if we want to reduce weight, we need to improve our eating and exercise habits. And this is not easy, because let's face it - old habits are not easily discarded, especially if they involve cutting out our favorite treats. We need a powerful incentive to help us change. Specifically, we need an answer to the question: "How exactly will I benefit from losing weight?"
When faced with this question, many dieters have no answer. Those who do, typically reply: "I'll feel better" or "my health will improve". Others explain they are trying to lose weight to please their doctor, or their partner, or simply because they are "overweight". Unfortunately, none of these reasons are strong enough to help us succeed. So when temptation strikes, we are unable to resist.

What Type of Incentive is Best?
Our motivation to lose weight must be based on a selfish, specific benefit. A good example might be an upcoming beach holiday, or a family occasion, or the achievement of a specific mobility or fitness goal. It must be as specific as possible (general benefits are useless) and ideally related to a fixed date. In addition, it must be selfish. Losing weight to please others rarely works. The advice I give to my clients is very simple. Do not bother dieting unless you have a good incentive. Because no matter how good the diet, no matter how valuable the exercise plan, unless you have a powerful reason to change your habits you won't succeed.

Hunger Kills Diets
Most dieters are still convinced that calories are their enemy. So the less they eat, the faster they are likely to lose weight. This is not true. In reality, the less we eat, the more hungry we get and the easier it is to fall into temptation. The human body is trained to eat when hungry and no amount of willpower will neutralize this basic urge. This is why binge eating is such a common response to low calorie diets.

How to Avoid Hunger
No rocket science here. Avoiding hunger simply means eating regularly throughout the day, and keeping your calorie intake above 1000-1200 per day. This prevents hunger, thus reducing the urge to overeat, and in addition helps to maintain a regular high level of calorie-burning.

Eat Too Much Rather Than Too Little
We all have days when we feel extra hungry, even when we are dieting. This is no problem - simply eat more! It is always better to eat a little too much than not enough. Might this delay your weight loss? Yes. But so what? Taking a few extra days to achieve your goal is not a problem. The real danger is not eating enough and ending up hungry and depressed. This is a recipe for a binge.

Bad Days and The Problem of Perfection
No dieter is perfect. The truth is, all dieters experience "bad days" or fall into occasional temptation. Sadly, most dieters insist on "being perfect". They cannot tolerate these lapses. So if (say) they visit a friend and end up eating 2 containers of ice cream and a box of cookies, they go to pieces. "I'm useless!" they cry. "I'm a failure!" Overwhelmed by guilt at not being perfect, they then quit their diet in disgust.

It's the Guilt That Does the Damage
In this situation, the actual binge is typically fairly harmless. I mean, we need to eat a huge quantity of food (3500+ calories) to gain even one pound of weight. The real damage is caused by the ensuing guilt. And this is what we need to address.

Guilt Comes From Trying to Be Perfect
All dieters make mistakes and this is perfectly normal. Having an occasional binge is no cause for alarm, far less guilt. Even my most successful clients - those who have lost 100+ pounds - had regular lapses. The difference is, they didn't see themselves as "perfect" individuals. So they felt "entitled" to make occasional mistakes, and so should you. Once you accept this, you will find dieting a whole lot easier.

We Need Support to Make These Changes
In order to overcome the 3 problems described above, an essential first step is to find proper support. This is just as important as choosing the right diet plan, because no matter how good the diet, it can't motivate you to stay on track - only people can do this. Dieting is ten times easier when you receive encouragement from others. So when choosing an online weight loss program, choose one with an active forum. Because at the end of the day, it's all about people. When we are alone and isolated, the smallest obstacle can seem like a mountain. But when we have people behind us, anything is possible.

Notes:
1. Weight Loss Survey (Oct 2005) by annecollins.com. A total of 17,403 subjects replied to the survey. They were asked to choose 3 from a list of 10 diet-problems. The results were as follows:
(1) Inadequate Incentive (76%).
(2) Hunger (72%).
(3) Bad Days (70%).
(4) Boredom (69%).
(5) Stress (60%).
(6) Interference From Others (51%).
(7) Too Much Eating Out (32%).
(8) Eating on The Run (28%).
(9) Ill-health (5%).
(10) Lack of Sleep (1%).

Weightloss Supplements

2007-12-07T21:45:00.001-08:00

Weightloss Supplements

by: padrone disupple

People everywhere are searching for the elusive
miracle drug that will cure their weight loss
problems for ever. Weight loss supplements can
assist you in the weight loss process but are
far from the miracle and only solution you
should seek. Weight loss supplements and other
diet drugs can aid you in your digestive and
other bodily functions, but they are unlikely
to assist in obtain your goal weight in the
long term.

Over-the-counter herbal or 'natural' weight loss
supplements bring in big dollars for their
manufacturers. But some claims about the
supposed weight loss benefits of herbal weight
loss supplements or 'natural' fat-burning pills
or appetite suppressants are very misleading.

When used under medical supervision in
conjunction with a proper diet and exercise
program, weight loss supplements can be effective
- at least in the short term. Although having
said that the body does adjust quickly to many
diet drugs and supplements, so the benefits can
fade away very rapidly.
If weight loss supplements are not used in
conjunction with a proper weight loss program
that incorporates a well balanced diet and
regular exercise, they are not likely to be
effective. Indeed some supplements may even
disrupt your system causing weight gain and
other harmful side effects.

If you are a genuine candidate for weight loss
supplements, for instance if you are seriously
obese, but have the will to modify your diet and
take regular physical exercise, then your best
course of action is to consult your doctor for
advice. As a medical professional your doctor
will not only take your own situation into
consideration, but is familiar with what
supplements and drugs are available on the market
and can match you and the supplements for most
effective outcome. Never buy weight loss
supplements without consulting your doctor.

Clinical weight loss trials have continued to
show in recent years that sustained weight loss
and long term weight control is not possible by
using weight loss supplements alone. Supplements
should be combined with regular physical
activity and a well balanced diet to lose and
maintain weight successfully over the long term.

Weight Loss Scams - What Have You Got To Lose!

2007-12-07T21:44:00.003-08:00

Weight Loss Scams - What Have You Got To Lose!

by: II Research

There are literally Thousands of weight loss plans and equipment on the market today.

Some are genuine in their promise of weight loss. Some although sincere in their promise, are flawed in their design. There are others that are blatantly fake.

Analysts predict that the cost to dieters, desperate to loose weight will reach 35 billion dollars a year in the United States alone. While the cost is rising, the increasing numbers of people are becoming obese. Hyperactive salespeople advertising to as many as they can to try their product sell diet Plans that claim large amounts of weight loss in very little time. Dieter who are obese and are desperate to loose weight join these programs and take the products.

Some lose weight, but almost all regain the weight they lost. Shows on cable Television with over zealous salespeople who promise that you can lose all the weight you want while you eat everything you want are outright lies and should not to be believed.

Everyone wants a quick weight loss cure, but there is no easy path. It doesn't matter what they are trying to sell you, whether they are trying to sell you fat absorbers, fat burners, cellulite pills, it's all a great scam that will have them collecting millions of dollars and the dieter with nothing.

Every year, new weight-loss books appear on the bookshelves, and magazines run thousands of articles on the subject.

Millions of people have proven that it is easier to gain weight than to lose it.

It has been proven time and time again that weight-loss attempts by following weight-loss diet plans may succeed for a short time but experts feel that dieter are setting themselves up for failure. There is no such thing as rapid weight loss diets. None of the weight loss plans printed in or on television, have had any proven long-term results. In the end, experts believe that using common sense will result in a healthier dieting experience.

Weight loss experts all agree that it is impossible to sustain weight loss, a well balanced diet and exercise is essential.

The medical community, food industry, dietitians government health and diet businesses are all watching helplessly as Americans continue to consume excessive amounts of food and become increasingly obese. Because this epidemic of obesity there has been an increase in heart disease, diabetes, and several other weight related health issues.

It is widely felt through all communities that there are weight loss plans and programs that will prey on the overweight and obese. Knowing what their insecurities are and taking advantage of them.

Experts warn consumers who are considering a weight loss program should do research on the subject, speak to their physician or seek out reputable companies and fitness centers that have knowledgeable staff members who can answer any questions you may have.

Weight Loss : Keep it Simple

2007-12-07T21:44:00.001-08:00

Weight Loss : Keep it Simple

by: Janice Elizabeth Small

An increasing trend over the last few years has been for diet books to make things complex.

I expect it's because each one vies with the other to come out with some brand new theory or other about why we gain weight and why their diet plan is the only one to help us lose it. And the low fat, low calorie stuff has already been covered!

My problem with this new trend is that the diets all involve more counting and while basic maths was never a problem at school I don't want to use it at the dinner table to know what I can eat. And while counting calories is one thing (most of us are probably walking encyclopaedias by now with how many calories our usual choices contain) the new diets are so much more complex.

With the new diets we need to know carbohydrate counts and fat grams, GI index and all sorts. And sometimes it's not enough to have a straight count we have to work out our percentage of carbohydrates, proteins and fat (yes, follow one particular diet and you have to balance these at EVERY meal).

Somehow I think food was not meant to be eaten like this. It was meant to be enjoyed. Most of us know what is healthy and what is not. Most of us know we'd be better with an apple than a cream cake. Most of us know we need a good variety of all types of food to feel great.

The new diets will not last. More complex stuff will come along and it's sad because we could all lose weight with a few SIMPLE changes.

1. Make healthy choices for most of the food you eat
2. Vary your choices
3. Occasionally enjoy a small portion of whatever it is you love even if it's high in fat or sugar or whatever
4. Eat only when you're physically hungry
5. Stop when you're just satisfied, not stuffed
6. Fill half your plate at lunch and dinner with vegetables or salad, quarter carbs and a quarter protein.

If everyone who wanted to lose weight just followed these simple guidelines there would be many more successful dieters around and a lot less hassle in losing weight.

Why not start today?

Weight Loss And Nutrition Myths – What You Need To Know! Part 1

2007-12-07T21:43:00.002-08:00

Weight Loss And Nutrition Myths – What You Need To Know! Part 1

by: Simon Edwards

MYTH: Fad diets work for permanent weight loss.

FACT: Fad diets are not the best way to lose weight and keep it off. Fad diets often promise quick weight loss or tell you to cut certain foods out of your diet. You may lose weight at first on one of these diets. But diets that strictly limit calories or food choices are hard to follow. Most people quickly get tired of them and regain any lost weight.

Fad diets may be unhealthy because they may not provide all of the nutrients your body needs. Also, losing weight at a very rapid rate (more than 3 pounds a week after the first couple weeks) may increase your risk for developing gallstones (clusters of solid material in the gallbladder that can be painful). Diets that provide less than 800 calories per day also could result in heart rhythm abnormalities, which can be fatal.

TIP: Research suggests that losing ½ to 2 pounds a week by making healthy food choices, eating moderate portions, and building physical activity into your daily life is the best way to lose weight and keep it off. By adopting healthy eating and physical activity habits, you may also lower your risk for developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

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MYTH: High-protein/low-carbohydrate diets are a healthy way to lose weight.
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FACT: The long-term health effects of a high-protein/low-carbohydrate diet are unknown. But getting most of your daily calories from high-protein foods like meat, eggs, and cheese is not a balanced eating plan. You may be eating too much fat and cholesterol, which may raise heart disease risk. You may be eating too few fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, which may lead to constipation due to lack of dietary fiber. Following a high-protein/low-carbohydrate diet may also make you feel nauseous, tired, and weak.

Eating fewer than 130 grams of carbohydrate a day can lead to the buildup of ketones (partially broken-down fats) in your blood. A buildup of ketones in your blood (called ketosis) can cause your body to produce high levels of uric acid, which is a risk factor for gout (a painful swelling of the joints) and kidney stones. Ketosis may be especially risky for pregnant women and people with diabetes or kidney disease.

TIP: High-protein/low-carbohydrate diets are often low in calories because food choices are strictly limited, so they may cause short-term weight loss. But a reduced-calorie eating plan that includes recommended amounts of carbohydrate, protein, and fat will also allow you to lose weight. By following a balanced eating plan, you will not have to stop eating whole classes of foods, such as whole grains, fruits, and vegetables—and miss the key nutrients they contain. You may also find it easier to stick with a diet or eating plan that includes a greater variety of foods.

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MYTH: Starches are fattening and should be limited when trying to lose weight.
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FACT: Many foods high in starch, like bread, rice, pasta, cereals, beans, fruits, and some vegetables (like potatoes and yams) are low in fat and calories. They become high in fat and calories when eaten in large portion sizes or when covered with high-fat toppings like butter, sour cream, or mayonnaise. Foods high in starch (also called complex carbohydrates) are an important source of energy for your body.

TIP: The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends eating 6 to 11 servings a day, depending on your calorie needs, from the bread, cereal, rice, and pasta group—even when trying to lose weight. Pay attention to your serving sizes—one serving is equal to 1 slice of bread, 1 ounce of ready-to-eat cereal, or ½ cup of pasta, rice, or cooked cereal. Try to avoid high-fat toppings and choose whole grains, like whole wheat bread, brown rice, oatmeal, and bran cereal. Choose other starchy foods that are high in dietary fiber too, like beans, peas, and vegetables.

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MYTH: Certain foods, like grapefruit & celery, can burn fat and make you lose weight.
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FACT: No foods can burn fat. Some foods with caffeine may speed up your metabolism (the way your body uses energy, or calories) for a short time, but they do not cause weight loss.

TIP: The best way to lose weight is to cut back on the number of calories you eat and be more physically active.

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MYTH: Natural or herbal weight-loss products are safe and effective.
====================================================

FACT: A weight-loss product that claims to be "natural" or "herbal" is not necessarily safe. These products are not usually scientifically tested to prove that they are safe or that they work. For example, herbal products containing ephedra (now banned by the U.S. Government) have caused serious health problems and even death. Newer products that claim to be ephedra-free are not necessarily danger-free, because they may contain ingredients similar to ephedra.

TIP: Talk with your health care provider before using any weight-loss product. Some natural or herbal weight-loss products can be harmful.

Walking To The Beat Of A Different Drun?

2007-12-07T21:43:00.001-08:00

Walking To The Beat Of A Different Drun?

by: Jerold Johnson

Walking and Weight Loss

Three universal goals most of us share are: 1.) To live longer, 2.) To live free of illness, and 3.) To control our weight.

Interesting enough, normal walking lets us achieve all three. In fact, walking may be man's best medicine for slowing the aging process. First, it works almost every muscle in the body, improving circulation to the joints and massaging the blood vessels (keeping them more elastic).

Walking also helps us maintain both our muscle mass and metabolism as we age. It also keeps us young in spirit. For anyone out of shape or unathletically inclined, walking is the no-stress, no-sweat answer to lifelong conditioning. All it takes is a little time, common sense and a few guidelines.

Unfortunately, there's a lot of misinformation floating around regarding fitness walking, weight-loss and dieting. Walking is one of the best exercises for strengthening bones, controlling weight, toning the leg muscles, maintaining good posture and improving positive self-concept. People who diet without exercising often get fatter with time. Although your weight may initially drop while dieting, such weight loss consists mostly of water and muscle. When the weight returns, it comes back as fat. To avoid getting fatter over time, increase your metabolism by exercising daily.

To lose weight, it's more important to walk for time than speed. Walking at a moderate pace yields longer workouts with less soreness—leading to more miles and more calories spent on a regular basis.

High-intensity walks on alternate days help condition one's system. But in a waking, weight-loss program, it's better to be active every day. This doesn't require walking an hour every day. The key is leading an active life-style 365 days a year.

When it comes to good health and weight loss, exercise and diet are interrelated. Exercising without maintaining a balanced diet is no more beneficial than dieting while remaining inactive.

The national research council recommends eating five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Fruits and vegetables are the ideal diet foods for several reasons. They're relatively low in fat and calories, yet are often high in fiber and rich in essential vitamins and minerals.

Remember that rapid weight-loss consists mostly of water and muscle -- the wrong kind of weight to lose. To avoid this, set more reasonable goals, such as one pound per week.

Carbohydrates are high-octane fuel. They provide energy for movement and help raise internal body metabolism. They're also satisfying. The key is not adding high-fat toppings to your carbohydrates.

It's everyday habits which define our weight and body composition. A three-minute walk after each meal is worth four pounds less body fat annually.
Two flights of stairs a day burns off half a pound of body fat in a year. On the other hand, one candy bar eaten daily will cost you 20 pounds annually.

So . . . put some comfy tennis shoes on and head on out for a nice stroll around the neighborhood!

Understanding Low Carb Diets

2007-12-07T21:42:00.002-08:00

Understanding Low Carb Diets

by: Steve Wilcott

With all of the conflicting studies and fuzzy interpretation of information, it's no wonder that confusion reigns when it comes to the value and safety of low-carb diets. It seems like heated debates are raging everywhere!

Whether it's Atkins, the South Beach or some other low-carb plan, as many as 30 million Americans are following a low-carb diet.

Advocates contend that the high amount of carbohydrates in our diet has led to increasing problems with obesity, diabetes, and other health problems. Critics, on the other hand, attribute obesity and related health problems to over-consumption of calories from any source, and lack of physical activity. Critics also express concern that the lack of grains, fruits, and vegetables in low-carbohydrate diets may lead to deficiencies of some key nutrients, including fiber, vitamin C, folic acid, and several minerals.

Any diet, weather low or high in carbohydrate, can produce significant weight loss during the initial stages of the diet. But remember, the key to successful dieting is in being able to lose the weight permanently. Put another way, what does the scale show a year after going off the diet?

Let's see if we can debunk some of the mystery about low-carb diets. Below, is a listing of some relevant points taken from recent studies and scientific literature. Please note there may be insufficient information available to answer all questions.

- Differences Between Low-Carb Diets

There are many popular diets designed to lower carbohydrate consumption. Reducing total carbohydrate in the diet means that protein and fat will represent a proportionately greater amount of the total caloric intake.

Atkins and Protein Power diets restrict carbohydrate to a point where the body becomes ketogenic. Other low-carb diets like the Zone and Life Without Bread are less restrictive. Some, like Sugar Busters claim to eliminate only sugars and foods that elevate blood sugar levels excessively.

- What We Know about Low-Carb Diets

Almost all of the studies to date have been small with a wide variety of research objectives. Carbohydrate, caloric intake, diet duration and participant characteristics varied greatly.
Most of the studies to date have two things in common: None of the studies had participants with a mean age over 53 and none of the controlled studies lasted longer than 90 days.

Information on older adults and long-term results are scarce.
Many diet studies fail to monitor the amount of exercise, and therefore caloric expenditure, while participants are dieting. This helps to explain discrepancies between studies.

The weight loss on low-carb diets is a function of caloric restriction and diet duration, and not with reduced carbohydrate intake. This finding suggests that if you want to lose weight, you should eat fewer calories and do so over a long time period.

Little evidence exists on the long-range safety of low-carb diets. Despite the medical community concerns, no short-term adverse effects have been found on cholesterol, glucose, insulin and blood-pressure levels among participants on the diets. But, adverse effects may not show up because of the short period of the studies. Researchers note that losing weight typically leads to an improvement in these levels anyway, and this may offset an increase caused by a high fat diet. The long range weight change for low-carb and other types of diets is similar.

Most low-carb diets cause ketosis. Some of the potential consequences are nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and confusion. During the initial phase of low-carb dieting some fatigue and constipation may be encountered. Generally, these symptoms dissipate quickly. Ketosis may also give the breath a fruity odor, somewhat like nail-polish remover (acetone).

Low-carb diets do not enable the consumption of more calories than other kinds of diets, as has been often reported. A calorie is a calorie and it doesn't matter weather they come from carbohydrates or fat. Study discrepancies are likely the result of uncontrolled circumstances; i.e. diet participants that cheat on calorie consumption, calories burned during exercise, or any number of other factors. The drop-out rate for strict (i.e. less than 40 grams of CHO/day) low-carb diets is relatively high.

What Should You Do? - There are 3 important points I would like to re-emphasize:

- The long-range success rate for low-carb and other types of diets is similar.

- Despite their popularity, little information exists on the long-term efficacy and safety of low-carbohydrate diets.

- Strict low-carb diets are usually not sustainable as a normal way of eating. Boredom usually overcomes willpower.

It is obvious after reviewing the topic, that more, well-designed and controlled studies are needed. There just isn't a lot of good information available, especially concerning long-range effects. Strict low-carb diets produce ketosis which is an abnormal and potentially stressful metabolic state. Under some circumstances this might cause health related complications.

The diet you choose should be a blueprint for a lifetime of better eating, not just a quick weight loss plan to reach your weight goal. If you can't see yourself eating the prescribed foods longer than a few days or a week, then chances are it's not the right diet. To this end, following a moderately low fat diet with a healthy balance of fat, protein, carbohydrate and other nutrients is beneficial.

If you do decide to follow a low-carb plan, remember that certain dietary fats are associated with reduction of disease. Foods high in unsaturated fats that are free of trans-fatty acids such as olive oil, fish, flaxseeds, and nuts are preferred to fats from animal origins.

Even promoters of the Atkins diet now say people on their plan should limit the amount of red meat and saturated fat they eat. Atkins representatives are telling health professionals that only 20 percent of a dieter's calories should come from saturated fat (i.e. meat, cheese, butter). This change comes as Atkins faces competition from other popular low-carb diets that call for less saturated fat, such as the South Beach diet plan. Low-carb dieting should not be considered as a license to gorge on red meat!

Another alternative to "strict" low-carb dieting would be to give up some of the bad carbohydrate foods but not "throw out the baby with the bath water". In other words, foods high in processed sugar, snacks, and white bread would be avoided, but foods high in complex carbohydrates such as fruit, potatoes and whole grains, retained.

Ultimate Low Carb Food List

2007-12-07T21:42:00.001-08:00

Ultimate Low Carb Food List

by: Jeff Smith

Wouldn't it be great to have a low carb food list to help
you with your low carb diet program?

Whether it's Atkins, Beach diet, or one of the many other
low or no carb diets you are practicing, low carb food
lists become necessary to living day-to-day with your
diet.

Here are two low carb food lists that may help you achieve
your weight loss goals and one low carb list that you can use
to limit your carb intake.

Low Carb Food List #1

Carrots
Broccoli
Chicken (Skinless)
Turkey
Fresh trout
Tuna
Fat-free yogurt
Eggs
Olive Oil
Water

Low Carb Food List #2

Zuchini
Tomatoes
Apples
Peaches
Grapes
Salmon
Skim Milk
Shrimp
Nuts
Whole grain breads, low or no sugar

Low Carb Food List - Foods With Higher Carbs

White bread
Breaded meats (chicken fingers, breaded fish)
Potatoes
Soft drinks
Fruit Drinks full of sugar
Pastries
Cookies
Bagels
Chips

By watching what you eat, placing more of your foods into
the top two lists, you can move toward your rapid weight
loss goals with ease.

Tuna and Water Diet

2007-12-07T21:41:00.002-08:00

Tuna and Water Diet

by: Witaly Semko

Ready for a hardcore diet to get lean in a matter of days? This diet is used by professional bodybuilders to prepare before the competition. It requires an iron willpower but guarantees 100% results.

Here is how it works:

* Normally this diet is followed for 3 days.
* Take in 6 equal tuna servings. Once each 2,5 - 3 hours.
* Drink as much water as possible. At least 3-4 liters. Water fills your stomach and helps you not to feel hungry. There is no limit. Drink as much as you can.
* Take at least twice a day some vitamins. This is crucial since you won't get much vitamins from tuna during this diet.
* You will need at least 1 to 1,5 grams of protein per pound of your weight (aroung 3 gram per kilogram). Tuna's marvelous as it contains 26 gram protein per 100 gram tuna. Here are two handy formulas to calculate your tuna serving size:

For kilogram calculation: (bodyweight * 3 * 100) / (6 * 26) = bodyweight * 300 / 156 = 1 tuna serving (in gram)
For pound calculation: bodyweight * 100 / 156 or bodyweight * 150 / 156 = 1 tuna serving (in gram)

Don't think it is an easy task, but the harder the task, the greater the payoff. For beginners I suggest to start the diet on friday evening after the work and keep it for two days. The reason is that you cannot control the regular food intake very well during a workday as you work normally 4 hours (or more) non stop and get only one break to eat. Moerover, two days diet is not as hardcore as 3 or 4 days diet. I recommend this for all beginners. If you can keep this diet for two days without problems, wonderful, you can keep it for one or two days more.

Stay strong and be aware of forbidden foods. Your energy levels may fall in the first 1,5 days. You may feel very weak as never before. This is teh time of your spirit to stay as hard as iron and keep the diet! Your body will soon adapt and the strenght will come back.

Personally, I am doing this diet at the weekend every 2-3 weeks. It helps to burn the extra fat I may have gained during that period. It is a wonderful way to stay lean 365 days a year!

Truths about Diet, Obesity, and $75 Billion

2007-12-07T21:41:00.001-08:00

Truths about Diet, Obesity, and $75 Billion

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

Sensible diet prevents obesity!
Healthy living prevents most diseases!
(Unfortunately, old age is not a disease.)

These truths should be self evident.

Yet recent shock headlines tell us that "medical problems caused by obesity are costing U.S. tax payers $75 billion
per year".

The human body is a biological machine. We all know that overloading a mechanical machine can cause it to break down, yet we allow ourselves to overload our hearts,
joints, and more. Moderate exercise helps "tune up" the machines we live in.

Think about it. Many injuries are a direct consequence of being over weight and under exercised!

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tells us, "Seven of 10 deaths, or more than 1.7 million each year, are caused by chronic diseases."
and
that the major risk factors for chronic diseases are "tobacco use, poor nutrition, and lack of physical activity"
with
"Obesity is a major contributor to heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and some types of cancer. Recent estimates
suggest that obesity is associated with 300,000 deaths annually, second only to tobacco related deaths."

"Type 2 diabetes, a major consequence of obesity, has also reached epidemic proportions over the last 10 years." In
fact, "adult onset diabetes" is increasing among teens and pre adolescents.

Apparently the CDC thinks the commercial food industry does a better job on shaping public opinion than do family discussions. Therefore, they are sponsoring public school
initiatives to help children, and their parents, become better educated.

If you have access to the internet, you don't have to wait for the CDC education programs. Do your own news watch and
research.

"Greedy drug companies" have been blamed for our rising health care cost. Perhaps we should look to ourselves for part of the cause.

Want some help on getting started?
Read "Easy Health Diet" by Dr. Donald A. Miller. This includes tips for on-line research, as well as much diet and health information, with sources.

To Salt Or Not To Salt: That Is The Question, but What Is The Answer?

2007-12-07T21:40:00.002-08:00

To Salt Or Not To Salt: That Is The Question, but What Is The Answer?

by: ARA

(ARA) - Americans love salt. It’s in the news, it’s in our food, and it’s a part of our culture. It’s estimated that the average American consumes more than 4,000 milligrams of sodium a day. The Food and Drug Administration’s recommended daily allowance is 2,400 milligrams, or about one teaspoon.

Recently, salt has been in the news as experts debate its role in high blood pressure. Researchers have studied the causes of high blood pressure extensively over the past three decades. Scientific studies have confirmed and denied a connection between salt intake and high blood pressure, leaving many to wonder: should I reduce sodium in my diet?

* Interpreting the DASH Study

One of the most recognized salt studies to date is the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) study, sponsored by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health. The goal of the study was to define the relationship between diet, sodium intake and high blood pressure.

The DASH study participants followed either a typical American diet or the DASH diet, which is rich in fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products, as well as low in red meat and sweets.

Experts viewed the study results, published in 2002, in different ways. Dr. David McCarron, professor of medicine at the Oregon Health Sciences University, said changes in diet appeared to have had a greater impact on blood pressure compared to restricting sodium intake alone. In fact, a low-fat diet lowers blood pressure more significantly than simply cutting back on salt.

Since a low-fat diet has other benefits, including disease prevention, Dr. McCarron suggests it makes more sense to encourage people to change to a healthier diet. By embracing a diet that is rich in fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy foods, overall health can be improved.

* Identifying Sources of Sodium

The DASH study also noted that the bulk of sodium in most diets comes from processed foods, where it is used as a flavor enhancer, preservative and stabilizer. For those looking to reduce sodium in their diet, one of the most effective methods is simply changing your food-shopping habits. Some tips include:

* Read the label. Sodium levels in convenience foods vary widely. A half-cup of one brand of spaghetti sauce has 820 milligrams of sodium while another has only 390 milligrams.

* Wash it away. Many canned vegetables are packed in a salt and water solution. By simply rinsing any canned vegetable with tap water before cooking, you can remove as much as 40 percent of the sodium.

* Purchase no-salt-added products. This gives you control over the salt in your food. You can always salt to suit your taste.

While sodium consumption is not a health issue for everyone, an appropriate amount of salt is important for maintaining a healthy diet. Experts suggest a healthy diet should include 2,000 to 3,000 milligrams of salt per day. If your physician has put you on a no-sodium diet, it is important to follow those orders directly.

For those who would like to reduce their sodium intake without compromising food flavor or salting habits, there are alternatives, such as Diamond Crystal Salt Sense.

“Whereas many salt substitutes use formulas that often lack quality taste, Salt Sense is 100 percent real salt that offers 33 percent less sodium by volume,” says Ramona Bennett, marketing manager for Diamond Crystal. “This is the one salt alternative that allows you to add the same amount of salt to your food -- like corn on the cob -- that you normally would and still reduce your sodium intake.”

A brochure with some helpful tips for reducing sodium in your diet and tips for following the DASH diet is available free of charge. You can receive a copy of “The Shake Down on Salt” brochure simply by calling toll-free (888) 385-SALT (7258).

The Wonderful Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet.

2007-12-07T21:39:00.002-08:00

The Wonderful Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet.

by: Ruth Polak

The Mediterranean Diet is now recognized as one of the healthiest in the world consisting as it does of large amounts of fresh fruit and vegetables, salads,nuts,seeds, omega-3 rich oily fish, olives and olive oil and being comparitively low in dairy products and red meats.

The people of the Mediterranean region, particuarly Greece and Spain, are very fortunate to live in an area where naturally healthy food is readily and cheaply available. The incidence of heart disease and cancer are lower here than anywhere else in the western world and experts now believe this is due in great part to what has become known as the Mediterranean diet.

Modern farming techniques and world wide transport has changed most peoples diets dramatically in the past centuary and it is now widely believed that such changes have had an exteremely detrimental effect on our health. Fortunately the impact of these developments has not had such a catastrophic effect in Mediterranean regions
where to a large extent traditional diets are still followed. Of course with the advent of Globalization and MacDonald's! this is sadly changing. However we can all learn alot form what has become known as the Mediterranean diet and by adopting it,vastly improve our health and longevity.

The foods that grow natuarlly and abundantly in that region and have always formed a part of the local diet are as follows:-
Olives, avocados, oranges, lemons, garlic, wild asparagus, walnuts, almonds,tomatoes, artichokes, figs, pomegranates, cherries, strawberries, grapes, plums, spinach,broad beans,peppers along with many other of the more common fruits and vegetables. These provide large amounts of vitamins, minerals and fibre along with a wide variety of antioxidants and phytochemicals, the importance of which scientists are only now beginning to recognize as they discover more and more healthful benefits of including these elements in our diet.

Historically alot of the milk was produced from goats and cheese made from goats and ewes milk. Very little red meat is eaten and a large majority of the protein is supplied by oily fish such as sardines, mackerel, tuna, sword fish, boquerones and anchovies.

The main oil used is olive, traditionally cold pressed virgin, and this is used not only for cooking and in salads but also for putting on bread in place of butter.

All these foods provide a wide variety of nutriments which have an astonishing array of claims for improving our health such as lowering cholesterol, improving our immune system which thus not only fights infections but also helps to prevent cancer, increasing our metabolism, improving insulin sensitivity and thus lessening the risk of diabetes. It really has never been so true that you are what you eat. Certainly since moving to Andalucia and adopting the Mediteranean diet myself I have never been so healthy or managed to maintain my ideal weight so easily.

Of coures in addition to all the healthy components of this diet there is the added fact that honey is often used in place of sugar and little refined carbohydrates are eaten.

All in all most experts now agree that the Mediterranean diet is the optimum diet

The Ultimate Weight Loss Attitude

2007-12-07T21:39:00.001-08:00

The Ultimate Weight Loss Attitude

by: Greg Ryan

Us the diet and exercise industry have our opinions on what diets work and which ones are just sales gimmicks. I believe this can be very discouraging to you the consumer. Unfortunately, a lot of people want to get on the band wagon of wellness and tap into millions of Americans desperate need to feel better, lose weight and get in better shape.

Over my twenty year tender in the weight loss business I have seen every single program and have heard thousands of success and failure stories. The facts are that any dietary plan on the market has some portion of it that works, but the basic principle of any good eating program, no matter how sugarcoated, centers around calories IN— calories OUT.

The eating “only one type of food diets” will not be effective, and such a restricted diet defeats you mentally. Most diets are just too unrealistic for a person’s lifestyle. Plus they don’t supply enough basic nutritional needs for people to stay with them. Balance is the key! Attitude is the key to keeping balance!!

For what ever its worth, I would like to purpose this mental approach to you using four of the best plans out there. I want to point out the message, so do not shoot the messenger.

Principle #1: CHANGE YOUR UNWANTED BEHAVIORS: For what ever you think about Dr. Phil he still has the best approach to weight loss when it comes with dealing with the beliefs behind the behaviors.

Goal #1: Figure out your illusions behind your behaviors. Change them and you will change your life.

Principle 2: HAVE AN ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM. When Weight Watchers decided to put responsibility back into the consumers hands by connecting points and weigh-ins into your eating habits there business tripled. You need accountability.

Goal #2: Incorporate a support and accountability system into your wellness plan.

Principle #3: SUGAR IS KILLING YOU INSIDE OUT. Instant gratification is killing you. Sugar busters taught us to watch our sugar filled foods.

Goal #4: Lose the sugar, lose the weight. That simple!

Principle #4: AMERICA HAS A PROTEIN DEFIENCY. The South Beach Diet has been successful because it does two things. Increases the amount of protein in your diet and cuts done on the meats filled with so many preservatives.

Goal #4: Start eating more protein in your diet and less complex carbohydrates.
What ever your beliefs and success in these four programs your experience, however in mine after working with thousands of people – those who had this four principles in there diet plans were more successful. I call this the Changing from the INSIDE OUT mindset.
Click here for a FREE MINI COURSE that has taken me twenty years to develop.

The Truth about the Mayo Clinic Diet

2007-12-07T21:38:00.000-08:00

The Truth about the Mayo Clinic Diet

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

This was posted on their site, August 22, 2003:

"Mayo Clinic diet: It doesn't exist.
A number of so-called "Mayo Clinic diets" have surfaced over the years. None of these originated at or are endorsed by Mayo Clinic."

If you'd like to read information that is not fake,

QUOTE:
If calories burned are more / less than calories ingested, weight will be lost / gained. Physics can NOT be turned off.
ENDQUOTE:

The Truth About High Protein Diets

2007-12-07T21:37:00.002-08:00

The Truth About High Protein Diets

by: Joel Kaye, MA

All you hear about today is how good protein is for you. It is advertised as the best way to build muscle and more than that it helps one lose weight. Hey, if a little protein is good for you then a lot is even better, right? WRONG! That statement couldnï¿½t be further from the truth.

Diet gurus pushing high protein low carb diets are promising quick weight loss. This type of diet has become the most popular diet of today. Anyone promising quick weight loss along with greater muscle gains is sure to attract a lot of people but are they exposing the whole picture? Most of the high protein diets have people restrict their calories at the beginning of the diet and that is why there is weight loss. It doesn't come from eating more protein. So what is the problem if you reduce your weight by cutting calories and eat a lot of protein?

Well, there are many health concerns when eating too much protein. The American Medical Association calls high protein diets, "Potentially hazardous, and full of theories that are at best half truths." There are reported adverse side effects such as calcium loss, undesirable lipoprotein levels and decreased immune function. Due to carbohydrate restrictions, this causes elevated levels of acetoacetate, which is linked to increased risk factors for cardiovascular disease. When there is a restriction of calories in the amount that most of
these high protein diets recommend this can cause a low immune system response. When you restrict your calories this causes inadequate levels of vitamins and minerals.

The typical American diet today provides more then enough protein. The minimum amount of protein needed to fulfill protein needs is equal to 0.8 grams of protein per kg body weight per day. If you weigh 150 lbs., you divide your weight by 2.2 then times it by .8 and the amount of protein needed is 54.5 grams a day. If you do a lot of aerobic exercising you should up it to 1-1.2 grams per kg of body weight. To build muscle you only need very small amounts of protein so the recommended RDA is enough to help build muscle.

You can get protein from animals, plants or vegetables. You will benefit more from getting your protein from meat that includes poultry and fish and to avoid red meats and dairy products. Individual plant proteins and grains don't contain all the essential amino acids, as does animal protein. However if you eat a variety of plant foods, cereals, nuts, seeds, grains and legumes in combination, then you will get the essential amino acids needed by the body in a much healthier way then getting your protein from animal sources. Animal sources may contain the essential amino acids but also are very high in fat.

In closing, protein is needed by the body but in small amounts and Americans are getting more then enough in their diets so you shouldn't eat a diet high in protein or take protein supplements.

The South Beach Diet

2007-12-07T21:37:00.001-08:00

The South Beach Diet

by: Charlene J. Nuble

Among the most popular forms of dieting is the South Beach diet, developed by cardiologist Arthur Agatston of Miami, Florida.

The South Beach diet is always confused with Atkins Diet, which is a low-carbohydrate diet. The South Beach diet highlights the consumption of “good carbohydrates” (high in fiber) and low in glycemic index. The South Beach diet was developed for patients with heart problems to lose weight without risking ketosis. The weight loss was a side effect which turned out to be beneficial and this encouraged many people to try South Beach diet.

According to the South Beach diet theory, highly processed carbohydrates are quickly digested which makes insulin level to shoot up. Once the carbohydrates are all used up, your high insulin level makes you crave more for carb-filled foods.

The South Beach diet is based on the observation that Americans are carb crazy, which is also the reason for the induction phase. In the first two weeks, dieters attempt to eliminate bad carb such as grains or fruits. After this phase, grain-based foods and fruits are returned to the diet with the concentration on foods with low glycemic index.

The South Beach diet also emphasizes the difference between good and bad carbohydrates, and good and bad fats. Good carbohydrates have low glycemic index which means that they are slowly digested and absorbed. The South Beach diet bans unhealthy fats such as saturated fat.

Finally, the South Beach diet stresses a permanent change in one’s way of eating. The South Beach diet suggests whole grains along with large amounts of vegetables, with sufficient amounts of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, plus Omega-3 oils. The South Beach diet discourages eating of overly refined foods such as flour and sugar.

According to experts, the South Beach diet met the criteria of healthy diet which is a good thing. The bad thing is the induction phase wherein dieters lose weight due to loss of water. Losing a large amount of water can disturb one’s electrolyte so if you’re following the South Beach diet, it would be better if you work closely with a doctor.

According to Dr. Agatston, South Beach diet is neither a low carb nor low fat diet but the restrictions placed in the induction phase cut big time the carbohydrate and fat intake of dieters. The good thing about the South Beach diet is that it teaches people on the right foods to eat to cut the risk of heart problems and high cholesterol as well as help them lose weight. The South Beach diet is a long, tedious journey towards perhaps a drop dead gorgeous body. But more than phases of losing weight, the South Beach diet is a way of life.

The Simplest Diet Plan Ever - 3 Easy Steps to Healthy Living

2007-12-07T21:36:00.002-08:00

The Simplest Diet Plan Ever - 3 Easy Steps to Healthy Living

by: Emily Clark

You've heard the popular advice on weight loss diets. Cut the
fat! Cut the carbs! Cut the calories! Eat a balanced diet! But
how can you cut though all of the confusion, and eat a diet
that's balanced and healthy?

Here's the advice from nutritional science:

Cut the JUNK fats: Most people do not need an ultra low fat
diet. But most of us could improve our diet by cutting out the
junk fats. Basically, these are the processed fats:
hydrogenated fats, polyunsaturated oils that have been heated,
and fats that are combined with junk carbs. Processed fats are
the fats most likely to put on flab and clog your arteries.

Cut the JUNK carbs. Most people do not need an ultra low carb
diet. But unfortunately, so many people who go on a low fat diet
continue to eat highly processed foods - they switch from
processed high-fat to processed low-fat. And when food
manufacturers create low fat foods, they tend to replace the fat
with junk carbs, that tend to pile on the pounds. Basically,
junk carbs are low-fiber carbs. Like sugar, fructose (and all
the other *oses), flour, cornstarch, fruit juice. Yes, fruit
juice is a junk carb too! - After all, how much fiber is there in
fruit juice? - Virtually none - its yet another junk carb. You
should eat the whole fruit instead, with its fiber intact.

Cut the JUNK calories. Most people do not need an ultra low
calorie diet. But just think what your diet would be like if you
dropped the processed fats and the low-fiber carbs. You'd be
eating mainly natural proteins, with lots of vegetables plus
whole fruits - and the odds are that you would be eating far
fewer calories as well. That's the kind of calorie cutting most
of us should be doing.

Eat a balanced NATURAL-FOODS diet. By natural foods, we mean the
foods that would have been eaten by your hunter-gatherer
ancestors: - lots of whole vegetable foods for vitamins and
fiber; moderate to small portions of meats, fish, seafood, and
other animal and protein foods, grilled, stewed or baked; and
small portions of fresh whole fruit in season. This is the diet
on which the human race evolved, and the diet which, for the vast
majority of people, makes for optimum health

So the next time you're about to order a meal with fries and
sugary soda, think about how it could be improved. Replace the
fries with a salad, and the soda with mineral water, and you've
already made significant progress towards a more healthy,
balanced meal.

And at home, look for recipes that use whole, fresh foods, with a
minimum of processing. Make sure your meals include natural
unprocessed foods, with lots of healthy vegetables, both cooked,
and raw in salads. Avoid processed fats and processed low-fiber
foods.

A sample menu:
- grilled fish with steamed green beans, and peppers
- large mixed salad, dressed with small amounts of olive oil and
vinegar or lemon juice
- fresh fruit platter

Yes - A healthy, balanced diet can be that simple!

The information contained in this article is for educational purposes
only and is not intended to medically diagnose, treat or cure any
disease. Consult a health care practitioner before beginning any
health care program.

The risk of ischemic heart disease with low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets

2007-12-07T21:36:00.001-08:00

The risk of ischemic heart disease with low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets

by: Michal R. Pijak

There is convincing scientific evidence that type of fat have a more important role in determining the risk of coronary heart disease(CHD) than total amount of fat in the diet.(1) However, because of misleading presentation of epidemiological data by some authors(1), the readers might be left with the impression that low-fat, high- carbohydrate diet is the best option for patients with CHD risk.
In fact, high- carbohydrate diets, in the absence of weight loss, can lead to both elevated triglyceride and reduced HDL cholesterol, effects that may be associated with increased risk for CHD.(2) Although these effects may be lessened with dietary fiber and moderate physical activity, they appear to be worse among individuals with insulin resistance.(3)
As reviewed by Kris-Etherton(4) adverse metabolic effects of low fat diet do not occur with substitution of monounsaturated (MUFA) or polyunsaturated (PUFA) fatty acids for saturated and trans-fatty acids. This is also the case for individuals with diabetes, with the added benefit of better glycaemic control.(5)
As predicted by metabolic studies, replacement of saturated fat, and even more so trans fatty acids with either PUFA or MUFA was associated with a larger reduction in risk of CHD than simple reduction of total fat consumption.(6) With respect to weight control, a moderate-fat diet can be as, or even more, effective that lower-fat diet. (6)
References
1. Hu FB, Manson JE, Willet WC. Types of dietary fat and risk of coronary heart disease: a critical review. J Am Coll Nutr 2001;20:5-19.
2. Fung MA, Frohlich JJ. Common problems in the management of hypertriglyceridemia. CMAJ 2002;167:1261-6.
3. Jeppesen J, Schaaf P, Jones G, Zhou MY, Chen YD, Reaven GM. Effects of low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets on risk factors for ischemic heart disease in postmenopausal women. Am J Clin Nutr 1997;65:1027-33.
4. Kris-Etherton PM, Kris-Etherton PM, Binkoski AE, Zhao G, Coval SM, Clemmer KF, et al. Dietary fat: assessing the evidence in support of a moderate-fat diet; the benchmark based on lipoprotein metabolism. Proc Nutr Soc 2002;61:287-98.
5. Rivellese AA, De Natale C, Lilli S. Type of dietary fat and insulin resistance. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2002;967:329-35.
6. Krauss RM, Eckel RH, Howard B, Appel LJ, Daniels SR, Deckelbaum RJ et al. AHA Dietary Guidelines: revision 2000: A statement for healthcare professionals from the Nutrition Committee of the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2000;102:2284-99.

The Real Mayo Clinic Diet

2007-12-07T21:35:00.002-08:00

The Real Mayo Clinic Diet

by: Kirsten Hawkins

For over thirty years, the Mayo Clinic has been combating the rumor that they recommend a version of a quick weight loss diet that touts the consumption of grapefruit, vegetables, fruits and unlimited portions of meat and fat. The clinic has repeatedly issued statements that the so-called 'Mayo Clinic Diet' did not originate at the Mayo Clinic and is not endorsed by them. In fact, they have gone so far as to state that it may be unhealthy for some people.

A visit to the Mayo Clinic web site will take you to the REAL Mayo Clinic diet, and their recommendations and guidance for weight loss that is healthy and permanent.

Summary:

Weight loss results from expending more calories than you consume. The only way to lose weight is to eat fewer calories than you use in your daily activities. The only way to achieve permanent weight loss is by adopting a balanced, healthy diet with portions that fit your lifestyle, and engage in regular physical activity.

The healthiest, most beneficial diet for you is one that takes your individuality into account. There is no 'one perfect eating plan' - not even one that will work for you 'for the rest of your life'. Your body needs different things at different stages. Illnesses and allergies, high stress periods - all result in changing nutritional needs for your body.

Basic Recommendations: The Seven Basic Rules

1. Eat more fruit and vegetables.
2. Reduce intake of saturated fats and cholesterol
3. Cut back on sweets and salt
4. Drink alcohol in moderation, if you must drink at all
5. Learn to eat moderate portions of food
6. Control the number of calories you consume
7. Include physical activity in your daily activities

Specifics by Food Group

Carbohydrates

Carbs are the body's main energy source. Complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, legumes and dried beans and grains are a staple of the Mediterranean diet, where heart disease, diabetes and obesity are extremely low.

Recommendation: 45 to 65% of your daily calories should be from carbohydrates. Focus on the complex carbohydrates, milk and fruit, and keep your intake of sugar, white flour and candy low.

Cholesterol

Your body uses cholesterol to build and help cells function properly. Typically, our bodies make all the cholesterol needed, and additional cholesterol is deposited on the sides of arteries and organs. Cholesterol is found in meat, poultry, eggs, dairy products and seafood.

Recommendations:

Limit intake of cholesterol to no more than 300 milligrams daily

Fat

One of the most concentrated sources of energy—fat—has more calories than protein or carbohydrates. Your body needs it to absorb some vitamins and build healthy cells and neural pathways. The kind of fat is important, though. Trans and saturated fats (from red meats, among other things), can raise your cholesterol level and heighten your risk of heart attacks.

Recommendation:

Aim for 20 to 35% of daily calories from fat. Focus on vegetable oils, nuts and fish oils rather than most animal sources.

Fiber

Fiber is the bulky part of vegetables. There are two types of fiber - soluble and insoluble. Your body needs both. Fiber is derived from bran, oats, wheat, green vegetables, apples and other fruits.

Recommendations:

For women: 21 - 25 grams fiber daily
For men: 30 - 38 grams fiber daily

As you can see, the real Mayo Clinic diet emphasizes a balanced diet derived largely from complex carbohydrates, fresh vegetables, little meat, and careful choice of fat. They advocate slow, steady weight loss rather than quick, take-it-off-now methods, and strongly suggest that the best eating plans are those that can become the basis for a lifelong change in eating habits. Along with those general recommendations, the clinic's Nutrition Center makes specific recommendations for each food group. Specifically:

Protein:

Protein is an essential nutrient for nearly every system in the body. It's contained in your skin, bones, muscles, blood, organs, hormones and enzymes. The major sources of dietary protein are meat, seafood, poultry, legumes, seeds and nuts.
Recommendations:

Between 10 and 35% of your daily caloric intake should be from protein-rich sources.

An Interesting Exercise

One of the contentions of the Mayo Clinic is that one-size fits all diets won't work for everyone. One of the most helpful parts of their Nutrition Center is their Daily Calorie Calculator. A link on the home page will take you to a Healthy Diet Calculator that will help you calculate a personalized eating plan to help you lose weight.

Here’s an example of what your personalized plan could look like:

Subject: Female, 225 lbs, 5 ft 6"
Recommendations:

Daily calorie goal for weight loss: 1200 calories
Sweets and extras: up to 75 calories daily
Fats: 3 servings
Protein/Dairy: 3 servings
Carbohydrates: 4 servings
Fruits: 3 or more servings
Vegetables: 4 or more servings

Further links offer a sample menu at that calorie level, and specific recommendations that will help you lose weight. Those tips include:

Increase the ratio of fruits and vegetables in meals
Experiment with new foods and combinations.
Start with a soup or salad.
Learn healthy cooking techniques.
Consider energy density of food.

Energy density?

The Mayo Clinic defines energy density as the number of calories in food vs. the amount of food. A sugary dessert may have extremely high energy density – in other words, a small serving provides a lot of calories. Consequently, it takes far more of that food to make your body feel full. Foods like broccoli have a much less energy density - 15 calories in a regular portion. You eat far less of it and feel full more quickly.

The basic recommendations made by the Mayo Clinic aren't ground-breaking. They advocate sensible eating, low calories and increasing your physical activity. The suggestion to aim for 1-2 pounds lost per week is echoed by nearly every other medically noteworthy institute in the country. It's a real diet - the real Mayo Clinic Diet.

The Profect Solution for Diabetics

2007-12-07T21:35:00.001-08:00

The Profect Solution for Diabetics

by: Protica Research

Diabetes, which affects more than 6% of the US population or over 18,000,000 people [i], is diagnosed when the body is not creating or effectively utilizing the hormone called insulin. As a result, much-needed energy from sugar, starch, and other sources are not being exploited as effectively as they should. This can lead to severe adverse health consequences, including nerve, ocular, and kidney problems [ii].

While genetics and environmental factors play a role, the exact cause of diabetes is as yet undetermined. However, one thing is precisely clear to those with this condition: eating right is vitally important.

Generally speaking, people with diabetes do not eat a standard “one size fits all” diet. Rather, they must adhere very closely to the healthy eating guidelines prescribed by their doctor.

However, these recommendations, which generally apply to the general public as well [iii], include principles such as eating a low-fat diet, and limiting calories from saturated fat to less than 10% of daily caloric intake. The recommendations also include eating complete sources of protein, and limiting calories from protein to 20% of daily caloric intake [iv]. It is worth noting that protein also plays an added support role in a diabetic diet, because protein can slowly transforms into glucose. As such, ingesting appropriate amounts of complete protein can help a diabetic manage blood-sugar levels.

At the same time, maintaining low blood pressure is of enhanced important for those with diabetes. As such, a diet that helps maintain a healthy body weight is essential, since high blood pressure is related to obesity and overweight conditions [v].

Diabetics know full well they should eat a calorie-smart diet that is low in fat, fortified with complete protein, and scores low on the Glycemic Index [1]. Yet quite often what is lacking is time to ensure that this diet is maintained.

Unlike individuals without diabetes who can, if they must, “snack” on unhealthy foods from time to time, persons with diabetes are well advised by their qualified doctors to ensure that a very healthy eating regimen is consistently followed. Yet following this regimen is indeed difficult; especially since so many foods in restaurants and vending machines are utterly devoid of healthy ingredients.

At most, one might expect to find some low fat options when eating out; but these usually have high calories, high sodium – to compensate for flavor lost due to reduced fat – and a high GI score. None of this is welcome information for diabetics.

Fortunately, a product called Profect has been medically engineered to provide diabetics with a practical eating solution. Profect, with its low Glycemic Index, contains absolutely no sugar. Therefore, diabetics do not have to worry about their blood sugar levels spiking after eating a serving of Profect.

As an added benefit to those with diabetes, Profect contains 25 grams of complete protein [2] -- and zero fat. As such, Profect can be eaten along with other foods to slow down the overall absorption cycle. Ultimately, this means that Profect can effectively reduce insulin spikes and the subsequent creation of fat cells; which, as noted above, can lead to weight gain and high blood pressure.

Yet perhaps most appreciated by diabetics is the fact that eating Profect is very convenient. It requires no cooking ability, nor the creation of a messy – and potentially poorly configured – health “shake” that might actually add too much protein to the system, and lead to adverse toxic buildup.

The fact that Profect is convenient may seem like something of a marketing “benefit”, to be touted on a website or a package container, but the reason for this has nothing to do with marketing appeal. People with diabetes, just like most of the population, lead busy lives in which time is of the essence. Finding 2 or 3 hours each day to create foods is oftentimes unrealistic.

It is because of this need for a convenient and easily accessible food that Protica Research created the 2.7 fluid ounce container to protect each serving. These containers are extremely strong, easy to carry and store, and are deliberately suited for busy, time-starved lifestyles.

Dealing with diabetes is a reality that more than 18 million Americans face each day, and over the next 2 decades the rate of diabetes is expected to increase by almost 250% throughout the developing world [vi].

Daily – one might say hourly – some of the finest brains in science are searching for preventions and cures that will help millions of people diagnosed with diabetes to lead full, healthy lives. Aligned with this ultimate mission is Profect’s eating solution for diabetics and healthy eaters alike.

The Perfect Diet Just for You

2007-12-07T21:34:00.002-08:00

The Perfect Diet Just for You

by: Michael Fortomas

You decide to start a new diet plan. You shop around, get ideas, talk to friends, family, co-workers, forum friends, chat room buddies…then you choose the one that sounds best and works within your budget and sign up.

Next comes the fun part of learning a new system. You count calories, track servings, buy special foods, hit the treadmill, plan meals around special recipes, weigh in regularly and log everything.

What happens over time? Maybe some of these:

You lose some weight. You gain some weight. The food choices start to bore you. You'd rather count sheep than calories and put the little weighing gadgets back in the drawer. Everyone who thought you could stand to shed a few pounds, even recommending diets for you to choose from, are now saying things that trip you up like, "Oh, you don't need to loose any more weight." Or "It's OK to eat a Big Mac and French fries this time."

You've started skipping weigh-ins and meetings because of time, then "just because"…no reason. I mean, why go through that, right?? You KNOW what you should and shouldn't eat, so why go listen, weigh in, blah, blah, blah…

You quit - for now - fully intending to pick up the program next week. OK, next month in reality. Or next year. OK, next LIFETIME.

To begin, simply consider these facts…

A healthy diet goes hand-in-hand with healthy weight management. No pain, no gain, right? Wrong!

Individual activity and dietary goals depend upon each person's health and weight goals and issues. Depending upon individual health concerns and issues, food choices can affect body and mental health. Arriving at the Perfect Diet is no quick, simple task in today’s world of fast-paced living.

For example, there are a several different educational food pyramid plans. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a food guide pyramid. And the Mayo Clinic, in conjunction with the May Foundation for Medical Education and Research, has their Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight Pyramid. (A list of pyramids are updated regularly at the USDA site: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/Fpyr/pyramid.html

Then there are the lifestyle choices to go along with the dietary plans. Lives need to be balanced in order to make the perfect diet effective. For example, depending upon the body type, history, physical and mental make up and other factors, some dietary solutions are more perfectly suitable and / or adaptable than others when working in accordance with day-to-day activities; exercise, nutrition, health, etc.

You must learn about foods with respect to nutrition, dietary and body basics and common disorders. Then you can choose which areas of importance you would like to focus on from subscriber and other organizational programs available today for help with diet solutions, to weight products, to an assortment of food planning tips, and more.

All the above should be made under the guidance of your own medical practitioners.

The New And Improved Nutrition Pyramid

2007-12-07T21:34:00.001-08:00

The New And Improved Nutrition Pyramid

by: Kirsten Hawkins

Just when you were getting the Nutrition Pyramid down to an exact science, the USDA goes and releases an all new nutrition and diet plan for healthy Americans. On April 19, 2005, the United States Department of Agriculture unveiled its new My Pyramid nutrition pyramid. Available at its own web site (http://www.mypyramid.gov), the new guidelines aren't so much NEW as they are more in depth, detailed and helpful.

For starters, My Pyramid can be personalized. On the main page, you have the option of entering your age, gender and activity level. Simply click “submit” and get a recommendation that's more specific than '6-11 servings of grain per day'. Instead of those vague, wide-ranging recommendations, you'll get a pyramid that says, "6 ounces of grain products", or 2 1/2 cups vegetables.

Even if that were the ONLY improvement on the new site, it would be tremendous. No more guessing whether you should aim for closer to six servings or closer to eleven. The nutrition calculator factors in your age, gender and activity level (above your normal daily routine) to come up with a recommended caloric intake. From there, it breaks down the calories by food group, and tells you exactly how much of each group you should eat per day for a healthy diet. It's far easier to figure out what 2 cups of milk is than it is to figure out how much '3-5' servings of dairy is!

But it doesn't stop there. Beneath the pyramid chart with the specific serving sizes on it, you'll find a list of links to 'tips' for making the healthiest choices from each food group - divided by food group.

There are some great diet tips there, along with ways to serve foods in appetizing and nutritious ways. A sampling from each category includes:

* Grain: Substitute whole grain cereal for bread crumbs in toppings.
* Vegetables: Try crunchy vegetables raw or lightly steamed.
* Fruits: Try applesauce as a fat-free substitute for oil in baking.
* Milk: Trim down from whole milk to fat-free gradually, week by week.
* Meat/Beans: Replace some of the meat in your diet with nuts.

Want to know how your actual diet stacks up against the dietary guidelines and get specific, personalized recommendations for improving it? Tucked away at the bottom of the list of links in the menu you'll find the My Pyramid Tracker. It's easily the handiest tool that I've ever seen. Enter the foods that you eat in a typical day, click Analyze, and you'll get a detailed analysis that includes the calories, the amount of over 25 specific nutrients, the difference between your diet and an optimum diet, and specific recommendations for changes you should make to eat a healthier diet. Better yet, you can save your history day by day to keep track of your eating habits and watch the improvements. It's the diet diary with a difference. Use it - and see yourself eating better every day.

The Mediterranean Diet Full Flavored Foods Help You Lose Weight

2007-12-07T21:33:00.000-08:00

The Mediterranean Diet Full Flavored Foods Help You Lose Weight

by: Allison Preston

For everyone who’s been on a diet themselves or knows someone who’s been on a diet, you know how bland the food can be sometimes. With foods like rice cakes it’s no secret why you lose weight, if the foods taste like carboard.

For everyone who’s had this experience there is hope. You should look at the Mediterranean Diet. The Mediterranean Diet isn’t a new fad or quick loss weight scheme, in fact it’s been around for over 40 years. However it’s taken science that long to fugure out what it was and why it works. The Mediterranean is a diverse region that is made up of 16 countries along the Mediterranean Sea. Countries like France, Spain, Italy and Greece have diverse and different cultures. While the foods are different on a nutritionally level they share many similarities. They contain lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. Wine is consumed in moderate amounts daily. Eggs are consumed in moderate amounts, and foods like poultry, fish and dairy are consumed on a limited basis.

However as many nutritionists and scientists are discovering one of the keys to the Mediterranean Diet is the oils. Plant based oils are extensively used throughout the region, with olive oil being the most popular. Olive oil is a monounsaturated fat, which means it’s good for the body and does things like lower your cholesterol. Do to the rich fats in the foods and those used in the cooking the foods of the region are known for the full rich textures and flavors that they have. In fact it’s these fats which give the foods a luxurious “mouth feel”. However eating foods rich in fats is not without some sacrifices, as fats have more than double the amount of calories of similarly sized portions of protein or carbohydrates. Learning to manage and control your portions is a key aspect of anybody who wants to follow the Mediterranean Diet.

The Main Causes of Hemorrhoids Are Diet and Toilet-Strain.

2007-12-07T21:32:00.001-08:00

The Main Causes of Hemorrhoids Are Diet and Toilet-Strain.

by: John Lim

Hemorrhoids have two main causes: diet, and toilet-strain. Studies have also shown that these two causes are linked because eating bad food can lead to constipation which then leads to straining on the toilet.

Diet
A diet that lacks fiber contributes to hemorrhoids. This is why the Western diet which is rich in processed foods has been linked to causing hemorrhoids. The simple treatment or solution is to consume more fiber foods such as fiber rich cereal, bananas and bread.

Toilet-Straining
Today’s modern toilets are built to be more comfortable. However, this actually encourages straining. People who read while sitting in the toilet also stand a higher chance of getting hemorrhoids due to the extra pressure to the anal veins which are caused by sitting in the toilet for too long. So while it may seem enjoyable, try not to read while passing motion!

While diet and toilet straining seem to be the main causes of hemorrhoids, there are other factors involved. Other common hemorrhoid causes include aging, diarrhea, constipation, overuse of laxatives and even pregnancy.

Fortunately for women, while pregnancy can cause hemorrhoids as the fetus puts extra pressure on the hemorrhoidal veins, these cases are not serious. Nor will it harm the child. The hemorrhoids that occur in these cases will be mild. There may not be a need for treatment of any kind, so there’s no need to worry.

In most instances, you don’t need to go through any treatment to cure yourself of hemorrhoids. Unless the case is very serious, your body will be able to heal itself. In fact, there are times when you won’t even realize that you had hemorrhoids. This is provided that nothing is done to aggravate the situation.

In some unfortunate cases, people who deal with chronic constipation or chronic diarrhea will also have to deal with hemorrhoids. The constant strain on the bowels is a major cause of hemorrhoids.

The Low-Down On Diet Comparison

2007-12-07T21:31:00.002-08:00

The Low-Down On Diet Comparison

by: Kirsten Hawkins

Low carbs and high protein is the way to lose weight, or so you'll hear from one diet guru, and he has the testimonials to back it up. Low fat, lots of carbs and fresh fruits and veggies, says another - and he's got the back up from satisfied users, too. A third swears that you need to count the amount of sugar; another tells you the enemy is white flour - if you want to lose real weight and keep it off, who do you listen to?

Take a look at the brief summaries below for a quick overview of the pros and cons of each of the popular types of diet plans.

Low Carb-Hi Protein Diets

Diets like the Atkins, the South Beach and the Zone Diet all recommend restricted carbohydrates and allow liberal amounts of protein, including protein derived from animal sources. Generally, they limit the overall amount of carbohydrates, or teach you to differentiate between "good" and "bad" carbohydrates. Bad carbohydrates, which are forbidden, include white flour, white bread, and white sugar.

Pros: The diets all encourage learning healthy eating as part of losing weight. Deriving most of your daily calories from high fiber sources of carbs like leafy green vegetables and grains is generally considered the best diet for nutrition by the established medical community. The popularity of the diets makes it easy to find low-carb foods.

Cons: The allowance of eating all the protein and fats you like flies in the face of conventional medical wisdom. A diet high in saturated fats could lead to heart disease, diabetes, gout and other chronic health conditions. Following the diets' cautions and advice to keep portions reasonable should mitigate that concern, though.

Weight Loss "Programs"

Jenny Craig, NutriSystem, Weight Watchers, SlimFast and a number of other weight loss programs rely heavily on pre-packaged 'diet' foods. They incorporate professional coaching, social structure and reinforcement.

Pros: The professional coaching and nutritional benefits are a big plus, as are the reinforcement and support aspect of the diets. Meals and supplements are prepackaged in the right proportions, and if you stick to the diets and exercise as directed you will lose weight.

Cons: The weekly fees and cost of meals can be expensive. In addition, if you rely completely on the packaged foods, you miss out on the re-education of your eating habits, which is important to maintaining any weight lost.

The Real Mayo Clinic Diet

This is not the diet that has circulated for the past thirty or more years and purported to have originated at the Mayo Clinic! The true Mayo Clinic's nutrition and diet center recommends a healthy eating weight loss plan based on limiting fats, proteins and carbohydrates, counting calories and deriving most of the daily nutrition from vegetables, grains and fruit.

Pros: There's no 'diet'. Instead, you're encouraged to take control of your eating. Portion control and sensible balance of nutrients are the cornerstones of a weight loss plan that takes weight off gradually, and helps you keep it off permanently.

Cons: It may be difficult to stay on the diet. Counting calories and portions can be difficult if you're eating out or on the run.

There are many diets that promise to take weight off quickly and painlessly, without exercise or changing your eating habits. The three major variations of diets above all will result in 1-2 pounds of loss per week, which most doctors believe is the optimum way to lose weight for long lasting results.

The Low Carb F.A.Q

2007-12-07T21:31:00.001-08:00

The Low Carb F.A.Q

by: Niall Roche

When most people think of low carb diets they automatically think Atkins. For obvious reasons. Dr. Robert Atkins formulated the original low carb diet in 1972 and was met a with a hail of ridicule and negativity from the medical community at large.

The Atkins Diet, since renamed to the Atkins Nutritional Approach, works on a very simple principle. Carbohydrates are what our body normally use to produce energy. If you restrict the carbohydrate intake of a normal person their metabolism changes. Changes? Yes your body looks to the next available energy source which is....fat. So now instead of burning carbohydrates for energy your body does the same thing with your existing fat deposits.

In a low carbohydrate diet you actually increase your intake of fat and pure protein as opposed to reducing it. In theory the more fat you eat the more fat you burn because your body is now using fat for energy. It's common to see low carb dieters eating enormous steaks smothered in butter with fried eggs and mushrooms on the side. A very high fat meal but also a perfect low carbohydrate meal.

The fat burning process is called lipolysis. As the fat is being broken down for energy a secondary phase called ketosis occurs. Ketones are the fragments of fat being broken down in the process of lipolysis hence the name ketosis.

Ketosis has a single nasty side effect -bad breath. For whatever biological reason the conversion of fat to energy can lead to really, really bad breath. This is a common complaint amongst followers of Atkins and similar low carbohydrate diets.

Amongst some of the bad press that low carb diets receive are worrying stories of people dying while on a low carb diet. These hyped up media tales are tied to one word - ketoacidosis. This particular condition occurs when a person goes on a zero carbohydrate diet and/or suffers from diabetes. During the ketosis phase the blood becomes overly acidic to a critical point. Coma and death can follow quickly if medical attention is not immediately sought.

Does everybody following a low carb diet run the risk of ketoacidosis? Not unless you have a history of diabetes (diagnosed or undiagnosed) and you also totally eliminate carbohydrates from your diet. Even then only a small number of people are actually susceptible to the effects of ketoacidosis when compared to the general population.

The results that low carb diets produce are hard to argue with. Rapid weight loss in a short space of time whilst on a high fat, high protein diet. These results fly in the face of conventional medical wisdom and serve to constantly annoy the established medical community.

Low carb dieting is not going to disappear any time soon. Especially not as long as major Hollywood celebrities are successfully using Atkins and showing off their results to the world media.

The Link Between Diet and Nutrition

2007-12-07T21:30:00.002-08:00

The Link Between Diet and Nutrition

by: Jeff Smith

You will be happy to know that the latest low-carb diet
plans such as The South Beach Diet and The Zone are
making more room for both diet and nutrition planning
to lose weight and become more healthy.

The energy we use to drive our various body functions,
including our heart, lungs, internal organs and motor skills,
comes from a combination of protein, carbohydrates and fat.

That's why diets that suggest cutting out, or way down on
carbohydrates is of real diet and nutrition concern. Carbs
provide 40-50% of the energy our bodies need to function,
cutting carbohydrates out of our diets completely is not
a healthy option for most people.

That's why plans such as the South Beach Diet and The Zone
take the view that diet and nutrition are important - and
that you can still eat carbohydrates. The focus is much
more on good versus bad carbohydrates and methods to curb
carbohydrate addictions.

For instance, the South Beach Diet takes into account
complex versus simple carbohydrates - the biggest difference
being the rate at which - and amount - of glucose produced
by breaking down complex versus simple carbohydrates.

The link between diet and nutrition is absolutely critical
to your success in losing weight, gaining energy and living
a healthier, disease free lifestyle.

The Isometric Diet and Balanced Health

2007-12-07T21:30:00.001-08:00

The Isometric Diet and Balanced Health

by: Protica Research

The concept isometric has been a part of the health care vocabulary for decades. The most common application of the term, until now, has been with respect to physical exercise. Taken from the Greek root word Iso, meaning equal, the familiar term Isometric exercises involves applying equal weight to achieve strength goals.

Fairly recently, health researchers have discovered another innovative application of the isometric concept in the health care field: nutrition. These researchers have identified that an isometric approach to diet – a.k.a. the “Isometric Diet” -- can lead to health improvement.

The Isometric Diet®, which provides the philosophical basis for the Zone Diet, has swiftly gained respect from the health and nutrition community because it applies this clear “balance” lens to the rather confused, often misinformed world of dieting. Created by Dan Duchaine in the mid 90s, and evolved by researchers such as Dr. Barry Sears (founder of the Zone Diet™), the Isometric Diet is an eating regimen that calls for a balanced ratio of protein, low-glycemic carbohydrates, and essential fatty acids.

The balanced ratio is the result of an overall awareness that the human body does not necessarily desire, or require, all kinds of micronutrients in all situations. While carbohydrates, proteins, and fats do provide the essential building blocks of human life, not all sources of each are optimal in all situations.

The Isometric Diet therefore takes a holistic approach to eating, and incorporates both macronutrient and micronutrient sources of energy. This goes beyond simply balancing proteins, carbohydrates and fats. Instead, an optimal balance is achieved on a deeper level one that leads to optimal body functioning, normalized blood-glucose levels, a controlled metabolism, and a healthy satiating of hunger.

This optimal balance, and particularly the point about healthily satiating hunger, is in stark contrast to some “fad diets”, which seek to artificially suppress hunger. This potentially dangerous suppression often forces eaters to experience a weakened immune system, bone density loss, and other adverse consequences of malnutrition.

The Isometric Diet is founded upon five integrated principles: balance protein diversity unsaturated fats low glycemic carbohydrates and awareness of food priority.

Principle One: Balance. The Isometric Diet recognizes the fact that the human body functions optimally when it is fueled by a balanced micronutrient ratio of proteins, carbohydrates and fats.[i] The optimal ratio for these three is 1:1:1, or the same number of calories from proteins, carbohydrates and fats.

Principle Two: Protein Diversity. The human body responds differently to different sources of protein.[ii] For example, a post-exercise meal that consists of quick-assimilating whey protein will have a more beneficial health impact than an intake of caseinate or soy protein. The Isometric Diet therefore promotes a blend of protein intake to seek an amino acid balance, and to select the most appropriate assimilation rate for optimal health.

Principle Three: Unsaturated Fats and MCT’s. The Isometric Diet recognizes that the human body processes saturated fats differently from mono- and polyunsaturated fats.[iii] Furthermore, the diet exploits the fact that there are some fats, called Medium Chain Triglycerides or “MCTs”, which are shorter chains of 8-10 fatty acids. These MCT chains are shorter, absorb quickly, and digest very easily. The end result is a more efficient digestive system and better results through less effort.[iv]

Principle Four: Low Glycemic Carbohydrates. Healthy eaters are swiftly adopting the Isometric Diet’s promotion of carbohydrates that do not cause the blood-sugar to rise. Dieters can therefore use the “glycemic index” (GI) as an intelligent way to measure the body’s insulin response to a given food and to monitor the intake of “good” carbohydrates.[v]

Principle Five: Awareness of Food Priority. The Isometric Diet is aware that there are naturally occurring micronutrients found in food that supplements, typically, cannot engineer. As such, the Isometric Diet does not propose an eating regimen that regularly replaces food with supplements. Rather, a controlled diet that is fortified by scientifically designed supplements is most effective.[vi] This is particularly important in a very fast paced world where eating a complete meal can be quite a challenge. In such cases, the Isometric Diet approves of the supportive value of supplements – provided that such supplements are created in light of the above four principles.

One such supplement that has been engineered within the framework of these principles, and that is receiving positive acclaim in the health care field, is called Isometric®, created by Pennsylvania-based Protica, Inc. So named to reflect its balanced composition and support of the Isometric Diet principles, Isometric is a third-generation supplement that provides a complete spectrum of macro- and micronutrients.

Of greater importance to most health-conscious eaters, however, is Isometric’s balanced micronutrient breakdown. Each all-natural 3-fluid-ounce serving – which can be responsibly used as a meal replacement -- delivers 25 grams of low-glycemic carbohydrates, 25 grams of protein, and 10 grams of unsaturated, highly-bioavailable essential fatty acids. Of added value to dieters is Isometric’s™ modest 300-calories per serving.

The path to perfect eating balance is an evolving one. The more information that nutritional science uncovers, the more effective shall be the resulting eating regimen. However, regardless of what innovations lay ahead, one principle will remain constant: the human body craves equilibrium, and it achieves optimal health through a holistic balance of micronutrients and macronutrients. Enabling that balance today is the Isometric Diet, and more recently, Isometric from Protica, Inc.

The importance of diet in Lowering blood pressure

2007-12-07T21:29:00.002-08:00

The importance of diet in Lowering blood pressure

by: Grojan Fabiola

Diet is extremely important for people with high blood pressure, because eating unrecommended food can lead to kidney failure or heart-attacks.People who have high blood pressure must take up a healthy diet if they want to improve their condition.

To lower blood pressure it is quite important not to eat salt or products that contain fats. The doctors from the American Heart Association recommend eating vegetables, fruits, and low fat foods. These contribute in lowering blood pressure. One fourth of the American population is suffering from high blood pressure, and following a healthy diet can help them to improve their health by lowering their blood pressure.
The minerals that the body needs to lower the blood pressure are calcium, magnesium and potasium.Calcium is an important ingredient in the recipes for lowering blood pressure, and it also helps when having bone problems but the normal doses should be handled with care and not exceeded because calcium excess can lead to other problems.Food should be low in fat and sodium.Also, as said before, it is highly important to reduce the level of salt consumed (no more than 6 grams of salt per day should be assimilated,but the exact level can only be indicated by your doctor) if you want to lower your blood pressure.It was shown that a salt-free natural diet highly reduces the blood pressure and the risks of having a stroke, because natural food such as fruits has a high concentration of electrolytes, which play an important part in lowering blood pressure. But they are not the only component of a healthy diet that helps. This subject in still being researched.

Of course two highly dangerous factors that seriously increase the blood pressure and the risks of being struck by a heart-attack are alcohol and tobacco. Smoking is prohibited when suffering from high blood pressure and drinking should be kept under two drinks per day. Overweight people should seriously consider losing weight if they want to lower their blood pressure, and they need special diets of course.
The conclusion is that diet is extremely important and it could even save your life.If you want to change your diet to lower your blood pressure search for specialized diets on the web or for books on this topic in libraries.

The Hidden Truth About Diets

2007-12-07T21:29:00.001-08:00

The Hidden Truth About Diets

by: Hiram Perez

Quick, what's the first thought that pops into your head when you hear the word "diet?" Probably that when you're on one, you feel like you're going to "d-i-e" right?!

WHAT EXACTLY IS A DIET?

Most people believe that a diet is something that involves pain, suffering, and giving up foods we enjoy. Some of the symptoms of "being on a diet" usually include being hungry and cranky all the time. But this is not really the true meaning of the word and if you get hung up on all the negative stuff, you'll miss the entire concept.

Webster's dictionary defines a "Diet" as:

a : food and drink regularly provided or consumed;
b : habitual nourishment;
c : the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person for a special reason.

In other words, it's what we regularly or habitually eat and drink to nourish our bodies. That's not so bad. But here's the hidden truth that will turn your understanding of diets on its head and practically guarantee that you'll reach whatever weight goal you desire: Being "on a diet" really means having a plan for your eating instead of eating according to any spur-of-the-moment mood or habit. That's it!

This is so simple. But then most basic truths are. However, it's extremely powerful if you take the time to think about it and fully understand what it means. Let me say it again so that you don't miss it: Being on a diet really means having what you eat controlled by a PLAN instead of by your moods or habits.

WHY MOST DIETS DON'T WORK

The reason most diets don't work is because of the extreme measures most of them require. Some force you to give up everything except cabbage soup, or everything except meat and meat products, or everything except salads. This is not only monotonous, it's also pretty harsh -- not only harsh to stick with, but harsh on your physical wellbeing as well.

True, a monotonous diet is often effective at losing weight over the short term (ie: the Atkins Diet) but you have to wonder if you aren't giving up a part of your health in the process (ie: ketosis, acidosis, etc). Many conventional diets put the body in a highly acidic state which can create a number of health problems.

Our bodies are designed to absorb vitamins, nutrients, and minerals from a wide variety of foods and a monotonous diet runs directly counter to that. It simply isn't natural, and is the main reason most conventional diets just don't work in the long run.

THE RIGHT WAY TO DIET

The right way to diet is to think of dieting as a system of correct eating. Your diet should include a balanced plan for a variety of foods, taken in moderate amounts, and in the proper combination. You should also eat only when you're hungry, not when the clock says it's lunch or dinner time.

So forget the fad diets that don't work and get started on planning a diet that you can stick with over the long term. This is the balanced approach to good health and nutrition, and it's an approach that you can live with for the rest of your life.

The Glycemic Index and Dieting

2007-12-07T21:28:00.003-08:00

The Glycemic Index and Dieting

by: Protica Research

The field of nutrition is awash with charts, tables, diagrams, models, acronyms, and abbreviations; more than the average person can memorize. As such, one often comes across someone who has simply burnt out trying to keep track of how much to eat, when to eat it, how to find the calories from fat, the RDI, the DV, and so on. There is an overkill of useful information within the nutrition field, and it can ironically provoke one to grow weary and exhausted, tune out, and go grab a fast food burger.

Yet every once in a while, a concept within the nutrition field emerges that truly demands attention. Over a decade ago, the USDA’s “Food Pyramid” was one such concept because it helped eaters discover how many gaps existed in their typical daily diet. Now, as the Food Pyramid begins to take a new shape, and as the nutrition field works to establishes itself as the most important branch of health care in the 21st century, an invention called the Glycemic Index is taking center stage.

The Glycemic Index (GI) is not new; it has been around for more than 2 decades. Yet until recently, its exposure beyond the world of diabetes has been limited [i].

The Glycemic Index indicates how “high” or “low” blood sugar levels change in response to carbohydrate intake. A “high” Glycemic Index indicates carbohydrates with a swift breakdown, whereas a “low” Glycemic Index indicates carbohydrates with slow, gradual breakdown. Both terms are of equal importance to diabetics, because there are times with high Glycemic Index foods are required, and times where low Glycemic Index foods are required.

Indeed, the Glycemic Index itself is not new, but its application far beyond the borders of a diabetic dialogue is notable; especially for dieters.

People striving to lose weight often face a nemesis much tougher than establishing an exercise regimen or introducing healthier foods into their diet. The problem is one of energy. Many dieters are surprised – and disturbed – to learn that their diet program is causing them to lose more than inches and pounds: they are losing energy.

This is often expressed as a complaint, as in “I’m feeling weak”, or even “I can’t stay awake”. Many dieters and those advising them have erroneously chalked this up to a matter of attitude, or will power, or some non-biological cause.

The plain truth is that many dieters have been oblivious to the Glycemic Index, and hence, to the fact that many of the diet foods they have eaten – or are eating right now – score very high Glycemic Index levels. As such, these foods are providing a quick boost to blood sugar levels, and then setting up the dieter for the inevitable fall. This is because high GI foods typically increase blood sugar values, which in turn trigger the hormone insulin to clear sugar from the blood. Since blood sugar (a.k.a. glucose) largely dictates the body’s energy levels, it stands to reason that this process manifests as an initial boost in energy, and then as a depletion of energy. This rise and fall of blood sugar – and energy – is often described by dieters using a “roller-coaster” analogy: one minute they feel confident and strong, and the next, they are about to pass out and require some kind of stimulant in order to make it through the day.

Regrettably for many dieters, that stimulant is usually more high Glycemic Index foods, such as sugary snacks or soft drinks. It is easy to see how this experience can lead an individual to stop dieting. After all, before the diet, the individual was merely gaining weight. On the diet, the individual is gaining weight and is exhausted for most of the day. It is better to quit the diet.

The above scenario only takes place, however, when a dieter unwittingly eats high Glycemic Index foods. Research has shown that low Glycemic Index foods, which raise blood sugar levels much more gradually than high Glycemic Index foods, are very helpful for dieters [ii]. This is because a dieter will experience less of a “roller-coaster” ride while on the diet, and furthermore, will be less inclined to snack because energy in the form of blood glucose is being released slowly and gradually. Low Glycemic Index foods are much more efficient sources of energy than high Glycemic Index foods, because the body needs less insulin to convert food into energy [iii].

Despite the growing awareness that low Glycemic Index foods are beneficial, the world of diet foods has not kept pace. This is because many manufacturers are searching frantically to find low Glycemic Index carbohydrates sources for their products, and overlooking a basic, simple fact: the lowest possibly Glycemic Index is no carbohydrates at all.

These zero-carbohydrate/zero sugar nutritional supplements – which are quite rare in the market – do not deliver any sugar to the bloodstream. As a result, dieters do not have to worry about riding the “roller coaster” of energy spikes and pitfalls.

Yet there is an even greater benefit for dieters who choose a ‘zero sugar’ nutritional supplement. If that low Glycemic Index nutritional supplement is rich in complete protein, then it will act as a sort of antidote to high GI foods by helping to combat their adverse consequences.

For example, a dieter who eats a high Glycemic Index candy car can mitigate the roller-coaster spike in blood sugar levels by eating a nutritional supplement that has very low Glycemic Index and has a rich source of complete protein. This is because the protein in the nutritional supplement mixes with the high Glycemic Index of the candy bar, and effectively lowers the overall Glycemic Index. This is welcome news to dieters who would otherwise be seeing those extra carbohydrates transformed by insulin into triglycerides, and stored in adipose tissue; also known as body fat.

Currently, only a handful of nutritional supplements are designed to offer zero carbohydrates and thus score as low as possible on the Glycemic Index. And of these zero-carbohydrate products, even fewer offer a rich source of complete protein that effectively helps counter the blood sugar spike impact of high Glycemic Index foods.

It is inspiring to note that Glycemic Index is getting some well-deserved attention from outside the diabetic community, where it has helped millions of people eat wisely. Now, dieters and obese people can enjoy the wisdom that this index promotes.

The Diet Experts Agree More Than They Admit!

2007-12-07T21:28:00.001-08:00

The Diet Experts Agree More Than They Admit!

by: Kirsten Hawkins

Lately, I've been hearing a lot about how wrong for our bodies the current recommendations from our most respected medical institutions are. Well-known diet gurus and nutritional researchers have stepped up to the plate to declare that the high carbohydrate, low fat diet regimens recommended by such institutions as the American Heart Association, the American Diabetes Association and the United States Department of Agriculture are misinformed, and frankly unhealthy.

Instead, they charge, our diets should include lots of high quality protein, fat should not concern us, and carbohydrates are the enemy. This has set the stage for battles between the weight loss industry and the health industry - with the only agreement between them seeming to be the need to lose weight.

The problem is - they're both wrong. And they're both right. The most regularly leveled criticisms of each seem legitimate - until you examine the recommended diets in depth. Sit down and look at the recommended menus. Take them to the calorie calculators and compare ingredients and nutrients. I did, and what I found was a revelation.

In the most practical sense, they're all talking about the same diet.

Oh, there are minor variations that have been grossly blown out of proportion by the advertising hype. There are misinterpretations that have been stated as fact. The bottom line of each and every one of the Atkins Diet, the South Beach Diet, the Zone Diet, the American Diabetes Association diet, and the American Heart Association's Heart Healthy Diet -- all of them - is to derive the greatest portion of your caloric intake for the day from low carbohydrate vegetables. Spinach, broccoli, cabbage - leafy green. Carrots, summer squash, deep rich orange vegetables. Fruits with high calorie and antioxidant counts. Whole grains - and this is where the controversy seems to arise.

Almost without exception, proponents of the low carb diets for weight loss and maintenance have condemned the recommended diets for suggesting that adults should derive the greater portion of their diets from carbohydrates. What they fail to note is that also without exception, each of those 'healthy' diets strongly suggest avoiding white breads, starchy, processed foods, sweet snacks high in sugar and preservatives, and white rice.

On the other hand, the medical community has roundly condemned the low carb diets for encouraging the consumption of a diet high in saturated fats and cholesterol. But there is also a strong suggestion in each of those diets along the lines of "eat only until you are no longer hungry". .. and a minimum consumption of vegetables. Dinner's minimum suggested amount of vegetables is 2 1/2 cups. How hungry will you be after consuming two and a half cups of vegetable?

In the end, the bottom line of every weight loss program advertised is the same:

* Eat a well-balanced diet where most of the calories are derived from whole grains, vegetables and fruits.
* Eat fewer calories than you expend.
* Exercise moderately every day.
* Learn to eat that way as a lifestyle and you will lose weight—and keep it off!

The Danger of Curbing Hunger Artificially

2007-12-07T21:26:00.000-08:00

The Danger of Curbing Hunger Artificially

by: Protica Research

Unhealthy eating is a harmful problem in America, and contrary to a very outdated perception, this harm is not limited to those who suffer from obesity[1]. In reality, according to the Directors of Health Promotion and Education, the majority of Americans exhibit unhealthy eating habits, with just over one in four women and only one in five men claiming to eat the minimum five daily servings of vegetables and fruits[i].

In response to this growing wave of American malnutrition, a number of nutrition-based solutions have been proposed. This has been both a positive, an ironically, a negative, development.

This has been positive in light of the simple fact that it has helped increase basic “nutrition IQ”. The fact that most urban centers are home to dozens of diet and weight loss centers, and that many malls now have at least one health store has advanced awareness of America’s unhealthy eating problem.

So, too, have the numerous television shows and news reports that have covered the popular diets that dominate current weight loss discussions, such as: the Atkins Diet, the South Beach Diet, the Zone Diet, and more. The fact that a vending machine may actually contain a piece of fruit these days is further positive expressions of this growing nutritional awareness.

However, there is a downside as well. This increasing information has created a dizzying health and nutrition marketplace within which some irresponsible products are being offered. Among these products – and arguably the worst kind -- are those that artificially suppress appetite.

There are two equally important reasons why appetite suppressants are dangerous and irresponsible nutrition ideas.

The first reason is that they delude dieters into thinking that real weight is being lost. For example, an unfortunately popular choice for some dieters is to take diet pills. These pills are often diuretics that promote weight-loss through water loss. As such, while a dieter will feel less hungry and lose weight while taking the diet pills, both of these effects will cease when taking the pills cease. Weight gain will return rapidly, as will appetite[ii].

This leads to the other reason why these appetite suppressant products are irresponsible and harmful. The human body is home to a vastly intelligent network of systems, cells, chemicals, and neurotransmitters. Regardless of one’s personal view of evolution of how the human body came to be this way, it is agreed by both creationists, evolutionists, and everyone else that the human body is a remarkable example of comprehensive intelligence.

For example, the human body is able to synthetically produce – without any conscious help from the owner of that body – 12 of the 20 amino acids that comprise protein[2]. Or consider the blood, whose plasma carries platelets that enable minor wound blot clotting. Both of these examples reflect a special kind of intelligence that the human body humbly and quietly exhibits throughout life.

When hunger is artificially suppressed it interferes with this intelligence. The body and its intricate network of problem-solving mechanisms become confused. Basically, the body is still hungry, but it does not feel hungry. The body is still craving the basic nutrition it requires to survive: proteins, essential fats, nutrients, vitamins, and calories. Yet because the hunger signal is not being effectively transmitted from these systems to the brain – due to the appetite suppressant – the individual dieter is not responding. In the short-term, a dieter may lose some pounds[3]. In the long-term the dieter will suffer from some form of malnutrition.

Clearly, appetite suppression “solutions” are not solutions at all. They are irresponsible and potentially damaging – even fatal – biological short cuts that undermine the innate intelligence of the human body. They also often render the dieter weaker and in worse shape than before, particularly if the inevitable post-pill weight gain leads to a bout of emotional eating and subsequent additional weight gain.

What is required is a rather dated staple of healthy weight loss: a healthy diet[iii][4]. This is, however, easier said than done particularly since, as noted above, in America only about 25% of women and 20% eat enough fruit and vegetable servings per day.

Within this rather complex scenario or problems and limitations, however, there are some pioneering companies that are enjoying critical acclaim from both the medical and the weight loss fields.

These companies – and admittedly there are extremely few of them -- offer dieters a balanced meal supplement that can also be used as a meal replacement. This is of particular value to dieting business executives, university students, and other frenetically busy people who do not have the time to prepare balanced, diet-conscious meals.

Of greater importance is that these advanced solutions do not suppress hunger at all, nor recklessly deny the body the nutrients and vitamins required for healthy survival. Instead, the body is given the fuel that it needs via vitamin fortified, low-calorie, fat-free food that is well-balanced and nutritionally sound.

It will remain unacceptable, offensive, and disturbing to see so-called “diet solutions” that are little more than appetite suppressants that can -- and often do -- create much more harm than superficial, temporary good. It is expected that, eventually, such products will be exposed for the irresponsible items that they are, and banned from the marketplace.

However, until that happens, it will be up to the responsible nutrition companies in America to continue developing solutions that truly help dieters help themselves in the long term.

About Protica

Founded in 2001, Protica, Inc. is a nutritional research firm with offices in Lafayette Hill and Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. Protica manufactures capsulized foods, including Profect, a compact, hypoallergenic, ready-to-drink protein beverage containing zero carbohydrates and zero fat.
[1] Obesity, which is caused mainly by unhealthy eating, is responsible for an estimated 300,000 deaths per year and all of them preventable.

[2] The remaining 8 amino acids are called the “essential amino acids” and must be obtained through diet.

[3] This kind of diuretic weight loss, however, will come at the expense of muscle and not fat.

[4] In addition to diet, customized exercise plans are also proposed to aid and maintain healthy long-term weight loss.

The benefits of healthy nutrition

2007-12-07T21:25:00.000-08:00

The benefits of healthy nutrition
by: John Gibb
Question: What are some of the benefits of healthy nutrition? What makes a healthy diet worth it? Answer: The effects of having a healthy nutritional diet are innumerable. The human body needs various nutrients and minerals to keep it functioning in tip-top shape, and the only way this can be accomplished is by maintaining a healthy diet including vitamins and minerals. These nutrients are necessary to the body for three different reasons; they are crucial for obtaining energy, helping your body grow, and repairing worn out tissues. If your diet lacks certain necessary vitamins, your health may suffer. Therefore, the primary benefits of healthy nutrition are mainly that it keeps your health up. A sound nutritional schedule is recommended by doctors when a patient is inflicted with any of a number of diseases. Keeping your nutrition up when afflicted with such diseases as cancer or aids can be key to your survival. Question: How can I make my diet more nutritious? Answer: For a balanced and nutritious diet, it is recommended to cut down on red meat consumption. Also, consumption of dairy foods, desserts, refined foods, tea, coffee, alcohol, and all types of oil except olive oil should be kept to a minimum. Olive oil is a powerful anti oxidant, which we take daily within our diets. Most people do not get enough vegetable proteins. These can be great for your health, and eating such foods as whole grains, lentils, beans, nuts, fresh vegetables and fruits, or soy based products is highly recommended. In addition, you need to pay careful mind to your daily mineral intake. Vitamins and minerals help your body operate on a more sound schedule, and a lack of these precious materials can really show in your health and well-being. The benefits of healthy nutrition combined with a steady vitamin regimen are the keys to keeping your body in the best shape possible. There are multi-vitamin supplements that can greatly aid in your quest for sound health. Why not look in to a product that meets all of the above and more. Total Balance from Natural Products is well worth looking in to. We have been using this supplement and have noticed a general sense of well being. Our energy levels have also improved, and we generally feel more positive than ever before. We have searched around for many multi ingredient supplements, and to be honest, haven’t even come close to finding a supplement that can give these types of quality ingredients at the prices they offer.

The Atkins Diet...what is it?

2007-12-07T21:24:00.000-08:00

The Atkins Diet...what is it?

by: Mike Yeager

You're probably wondering how a diet like this could actually lead to weight loss. According to the late Dr. Atkins, it's all about limiting carbohydrates. As Americans, we eat a large amount of carbohydrates. These are foods that contain white flour and refined sugar. In other words, most of the packaged foods we eat such as pasta, bread and cereal are carbohydrate-rich. According to the core principle of the Atkins diet, by limiting carbohydrates in a four-phase process your body is forced to burn its stored fat, rather than carbohydrates, for fuel.

In 1972, Dr. Robert Atkins first published his book, Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution, which suggested a new way to diet. Up until this time, dieting consisted of lowering the number of calories eaten per day or lowering both the amount of fats and carbohydrates eaten. But, Dr. Atkins' diet was strictly focused on limiting carbohydrate consumption. So, what are carbohydrates?

You have probably heard of "carbohydrates" and "complex carbohydrates." They come in many forms including rice, pasta, bread, crackers, cereal, fruits and vegetables. Carbohydrates provide your body with its basic fuel. You can think about the relationship between your body and carbohydrates in much the same way you would consider the relationship between a car engine and gasoline.

There are four main benefits participants gain from following the Atkins plan:

Weight Loss - When you cut down carbohydrates, your body converts from using carbohydrates for energy to burning fat as the primary energy source. This results in weight loss.

Weight Maintenance - Each individual has a level of carbohydrate intake at which they will neither gain nor lose weight. The Atkins plan allows the body to determine this amount through the eventual increase in the amount of carbs you can eat.

Good Health - Atkins dieters are encouraged to eat nutrition-rich foods with vitamin and nutritional supplements as needed.

Disease Prevention - Lowering carbohydrate intake and, in turn, insulin production may help prevent diseases like diabetes.

Taking the confusion out of purchasing prescription diet pills.

2007-12-07T21:23:00.002-08:00

Taking the confusion out of purchasing prescription diet pills.

by: Mike West

If you were to search ‘Prescription Diet Pills’ online you would come up with more than 3.5 million results, certainly a large number of results to sort through to find the best prescription diet pill.

The problem is that several diet pills go by many brand names. To take the confusion out of finding prescription diet pills online,
DIET PILL - Adipex
BRAND NAMES - Adipex-P, Fastin, Ionamin, Obenix, Obephen, Oby-Cap, Oby-trim, Panshape M, Phentercot, Phentermine, Phenteride, Pro-Fast, Teramine, Zantryl.

DIET PILL - Bontril
BRAND NAMES - Bontril-SR, Adipost, Anorex, Appecon, Melfiat, Obezine, Phendimetrazine, Phendiet, Plegine, Prelu, Statobex.

DIET PILL - Didrex
BRAND NAMES - Benzphetamine

DIET PILL - Ionamin
BRAND NAMES - Adipex, Fastin, Obenix, Obephen, Oby-Cap, Oby-trim, Panshape M, Phentercot, Phentermine, Phenteride, Pro-Fast, Teramine, Zantryl

DIET PILL - Meridia
BRAND NAMES - Reductil, Sibutramine

DIET PILL - Phentermine
BRAND NAMES - Phentermine HCI, Phentermine HCL, Phentermine Hydrochloride, Adipex, Fastin, Ionamin, Obenix, Obephen, Oby-Cap, Oby-trim, Panshape M, Phentercot, Phenteride, Pro-Fast, Teramine, Zantryl.

DIET PILL - Tenuate
BRAND NAMES - Diethylpropion, Tenuate Dospan

DIET PILL - Xenical
BRAND NAMES - Orlistat

As you can see, many prescription diet pills take on the same brand name. Adipex, for example- Has several brand names (Adipex-P, Fastin, Ionamin, Obenix, Obephen, Oby-Cap, Oby-trim, Panshape M, Phentercot, Phentermine, Phenteride, Pro-Fast, Teramine, Zantryl), but Ionamin another prescription diet pill also goes by several of the same names (Adipex, Fastin, Obenix, Obephen, Oby-Cap, Oby-trim, Panshape M, Phentercot, Phentermine, Phenteride, Pro-Fast, Teramine, Zantryl) Feel free to use this diet pill guide to read and write reviews at Diet Pill Reviews.

Take Your Vitamins - But Take Them Sensibly

2007-12-07T21:23:00.001-08:00

Take Your Vitamins - But Take Them Sensibly

by: Jeff Lakie

When it comes to vitamins, the more you take the better off you are, right? Actually, that's not true and you can be wasting your time (and money) or even doing yourself harm by overloading on vitamins. To get the ultimate advantage from vitamins, be smart about what you're taking.

The first thing to remember about vitamins is that pills or supplements shouldn't be your only source of vitamins. Nothing - not even a daily vitamin regimen - is a substitute for eating right. Some people tend to eat less healthy because of their lifestyles. They're just too busy to stop for a real meal. Dieting is a common problem because those on a strict diet may not be getting nearly all the vitamins the body needs to stay healthy.

If those situations sound familiar, there are some things you can do.

Don't do crash diets or diets that require you to only eat a specific food. The grapefruit diet was popular a few years ago, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that it's not a good idea from a health standpoint.

Talk to your doctor or to a dietician. Make a healthy plan and stick with it. Supplement your diet with regular exercise and be sure that you're eating the foods that will keep you healthy long enough to enjoy that slim new body you're working on.

If you think you're just too busy to eat healthy, think again. There are dozens of shortcuts toward healthy foods and healthy meals that will get you the daily recommended dose of most vitamins. Instead of eating chips or a candy bar for a snack, eat an apple, a banana, a handful of grapes, cherries or strawberries. These are completely portable, just like a candy bar. Many convenience stores are recognizing that customers want these healthier snacks and they're offering them at the counter.

Instead of stopping at a convenience store or fast food restaurant, allow yourself five extra minutes and make a quick stop at a grocer for your snack. Choose veggies - cooked are often an option if the grocery has a deli.

Make yourself a sandwich. Think sandwiches aren't healthy? Think again. If you choose wisely, you're getting meat, veggies (think bigger than just lettuce and tomato) and bread - and all the vitamins you'd get from most sit-down meals.

The next time you think that just popping a pill is the best way to get the vitamins your body needs, think again. It might be easier than taking time for a sandwich, but it's certainly not healthier. Vitamin pills and supplements should do just that - supplement your daily food intake.

Take Hoodia diet pills with a Smart Diet, not a Starvation Diet

2007-12-07T21:22:00.000-08:00

Take Hoodia diet pills with a Smart Diet, not a Starvation Diet

by: Andrew Aitaken

Could Hoodia weight loss supplements fulfill the expectations of dieters and impact the United States obesity troubles? Today fifty million Americans are attempting to slim down with just a low five percent sustaining the weight loss they are seeking. Can Hoodia, the new comer on the scene, assist you to be in that small percentage that gets there, one of the few that will be able to lose the pounds and not have it them come back? From initial reports it may have a chance if these Hoodia pills are not abused and taken in an improper way. The Hoodia Gordonii African weight loss supplement can’t do all the work by itself; you can’t just take this pill, sit back and watch it do a miraculous make over on your body. Hoodia will help you to not be hungry, but this is only the beginning of the process; what follows needs to be regular meals with good nutrition and some form of physical exercise.

If Hoodia is going to accomplish what no other diet pill has ever done, help people to keep the weight off; dieters are going to need to look at this supplement in a different way than they have all the pills that have come before. We need to look at why it is that we have so many supplements for dieters on the store shelves and yet just a small number of people in reality lose the weight? To look at the state of obesity in America effectively you need to step aside from the examination of diet pills and weight loss supplements like Hoodia and observe the bigger picture. Who are American’s embodying in their daily lives that have them have such problems with their weight. To follow are some rationales I believe people in United States have adopted with regard to weight loss; holding these ideas could play a role in making it difficult to lose the weight and keep it off.

• Being preoccupied with our weight; we think being thin equates to a happy life. We think we will find romance, the best career and friends if we are at the right weight. Because of this we will jump on virtually any diet fad or diet pill that comes along.

• Idolizing everybody in the media; we look up to these people and want to be like the people we see on television, films and magazines. Something that we don’t understand is that for movie stars and people on TV being thin is just a part of their profession. They are required to be a particular size to fit in their character and obtain the acting jobs they want to get; they then have their trainer’s and dietitians work with them to help accomplish it. You have to think about the fact that these actors and actresses in show business also make up a very small part of the general population.

• Accessibility of junk food; our lives are busy, fast paced and stressed; because of this our lives suffer in the domain of eating good foods and physical exercise. We don't think we have the time to eat right and work out so we take easiest route which is fast food, snacking on junk food, eating late at night with no exercise; all this is an equation for being overweight.

• Yo Yo dieting; we go from dieting to not dieting and from one diet program to another diet program. This is not a healthy way to live and unquestionably stops you from staying at your desired weight; studies have shown with "on again, off again dieting" that you gain more overall weight each time you start and stop your weight loss program. With our overall weight only increasing we become more desperate to find that magical diet pill that will give us the results we can't manage to achieve on our own.

• Quick Weight Loss; we are always looking for the fastest way to lose weight, that magic weight loss supplement or fad diet that will take those pounds off instantly without exercising or eating right. We refuse to listen to old adages like "if it's too good to be true, it probably is", instead we hope this time it will be different, this time it will work. We just can't accept the fact that true, healthy weight loss doesn't happen fast. In reality attaining your goal weight takes time and dedication; it takes doing things you may not want to do, such as eating foods that are not as tasty as usual and getting to the gym and sweating some of those pounds off.

If Hoodia, the new weight loss supplement from Africa is going to have any chance of helping people sustain a healthy weight, a few of the issues above will have to be addressed. Hoodia is not the magic diet pill that will melt the pounds off. In fact Hoodia won’t actually make you lose weight at all; it doesn’t do what other diet pills do; which is quickening your metabolism so you burn calories. What Hoodia does do is fool the brain into thinking your stomach is full. So if your plan is to just take Hoodia pills without proper nutrition, then know that what you are doing is the equivalency of going on a starvation diet. If you are not aware of this, let me tell you starvation diets don’t work; you may have weight loss at first but in the end you will gain the weight you lost back and more. You slow down your metabolism when you don't eat on a regular basis during the day; then once you start eating again regularly your body stores more fat than it did before. Hoodia will help you not be hungry but if you just don't eat you won't be doing yourself any favor, you will gain that weight back and you'll blame it on the Hoodia.

Hoodia taken properly, with a good nutritional program that includes exercise and healthy approach to dieting could aid with weight loss and perhaps give you the edge you've been looking for in loosing weight. Hoodia diet pills can assist dieters with weight loss if they use them intelligently, as an aid in addition to a good weight loss plan. Hoodia will benefit most any dieter’s program including the Atkins Diet, the Zone Diet, the South Beach Diet, Low Carb Diet or any other of today’s popular diet plans. Hoodia is an all natural supplement with no none side effects and has been proven to help people reduce calorie intake by 1,000 calories a day. Reducing your calorie intake, eating healthy foods and regular exercise can be a triple threat to obesity; this is the approach you should take if you’re thinking of using Hoodia. Create a weight loss program for yourself that will be realistic and manageable long term, think in terms of a way of life, not a quick fix.

Taking a Hoodia supplement may help you in many of the tough battles along the way in your weight loss journey. Hoodia's effect of enabling you to not be hungry can be very beneficial when it comes to not snacking on junk foods, late night eating, eating better foods and an overall reduction in calories. You should also be educated when it comes to selecting the right brand of Hoodia for you; not all Hoodia brands are the same. A few of the top brands of Hoodia are: Desert Burn Hoodia, Hoodoba and Hoodia Max; consult a Hoodia comparison chart to find out which brand is right for you. Hoodia may be just the thing you have been looking for if it's used in the right way, let it help you change your approach to weight loss from fad dieting and magic pills to proper nutrition and a healthy way of life. There is no need to take Hoodia diet pills forever, just use them as a weight loss aid to get into a better dieting regime where you can maintain a healthy weight. Taking Hoodia while making good dieting choices could put you well on your way to being one of the five percent of the population that keeps the weight off for good.

Supporting Your Weight Loss Goals

2007-12-07T21:21:00.000-08:00

Supporting Your Weight Loss Goals

by: Joey Dweck

As anyone who has ever been on diet knows, trying to lose weight is hard enough without any added pressures. While having your own personal weight loss coach would certainly help matters, for many people that is simply an unaffordable daydream.

Never the less, success stories around the world have proven that the most issue regarding successful weight loss is not the type of diet that you undertake, but rather the presence of moral support to help you along the way.

Moral support provides a number of useful benefits while attempting to lose weight. One of the most important of these benefits is motivation. The very act of letting others know that you intend to lose weight automatically makes you more accountable to lose the weight. While you may feel its okay to renege on your goals when it’s only you involved; you will be far less likely to break a promise to others. That in itself can be a strong motivator. In addition, a support network can make the time you spend exercising and dieting more enjoyable and feel less like a chore.

There are a number of ways that you can gain the moral support you need to make your weight loss program a success. One of the easiest ways to do this is to find a weight loss buddy. This individual may be someone within your own home or family or even someone in your community or at your job; however they do not necessarily need to be participating in a weight loss program as long as they support your goals in a healthy manner.

This individual can support you by going to the gym with you or even accompanying you during a daily walk. In today’s hectic world it can be difficult to find time to catch up and bond with the important people in your life, but this provides an excellent way to spend time with those close to you as well as gain the needed emotional support to succeed at your weight loss goals.

A support partner can also help motivate you by encouraging you to stick with your commitments. Even someone who does not live within your area can help by picking up the telephone to ask how thing’s are going.

Beyond finding a personal weight loss buddy, you can take advantage of the benefits offered through moral support by joining a weight loss support group. During the last few years, these groups have become quite popular and boast numerous success stories annually. Some of the most well known programs, such as Jenny Craig and Weight Watchers, combine weight loss support with specific diet regimens. For a specified fee members meet on a regular basis to evaluate progress and does what works and what does not.

While many of the most well known weight loss support programs also combine specific diet regimens, not all support programs provide strict dietary guidelines. Some support programs are just about the support. Taking Off Pounds Sensibly, often referred to as TOPS, is one of these groups. With more than 200,000 members in North America; TOPS was founded 50 years ago for the purpose of providing ongoing support to dieters.

Online diet and weight loss forums also provide important moral support for those engaged in weight loss efforts. Numerous websites have sprung up all over the net for the sole purpose of encouraging dieters to meet up in cyber space to discuss matters related to weight loss. The accountability factor related to weight loss forums may not be quite as strong as a weight loss buddy or local weight loss and support program, but it can help dieters to connect with like minded individuals on a host of issues related to diet and weight loss.

Regardless of the type of support system you choose, the important issue at hand is to make sure that you surround yourself with individuals who will motivate and encourage you during an admittedly difficult time. With the right combination of support, nutrition and exercise you can accomplish anything.

Strategic Weight Loss

2007-12-07T21:20:00.000-08:00

Strategic Weight Loss

by: Kirsten Hawkins

One of the first things that you'll do when you decide to lose weight is to set a goal weight. For most, that goal will be their 'ideal weight', but for many, that 'ideal weight' may be exactly the wrong weight for them to be aiming for.

Years of dieting or being overweight have the physiological effect of moving the body's concept of the 'ideal weight' from what is truly considered ideal. The 'set point' is the weight at which your body naturally feels most comfortable. If you've been overweight for a very long time, or if you've consistently 'yo-yoed', your body may respond to your initial weight loss by lowering its metabolism because it believes that you are starving to death. This slowing leads to discouraging plateaus that often knock people off their diets entirely, and lead to regaining all or part of the lost weight.

Instead of aiming for an 'ideal weight' that calls for you to lose weight steadily for months or even years, many experts recommend aiming for shorter-term attainable goals. Since the bulk of diet research shows that most dieters lose weight steadily for about 12 weeks, then hit a plateau, that's the number that they suggest you aim for. The strategy that many have found works best for them is one of alternating periods of weight loss and maintenance, each lasting 8-12 weeks.

Choose a realistic amount of weight that you can lose in 8-12 weeks. Figuring that the most reasonable and healthiest weight loss rate is 1-2 pounds per week, 30 pounds in three months is not unreasonable. Diet until you reach that goal, or for 12 weeks, whichever comes first, and then switch to a maintenance diet.

Why switch to a maintenance diet at that point? In part, you're giving yourself a 'breather', a break from more restrictive eating. The other part, though, is that you're re-educating your body and letting it establish a new 'set point'. Once you've maintained your new weight for 8-12 weeks, set another weight loss goal, and move back into weight loss mode. By giving your body a break from 'starvation', you'll have overcome its resistance to losing more weight, and be back to dieting for 'the first two weeks' - the weeks that most people lose weight more rapidly.

You'll also be giving yourself a chance to 'practice' maintaining your new, healthier weight. Researchers have found that more than half of the dieters who take off significant amounts of weight do not maintain that weight loss once they go 'off' their diet. By practicing weight maintenance in stages, you'll be proving to yourself that you CAN do it, and removing a powerful negative psychological block.

This will work with any long-term weight loss diet, no matter the focus. You'll find it much easier to do if you choose a diet that has concrete 'phases', like the South Beach or the Atkins, since the weight loss and maintenance phases are clearly laid out for you to follow. Regardless of the diet you choose, though, by alternating between weight loss phases and maintenance phases, you'll teach yourself and your body how to maintain a healthy weight.

Start Losing Weight Today!

2007-12-07T21:19:00.000-08:00

Start Losing Weight Today!

by: Kirsten Hawkins

I'll start my diet on Monday. How many times have you told yourself that? Right after New Years', I swear. Tomorrow. Are you tired of hearing yourself say the same old excuses day after day, month after month, year after year? If so, listen up! Here are five things you can do to start losing weight today!

Activate.

The most important ingredient in your weight loss plan is exercise. If you think that's a dirty word, it's time to clean it up. Exercise is just what you do every time you move. Starting today, resolve to activate your life. Leave the car keys behind and walk to the corner store. Race yourself to get your housework done in ten minutes less time (because the more vigorous your movement, the more calories you burn). Get off the elevator one floor early and walk up the stairs. Every extra active thing you do will burn calories - and the more calories you burn, the more weight you'll lose.

When you're ready to really activate, get a physical workout designed with your interests in mind. Join a gym, take up a sport, or walk 10,000 steps a day. But don't wait until you think you can do it all. Just take a few extra steps today.

Motivate.

Grab a pen and notebook and start writing down all the reasons you should lose weight. Don't stop till you get to ten, at the very least. Here are some suggestions:

1. I’ll be healthier - losing as little as 10 pounds can decrease your risk of heart disease, diabetes and a host of other weight-related illnesses.

2. I’ll save money. Super-size costs more - whether it's an extra $2 for the nightgown you want or having to travel first class for the seat space.

3. I’ll be able to keep up with my kids. It takes energy to keep up with kids, and extra weight saps your energy. Lose ten pounds and see how much better you feel.

4. I’ll get back into my favorite jeans.

5. I’ll find souvenir t-shirts that fit anywhere I go.

Cogitate.

Got your ten reasons? Don't stop writing. Keep that pen and notebook with you all day and write down every single thing you put into your mouth. Just for one day. You'll be surprised at all the 'unexpected' calories you catch yourself eating. The last two French fries on your son's plate. The two bites of chicken you tasted to make sure of the seasoning. The 'just one bite' of your husband's ice cream cone. The handful of potato chips you snagged from the bowl on your way by. Write down every single bite for one day to make yourself aware of all the food that you didn't even realize you were eating. Once you find it, you can start cutting it out.

Educate.

Take a trip to the Internet and visit these educational sites:

The American Heart Association
The USDA Food Pyramid
iVillage Diet and Nutrition section
The Diet Channel
The South Beach Diet web site
The Atkins Diet web site
The Mayo Clinic web site's Diet and Nutrition pages

Educate yourself about healthy diets and weight loss, and find a diet that you believe you can live with for the rest of your life. It's the only way that you'll lose weight and keep it off permanently.

Salivate.

If you think that diet food is boring, find a good low-fat cookbook and start re-educating your taste-buds. Healthy, low-fat, low-carb cooking is delicious - prove it to yourself with a recipe for dinner. While you're at it, pick one for tomorrow night, too. You can start your diet AGAIN tomorrow!

Sports Drinks - Should They Part of Your Diet and Exercise Program?

2007-12-07T21:18:00.000-08:00

Sports Drinks - Should They Part of Your Diet and Exercise Program?

by: Jeff Smith

Sports Drinks - Should They Part of Your Diet and Exercise
Program?

You've seen the diet and exercise commercials featuring
buff, perfectly tanned, healthy and happy young people
doing extreme exercising replenishing themeselves with
the latest sports drink.

You can't watch a sporting event in North America without
seeing some sponsor reference to one of these power or
sports drinks.

But how healthy are these drinks really?

Starting with a formula of sugar, minerals and salt - the
idea was to replace critical components of your body lost
during prolonged, intense exercise programs.

Should these be a part of your diet and exercise program?

First thing you should know is that the minerals replenished
such as Potassium, are lost over a longer term of exercising -
say more than 1-hour of intensive exercise.

Second, you ingest a great deal of sugar, carbohydrates and
sodium in these drinks, which may not be beneficial to all
those except the most extreme diet and exercise programs.

For example, taking a look at Gatorade, the first in a long
line of sports drinks - we see that an average bottle contains
a whopping 107Mg of sodium and 15.5g of carbs.

Powerade is more moderate on sodium at 31mg, but is higher in
carbs at 22g

Reality is that for the average person who is doing no to
moderate diet and exercise program, water is all they need to
stay hydrated.

Sports drinks to those performing moderate diet and exercise
programs will be consuming valuable calories as pure sugar
resulting in more carbs.

Stick with water unless you are into high performance exercise
programs, and you will get the benefit of hydration without
the excess sodium, sugar and carbs.

Soy Foods for better health

2007-12-07T21:16:00.000-08:00

Soy Foods for better health

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

Soyfoods aid longevity. Although a few authors dispute this, most literature found on the reputable internet sources show that traditional soyfoods, especially those with live cultures, correlate with reduced risks of various diseases without negative side effects. But the maximum benefit comes from using soy foods to replace a large fraction of the diet normally occupied by high sources of saturated fats.

In other words, don't just add soymilk and soy shakes, soy based artificial cream toppings to your diet. Instead, replace 30 to 60 percent of your red meats with tofu, miso, tempeh, edamame, and so forth. Also use baked, broiled, or grilled chicken, fish, and other foods that are not fried.

Soy Beans are unique in the plant world, in that they provide all of the "essential" amino acids (proteins) and fatty acids that the human body can not make, plus numerous "plant hormones" that protect against various ailments, such as cancers, diabetes, heart disease, memory loss, menopause, osteoporosis, PMS, stroke.

South Beach Diet Or Another Fad Diet?

2007-12-07T21:15:00.000-08:00

South Beach Diet Or Another Fad Diet?

by: Rajesh Shetty

I have thoroughly researched this diet and am giving you every detail of south beach diet for information.

South beach diet book is founded on the premise that switching to good carbs stops insulin resistance and curbs appetite which leads to weight loss. Also, good fats protect the heart and prevent hunger.

But this is hardly true as you will learn after reading this article.

South beach diet book offers a simplistic solution to weight loss. All you need to do is eat good carbs like whole grains, vegetables and beans instead of eating bad carbs like sugar white breads and potatoes.

South beach diet says, fast sugars are worst for dieters and slow sugars are good.

And how are these foods classified as fast or slow? The Glycemic Index.

According to south beach diet, the food having a high Glycemic Index causes the blood sugar to spike (go up) immedietly after having the meal,whereas the food with a lower GI does not drastically shoot up the blood sugar levels.

But this theory is only partially true. Yes, the foods with high GI are good for diabetics in helping them to keep their blood sugar levels in check, but contrary to popular belief, the glycemic index of a certain food is not the same.i.e. it depends on how the food is processed, stored, ripened and cooked.

Further, south beach diet is formulated on the premise that good carbs like whole grains have a low glycemic index and bad carbs like sugars, white flour and refined grains have a higher GI.

BUT THE TRUTH IS....

Bread is high GI whether whole wheat or white because it is made from finely ground flour.

Pasta is low GI, whether whole or white(thin languine has a high GI as compared to the thick one)

"Instant white" rice is low GI whereas "Uncle bens converted white" rice is high GI.

Take the case of sugars...Glucose is high GI, Sucrose is medium GI and fructose is low GI

This illustrates that recommending foods based on GI is confusing as well as misleading. On top of it all, there is no research to support the claim that the rise in blood sugar by eating high GI foods leads to high blood insulin levels, and that this leads people to overeat.

To summarise...there is no evidence to suggest that eating low GI foods leads to weight loss.

Now lets have a look at the south beach diet menu.

South beach diet book claims that you won't feel hungry while on this diet. This is impossible considering the fact that some of the menus average only 1200 calories, which is too low not to feel hungry.

The diet encourages you to eat seafood, chicken breast, lean meat, vegetables,whole grains, some fruits, beans, low fat cheese, nuts, oils and whole grains. fatty meats, high fat cheese, refined grains, sweets, juice and potatoes.

The choice of foods in this diet plan are somewhat healthy compared to other leading diet plans like ATKINS but restricting the consumption of carrots, bananas, pineapple and watermelon is the worst part of south beach diet.

The meal plan consists of three phases :

Phase 1 of south beach diet :

You are allowed to eat normal size helpings of chicken, meat, turkey, fish and shellfish, vegetables, eggs, cheese and nuts. You can have three meals per day. Desserts, coffee and tea are also allowed.

But for the first 14 days you are not allowed to eat bread,rice,potatoes,pasta or baked goods and even fruits!

Phase 2 of south beach diet :

You can slowly begin to reintroduce carbs into your diet again. The diet advices you to take all the forbidden foods in phase 1 like bread, pasta, fruits etc. in moderate quantities but at the same time not as much as you were having before.

Phase 3 of south beach diet:

This part is the most relaxed. Dr.Agastson says that you can now forget that you are on a diet. He says that now onwards it is just a healthy lifestyle you are used to, and going to adhere for the rest of your life.

All in all, south beach diet is one more money spinning fad diet for the creator of this weight loss program and a phsychological prop(support) for people who are allways hopping from one diet to the other in search of a hollywood like sexy body.

The initial weight loss caused by this diet is on account of calorie restriction and not because of low Glycemic Index or an invisible switch as Dr. Agastson's marketing language wants you to believe.

Your health could be 100 times better without south beach diet weight loss program,if you choose healthy foods like green vegetables,whole grains,fiber rich foods and vegetables.

And if you are eager to lose those extra pounds,why not do it the most natural way with the weight loss principles of Ayurveda medicinal science?

This is the most effective long term,scientifically proven solution to excess fat.

Salt saves, salt kills.

2007-12-07T21:14:00.002-08:00

Salt saves, salt kills.

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

Salt is essential to health. This means sodium chloride and potassium chloride, with traces of other mineral salts.

If you sweat a lot at work or play, lack of salt can cause "heat stroke".

Salt can kill. Excess salt is probably the biggest dietary health risk factor after fats, in any country that uses a lot of prepared foods.

Avoid salty-fatty snack foods. Restrict the salt added to foods during cooking.

As a kid, I used to salt everything at meal time, often before even tasting. Now, any foods I prepare, I add no salt, outside of reduced salt versions of soy sauce. And I
am very sensitive to the taste of excess salt in bought meals, canned goods, and other prepared foods.

Safely Transitioning Off Meal Replacement Plans

2007-12-07T21:14:00.001-08:00

Safely Transitioning Off Meal Replacement Plans

by: Protica Research

Meal replacements have been part of the diet landscape for decades. They have helped numerous people lose weight, and more importantly, they have helped people learn the difference between healthy and unhealthy eating choices. Both quantity and quality of life improvements can be credited to the concept of meal replacement solutions.

Those that have successfully relied upon a meal replacement plan can reflect fondly on how the plan helped address a fundamental diet obstacle: choosing what to eat.

One of the greatest challenges that a dieter faces – if not the greatest – is discovering what to eat, and what to avoid. Answering the latter is usually easier, since most experienced dieters are rather well aware of what they should not be eating. Yet they are often left wondering: what should I eat? Dieters who are fortunate enough to be able to answer this with a simple: I’ll eat my meal replacement foods often see their diets succeed beyond its vulnerable infancy [i].

Dieters who rely on willpower alone, or follow a poorly designed “fad” diet, often do not lose weight. The most that these dieters usually experience is maintenance of current weight, or perhaps a few pounds lost, likely through water loss.

As with most weight loss solutions, there are some potential pitfalls that can undermine dieters. And perhaps the most ironic of these pitfalls exists for those dieters who have chosen a meal replacement route to achieve their weight loss goals. This difficulty is explained, and solved, below.

Diets supported by meal replacement plans are often successful; and herein exists the potential problem. Once a dieter has lost his or her desired weight, there is a transition period from meal replacement food to “normal” food. Without the proper nutritional supplements in place to ensure that this transition is both smooth and long-term, a high number of dieters revert back to their pre-diet unhealthy eating habits. The result, regrettably, is the regaining of weight; and for many dieters, yet one more failed attempt to shed pounds and inches [ii].

The blame for this regained weight is typically, and incorrectly, assigned to two sources. The first target for this misplaced blame is the meal replacement plan itself, which promised long-term weight loss yet apparently failed to deliver. The second misplaced blame, and the one that can do the most damage, is directed towards the dieter him/herself. It is just “another failure”, and a crushing blow to self-esteem.

However, as noted above, this blame is misdirected. The cause of the problem is neither the meal replacement plan, nor the dieter’s lack of willpower. The culprit here was that once the meal replacement plan had done its job, there was no strategy in place to maintain that accomplishment over the long term.

Fortunately, there exist some very well designed nutritional supplements and plans that support this transition strategy. These nutritional supplements are not candy bars posing as “energy bars”, or protein powders laden with calories and fat grams [iii].

Rather, these authentic nutritional supplements are scientifically designed, low-calorie, complete eating solutions. That is, they can be used to supplement a meal that is not fortified with vitamins or complete protein, or they can be used -- without health risk -- to replace a meal when healthy eating choices are not available.

Meal replacements have proven their value in the “battle of the bulge”; especially since they provide dieters with an easy answer to the question: what do I eat today? However, it is just as clear that the period just after weight loss, when the meal replacements program ceases, is critical.

Far too many dieters are left without a transition plan that enables them to safely return to a diet of non meal-replacement items. Fortunately for these individuals, and for future dieters as well, there exist authentic and medically engineered nutritional supplement solutions that bridge this gap, and help ensure that a hard won weight loss battle is a long-term victory.

Redeeming Unsaturated Fat

2007-12-07T21:13:00.000-08:00

Redeeming Unsaturated Fat

by: Protica Research

The most dreaded word in many dieter’s vocabulary is ‘fat’. It is not uncommon to hear a dieter discuss their avoidance of eating fat as if it were something thoroughly unwholesome, or even life-threatening, like an allergen, or a contagious disease.

In one way, this impassioned hatred of fat is positive. It reflects a generally understood medical truth that overindulging in fat-rich foods often causes unwanted, and unhealthy, weight gain.

However, in another way, this fat-phobia is potentially dangerous, because awareness of fat is not enough; an understanding of how fat influences weight gain and overall health is required. Unfortunately, those who dread and avoid all fat “as a rule” are overlooking an important difference between saturated fat and unsaturated fat.

Saturated fat is often the real culprit when it comes to unwanted, and potentially unhealthy, weight gain. These types of fats, which are solid at room temperature, initiate the production of LDL cholesterol, or “bad cholesterol”. In addition to weight gain, as cholesterol increases, so does the risk of heart disease. In fact, saturated fats increase LDL cholesterol disproportionately more than dietary cholesterol itself; that is how powerfully bad it is to the human body[i]. Dreading and avoiding this kind of fat is therefore quite intelligent.

Some dieters, however, are motivated less by concerns about high cholesterol and heart disease than they are about cosmetic weight gain. This is not a criticism; the adverse health effects of excess weight are well documented, as are the emotional traumas and social stigmas that tragically affect tens of millions of overweight people, especially children[ii].

Unquestionably, an excess intake of saturated fat is linked to weight gain. This is because a fat gram contains more than twice the amount of calories as a protein gram – 9 calories versus 4 calories[iii]. As a result, dieters can eat more than twice as many protein grams as fat grams to achieve the same amount of caloric intake. For dieters who are steadfastly watching every calorie, this 125% calorie difference between protein and fat can have an enormous impact.

Fat cells, once created, cannot be removed[1]; they can only be made smaller through the body’s metabolic calorie-burning process[iv]. Since an individual’s rate of metabolism is determined largely by genetics, a dieter with a slower than average metabolism will spend months, perhaps even years longer struggling to shrink fat cells then would his or her metabolically-gifted counterpart[v].

It is quite easy to understand, based on the above discussion, why the very idea of fat is dreaded by dieters; both because of the health hazards it poses, and its capacity to create excess fat cells. And it is just as easy to understand why many people are so afraid of consuming this kind of fat that they strive to remove all fat from their diet. This, however, is a large nutritional oversight.

Fat is a macronutrient that the body requires for a number of important functions. Fat is a source of energy. It helps keep the body warm, it aids in the absorption of some vitamins, and helps regulate the proper functioning of the brain and nervous system[vi]. This appears, however, to be a contradiction.

On the one hand there are health and weight gain hazards associated with fat, and on the other hand, there are proven health benefits associated with fat. How can this be? The answer is easily understood when we differentiate between the two types of fat: saturated and unsaturated. The kind of fat associated with health hazards is the former; the kind that the body needs and uses effectively is the latter.

There are two sub-types of unsaturated fat: polysaturated fat, and monosaturated fat. Popular foods that contain polysaturated fat include safflower oil and corn oil, while monosaturated fats are found in such foods as olive oil and peanut oil. These unsaturated fats are those that provide the body with the most useful and efficient sources of fat that lead to the health benefits noted above.

However, though there is a clear benefit to eating unsaturated fats instead of saturated fats, both types continue to offer eaters the standard 9 calories per gram. As such, no eater should consume an excess amount of fat.

Equipped with the awareness and understanding that avoiding saturated fat is hazardous to health, and that there is such a thing as “good” (unsaturated) fat, it would be expected that most nutritional supplements on the market have created foods that reflect this understanding. This is, regrettably, not the case.

Most nutritional supplements contain some fat content; many even contain saturated fat for some inexplicable reason[2]. Tragically – and there is no other word – many dieters are deceived into eating self-described nutritionally intelligent foods that may be “low calorie”, and may even have some vitamins and nutrients, but they but they are adding to the individual’s limited capacity to ingest fat grams. Many people who seek to lose weight by eating nutritional supplements often gain weight. They erroneously believe it is the result of a slow metabolism, when the culprit is the amount of fat grams ingested.

Fortunately, there are several fat-free food supplements on the market today. There are several important benefits of this strategy that benefit dieters of all sizes.

The obvious benefit is that a dieter does not have to count fat calories when eating these nutritional supplements; they are 100% fat free, and do not add to their daily fat-intake limit.

Less obviously, however, is that a zero-fat nutritional supplement that contains protein can stimulate the digestive system and minimize fat storage. This is because the protein content can help regulate the body’s ability to effectively absorb the calories that it derives from carbohydrates and fats. For example, a dieter who eats a sugary, fat-filled cupcake can mitigate fat storage and increase nutrient utilization by eating it with a protein-rich nutritional supplement.

The world of nutrition has long since known the link between dietary fat and weight gain. Unsaturated fat can be a trusted ally in the fight against weight loss. Understanding how it differs from saturated fat helps demystify the stigma of unsaturated fats – a stigma that should be reserved for its unhealthy cousin, saturated fats.

Reasons for Obesity

2007-12-07T21:12:00.002-08:00

Reasons for Obesity

by: Martin Harshberger

Causes of Obesity

Just like there is no weight loss pill or single "magic potion"
diet plan to cure obesity there is no single cause of obesity.

We are living in an age of two income families, job loss,
stress, and time constraints. It makes it difficult to prepare
and eat healthy foods. The ad agencies, the big food companies,
and the 35 Billion dollar diet plan and diet supplement
industries are taking full advantage of the American people's
need for instant gratification.

What weight loss research has uncovered is that there is no
quick fix for permanent weight loss. A person who is considered
obese must realize that no weight loss pill, no shake, no diet
plan or reduced calorie bar, is going to make him or her slim
overnight. Weight loss pills are unhealthy because they tend to
induce jitters in people, and the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) oftentimes does not verify their safety. Just a few years
ago, weight loss pills containing ephedra were removed from the
market because they were believed to cause heart problems in
people.

What we struggle with as a nation is the idea that everything
has to happen now; no, make that yesterday. If we cannot have
immediate results, we don't want to know about it.
Unfortunately, weight loss research clearly shows that we cannot
expect to lose fat weight quickly; nor can we do so in a healthy
manner. The only path to permanent weight loss is through a
commitment to a healthier lifestyle that incorporates regular
exercise and a nutritious diet.

Depending on how much weight you have to lose, you may need the
guidance of your doctor to begin a new workout program for
weight loss. If you merely have five or 10 pounds to drop, you
can begin to take some steps to lose that weight safely. First,
take a good look at what you are putting in your mouth. Replace
processed foods with natural foods, and make sure to drink at
least 64 ounces of water each day, more if you exercise heavily.
Limit alcohol and caffeine, as both can dehydrate you quickly.

Permanent weight loss can only result from burning more calories
on a daily basis than you consume. One pound of fat equals about
3500 calories. You need to burn off those excess calories or
they are stored as fat, it's that simple.

Rapid weight loss from fad diets usually is made up of water
loss. Muscle contains four times as much water as fat. So rapid
weight loss reduces lean muscle, causing the metabolism to slow,
making the diet program eventually level out and stop.

Educate Yourself about Weight Loss, nutrition and the causes of
obesity.

The point of my book, Living to Be Younger, is to educate people
on weight loss research. I wanted people to know the facts so
that they could make informed decisions regarding their own
health.

Only you can make the decision to live a healthy life by eating
well, exercising regularly, managing stress, and getting enough
sleep. If you want to look and feel fabulous, you can. Just
remember that you must put in the necessary work to reach your
health goals. I believe you can do it, and more than that, I
believe you deserve to live your best life. Why not go for it?

Real Soy Sauce

2007-12-07T21:12:00.001-08:00

Real Soy Sauce

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

When I was growing up, I thought soy sauce was salty water with dark coloring and some secret soy and wheat stuff mixed in. That's because my parents did not know any better
than to buy LaChoy brand.

Some of the cheapy stuff from China is not any better.

Oriental friends introduced me to real home cooked delights that one never finds in a typical Chinese or Japanese restaurant in my country. They even introduced me to
authentic ethnic restaurants.

I gradually learned that there is a tremendous variety in Soy Sauce, whether made with added wheat (Shoyu) or without
(Tamari). Some connoisseurs spend as much time studying the character of soy sauces as others do on wines.

Real soy sauce requires many months of fermentation and aging to make, not a few minutes on an automated factory. Some excellent choices are now available in the USA, whether made here or in the Orient. Some are deliberately un pasteurized, for health benefits.

My suggestion is to seek out good brands, then see if they have reduced salt versions.

While you are at it, take a look at Miso as well, preferably not pasteurized.

Bon appetite.

Protein - The Denominator Customary to All Diets

2007-12-07T21:11:00.001-08:00

Protein - The Denominator Customary to All Diets

by: Protica Research

The Human Body is in a constant flux with the environment. Matter and molecules flow in and out, casting themselves into its complexities. Although the body lends them structure, it is the intake—the diet—that decides its physique. To control what goes in a diet is to choose what stays inside. Dietary decisions reflect an awareness of metabolism and the nutrients needed to modify it. There may be a host of diets purported for each activity and illness. However, the one macronutrient that is invariably required, in substantial amounts irrespective of the physiological state, is protein.

Proteins hold this special place in every diet for a variety of reasons. They connect the DNA to the rest of the cell and modulate all cellular functions and responses. They are the scaffolds of the human body that struts a billion cells. Proteins are also the workers that shuffle around the body relaying messages, carrying out repairs and digestion. Oxygen from the lungs and many nutrients from the gut are protein packed and delivered to their destination. The motors in the muscles and the antibodies in the immune system are all proteins. If genes code life in a helix of DNA, then proteins are life in its decoded form. Their pervasiveness makes them indispensable and, protein synthesis a priority in metabolism.

Add to this myriad of functions the astronomical turnover rate of proteins, and continuous protein synthesis becomes vital. Every protein has a short life span and is soon broken down into its constituent amino acids. New proteins are required to take their place. The skin itself is renewed every seven days. Then there are proteins that get used up, damaged or excreted, and need to be produced again. Protein synthesis goes on at a frantic pace even in normal people. Then there are periods of rapid growth, like athletes in training, teenagers, convalescent patients, babies, pregnant or lactating mothers, where protein synthesis reaches an all time high. Proteins are broken down for other reasons as well. In times of stress, illness or starvation, the body just cannot find enough sources of energy. In such circumstances, proteins are taken apart into their constituent amino acids and are used as fuel. Therefore, in all physiological states, cells are constantly at work, churning out new proteins.

To maintain this obligatory and intense rate of protein synthesis, the body needs a dedicated supply of amino acids. Unfortunately, unlike carbohydrates and fats that are stockpiled, the human body has no arrangement to store extra amino acids. The persistent demand for proteins and amino acids has to be met anew every day and from three possible sources: cellular production, the diet or breakdown of other body proteins. Of these, cellular production would be most convenient. If the cell could produce all the required amino acids, there would be no compulsion to provide them in the diet. However, there are amino acids that just cannot be produced in the body. These ‘essential amino acids’ have to come from the diet.

Proteins, from the diet or supplements, are the best alternative. The supply of all amino acids can be ensured and in sufficient amounts. Cellular metabolism is relieved of the obligation to produce amino acids except for making minor adjustment in the supply chain. Protein synthesis can go on uninterrupted. Unless the diet meets the perpetual demand for amino acids, other, relatively expendable, body proteins are broken down to fulfill the requirement. In effect, a dietary deficiency of proteins forces the body to feed on itself.

The need for proteins in every diet is undeniable. The average American diet provides 1.2 g/kg of protein against the recommended daily allowance of 0.8 g/kg. The question, then, is whether to add protein supplements to an existing diet? While proteins from food may seem adequate, there is no telling whether all essential amino acids are supplied, and there is little way of knowing how easily those proteins are digested and assimilated into the body. A carefully researched protein supplement like Profect, when taken regularly, would remove such uncertainties.

Apart from supplying amino acids for protein synthesis, a high protein diet based on Profect has other advantages. Studies on high-protein diets have demonstrated their ability to induce weight loss. A high-protein diet produces early satiety and decreases the total energy intake. Protein synthesis, an energy consuming process, is promoted. The energy to assimilate such a diet, calculated as the ‘Thermogenic effect of feeding’, is high. More calories are burnt, more proteins are synthesized and the lean body mass increases while the body weight goes down. Brawn is exchanged for flab.

Proteins from Profect form bioactive peptides in the gut that can enhance gut defenses. The harmful gut bacteria are killed and normal flora is allowed to colonize the intestinal lining. Profect also protects the system from free radicals, free electron molecules produced during intense activity and stress. Free radicals are known to damage cell membranes. Their role in aging, cancer and blood clotting is being intensely investigated. Profect increases the levels of Glutathione, a free radical scavenger that mops up free radicals shielding the cell from their effects. The added water-soluble vitamins and mineral in Profect prevent the loss of calcium and other micronutrients seen on high-protein diets.

Protein: Common or Missing Link?

2007-12-07T21:10:00.000-08:00

Protein: Common or Missing Link?

by: Protica Research

Most of us equate the word diet with calorie reduction. This is understandable, since most diet marketing is relentlessly focused on offering consumers low-calorie options.

Unfortunately, this way of thinking is categorically wrong. The simple fact that any nutritionist will verify is that everyone is on a diet. Even those who do not wish, or do not need, to lose weight are on a diet, as are those who are increasing their weight. Dieting has nothing to do with calorie reduction, and everything to do with calories choices. The foods you ‘choose’ to eat determine the type of diet you are on.

Indeed, to the digestive system and the intestines, a candy bar and a stalk of celery are neither seen as junk food nor diet food. They are both seen as simply food. The candy bar leads to a rapid glycemic reaction and the production of fat cells. The celery does not. Still, the body does not label one as junk and the other as diet food. In fact, everything that the body ingests, it tries to use in the best way that it can.

However, outside the neutral intelligent internal body systems, the term diet persists in our often rather misguided external world of advertising, marketing, and diet plans. As such, we can group diets into two categories: deliberate and accidental.

Deliberate diets are designed with specific requirements, such as those engineered to lose weight, to gain weight, and to maintain weight. Deliberate diets are typically what people refer to when they use the catchall term ‘diet’. This is in contrast to the other kind of diet that is called the ‘accidental diet’. Accidental diets have no requirements, and march to a simple chant: eat whatever, whenever, and the body will take care of itself.

However, despite the fact that there are two terms for diets – deliberate and accidental – there is a denominator that unifies them both: protein. All diets, even those that are accidental, require protein.

Protein, and the amino acids that comprise protein, are essential for life itself. Every system within the body depends, directly or indirectly, on protein. In fact, because protein regulates hormones, some cases of depression or anxiety are actually instigated and perpetuated by either a lack of protein, or the body’s inability to fortify its neurological system with this critical macronutrient.

Yet for those on a diet -- and that includes everyone -- the importance of protein is more pragmatic. Many deliberate diets such as the Atkins™ diet and the South Beach Diet™ restrict carbohydrates, while other restrict fats. That leaves protein. Protein is the common link between all nutritionally-sound diets. But is it also the missing link? Or, is protein readily accessible and readily present in the foods we eat?

Oddly, most American meals and snacks are protein deficient. Indeed, complete protein is absent from 6 of the top 10 foods eaten in the US, and absent from all 10 of the most popular snacks (see chart at end of article). This shortage of protein in the American diet refers both to the absolute amount of protein, which is recommended to be a minimum of 50 grams per day, and the kind of protein as well. The healthiest protein is a “complete protein”, which includes all 19 amino acids. However, even people who are ingesting 50 grams of protein may not be eating complete protein. As such, these people are sometimes unwittingly suffering from some form of protein malnourishment, and experience symptoms that include drowsiness, digestive problems, emotional disorders, and other adverse physiological effects.

So to achieve a balanced diet -- regardless of the diet regimen – an appropriate level of complete protein must be present in each meal. This, of course, is easier said than done for most time-starved people. Regrettably, these people are more than time-starved; they are oftentimes macronutrient starved, as well.

Pennsylvania-based Protica Research has developed a protein beverage to meet the protein needs of busy consumers, dieters, diabetics, students and others. Profect® is an advanced beverage that supplies 25 grams of protein in less than 3 fluid ounces. It is packaged in an unbreakable test-tube-shaped vial and can be consumed in 2 or 3 seconds. Akin to a multivitamin, Profect can be taken immediately before a snack or a meal to fortify it with 50% of the US RDI of protein and the complete spectrum of water-soluble vitamins.

Profect can turn an otherwise "empty-calorie" snack into a complete meal. Its macronutrient and micronutrient profile fills the nutritional void found in most meals and snacks. It does this by combining with the carbohydrates and fats generally present in most foods and thereby completing the ‘nutritional trifecta’ required by the body for nourishment.

Of course, this is just the first step. A truly healthy diet must also understand how to properly eat the other members of the macronutrient kingdom, including fats and carbohydrates. Actually, since so many diets revolve around the fluctuation of carbohydrates and fats, it is essential to understand how to properly consume these two sources of body fuel in order to achieve optimal health. Yet which fats and which carbohydrates reign supreme? Which ones add weight, and which ones actually help the body’s metabolism function more effectively? The answers to these questions will be eye opening to most dieters, and they will form the dieting cornerstone for many consumers. You will find the answers in the second part of this two-part article entitled ‘The Macronutrient Balancing Act’. If you do not have a link to the next article, you can find ‘The Macronutrient Balancing Act’ on Protica’s web site at protica.com/publications

Top 10 Most Popular Foods in the US
Source: http://tigerx.com/trivia/foods.htm

1) Fresh Produce & Processed Vegetables
2) Milk & Cream
3) Flour, Bread & Cereal Products
4) Meat, Poultry & Fish
5) Sugar & Other Sweeteners
6) Fruit
7) Potatoes
8) Oils & Fats
9) Eggs
10) Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt

Top 10 Most Popular Snacks in the US
Source: http://tigerx.com/trivia/snacks.htm

1) Chocolate Bars
2) Potato Chips & Pretzels
3) Cookies
4) Non-Chocolate Bars
5) Gum
6) Filled Crackers
7) Nuts
8) Mints
9) Granola Bars
10) Crackers

Prevention

2007-12-07T21:09:00.002-08:00

Prevention

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

is a wonderful word that is too little appreciated by people in North America and many other countries. Just look at recent news.

Prevention applies to mega forest fires (controlled burns in advance), earthquakes (better construction in California than Iran saved lives during similar levels of
earth tremors), and many diseases.

Unfortunately, the medical - pharmacology complex finds it far more profitable to treat diseases with pills and "procedures" (surgery), than to prevent them with good diet and lifestyle practices.

Unfortunately, most of us prefer magic cures to taking responsibility for our own health.

What is far worse is that many tests and surgeries are popular, but actually do little for overall longevity.

Examples:

CHOLESTEROL level in blood is easy to test, but is not the whole story for heart attack and stroke. But pill pushers love to sell drugs to reduce cholesterol levels.

Bypass Surgery is followed by new arterial blockage in only a few years. Balloon angioplasty is less traumatic, less
expensive, and provides immediate results. More important is the growing knowledge that diet can reduce, prevent, and even reverse plaque build up that leads to blockage.

Various forms of diabetes and cancer can be prevented by good choices in diet, without those expensive pills and other treatments that are needed after disease symptoms
become obvious.

Of course, no one lives for ever, but good health practices can result in long and active lives.

Potatoes are healthful!

2007-12-07T21:09:00.001-08:00

Potatoes are healthful!

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

Not deep fried potatoes.

Not potatoes smothered in butter, margarine, or sour cream.

Low fat yogurt can be used as a topping, plain or with herbs and spices.

But try potatoes that are baked, boiled, fried on a non-stick surface with a minimum of oil or non-stick spray, chopped into soups and stews, and on, and on.

It is extremely unfortunate that deep fried and salted potatoes ("french-fries" or pomme de terre frit" or "pomme frit", and potato chips) are so tasty, and are now the most popular of all fast foods. But severely restrict your intake if you don't want heart disease, stroke, and other
illnesses.

Potatoes are such a complete food that some societies in South America (Andes of Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru, where potatoes were first cultivated) eat little else.

Prepared with little fat or salt, Potatoes are healthful!

Overweight Diet & Fitness "Experts"

2007-12-07T21:08:00.000-08:00

Overweight Diet & Fitness "Experts"

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

Diet is a topic much discussed in theory, neglected in practice. I am amused that photos and TV images of most weight loss gurus in USA show them to be "pleasingly plump", that is to say, OVERWEIGHT.

While "juicy" (or "zaftig" or "zoftic") bodies can provide sex appeal in the eyes of some viewers, comparison of health statistics of third generation Asian-Americans to Asian-Asians shows that low fat diets help longevity, and that soy foods increase resistance to numerous diseases.

ALL DIETS THAT WORK for weight loss have one principle in common: If calories burned are more / less than calories ingested, weight will be lost / gained. Physics can NOT be turned off.

One Change Can Make All The Difference

2007-12-07T21:07:00.000-08:00

One Change Can Make All The Difference

by: Danielle Rivers

Ever wondered why some people manage to keep their weight off easily and others just pile it all back on when they stop that new diet? The answer is easy, it comes down to one simple change.

Before we get to that simple change, you need to keep in mind these rules of thumb when it comes to dieting.

1. Never do a diet which forbids a food group. This is simply asking for trouble. One day, not matter how hard you try, you will eat something from the forbidden food group and fail. Not very positive is it? You are setting yourself up for disappointment. Dieting is hard enough, so try and make it easy as humanly possible.

2. Never give up trying. Overeating is a little like smoking, they are both addictive, costly and bad for your health. People recognise the world over that giving up smoking is very difficult but overeating is seen as a weakness. No matter what people may think, you can lose weight. Choose a diet that is right for you and start again. Never give up trying.

3. Seek help. You can get help with your weight loss program from lots of different sources. Online forums are free places where you can discuss your diet and meet new friends. You can motivate one another. If you are too shy for forums then some weight loss programmes offer online support as one of their packages but these usually involve a charge. Help from friends and family is free and invaluable to your dieting efforts. Help can motivate you and encourage you to hit your slimming goals.

Now these three points should help you to chose a healthy diet and motivate you into trying to lose those extra pounds.

Back to that simple change.

People who keep their weight loss off, change tiny things in their daily life.

Instead of full fat milk they have skimmed, they grill rather than fry and they choose to reduce the amount of cheese, cream, cakes and biscuits they eat, every single day.

Now you are immediately going to say that that is lots of changes not just one. To some degree you would be correct, but not completely.

If you look at a photograph it is one small picture but when looked at closely, it is made up of thousands of pixels. One small sugar cube is made up of hundreds of sugar grains and a handkerchief consists of numerous cotton threads. Almost everything in the world, no matter how small, can be broken down into even smaller parts. All those tiny parts still only amount to one small thing.

You make several tiny changes to your lifestyle which you genuinely do not mind and weight loss becomes easy. Remember, they have to be changes that you will hardly notice, low fat spread instead of full fat, low calorie squash or just eating more fruit.

Make the one small change to adjust your eating habits slightly and permanently and even if you break your diet program, you could still lose weight slowly and steadily.

Good luck with whichever weight loss program you choose and happy,easy slimming!

Olive Oil -Not Just for Popeye

2007-12-07T21:06:00.002-08:00

Olive Oil -Not Just for Popeye

by: Dr. John Rumberger

Archeological records indicate that man has cultivated the olive tree for about 6,000 years; having been especially popular in the Isle of Crete (which as you recall, also appeared in the Seven Countries Study to be the site of the lowest incidence of heart disease). All oils that we use for eating and cooking contain "fat" and olive oil is no exception. However, it is mostly monounsaturated fat as opposed to saturated fat or hydrogenated fat. It can be used as a flavoring for cooking or in salad dressings or as a healthy substitute for butter or margarine. Several large population studies have confirmed that diets with higher amounts of fat of the monounsaturated type reduce total cholesterol and LDL ["bad"] cholesterol levels to the same degree as low fat, high-carbohydrate diets [such as the AHA Step I and II diets]. The additional benefit of olive oil is, as part of a Mediterranean type diet, is that it also has a favorable effect on lowering blood triglycerides [also a factor in heart disease] and maintaining HDL ["good" cholesterol].

In a published study, individuals were randomly assigned to one of three diets: a diet enriched with olive oil, an AHA Step II diet, or an average American control diet. The olive oil and Step II diets lowered total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol to the same degree. However, triglyceride levels fell 13% in patients on the olive oil diet and increased 11% in the Step II diet. HDL cholesterol levels were unchanged in the olive oil diet but decreased 4% in the Step II diet. Remember we want to keep the HDL up as high as possible to reduce heart disease.

Based upon the above information, the authors of the study estimated that the overall risk of cardiovascular disease was lowered by 25% by the olive oil diet and only 12% by the Step II diet. Please note that the cholesterol lowering "statin" type drugs lower risk for a heart attack by about 35%, which is not too much better than the "olive oil" diet alone. In subjects with elevated cholesterols who would benefit from use of statin type medications, additional cardiovascular benefit would then be found by also following a diet with olive oil as a substitute for salad dressing, as a substitute for butter or margarine, and for cooking.

Olive oil apparently has other beneficial effects such as lowering blood pressure, inhibiting the oxidation of LDL cholesterol [the last step before it gets put into your arteries], providing anti-inflammatory effects, and improving insulin sensitivity.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently given manufactures of olive oil and some olive oil-containing food the green light to carry a statement about their potential heart benefits. The claim indicates evidence suggesting that about 2 tablespoons of olive oil per day may reduce the risk of a heart attack. However, to achieve this result, the olive oil should replace a similar amount of saturated fat and should not increase the total daily calories.

The strong taste of extra-virgin olive oil is partly because of the presence of a large amount of "flavonoids", which account for its antioxidant properties that then reduce LDL oxidation. Other foods rich in flavonoids include berries, apples, onions, tea, and red wine (all of which have also been shown to be of benefit in reducing overall heart risk).

Disclaimer: If you are under 18, pregnant, nursing or have health problems, consult your physician before starting any weight loss plan. The information here is not intended as a substitute for medical advice. Please consult your physician before beginning any course of treatment.

Nutrition Is More Than The Nutrition Facts Box

2007-12-07T21:06:00.001-08:00

Nutrition Is More Than The Nutrition Facts Box

by: Connie Roemer

Most people pay little attention to the nutritional content of their food until they are on, or about to begin a diet.
Then they take a keen interest in seeing which diet has less calories or less carbohydrates. But it is a simple fact that most popular diets do not have nearly as many positive effects as their creators would have us believe.

Most of the serious diets we hear about work by simply removing a food or food group from your daily diet. This sometimes means eating less of certain foods than you normally would, however it often means entirely removing certain food groups from your diet altogether. The basic premise is that by restricting your diet in some way, you will lose weight.

Obviously if the food you are cutting out altogether is junk food you will be better off nutritionally. The problem is that when you totally stop eating a food that you are used to eating regularly, you will get cravings for this food.
Right from the start you will have a major temptation to cheat on the diet. Eventually you will probably cheat and render the diet useless. You should therefore opt for diets that don't restrict you as severely as this.

Another problem with a lot of diets is that they have a tendency to focus more on one particular aspect of the food instead of on the overall nutrition value of it.

Many popular diets are based upon eliminating fat, or sugar, or carbohydrates. In fact, this is looking at only part of the bigger nutritional picture and can leads to diet choices and decisions which are not in your best interests.

For instance, people who are trying to cut carbohydrates out of their diet will sometimes choose to drink diet sodas instead of fruit juices. While the diet soda clearly has far fewer carbohydrates than fruit juice, that does not mean that it is more healthy. Your best bet in this situation is to drink the healthier beverage and to get all of the different vitamins and minerals instead of empty soda.

The best method to lose weight is to eat healthy meals which are good for you as often as you can, while avoiding meals that lack balance. Eating a balanced diet is extremely important for your health and wellbeing.

When looking for nutritious foods try to avoid prepackaged foods. These foods are often very high in salt and lacking in the vitamins and minerals that their fresh counterparts are rich in. They are also filled with chemical preservatives, it is always best to avoid these packaged foods and opt instead for fresh foods when at all possible.

By eating real foods that you have to cook yourself, you can make sure that you are actually keeping track of the amount of sodium that you consume. You will also be putting more thought into how much you cook and eat, so it's likely that you'll be better able to make sure that you do not eat too much of any one thing.

It is often said that you are what you eat, likewise your food is what it is made from. You need to be aware of the ingredients going into your food and where they sit in a balanced diet. This is more important than counting calories or grams of fat or carbohydrates. The ingredients of a food are the best indicator of whether you should eat it or not.

Need To Lose Weight Fast For A Special Occasion?

2007-12-07T21:05:00.000-08:00

Need To Lose Weight Fast For A Special Occasion?

by: Kirsten Hawkins

If you have just a little weight to lose, and want to take it off fast (say, so you can fit into those great pants for your cousin's wedding), there are a number of diets that you can use. Most of these wouldn't be recommended for long-term weight loss, as they substantially restrict your intake of some essential nutrients, so using them habitually may not be healthy. But if you're normal diet is healthy, and you just want a quick boost to drop 8-10 pounds quickly, or to kick off a new diet with a bang, the Cabbage Soup Diet actually works.

The cabbage soup diet has been around for nearly 30 years. It's based on the notion that your body actually uses more calories to digest cabbage than the amount that it derives from cabbage. It's a so-called 'negative calorie diet', and includes many foods that, like cabbage, are high in fiber and very low in calories.

The base of the cabbage soup diet is - what else? Cabbage soup. There are several recipes for cabbage soup available. Essentially, the soup is made with onions, peppers, mushrooms, carrots, cabbage, celery and spices to taste. You'll be eating the soup every day - as much of it as you want.

In addition, there is a seven day routine of foods to supplement the cabbage soup.

Day One: All the fruit you want (except bananas) along with all the soup that you want. No caffeinated beverages or sodas. Drink only water, tea and cranberry juice.

Day Two: Eat all the vegetables that you want, but avoid dried beans, peas and corn. Eat veggies raw, fresh or cooked. No fats, no sauces, no butter. At dinner, you may have one baked potato with butter - and of course, all the cabbage soup that you want!

Day Three: Eat all the fruits and veggies that you want from day two and day three - but NO baked potato.

Day Four: Bananas and skim milk - yes, all the skim milk you want, plus up to eight bananas, along with -- you guessed it, all the cabbage soup you want.

Day Five: Eat ten to twenty ounces of beef (or skinless chicken, or broiled fish). Drink at least 10 glasses of water, and eat up to six fresh tomatoes. (if you substitute for the beef today, you may not tomorrow)

Day Six: Eat all the beef, vegetables and cabbage soup that you want. No baked potato. Lots of leafy green vegetables.

Day Seven: You can have all the unsweetened fruit juices, brown rice, and vegetables that you want - and at least one bowl of soup.

That's it. Remember - this diet is NOT recommended for long term weight loss, or long term use. It doesn't contain enough complex carbohydrates to be healthy for longer than a few days. But if you just need a jump-start or a quick fix, it's a good way to pick up the pace for a week.

Monosodium Glutamate & Hydrolyzed Protein

2007-12-07T21:04:00.002-08:00

Monosodium Glutamate & Hydrolyzed Protein

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

Industry spokes persons and publications of various national governments assure us that MSG is good for us, with no detrimental effects.

Such assurances are totally meaningless to those of us who find even small amounts of MSG can cause a feeling of swelling head, headache, spaciness, anxiety, and make it
difficult to sleep.

(Going on a chocolate binge can do the same to me.)

Hydrolyzed Protein (HP) is made from various foods (such as soybeans, corn, wheat, or milk whey) by acid hydrolysis.
This is usually made into flavor enhancers for processed foods. HP is often used with MSG.

HP causes me pronounced after-taste and mouth / tongue swelling, which keeps me from using numerous "quick meal" kits.

Learn from others, but trust your own observations.

"Modern" diets and supplements

2007-12-07T21:04:00.001-08:00

"Modern" diets and supplements

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

For the majority of people who don't raise their own foods, diets can be deficient in vitamins and minerals. In fact, it was the study of diet deficiencies in the USA and other countries that led to the creation of vitamin and mineral supplements.

Since my late youth, when I left the farm, I have included supplements in my diet. Now I take "therapeutic" blends of vitamins, helped by mineral tablets that are high in often neglected components, such as calcium and trace elements. I do NOT take "mega doses"; some vitamins are toxic at high levels.

But exercise caution. Supplement marketers have some of the most profitable markups short of prescription medicines. Read what you can learn on the internet searches, including reputable experts.

Herbal foods and supplements are a totally unregulated part of the economy. Some pretty outlandish claims have been made. Some "miracle herbals" can actually be toxic.

From time to time, I might suggest makers of supplements that I think are worth visiting on the internet. Read what you can find, and make informed choices.

I welcome comments from people who have good or bad experience from various supplement sources.

Moderate weight loss can earn good health benefits

2007-12-07T21:03:00.000-08:00

Moderate weight loss can earn good health benefits

by: Tom

It is not compulsory to shed enormous weight for a good health gain. Moderate weight loss brings healthy news to your body. Even before you achieve the set goal, you begin to reap the benefits.

If you are obese, try to lose the first 10 kg and see how it positively affects your body and mind.

Mortality

• 20% fall in total mortality
• 30%fall in diabetes related deaths
• 40% fall in obesity related cancer deaths

Blood Pressure

• Fall of 10mm Hg systolic B.P.
• Fall of 20mm Hg diastolic B.P.

Diabetes Mellitus

• Fall of 50% in tasting glucose

Lipids

• Fall of 10% in total cholesterol
• Fall of 15% in low density lipoproteins cholesterol
• Increase in 8% of high density dipoproteins cholesterol

Tips to lose the 10kg

• Regular exercise
• Say no to junk food
• Change your life style
• Eat moderately
• More salads and carbohydrates in food
• Take Diet Pills

Once you begin to feel good about your weight loss and health, you will be more careful in choosing your diets.

Moderate exercise is necessary for good health.

2007-12-07T21:02:00.002-08:00

Moderate exercise is necessary for good health.

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

At a minimum, walk a mile or more several times a week (or daily) and move the arms and wrists around to loosen up the joints.

If you can't walk or ride a stationary bicycle, use a rowing machine, swim, or join wheel chair races. My paddle-wheel stationary bike uses arms as well as legs,
and the resistance by air goes exponentially with RPM.

If you can do none of these things, you have my sympathy.

I had a young colleague who suffered from polio in child-hood, so one leg was short and supported by a built-up shoe. One day, this person was absent from the office, because a lung had collapsed. He should at least have worked up his pulse rate and breathing on a rowing machine, several times
per week.

Recent TV news said walking as little as 2½ hours per week can reduce rates of breast cancer, so 5 hours can't hurt females or males.

I find that a brisk half hour walk raises my pulse to about 115, then it drops back below 70 by the time I have finished my morning shower. My normal neighborhood route measures 1.8 miles.

When weather, darkness, shortness of free time, or mood keep me from outdoor walking, I do some or all of the following:
* At least 15 push-ups
* At least 15 chin-ups with legs raised
* At least 30 turns at skip-rope
* Arm, shoulder, and wrist stretches
* Rope stretching isometrics
* At least 5 minutes above mid-scale on my paddle-wheel bike
* Back exercises
These don't have to be done all in one session or on the same day. Arrange the order so that muscles can recover between sets. Do what feels comfortable.

Despite bad memories for many veterans, Army Calisthenics can work off tension, build strength and endurance, and actually make one feel pretty good.

Miso and Potato Soup Meal

2007-12-07T21:02:00.001-08:00

Miso and Potato Soup Meal

by: Dr. Donald A. Miller

I previously described a Hearty Miso Soup Meal which gets some of its protein and bulk from angel hair pasta. Here is a variation on the theme, replacing pasta with potato. Both recipes provide a high protein meatless meal, low in fat.

These proportions are for one person, and can be adjusted to taste.

The tofu and miso can be found at upscale grocers, health food stores, Asian food stores.

Take potato that is about the size of a medium adult fist.
Scrub, then place on a cutting board. With a sharp knife, cut lengthwise into four pieces, then crosswise into thin slices. Place in a pot with two cups of water and bring to a low boil. Plan on about 15 minutes for fork tenderness.

Add to pot anywhere from 1/4 to full tablespoon full of diced garlic, either fresh or dried, as is convenient.
Or prepare some diced fresh onion.

Add to pot some green herbs, such as pre mixed Italian seasoning. 1/2 to full tablespoon works for me. Also add some fresh ground black pepper to taste. I find that pre ground black pepper has no taste.

In stead of meat, prepare two to four tablespoons of firm tofu, mashed with a fork.

In a small bowl or the measuring cup, place about a half cup of water. To this, add a rounded tablespoon of miso paste. With a fork, whip the miso until it is fairly well dispersed. Now add two fresh eggs and continue whipping.

When the potatoes are tender but not real mushy, add the miso and egg mix to the pot, and stir in. Turn off heat. Let pot stand a minute or so, then remove from stove. Cooling can be helped with one or two ice cubes stirred in, or 3 to 5 minutes placement in refrigerator.

If the miso has not added enough salt for your taste, add a small amount of salt. Personally, I almost never add salt while cooking, as most prepared foods have salt added, such as miso.

These quantities were determined by trial and error. Vary to suit your own tastes.

This soup is a meal in itself, or divide and use as a side dish.

Bon appetit!

Migraines Retreat With Diet Modifications

2007-12-07T21:01:00.000-08:00

Migraines Retreat With Diet Modifications

by: Alisa Fleming

The research is clear, food intolerance, allergies, and hypersensitivities are key triggers of headaches and migraines. Although each migraine sufferer may react to a different food or group of foods, there are a few which seem to pop up as frequent offenders: dairy (including milk, cheeses, and yogurt), wheat, eggs, soy, corn, citrus, chocolate, coffee, beef, yeast, red wine, and processed foods with additives and preservatives.

In the pursuit to identify these top offenders, scientists and physicians have enlisted the oligoantigenic diet. This is a hypoallergenic “elimination” diet, consisting of a selection of foods that are presumably well tolerated. During their studies, patients are told to eat only the “safe” foods outlined on their version of the oligonantigenic diet in an effort to eliminate any symptoms. Once the symptoms have gone into remission, the “high risk” foods are re-introduced into the diet one at a time to assess their potential trigger effect on symptoms. This type of diet should be undertaken with the assistance of a physician, in order to ensure adequate nutritional intake. In each of the 3 case studies listed below, some form of an oligoantigenic diet was used:

60 migraine patients followed an elimination diet after a 5-day withdrawal from their normal diet. Upon reintroduction, specific foods elicited migraine reactions in a significant percentage of patients: wheat (78%), oranges (65%), eggs (45%), tea and coffee (40% each), chocolate and milk (37% each), beef (35%), and corn, cane sugar, and yeast (33% each). When an average of ten common trigger foods were avoided, there was a dramatic decline in the number of headaches per month and 85% of patients actually became headache-free! As science would have it, an added benefit was welcomed by the 25% of these patients who also had hypertension – their blood pressure returned to normal levels.
In a clinical trial 93% of 88 children who suffered frequent and severe migraines recovered on oligoantigentic diets. Most of the patients responded to several foods, which suggested the probability of an allergic rather than a metabolic cause. An added bonus… abdominal pain, behavior disorder, fits, asthma, and eczema also improved in several of these patients.
A research study trialed an oligoantigenic diet on 63 children with epilepsy, 45 of which also suffered from migraines, hyperkinetic behavior, or both. The 18 children who had epilepsy alone saw no improvement on the oligoantigenic diet. However, of the 45 children with additional symptoms, 25 ceased to have seizures and 11 had fewer seizures while on this diet. Migraines, abdominal pain, and hyperkinetic behavior halted in the 25 children who stopped having seizures, and also in some of those who did not stop having seizures. Reintroduction of foods one by one confirmed that the seizures, migraines, hyperkinetic activity, and abdominal pain these children were experiencing related to 42 different “trigger” foods.

So why do so many people suffer from migraines and other headaches when they consume these foods? The medical community is getting closer to an answer. Researchers in Germany have discovered a genetic mutation responsible for the “faulty wiring” and the subsequent pain. Although clinical scientists have known for a while that migraines are hereditary, the exact “defect” being passed on was previously unknown.

Menopause and Weight Loss

2007-12-07T21:00:00.000-08:00

Menopause and Weight Loss

by: Cathy Taylor

During menopause, many women report that the challenge of weight loss becomes even more difficult. The need to lose weight haunts women most of the time, and now more men are reporting the same struggle. When women hit menopause, weight gathers around the waist and hips; despite our best efforts to diet and exercise.

What we know is that this additional body fat is linked to your hormones. Most women follow a conventional low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet with lots of processed foods. Eventually this diet creates a condition known as insulin resistance; see Dr. Schwarzbein's book on the book list. When you are insulin resistant, your body converts calories into fat even when you are dieting. Menopause feels like a losing battle, but it doesn't have to be.

When you are stressed, as the body typically is during menopause, stress hormones block weight loss. Despite adequate food, the body acts as if it's in a famine and stores all spare calories as fat.
This leads to a metabolic disorder called adrenal fatigue.

Many women combine a high-stress life with a low-fat, high-carb diet which creates a powerful hormonal imbalance which causes us to gain weight. Yo-yo dieting exacerbates the problem.
Also, when a woman is on a high-carb diet she is often barraged with a craving for sweets. The body can't maintain optimal blood sugar and serotonin levels, so you snack and drink caffeine to feel better. That makes your insulin resistance worse and the vicious cycle of gaining weight is accelerated.

During perimenopause, women lose estrogen which is an added factor to this problem. As estrogen decreases, the body needs extra fat resources. Other factors that play into this problem, are unresolved emotional issues, food sensitivities, digestive issues such as yeast, and even heavy metal toxicity.

So what do we do?

The most important step is to GET HEALTHY!

Follow an eating plan like the one in the Schwarzbein Principle or the Zone Diet

You need protein at every meal, low carbs, very little to no processed food, and lots of fruit and vegetables

Drink plenty of water

Take nutritional supplements

Try Supplements Designed for Menopause

Stop weighing yourself, use your clothes as a gauge (focus on your health not your weight)

Start exercising - walk 4-5 times a week for 30 minute (it boosts metabolism)

Get help for emotional eating - you have to face your fears to get through them

Reduce the stress in your life, make time for fun and relaxation - strive for BALANCE

Learn to love yourself during menopause and accept who you are and at what stage in life you find yourself

Menopause can make weight loss even more challenging for both women and men. But with the right knowledge and some hard work, it can be done.

The information in this article is for educational purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice.

Mediterranean Diet - What is it?

2007-12-07T20:59:00.000-08:00

Mediterranean Diet - What is it?

by: Roy Barker

Well, to begin with, there isn't really any one Mediterranean Diet! There's a whole swag of countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea. The basic Mediterranean Diet has common characteristics even if the sourrounding countries differ in culture, language and recipes to some extent.

* an extensive intake of fruits, vegetables, bread and cereals, potatoes, beans, nuts and seeds
* olive oil is a source of mono-unsaturated fat - common to the Mediterranean area
* some dairy products, fish and even poultry are consumed in sparing to moderate amounts, and some red meat(not much)
* eggs are consumed in low to moderate amount say 1 to 4 eggs a week
* fortunately wine is acceptable but in low quantities ie. 1 - 3 glasses per day

A good question to ask is - Does a Mediterranean-style diet follow American Heart Association dietary guidelines?

Mediterranean-style diets are often close to US dietary guidelines, but not exactly.

People who follow the average Mediterranean diet eat less saturated fat than those who eat the average American diet. In fact, saturated fat consumption is well within US dietary guidelines. More than half the fat calories in a Mediterranean diet come from mono-unsaturated fats (mainly from olive oil). Mono-unsaturated fat doesn't raise blood cholesterol levels the way saturated fat does.

The incidence of heart disease in Mediterranean countries is lower than in the United States. Death rates are lower, too.
However there are some who feel this may not be entirely due to the diet. Lifestyle factors (ie. more physical activity and extended social family support structures) may also play a part. At this stage this is just a theory. However the research tells all - the diet has existed for umpteen years.

If you would like further proof of the mediterranean diet benefits resulting from research.

"Olive oil plays a central role, but it is not alone," says Dimitrios Trichopoulos, MD, PhD, of Harvard School of Public Health.

"It's among the divine mix of several factors that, when used in combination, help provide strong evidence of something that is very important -- eating the proper diet can significantly reduce your risk of early death."

He and researchers from Greece studied some 22,000 adults, aged 20 to 86, from all regions of that country; most previous studies tracked only older people who were more likely to die during the study. The participants answered detailed questionnaires about their eating habits throughout the four-year study. Then they were rated on how closely they followed the key principles of the Mediterranean diet.

Sticking to the Mediterranean diet cut the risk of death from both heart disease and cancer. For every two points higher on this 0-to-9 scale -- with top numbers going to those most closely following the Mediterranean diet -- the death rate dropped by 25%.

The findings by Trichopoulos may also help explain why Asians, who typically use these other cooking oils, also have lower disease and death rates. Although they rarely use olive oil, they traditionally follow other principles of the Mediterranean diet -- lots of produce, legumes, nuts, and minimally processed grains, with little saturated fat.

"The message remains the same, and is consistent with other findings: A diet lower in saturated fats and higher in monounsaturated fats, and potentially, polyunsaturates, will result in better health outcomes," says Alice H. Lichtenstein, DSc, of Tufts University and a spokeswoman for the American Heart Association.

"If the main message that Americans get is to just increase their olive or canola oil consumption, that's unfortunate because they will increase their caloric intake and they are already getting too many calories. What they need to do is eat more fruits, vegetables, and legumes and fewer foods rich in saturated fats."

Some of this information has been referenced from The New England Journal of Medicine, June 26, 2003. Dimitrios Trichopoulos, MD, PhD, professor of epidemiology, Vincent L. Gregory Professor of Cancer Prevention, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston. Alice H. Lichtenstein, DSc, senior scientist and director, Cardiovascular Nutrition Laboratory, Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Researcher Center on Aging, Tufts University, Boston; spokeswoman, American Heart Association.

So in a nutshell, there is sound evidence that the Mediterranean Diet can help reduce heart disease, cancer, weight gain and of course reduce the risk of early death. However, it would be a mistake to think this outcome is based on the use of Olive Oil alone. The diet is diverse and allows for taste and creativity which is often lacking in most other diets. This alone warrants further investigation from those who seek a healthy, easy diet that has flavour and is fullfilling. Remember too that just as in all worthwhile diets, moderate level exercise should not be overlooked.

Mediterranean Diet-Lose weight quickly, easily & safely

2007-12-07T20:58:00.000-08:00

Mediterranean Diet-Lose weight quickly, easily & safely

by: Roy Barker

If you are looking for a way to lose fifty pounds in two weeks, a high protein diet, a low carb diet, a fruit diet, a no fat diet, a blood type diet, a juice fast, a diet named after a place in Miami, a grapefruit diet, a cactus diet, a coffee and cigarette diet, a diet that includes sweets, a diet based on your body type, a diet based on an ancient religion or a diet based on your hair color, then this article is NOT for you.

Fad and crash diets, such as the ones described above are not only unhealthy but they also cause rebound weight gain. Also most diets, even though diet gurus write them, cause an initial weight loss but the ultimate result is that you gain all of the weight back the minute you go off the plan. If you don't gain it back within a couple of diets, you are likely to gain it all back plus a bit more within a year.

Crash diets dehydrate you, low calorie diets put your body into starvation mode so you plateau so you can't lose one more pound and high protein diets stress your kidneys and clog your arteries.

So how does one lose weight?

There is only one answer to this question.

You need to expend more calories than you are taking in. Restricting certain foods, eating so-called fat burning foods, or dehydrating yourself with special pills or teas does not do it. It is simple math. The only way is to eat a little less and exercise a little more. Here is the equation below:

Eating Less + Exercising More = Weight Loss.

This is not a magical formula, it is just logic. It is also not a fast way to lose weight. As I have mentioned before, this is not an article about how to lose ten pounds in three days or 30 pounds in a month. It is about safe, healthy weight loss.

In order to lose weight safely and without putting yourself at risk for such health hazards as dehydration, kidney failure, malnutrition, exhaustion, nervous dysfunction, tooth loss, dull hair, wrinkles, cellulite, sudden heart failure or stroke and lose the weight so that it stays off, you should lose no more than approximately two pounds a week!

Although that might not sound like a large amount of weight to lose it actually is! If you lose 2 pounds a week that means you can achieve a weight loss of ten pounds a month! If you only have twenty pounds to lose then your weight loss is not only quite rapid, but you have the extra guarantee that it will stay off because you have followed a sensible exercise plan that did not involve starving, exhausting or depriving yourself. If you are willing to drop your impatience and desire for immediate gratification and stick to an exercise plan and healthy eating habits, then a Mediterranean Diet is for you. Remember being slim is only good if you are able to enjoy it!

Do You Need to Lose Weight?

Fascination with Fat

If you want to lose weight, you first need to assess whether you need to actually lose weight or are simply a fashion victim. Unfortunately this society is fascinated with fat - who has it and who doesn't. As we are persuaded by so many images in the media that persuade us to believe that you can never be too thin, many of us are bad judges of our actual body weight.

If you are under the age of eighteen and reading this book, the first thing you need to do is consult with your parent about your plans to lose weight. Have her make an appointment with a physician so that he can indicate to you whether or not you are a candidate for weight loss.

If you are an adult, it is possible that you may not be overweight and are just trying to be, as Bridget Jones put it in Bridget Jones Diary "a stick insect with eyelashes." It is also very possible that you know you need to lose weight but have no idea where to start.

If you are obese and you know it, then you have to check with a physician first to see how your health is before you embark on any exercise program or plan. The same is also true if you have any kind of medical condition but especially a thyroid condition or heart condition. Some physicians may not recommend a weight loss program for those who are over 40 as due to genetics and hormonal changes some people naturally just round out or gain weight in a way that simply cannot be changed. If your doctor tells you your spreading hips are due to menopause or genetics, believe him! It is not clever to fool with Mother Nature.

Health

You don't need to go on a diet to lose weight

You Can Lose Weight on a High Carbohydrate Diet

Why the Low GI Diet is the Key to Your Weight Loss Goals

Why The Low GI Diet Is The Key To Your Weight Loss Goals!

Why the HAPPY DIET works

Why Many Fat Free Diets do not Work

Why Isn't My Diet Working?

Why fad diets don’t work!

Why Diets Lead to Failure

Why Diets DON'T Work

Where's The Beef?

What is the South Beach Diet?

What Is The Atkins Diet?

Wellness versus Ignorance

Weight Loss Tips: Get Free and Effective Weight Loss Tips!

Weight Loss Survey: Why Dieters Fail To Lose Weight

Weightloss Supplements

Weight Loss Scams - What Have You Got To Lose!

Weight Loss : Keep it Simple

Weight Loss And Nutrition Myths – What You Need To Know! Part 1

Walking To The Beat Of A Different Drun?

Understanding Low Carb Diets

Ultimate Low Carb Food List

Tuna and Water Diet

Truths about Diet, Obesity, and $75 Billion

To Salt Or Not To Salt: That Is The Question, but What Is The Answer?

Top 10 Questions and Answers on Atkins Diet

The Wonderful Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet.

The Ultimate Weight Loss Attitude

The Truth about the Mayo Clinic Diet

The Truth About High Protein Diets

The South Beach Diet

The Simplest Diet Plan Ever - 3 Easy Steps to Healthy Living

The risk of ischemic heart disease with low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets

The Real Mayo Clinic Diet

The Profect Solution for Diabetics

The Perfect Diet Just for You

The New And Improved Nutrition Pyramid

The Mediterranean Diet Full Flavored Foods Help You Lose Weight

The Main Causes of Hemorrhoids Are Diet and Toilet-Strain.

The Low-Down On Diet Comparison

The Low Carb F.A.Q

The Link Between Diet and Nutrition

The Isometric Diet and Balanced Health

The importance of diet in Lowering blood pressure

The Hidden Truth About Diets

The Glycemic Index and Dieting

The Diet Experts Agree More Than They Admit!

The Danger of Curbing Hunger Artificially

The benefits of healthy nutrition

The Atkins Diet...what is it?

Taking the confusion out of purchasing prescription diet pills.

Take Your Vitamins - But Take Them Sensibly

Take Hoodia diet pills with a Smart Diet, not a Starvation Diet

Supporting Your Weight Loss Goals

Strategic Weight Loss

Start Losing Weight Today!

Sports Drinks - Should They Part of Your Diet and Exercise Program?

Soy Foods for better health

South Beach Diet Or Another Fad Diet?

Salt saves, salt kills.

Safely Transitioning Off Meal Replacement Plans

Redeeming Unsaturated Fat

Reasons for Obesity

Real Soy Sauce

Protein - The Denominator Customary to All Diets

Protein: Common or Missing Link?

Prevention

Potatoes are healthful!

Overweight Diet & Fitness "Experts"

One Change Can Make All The Difference

Olive Oil -Not Just for Popeye

Nutrition Is More Than The Nutrition Facts Box

Need To Lose Weight Fast For A Special Occasion?

Monosodium Glutamate & Hydrolyzed Protein

"Modern" diets and supplements

Moderate weight loss can earn good health benefits

Moderate exercise is necessary for good health.

Miso and Potato Soup Meal