Diet Way Out

Other Mistakes on Low Carb Diet

2010-09-04T23:52:00.001+07:00

Whatever type of low carb diet you attempt, there are always times when you feel like giving up something else.

It would be a disgrace if you did, because you perhaps understand, low carb diets are varied and flexible that they are simply too good to stay away from. You get to improve your health while losing weight ... and still tons of recipe options available to you.

Thus, here are three main things you should avoid when you start or continue your low carb diet so we hope you do not leave your diet any time shortly!

1. Ingredients Problem "low carb" foods
Perhaps you’ve ever heard about impact carbs or net carbs.

Yes, products that usually speak of their "impact carbs" or "net carbs" merit careful examination of the ingredients, and careful conducting tests.

You’d also better beware of food substitution bars, ice cream, and other "treats" labeled low carb or sugar-free. They often include things such as maltitol (the worst offenders) that are simply as bad as sugar in a large number of bodies.

2. Leave Workout

There is an attraction to go away from workout over when talking about low carb diets, because habitually people can be successful at first, while remaining sedentary. Though, there are some reasons to talk about the exercise in any diet debate:

- Workout can cut insulin resistance - which is perhaps partly why workout only will be likely to make many people easier to lose a few pounds.

- Workout is beneficial for our bodies in so many ways.

- Although we can lose weight by diet only, in any case to some level, we are very improbable to be capable to keep a much weight loss without workout.

3. Carb Sneak
You eat low carb. You're feeling terrific, and the drop weight like magic. You're not starving between meals! You have the energy! You can focus better! You think you have a piece of bread! It does not matter! You still feel good! A little sugar in the coffee can not hurt you.

Something you passed on your personal limit. Abruptly, you have wish for carbohydrates, you're getting weight, and you're in a nasty circle that is hard to break of eating carbs, being hungry, eat more carbohydrates...

Now and then, more subtle, but it is familiar to leave carbohydrates more drag, now and then unexpectedly. If this occurs, it is time to take supply and perhaps begin, at least for a few days to crack this cycle.

As you can see, keeping the desirable low carb diet is not rocket science exactly, but these mistakes are over and over again too simple to fall quarry to.

Here Is What You Get in Mediterranean Diet

2010-08-30T06:22:00.000+07:00

The Mediterranean diet is identical with healthiness, energy and longevity. For centuries, people have observed the consumption behaviors of sixteen countries contiguous the Mediterranean Sea in search of their own fountain of youth. The fact is everyone can enjoy the benefits of the Mediterranean diet, no matter where they live.Although many people have known about Mediterranean diet, but few of those could really give it details. The most usually accepted version of this diet is based on the work of a scientist from Harvard. His diet is based on the principles of eating in Greece and Italy during the 1960s. This involved many plant foods, fresh fruits, dairy products, and small quantities of meat, olive oil as the sole source of quantities of fat and moderate wine.

In addition, normal exercise has also been integrated in routine because many agricultural workforces have been done in the area at that time. The program of Dr. Willett has been published in the mid-1990s and has gained a huge following ever since.

The health advantages of Mediterranean diet are nothing short of amazing. Even a 2003 study from Harvard (by independent scientists) supported the program citing huge positive. The study, which followed by 22,043 people in Greece with age 20-86 years and were followed for four years, discovered that people who followed the plan has undergone a dramatic reduction in mortality compared with those who did not. These results were released in the New England Journal of Medicine. At the end of this period, 275 were dead. Those who follow the traditional Mediterranean diet were less likely to die.

Consuming foods usually found in a Mediterranean diet were discovered to lessen bad cholesterol and so heart disease and the risk of heart attacks. Although all foods in the program act jointly, study has shown that olive oil provides the most advantage. This healthy fat has been shown to avoid cancer - particularly colon cancer. It also has enormous amounts of antioxidants and vitamin E. This is particularly true for extra virgin olive oil because it is the purest. New research shows that pregnant women who consume olive oil are less likely to have children with asthma or allergies.

Mediterranean diet is a natural lifestyle for millions! It is easy to follow. When you think about the health advantages, there is in truth no reason for not jumping on the bandwagon. Steam some fish, cooked vegetables, some olive oil and wash it all down with a glass of rich red vino. You might shortly discover yourself ordering an airplane ticket to Greece to flaunt your own hard body in the seashore.

South Beach Diet – The better Things To Do

2010-08-21T23:13:00.002+07:00

The South Beach diet is a manner that many persons are making books. Miami cardiologist Arthur Agatston began this diet. It got its name when it became a very well-liked diet in southern Florida. The diet is sole from a lot of diets because it develops. As opposed to just retaining a list of those rules stay the same all through the food, as your wants change in phases.

At what time you begin the South Beach diet, it is much similar to any other diet. You cut all these things in your diet that most people live. Sweet fruits, breads, carbohydrates, and alcohol are prohibited. Different most diet plans, though, this phase is expected to last two weeks. Therefore, it is generally considered healthier than diet without carbohydrates. Although none of the carbohydrates will definitely most people lose weight, it is not healthy for the long-term.

Later than two weeks of suffering with a south beach diet, you have the right to get your prohibited foods back, but not in the same way as before. The expectation is that as you go throughout this diet plan, you will find out which foods are really beneficial for you. There are carbohydrates, fats, and even sweets that your body must have. A healthy body is well-balanced. The challenge is to obtain that balance.

As you include your food back into your diet, you're supposed to make this step in a healthy and slow. When you arrive by putting all your loved foods back in your diet, we hope you have educated how to consume standard size servings. Many people consume food in otherwise healthy, but too many servings.

You'll also learn to balance your diet to keep you in the thing you want without exaggerating whatever thing. Proponents of the south beach diet bring to a close that you're not going without your body wants.

You simply get rid of those things that are awful for you, like carbohydrates and fats. Fats and carbohydrates that are considered beneficial will remain in your diet for a long-term.

The diet is meant to turn into a lifetime way of consuming after performing the steps to consume this way. And if it offer you the image of the body you want, who would really stop smoking? And more positive body image, your doctor will also be proud of you to adopt a healthy way of life.

Diabetic Diet – How to Plan it

2010-08-17T22:21:00.003+07:00

Diabetes is a very widespread illness in the United States and 20.8 million people or 7% of the population of children and adults have some type of this illness. For those who have this illness, it is helpful to recognize that it can be restricted with way of life bit. Unluckily for many people altering their day by day lifestyle can be both difficult and annoying. The foods they have delighted all the time are off limits and are restored with healthy foods that can take some getting accustomed. This is especially right for those who have a sweet tooth and find giving up sugar, a proposal hard.

Luckily for those who have diabetes getting foods that assist manage their state is simple with a little explore and help out from a nutritionist. Although your doctor may be the place to begin when it comes to nursing and moderating your diabetes, he or she cannot be more than the update on the foods you can and cannot consume. A Registered Dietitian is the way to go make a diabetic diet plan full of healthy foods that taste nice.

Since diabetes is a widespread illness, it is a whole food industry built around it present many foods that are a match for even more goodies for those who satisfy a sweet tooth. This indicates that if you accustomed to enjoy chocolate cakes chances are you will find a chocolate cake sweetened artificially just as good as the real thing. With the advent of artificial sweeteners many there are many choices when it comes to making a diabetic diet plan.

Even if you can no longer be able to get pleasure from all your favorite foods there are many choices offered food. The American Diabetes Association has riches of resources available for those with diabetes, including a complete list of foods that diabetics can take in their diet. These include vegetables, fruits, meats, breads, fats and dairy products.

Their website has this information readily available for free with a multitude of other free resources. You can also find many books at your local bookstore with comprehensive lists of foods for diabetics and diet, you can use with them. When the sweets and food must go because of diabetes does not stop living and enjoying the food tastes good.

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If You Follow Atkins Diet Properly, Then …

2010-08-15T13:21:00.001+07:00

Fatness is the major cause for many diseases such as heart disease, sleep apnea, diabetes, and depression. The only solution of this dilemma is to take a strict and healthy diet. But this does not entirely to avoid food that is not a good choice because it would divest our body of necessary nutrients. Therefore, a controlled carbohydrate diet is recommended for carbohydrate is typically in charge for rising body weight.

The low carbohydrate Atkins Diet was present in 1970 by Dr. Robert Atkins. But it turn out to be accepted approximately 10 years later on following the release of his book - 'Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution 'which went on to become one of the bestsellers of the decade. In an instant, millions of people in the United States and out of the country started to do Atkins diet terms as their first option.

Atkins Diet is high protein, low carbohydrate diet. It encourages the use of meat, cheese and eggs while discouraging foods rich in carbohydrate content for instance rice and bread. If overload carbohydrates are taken in, overload enzymes should be produced to absorb it. This may direct to breakdown of pancreatic cells in a long term, which may also cause diabetes. Corresponding to Robert Atkins, have a low carbohydrate diet, our body will go into a condition of ketosis, in which, instead of carbohydrates, fat is assimilated to discharge energy. This decreases the necessity for more insulin created by the cells of the pancreas and fat deposits are collapsed. Consequently, the body weight is lower to a significant quantity.

Here what you will get on Atkins diet:

A considerable amount of body weight is decreased by the burning of fats which is the secondary source of energy.
Inter-meal diets could be evaded, because you will not be starving between meals.
Could preserve a constant level of sugar in the blood.
Since most toxins in our body are getting rid of along with the burning of fats, largely health is enhanced.

But, there are three things you should keep in mind:

Before trying Atkins diet meal plans, it is suggested to seek advice from a doctor or physician.
Daily exercise is highly suggested along with Atkins diet foods.
Atkins diet meal plans are advised not to be adopted by people with kidney disorders, pregnancy and diabetes.

Can Mediterranean Diet Help to Lose Your Weight?

2010-08-02T22:26:00.003+07:00

Mediterranean diet is a diet high energy which is based in fat and low carbohydrate. The main feature of this diet is the bread. Mediterranean diet is most likely one of the majority fashionable diets. The basis of the diet had people living in the Mediterranean region. People who live in the Mediterranean are known to have a low risk of having chronic diseases.

The diet focuses on the intake of fruits, vegetables, rice, beans, whole grains, grains and pasta. Olive oil takes the part of a major role to arrange the menu of Mediterranean diet. Protein from animals should be taken in lower amounts than protein from plants. The diet also advises consumption of dairy products like cheese and yogurt in small quantities.

Why most people in the region have a low risk of getting heart disease?

The food pyramid endorses the Mediterranean diet. It has a balanced diet that can have many advantages. Agriculture and active lifestyle is one of the main factors of good health.

Mediterranean diet is plainly a way of life of the people dining in the Mediterranean region, including sixteen countries, not a weight loss program. So, the diet is the not the solution if you would like to lose weight.

In addition, diets are unlike conditional on the location of regions and countries. An additional essential ingredient of a Mediterranean diet is the presence of seafood, which is a reality that consuming seafood several times a week can be advantageous. Seafood is an excellent resource of omega-3 fatty acids, which is good for your heart. But, if you are sensitive or allergic to seafood, you do not have the option to try the Mediterranean diet.

Due to consumption of more fruits and vegetables, researchers have the same opinion that the Mediterranean diet is healthier and better than any other system, like Europe and North American diet.

It is certainly a way of life and truthfully, it does not help to lose weight. The diet is not simply healthy eating but healthy lifestyle. People in the Mediterranean region are usually confident, and they have a well-built family relationship. In addition to having a healthy life, they take time to relax and enjoy.

It is better to find a different type of diet plan if you feel like to lose weight quickly, because the Mediterranean diet is a continuous process. You must adjust your lifestyle and consuming foods that cannot be your nature. It is hard to sustain these diets particularly if you live in a place where fresh vegetables, fruits, and seafood are improbable.

Losing weight needs a low calorie diet and physical exercise. You cannot achieve your target of losing weight if you stick to this diet especially if you would like to lose weight quickly. Obese people who need to lose weight right away are hopeless with this diet.

Low Carb Diet with Sugar Alcohols?

2010-07-31T23:38:00.000+07:00

Sugar alcohols, or called "Polyols", are usually used as fake sweeteners in a variety of meals, from ice cream to chewing gum. They are an issue of various carbohydrates that are neither sugars nor alcohols.

Although these delicious sweeteners seem to be the complete answer for a low-carb diet and food producers with low-carb, recent analyses of sugar alcohols have unreal a somewhat another picture.

For starters, sugar alcohols are not completely carb-free. Most reports have pointed that sugar alcohols include about 1 / 2-1 / 3 the amount of calories than sugar - and in the form of carbohydrates.

Sugar alcohols also can frequently drive dieters to select low-carb diet bad sweets, which seem to carb-free, a more diverged diet that includes essential nutrients.

Yet,Sugar alcohols have a laxative issue on some consumers as well. As they are simply partially absorbed, they take water into the intestine - and the indigestible carbohydrates in the colon, producing gas and bloating that carbohydrates are did by bacteria.

Moreover, examines have presented that sugar alcohols are engaged by the small intestine, but the treat is weaker and broken. This impacts a rise in blood sugar, but it is even lower and more graduated than sugar - and the rise leans to diverge from individual to individual.

The overconsumption of sugar alcohols can often make an unfavorable effect on low-carbohydrate diet, still when they can digest them properly. Sugar alcohols can trigger cravings dieters low in carbohydrates, pushing them to deviate from dietary confinements.

If you are presently on a low carb diet and need to mix products of the sugar alcohol in your diet, it is very necessary that you supervise your number consumption of sugar into alcohol - and hold to a minimal while healthy diet.

A simple way to do this is to decide the total amount of carbohydrates in the products of the sugar alcohol that you take. You can set this by subtracting the number of fat and protein calories per serving of entire calories per serving. Simply multiply the number of grams of protein and four grams of fat by nine. Directly subtract the sum of the entire amount of calories per serving.

By using these numbers, you can decide whether carbs are "hidden" in "carb free" products of the sugar alcohol that you consume, you need to make a more educated decision, which corresponds to the prescription from your low carb diet.

Now You Know about Glycemic Index

2010-07-26T23:21:00.002+07:00

With diabetes reaching epidemic levels in the United States, the development of the Glycemic Index could not have come at a better time. As highly-developed at the University of Toronto in 1981, the Glycemic Index is intended to appraise the result of carbohydrates on the level of glucose in the blood. The glycemic index is urgent for anyone who wants to control their blood glucose due to hyperglycemia or diabetes.

Each year, more individuals are diagnosed with this potentially fatal disease that can cause many hard complications. It is important for people suffering from this condition to introduce themselves with the Glycemic Index so they can empower themselves and ensure which foods should be avoided.

Carbohydrates are a various group of food products and all have diverse manners of breaking into the system. Individuals with diabetes have trouble breaking certain foods, especially those rich in carbohydrates, in their system. Digestion is slow and sugars and starches are absorbed into the blood, causing an unnecessary of glucose in the blood. Diabetics are often admonished to restrict their carbohydrate consumption because it takes so long for most carbohydrates to digest.

However, this is simpler said than done and it is hard or impossible for many diabetics to pass carbohydrates in their diet. This is one of the reasons many diabetics do not comply with their treatment. Because diabetes does not often cause hard complications at the beginning, many patients decline to take medication and stay to take foods that are rich in sugar and starch.

The glycemic index is very helpful because it rates different carbohydrates based on their result on different levels of glucose in the blood. These foods digest promptly, which causes less damage to the system and have a low glycemic index. The carbohydrates that take longer to digest a higher rate as they cause more harm to the level of glucose in the blood.

The beaches of the glycemic index of one to one hundred. A diet low in glycemic index has a rating below 55. These include vegetables, fruits, pasta and whole grains. Foods that fall between the range 56 to 69 are considered "average" in the glycemic index. They include some rice, candy bars, and croissants.

Unexpectedly, although a candy bar scores in the average ranking of the glycemic index, it is not as damaging as carbohydrates that grade in the range of high glycemic index. These include white rice, white bread, baked potato and corn flakes. Put differently, it is easier for a diabetic to digest a candy bar with a baked potato.

Knowledge of the glycemic index is imperative for anyone with diabetes or who has been diagnosed as borderline diabetic. To be able to realize which foods have the most affect on blood sugar is essential for those who make this potentially fatal disease.

Who Else Think that Atkins Diet and Low Carb Diet are Risk-Free?

2010-07-25T16:20:00.003+07:00

Is Atkins diet safe ?
How risk-free are low carb diets?
Are Atkins and low-carb diets unsafe to your wellness?

Yes, I know that these are burning questions for dieters worldwide.

I personally tested the Atkins diet and a low carb diet and the diets caused me drop off weight very quick. Even So, not just did I lose weight in fat, I as well lost muscle weight.

This is surely not healthy. Moreover, the muscle mass you drop off, the less toned your body shape is. The end result is that you will finish up still looked thin and soft with loose skin.

What is daunting is that later on you are out of the Atkins or low-carb diet, you will most likely regain all the weight you loss, and more. This is because your muscles are constantly active and burn calories. Since you have less muscle mass and fewer now, the metabolism of your body or the ability to burn calories decelerates tremendously.

Put Differently, when you gain weight again, you put on body fat instead of muscle, if you do not exercise. You will be weightier and less healthy than before you go on Atkins or low-carb diet. To complicate things, because less muscle tissue resulted in decreased metabolism and therefore fewer calories, you'll swell.
Since then I stayed out of Atkins and low carb diet. Both schemes are almost alike to those they need to reduce drastically on your consumption of carbohydrates. Atkins diet went further by advocating almost no intake of carbohydrates for 2 weeks before bringing some carbohydrates in your meals gradually thenceforth.

In Any Case the loss of muscles, are they safe low-carb diets? This is what Dr Lyn Steffen and Dr Jennifer Nettleton,University of Minnesota School of Public Health, commented in a report in the Lancet, "Low carbohydrate diets for weight management are far from healthy, given their association with ketosis, constipation or diarrhea, halitosis, headache and general fatigue to name a few. "

The doctors warned that increased dietary protein load on the kidneys and change the balance of acid in the body. It causes loss of minerals from bone stores and affect bone strength as well. The doctors went on to state that "Our most important criterion should be indisputable safety, and low carbohydrate diets is currently fall short of this benchmark."

The creator of the Atkins diet, Dr. Atkins, died in 2003 after being accused of having slipped on an icy road and fatally shot in the head. Even So, his medical report said he got a history of heart attack, hypertension and congestive heart failure.

Dr. Atkins had medical conditions associated to his low carb diet is one proposal. Would you take the risk of going on a low carb diet? I do not think I will. If I ever need to drop off weight, I'd rather go to the proved method of good eating and regular physical exercise instead of jumping on any fad diets.

The argument about Atkins Diet

2010-06-25T05:33:00.001+07:00

Which side do you take?

Some people believe that one of the Atkins diet’s advantages is noy to make you trapped in a certain menu. In fact, you can free to make exchange at any time it suits into Atkins diet menu. About beverages, you also can drink your favorite as much as you want, like soda water, tea, decaffeinated coffee, or else. Of course, you have to calculate the carbohydrate intake in your beverages.

Protein, protein, and protein. Yes, Atkins diet is very rich on it. Some menus like sausage patties, ham patties, eggs in many forms or omlets are tolerable breakfast that you can make up in the morning.

In lunch, some menus that likely to be your acceptable choice can comprise boiled eggs, rolled meats, chicken salad with mayonnaise, hard cheese, and salad greens.

Butter steak grilled in garlic butter, creamy almond chicken, fried fish, meat sauce with spaghetti squash are acceptable in your dinner choices. In fact, any meat is promoted in Atkins diet plan. As you might to know, dinner in the Atkins diet menu is

Beside belief on Atkins diet’s advantages, there are also people who are skeptical or even against the Atkins diet menu. They judge that Atkins diet can lead to increasing cholesterol and heart disease.

Nonetheless, by following carefully, these are those that have lost weight on the Atkins diet and have made them keep healthy. They believe that this is the diet that our distant ancestors ate and one that we are intended physiologically to follow.

Low Sugar Fruits for Your Diet

2010-04-26T22:41:00.000+07:00

A healthy diet begins with vegetables and fruits and is part of a bigger balanced diet that includes foods that are low in cholesterol, fat, and needless sugar. Try to add a portion of fruits and vegetables to each meal you eat, if you want to eat healthy.

Talking about fruits, they have been natural essential diet of human being since very old times. Besides easily digestible and good source as food, fruits are served as medicine, treat ailments, retain and balance the moisture level in the body. They are full with vitamins, minerals, enzymes.

When you are on a diet, especially low carb diet, you should beware of high sugar fruits. Sugar is widely considered to be one of the most dangerous substances for the body. You should avoid it at all costs.

Here, I mention the fruits from low and high in sugar so that you can check carb counts, choose and plan your diet carefully.

Low Sugar Fruits
- Apple : 11.8g
- Apricot : 8g
- Avocado : 7g
- Blueberry : 11g
- Blackberry : 8g
- Carrots : 2.2g
- Cranberry : 4g
- Cherry : 13g
- Grapefruit, Red : 6.6g
- Gooseberry : 9g
- Kiwi Fruit : 8.8g
- Lemon : 3g
- Lime : 7g
- Tangerine : 9.5g
- Melon, Red Water : 8g
- Melon, cantaloupe : 6.3g
- Olive : 3g
- Orange : 10.6g
- Papaya : 8g
- Passion Fruit : 5.8g
- Peach : 7.9g
- Pear : 11.5g
- Pineapple : 12g
- Plum : 9.6g
- Strawberry : 5.1g
- Tomato : 1.9g

Very High Sugar Fruits
- Banana : 20.4g
- Fig : 19g
- Grapes : 15.5g
- Guava : 17g
- Kumquat : 16g
- Lychee : 18g
- Mango : 15g
- Persimmon : 18.6g
- Pomegranate : 17g

source: Nevo table 1996, Nevo Foundation, Netherlands Nutrition Centre

7 Simple Tips for Achieving Healthy Eating

2010-04-22T21:55:00.000+07:00

A healthy eating can provide you with more energy, stay fit and active, help you feel better. It involves the food that includes diet with nutrition and balanced diet. Your choosing of foods will include direct ability on your life. If you follow healthy eating then you can enjoy whole life.

A healthy eating doesn’t have to mean no snacking or that we have to resort to the carrots and celery snacks only. One of the major problems with our healthy eating is that the food we eat is a tasty combination of saturated fats and highly processed and quickly digested carbohydrates.

Therefore, here are a few tips that important to be followed for achieving healthy eating:

1. Choose natural foods
Keep your foods still natural. That doesn't just mean get your foods as fresh as possible. Organic foods are as close to natural as you can get without simply growing your own food. Natural foods do not include ingredients such as refined flours, refined sugars, hydrogenated oils, milled grains, artificial flavorings, artificial sweeteners, or artificial food colors, whereas refined ingredients will cause diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and cancer.

2. Choose whole grain foods over processed foods
Processed foods go through a thorough process that often takes them away of their original nutrients. Many times, supplementary nutrients are artificially added as an attempt to gain the original nutrition value of the food. Nature does a better job at produce nutrients than man does. Choosing whole wheat flour, noodles and brown rice over their processed counterparts can do a lot in helping you achieve greatest health.

3. Pay attention to vegetable colors
The best way to get all of the health benefits of vegetables is to eat a range of colors. Red, yellow, and orange choices provide vitamin A, green provide folate, vitamins, and phytochemicals, which are compounds found only in plants that provide great health benefits, such as reducing the risk for cancer and heart disease.

4. Take fresh fruits
Besides excellent source as food, fresh fruits are dished up as medicine, treat ailments, retain and balance the moisture level in the body. When you are on a diet, especially low carb diet, you should avoid high sugar fruits. Sugar is one of the most dangerous substances for the body. So, choose low sugar fruits. It doesn’t mean they have low nutritional value, some of them are the highest.

5. Take less fat foods
If you want the foods with less fat, then you avoid taking deep fried foods. You’d better follow the cooking methods such as steaming, broiling, roasting and grilling. Also, you should avoid taking fast foods and other low nutrient snacks, like candy and chips. You can eat the healthy snacks such as peanut butter, yogurt, and celery or whole grain crackers and cheese. No need to completely stop eating snacks and fast foods; you can take them as once in a while foods.

6. Read the label that lists the ingredients
It’s a very easy and effective way to promptly assess the nutritional value of a food item. Ironically, many of us are not pass to do it on a standard basis. Be careful about eating foods that contain a lot of preservative chemicals that you cannot pronounce, it probably isn't good for you.

7. Limit your sugar intake
Everyone knows that excessive amounts of junk food can cause extra weight and tooth decay. However, carbohydrates, such as potatoes and bread, are also converted to sugar by your body. Many vegetables and fruits, such as carrots and bananas, also contain high amounts of sugar. Excess sugar in your body can lead to problems, such as yeast infection, constipation, fatigue, or impotence.

8 Simple Tips for Healthy Diet

2010-04-20T23:34:00.001+07:00

All the determination in the world to lose weight won't make a bit of difference if you're hanging onto an unhealthy set of dietary commandments that drive you unconsciously to eat at the wrong times or for the wrong reasons.

If you are on a diet, no doubt you are ready to get all the tips possible that have to do with weight loss. Losing weight is not always easy, and from time to time it is easy to get into a slump. Here are eight simple tips on how you actually can get closer to your ideal weight:

1. Eating won't make you fat after 7 p.m.
It's not because calories consumed after a certain hour stay with you longer. The real problem with most people is, when they eat late at night, they're typically skipping meals during the day, said Annie Neuendorf, a dietician at Northwestern Memorial's Wellness Institute. That puts the body into deprivation mode, slowing your metabolism and making you more inclined to overeat later on. Better to eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper.

2. Eating out?
Restaurant portions tend to be enormous, and if it's on the plate, we tend to eat it. If it's possible, order from the kid’s menu, where portions are more reasonably sized.

3. You can treat yourself once a week
You can't be good all the time, notwithstanding how devoted you are to sticking to a healthy diet. Allowing yourself to have something decadent every now and then is not only OK, it's encouraged. However, if you're the kind of person that can eat 10,000 calories in one day, it's not a good idea to do that.

4. Is it best to work out early in the morning?
This is one of the most- unrelenting myths about weight loss. Exercising earlier in the day doesn't burn more calories. But the number of calories you burn relies on your metabolism, food intake and body composition -- things that aren't dependent on when you choose to exercise. Get your activity whenever it matches into your schedule, even if it's just 10 minutes at a time.

5. Eating is better than Drinking
Eating the fruit would be better than fruit juice that might seem a healthy choice, since liquids leave you feeling less full than solid foods. Likewise, drinking pop on a regular basis can add unnecessary calories. Consider: A 12-ounce can of regular pop has 9 teaspoons of sugar and about 100 calories. "If you do that three times a day, that's almost a pound a week of calories," said Celia Pappas, a dietician at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge. Water and low-fat milk are brilliant options.

6. Drink water
When you're dieting, you should drink even more than usual. Even the FDA (Food and Drugs Administration) recommends at least 8 full 8 ounce glasses of water a day to keep your body working right. It's not just that full feeling - water helps your body digest foods properly and cleans out your system.

7. Not to eat standing up.
One of the easiest ways to disrupt your diet is to 'eat without thinking'. Treat eating with the respect that it deserves. Fix yourself a plate. Sit down and eat appropriately. You will be less likely to just pop food into your mouth without paying attention.

8. Purchase a vegetable steamer.
Steaming is one of the healthiest ways to cook vegetables. The food keeps nearly all of its natural nutrients instead of discharging it out into the cooking water. Even better, it makes your veggies taste great - which means you'll be more likely to eat them instead of filling up on fatty foods that pack on weight.

How Helpful are Low Carb Diets?

2009-03-24T21:10:00.001+07:00

Low carb diets and no carb diets have a large diversity. Low carb diets, which one of the popular examples is the Atkins diet, encourages the replacement of proteins and fats to complement the deficit from carbohydrates in the diet. Limiting most starchy products and processed grain based and like breakfast cereals (the sugar frosted ones, in particular) heavy rice meals, breads, potatoes, and pasta, they are some of the essential principles of low carb diets. Most meat and dairy products are tolerable in restricted servings. However, the key to attain the balance in low carb diet is to eat more foods that high in nutrition but low in carbohydrates, such as raw fruits and green leafy vegetables.

Conversely, the no carb diet is where there is whole removal of all carbohydrates in daily meals. This signifies that the individual has to hinge on fats from animal source foods as the most important energy source. This diet is especially compatible for individuals who want to go on ketogenic diets, specifically a small amount of epileptic children with thorny to treat conditions.

Unfortunately, people often misunderstand between no carb diets and low carb diets. It should be noticed, that the unrestrained use of the no carb diet can cause a lot of adverse and permanent medical conditions.
However, low carb diets have some limitations:

High levels of protein
The consumption of animal based products can cause an upsurge in proteins. High levels of protein in daily meals have been related to permanent kidney failures, and particularly vulnerable for individuals who have had one or more forms of renal disorders. This is because of the fact that the upsurge of proteins signifies further work for the organ in question, and a breakdown in inevitable since the kidneys are working more than usual contented levels.

Constipation
The majority individuals who undertake low carb diets typically suffer constipation by reason of the lack of fiber intrinsic in most carbohydrate based products such as wheat, whole wheat and corn bran. Some individuals would need either need to eat more fiber rich foods that are not carbohydrate based like prunes, celery, and green beans. In most cases though, there is already a need to add laxatives and fiber supplements to the diet so as to resolve the constipation problem.

Low carb diets have a well thought-out program that the individual undertaking it should firmly stick to and it’s not easy to do.

Thus, the most excellent method to lose unnecessary pounds is to give you a more balanced food list, and discover a prudent eating program and healthy that is not too firmly structured.

Why Extra Virgin Olive Oil is Irreplaceable on the Mediterranean Diet

2009-03-09T21:59:00.001+07:00

Olive oil has been having a most important role in the low incidence of heart disease among Mediterranean populations for centuries. Besides prevents damage to arteries, extensive research has shown that olive oil help you to lower blood pressure and reverses high levels of cholesterol in your blood.

In a study conducted by Montoya and associates, participants followed four diet types for a five-week period: one diet was rich in omega-3 fatty acids from fish, one in extra virgin olive oil (monounsaturated fat), one in saturated fats, and one in sunflower oil (polyunsaturated fat ).

The result, participant’s bad cholesterol levels descended and their blood pressure reduced 5 to 6 percent when they followed the diet rich in extra virgin olive oil.

The main fat in extra virgin olive oil is monounsaturated, and this fat doesn’t get stuck in your arteries. Therefore, extra virgin olive oil is an irreplaceable source of fat.

Two main reasons why you’d better choose extra virgin olive oil than refined olive oil:

1. Extra virgin olive oil has more antioxidants than refined olive oils

Along with a loss of color and aroma, refined olive oils lose most of its antioxidant properties. Through innumerable researches of these plentiful minor compounds vitamin E, polyphenols and main hydrocarbon squalene found simply in extra virgin olive oil, we have known that these compounds are great antioxidants and potent free radical scavengers.

The more antioxidants found in your body, the more cells you can save. Plus reliable evidence proves that people with adequate levels of antioxidants like vitamin E in their blood have less damage in the arteries than people with low amount.

2. Refined olive oils are filled with chemicals

Thousands of years ago, the olives were crushed by hand in spherical stone basins. Today, in the same process, olives (with pits) are pounded and crushed using mechanical techniques. The oil produced in such a way (cold) is the extra virgin olive oil, the natural juice from the olives. It keeps the unique flavor, smell, and healthy properties of the fruit.

The solid residue that remains after the first extraction is sent back to the press to be beaten again and be exposed to different heat levels and chemical procedures. It is neutralized with sodium hydroxide, passed through charcoal filters, and extracted with hexane at low temperatures. With time, the use of oils that have been subjected to chemical agents may have a toxic effect on our bodies. Therefore, these second extractions are not recommended for consumption.

Choose or not choose extra virgin olive oil is your decision. As you know it may be a little more expensive. One thing to keep in mind, don’t let the cheaper thing destroy your expensive treasure.

Benefits of Low Glicemix Index Diet

2009-03-01T22:34:00.002+07:00

The low glycemic index diet has become famous since it affords various benefits. One of the major causes why people change to a low GI diet is that they desire to lose weight and this diet has proven to be helpful for people to lose weight.

Though the diet was first designed as a way for persons who with diabetes to better manage their condition it rapidly developed into a weight loss and even as a lifestyle change to successfully preserve weight loss. There are also many other benefits. For example, research indicates that diets that are based on low GI foods can also help to lower the risk of developing many health conditions such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease. Some research advocates that you can even cut the risk of rising these diseases in half by following the Low glycemic index diet. Another major benefit is the aptitude to lower blood pressure as well as lower cholesterol levels.

Furthermore, persons who have followed the diet have been found to have their body’s capability to struggle against disease boosted. This is achieved by reinforcing the immune system, afford many other overall health benefits. The low glycemic index diet is able to afford these benefits because it is based on limitation eating or avoiding foods that are high on the index and consuming foods that are fairly low on the glycemic index.

The glycemic index itself ranks foods according to how fast the body can assimilate them. Those foods which are assimilated more slowly by the body and therefore do not raise the body’s blood sugar levels as high rank low on the scale and are acceptable. Other foods are assimilated somewhat faster and dieters are therefore suggested to proceed with caution regarding those foods; however, they are not restricted. These foods rank from 56 to 69 on the glycemic index. The final category consists of foods that are assimilated very fast by the body, quickly raising the body’s blood sugar levels. These foods score between 70 and 110 on the glycemic index. For the most part, these foods consist of highly processed and refined foods such as sugary foods.

Most vegetables are fairly acceptable on the Low glycemic index diet, as long as they are not starchy vegetables. Fruits are also encouraged, unlike any other diets which warn against the consumption of too much fruit because they are considered to be high in natural sugars.

Though the benefits of the low glycemic index diet are fairly obvious, it should be comprehended that this is not a diet which can be followed for a short term and then forsaken with the expectation of keeping the weight off.

One of the main considerations of this diet is that it is more of a lifestyle change rather than a short term diet. Persons following the diet can expect to remain in the first phase of the diet for three to six months depending on how much weight they wish to lose. After that, they can get going to the second phase of the diet for weight maintenance purposes. Moderate exercise is required of both phases of the Low Glycemic Index Diet in order to assure weight loss and continued weight loss maintenance. Breakdown to maintain a healthy and active lifestyle can result in failure to lose weight or gaining weight back.

What Do You Need on Low Carb diet?

2009-02-22T13:22:00.001+07:00

A low carb diet is a diet plan intended to endorse weight loss while limiting carbohydrates consumption in which is associated to increased insulin levels and obesity. A low carb diet particularly consists of reducing foods that contain sugar, starches and grains. Any products or foods that are being labeled as carbohydrates, replaced with other foods containing increased fat and protein.

A lot of people enjoy vegetables as part of a healthy diet and while they are categorized as carbohydrates as well, they’re believed to be much healthier than grains.

Some nutritionists have diverse arguments concerning the safety and validity of a low carb diet, but others pass on to the strong evidence lending truth to the claim that a low carb diet can truly endorse weight loss.

There are two sides to the experience with individuals who go up against and those who have the same opinion with the approach. Some people believe that the replacement of cholesterol and foods high in saturated fat may raise the risk of developing heart disease. Particularly, some professionals believe that low carb diets can carry their own risks and possible side effects, including fatigue, nausea, headaches, dizziness, and dehydration. By eliminating or lowering dietary fiber, many people believe that constipation may occur as a result of the fiber absence as well.

The acceptances of low carb diet foods have had assorted influences on some of the world’s largest food producers. Several companies, watched as their profits were on the rise as they promoted low carb products in stores and restaurants. On the other hand, a popular doughnut manufacturer, as example, admitted that incomes were lower than usual and related the decrease with low card diets, which decreased the need for their product as well. Pasta makers suffered a decrease in the need for their products and believed that the loss was associated to low carb diets.

However, prior to start any dietary plan, including a low carb diet, you should discuss with a physician for proper diagnosis and appropriate path toward weight loss.

Are You Ready To Follow A Low Carb Diet?

2009-02-16T06:28:00.001+07:00

Diets have emerged in many diverse forms, particularly fad diets. Among the problems with these fad diets is that as well as only work for a short space of time and often leaving you feeling very hungry, they can also be unhealthy.

Research has signified that the most helpful diets are those that can be remain to over long periods of time. In the case of fad diets, weight tends to be very unreliable and while you may lose weight at first it is not uncommon to put that weight back on and increase your weight in the end.

The aim of dieting is to lose weight or eat healthier, not to eat less. One of the enormous benefits of a low carb diet is that you don't need to feel hungry. This may look like it avoids the point of a diet, but it doesn’t. The most well-known of all low carb diets is the Atkins diet and this remains popular since it lets you to eat good-sized meals and is proven to help you lose weight.

The essentials of a low carb diet are that you can eat as much food as you want until you are full, as long as you only eat the allowed foods. This includes meat, cheese, fish, eggs and poultry. You are also permitted a definite amount of green vegetables each day. As well as being a healthy way to lose weight, a low carb diet will give you a continued weight loss, which means you can carry on to lose weight even after the initial push and you will stay the weight off once it is gone.

A low carb diet will also lower your blood pressure and cholesterol as well as stabilize your blood sugar level. You should complement a low carb diet with multi vitamins since your body will become partially famished of these indispensable vitamins.

Do You Make These Mistake on Low Carb Diet?

2009-02-03T21:50:00.003+07:00

The reasons many people prefer low carb and high protein diet is due to the fact that it gives a satisfying feeling of fullness. This can be accomplished with a balanced diet just by including some protein in the diet. One need not go overboard to achieve these results. The reason many people feel less hungry on these low carb diets is due to ketosis where the body is burning fat for fuel. Extended ketosis can cause headaches and nausea and if carried too far can even cause you to go into a coma.
Everyone gets to a point during their low carb diet where they only feel like throwing in the towel. Why should you feel it too? Instead, you ought to learn from others that have laid the path to a successful low carb diet before you, with these low carb diet mistakes.

1. Wrong to Begin
Low carb diet is not complicated, but they may take a while to familiarize yourself with. However, if you don't know where the carbs are concealed in certain foods or if you think it means you can just eat meat all day (or other low carb myths), you're leading yourself to a miserable failure in your low carb diet. Do your research before follow low carb diet.

2. Fail to plan
Planning is the mainly successful aspect to a successful low carb diet. This merely means regulate your lifestyle to accommodate your diet.
I know it sounds simple and trivial, but there are probably many habits you have formed over the years which you might need to keep your mind on and start to adapt. Absolutely something you should think consciously about before and during the early days of your low carb diet.
Ultimately, make sure that you're not putting yourself further from the right low carb foods and closer to the high carbs like before.

3. Always Hasty
We all want results fast, but the truth is that weight loss of any nature takes time. Instead, it could be a month before you even notice a consistent shift in your weight loss.
That's why so many people never lose weight - they think "It's not working, so it's not worth it". The sad reality is, they were literally weeks from losing a waist size, but just slammed the door on their future slimming ability. But surely, they have another go in the future right?
Well, the problem is that when this happens, subconsciously you are always going to have that hesitation and negative expectation that you'll never lose weight. So no matter what you try, you'll never put your heart into it and always cut the plan short.
A prime example of this is eating too little carbohydrate at first, suffering carb crash, and deciding low carb isn't for you. This is a shame, when a simple adjustment can usually get you through the first week comfortably, to the great rewards at the end of it.

4. Lack of Fiber
Eating enough vegetables and fruit go a long way towards making sure you are getting enough fiber in your diet. There are other low carb sources of fiber as well, and it's important to know about them.

5. Inadequate Vegetables
Time and time again, people tell me they don't feel good eating low carb, and it turns out they are eating almost no vegetables or fruit. This will fail you in the long term.
You should be eating more vegetables than any other food! Fruit, too, especially fruit low in sugar, has its place in a complete (and healthy) low carb diet.

6. Getting Stuck in the Dieting Furrow
Nobody likes the same old crap day after day. We all like a large assortment of food when it comes to our diets. Indeed on a low carb diet, there is no tolerance for eating a large selection of foods. As long as you know what has sugar and starch, you can happily skip those options along the way.

A lot of food can have the carbs removed (sort of) by replacing with certain elements of a dish. Don't just go for what you're told to eat. Variety is the spice of life (and the key to sticking to an enjoyable diet). There are other things you should be wary of, but for the purposes of this article, that should be enough to give you a clear head start over everyone else.

7. Overeating
Calorie counting is expelled from low carb diets, but that doesn't mean you can throw caution to the wind when it comes to calorie consumption. The huge thing about low carb eating is allowing us to eat fewer calories without getting hungry, and our appetites are more suppressed.

Many people take this as a free ticket to eat more because they are cutting the carbs. This is ridiculous; you should eat when you are hungry, and only eat enough to quench your hunger. Don't just eat more volume for the sake of it! Calories are calories. The more you spade down, the fatter you'll become, no matter what diet plan you're on.

4 Important Things that You will Achieve on The Atkins Diet

2009-02-01T22:48:00.002+07:00

The Atkins diet is one of the most popular diets in history even though it has been several decades since the late Dr. Robert Atkins created his self-named low carbohydrate diet. Though, lots of people still confused and mystified by how it works for you.
Here I want to give you a glance about what you will achieve by following the Atkins diet and make it as a lifestyle:

1. You will get good health. The change you will experience is nothing short of amazing. By following the Atkins diet program, your nutritional needs are met with healthy, delicious, filling foods and keeping away from the carbs and sugar that many foods are loaded with. As following the Atkins diet program, you will begin feeling excellent even before you reach your weight loss goal. This results in more energy and endurance for you not just because of the weight loss but due to the reversal of the bad physical consequences of a dysfunctional blood sugar and insulin metabolism as well.

2. You will absolutely lose weight. It is thorny for anyone who follows the Atkins diet program as arranged not to lose weight. Men and women alike who follow the Atkins diet as a lifestyle will rapidly begin to lose pounds and inches. Accomplishment and maintaining your most favorable bodyweight is a very important component in any health related program because just being overweight is an indicator of potential health issues presently or in the future. Once you have lost the extra weight you will see immediate benefits and they will be much more than aesthetic.

3. You will transform your life which is even more essential that looking good on the beach and also you will lay the groundwork for preventing disease.

4. You will maintain your weight loss. If you have taken another diet program before you know how many times you have to work really hard to lose the weight and gaining it all back within a few months at the end. This is usually caused by the normal consequence of a low calorie and low fat diet which is hunger. The capability to tolerate hunger for short periods of time varies among people. Even though many people can tolerate hunger for a short time, nobody can deal with it for the rest of their life. Once you have passed the biological gap between hunger and being pleased the rebound and binge eating can come amazingly quick and be embarrassing. This is the intrinsic problem with diets that limit quantities. The distinction with the Atkins Diet is that hunger is not tolerable. The plan includes foods that have sufficient protein and fat to avert hunger from being an issue like it is with other diets but still allows dieters to keep a healthy weight for the rest of their life.

The Atkins diet can help you in your weight loss efforts if you follow the basic principles: eat whenever you feel hungry; eat only until you feel fulfilled (don’t overeat); work out; be realistic.

Fundamental of The South Beach Diet

2009-01-29T22:50:00.001+07:00

The South Beach Diet is very dissimilar from any other forms of diet plans, including the hottest diet plans – the Atkins Diet. Unlike the Atkins Diet plan that relies primarily on the no carbs and limitless proteins and fats, south beach diet plan doesn’t depend on low carb or low fat and doesn’t need getting rid of a particular food group.

The south beach diet is intended to educate dieters on eating healthy and how to take good carb and fat in your foods, also how to avoid foods that are bad for their bodies. But, the primary fundamental of south beach diet is to discipline dieters to depend on the right sort of carbohydrates and fats in order to keep health and make easy weight loss. The south beach diet is actually a diet program that is commonly set for a healthy body.

Within the fundamentals of the south beach diet, the good quality carbohydrates such as vegetables, fruits, and whole grains are greatly recommended, as are unsaturated fats. Good form of exercise and healthy eating plans are not a critical essential. For this cause, some people have expressed concern with this diet, since it is a proven fact that exercise helps accelerate the process of losing weight.

The South Beach Diet is the right choice for you if you are seeking a diet plan that can help in reducing cholesterol and minimize the risk of cardiovascular problems. Because satisfying hunger is a big part of the diet, determination and willpower are both required while on the diet.

6 Easy Tips How to Lose Your Weight Fast

2008-09-09T08:45:00.001+07:00

I’m sure that everybody really loves to have an ideal body. Losing weight is one way to have it. Here I want to give you some simple tips that will lead you to lose weight. One think you should know, how focused you are on your diet will determine how fast you can lose weight.

1. Know Your Calories Need
If you are active, multiply your weight (in pounds) by twenty. If you are moderately active, multiply your weight by seventeen. But, if you are sedentary, multiply your weight by fifteen. This will help you to know how many calories you usually need in a day.

2. Eat Fresh Vegetables and Fruits
To put you on the right track to a healthy body, you need at least five servings of them per day. Vegetables and fruits have beneficial antioxidants, vitamins, and fibers; while processed and packaged foods have high sodium and fat content. You are more likely to lose weight if you eat naturally fresh foods. They also fill up your stomach fast so that you don’t overeat and take into many calories.

3. Avoid High-Calorie Foods
Eat them just in small portions. A useful tip to deal with this problem is to chew your food slowly. This makes digestion easy on your body and you will also be less likely to overeat. Make sure you keep an eye on the quantity of food you eat.

4. Don’t Limit Your Food Intake too Much
It’s all right if you want to eat your favorite foods like slice of birthday cake at the occasional party. Just make sure to eat in moderation and use those special desserts as rewards, instead of enemies, to your weight loss experience.

5. Drink Water
Drink eight glasses water in a day will help you to flush out your body’s toxins and waste. Try to limit the number of sugary beverages and juices you drink.

6. Exercise and Exercise!
Physical activity for 30 to 60 minutes in a day will help you lose weight and keep your health. Excellent ways to burn those pesky calories are weight-bearing exercises. So, don’t overlook to exercise.

10 Healthy Foods That Protect Your Body Against Chronic Diseases

2008-08-05T09:49:00.002+07:00

Eating healthy foods is a way that you can live healthy. Your daily life will become more enjoyable and regulated.

By committing to eating healthy foods, you can feel better, stay physically fit, and reduce your risk of many chronic diseases including diabetes, osteoporosis, heart disease, and certain cancers. Becoming educated and smart is an essential for you to become a healthy eater.

Here are 10 ‘life extending’ foods that can help to protect against chronic diseases:

1. Apple
Like many fruits, apple contains vitamin C as well as a host of other antioxidant compounds, which may reduce the risk of cancer by preventing DNA damage. While less fiber content than in most other fruits, apple is useful to lose weight, and controlling cholesterol. In fact, eating 2 large apples a day has lowered cholesterol levels by up to 16%. Research also suggests that apple may reduce the risk of prostate cancer, lung cancer, and colon cancer.

2. Avocado
Avocado is a good source of vitamin A and potassium, a mineral that helps regulate blood pressure. Sufficient intake of potassium can help to protect against circulatory diseases, such as stroke, heart disease, or high blood pressure. Besides that, Avocado has been used traditionally to help people with sexual problems, also great antioxidant and can be used for skin disorders.

3. Blueberry
Blueberry is high in antioxidant vitamins such as vitamin A, C, and E. It is also a good source of dietary fiber. Because a natural and rich source of antioxidants, blueberry is known to have great health benefits. Blueberry is helpful to improve your eyesight and prevent age related loss of vision, lower LDL cholesterol (a cause for stroke and cardiovascular heart disease), and keep your urinary tract healthy by stopping bacteria from lining your bladder walls. In fact, several researches indicate blueberry has potential effects of anti-aging and anti-inflammatory. It also prevent onset of cancer and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and memory loss.

4. Garlic
Garlic contains strong anti viral and anti bacterial that useful to fight common flu and colds. It is high in vitamin B6 and C. Garlic in normal consumption is also helpful to guard against diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.

5. Oats
Oats have a high Vitamin B1 content, which is needed by the body for carbohydrate metabolism. Oats contain a high percentage of desirable complex carbohydrates, which have been linked to: reduced risk of prostate, colon, and breast cancer; better management of diabetes; and fewer bowel problems such as constipation. Oats are naturally low in fat. Researchers agree that nearly everyone, men and women of all ages and races, benefits from eating a low-fat diet.

Eating oat regularly will lower your blood cholesterol level. It’s a natural antidepressant, will make you feel calmer and normally used to treat depression, anxiety and nervous disorder. That is why you are encouraged to buy and eat oats if you're feeling sad.

6. Oily Fish
Fish is one the world’s healthiest foods, including oily fish that contains Omega-3 fatty acids, very useful to protect against stroke, arthritis, psoriasis, heart disease, and also a host of health anxieties from obesity to sunburns.

7. Olive Oil
The greatest example of monounsaturated fat is olive oil, and it is a prime component of the Mediterranean Diet. Olive oil is a natural juice which preserves the taste, aroma, vitamins and properties of the olive fruit. Olive oil is the only vegetable oil that can be consumed as it is - freshly pressed from the fruit. Studies have shown that olive oil is helpful to protect against heart disease by controlling LDL cholesterol levels while raising HDL levels. Including olive oil in your diet may also useful to reduce the risk of colon cancer.

8. Spinach
The health benefits of spinach are marvelous. Whether eaten fresh or frozen, the vitamins in this leafy green vegetable will benefit our bodies. Spinach contains vitamin A and K. Vitamin A is needed for healthy vision, and helps the cells in our body grow normally. When our bodies found to be lacking this vitamin, health concerns of night blindness, anemia, or celiac disease can be suffered.

Vitamin K helps bone health. It regulates blood flow (normal blood clotting) in our bodies and maintains bone health. It has also been attributed to helping post-menopausal women reduce possible bone fractures that happen with osteoporosis.

9. Tomato
Tomato is high in vitamin A, C, and cancer preventing lycopene, but low in calories. According to the National Cancer Institute, people who eat large amounts of tomatoes and tomato products have a significantly reduced risk for prostate, lung, and stomach cancer.

Tomato is also helpful in reducing high blood pressure, a major risk factor for coronary heart diseases and stroke. Other than that, tomato helps to dissolve animal fat in foods such as in eggs, cheese, butter, beef, pork, and many deep-fried foods, thereby preventing hardening of the arteries.

10. Tree Nuts
Tree nuts are a rich source of unsaturated fats that have important health attributes, while high in total fat. Nuts are a good source of heart-healthy monounsaturated oil and antioxidant-rich, bone-strengthening magnesium. In the most recent, the Nurses' Health Study, researchers found that women who ate at least 5 ounces of nuts per week had a 35% lower risk of coronary heart disease than women who rarely ate nuts. Similar findings have been seen in men.

10 Effective Tips How to Make Your Diet Plan Really Work

2008-07-31T21:09:00.001+07:00

There are so many diet plans and products are available in market, which one that really works for you?

When you‘ve decided to go on a diet, you are very likely confused by many diet plans and products. However, one thing you should keep in mind that the most important diet object is loses weight through healthy way. It doesn’t matter which diet plan or product you prefer.

Here are some convenient tips that help you to choose your diet plan:

1. Consult your doctor before starting a diet
Unfortunately, this is a common mistake of the most dieters fall into. You should talk to your doctor, especially when you have an illness that will interfere your weight loss on a specific diet.

2. Make your realistic goals
Set your goals for slow weight loss. If you lose a little more than planned, it will give you a psychological boost, but if you try to plan a rapid weight loss, losing 15 or 20 pounds in a week, for instance, it is not reasonable and will just cause harm to your health. Only 2 – 3 pounds per week should be your realistic weekly weight loss goal.

3. Don’t just concentrate on your physical appearance
Besides affecting your appearance, you should realize that your weight is also affecting your self-esteem, health, and your quality of living. Look inward and sense the other changes that are just about inside of you.

4. Consider your physical limitations before choosing a dieting program
This factor can’t be changed. You must recognize them and work your diet and physical activities around them. For instance, if you have a back pain or bad heart, don’t join a high impact exercises class.

5. Make a diary of food
This is not about write down the foods or everything you eat, but write down your emotions when you feel like giving up, when you are most tempted, and how you feel during dieting. This will help you keep away from conditions that likely hinder your diet.

6. Increase your physical activity level
Look into various physical activities and find one that appeals to you before starting your diet. Increase your activity a small amount, you will burn more calories, shape up faster, and boost your metabolism. You can ask for information on exercise when you meet your doctor or physician.

7. Select a diet that you can still eat your favorite foods
A low carb diet is not for you if you can’t go a week without having any type of pasta or bread. Select a diet that still encourages you to count pasta or bread into your menu. But remember, you have to reduce your portion size.

8. Fiber and water proper intake is essential
Fiber is a best friend for dieters. It makes you keep feeling full longer; there is going to be less of a risk of going back to your old eating habits. Fiber comes in many varieties and forms: apples, bananas, salad greens, vegetables, whole wheat breads and pasta.
On the other hand, water will help you naturally boost your metabolism and eliminate toxins from your body. 8 glasses of water you drink a day is just useful to maintain correct hydration, and drink additional 2 glasses can help you burn more calories and reduce the fat.

9. Don’t try fad diets
They don’t work for long term. Besides unhealthy, you are also setting yourself up for failure, and make your next diet harder to follow by lessening your metabolism.

10. You should be wise on your diet
Weight loss is not easy goal, and you should realize it. You have to work hard to reach your goal. However, it would be better to work it day by day, difficult doesn’t mean impossible. If you cheated on your diet yesterday, you don’t have to feel guilty or even beat yourself up. You should accept it and add it into your dieting routine. On a diet, it’s not about what you eat, but how you eat.

Vegetables that You Should Know on Your Diet

2008-07-21T20:25:00.006+07:00

Vegetables are the most important food you will feed yourself in your lifetime. Vegetables will cause your energy to increase, your eyes to sparkle, and your skin to look brighter. Vegetables are high in about every substance know to be indispensable. What you put in yourself becomes part of your body.

Vegetables provide many vitamins: A, C, and E, and mineral such as potassium, fiber, foliate. They are nutrient dense that means you get a lot of nutrients for few calories.

Although the carbs need to be counted if required by the specific diet, most vegetables are encouraged on low-carb diets. If you are on a specific diet, be sure to check out the list in the book.

If you are considering using organic vegetables, take a look at this list that is roughly arranged based on low and high carbohydrate counts, but all are non-starchy and commonly low in carbohydrates. The starchier vegetables should be avoided when reducing carbohydrates. Exact carb count depends on serving size.

Low-Carb Vegetables

- Asparagus : 2.4g
- Beans, green : 2.9g
- Bok Choy : 0.7g
- Broccoli : 1.7g
- Cabbage : 1.1g
- Cauliflower : 1.5g
- Celery : 0.8g
- Cucumber : 1.8g
- Eggplant : 2.0g
- Lettuce : 0.5g
- Mushroom : 1.0g
- Onion : 4g
- Peppers, Green : 3.4g
- Peppers, Red : 3.3g
- Pickle : 2g
- Radish : 0.5g
- Rutabaga : 4.0g
- Spinach : 0.2g
- Squash, yellow : 1.4g
- Tomato : 3.2g
- Turnips : 2.3g
- Zucchini (green squash) : 3.3g

High Carb (Starchy) Vegetables

- Artichoke : 6.9g
- Brussels Sprouts : 7.6g
- Carrot : 5.1g
- Corn : 14.1g
- Parsnip : 9g
- Peas : 6.5g
- Potato : 14g
- Pumpkin : 6.3g
- Sweet Potato : 28g
- Yam : 36g

How Much Should I Eat?
If you’re trying to find the least amount you ought to eat each day, the USDA suggests at least 2 ½ to 3 cups for men and women, and at least 2 cups for women over age 51. That’s about 21 cups of vegetables each week. Of these, men should strive for 6 cups of starchy choices weekly, and women should eat 3 cups of the starchy form weekly. Women over the age of 51 should have 2 ½ cups of starchy vegetables each week.

Diabetic Diet: Do and Do Not

2008-07-16T21:37:00.002+07:00

Diet plays a key role in controlling the diabetes. The diabetic diet may be used alone or else in combination with oral hypoglycemic drugs or insulin doses. The most important target of diabetic diet is to maintain ideal body weight, by providing sufficient nutrition along with normal blood sugar levels in blood.

Your diabetic diet maybe concentrates on vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. It's the same healthy eating plan that's most excellent for everybody, but it's not always simple to follow your diabetic diet. Therefore, consider these points about what you should do and not to do so as to reach your target in diabetic diet.

A few things that you should do:

• Take cholesterol-lowering oatmeal for breakfast.
• Take fat free milk, cheese, and yogurt.
• Increase intake of dry beans and peas.
• Eggs whites to be included.
• Have nuts rich in mono unsaturated fat, such as walnuts, almonds, and pecans.
• Eat pasta, stews and leafy salads along with beans-- kidney beans, chick peas, and dry beans, navy beans and peas which can reduce LDL "bad"; cholesterol.
• White meat chicken, Fish, and shellfish (not battered) are good.
• Have at least 20 to 25 grams of raw onion daily.
• Add wheat bran to your wheat flour (50% wheat flour + 50% wheat bran). This helps increase fiber in your diet.
• Increase fiber intake in the form of vegetables, raw fruits, whole cereals etc.
• You can also add flaxseed and methyl seeds into the wheat flour.
• Eat less high-fat red meat and more low-fat turkey and fish. Avoid organ meats.
• Intake of onion, cinnamon, garlic, bitter gourd, guar beans is known to greatly reduce blood glucose level.
• Limit your salt (sodium content).
• Rinse processed foods in water and, wherever possible, choose fresh foods over canned.
• Limit the use of condiments such as ketchup, mustard and salad dress ion--they're high in salt and can be high in sugar, too.

A few things that you shouldn't do:

• Don't fry foods instead bake, broil, poach or saute in nonstick pans. Buy tuna packed in water, not oil.
• Don't select junk foods and ready to eat items available to you.
• Don't consume alcohol and stop smoking.
• Don't skip meals and medicine times.

7 Things that People Misjudge about Low Carb Diet

2008-07-14T09:41:00.002+07:00

There are a lot of misconceptions about low-carb diets. Almost every "anti-low carb" information or news report says the same thing: reduced-carb diets don’t have enough fruits and vegetables, and even often draw an image of people eating unhealthy diet.

The reality, low-carb diets concentrate on healthy food,, nutritious, and research into reducing carbs continues to show more and more positive results.
Here are the misconceptions and the truths about low-carb diets to set your own mind at easiness and help you inform others.

1. Consuming Low Carb = Courting Heart Disease
In study after study, cholesterol, blood pressure, triglycerides, and other indications for heart disease risk decline on low-carb diets. Also, in one large long term study, even low-carb diets with a lot of animal protein and fat did not raise the risk of heart disease.

2. Eating Fruits and Vegetables not Allowed on Low-Carb Diets
People believe that fruits and vegetables are not allowed because they are mainly carbohydrate.
Actually, people who take a low carb diet almost all the time eat more fruits and vegetables than usual. Instead, non-starchy vegetables are actually comes at the bottom of the low carb pyramids.

3. Low-Carb Diets will Cause Kidneys Disease
The reason is that since people with kidney disease are typically encouraged to consume low protein diets, a diet that is higher in protein will raise kidney disease.
In fact, a low-carb diet is frequently not higher in protein than the latest suggested levels.

4. Low Carb means No Carb
Many people thought that a low carb diet must be extremely low in carbohydrates.
Not even a single expert endorses this. The fact, you should have at least 45% - 65% carbohydrate depending upon individual.

5. Dr Atkins Died of His Own Diet
Despite improperly obtained medical reports mis-reported by the vegetarian group "Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine", Dr Atkins died from head injuries resulting from a fall. He was not fat when he died

6. Low-Carb Diets Have Insufficient Fiber
The reason is, because fiber is carbohydrate, a low-carb diet must be low in fiber.
In fact, a lot of low-carb foods are high in fiber, and on diets that encourage carb counting, fiber doesn’t come into the calculation. Fiber remains undigested, so it is encouraged on low-carb diets.

7. Low-Carb Diets will “Leach” All The Calcium from Your Bones
The reasoning goes that low-carb diets are always high in protein. People on higher protein diets are likely to have more calcium in their urine. But this turns out to be a red herring. This has been proven NOT to be true. In fact, it turns out that protein, rather than cause bone loss, actually protects our bones.

Do You Eat These Foods on Your Low Cholesterol Diet?

2008-07-09T10:38:00.003+07:00

Knowing which foods that you may eat and which you should avoid is really important when you follow a low cholesterol diet. It will lead you to control all cholesterols in your body and improve your health.

One thing you need to know about cholesterol, LDL (Low Density Lipoproteins) acts to build up plaque that blocks the arteries and hampers normal blood flow. This is the bad cholesterol. Conversely, HDL (High Density Lipoproteins) acts to protect the heart by helping to carry the excessive cholesterol from the arteries back to the liver for breakdown and throwing away, and this is the good cholesterol.

Here are the foods that you should eat to follow a low cholesterol diet:

Vegetables and Fruits
Fresh vegetables and fruits are loaded with antioxidants, fiber, plant sterols and flavanoids, all of which lead you to lower cholesterol and raise HDL level. Some 8–10 servings of vegetables and fruits should be counted in your daily low cholesterol diet.

Legumes and Beans
They are low in fat content but are rich in protein and fiber sources. They make a perfect alternate for meats. In a low cholesterol diet, tofu or soy cheese is a further excellent meat alternate.

Seeds and Nuts
Seeds such as flaxseeds and nuts such as almonds, walnuts, peanuts are rich in good fats, called omega-3 fatty acids, which protect the heart by increasing the HDL level. Seeds and nuts are also a rich source of antioxidant and fiber. The greatest way to include flaxseeds in a low cholesterol diet is by grinding them and scattering over salads and cereals.

Grains and Cereals
Unpolished rice, whole-wheat bread, and oats-based cereals are fiber- rich, which lead you to bowl over the bad LDL cholesterol from the blood. It is essential to change white bread and other refined, polished grains with whole-grain varieties in a low cholesterol diet.

Onion and Garlic
Including simply half a raw onion in daily low cholesterol diet is believed can increase HDL level and lower LDL level. So of garlic, it disperse the cholesterol deposits in the arteries and controls liver functioning.

Fiber-Rich Foods
Foods such as apples, prunes, pears, barley, psyllium, kidney beans, Brussels sprouts, and oats are rich in soluble fiber, which works like a broom to clean out the cholesterol from the arteries.

Fish
If you like eating fish, you can choose a fatty cold-water fish like tuna or salmon that contains omega-3 fatty acids. Twice a week in consumption is a great plan to get a rich supply of it.

Foods to Avoid

In study after study it has been proven that the most dangerous foods when it comes to cholesterol are saturated fat and trans fat. Eating large amounts of these two fats is proven to increase blood cholesterol levels to hazardous levels. It is advisable to avoid them as far as possible.

Therefore, there are some foods that have very high levels in LDL and should be avoided in a low cholesterol diet menu such as: sugar products, fats and oils, eggs (except the white of an egg), fast foods, dairy products, and shell fish (shrimp, lobster, crabs).

Remember, a low cholesterol diet should not merely lower the LDL level, but it should also increase the HDL level. Make sure you do the both.

Benefits of Low Carb Diet

2008-07-08T21:58:00.003+07:00

A low carb diet or low carbohydrate diet is a dietary program that limits carbohydrate consumption typically for weight control. Foods high in digestible carbohydrates are restricted or replaced with foods containing a higher percentage of fats and proteins.

A general mistake of low carb diet is to associate low-carb with the very low carb phase of some popular diets, the Induction Phase of the Atkins Diet for instance. These phases are typically intended to be fairly short, with more carbohydrate phased in after that.

However, any diet whose main focus is the carbohydrate reductions in any way is “low carb”. Usually, a diet with 40% or less energy from carbohydrates is considered a “low-carb diet”, though people also determine it in different ways.

A low carb diet is well-known to have given great benefits to the majority of the people. In fact, a low carb diet is regarded as the best diet fad that strikes at the true cause of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, and hypoglycemia.

A low carb diet is also known for its positive effects on diseases such as anxiety disorder, panic disorder, digestive disorders, high triglycerides, irritable bowel syndrome, binge eating, type 2 diabetes and heart disease. With such results that the low carb diet contributes, many doctors and nutritionists are now starting to recognize the nature about the low carb diet.

When you are on a low carb diet, you must know that foods made from white flour and sugar are prohibited in low carb diet. Most of the fruits in this diet are not allowed. Nevertheless, you still have an option of eating certain fruits.

The amount of carbohydrates per grams allowed on a daily basis varies from one person to the other. Some may need 25 grams or even less amount of carbohydrates in order to lose weight. There are others who can easily lose weight by consuming about 50 or 60 grams on a daily basis.

Today, a low carb diet is one of the hottest diet fads in the world. A low carb diet has swept many parts of the world through the introduction of its function and contributions to the diet industry. So now, it is no doubt that the low carb diet is highly praised for its popularity and the great health benefits that it gives to the people.

Diabetic Diet : You Should Plan Your Meals!

2008-07-04T22:12:00.002+07:00

One of the main targets for a diabetic diet is to help you lower weight and maintain it. In addition, the diet is a vital component in your diabetes control program and keeps blood sugar levels under control by striking a balance among the carbohydrates, fats, and protein you eat.

The diabetic diet essentially concerns controlling your carbohydrate intake so as to manage your glucose levels. The recommended diabetic diet for carbohydrate content is about 60%, and fat content 30-35%. Eating regularly and a consistent amount of calories each day is another important point of diabetic diet.

The main part of the diabetic diet is meal planning. A diabetic diet must be a well proportioned meal plan customized to your individual needs, tastes, activity level and life style. Its goal is to afford all the calories and nutrients the diabetic needs while maintaining blood sugars as close to normal as possible.

However, the benefits and support to your body from the diabetic diet will depend on what type of diabetes you are trying to treat. Each type has its own challenges and level of restriction on the diet. So, a diabetic diet will vary some from person to person.

If you have type 2 diabetes, your dietary limitations may not be fairly as high, the diabetic diet is really just a simple heart healthy diet. You will likely be advised to avoid excessive fat and to maintain a high fiber diet among other things, but it will be a rather easy diet to stay with.

But, if you have type 1 diabetes, you will likely have more restrictions, more individualized diabetic diet. Your diabetic diet will likely be custom designed by your physician or a nutritionist.
When you are living with diabetes, one of the best ways to fight this disease is with a diabetic diet plan. You should consult your dietician or doctor regularly to plan a diet personalized particularly for you. Make sure to ask them some questions, let them know your habits, and check in with your doctor to let him or her know your progress along with any problems you may be experiencing.

Be sure to be detailed because the more information you give to your doctor, the better they will be at helping you. It’s a great idea too if you meet with an herbalist or alternative care doctor. They will be able to notify you with herbal supplements and alternative treatments that may help assuage your diabetes.

Mediterranean Diet : More Than Just A Diet

2008-07-03T22:04:00.002+07:00

The Mediterranean diet is now well-known as one of the healthiest in the world and all in all is ideal for a healthy way of life. Looking into the food habits and lifestyle of the Mediterranean diet will expand on why it is so healthy and can help to prevent heart and circulatory diseases.

With the concept of a healthy diet consisting of fruit, vegetables, cereals, legumes and nuts that are low in saturated fats, Mediterranean diet is one of the most studied dietary patterns. More than that, Mediterranean diet also includes low consumption of dairy products, seafood, poultry, red meat and small to moderate quantities of wine.

The Mediterranean diet is well-balanced with a supply of important vitamins, minerals, low in saturated fat, salt and sugar to make sure good health. As affirmed, people in the Mediterranean region lead active lives, but they also have enough time to relax, enjoy and hang out with every meal. This, in turn, helps in absorption of food and good functioning of body systems.

The daily Mediterranean diet comprises mostly fresh vegetables, fruit mainly as dessert, whole grain breads, cereals, beans, pastas legumes and nuts cooked in olive oil. The diet is supplemented by low to moderate use of milk, yogurt and cheese along with generally red wine or water.

Besides it’s good for heart, Mediterranean diet has benefits for people with rheumatoid arthritis and may help reduce colon cancer recurrence. In 2007, Harvard researchers published a study suggesting that Mediterranean eating patterns might cut people's chances of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in half.

Another of the great advantages to the Mediterranean diet is that it is a feast for the senses with bold colours, enticing flavours, an unbeatable aroma and a noticeable characteristic of high consumption of fruits and vegetables, bread and other cereals, olive oil and fish. Following the traditional lifestyle habits of those in this area, the Mediterranean Diet is ideal for people who like to cook, enjoy Mediterranean cuisine, and are interested in making a permanent lifestyle change.

The diet ingredients:

1. A lot of natural food from plants: vegetables, fruits, nuts whole grains, and legumes.
2. Yogurt and cheese in small to moderate amounts.
3. Poultry and fish in small to moderate amounts.
4. Unsaturated fat, traditionally supplied by olive oil, in fairly large amounts.
5. Wine in small to moderate amounts with meals.
6. Red meat in small amounts, used more for sauces and seasoning than as main course.
7. Fresh fruit for dessert.

The most important thing about the Mediterranean diet is to keep your consumption of saturated fat low, which, as a feasible matter, means keeping the helpings of meat and dairy products (the full-fat variety) few and far between.

Detox Diet Process: How To Eat After A Full Detox?

2008-06-27T09:07:00.000+07:00

Most detox diets then allow for a slow re-introduction of other foods gradually. The diets generally restrict foods from your diet that are said to have harmful toxins. Some of these toxic substances have been shown to be harmful and damaging to health while the effects of the greatest amount of these chemicals are not even known yet.

It's easy to add more fruits and vegetables to your diet once you get in the habit. Examples are; add some berries to breakfast eat a tomato at lunch include broccoli with dinner drink some vegetable juice with snacks and have a large salad with your meal.

Several articles and reports have shown the increasing levels of degenerative diseases cancers cardiovascular diseases. Most people that complete a detox program will tell you that a little gas and a few headaches is a small price to pay for the increase in health and wellbeing that many receive.

You know you are making changes in your lifestyle and are working on physical emotional mental and spiritual aspects of your life. You are mentally prepared to get through the healing.

The cars we drive emit emissions that are detrimental to our health. When we fill up at the gas station we breathe in the fumes of the gasoline which adds toxins to our body. Even with a healthy lifestyle the body forms mucoid plaque a rubber-like lining throughout the walls of the intestines filled with toxic waste which prevents proper absorption of nutrients causing poor digestion.

Since the presence of these toxic substances are known to cause the deficiency of several important vitamins and minerals in the body the third step involves restoring these deficient vitamins and minerals; essentially through nutritional supplements.

Some people prefer to add in coffee enemas or colon hydrotherapy. If you combine these detox plans you will be able to jumpstart your bodily functions and restore your health to its maximum level. A detox diet plan is not aimed at weight loss.

It is important to note however that people usually experience some form of nausea or headache while undergoing a detox process. There they can be eliminated from the body via the normal elimination process. That will happen as long as the small and large intestine are not all clogged up.

Foot Detox is another simple and easy method of detoxifying. With this procedure you only have to place your foot in basin of salted water that contains ion generators. The ion generators are then supplied with a very low current of electricity which causes the production of positively charged and negatively charged ions that then attract opposite charged particles in the body.

By Terje Brooks Ellingsen

Atkins Diet Plan

2008-06-23T10:47:00.000+07:00

Currently there are over two million people on a diet called the Atkins Diet Plan. This is a low carbohydrate diet that also includes meals and weight loss classes. During the week each patient or client has meal cards. They use these cards and try not to go over them. These cards count the carbohydrates someone is bringing into their system. This is very important in the Atkins diet plan in because the more carbohydrates you bring into your system, the better off you are. Meal cards and also exercises are used to help in the Atkins diet plan.

The Atkins diet plan is used by many overweight Americans trying to lose the weight that they have. This is important, primarily because death from obesity is on the rise. The Atkins diet plan tries to prevent this. Diet plans such as Atkins have not been around that long; this is due to the fact that every diet plan that comes on the market needs to be FDA approved.

The FDA approved the Atkins diet plan as a way to try to help America's fat problem with healthy low carbohydrate meals and also because of its signature name. The Atkins Diet Plan can be found across websites and in advertisements on television and magazines.

Across America, the Atkins Diet Plan has become a very popular diet to have and to use to lose weight. This is because so many people have picked up the Atkins diet Plan as a way to also live a healthy lifestyle. About 65% of the people in America are overweight and some 75% of them will suffer a complication by the end of the year from being overweight.

The Atkins Diet Plan is available to monitor also all of the the unhealthy carbohydrates and trans fats in someone’s diet to prevent overconsumption of these types of substances. Trans fats are the worse thing for the body, usually causing high cholesterol and also high blood pressure. The Atkins Diet plan keeps people on a steadily paced diet so that these things do not happen. There are also courses to take so that the person on the diet will have plenty of friendly advice and support.

The Atkins Diet Plan can also encourage healthy living for men. It is a myth that all diets are for women. This includes working out and also eating properly. Most people using the Atkins Diet Plan find themselves surrounded by friendly support and otherwise good support groups. Thes programs are basically used to sponsor someone in their efforts to lose weight.

Stemming from phone calls to meal cards, this diet has been used in a lot of ways to extend someone’s health, improve nutrition and optimize the diet. The Atkins diet plan also uses no pills or any other gimmicks. The Atkins diet plan is also a remarkable way to lose the weight that is needed to be lost in a controlled way, so that the dieting individual does not become weak, ill, or even suffer death from the diet itself.

By Michael Webb

The Power Of Detox -- How To Achieve Your Ideal Weight And Increase Your Energy With A Detox Diet

2008-06-20T10:57:00.000+07:00

Unless you live in the middle of the jungle, you breathe only pure air, eat only organic foods when you're hungry; and that those foods provide the exact nutritional needs of your body; that you never experience any stress, worry or anxiety and you exercise every single day... chances are that you need to detox.

Just like the dust and crud that accumulates in your house calls for a yearly house-cleaning - "toxins", extra weight and God knows what accumulate in your body.

We all need to do a regular house-cleaning - and that means allowing your body a chance to heal itself, release the extra weight, release its toxins, and get a fresh new start.

Your body has an amazing self-healing mechanism built right in it, but in order to let it work, you have to give it the rest it needs.

That's why fasting has been a tradition part of many world's religions, and almost every alternative health practice recommends some kind of fasting or "detox diet".

What Is a Detox Diet?

A "detox diet" has nothing to do with going to a rehab clinic for drug abuse. The word "detox" has been used in naturopathic circles in the sense of "removing toxins." A detox diet allows your body to clean itself of accumulated toxins, stress, and helps it release extra fat and weight.

A detox diet is a restricted diet that you follow, often combined with an exercise program, for a few days or a few weeks (or even longer). It's sort of like fasting, but it's easier to do and you can do it at home when you need it.

Signs You Need to Detox

You should be able to know yourself when you need to go on a detox diet. If you're looking at yourself in the mirror and don't like what you see, you don't like the extra weight you've been carrying around... then a detox diet can help you get back on track with a healthy diet and release the extra fat..

If you feel you don't have the energy you once had, or you're starting to feel a little depressed... a detox diet can help you regain that energy and bring a new level of joy to your life.

If you experience aches and pains, or headaches, and can't keep up with the stress of modern life, then it's very likely that a detox diet can help you feel young again, and give you the feeling that "nothing can stop you".

From having helped thousands of people go through all sorts of detox diets, I know that the rejuvenation it brings and the sense of accomplishment, on top of all the health results, is well worth the discipline it requires to do it.

Example of a Detox Diet

There's all sorts of detox diets you can choose from. One of my all-time favorites is the Apple Diet. This involves eating only apples for breakfast, lunch and dinner, for one or several days.

The good thing about apples is that they are easy to eat, they are low in sugar, and they contain a fiber that literally acts as a "broom" in your intestines.

When you go on an Apple Diet, all you have to do is purchase the best organic apples you can find, and eat as many as you'd like 3 or 4 times a day.

Here's a few tips to make this work:

If you've never done this before, only plan to go for the Apple Diet for a maximum of 3-4 days.
Peel your apples beforehand. Even though the peel contains essential nutrients, it's also impossible to digest in most cases. Since you're going to be eating lots of apple, you don't want to stress your digestion with too much fiber.
Don't drink apple juice - even if it's freshly-pressed. That would be too much sugar, even if it's natural. You want the natural sugar along with all of the vitamins, minerals and fiber in the *whole* apple.
Also drink water, about one liter a day, to help eliminate the toxins.
Instead of eating apples all day long, have 3-4 meals a day with 1-2 pounds of apples.

I recommend the Apple Diet over any other type of "mono-cleanse", because the apple is the King of Fruits!

Other popular cleanses that I don't recommend include the Orange Juice Fast, the Lemon Cleanse, or the Grapefruit Diet. The problem with those detox diets is that the level of acidity from these citrus fruits is too high. It can cause many problems with your gums and overall health, and many unnecessary discomforts.

That's why low-acidity apples are a good choice to do a raw food detox diet.

Get Support and Motivation

Although the concept of a detox diet is simple, most people have a hard time implementing it because of lack of motivation.

It's not complicated to eat only apples for 3 days, but it's not easy either. On the first day, you'll be craving your normal fare. By the second day, you'll be dreaming about food. But if you stick around, after a few days, you'll be experiencing the incredible "high", energy and lightness of beings that fasters experience - and the results will show.

You'll start to release weight, your hunger for natural foods will come back, you'll have energy to start an exercise program, you'll feel better than ever... and when you're ready to introduce other foods into your diet, you'll be more likely to make the right choices.

But to get to that point, make sure you get enough support and motivation. Find someone who can help you do a detox diet with you, and get as much information and support as you can to succeed on your cleanse.

By Frederick Patenaude

How to Reduce Cholesterol with Diet and Exercise

2008-06-18T09:24:00.000+07:00

Learning how to reduce cholesterol can be the difference between living a long and healthy life or suffering from a multitude of life threatening diseases that include coronary artery disease, heart disease, blood clots, and stroke.

In fact if you are unfortunate enough to visit the doctor and receive a high cholesterol test result your doctor will tell you much the same thing and will recommend that you begin a diet and exercise program to help get it under control and back to normal.

The most important step when it comes to reducing cholesterol is diet. What you eat and how it is prepared has a big impact on blood cholesterol levels, and the thing that affects it the most is not what you may think. There was a time when a low cholesterol diet meant avoiding any food that had cholesterol in it. This made for a limited diet that many people just didn't want to follow because all sources of food derived from animals has cholesterol in it.

Medical research now tells us that this isn't necessarily true. Cholesterol found in food doesn't easily find its way into the human circulatory system. The biggest factors that raise blood levels are in fact saturated fat and trans fat. By cutting these two forms of fat out of the daily diet we can reduce blood cholesterol significantly.

This is why the way we select and prepare our food is so important. By choosing lean and low fat foods we have won half the battle. But once we get our groceries home and start cooking many times we sabotage our efforts at the grocery store. Cooking, or frying, our foods in vegetable oils and margarine or butter high in saturated and trans fats loads up these low fat foods with more fat. Poultry and fish are two great choices in a low cholesterol diet, that is until we batter them and lower them into a pot of hot oil.

Learning to read labels becomes an important skill in the fight against high cholesterol. Not only are lean cuts of meat a good way to go but when it comes to dairy it is important to make the switch to low fat items. Whole milk needs to be replaced with one-percent or skim milk. Dairy has many nutrients we need so completely cutting it from the diet is not a good idea, but luckily the low fat versions are full of the same vitamins and minerals.

Exercise is another important part of reducing cholesterol. Joining a gym is not necessary, but some form of physical activity is. This can be as simple as going for a thirty minute walk every day or at least every other day. Exercise also has other health benefits that are hard to beat, all of which lead to a healthier you.

Diet and exercise are the first line of defense in the fight against high cholesterol. Because of the lifestyle the majority of people live these days health issues are going to continue to become and increasing problem in the coming years. A few simple changes with diet and exercise could go a long way towards changing this, particularly when we want to reduce cholesterol levels as a way to a more healthy life.

By Andrew Bicknell

What Should You Know About Atkins Diet?

2008-06-17T10:11:00.003+07:00

If you live in the western world then there’s a better than good chance that you’ve at least heard about the Atkins diet. If you haven’t, you’ve either been living on Mars or with your head buried under the sand. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing either, since you might not really want to be following the trials and tribulations of all the latest fad diets to hit the market.

Surprisingly enough though, the Atkins diet isn’t a new fad diet, but has instead been around for over 30 years. If you’re always looking for ways to lose weight however, don’t take the length of time the Atkins diet has been around to be proof that it works. Nuclear weapons have been around for far longer but that still doesn’t mean they’re good for us.

If you look hard enough, and listen long enough you’ll always find someone who can give you the information that you want to hear. That doesn’t necessarily make it right, or true. It’s only been in recent years that the Atkins diet has really taken off.

Don’t read this the wrong way though, the Atkins diet does work, and there are people for whom this diet has worked positive wonders. If you look at the Atkins diet carefully you’ll also find sensible ideas and suggestions that will lead you to the path of a good dieting regime. Everything has its positive sides and the Atkins diet has many redeeming features about.

However, with so much negative support from most of the major governmental organizations, not to mention other medical and nutritional organizations you might wonder what can be so wrong with this diet. You could of course say that none of these organizations want the Atkins diet to succeed at their own cost, and you could be right. No one will ever know for sure.

If you look at the facts as they stand now, you can make an informed decision for yourself without having to resort to someone else’s opinions. I won’t go into any detail here, but briefly what the Atkins diet promotes is less carbohydrates in your diet, and more proteins and fats. Basically you can eat, within reason, any amounts of meat, butters, and fatty foods, whilst limiting your carbohydrate intake.

Ultimately though what matters is not any diet or exercise regime but how you perceive yourself. If you’re overweight and forever trying to lose weight any diet will seem good, and the Atkins diet can help you to lose weight. If you lose the weight but are still unhappy then your weight wasn’t the problem in the first place.

So whether you try a fad diet or a sensible doctor-recommended diet, you should only do it if you’re going to feel better within yourself, not because someone recommended it to you. After all you’re the one who’s going to have to live with yourself, so only you can decide if you want to do the Atkins diet or not.

By Shabi

Is A Vegetarian Diet Safe For My Child?

2008-06-13T10:42:00.000+07:00

If you are vegetarian parent, you have probably considered putting your child on a vegetarian diet. Not only would it save time and make meal-planning easier, but for dietary and ethical reasons, you believe it is a better choice for your child.

Conversely, you might not be a vegetarian yourself, but have a child who is going through a vegetarian "phase," where she rejects meat, but doesn’t consume enough healthy foods to compensate for the nutritional gap.

Whatever the case is, you may have wondered whether or not a vegetarian diet is sustainable, healthy choice for your child. You may have heard that putting your child on a vegetarian diet could potentially stunt her growth.

These concerns probably prevented you from putting your child on a vegetarian diet up to this point.

And all of these concerns are legitimate. In fact, if a vegetarian diet is poorly planned, it can cause serious short and long term health problems, especially for children, who are growing and developing--and who do not yet have sufficient stores of vitamins.

If you aren’t well-prepared to put your child on a vegetarian diet, you definitely shouldn’t. However, if you have done your nutritional research and you are familiar with the nutrients vegetarians commonly lack, then you know that these problems can easily be overcome with some meal planning.

You also know that putting your child on a healthful vegetarian diet can greatly improve her health in both the short and long term. It can also reduce her exposure to animal products that contain hormones and preservatives, which have been linked to developmental problems and cancer.

If you haven't researched vegetarian diets thoroughly, but you are anxious to start your child on one now, you should start by ensuring that you plan meals to boost amounts of the following nutrients (that most vegetarians lack):

1. Protein
Make sure your child is consuming enough protein by adding additional sources, such as wheat,soybeans, isolated soy protein, and nuts.

2. Calcium
Ensure your child is consuming enough calcium by adding calcium-fortified processed foods and leafy green vegetables to his diet.

3. Iron
Add more iron to your child’s diet by increasing servings of soybeans, pinto beans, tofu, and cereals.

4. Zinc
Enhance your child’s zinc intake by increasing his servings of almonds, peanut butter, and mushrooms.

If you concentrate on compensating for all of these common nutritional deficiencies, you absolutely can put your child on a vegetarian diet without any negative health consequences.

Just ignore the mythology surrounding vegetarian diets and instead focus on research and meal-planning.

By Kirsten Hawkins

Mediterranean Diet: Learn How Oranges Can Help You Prevent Heart Attacks

2008-06-11T08:54:00.004+07:00

Oranges have been from time immemorial a staple food in the Mediterranean countries. They have also been a major player in protecting the people of that region from heart disease. Thus, if you never thought of oranges as a "must" food for your heart, here are some good reasons to start doing so:

Oranges and vitamin C

Oranges are very rich in vitamin C. This vitamin has the following effects in our body: It protects our arteries from free radicals, highly damaging molecules that cause our cells to oxidize. It helps prevent the oxidation of cholesterol; oxidized cholesterol sticks to the walls of our arteries, building up plaque. Plaque can grow large enough to block blood flow in our blood vessels, causing a heart attack or a stroke. It helps recycle vitamin E, one of the most powerful antioxidants and the first line of defense when it comes to the oxidation of our cells.

Oranges and Folate

Oranges are naturally rich in folate, or folic acid, a vitamin of the B group. One role of folate is to process the amino acid homocysteine in our body. When folate is lacking, homocysteine is not broken down, piles up in our blood vessels and becomes toxic even in small amounts. The accumulation of high levels of homocysteine in the blood may cause a heart attack even among people who have adequate cholesterol levels.

Oranges and Minerals

Sodium. Oranges are very low in sodium. When we eat foods containing a large amount of sodium (salt) we retain a large volume of fluid in our blood vessels that needs to be moved around by the heart. The result is we end up with high blood pressure.Potassium. Oranges are high in potassium, a mineral that plays a key role in heart functions and muscle contractions, making it an important nutrient for a healthy heart. It works with sodium to regulate the water balance in the body. Diets low in sodium and high in potassium lower blood pressure, reducing the risk for strokes.

Calcium:Oranges contain a good amount of calcium, a mineral extremely important in maintaining normal blood pressure; it is required for nerve transmission and regulation of heart muscle contraction. Many studies have shown that as we increase the consumption of foods with a high content of calcium, the risk of high blood pressure decreases, especially if we maintain adequate intakes of magnesium.

Magnesium:Oranges are also rich in magnesium; this mineral is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body. Having adequate amounts of magnesium in the body helps your heart maintain a steady rhythm and normal blood pressure.

Oranges and Phytochemicals

The word "phyto" means "plant" in Greek. Phytochemicals are nonnutritive chemicals found in plant foods that protect their host plants from infections and microbial invasions. Through research we have learned that phytochemicals are also crucial in protecting humans against disease. Some phytochemicals found in oranges are:

Flavonones, anthoctanins, hydroxycinnamic acids, polyphenols. These phytochemicals are one large family of protective antioxidants commonly seen in foods rich in vitamin C. In the body, they fight inflammation and free radicals; prevent platelets from sticking together; block certain molecules that raise blood pressure; and strengthen the small blood vessels that carry oxygen and nutrients to the body cell.

Hesperidin. In animal studies, the flavonone hesperidin has been shown to lower high blood pressure and cholesterol as well as to have strong anti-inflammatory properties. This component is found in the peel and inner white pulp of the orange. To reap the full benefits of oranges, grate a tablespoon of the peel and use it to flavor tea, salads, yogurt, soups, and cereals.

Oranges and Fiber

One orange contains about 3 grams of fiber: 60 percent is soluble fiber and 40 percent insoluble. Both types are important for our health, but soluble fiber is the one that lowers cholesterol. Pectin, the soluble fiber that's found mainly in the skin around each orange section and in the peel, helps trap and eliminate cholesterol from the body. Try to eat a little of the white part of the orange peel; it contains half of the fruit's pectin supply.

Vitamin C Supplements

Vitamin C supplements do not accomplish in our body what fresh oranges do; make an effort to get your vitamins from fresh foods. However, if you decide to continue taking vitamin C supplements, keep the following in mind:

Do not exceed 2 grams of vitamin C a day because when quantities exceed the body needs, it can become a pro-oxidant.

If you decide to discontinue your intake of large doses of vitamin C supplements, don't stop all of the sudden; do it gradually to prevent a deficiency.

Vitamin C supplements are dangerous for people with iron overload because it enhances iron absorption and releases iron from body stores. Free iron in the body causes the kind of cellular damage typical of free radicals.

Final Thoughts

I hope by now you are convinced you need to include oranges in your daily life to prevent or control heart disease. Remember: one orange a day keeps heart attacks away. One orange contains all the vitamin C your body needs for the day. If you have a farmers market in your area, pay a visit to those local farmers and look for organic fresh oranges. They are delicious!

Note: Oranges contain some oxalic acid and should be restricted for those with calcium-oxalate stones.

By Emilia Klapp

The Modern Myth Of The Balanced Diet

2008-06-09T09:59:00.000+07:00

Eat your greens, avoid junk food, and drink plenty of water. With these three simple steps we are told by most nutritionists that our diet will be balanced, with all the essential vitamins and minerals needed for optimum health. However research is consistently showing that eating a “balanced diet” is not good enough. According to research figures, there has been a steep decline during the past 50 years in the nutrient value of fruits and vegetables grown in fields. While an orange eaten by our grandparents may have been packed with vitamin C, the fruit and vegetables today are running on empty.

Here are the top five ways that our modern times remove the vitamins and health from our food, and why we should all start to look at nutritional supplements to top-up.

1. Bad eating habits

Why is it that all the unhealthy foods are also the tastiest? It seems our bodies are hardwired to crave sugary, fatty foods that do nothing for our health and nothing for our levels of vitamins. According to Gladys Block, Professor of Public Health at UC Berkeley, only 9% of the population eats the recommended five servings of fruit and vegetables daily. Many people need nutritional supplements to replace the nutrients they aren’t getting from their food. However, even if we find healthy foods - fresh vegetables, low-fat - there are still ways we can make them less nutritional…

2. Cooking

Unless you enjoy raw food, you’re probably going to cook it; and this destroys between 20 to 50% of the vitamins in your food. Water soluble vitamins like ascorbic acid are particularly vulnerable to cooking, and nutritional supplements for these easily lost minerals are recommended.

3. Transport and Storage

Even before “fresh” fruit and vegetables get to the store they are losing vitamins and nutrients while stuck in storehouses and on trucks. Fruits and vegetables stored at high pressure, evacuated environment, and inert gas atmospheres are prone to deterioration. In addition, if these are exposed to irradiation or undergo sterilized filtrations also significantly reduce the nutritional value. For example, oranges picked the same day were tested and found to contain 180mg of vitamin C. Then, oranges from the same grower that had been in storage at a local store were tested. They looked the same, tasted the same, but the vitamin C content had dropped to zero. Nutritional supplements are designed to deliver vitamin and nutrient content to our bodies in an easily digestible form. Nutritional supplements are also designed to not degrade easily during storage.

4. Food Processing

Modern Processing methods are practically murdering the minerals in our food. Artificial acidification, applying antiseptic substance, or adding sugar, salt or ethyl alcohol causes fruits and vegetables to lose vitamin and mineral content. Fruits also lose their nutrition value when they are fermented alcoholically or with lactic acid. When flour is refined, up to 98% of original mineral content is lost. Nutritional supplements are needed to replace the vitamins heavily processed food doesn’t have.

5. Soil Depletion

Even fresh, unprocessed food can be lacking in basic minerals and vitamins due to soil depletion. Our farmlands are seriously over-farmed and their soils are nutrient depleted. At best, farmers can replace only a small amount of the nutrients back into the soil. These minerals do little to enhance the nutritional quality of the crop and merely affect appearance.

Furthermore, plants rely on soil organisms to pre-digest minerals for them. These helpful microbes are often absent, due to the condition of the soil and the destructive chemicals used in farming. A tomato grown in organic, nutrient-rich soil has a deep red to burgundy appearance on the inside, and it has a delightfully strong and pleasing flavor.

A farmed, store-bought tomato often has a pink to clear appearance when cut open and lacks the rich flavor of the homegrown tomato. Even farmers understand this, and avoid foods from their fields and opt for those grown in their own personal, organic garden.

Unless you grow your own fruits and vegetables and eat them raw the same day you pick them, you’re not getting what nature intended. This is the main reason that nutritional supplements are becoming increasingly important for a modern, healthy lifestyle.

Just think: if nutritional deficiencies did not exist, neither would the problems associated with them. Nutritional supplements are an excellent way to ensure that you are getting the nutrients that are necessary for your health and longevity.

By Lac Tran

Here's Why You May Want To Switch To Vegetarian Diet

2008-06-07T10:32:00.000+07:00

Many people generally have misunderstanding about vegetarian practice, or eating foods from the plant kingdom. Are you one of them?

How about read on to find out why you can have a second opinion on vegetarian practices, and what this lifestyle is about.

Generally, vegetarians may be divided into four groups:

1. Vegans
2. Semi Vegetarians
3. Lacto-OvO Vegetarians
4. Lacto Vegetarians

Generally, you don't have to follow this categories strictly. It is entirely up to you. This categories are easier for you to identify the types of food suitable for each category.

Thus, you may want to know the difference between them.

Vegans eat no animal foods at all; while Semi Vegetarians generally avoid meat but eat poultry and selected animal foods. As for Lacto-Ovo Vegetarians avoid meat, poultry and fish, but take in milk and eggs. Finally, Lacto Vegetarians consume milk products but not other animal foods.

In addition, some vegetarians also go as far as avoiding clothing made from animal products like fleece, fur, and leather.

In rare cases, some avoid processed foods, alcoholic beverages, and foods bred with pesticides. These are very noble practices, but you don't have follow if it is inconvenient to do so.

Historically, vegetarianism can be traced back to philosophical beliefs; especially religious traditions and teachings of Buddhism and Hinduism.

Whatever their teachings are about for doing so, it is mainly out of compassion and loving-kindness: that one cannot bear to inflict injuries and harm to a living being. Let alone eating their flesh!

But, to relate vegetarian practices purely with religions, it is not fair, as you may see shortly...

During the 19th century, the practice of eating meatless diet has passed the religious boundaries when the Vegetarian Society, a British non-religious organization, became famous in 1847. Obviously, the religion elements in vegetarian practices has been diluted.

On top of that, if you were to ask, modern vegetarians uphold meatless diet for the cause of animal welfare, while labeling the killing of animals for food as a violation of their rights. This practice has already gained worldwide acceptance. Perhaps, it is aligned with the compassionate foundation as in religions.

You may ask, "Aren't these animal breeded to feed our mouth?"

Yes, you may be right. But, how do we know, for certainty, that these animals are INDEED borned into this world, and brought up with the sole purpose to feed our mouth? Who are we to determine their lives and destiny?

If you've noticed, animals which were sent to the slaughter house, have tears in their eyes. Their cries are solemn and sad. This obviously shows that they have feelings, emotions, just like us, human.

Even if their destiny is in the slaughter house, many of these poor animals were not even given a decent living, in the process of their growing up. I've seen such video before, and many researches has been conducted which prove this is the case.

If they are not commercially produced, for the purpose of feeding our mouth, they probably would have chance of getting a decent living, and humane treatment, don't you think so?

Of course, I personally don't believe that you'll change into meatless diet overnight. But, I do hope that you'll be more aware of how the meat come onto your dining table, and perhaps, reducing meat intake for the sake of your health as well. As the title of this article implied: You may want to switch to vegetarian diet, starting today!

By Janice Hoo

Cholesterol Diet & Heart Attack

2008-06-05T10:04:00.002+07:00

Today we are going to talk about the importance of Lowering your Cholesterol to prevent the #1 killer in the US Heart Disease

Cholesterol is an important element required by the human body for its day to day survival. But if present in excess amounts, it can be counterproductive as well. Medical science has shown that excess quantities of cholesterol in the blood can lead to the blockage of blood vessels, leading to heart attack or stroke. Hence it is important that one may check the cholesterol buildup in his/her body. If left unchecked, it can lead to a complete disaster.

The chemical composition of cholesterol is such that it is insoluble in water. As a result, it cannot dissolve in blood and hence independently move around in the blood stream. They are carried by certain chemicals known as lipoproteins to the different tissues of the body, to be stored, used, or excreted, as it may be required.

But in excess amounts, some of these lipoproteins may settle on the inside of the blood vessels forming plaques, thus blocking the blood flow in the process, and eventually leading to a cardiac arrest, when the blood flow is completely obstructed. If this blockage happens in the brain, it may cause a stroke.

Here, one must understand that not all types of cholesterol is heart attack inducing. There are basically two types of cholesterol – HDL and LDL – in the human blood, of which the latter is heart attack causing if present in an excess percentage.

HDL or high density lipoproteins seem to help remove the cholesterol forming plaques inside the blood vessels, thereby alleviating any chances of a blockage build up in the arteries. Hence they are body friendly.

According to experts, the ideal level of these components in the blood must be -40 mg/dL/-50mg/dL (for men & women) and less than 160 mg/dL, respectively. There is another type of cholesterol as well in the blood - named LP(a) - which is also prone to cause blockages in the blood vessels. But the exact chemistry behind the plaque formation by LP(a) is not known even today.

From a common man point of view, one’s the things are over the anvil, it can be really difficult to contain the damage. Hence, as a precaution, it is advisable that one may periodically check his/her blood cholesterol levels to ensure that everything is under control.

Consulting a doctor/nutritionist and seeking his/her advice would be helpful for one to know more about the effects of excessive cholesterol, and to chart a diet plan that is more body friendly.

Remember, in any counts, checking the blood cholesterol level is far easier than being through and then treating heart attack or stroke.

By William Walters

A Balanced Diet For Your Kids

2008-06-04T09:50:00.000+07:00

As a parent, one issue that is constantly on my mind is that of ensuring my children are properly nourished. Fortunately, my children have the eating habits of J.R.R. Tolkien’s hobbits- they eat at least three breakfasts before lunch. This gives me ample opportunity to ensure that their nutrition intake is set for the rest of the day.

I am sure that other parents have the same concerns, though possibly not the easy time I have with feeding my kids. I would like to share some of the nutrition “secrets” I have encountered in my seemingly endless trips to the refrigerator to keep my little hollowed out munchers happy.

The first secret is that nutrition is not a secret at all. Every container of food you buy has nutritional values listed on a label on the side. These values are very important in determining whether or not the charges of the stay-at-home parent are receiving all the vitamins, minerals, fiber, protein and the hundred other nutritional necessities that keep the mind of the stay-at-home parent occupied.

The second important secret is milk. Milk is the nectar of the gods. By making sure your kids drink just one cup of milk with each meal, you will have taken care of their body’s needs for vitamins A, D and B12, as well as calcium, some iron content and even protein. Other dairy products also help fill these needs, so cheese and yogurt are also good add-ons for snacks or to meals.

Breakfast foods such as oatmeal and most cereals are also chock-full of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Sugar cereals should be used sparingly, as a treat. There are lots of other ways to add some zing to a cereal that kids may otherwise think of as bland. Breakfast can also include fruit (bananas are an especially good power food) and juice, although too much juice in a day is bad both for a child’s sugar intake and their teeth. Kids should be allowed some juice, though, and the new style fruit and veggie juice is ideal as it tastes just like regular juice but contains vegetable content as well (such as spinach and carrots), and thus is a good equalizer for a child who is finicky about their vegetables.

Whole wheat bread is also very important to a child’s diet. They will only think it is undesirable if a parent or schoolmate points it out to them. Whole wheat bread, specifically Dempster’s brand, is brimming with nutritional goodness.

Recent studies have suggested that vegetables bought frozen may actually be healthier than those cooked fresh. The freezing locks the nutrients into the vegetable immediately, and does not allow the leeching out that otherwise begins as soon as the vegetable is picked from the ground.

There are some foods that may seem like a good idea for a snack or supplement to a meal, but in fact they need to be avoided. Uppermost among these are dried banana chips. These little nuggets are actually deep fried, and just a handful contain more fat than a Big Mac! Make sure that you know how the food you are feeding your kids is processed before considering it a healthy choice.

By Willie Reynolds

Try A Low Cholesterol Diet Before You Consider Pills

2008-05-31T09:38:00.000+07:00

Have you checked your cholestrol level recently? If not, you should consider doing it. Too many people currently have high levels of cholesterol. Are you among those? If your answer is 'yes', then a low cholesterol diet, like for example a mediteranean diet might be good for you. Actually, if your cholesterol level is to high, you have two major options.

Adjusting your life-style

Take pills that lower your cholestrol

If you don't have extremly high cholestrol level which calls for immediate action, you should try the first option before you even consider to start taking pills.

Unfortunately some of these cholesterol lowering pills have a few disadvantages: Statin drugs like Lipitor and Baycol might cause muscle damage and some doctors have even linked these pills to deaths. This isn't strange at all, seeing that the heart is a muscle. This is probably the reason some of these drugs have been pulled from the market in some countries. Like all medications the benefits have to be weighed with the risks.

So if your cholesterol level is too high, I would recommend that you start with adjusting your life style. If this doesn't lower your cholesterol level in a significant way, then you can consider pills to lower your cholestrol level.

What do I mean with "adjusting life-style"?

Did you know that oatmeal contributes to lowering your cholesterol level? It most certainly does. Therfore you should eat more of this.

Olive oil consist of unsaturated fat and is very much used in the mediterranean countries. Why not fry your food in this instead of butter? If you're using this as your main fat source regularly, your cholesterol level should decrease. Stay away from commercially produced and saturated fats.

A great supplement is cod liver oil. It contains essential Omega 3 oils, which is rare in most weight loss diets. Take it once a day. If you are like me and don't like the taste, do as I do and take it in capsules form. It supplies you with 'good' cholesterol. Other benefits are an improved look and feel of your skin, increased energy, improved memory and even pain relief.

Eat vitamin A and vitamin E daily as they also have proven to lower cholesterol level.

Start up with some moderate exercise. It is sufficient to take a thirty minutes to one hour walk daily. This will also contribute to your cholesterol level lowering.

If your cholesterol level is too high, start up eating foods that contain substances that have been around for many years and have been tested and tried by generations, instead of starting out with pills that might have health damaging side effects. Add some moderate workout and you'll be well on your way to a normal cholesterol level. If this doesn't work, then consider medicine. I wish you a good luck!

By Terje Ellingsen

Natural Recipes for Body Detoxification

2008-05-29T10:30:00.000+07:00

Considering the living conditions of the modern era, it's easy to understand why toxins build up within the body so heavily. Environmental toxins found in pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, fertilizers, fossil fuels, and other synthetic chemicals create an elixir of toxins bombarding us on a daily basis.

Unclean water, harsh household cleaners, and the prevalence of over-processed, artificial foods also contribute to the body's poisoning. For these reasons, it is sometimes necessary to engage in natural body toxin cleansing to help the body purify itself and eliminate poisonous waste.

Due to the increase in chemicals applied to conventional foods, organic food is an increasingly wise option. In addition, Oxy-Powder® is an all-natural colon cleansing product that cleanses body systems of waste and supports the digestive tract. Most people don't realize their digestive system is actually part of the immune response structure and is a key component in the body's fight against toxins.

Making the choice to eat well is a beneficial first step in the process of toxin cleansing. To truly purge the body's waste and support the cleansing systems (the lymphatic system, liver, intestines and blood), organic food choices are vital. Along with consuming primarily organic, whole foods, it is also wise to include food choices known for their natural detoxification effects.
A few of these organic, detoxifying foods include:

- Broccoli
- Other cruciferous vegetables (cauliflower, asparagus, etc.)
- Green vegetables
- Fruits (berries and apples)
- OnionsGarlic
- Lemons
- Broccoli sprouts
- Liquids (green tea, pure water and algae drinks rich in enzymes)

Ultimate Detox Recipes

Easy Wilted Garlic-Sesame Salad
Toss dark, leafy greens in hot, garlic oil for a meal that cleanses the body’s chief detox organ, the liver.

Ingredients:
1 Tsp. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lb. spinach, stemmed
or 1 lb. Swiss chard, stems sliced, leaves torn
or 1 lb. mixture of spinach and watercress
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 Tsp. sesame seeds for garnish

Directions:
Warm oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and stir until lightly browned, about 45 seconds. Add greens (do in two batches, if necessary) and toss until just wilted, 2 to 4 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Avocado-Cucumber Spicy Spring Soup
A highly energizing soup for your cleansing regimen. This soup contains avocado (which is high in EFA’s) and cucumber (well known for its internal cleansing properties). The taste of this soup can be customized to your preference by the use of various herbs and spices or by alternating between lemon and lime.

Ingredients:
1 avocado
2 spring onions
1/2 red or green pepper
1 cucumber
2 handfuls of spinach
1/2 clove of garlic
Bragg Liquid Aminos™ to taste
100ml of light vegetable Bouillon (yeast free)
Juice of 1 lemon or lime
Optional: coriander, parsley, or cumin

Directions:
Blend the avocado and stock to form a light paste, and then add the other ingredients and mix until the consistency is neither too thick nor too thin. Heat slowly on your range-top burner to preserve the most nutrients.

Vegetable Super Juice
This juice is popular for breakfast due to its energy 'boost' effect. It gives your body a nutritious yet gentle start to the day.

Ingredients:
1 whole cucumber
4 sticks of celery
2 to 4 handfuls of spinach
8 lettuce leaves
Other varieties of lettuce as desired
Optional boosters: parsley and fresh alfalfa sprouts

Directions:
Juice all ingredients and mix 50/50 with distilled water. Add optional lemon juice to taste and Prime pH to boost the alkalinity of the juice.

Healing Detox Juice
A sweeter, more subtle juice that still packs a nutritional punch! The combination of the carrots, spinach, and parsley provides an excellent source of antioxidants while the celery delivers nutritious cleansing properties.

Ingredients:
3 to 4 Carrots
125g Fresh pinach
Handful of Flat Leaf Parsley
2 to 3 Sticks of Celery

Directions:
Juice all the ingredients (putting celery through last as it is a bit acidic). Mix with water to thin it out or drink it plain.

Raw Broccoli Soup
Definitely a winter favorite and it ends the myth that all raw veggies have to be cold and boring! By steaming the broccoli for just 5 to 6 minutes, the meal remains raw enough to provide all the nutrients but adds enough warmth for that homemade soup flavor. The texture of the broccoli and the kick of the ginger also make this an excellent choice for those new to the concept of alkalizing (returning your body’s internal chemical state to a naturally alkaline balance).

Ingredients:
1/2 Avocado
6 to 8 Decent size Broccoli Heads
1/3 Red Onion
1 Celery Stick
Big Handful of Spinach
An Inch of Root Ginger
Optional: Bragg Liquid Amino, cumin

Directions:
Lightly steam the broccoli for 5 to 6 minutes and put all the ingredients in a blender. Add garlic, pepper, and other spices to taste. The heat from the broccoli makes this a lovely, gently warmed soup that is great for those cold winter months!

Consuming organic foods so as to obtain the most vitamins and minerals can greatly enhance your toxin cleansing efforts. All natural recipes such as these help the body receive the nutritional support it needs to maintain vital health and wellbeing!

By C. Olon

How The Glycemic Index Of Foods Can Make Or Break Your Fat Loss Efforts

2008-05-27T10:20:00.003+07:00

Do you know the glycemic index of foods that you eat on a regular basis? My guess is no, and that's perfectly fine - we'll change that today!

Although the formula for weight loss comes down to calories in versus calories out (always remember that), the glycemic index of foods is another great way to lose weight by doing almost nothing extra.

When talking about the glycemic index and how it determines the way your body breaks down and metabolizes your food, it can get quite complicated, so I'll make it as easy as possible to understand. You see, when you eat food you're body sends out certain responses to other parts of the body that tell it what kind of food you ate, how to break it down, etc. etc.

It also raises your blood sugar level in response to the food that it's breaking down. This is the basis for the glycemic index of foods. If the glycemic index of pretzels for example, is 85, it will raise your blood sugar very high. If it's something very low like vegetables, it's barely going to rise.

When the blood sugar spike is high it causes your body to store the extra sugar that it doesn't break down which then turns into fat. In other words, you gain weight. When the blood sugar spike is low, it stays steady and more of the sugar is broken down which therefore results in less fat.

By the way, eating foods with a low glycemic index is also a great way to give yourself longer, sustainable energy.

If you know the glycemic index of foods you are eating, it's going to be easy for you to lose weight. But you also must know at least relatively how many calories that food is eating or you might overeat without even knowing it!

Take a few minutes and try to get at least an estimate of the glycemic index of foods that you eat on a regular basis. If you switch these foods out for those that have a lower rating, you can lose weight easily and have much more energy!

By Jeremy Reeves

Raw Food Detox Diet

2008-05-26T09:19:00.002+07:00

Detox, or detoxification of the body is a common practice many people use in order to rid the body of toxic substances or lose some weight quickly. There are many different ways and many different diets to detox the body. Some of these are the dieuretic diet, the fat flush diet, an all liquid diet, liver cleansing diet and the raw food diet.

Certain detox diets may be better for certain people, so it is important to look at each and decide which one would fit your day to day lifestyle the best. The detox diet that I would like to talk about here is the raw food detox diet, also sometimes called foodism. This detox diet is generally made up of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains, dried fruits, herbs and spices that are all eaten raw.

The first thing you will want to do is prepare for the detox. The safest way to do so is to slowly remove the foods that are not allowed during the detox from your day to day diet for a week before you start the full on detox. This means that the first day of preparation you will replace one or two things that you regularly eat during the day with something that is a fruit, vegetable or other food allowed by the detox. By the seventh day, you will have replaced pretty much everything in your regular diet with someone that is allowed in the detox diet.

The other thing that you will need to do to prepare is create a menu plan for your detox diet. You will want to make your menu as appetizing as possible for yourself, but don’t expect it to be as good as friend chicken or extra cheesy lasagna. With a little creativity and searching for recipes you can however find some very tasty meals.

Once you have created your menu plan, create a grocery list and go shopping the day before you start the detox. You are now ready to begin your raw food detox diet.

Generally the first couple days of any detox are the hardest days, so it is important to keep any temptations out of sight and as out of mind as possible. It may take a lot of will power but you will find as you are on the detox for longer that it will become easier, and believe me, when you start seeing those results of how much better you feel or how much weight you have lost, you will want to keep the detox going strong.

With the raw food diet it may be a little costly to purchase all of the fruits and vegetables that you will need, but it is important not to skimp or cheat. Some great meals you can make are fresh fruit salads, mixed salads with other various vegetables such as tomatoes, onions, parsley and other dressings, raw mixed vegetable soup, avocado and even raspberry and banana sorbet.

You should be able to find these special raw diet recipes as well as many others with just a little searching online. The important thing with a raw food detox diet is that you make a plan and stick with it.

By Jonathan Heusman

pH Balanced Diet For The Diabetic

2008-05-23T13:28:00.003+07:00

Diabetes is a hazardous disease. According to a survey, this is the third leading cause of death in the United States. This disease can cause death in children. The major reason for this disease and its adverse results on health is obesity. Obesity is also one of the major causes of the rising rates in the number of Type 2 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is common with the process of aging, high stress, poor nutrition and physical inactivity. All the above mentioned conditions can occur due to one common problem known as ‘Acidity’.

Lifestyles that consist of a lot of acidic foods have bad and adverse impacts on health. This is further proved by the rapid increase in the diabetes rates among people in most parts of the world.

Excess in take of foods containing acid can make Type 2 diabetes worse. The food habit affects liver, muscles and fat cells badly.

If you take a lot of caffeine, sugar, chocolate and carbohydrates, the body organs and tissues tend to get stimulated and the cells within release glucose.

This further leads to higher levels of blood sugar. The body cells are also disorganized and become highly acidic in state. This can further lead in to a good host of problems. You can suffer from high blood pressure, premature aging, inhibition of the burning of fat and inhibition of the release of glycogen from the liver.

Excess of stimulation of body tissues resulting from in take of acidic foods can do a lot of damage to the body. In fact, Type 2 diabetes is a common symptom of an acidic lifestyle you lead.

When bringing your body back in to balance, you should include a lot of alkalizing green vegetables, body friendly fats in to your diet. You can also consider including plant proteins from grains as well as legumes. It also helps in restoring your body’s previous homeostasis.

It would be a great idea to include the pH miracle diet in to your daily routine. This diet includes a balanced plan that tends to do a lot of good to your body.

Here is a pH balanced diet plan, especially meant for the diabetic:

1.Water
Drink at least eight glasses of water a day to make up for the loss of fluid from the body. This will help you staying away from dehydration. Dehydrated increases blood sugars. Hence, taking lots of water will do good to keep your sugar levels balanced and also let you lose some of the weight.

2.Fiber
Make sure that your diet is rich in fiber. It helps in stabilizing the glucose levels and also improves blood cholesterol. The food also helps in showing the rate of digestion as well as absorption of the nutrients. The fiber also works towards soaking up the extra bile acids that get converted in to blood cholesterol. This facilitates the person to fight diabetes and also in shedding off some extra weight.

3. Fruits and Vegetables
Your diet should also consist of fruits and vegetables that are higher in fiber content.

By Bertil Hjert

Lifes Changed by Smart Vegetarian Nutrition

2008-05-22T08:52:00.000+07:00

Once Albert Einstein said "Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet".

This could not have been closer to reality, but in those times people did not believe that a proper nutrition could be achieved without consuming animal related products. The truth is that as more information becomes available about the source of lifelong chronic diseases, it is clearer that our fate is in better hands if we shift our nutritional habits.

According to the American Dietetic Association, living a vegetarian life can change your health for the better. This is by avoiding the consumption of many of the elements which have been linked to chronic diseases such as Type 2 Diabetes, Hypertension, Heart Disease and even some types of Cancers.

The perception of vegetarians falling short on proteins, iron and zinc is officially seen as myth by the people who seek for better nutritional education and health. The vegetarian diet is the source of a cleaner and healthier protein than the type found in meats; there is sufficient iron and zinc to ensure proper balance in general nutrition. All this is possible without consuming the damaging animal fats and cholesterol.

Due to the preventing and healing properties of the right nutrition, vegetarians have shown to live 7 - 10 years longer than non vegetarians; vegetarian men have also managed to reduce their chances of cardiovascular diseases by 31 percent in men and 20 percent in women. In people with Hypertension, vegetarians have shown to have a lower systolic and diastolic measurement of about 5 - 10 mm HG. And Diabetes has been successfully prevented and managed by the fiber-rich, low fat vegetarian nutrition. Vegetarianism can also be beneficial to prevent and control Diverticular Disease, Renal Disease, Dementia and Obesity.

Becoming vegetarian doesn't limit its benefits to your personal health, but also to the life of those fellow animals, which are brutally killed to feed humans. It is also important to look at the environmental implications of raising livestock for mass consumption, the water resources of our countries are being contaminated and wasted to produce disease in mass proportions.

This information is of the public knowledge, but if we don't educate ourselves, our chances for having a healthy life are dramatically reduced. Education is power and control, reading about how fiber and omega 3 fatty acids can contribute to great health, while enjoying of great and tasty recipes even sounds too good to be true.

The truth is that we are what we eat, and the vegetarian diet is health. Let's educate ourselves and be healthier for our beautiful families, and let's protect the animals and the environment.

By Jovanky De Los Santos

Detoxification Diet - Can It Really Make a Difference?

2008-05-21T08:54:00.004+07:00

Detoxification has started to gain popularity, not just in the United States, but around the world as well. One of the reasons why it has gained so much popularity is because of the benefits that go along with the detoxification process.

What is Detoxification?

Detoxification is the process of ridding the body of harmful and destructive toxins, impurities, and pollutants. Detoxification involves:
1. Getting the tissues to release toxicity
2. Ensuring its elimination to the outside.

The second part of the equation is the most important of all, as you may be unleashing years of accumulated toxins that have been "safely" tucked away in your body’s blood, tissues, and organs.

With increased stress, poor diet, and environmental pollutants at an all time high, detoxification is the key to good health in our modern day lives. Since overload of toxins in the body is the underlying cause of several diseases, ridding the system of these dangerous chemicals is bound to be the most effective route towards long lasting health.

There are many ways to detoxify the human body - from regular exercise to body scrubs and spa massages, to foot patches, yoga and meditation. However, the simplest and the most common is to go on a detoxification diet.

Why A Detoxification Diet?

A Detoxification diet is critical to good health because our bodies are constantly bombarded with toxicity in our everyday lives. Most people can't avoid everyday pollutants altogether, but they can take steps to protect their health using a healing diet. Detoxification diets have been used since ancient times and they can regularly help to improve your health and make you feel better. Detoxification diets are designed not only to allow our body to rid itself of the toxic matter buildup, but to lose weight as well.

The body is constantly in a natural state of detoxification, but that is not enough. Changing the diet to a holistic one helps the body heal from this overload of toxins automatically.

In general, moving from an acid-generating diet to a more alkaline one will aid the process of detoxification. An important part of a detoxification diet should include consumption of water, herb teas, fruits and vegetables, vegetable juices, and unrefined sea salt.

Does Fasting Assist A Detoxification Diet?

Fasting is the single greatest natural healing therapy. Fasting means to abstain from food, or to eat very little or abstain from a certain type of food. Some detoxification diets include fasting. Fasting also helps remove toxins out of your joints and shifts them back into your digestive tract where they can be eliminated.

Fasting should never be undertaken without a proper understanding of its procedures. Because the body has a natural anti-oxidation system, long-term changes to the diet should always include a balance of the nutrients needed for the sustenance of the human body - carbohydrates, protein, unsaturated fat, vitamins, minerals and water. The same is advisable for any diet, cleansing or otherwise, in order to maintain optimal health.

How Can You Jump-Start Your Detoxification Diet?

Avoid environmental toxins wherever possible. Avoid processed, packaged or refined foods. Avoid eating excess fat, refined sugar and foods high in additives and preservatives. Eat moderate levels of protein (approximately 15% to 20% of your calories) and fat (approximately 20% of your calories), while increasing levels of complex carbohydrates (approximately 60% of your calories). Avoid storing and/or drinking water from plastic containers. Glass is best for storage.

Detoxification may not be easy, but if you make a strong commitment to yourself, you will reap the benefits in the end. The key is to find a detoxification diet that is right for you, and your lifestyle.

By Janine Wachowski

How to Find a Diet That Fits Your Nutrition Needs

2008-05-20T08:16:00.003+07:00

Living a balanced life and having a balanced diet is critical to maintaining sufficient energy levels. However, every individual needs something different. Several of these needs are based on the person 's physiological characteristics.

There are several different ways to find out what you should eat, and how much you should work out, as well as where the concentration should be. By understanding your physiological make-up, your nutrition needs can be more effectively met. The place to begin is your doctor 's office. You will need to have some tests to create the foundation of your diet and exercise plan.

One important measurement is your BMI - or Body Mass Index. It is a ratio derived by comparing your weight to your height. The results indicate how much of your body is comprised of fatty tissue. As may be expected, there is an optimal range for your BMI that depends on your height and weight.

Another important measurement is the RMR, or Resting Metabolic Rate. This measurement determines how many calories you burn while at rest. As with the BMI, there is an optimal level. Once you know these two numbers, you can get some good ideas about how to modify your diet and lifestyle.

Finally, you will need to know your cholesterol, fasting blood sugar, and blood pressure levels. Any one of these can limit the amount of exercise or type of exercise you can pursue, as well as the foods and diets you can try.

When it comes to calories, the three main items measured in nutrition studies are carbohydrates, proteins and fats. A complete analysis also evaluates for vitamins and minerals. All of these factors should be arranged in your diet in such a way that you get all of the recommended daily allowances of nutrients without having to resort to vitamins. Your diet plan should also take into account your level of exercise.

Other things that you should consider are dietary elements that can cause negative impacts on specific symptoms. As an example, beef is the only meat that offers every protein your body needs. At the same time, it is high in cholesterol. When you are changing your diet, therefore, it is important to keep track of your cholesterol levels, so that you can learn how your body is metabolizing certain foods.

Many times people seek diet and exercise programs because they found out their blood pressure may be too high or too low. Like high cholesterol, high blood pressure can lead to serious problems later in life. Both diet and exercise programs can serve to lower the blood pressure, as well as cholesterol levels. Some people, however, will need the help of medications or herbal supplements.

Once you have had your basic tests, and have decided on your exercise plan, you can begin to formulate your diet plan. This is not especially complicated. Basically, what you put in your body will have predictable results on how healthy you look and feel. There is a bit of effort to researching, and then measuring all of the nutritional values you will need to keep track of. In addition, you will need to do some tweaking and refining as you go along to adapt the basic diet and exercise plans to your individual body.

Knowing your unique physiological profile is an important part of developing and maintaining good diet and exercise habits. It will also help you to be able to find the right solutions to your nutrition needs. With some basic information and a sound plan, you will easily be able to control your weight, maintain your fitness goals, and have plenty of energy.

By Scott Meyers

Revealed! The truth about the Zone diet

2008-05-19T10:07:00.004+07:00

The Zone diet is the latest nutrition strategy that promises to improve athletic performance, reduce body fat and increase muscle mass. It recommends consuming 40% of your daily caloric intake in the form of carbohydrate, 30% as protein, with fat making up the other 30%.

Despite its popularity, there is little evidence that the recommendations made in The Zone Diet can improve athletic performance. However, it is essentially a restricted calorie diet. For individuals wanting to lose body fat, there is no reason why the Zone diet would not prove effective.

This type of diet is nothing new. In fact, the Greek long-distance runner Stymphalos claimed that a meat based diet (rather than the vegetarian diet popular with most Greek Olympians) was responsible for his Olympic victories in the fifth century BC.

The Zone diet is based primarily on protein intake. Dr. Barry Sears, the author of The Zone Diet, suggests consuming between 0.8 and 1.0g of protein per pound of lean body mass. For a hypothetical individual weighing 180lb, with a body fat percentage of 12%, daily protein intake would work out between 127g and 158g per day. Because protein should represent 30% of daily caloric intake, daily fat consumption would be 70g, with carbohydrate intake at 211g. The daily energy requirement of the Zone diet for a 180lb individual works out at approximately 2106 calories.

According to Dr. Sears, this dietary regimen results in a greater delivery of oxygen to the working muscles, a condition known as "the Zone". However, Dr. Sears has come in for a good deal of criticism from exercise scientists, mainly because the Zone diet directly challenges several long-standing assumptions.

A reduction in carbohydrate intake can harm your performance

Firstly, the Zone diet suggests a daily carbohydrate intake comprising 40% of total energy consumption. For a male weighing 180lb, this represents 211g of carbohydrate per day. Such a recommendation is in sharp contrast to the majority of scientific research, which shows that carbohydrate is essential for regular physical activity.

For example, a recent study compared the effects of different levels of carbohydrate intake on the performance of two Swedish ice hockey team. Both teams took part in two games separated by three days. During this three-day gap, the players were assigned to one of two groups. The first group consumed a normal mixed diet that provided around 40% of energy from carbohydrate. Group two had their diet supplemented with extra carbohydrate. Energy from carbohydrate in the second group represented 60% of total energy intake.

The study clearly showed an improvement in physical performance in the high carbohydrate group. Simply put, a diet containing only 40% of its calories from carbohydrate was insufficient to meet the energy needs of elite athletes.

Protein intake

The Zone diets' recommendations for daily protein intake are a little closer to the mark. The amount of protein required by those participating in regular exercise sessions remains a topic of considerable debate. Nevertheless, there is research to show that both endurance and strength exercise increase protein requirements.

The Zone diet can accelerate fat loss

The Zone diet does not provide enough energy to meet the needs of a competitive athlete. However, because it is essentially a restricted calorie diet, the recommendations made in The Zone Diet may prove useful for those wanting to lose weight. Its suggestions to consume high levels of protein may also serve to enhance fat loss.

A recent Danish study, published in the International Journal of Obesity, compared the effects of a high protein and a high carbohydrate diet on weight loss. A group of 60 subjects followed a restricted calorie diet for six months. The participants were assigned to either a high carbohydrate or high protein diet. Those on the high protein diet consumed approximately 24% of their calories from fat, 46% from carbohydrate, and 29% from protein. The diet for subjects on the high carbohydrate diet consisted of 28% from fat, 59% from carbohydrate, and 12% from protein. Scientists found that the high protein group lost almost twice as much fat as those on the high carbohydrate diet.

Notice the similarity between the nutrient distribution in the high protein diet (46/29/24) and the recommendations in the Zone diet (40/30/30). The group following the high protein diet consumed 11.3 calories for every pound of bodyweight each day - similar to the 11.7 calories per pound of bodyweight suggested by the Zone diet.

After analyzing the dietary intake of the groups, the research team realized those on the high protein diet had eaten less food. This accounted for the greater weight loss. There were several possible explanations for this reduction in food intake.

Protein has a higher satiating (pronounced say-she-ate-ing) effect than carbohydrate. In other words, you feel less hungry when consuming a diet high in protein.

A high protein intake seems able to suppress the following days energy intake to a greater extent than carbohydrate.

The digestion of protein requires far more energy than digesting carbohydrates. This may have slightly increased caloric expenditure in subjects on the high protein diet.

The bottom line

The Zone diet has come in for a good deal of criticism from exercise scientists. However, it is essentially a restricted calorie diet. For individuals wanting to lose body fat, there is no reason why the Zone diet would not prove effective.

It's unrealistic to expect that athletes will experience any significant improvements in performance as a result of the Zone diet. The recommendations for both carbohydrate and caloric intakes are not sufficient to meet the energy requirements of regular daily training.

In the words of Samuel Cheuvront, an exercise scientist at Florida State University,

"When it comes to improving performance through diet, athletes would be well advised to steer clear of the Zone."

By Christian Finn

Do You Know All the Benefits of a High-Fiber Diet?

2008-05-18T09:53:00.001+07:00

Forget the fads—a diet high in fiber is much more effective and beneficial than the Atkins Diet or Negative Calorie Diet could ever be. The benefits of a high fiber diet are never ending. Not only does such a diet promote weight loss, but it can solve many health problems as well. Additionally, a diet high in fiber can help to prevent many dangerous disorders and conditions.

High Fiber Foods For Weight Loss

One of the many benefits of a high fiber diet is weight loss. Fiber expands in your stomach and takes up a greater volume; thus, it makes you feel fuller and less likely to consume excess food.

High fiber foods, by nature, also tend to be less calorie dense. This means that they contain fewer calories in the same amount of food. Finally, weight loss is one of the many benefits of a high fiber diet because foods with fiber generally take longer to chew, which means that your body has more time to register that it is full.

Fiber Fights Health Problems

Many health problems, such as digestive problems, are caused by a fiber deficiency. Thus, one of the benefits of a high fiber diet is that it reduces or eliminates these health problems, which can include constipation and cramps. If you are unable to consume enough high-fiber foods, taking fiber supplements is also an option that provides the same benefits.

Preventative Measures

Fiber can also help to prevent many genetic conditions and diseases. One example is type-two diabetes. Prevention of type-two diabetes is one great benefit of a high fiber diet.

Because fiber slows the absorption of sugar, it not only is beneficial for people who are trying to prevent diabetes, but it is also beneficial to people who have diabetes because it can improve blood sugar levels.

Another disorder that a high fiber diet can help to prevent is heart conditions. Heart conditions are often caused by blood cholesterol levels that are too high. Fiber helps to lower blood cholesterol levels; thus, it also helps to prevent heart conditions.

Improve Your Health

Overall, the benefits of a high fiber diet indicate that it is a more successful and effective way of managing your health levels than engaging in fad diets and other weight loss programs. If you want to improve not only your weight, but your overall health, consider the benefits that a high fiber diet might provide.

By Terry Roberts

How Do Protein And Carbohydrates Relate to Weight Loss?

2008-05-17T08:35:00.003+07:00

If you’ve been dieting, the terms, “protein” and “carbohydrate” are probably very familiar to you. A few short months ago many new diets such as Atkins and South Beach became popular. These diets are typically very high in protein and low in carbohydrates.

Foods such as bread, cereal, pasta and fruit are usually eliminated. These diets may result in temporary weight loss, but are often not nutritionally sound. They are high in saturated fat and cholesterol, and have the potential to cause other health problems. These “do it yourself “ diets have no medical monitoring to take care of problems if they arise, and offer nothing to change the eating habits that led to the weight problem in the first place.

If you don’t eat carbohydrates your body will not produce adequate levels of insulin. Likewise, if you eat a lot of protein your body will produce too much glucagon. Eating a balanced diet helps keep your body’s blood sugar levels constant and will increase the sue of stored fat as fuel. Eating too many carbohydrates may cause your insulin levels to increase and store excess carbohydrates as fat, instead of using them as fuel.

Let’s look at protein and carbohydrates more closely. Most Americans get more protein in their diets than necessary. The recommended Daily Allowance is 8 grams of protein per kilogram of ideal body weight. This means that a woman with an ideal weight of 132 pounds would require 48 grams of protein per day. This could be supplied by eating the following foods in one day: four ounces of meat, one cup of milk, four slices of bread, and two servings of vegetables.

A man with an ideal weight of 176 pounds requires 64 grams of protein per day. Five ounces of meat, two cups of milk, five slices of bread and two servings of vegetables would meet a mans daily needs. Many people greatly exceed their protein needs with intakes of over 100 grams per day. Since the body doesn’t store excess protein, this extra amount is converted to energy and may end up stored as fat.

Now we come to carbohydrates. If you’ve been avoiding these, it’s going to take you awhile to get used to the idea that they’re “OK”. They even play a crucial role in weight loss. What are the functions of carbohydrates? Besides being the body’s primary and preferred source of energy at only 4 calories per gram, carbohydrates also do the following:

Protein sparing – When carbohydrates are provided, the body won’t break down muscle tissue for energy.

Fat Metabolism – Carbohydrates assist in the chemical reactions that break down fat for energy. Biochemists have a saying, “fat burns in a flame of carbohydrate.”

Despite all the hype, research confirms that low-carb diets do not perform better in the long term when compared to diets that incorporate essential carbohydrates. Leading nutrition and medical groups caution against the use of low-carb diets because of the increased risk for such serious health problems such as kidney and liver disorders, gout, coronary heat disease, diabetes, stoke and several types of cancer. Although weight loss is an important goal, choosing a healthy way to lose the weight is what really matters.

By Glenn Freiboth

3 Reasons Why the Mediterranean Diet is Good for Men

2008-05-16T09:55:00.000+07:00

One of the primary concerns of a growing number of men the world over is finding a diet and exercise plan that will assist in ensuring that they are in optimal health. In recent years, a significant number of men have found themselves attracted to the Mediterranean diet. These men have come to learn that the Mediterranean is a solid choice for assisting them in developing a comprehensive regimen for health living.

There are a number of reasons why the Mediterranean diet is proving itself to be good for men of all ages.

1. Reduces the Risks of Some Serious Diseases

Over the course of the past thirty years, a number of research studies have been conducted pertaining to the Mediterranean diet regimen. These studies have produced results that demonstrate that the Mediterranean diet can prove effective in reducing the incidence of a number of serious diseases and ailments in men.

The diseases in men that the Mediterranean diet appears to help prevent include:

- cancer
- heart and cardiovascular disease
- hypertension
- gallstones
- stroke
- diabetes

2. Effective in Helping Men Reach and Keep an Ideal Weight

Many men are confronting problems related with being overweight and obesity. Indeed, in some countries, obesity is becoming the number one health concern amongst men of all ages.

Because the Mediterranean diet includes the consumption of generous portions of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean meats, the diet can be very effective in assisting a man in bringing his weight down do a healthy, ideal level.

In addition to assisting men in fighting obesity and bringing their weight down to a healthy level, the Mediterranean diet is effective in aiding men to maintain a healthy weight over time. While it is one thing for a person to be able to lose weight, it is a completely different challenge for a man to be able to keep weight off over the long term. The Mediterranean diet has proven itself time and again as being a solid dietary program through which a person can maintain a healthy weight.

3. Adding Years to a Man’s Life

Throughout history, the males who have populated the region in and around the Mediterranean Sea have been found to live lives longer than their counterparts in other parts of the world. In time, experts in the field of nutrition were able to demonstrate that men in the Mediterranean region lived longer because of their diets.

Scientists and other researchers have been able to demonstrate that there are positive, cumulative effects associated with the Mediterranean diet. In other words, by utilizing and following the Mediterranean diet over time, a man’s life (in many instances) will be extended. In addition to having the chance to live a longer life because of dietary decisions, a man’s life will be healthier and more robust because of his adherence to the Mediterranean diet scheme.

Conclusion:
Over the course of generations, the Mediterranean diet has proven itself an effective means of:

- preventing serious diseases
- maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle
- prolonging life (in a healthy fashion)

As a result, when it comes to a stable, reliable and effective diet program, more and more men the world over are finding themselves turning to and relying upon the Mediterranean diet in the 21st century.

By Ray Darken

The South Beach Diet - Is This Diet Right For Everyone?

2008-05-14T08:21:00.003+07:00

The South Beach Diet is far more than just a diet. It is life changing. Unlike many other diets that are often only undertaken for a short period of time it needs a lot of will-power and determination to succeed. If you are prepared to change what you eat for the long term it will not only help you to lose weight but it will also help prevent the pounds from creeping back too. The secret behind its success is that your cravings for foods that are high in unhealthy carbohydrates are reduced as you eat only those that are good for you.

Is this diet right for everyone?

Put simply, no. As with any type of diet, the South Beach Diet is not ideally suited to everyone. The main reason that many people find that the diet does not work for them is because it requires a huge amount of will-power and determination to succeed, especially in the beginning of the plan. This is the first of the three stages that make up the diet.

There are a small number of foods that are prohibited on the diet and there are also strict guidelines that need to be followed if the diet is going to prove successful. Many people who start the diet find that they cannot adhere to the plan for long and give up.

Dr. Arthur Agatston, a cardiologist, developed the South Beach Diet. The main emphasis of the diet is to cut down the amount of carbohydrates that are consumed. Although a few foods are banned from the beginning of the diet, the majority of foods can be eaten.

However, Dr. Agatston stresses the benefits of eating 'good fats' and explains the effects of processed foods on our blood sugar levels and insulin responses. Although the diet plan might not be one that everyone can adhere to, its philosophy plays an important role in educating us about the value of good nutrition. The diet's website is full of information to help us eat better and also includes recipes and meal plans, including some for vegetarians.

How to maximise your diet success

There are a number of points that can help increase the benefits of the South Beach Diet. Here are three of the most important:

1. Drink a minimum of 8 glasses of water daily

Water is essential for many of the body's functions and the recommended minimum daily amount that we should drink is 8 glasses. Sipping water, if you are feeling hungry, can also alleviate your craving for food.

One tip for people who do not enjoy drinking water in its natural form is to flavour it with a small amount of juice. Watered down tea or coffee can also form part of your daily intake. Remember that water also helps your hair and skin look healthier as well as curbing your appetite.

2. Limit the daily caffeine intake

The recommended daily intake of caffeine is one cup of tea or coffee a day. If you love your morning tea or coffee you can still drink them to count towards your daily water intake but limit it to one. Throughout the rest of the day why not try herbal teas or decaffeinated coffee. You will probably find that you feel far less stressed too with your caffeine levels lowered.

3. Take one multivitamin supplement daily

No matter how well-balanced your diet is the majority of people do not get the full amount of the essential vitamins and minerals from the food that they eat. This can be accentuated when you are on any dietary plan. The simplest way to ensure that you are not deficient in any vitamins or minerals is to take a multivitamin supplement daily.

The South Beach Diet is reasonably simple to adhere to if you are determined to succeed and have enough willpower. There are lots of recipes that you can try out, both in the book of the diet and on the Internet. The choice is sufficient that even the fussiest of eaters is bound to find something that takes their fancy.

The weight loss achieved on the diet can be very rapid, especially in the initial two weeks. This is the first stage of the South Beach Diet and the target weight loss is 8-13 pounds. If you achieve this then it is likely to motivate you even further to continue the diet. By the end of the first stage your cravings for any banned foods should also have lessened considerably.

The aim of Stage Two is to achieve your target weight. Once you have reached this, you move into Stage Three where you maintain your ideal weight and prevent the weight from piling back on. This is where the lifestyle change that the South Beach Diet incorporates takes effect and why it has a high rate of success for people who reach the final stage.

The South Beach Diet is far more than just a diet. It is life changing. Unlike many other diets that are often only undertaken for a short period of time, it needs a lot of willpower and determination to succeed. If you are prepared to change what you eat for the long term, it will not only help you to lose weight but it will also help prevent the pounds from creeping back too.

About Author:
Brooke Hayles. Check Out More Helpful Information About South Beach Diet For FREE! Visit southbeachdietvault.com > South Beach Diet Vault now!

Balanced Diets – for Quick & Healthy Weight Loss

2008-05-13T07:25:00.001+07:00

There are many balanced diets and you can choose whichever one you want or construct one from the general guidelines below.

The advantage of a balanced diet is in the title it's balanced and can give you everything you need, so you are healthy and lose weight as well.

Here are some tips on balanced diets and how they will help you lose weight.

The advantage of balanced diets is that they allow you to maintain weight control naturally rather than having to give up a food group or do to fad or crash diets which are un healthy and don't work.

What are Balanced Diets?

Most nutrition experts agree that balanced diets are based on three basic concepts:

1. Balance

Most health professionals recommend a diet consisting of a balance as follows:

Carbohydrate intake : 55-65%
Protein intake 10-20%
Fats Up to 15 - 25%

2. Moderation

Many dieting programs are successful simply because they are very good at helping people learn to plan portion size.

Generally the accepted wisdom is that meals should be eaten 3 - 5 times a day and this will have the affect of decreasing hunger pangs and the desire to over eat.

You can eat the meals at anytime of day and one rule is always eat breakfast it's the most important meal of the day.

3. Variation

All healthy diets involve the inclusion of several food-types.

The primary reason for this is by including variety in your diet, you increase your chances of obtaining the required amounts of essential nutrients you need

Vitamin and mineral composition is food-specific, so you need to eat a wide variety of foods to get all the essential nutrients for overall health.

Variation means you won't get bored, and allows you to enjoy a variety of different foods.

If you check one of the world's healthiest diets it's the Japanese diet. The Japanese tend to eat a greater variety of different foods and people tend to be less obese and live longer than with any other diet

The Composition of a Balanced Diet:

Fruit and Vegetables

Eating healthily means at least 5 portions a day - this includes fruit juices in any form. Also included in this group are beans, like baked beans, pulses and lentils.

Good carbohydrates
In this group you should also aim for 5 portions daily.
This group includes cereals, pasta, rice, noodles, oats, bread and boiled jacket potatoes. You should aim to include at least one food from this group at each meal.

Dairy Foods
In this group, 2-3 servings daily should be the aim and the group includes: milk, cheese and yogurt which are good but restrict the amount of butter, eggs and cream.

Meat, Fish, and Alternatives

In this group aim for 2-3 servings, this group includes: eggs, poultry, meat and fish and derivatives such as beef burgers and fishcakes.

You should choose lean meat such as fish or chicken without skin and only have burgers and fishcakes occasionally as treats. Alternative sources of protein such as nuts, tofu, mycoprotein, vegetable protein and kidney beans.

Foods Containing Fat, and Foods Containing Sugar

In a balanced diet you are always best to eat naturally from the earth and only eat a small amount of processed foods are foods high in saturated fats such as butter, mayonnaise, cream, crisps and fried foods, cakes, ice cream and carbonated drinks.

It is essential to include a small amount of fat in your diet, but the emphasis should be on unsaturated fats, for example: olive, sunflower and corn oil and oily fish such as salmon and mackerel.

Balanced diets will lose you weight

A balanced diet will lose you weight if you learn portion control, which will allow you to eat a bit of everything including your favorites. Man was designed to eat a balanced diet and not restrict or eliminate specific food groups. You wont ever feel hungry you will healthy and you will lose weight quickly and keep it off.

The above are general guidelines for you to customize for your own use, just simply follow the guidelines for health and weight control.

More info: On all aspects of healthy nutrition and healthy and balanced diets visit our website for a huge resource of articles, features and downloads and at http://www.net-planet.org/index.html

By sacha tarkovsky

What types of Diet are best Cholesterol Lowering Diet?

2008-05-11T08:20:00.003+07:00

Cholesterol refers waxy and fatty like substance that is formed in the body. Our liver is primarily responsible for developing cholesterol in our body system. It is an important substance that supports various vital functions in our body such as maintaining healthy cellular walls, building hormones and vitamin D. Also, it helps in building bile acids in our body that gives support to the digestion of fat in particular.

However, there is a saying that "too much of anything is good for noting" and it is also true in this case. Sometimes, our body produces cholesterol more than actually required. High level of cholesterol in our blood stream always puts us in high risk by increasing the possibility of heart diseases and strokes.

Diet plays a significant role in the management of cholesterol in our body system. The level of cholesterol in our body increases if we eat excessive amount of saturated fat in our diet.

The saturated fat is common in animal based foods like meat and dairy products. So it is always recommended that you should maintain a healthy diet in order to have a good control on your level of cholesterol. Let us discuss few guidelines for cholesterol lowering diets:

Diet low in saturated fat

In general, the food we take in our regular diet is a combination of saturated and unsaturated fat. Saturated fat actually increases the cholesterol level in our blood. It is primarily found from animal products such as meat, dairy products, and lard as well as also from few vegetable oils like coconut oil and palm oil.

So it is always advisable that you should stay away from all these substances if you have a high cholesterol level or even if you have a family history of the same. You can always alter your diet from these apparently harmful substances to cholesterol lowering diets full of green vegetables and fruits – they are really beneficial for your health.

Diet low in total fat

It is always recommended that you should have a minimum level of fat in your regular diet. It is because the food high in total fat has a high level of saturated fat. It is always better that you must substitute your fat food with unsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat for saturated one.

If you like to include unsaturated fat in your diet, you may depend on having olive oil or canola oil in your cholesterol lowering diet, whereas, for polyunsaturated diet, safflower oil, sunflower oil or corn flower oil can be a good choice for you.

Diet low in cholesterol

Dietary cholesterol increases the level of cholesterol in your blood. So it is always advisable that you select your diet low in cholesterol. Generally, animal products are high in dietary cholesterol, so refrain from it in your cholesterol lowering diet as much as possible even if you have a family history of high cholesterol level.

Diet high in starch and fiber

It is highly recommended that you must add starch and fiber in your regular diet to make it a cholesterol lowering diet. It is available in green vegetables, fruits, breads, grains, corns, dry beans, peas and cereals. It offers a low calorie diet compared to high fat food.

Not only that, it also aids in deriving a good amount of vitamins and minerals. If you are able to switch your diet from saturated to the diet full of starch and fiber, certainly it will enhance your health condition.

Of course, it will help you lowering the level of cholesterol in your blood. The bright colored fruits also help in preventing cholesterol from being chemically altered due to its antioxidant property.

Following a low fat diet always increases the possibility to have a healthy system. It will help you reducing calories, extra fat and weight from your body. Obesity is truly threatening for developing heart disease, diabetes and even cancer. Overweight definitely increases the risk high blood cholesterol level.

To fight with obesity, you must maintain a healthy cholesterol lowering diet along with regular exercise.

Dr John Anne is an herbal specialist with years of experience and extensive research on herbs and alternative health. If you are looking for more information, read about Cholesterol Lowering Diet. If you are looking for Dental related problems then visit Gum Diseases Treatment.

Some Ideas To Help Make Weight Loss Fun

2008-05-10T08:26:00.001+07:00

Everywhere we look there's weight loss programs promising to help you lose weight. The problem is finding a legitimate weight program. Although finding time to exercise may be difficult, it is the best way to lose weight, and of course eating right. Once you find an exercise program that is fun it wont be hard to stick with it.

Spinning

If you are ready for a sweaty workout that will burn tons of calories here you go. Spinning incorporates the skills of mountain biking. Of course there are a few differences in spinning and mountain biking. With spinning you stay in one spot, there is only one wheel which has adjustable resistance, and the handle bars are adjustable. When you start you will probably be sore due to the machines ability to change resistance like you are going up and down hills. Once you get the hang of spinning you can adjust the level of your workout by moving the handles, and adjust the resistance. Some gyms suggest the use of a heart monitor to help get you in the right range for optimum fat burning.

Belly Dancing

Belly dancing classes are another great way to have some fun and learn a new dance, all while burning calories. This is a great way to learn some new moves while toning your abdomen. You will start by learning the basics on how to move your hips and waist and then move on to some of the more complicated and exotic moves that make belly dancing so entertaining. A healthy diet, and brisk walking may help you achieve your goal even faster than just belly dancing alone.

Step Aerobics

Step aerobics became very popular in the eighties, and is making a comeback. With step aerobics you need a step so that you can change the difficulty level of your workout. You will start with the instructor leading a warm up, and then right into the fat burning. The fast pace and use of the step and your arms will insure a great workout and fat burn for you. Combining step aerobics with strength training will get you the optimum results you are looking for.

Videos

If you are not a person who can or wants to go to the gym you might like to try at home videos. There are many different types of workout videos to choose from, and you can exercise from the privacy of your own home. You can choose exercises such as boot camp, dancing, Pilates, and many more. Choose a workout plan that works for you and your schedule. The more fun you have the easier it will be to stick with the program and achieve your weight loss goal.

Gregg Hall is an author living in Navarre Florida. Find more about this as well as Natural Weight Loss at www.naturalweightlossplus.com.

The Balanced Diet

2008-05-09T07:56:00.000+07:00

What is a "balanced diet"? What can you do to obtain maximum benefits from the food you eat? DietDoc answers a few crucial questions.

Food Groups
Modern man and especially modern, western man, is faced with a bewildering number of foods to choose from. Compared to our ancestors and rural people in Africa, people living in South African cities have so many different foods to choose from, that it is quite understandable that they get confused. However, the basic food groups have remained the same, only the variety in each group has expanded dramatically.

If you stop and think for a moment about the foods you eat, you will see that they can be classified into a number of broad categories, namely:

- Fruit and vegetable group
- Grains and cereal group
- Milk and dairy group
- Meat, fish and egg group
- Fat and oil group.

Of course most foods, and especially prepared or processed foods, can contain ingredients from more than one of these food groups, e.g. potato crisps are made of potatoes (fruit and vegetable group), but they also contain a lot of fat.

Most people are able to work out for themselves which group a food belongs to. Just be logical and don’t kid yourself. Taking the potato crisp example, most people would not classify this food as a vegetable, but they know that this is a high-fat food and that it can make one gain weight when eaten in excess.

The Fruit and Vegetable Group
This is probably the most important group when it comes to good health. Fruit and vegetables, which are derived from living plants, are rich in health-promoting nutrients such as beta-carotene, vitamins A and C (powerful antioxidants), minerals, dietary fibre (wonderful for regularity and reducing the energy content of the diet), and bioflavonoids (protective against many diseases).

Because fruit and vegetables contain so many protective nutrients, they should be eaten in large quantities and everyone should try and eat five or more portions a day.

A typical example would be eating an apple, an orange, half a cup of grated carrots, a green salad and drinking a glass of fruit juice to obtain those vital five portions a day. This food group protects against the degenerative diseases associated with the western lifestyle, such as heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, diverticulitis and a suppressed immune system.

The Grain and Cereal Group
This food group is also called the carbohydrate or starchy food group. Unfortunately about 30 years ago a prominent researcher called Prof Yudkin, proposed a theory that carbohydrates in general, and sugar in particular, were the cause of all the ills that plague humanity, especially obesity.

The good Professor did a remarkable job. Not only did his theory result in sugars and starchy foods becoming the pariahs of the western food world, but this bad press also rubbed off on all the other carbohydrate foods. We are still feeling the negative effects of his campaign today.

Ask any person at random which foods they should cut out to be healthy and to lose weight, and they will answer, "carbohydrates".

The opposite is actually true as has been proved over and over again ever since Prof Yudkin launched his attack on sugars and starches in the 1960s. But the basic idea has stuck and now it is difficult to convince the modern public to accept carbohydrate foods as the wonderful, healthy staples they really are.

There is a lot of evidence that people who eat mainly unprocessed starches and carbohydrates, cereals and grains, are very healthy and don’t suffer from the diseases associated with our western lifestyle.

Rural African tribes who have diets based on grain (millet, sorghum, maize), fruit and vegetables, and sour milk, to which small quantities of foods derived from animals such as meat, are added, do not develop heart disease, stroke, and most cancers. These people are also not obese. The answer to our ever increasing epidemic of obesity, heart and blood vessel disease, cancer and digestive problems, is to return to eating plenty of starchy, unprocessed cereals and grains.

The ideal is to make the bulk of each meal a carbohydrate-rich food, e.g. eat a bowl of unsifted maize meal, Maltabella or oats porridge, or high-fibre cereal, plus wholewheat toast for breakfast. Or have wholewheat sandwiches for lunch if you are at work and base your evening meal on jacket potatoes, brown rice, pasta, samp, or boiled crushed wheat.

The cereals and grains group is our best source of B vitamins, vitamin E, essential minerals and trace elements (zinc, copper, selenium, magnesium, potassium), dietary fibre and polyphenols. These nutrients protect us against heart disease, many different kinds of cancer, diabetes and obesity.

Eat two or more portions of the cereal and grain group at each meal and you will be healthier, live longer and gain less weight. Just remember to select only unprocessed or minimally processed starches and grains to get the greatest benefit. - (Dr I.V. van Heerden, DietDoc)

Getting Close Up With The Zone Diet Plan

2008-05-09T07:43:00.005+07:00

The Zone Diet Plan (ZDP) is a significantly more effective way to lose excess weight and get in shape. It's a lifestyle, and is centred around promoting a permanent, long lasting improvement in every aspect of health, while helping you achieve that film-star body you've always wanted. Almost instantly you'll see both a mental and physical improvement, with better moods, improved focus and decreased body fat with more energy and enthusiasm for life.

The physical and mental benefits of the diet are charted in recent research which backs up the conventional idea of a proportionate diet, but documents figures for the first time, which correlate precisely with the recommendations in the ZDP. And it's not that hard to manage either.

Most people think the ZDP is hard to live by, and requires tons of effort, but this simply isn't the case. With a bit of know how, you can take your body down to its natural healthy weight, leaving you feeling fantastic and looking radiant.

So where do you start? It all comes down to knowing the basics of the plan, which is that you should aim for your calorie intake in each day to correspond with the 'healthy' ratio as indicated by recent research, that is 40:30:30 (40% carbs:30% proteins: 30% fats).

The plan helps achieve this by breaking it down further: make sure that in every meal or every snack, you abide by these proportions, which will see the destruction of body fat and the build up of leaner, firmer muscle.

The basic premise of the ZDP is eat everything, but everything in moderation. Don't throw out the chocolate, it's allowed! If you make sure you take everything in moderation, you'll achieve a healthy balanced diets with all the necessary components to leave you feeling great.

Also, combine your diet with some light to moderate exercise: go for a walk, or a swim, or a cycle in the park. That way, you'll help to maximise the calories you're burning, whilst maintaining a healthy controlled diet which will see those pounds vanish even sooner!

There are loads of recipes you can find online, which help to keep you on the right tracks. If your still not convinced, there are loads of websites with comments and testimonials to let you know that this diet really does work. It's a scientific fact that by living your life according to the zone diet plan, you will lose weight and ultimately gain the sexy body you always longed for.

If you're not convinced about this diet, or any diet plan for that matter, it is best to seek advice from your physician who will be better placed to determine your suitability for weight loss based on your current overall standard of health. This is the best practice for avoiding complications, and losing that excess weight safely and healthily.

So give it a go - the zone diet plan has worked for thousands nationwide - why don't you join the dieting revolution?

Clive Jenkins recommends the Zone Diet Delivery website providing comprehensive information on Zone Diets. To find articles, tips and free info and advice check out the site here: www.zonediet-delivery.com

High Blood Pressure Food - How Diet Helps with Hypertension

2008-05-08T06:21:00.003+07:00

When you discover that you have hypertension or pre-hypertension, the first thing doctors do, they prescribe medication. However, the right diet can dramatically reduce your blood pressure as well, sometimes so much that you will not need any drugs. Find out what a high blood pressure diet is and how you can easily incorporate it into your lifestyle.

An ideal diet for high blood pressure will be:
- Low in sodium (salt)
- Low in saturated fats and cholesterol
- High in antioxidants and vitamins
- High in potassium and magnesium

In other words, a diet generally associated with healthy living and a high blood pressure diet has a lot in common. Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t mean at all that all you will have to eat from now on is steamed broccoli. For example, the best thing for high blood pressure diet is to go for a baked potato rather than French fries or a chicken sandwich not a hamburger. The most important thing is to limit foods that lead to increasing blood pressure.

The easiest way to maintain a diet that will help with high blood pressure control is to prepare meals yourself from fresh products rather than eat prepackaged food. Almost all precooked meals are high in sodium, saturated fat and cholesterol, while low in other important nutrients. Home cooking takes more time of course, but there are plenty of healthy and incredibly tasty recopies that take only 15-20 minutes to cook.

The recommended sodium intake for people with hypertension is less than 3000 mg a day, and an average American consumes 7000 to 9000 mg... A good way to cut down on salt is to stay away from packaged condiments. Would you believe that just one serving of ordinary tomato sauce usually contains about 250 mg of sodium? That will be additional 250 mg, to a meal that already contains salt. The same can be said about most salad dressings. Using a spoon of olive oil instead of bottled salad dressing on your salad will make a great difference.

Foods high in potassium and magnesium

Now when you know what foods to avoid, let’s talk about what foods are beneficial. Most fruits and vegetables are good because they are low in fat, cholesterol and sodium (that is unless you add salt to them, of course). But the most beneficial veggies and fruits are the ones that are high in magnesium and potassium. Both minerals have been proved to reduce blood pressure.

Best foods for potassium are:
- Apricots
- Sultanas and Raisins
- All Bran
- Figs
- Dried mixed fruit
- Most Seeds and nuts average (unsalted)
- Potatoes
- Tomatoes
- Avocados
- Bananas

For magnesium look at:
- Black Beans
- Broccoli
- Peanuts
- Oysters
- Scallops
- Soy milk
- Spinach
- Whole grain cereal
- Whole wheat bread

Consult a physician for best high blood pressure diet

Everybody should follow general food recommendations to lower you blood pressure. However, there might be specific foods that you in particular should avoid or add to your diet. The reason is that as most people, you may have not only high blood pressure, but other health problems and your diet should address them all.

Also if you are overweight, that can greatly affect your blood pressure. The first thing you doctor will suggest is to choose a diet that will help you lose weight. While if your weight is normal, your diet will be different.

Diet to prevent high blood pressure

As they say, to prevent is always better than to cure, so even if you don’t have any problems with blood pressure, it is a good idea to follow high blood pressure diet. Many studies have shown that hypertension is hereditary, so you should be particularly careful if your parents suffer from high blood pressure.

By Tanya Turner

Understanding The Zone Diet

2008-05-08T06:12:00.001+07:00

The Zone Diet consists of watching what you eat to maintain proper insulin and is similar to the concepts of low-glycemic dietary principals. Barry Sears, a former researcher in biotechnology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, believes that controlling the levels of insulin will lead to a health happy life.

Another concept in the Zone Diet is the natural maintenance of eicosanoids. These are hormone like compounds formed by body tissues during self-healing responses to stimuli. They are formed from highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFA) that we acquire only by eating essential fatty acids (EFA) in foods or supplements.

The Zone is achieved when insulin and hormone levels are in a balanced state of homeostasis. If insulin levels aren't too high, or two low, findings suggest that other hormone levels also find a better balance which results in better energy and a better feeling of a sense of wellness.

The principals of the Zone Diet suggest a moderate intake of protein, fat and carbohydrates. All carbs should come from low-glycemic sources which take longer to absorb and therefore induce a more mild insulin response. All fat sources should come from high quality fats, of fish and vegetable origins, but again they should be unprocessed whenever possible. The processing done to make vegetable oils (fats) generally serves to make them more harmful than unprocessed fats from the same sources.

Because most people are challenged to obtain high-quality levels of good dietary fats, the Zone Diet recommends that supplements of fish oils be utilized. When selecting a fish oil supplement, make sure that it is third party certified to be free of toxins.

A process called "molecular distillation" has been proven to safely extract the essential fatty acids and leave all other toxins behind. If you do not choose a fish oil that is proven to be toxin free, you could be at risk of ingesting heavy metals and other industrial toxins which are stored in the fat tissues of cold water fish.

Overall there isn't a substantial amount of medical evidence to support Dr Sears' theories for the Zone Diet although many have claimed that the diet has worked well for them. Principals of low-glycemic eating, which overlap some of the Zone Diet recommendations, have been clinically proven to lower cholesterol and improve insulin response, so there is good science that overlaps with the Zone Diet. Might this be the right diet for you? Do you own research and then consult a doctor before making any dietary change in case you happen to have any risk factors which might put you in danger.

Dave Saunders is a professional lecturer, and certified nutritional educator. He enjoys creating interconnections through his writings and lectures to help others create context and see new discoveries and technologies in more a practical light. You can find out more about new discoveries in health and nutrition at www.glycoboy.com.

Dining Out on The South Beach Diet

2008-05-07T08:54:00.001+07:00

You have a busy life. Chances are that work and family keep you the go, and preparing home-cooked meals may be difficult because of time constraints. Finding a healthy lunch in the middle of a hectic day is often just as hard, and eating a good breakfast at home may be a rare event. In fact, if you're like most Americans, you purchase at least one meal a day at some sort of restaurant.

And that's just on an ordinary day. What about weekends, holidays, special occasions, travel days, business dinners, and all the other times you're away from your own kitchen? Does this mean putting your South Beach Diet on hold?

Not at all.

One of the best things about the South Beach Diet is that it's easy to dine out-and still eat well -- while following the principles of the program. No matter what phase you're on, you can continue to lose weight and improve your health, whether you're grabbing a take-out order or enjoying dinner with family, friends, or business associates at a fine restaurant.

The first, and most important, step in sticking to the South Beach Diet when eating out is to keep the following ground rules in mind:

Choose unprocessed, unrefined carbohydrates, such as whole grains, whole fruits, and fresh vegetables.

Enjoy plenty of lean protein, such as chicken, fish, certain cuts of meat, low-fat dairy, and reduced-fat cheese.

Choose foods that are high in good fats, such as fish, avocados, and nuts, and make sure your foods are prepared with healthy oils such as olive oil or canola.

Avoid foods that are high in saturated fat, such as fatty cuts of beef, bacon, processed meats such as salami, and full-fat cheese.

Eat plenty of fiber -- it's found in fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans, seeds, and whole grains.

Avoid refined carbohydrates such as white bread, cake, candy, white rice, and other processed foods that are high in sugar and often high in fat as well.

Avoid added sugar. Choose diet soft drinks, for instance, and watch out for hidden sugars in salad dressings and sauces.

Once you have the ground rules down, you'll also need to master some proven strategies that will help you enjoy your restaurant meals even more.

Key Strategies for Restaurant Dining

Dining out is one of life's pleasures, but it's also a challenge when you're trying to maintain a healthy diet. At home you can control what you put on your plate, but when you eat out, you're bound to come up against some common pitfalls: oversized portions, tempting refined carbs, extra ingredients that add bad fat and bad carbs, and of course menus that don't offer many South Beach Diet-friendly options. The following tips will help you stick to your healthy eating plan.

Have a protein snack before you leave the house
By eating something with protein -- a hard-boiled egg or a piece of reduced-fat cheese, for example -- about 15 minutes before you arrive at the restaurant, you'll take the edge off your appetite. If you're not ravenous while you're reading the menu, you'll be able to make better food choices.

Banish the bread basket
And the tortilla chips basket. And the crispy noodle basket. They're all filled with bad (refined) carbs, such as rolls made from white flour or deep-fried tortilla chips. Eating these carbs will give you a glucose jolt that could raise your blood sugar, and you might end up feeling hungrier. If it's okay with your fellow diners, ask your server to remove the basket before you even have a chance to nibble. If not, wait until everyone has taken some and then ask the server to remove the basket. (If that's not appropriate for the group you're with, at least position the basket as far from yourself as possible.) Once you're on Phase 2 or 3, you can indulge in a slice from the bread basket -- as long as it is made from whole grains. To prevent a rapid rise in blood sugar, dip the bread into olive oil or even spread a little butter on it. The added calories are offset by the feeling of fullness that the fat adds.

Order soup
If possible, order a cup of soup -- the dieter's friend -- as soon as you're seated. Look for soups that are rich in vegetables and that aren't cream-based, or order clear broth or consomm
é . The beauty of soup is that it fills you up, so you're not so hungry when it comes time to order from the rest of the menu. It also sends a message to your brain that you're eating and will be full soon. Since it takes about 20 minutes for that message to travel from your stomach to your brain, by the time your main course arrives, you'll already be on the way to feeling satiated.

Ask for extra veggies instead of starches
Main courses usually come with starchy side dishes, such as white rice or mashed potatoes, which are undesirable foods for South Beach dieters on Phase 1 and 2. Ask instead for extra green vegetables, such as broccoli or string beans, or for a small green salad. Today, this is a routine request in many restaurants -- and your server should be happy to help.

Pick healthy cooking methods
Stay away from anything on the menu that appears to be coated or battered and fried. If the dish comes with a rich butter or cheese sauce, ask for it on the side. Stick to cooking methods -- such as roasting, broiling, baking, grilling, steaming, and even sauté ing -- that don't add bad fats.

Have a (nonalcoholic) drink or two
When your server asks if you want something from the bar, order a glass of water or diet soda. Sip it instead of a mixed drink or beer, and order another to go with your meal. Beyond Phase 1, have a glass of red or white wine along with your food -- this is a form of alcohol that's not only acceptable but good for you.

Enjoy dessert -- within reason
The South Beach Diet is a lifestyle, and life without dessert would be no fun at all! But you have to make the right choices. Skip high-fat, high-sugar desserts. After Phase 1, if the menu offers fresh fruit, like berries or melon, that's your best choice. If you decide to indulge in something more decadent, use common sense. Ask the server to bring extra forks, limit yourself to three bites, and then share the rest with your fellow diners. After you've been on the South Beach Diet for a while, you may well find that your sweet tooth is more than satisfied with a small portion.

Copyright © 2006 Arthur Agatston

Arthur Agatston, MD, is an associate professor of medicine at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and has authored groundbreaking studies, as well as reviewed manuscripts for major medical and cardiology journals. He is the author of the best-selling books The South Beach Diet and The South Beach Diet Good Fats Good Carbs Guide and has appeared on national television shows including Today, Dateline, Good Morning America, and 20/20. In addition, Dr. Agatston is frequently quoted as an expert in cardiac health and diet in the media. He maintains a private cardiology practice, focusing on prevention, in Miami Beach, where he lives with his wife, Sari, and their two children.

South Beach Diet - How to Do it the Right Way?

2008-05-06T05:31:00.000+07:00

Dr.Arthur Agatston, a cardiologist and an associate professor of medicine at the University of Miami Medical School, created South Beach Diet. It was charted mainly to work with your body safely and efficiently. This system helps you to rely on right carbohydrates and fats. Thus the consumption of bad carbohydrates and fats are completely avoided. Following this diet, one could reduce his/her weight up to 8 to 13 pounds in mere 2 weeks.

The South Beach Diet consists of 3 phases:

Phase 1

The duration of first phase lasts for fourteen days. In this phase, the south beach diet recipes include normal meals consisting of chicken, fish, beef, shellfish, turkey, eggs, lots of vegetables, nuts, cheese, and garden salads using original olive oil for salad dressing. That is, every day for two weeks the dieter consumes 3 well-balanced meals. Besides this, the dieter can also have snacks between his/her breakfast and lunch. During this phase the dieter is recommended to take lots of drinking water.

However, there are several things the dieter has to avoid during the first phase of the South Beach Diet. The south beach diet recipes which are avoided in phase 1 include rice, bread, baked foods, pasta, fruits, ice cream, cookies, sugar, and cake. There is nothing to worry about eliminating all these foods as all these foods will be included into your diet in the second phase. Even though you will find it difficult to adjust o the diet, on seeing the results, you will be extremely happy that you won’t give up.

Phase 2

Phase 2 is quite different from that of Phase 1. The dieter needs to continue with the second phase until he/she has lost the desired weight. Hence, the duration of this phase will vary from one individual to the other. The length of this phase purely depends upon the individual, how he/she follow the diet program, and how his/her body reacts to the program.

It is to be noted that, by the time you start the second phase, you would have already reduced the weight by 8 to 13 pounds, provided you have strictly followed the South Beach Diet program.

One of the main advantages of South Beach Diet program is that, by following this diet program, you are not limiting your daily food; instead you are consuming foods that deposits less fat in your body. In Phase 2 some of foods you have avoided during Phase 1 will be added back. Though the weight loss during Phase 2 will not be dramatic, it will be constant. Generally, the weight loss in this phase will be around 1 to 2 pounds.

Phase 3

Phase 3 starts when you have reduced your weight to the desired level. By the time you have reached Phase 3, the diet will be similar like your normal eating habit and you can follow that for the rest of your life. In between, if you feel your weight is increasing, you only need to modify the food and the amounts slightly.

Besides reducing the body weight and reducing fats, the South Beach Diet helps to improve one’s cardiovascular system. This helps one to reduce the risk of heart attack to a great extend.

Keep in mind that the end result of South Beach Diet program purely depends on how well an individual follows the diet recommendations. Hence make sure that you follow it correctly.

By Oliver Turner

The Incredible Health Benefits of Beans

2008-05-05T07:32:00.004+07:00

Beans are an often-overlooked source of incredible health benefits. – They have a lot of carbs, leading people to believe they should be avoided and seen as a weight gain risk only. Nothing could be farther from the truth though, as research has shown that the carbohydrates found in most beans are of the complex variety. Complex carbohydrates are not contributors to any sort of weight gain, instead providing the brain and muscles with a lot of good, stable energy supplies.

Beans actually contain a wider variety of healthy nutrients than most foods. These include calcium, potassium, vitamin B6, magnesium, folate, and alpha-linolenic acid. These nutrients work together on several key areas of the body promoting total health.

Beans also happen to be good sources of complete proteins, which is rare in plants. Plants, while having many different nutrients, often lack complete proteins of any kind. This is unfortunate, as protein is a vital ingredient to the healthy and normal functioning of the human body, and the most readily available sources of protein have negative effects on the heart. Beans, however, are plentiful in protein.

Most of the commotion that beans are generating in the scientific community has to do with the fact that they are showing to provide protection from many of the most feared and lethal diseases plaguing Americans today.

Studies done in universities have shown that eating beans on a regular basis reduces a person’s risk of developing diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and obesity. Sometimes the reduction in risk is substantial. The risk for heart disease, for example, may be reduced by as much as 22%. Beans help to curb hunger, and offer the body valuable sources of ready energy that it can burn quickly and effectively. Because of this, beans boost energy levels, and as a result, promote weight loss.

Antioxidants have become the hottest, most talked about nutrient in recent times. Most of this is because of its ability to protect the body from free-radicals, which cause many health problems and premature aging. Beans are plentiful sources of antioxidants, giving them the ability to help keep your appearance young and vibrant. Antioxidants have also been shown to help reduce the risk of cancer by protecting the body from damaging outside agents.

So which beans should you be adding into your diet? Michigan State University has done studies that indicate "dry" beans are the healthiest. Most beans contain extremely similar nutrients, but it is generally thought that the best are kidney beans, lima beans, pinto beans and navy beans. It is recommended that you get about three cups of beans per week into your diet to achieve the best health results, but even as little as a cup per week can help you achieve impressive results!

Beans are powerful little foods that have been ignored for far too long. Associated with Carbohydrates and gas, current studies have done a wonderful job of increasing our understanding of this plentiful food and revealed it to be packed with important nutrition.

The benefits that can be attained from eating beans are as varied as all of the nutrients they contain, but what is important is that many of these benefits help to protect people from some of the most feared illnesses of our times. Beans are also very easy to get in your diet, and thanks to the many varieties out there, you’re almost guaranteed to find one that you like

By Cole Carson

Mediterranean Diet: How to Lower Cholesterol Effortlessly by Including More Tomatoes in Your Diet

2008-05-04T05:12:00.005+07:00

The traditional Mediterranean diet, rich in tomatoes, tomato products, and other carotenoids has been associated with a lower incidence of chronic heart disease. Recent scientific studies have shown that people who eat tomatoes and tomato products regularly are less likely to suffer from heart attacks than those who don’t make tomatoes part of their diet.

Why?

Because tomatoes contain lycopene. Lycopene has been identified as the responsible substance for the antioxidant effects of tomatoes in many studies including a recent research that suggests that consumption of tomato products prevents the oxidation of LDL cholesterol, the "bad" guy. Oxidized cholesterol is considered the primary initial step leading to the formation of plaque in the arteries and consequently to heart attacks.

What is Lycopene & How it Will Help You Fight Heart Disease?

Lycopene is the red pigment found in several fruits and vegetables such as guava, rosehips, watermelon, pink grapefruit, and red chilies. But it mainly comes from tomatoes and tomato products. As a powerful antioxidant, lycopene prevents the oxidation of LDL cholesterol caused by free radicals -- highly unstable and destructive molecules that subject our cells to oxidative stress and continuous damage that eventually kills the cells.

Lycopene can also reduce the amount of cholesterol in your blood. During one study, for three months, 60 men were fed 60 milligrams of lycopene per day—the equivalent found in 1 kilo of tomatoes. At the end of the treatment period, the results showed a 14 percent reduction in LDL cholesterol in the blood.

How to Increase Absorption of Lycopene

An important consideration in studying lycopene is its absorption by our cells. Our tissues have to gulp lycopene from the food we eat and get it inside our cells before they can put it to some use. Research has shown that the level of lycopene found in our organs’ tissues is a better indicator of disease prevention than the amount of lycopene we eat. Individuals who have a high concentration of lycopene in their tissues have a lower risk of heart attacks than those who have a low level.

Here are 3 ways you can increase absorption of lycopene:

1. Process the tomatoes with heat. Heat changes the chemical structure of lycopene and makes it ready for our cells to swallow it up. Some examples include tomato sauce, tomato paste, or tomato soup.
2. Eat fresh tomatoes with fats such as olive oil.
3. Eat products that contain lycopene with other food antioxidants. An example would be eating tomatoes with other vegetables such as in salads or eating a piece of fruit for dessert. Use olive oil and lemon juice as dressing, and you will have the perfect combination of lycopene and antioxidants.

Now, that you know how important it is to include tomatoes and tomato products in your diet, the question is how are you going to include them in your daily meals. Here’s how…

7 Ways to Include More Tomatoes in Your Diet

Make it a point to always have tomatoes at home. Bright red, ripe tomatoes have more lycopene than green or yellow.

Always include tomatoes in your salads. Use olive oil and lemon or vinegar as dressing.

Eat pasta with tomato sauce.

Add some tomato slices to your sandwich.

Rub half a tomato on the bread you eat with your meal.

Always keep "no salt added" canned tomatoes on hand. They are very handy when you are in a hurry and need them for soups or sauces. One of my favorite brands is Muir Glen Organic, "no salt added" of course.

Whenever possible, visit your local farmers’ market and look for locally grown tomatoes.

Follow these Mediterranean Diet tips, and lower your cholesterol today. Your children and grandchildren are depending on you to live a longer, stronger life without heart disease.

By Emilia Klapp
With her new book, "Your Heart Needs the Mediterranean Diet", Emilia Klapp has helped thousands of people just like you lower high blood pressure, reduce cholesterol levels and remove the risk of heart disease. For more information on the book and to receive a free especial report on the "Top 10 Mediterranean Curative Ingredients" go to: http://www.mediterraneanheart.com

The Truth About Low Carb Dieting

2008-05-04T01:22:00.002+07:00

Every day you walk down the street it is becoming more and more apparent that the average person is becoming larger and this trend has escalated over recent years. Why are they getting fatter? Here are some reasons:

• Less incidental activity
• Automated and computerized lifestyle
• Longer working hours and less leisure
• Increased consumption of processed foods
• Our food servings are larger than ever

Being overweight, or obese, has now moved from a social nuisance and domestic embarrassment to an official disease. The American Heart Association has announced obesity is a major risk for heart disease.

Obesity itself has become a major and dangerous epidemic. More than 70% of US adults are overweight and that figure is rapidly increasing.

What do most people do to rid their body of unwanted fat? They diet! Dieting is now a trillion dollar industry and just about every month a new diet is announced. If you do have weight problems how do you find a diet that is safe, effective and sustainable?

What you do is try to find a diet that includes a variety of foods that you can live with
comfortably. You have to take a long-term view and include plenty of exercise. A good diet is one that supplies all of the essential vitamins and minerals, and is not high in fat or protein.

Research on people, who have successfully lost a lot of weight and kept it off long term, shows that the vast majority succeeded by consuming a low fat diet high in fibre coupled with strength training and cardiovascular activity.

Be wary of diets that:
• Ban a specific food group
• Promise a quick fix
• Replace a balanced meal with a drink or a snack bar
• Make recommendations based on single studies
• Make recommendations to help sell a single product

Excess weight does not appear overnight and nor will it disappear overnight! In fact the faster you lose weight, the more likely you are to pile the pounds back on. Seek out a program that will help you maintain long-term body fat losses by providing attainable solutions such as a program that promotes lifestyle changes, healthy eating and regular exercise.

Regular exercise is important (i.e. strength training) as it burns fat, boosts your metabolism and also increases your energy levels. Dietary changes can lead to initial weight loss, but this is only for the short term. Exercise is essential for maintaining weight loss for the long term.

Now let’s take a closer look at what food is made up of and then you will have a good idea of what to look for in your daily eating plan. Firstly we need a wide range of nutrients to perform various functions for a healthy life.

These nutrients include carbohydrates, proteins and fat and are all present in the food we eat on a daily basis.

The foods containing these nutrients are cereals, legumes, nuts, vegetables, fruits, milk products and flesh foods (fish, meat and poultry).

We need all these nutrients to live and thrive and since we receive them through the food we eat, our food must be well balanced and in the proper proportions. Food is a fuel; the body requires this fuel for energy, which is measured in fats, carbohydrate and protein.

Each of these nutrients provides different amounts of energy and these are measured in calories.
Nutrient Calories per Gram
Carbohydrate 4
Protein 4
Fat 9

Let’s look at carbohydrates first, carbohydrates supply energy for our body, they provide fiber for the prevention of disease and taste and texture to food. They are found in cereals, potatoes, fruits and vegetables.

They come in two basic forms, simple and complex. Simple carbs are easily identified by their taste and are sweet. Complex carbs, such as potatoes are pleasant to the taste buds, but are not sweet.

They are then divided into two groups, high fiber and low fiber.

High-fiber foods are the healthiest choices for nutrition and the intake of these foods is associated with a lower incidence of cancer and diabetes. Carbohydrates supply the sort of calories easily burned during cardiovascular exercise.

They are often wrongly feared and considered fattening, but the most important factor in weight control is balancing the energy (calories) consumed.

Please remember:

ENERGY IN is more than ENERGY OUT = Weight gain
ENERGY IN is equal to ENERGY OUT = Weight maintenance
ENERGY IN is less than ENERGY OUT = Weight loss
Different foods affect the ability to exercise at different levels. High levels of exercise
(cardio and strength training) require carbohydrate as a fuel source; at lower levels it is fat.

A lack of carbohydrate in the diet will lead to fatigue, the inability to exercise effectively, and excess fat consumption. When our food is digested, carbohydrates are broken down into simple sugars.

These sugars are absorbed by the body and used by the muscles or stored as glycogen in the muscles and liver. As our glycogen storage capacity is limited, carbohydrate needs to be continually topped up by the foods we eat.

BUT THE BODY HAS AN UNLIMITED STORAGE CAPACITY FOR FAT!

The average person is extremely vulnerable to fad diets and extreme dieting behaviors. The low carbohydrate diet is one of the latest eating plans to hit the streets. This current diet craze is very popular but there are safer and more effective methods based on scientific research, to reduce body fat levels.

LOW CARBOHYDRATE DIETING IS SIMPLY WRONG.

Why is this? Just as a car runs better on a certain fuel, so does the human body.
Unfortunately the latest low-carbohydrate fad diets are not the fuel mix the human body was designed to run on.

Carbohydrates contain 4 calories per gram, whereas fats contain 9 calories per gram. For weight loss, the priority is to decrease total calorie intake. Reducing the amount of fat in the diet will make the biggest difference in reducing total daily calorie intake and hence weight loss.

CARBOHYDRATE INTAKE IS NOT FATTENING.
EXCESS CALORIE INTAKE IS FATTENING

If you aren't having enough carbohydrates in your diet you will experience:
• Fatigue due to low blood sugar levels inadequate intake of vitamins and minerals
• Low fiber intake, which may affect bowel movements
• 'Bad’ breath due to the breakdown products of fats (called ketones)

The bottom line for carbohydrates and weight loss is to:
• Try to balance carbohydrate intake with activity levels
• Maintain energy levels by eating carbohydrate rich foods on a regular basis
• Carbohydrate rich foods are normally low in fat and nutrient-rich

A real weight loss program includes all the food groups, strength training, and low-level aerobics, a slight decrease in your daily calorie levels and a program that can be followed for life.

Above all try to achieve a balanced diet, eating a balanced variety of foods will help you to feel great every day, ensure better long-term health and improve weight control.

Gary Matthews is a trainer from "down under" who has been coaching clients from athletes to bodybuilders for two decades. You may contact Gary directly at gary@maximumfitness.com and visit his website at http://www.maximumfitness.com.

How to Follow a Low-GI Diet

2008-05-03T01:35:00.001+07:00

Make an Internet search for any fad diet and you are likely to get as many hits claiming it is nonsense as those claiming it revolutionises weight loss. But, here's the thing about low-GI; it's not a fad and there are no medical journal articles or scientific studies that say it isn't a healthy dietary concept. Eating low-GI is a key nutrition message that goes hand-in-hand with other healthy eating guidelines such as eat less saturated fats and eat more fruit and vegetables.

The Glycemic Index (GI) was devised about 20 years ago when researchers looked closer at the dietary recommendations for diabetics; which was to eat more complex carbohydrates (starch) because they took longer to process and digest than simple carbohydrates (sugar). What the researchers discovered was that the effect of a carbohydrate on blood-glucose levels was not determined by the sugar or starch. For example, we now know that the effect chocolate has on blood-glucose is actually lower than potatoes. That doesn't mean chocolate is healthy — but I'll get to that later.

"GI is a ranking (from 1 to 100) which measures the effect of a food on your blood-glucose level over the two hours after the food is eaten," explains Joanna McMillan-Price, a Sydney nutrition scientist and co-author of The Low GI Diet book.

"You get a bell-shaped curve when you eat food containing carbohydrates; the blood-glucose rises and as your body produces insulin it pushes the glucose out of the blood and into tissues, and then you see the blood-glucose level falling." McMillan-Price explains that when eating high GI foods, you get a very high bell curve response with a dramatic drop. With a low-GI food, there is a slower and steadier rise in the blood-glucose level.

How does low-GI promote better health?
"Research has shown that very high glucose levels after meals, called glucose spikes, are damaging to our arteries and various blood vessels, and they promote far too much insulin to be around," explains McMillan-Price.

Eating low-GI foods means you avoid those spikes and dramatic falls in blood-glucose so you get a much steadier stream of energy. You, therefore, reduce your risk of heart disease and other chronic diseases that are implicated by those blood-glucose fluctuations.

How low-GI contributes to weight control
High GI foods are bad for weight control for two reasons, says McMillan-Price. Firstly, the glucose spikes stimulate hunger because you are getting that dramatic drop in glucose, 90 minutes to two hours after eating. By eating low GI foods you feel fuller for longer and are, therefore, not as likely to go searching for snacks every two hours.

Secondly, insulin is a storage hormone that stockpiles nutrients for later use by the body. A high-GI diet causes a lot of insulin to be produced and when you have too much insulin in your body too much of the time, it makes it easier to store fat and harder to burn it.

Applying the low-GI concept to your diet
McMillan-Price says the recommendation is that at least two meals a day should be accompanied by a low-GI food. "It doesn't mean you should never eat high-GI foods, but preferably put most meals together with a low GI food," she says.

However, don't be worried into thinking you need to know the GI value of every food. Healthy foods such as fruits and vegetables, except potatoes, should be eaten daily regardless of their GI. Simply knowing the low, medium and high varieties of the major carbohydrate foods in your diet — breakfast cereals, breads, rice, pasta — and choosing the low-GI ones is sufficient to produce healthy benefits.

If you simply can't go without certain high GI favourites occasionally, like jasmine rice, serve just a small portion and add a low GI alternative, like a lentil dahl. It is also worth considering the content of your plate. Half your plate should be vegetables, and the other half split into two quarters containing protein and low GI carbohydrate.

Now, getting back to the low GI of chocolate, just because something has a low GI doesn't mean you should indulge, says McMillan-Price. "Low-GI has been misunderstood by some people who think it is the be all and end all," she says. "Don't use the GI as the first step in choosing what foods you should be eating. The GI should come after you've looked at whether something is a good food that has low levels of saturated fat and is nutrient-rich … and then the GI becomes a tool to choose which is the best carbohydrate from these sources."

So, it's not necessary to know the GI of a chocolate bar because it's clearly an energy-dense food without many nutrients that is not going to aid weight loss.

What is the GI symbol?
Foods carrying the GI symbol must meet specific nutritional criteria and have their GI measured using the approved method. The program, designed to help consumers choose low-GI foods, is run by the non-profit company Glycemic Index Ltd, whose members are the University of Sydney, Diabetes Australia and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Glycemic Index Ltd explains that when you see the GI Symbol on a food label, you will find the GI value near the nutrition information panel along with the words 'high', 'medium' or 'low'. You will also know that the food meets the program's nutritional criteria, which generally means it is a good nutritional choice for that food group.

The GI table

By Pamela Wilson

Understanding The Glycemix Index - For Weight Loss And Better Health

2008-05-02T01:15:00.002+07:00

The Glycemic Index (GI) is a way of rating carbohydrate foods according to how quickly the carbohydrates are broken down into glucose, and thus how quickly that glucose enters the bloodstream. The reasoning behind this is that carbohydrates that enter the bloodstream quickly raise blood sugar levels rapidly, causing a spike in energy, that is followed by a drop after the effects of insulin are triggered.

Insulin is one of the hormones that help regulate blood sugar levels, and tries to keep them stable. When too much glucose enters the bloodstream at a time, the body reacts by releasing insulin to remove some of that glucose back out of the blood and into our cells. Its simply a way of keeping the balance. However the effect is that when all the glucose we just ate, in the form of carbohydrates, is removed from the bloodstream, we feel tired and hungry, often craving more carbohydrates. Thus a cycle is created, where we eat more than really necessary.

Carbohydrate containing foods are rated from a scale of 1 to 100. A score of 100 is the highest, and this is akin to eating glucose in its pure form. A score of 55 or lower means a food is classified as having a low glycemic index. Thus, it theoretically breaks down in the body more slowly.

I write theoretically, because the picture is a little more complicated than that. For example, fat lowers the GI of foods. Potato crisps have a lower GI than do oven roasted jacket potatoes. However, that does not mean that potato crisps are a better choice, in terms of nutritional and fat content. So, it's important to look at the whole equation when considering meal choices and the glycemic index.

Some suggestions for using the glycemic index in terms of one's diet is to balance a high glycemic index food in a meal with a low one. And try to make more low or mid range GI choices than high.

Other factors that can affect a food's glycemic index, beyond its GI rating, are the amount of food eaten. Chocolate has a low GI, but it is 30% fat. And any excess nutrients, whether they are fat, protein or carbohydrates, will be stored in the body as fat. So eating too much of low GI foods that are high in calories is not going to help with weight loss.

Another issue when considering using the GI of food, is that the time of day we eat a food may also impact its effect on blood sugar levels. This is because the GI rating given to a food is based on fasting. So, for example, we fast at night - meaning we are asleep and thus not eating for a period of hours. A food thus eaten in the morning may more accurately reflect the GI given to it than at other times of the day, when we haven't been fasting.

Yet the GI does have benefits. One study on obese young adults found that a low glycemic index diet was associated with a reduction in the risk factors associated with heart disease, when compared to similar children with a low fat diet. Both groups lost weight, and kept it off, which is good news for dieters! And the researchers suggested that a low glycemic index diet may not lower metabolism as much compared to low fat diets. This is important for dieters as it means they would feel less cold, tired and hungry, and as a result, would find it easier to stick with the changes made during the diet period.

The GI should not be used in isolation. Both common sense and other food guidelines, like avoiding excess fat and salt,and making sure foods are full of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, should still be used with the glycemic index.

By Rebecca Prescott

Atkins Diet Menu Plan

2008-05-02T01:10:00.002+07:00

It was in the 1970s that Dr Atkins launched the Atkins diet plan. This involves a multi-phased program for losing weight, maintaining the weight loss, disease prevention and good health. Based on solid nutritional and medical fundamentals, the Atkins diet plan, which comprises of high protein, high fat, and low carb meal plan, has been found to be far more effective compared to the conventional high carb, low fat diets.

This is because, when high protein foods are eaten, it results in stabilizing blood sugar levels. It also keeps one more satiated, and hence less likely to binge on sweets or high carb foods, which is usually the case on high carb, low fat diets. Plus, it has also been seen that the initial weight loss is much faster comparatively.

The Atkins diet plan basically recommends eating more protein and fat like meat, fish, eggs and cheese while restricting the consumption of refined or processed carbs, or foods that are high carb, like pasta, bread, high-sugar food, cereal, starchy vegetables, as well as fruits that are very sweet. High carb foods are restricted because it has been found that the more you eat of them, the faster you get hungry.

Devising an Atkins diet menu plan involves more than simply checking out the food list in the Atkins diet. Of course, the food list helps in being a source of information about what should or should not be eaten, however, it doesn’t help in creating a high protein, low carb diet according to the Atkins diet menu plan that is attractive, varied, and interesting enough to help you to stick with it over the long haul.

Given below are some examples of the Atkins diet menu plan, which will give you a better idea about what eating according to this plan involves. While there is a lot of stuff that is bandied about, about the benefits of the Atkins diet, many people do not quite know what to expect, and hence it can often take a lot of adjustment initially to get used to the concept.

Atkins Diet Menu Plan # 1

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs made with 2 eggs, 1 slice of bread substitute that is protein rich, and 3 slices of bacon.

Lunch: A spicy burger filled with cheese (without the bun), and a tossed salad.

Dinner: Veal chops grilled with butter and shredded sage, tomatoes, and yellow squash, plus a green salad.

Atkins Diet Menu Plan # 2

Breakfast: An omelet made with 2 eggs with ham or bacon, some onions, and 2 wedges of tomato.

Lunch: Tuna salad which includes an oil dressing, tomatoes and celery.

Dinner: Baked Halibut or Salmon, steamed broccoli garnished with shredded cheese and pepper.

Atkins Diet Menu Plan # 3

Breakfast: 2 slices of nut bread with zucchini and 2 oz of cream cheese.

Lunch: Grilled cheeseburger along with a green salad with 2 slices of tomato.

Dinner: Pork chops made in Cajun style with stir-fried kale with crushed garlic.

Atkins Diet Menu Plan # 4

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs made with 2 eggs and 2 pork sausages.

Lunch: A Greek salad which includes Romaine lettuce, olives, feta cheese, 2 wedges of tomato, a small can of tuna, along with a dill vinaigrette.

Dinner: Chicken cutlets with a sauce made of green peppercorn, sautéed spinach, and a gelatin dessert using sucralose, with a whipped cream topping.

Atkins Diet Menu Plan # 5

Breakfast: 2 oz mozzarella cheese, melted, with 2 bran crackers.

Lunch: A vegetable broth with shredded radish along with a shrimp salad on greens.

Dinner: Veal burgers, creamy coleslaw made with red cabbage, and broiled mushrooms sprinkled with sesame oil.

There are four phases in the Atkins diet, with each phase being slightly different. As progression is made through each phase, there is an increase of the carbohydrate allowance, although they comprise mainly of high fiber carbs like leafy vegetables. The first two phases are the ones that are the most restrictive as far as carbs are concerned. This is the phase that the metabolism changes into the body fat burning mode, which is why it is so restrictive initially.

By Rita Putatunda

South Beach Diet Program - Food List To Remember

2008-05-01T01:12:00.003+07:00

South beach diet program aims for healthy and nutritious food intake while allowing you to gradually lose your weight. Unlike other meals plans carefully formulated in other diet programs, south beach diet meals plans are generally more flexible and convenient to make. They also allow you to occasionally indulge on your favorite foods, or can even make them a regular staple on your meals as long as you stick to their rules of using substitutes to restricted food kinds.

Foods that are allowed with the south beach diet meal plans are basically your everyday food. In the first phase, it is all about avoiding carbohydrate intakes, so the following food list should do with your meal plans:

Skinless poultry

Lean cuts of pork, veal, and beef

All seafood

Low-fat/non-fat dairy products

Eggs

Tofu

Lunchmeats

Canola, olive, and peanut oil,

Spices and seasonings without sugar

Legumes

Sugar-free treats

Low-glycemic vegetables

The concept behind the first phase is to change the diet you have gotten used to into one that contains only healthy and lean dishes. Frying is not allowed in this phase, instead must be replaced with broiling and baking.

The second phase is introduced with the following foods:

Sweet potatoes

Whole-grain cereals and breads

Brown or wild rice

Fresh fruits

White or red wines

In the second phase, these foods are introduced because you have to achieve target weight. You have to remember foods containing high-sugar such as white potatoes, corn, corn, beets, and carrots are avoided. In addition, not all fresh fruits are qualified for this phase. You have to avoid raisins, pineapples, watermelon, and bananas. High-caloric foods like ice cream, cakes, cookies, and others will spoil your target to lose weight, so it is vital to avoid them into your diet.

In the third phase, this is when you would have the most flexible time to choose foods of your preference but ensure they still are considered as good and healthy eating habits. The concept in the third phase is for you to adopt the healthy habit of using meal plans that contain foods included in the first and second phases.

First and second phases are all about achieving the desired weight. After these phases, the third is all about maintaining that weight. When making south beach diet recipe meal plans on the third phase, you can be as flexible as you want. By mixing and matching foods in the first and second phases, you can get as creative as you want.

These three phases are designed for you to be as flexible as possible in such a way that you can switch phases once you have already achieved the desired weight target. Whatever it is south beach diet recipes will let you enjoy your meal plans that are healthy but are pleasurable at the same time.

By: Anthony Lee

Atkins Diet - How to Do it the Right Way?

2008-04-30T01:40:00.003+07:00

Obesity is the main reason for many diseases like cardiovascular problems, diabetes, depression, and sleep apnea. The only way out of this problem is to follow a strict and healthy diet. But that doesn’t mean avoiding food altogether for that it is not at all a good option since it would deprive our body of essential nutrients. Hence a controlled carbohydrate diet is advised for carbohydrate is mostly responsible for increasing one’s body weight.

The low carbohydrate Atkins Diet was first introduced in 1970’s by Dr. Robert Atkins. But it became popular almost 10 years later after the release of his book - ‘Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution’ which went one to become one of the bestsellers of that decade. In no time, millions of people in the United States and abroad began to follow Atkins diet specifications as their first diet choice.

What is Atkins Diet?
Atkins Diet is a high protein, low carbohydrate diet. It promotes using meat, eggs, and cheese while discouraging high carbohydrate-content foods such as bread and rice. If excess carbohydrates are taken in, excess enzymes should be generated to digest it. This may lead to disintegration of pancreatic cells in a long run, which may further lead to diabetes. According to Robert Atkins, on having a low carbohydrate diet, our body will enter into a state of ketosis, in which, instead of carbohydrates, fat is digested to release energy. This reduces the need for more insulin produced by the pancreatic cells and the fat deposits are subsided. Thus, the body weight is reduced to a considerable amount.

Advantages of Atkins Diet:
1. Considerable amount of body weight is reduced by the burning of fats which is the secondary source of energy.
2. Inter-meal diets could be avoided since you won’t be hungry between meals.
3. Could maintain constant blood sugar level.
4. Since most of the toxins contained in our body are removed along with the burning of fats, overall heath is improved.

Things to Note:
1. It is recommended to consult a doctor or physician before trying out Atkins diet meal plans.
2. Daily exercise is highly recommended along with Atkins diet foods.
3. People with kidney disorders, pregnancy, and diabetes are advised not to follow Atkins diet meal plans.

Phases of Atkins Diet:
1. Induction - In this phase, which includes first 14 days of the diet, it is said that you will lose up to 15 pounds of your body weight. During this time, the amount of carbohydrates consumed per day will be less than 20 grams. The only carbohydrates included in your Atkins diet recipes will be low carbohydrate-content vegetables like tomato.

2. Ongoing Weight Loss – During this second stage, the consumption of carbohydrates is raised up to 5 grams per day.

3. Pre-maintenance – During this stage of Atkins diet meal plans, the rate of fall of body weight will be slower. Also, you can experiment various other foods to see whether they add your body weight or not. If found safe, you could add it to your Atkins diet food products.

4. Maintenance – You enter this phase when you find that you have reduced the body weight to the desired level. Also you could add some more carbohydrates to your diet which do not raise your body weight, like full wheat bread.

Tail Piece: The ultimate result of Atkins diet program (other diet programs as well) depends solely on how well the person follows the recommendations. Hence make sure that you follow it religiously.

By Oliver Turner
We offer the best Atkins Diet source. Check it out only on the Atkins Diet Food Products Guide. Find all about diets on http://www.911dietplans.com.

Your Mindset Can Sabotage Your Weight Loss Efforts

2008-04-29T08:41:00.003+07:00

Achieving your weight loss goals will not only require a change in your diet, increased physical activity, but also a change in the behaviors and beliefs that may have blocked you from reaching your goals in the past. Your mindset and motivation are just as important as food and exercise in achieving your weight loss goals.

What are the first thoughts and feelings that come to your mind when you think of yourself going on a diet or going to the gym? The first thing you need to do is throw out your old dieting mentality and think of your journey as a lifestyle change. Do not think of it as something that starts and then stops. That type of thinking does not serve you.

Let's look at some ways your mindset can sabotage your weight loss efforts.

All or Nothing Thinking
Do you think that being on a diet means you must strictly follow a diet plan perfectly? Do you take dieting to the extremes and follow rigid rules dictating what you will eat, when you will eat, and when and how hard you will exercise? Studies have shown that this type of behavior commonly ends up working against you. You can start to become obsessed with thoughts of what you have deemed forbidden. This leads an overwhelming urge or craving to do exactly the opposite of what you are denying yourself.

Self-Sacrificing Thinking
Do you put the needs of others before your own? Are you too busy attending to everyone else that you neglect your own needs? While your lifestyle may be hectic, you will find that daily exercise and proper nutrition will actually help you get through your day easier. You will feel less stressed and actually have more energy to perform your daily tasks.

Dieting Means Deprivation Thinking
Do you avoid any attempts to lose weight and improve your health because you think a change in your diet means you have to give up all your favorite foods? This could not be further from the truth. You will achieve long term success through eating in moderation and that includes all your favorite foods. A plan that includes foods you enjoy will help you stick with it.

Negative Thinking
Have you engaged in multiple attempts to lose weight in the past that did not give you the results that you were intending? Have you lost and regained weight repeatedly or engaged in yo-yo dieting? Do you feel pessimistic or negative about your ability to ever reach your weight loss goals? This mindset is a definite roadblock to you reaching your goals. Instead of thinking thoughts of failure, give yourself credit for trying to do something to improve your health in the first place. Make an effort to always stay positive in your weight loss journey.

So what are you thinking right now that might be holding you back from reaching your weight loss and fitness goals? Take a moment to examine the beliefs that you hold that may be preventing you from reaching your weight loss goals and make an effort to change these beliefs to your benefit.

Nina Greene is owner of BennettHealthArticles.com and writes on a variety of subjects. For more information to help you achieve your weight loss goals and get healthy, visit www.bennetthealtharticles.com

All About the Atkins Diet

2008-04-29T08:36:00.006+07:00

Dr. Robert Atkins originally created the Atkins diet in the 1970's. The popularity of this low-carb diet reached its zenith about ten years ago, but it is believed that today as many as twenty-five million Americans may be on low-carb diets at any given time.

How Does a Low-Carb Diet Work?

The Atkins diet is based on Dr. Atkins' theory that the over-consumption of carbohydrates is the root of most people's problems with weight gain. The body is fueled by sugar, whether it is the natural sugar found in foods or the processed sugar added to many foods. When your body runs out of sugar to use as fuel, it uses carbohydrates instead. Carbohydrates are long chains of sugars, which the body breaks down into sugar. Atkins believes that when people limit the carbohydrates available, they force the body to use its fat reserves as fuel.

Atkins believes that our body adjusts to having too many carbohydrates in an unhealthy way by affecting our insulin responses, essentially a precursor of diabetes. On the low-carb-high-protein diet the body's insulin response regulates itself, and the result is a smaller appetite and easier weight loss. An active lifestyle is also a key component of the Atkins diet, since no calories of any kind can be burned without exercise.

The Atkins Diet in Stages

The Atkins diet progresses in stages. The basic stages are induction, ongoing weight loss, pre-maintenance, and maintenance.

The induction lasts for 14 days and involves rapid weight loss by limiting carb intake to only 20 grams a day, as compared to the 300 grams of carbs in the average daily diet. During this period, a person only consumes carbs through green vegetables and salad leaves. Fruit, other vegetables, yogurts, potatoes, rice, bread, alcohol and pasta are all forbidden.

During the ongoing weight loss stage, the carb intake is increased to 25 grams a day. After, the weight loss will eventually stabilize and the carb intake will need to be adjusted again. However, the Atkins diet does not eliminate meal variety. You can still indulge in lean meats, poultry, nut butters, salad greens and other such foods.

In the pre-maintenance stage, the weight loss is less obvious and certain foods are tested back into the diet to see if they can be safely added without causing weight gain. If you gain weight, however, you must go back a phase or two until you are stable again. This is because every person's body reacts differently to different foods. Some people may do fine on Atkins with diet drinks, for example, while others bloat with the artificial sweeteners. Keeping a journal to record what you ate the week you lost the most weight can help monitor the foods that react well with your body.

The basics of the last stage of the Atkins diet, the maintenance stage, are simple. The goal weight is reached and one food is re-introduced into the diet at a time so that you can safely judge what foods will cause weight gain and need to be removed again. The Atkins diet primarily allows the consumption of plenty of meat, poultry, fish, and eggs, and gradually allows the consumption of additional vegetables and fruit as well.

The Safety of the Atkins Diet

Some researchers believe that there are health risks that can result from following the Atkins diet. For example, certain experts say that the high protein diet leads to high cholesterol. Others advise that 150 grams of carbs daily are necessary for proper body and brain function. Weight loss experts feel that the Atkins diet is not for people with a risk of heart disease, and that the restriction of fruits and vegetables is counter-productive to good nutrition. They stress that all reduction of calories, coupled with exercise, results in the burning of fat.

There is very little doubt in the minds of most that adhering to the Atkins diet will help you to successfully lose weight. There are so many motivational stories today about people who have reached their weight loss goals by following the high-protein-low-carb diet that Dr. Atkins created and recommends. Those who have lost weight fast on the Atkins diet are pleased with the results and support the diet program. Your doctor can help you determine whether this diet program is indeed the best choice for your weight loss goals.

Steve Dolan is a diet specialist who has spent years helping people achieve their dieting goals. Find out more about the Atkins diet at Atkins Diet and for more health tips try Healthy Living

Smart Diet Tips: Breakfast And Lunch Makeovers

2008-04-28T09:19:00.002+07:00

Just like hairstyles and wardrobes that can look frozen in time, diet beliefs may need to be updated, too.

Carbs are not the enemy: Anyone who lived through the Atkins era may still suffer from carbohydrate phobia, says Dr. Lorrie Elliott, associate medical director at Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Center for Partnership Medicine. Rather than low carb, today's mantra is good carb: whole grains, vegetables, fruits and legumes.

Not all fat is bad: After years of stocking their kitchens with fat-free foods, many Boomers have a hard time embracing the notion that some fats are good for you, says dietitian Dawn Jackson Blatner, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.

Nuts, avocados and olives were once eschewed for their fat content, but these plant sources of monounsaturated fat have impressive cholesterol-lowering powers. Many fats also provide vitamin E, an antioxidant that is good for the heart and brain.

Eggs can be an ally: Outdated science made many Boomers grow up fearful of eggs, says dietitian David Grotto, author of 101 Foods That Could Save Your Life.

Now scientists know saturated fat and trans fat have a greater impact on the cholesterol in our blood. Eggs are high in cholesterol, but they're low in saturated fat. They also supply valuable nutrients, including lutein and zeaxanthin that may protect against age-related eye diseases like macular degeneration and cataracts.

Better breakfasts
Eating breakfast has anti-aging benefits equal to 1.4 years, according to Dr. Michael Roizen, creator of the RealAge program. Try these switches from your typical a.m. options.

Instead of this: McDonald's McSkillet Burrito with Sausage (610 calories, 36 grams fat)

Try this: McDonald's Egg McMuffin (300 calories, 12 grams fat)

Instead of this: Dunkin' Donuts sesame bagel and cream cheese (570 calories, 25 grams fat)

Try this: Dunkin' Donuts Egg Cheese English Muffin Sandwich (280 calories, 9 grams fat)

Lunch makeovers
Don't assume that a big salad is the best choice if you're watching calories and fat, says Elliott. She suggests soup with a smaller side salad, an appetizer or an entree with two sides of vegetables.

Instead of this: Chili's Chicken Caesar Salad (1,010 calories, 76 grams fat)

Try this: Chili's Guiltless Chicken Sandwich (490 calories, 8 grams fat)

Instead of this: Romano's Macaroni Grill Parmesan-Crusted Chicken Salad (1,190 calories, 63 grams fat)

Try this: Romano's Macaroni Grill "Skinny Chicken" (330 calories, 5 grams fat)

Instead of this: McDonald's Southwest Salad with Crispy Chicken and Ranch Dressing (570 calories, 31 grams fat)

Try this: McDonald's Southwest Salad with Grilled Chicken and Low-fat Balsamic Vinaigrette (360 calories, 12 grams fat)

By Janet Helm Chicago Tribune
Source: Nutrition information from company Web sites.

Diet Tips for Lower Blood Pressure

2008-04-28T09:10:00.005+07:00

Hypertension, stroke, and heart disease are common in the United States and most other Western industrialized nations. Epidemiologists attribute much of their prevalence to diet. After decades of research, scientists have concluded that the typical American diet is a recipe for hypertension and cardiovascular disease: too much salt, too much saturated fat, too many calories, and not enough fruits and vegetables. But the good news is that you can take an active role in preventing and controlling high blood pressure by watching what you eat.

Consume less salt
Doctors first noticed a link between hypertension and sodium chloride — the most common form of dietary salt — in the early 1900s, when they found restricting salt in patients with kidney failure and severe hypertension brought their blood pressures down and improved kidney function.

Federal guidelines advise people to limit sodium intake to 2,300 milligrams (mg) per day — about the amount in 1 teaspoon of table salt. Yet Americans typically consume 1 to 3 teaspoons, or as much as 7,200 mg a day. This fact, coupled with the high prevalence of hypertension in the United States, led researchers to assume that salt overload was the culprit.

As it turns out, this may or may not be true. Nearly 50% of people who have hypertension are salt-sensitive, meaning eating too much sodium clearly elevates their blood pressure and puts them at risk for complications. In addition, people with diabetes, the obese, and older people seem more sensitive to the effects of salt than the general population. However, the question of whether high salt consumption also puts generally healthy people at risk for hypertension is the source of considerable debate. Regardless of whether high salt intake increases blood pressure, it does interfere with the blood pressure–lowering effects of antihypertensive medications.

Keep an eye on fat
A diet low in saturated fat can reduce cholesterol levels, but its effect on blood pressure is not well established. It’s important to remember, though, that not all fats are bad. Particularly heart-healthy are omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in fatty fish like mackerel and salmon, some oils such as canola oil, and some nuts and grains such as flaxseed. Large amounts of these fatty acids may help reduce high blood pressure, but their role in preventing hypertension is unclear. What is apparent is their effect on heart disease. A number of studies have linked modest levels of fish consumption with a reduced risk of heart attack and sudden death.

Boost your potassium intake
Consuming too little potassium can raise your blood pressure and your risk of stroke. Increasing dietary potassium may allow some people to reduce the dose of their blood pressure medication. In a study in Italy, 27 people with hypertension increased their potassium intake while another 27 followed their usual diets. After one year, 81% of people on the high-potassium diet were able to cut their medications by more than half, while only 29% of the people who followed their usual diets could cut back that far.

Before increasing your intake of potassium, check with your doctor. Some people — for example, those with kidney disease — may need to avoid both potassium and salt.

Get enough calcium
Some research suggests a low calcium intake may contribute to high blood pressure, but calcium’s exact role in hypertension is unknown. One theory holds that a lack of calcium in the diet predisposes your body to retain sodium, which raises blood pressure. For this reason, it may be especially important that salt-sensitive people with hypertension get enough calcium.

While there’s evidence that consuming plenty of calcium-rich foods and beverages may help prevent hypertension, efforts to control blood pressure with calcium supplements have had mixed results. At this point, experts are reluctant to recommend calcium supplements solely to lower blood pressure. But since many Americans simply don’t get enough calcium in their diets, and calcium is vital for preventing osteoporosis, few would argue against the use of supplements to boost your calcium intake.

By Special Health Report from Harvard Medical School
Reprinted from Hypertension: Controlling the ‘silent killer’, a Special Health Report from Harvard Medical School, Copyright © 2008 by Harvard University. All rights reserved.

Very-Low-Fat Vegan Diet May Offer Cancer Protection

2008-04-24T14:21:00.007+07:00

There’s yet another reason to pass on the meat and potatoes and instead fill your plate with fruit, vegetables, and whole grains. New research from the Preventive Medicine Research Institute in Sausalito, California, finds that a very-low-fat vegan diet is packed with protective nutrients that may help ward off prostate cancer, as well as other diseases.

Ninety-three men with early-stage prostate cancer took part in the one-year study. The men were randomly assigned to eat either a vegan diet in which only 10 percent of their calories came from fat, or to continue eating their regular diet.

The vegan diet focused on whole-grains, fruits, and vegetables, while avoiding oils, margarines, high-fat foods such as nuts and chocolate, and processed foods. Although meats and refined foods have become staples of the modern Western diet, the vegan plan followed in this study is actually more of “a traditional diet in terms of how our ancestors ate,” says study author Gerdi Weidner, PhD, Vice President and Director of Research at the Institute. Study co-author Dean Ornish, MD, founder and president of the Institute, is a big proponent of the very-low-fat diet for disease prevention, and has written several books on the subject.

Prostate cancer patients who followed the diet also ate fortified soy protein powder and tomato-based vegetable juice, which contain phytochemicals believed to slow prostate cancer growth. As part of the lifestyle intervention, the men also exercised and participated in stress management and social group support programs. Meanwhile, the control group continued their regular diet and lifestyle program under their doctor’s care.

The group that followed the very-low-fat vegan diet decreased their consumption of substances thought to increase the risk of disease, including saturated fat, which has been linked to a higher risk of prostate, breast, and colon cancers. At the same time, they ate more of several nutrients thought to protect against disease, including:

• Fiber (lowers risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, colorectal cancer, and death in general)
• Vegetable protein (may protect against cancers of the breast, colon, and prostate)
• Vitamin E (may reduce the risk of prostate and other cancers)
• Folate (protects the heart, and may help prevent prostate and other cancers)
• Selenium (lowers the risk and slows progression of prostate cancer)

The study didn’t investigate whether these nutrients actually slowed prostate cancer progression or increased participants’ survival, but “the entire program was found to be beneficial for the patients,” Dr. Weidner says. An earlier study by the same researchers did find an improvement in prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels (a marker of prostate cancer progression) in men who followed a vegan diet and incorporated other lifestyle techniques.

Based on the results of this and other research, it appears that eating a very-low-fat vegan diet can provide some protection against not only prostate cancer, but other types of diseases as well, according to Dr. Weidner.

For those interested in following a program like this, please discuss with your doctor.

Sources:
Dewell A, Weidner G, Sumner MD, Chi CS, Ornish D. A very-low-fat vegan diet increases intake of protective dietary factors and decreases intake of pathogenic dietary factors. J Am Diet Assoc. 2008;108:347-356.

Ornish D, Weidner G, Fair WR, Marlin R, Pettengill EB, Raisin CJ, et al. Intensive lifestyle changes may affect the progression of prostate cancer. J Urol. 2005;174:1065-1070.

Have You Got All These in Your Diet?

2008-04-21T09:40:00.010+07:00

Deciding to become a vegetarian isn't just about not eating meat; it requires a careful consideration of your whole diet to ensure that nutrients usually provided by meat or dairy products are obtained from other foods. However, with careful thought vegetarian diets can be a very healthy option.

Protein: Meat is an excellent source of high-quality protein. Vegetarians must substitute meat with other protein-rich foods, such as pulses, cereals, dairy products and nuts. Pulses are also rich in soluble fibre, which has been shown to be protective against cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Soya protein is also an excellent substitute for meat and is available in a convenient and tasty form in many ready-made meals. A diet that includes at least 25g of soya per day has been associated with reductions in some forms of cancer and CVD. Quorn and tofu are other high-protein foods suitable for vegetarians.

Iron: Non-meat eaters have to be careful about their iron levels, since the type of iron found in red meat is particularly well absorbed by the body. Other sources include fortified breakfast cereals, bread, pulses, green leafy vegetables and dried fruit.

Calcium: Vegans need to check their intake of calcium. Soya milk is a good substitute for cow's milk and is widely available in supermarkets. White bread contains added calcium and some manufacturers now produce other foods that have been fortified with this mineral (check the label for details).

Zinc: Meat and dairy products are rich sources of zinc, but serious nutritional deficiencies among most vegetarian groups are rare. It seems probable that the body is able to adjust to lower intakes of zinc.

Vitamin B12: People who exclude all animal products from their diets may develop a deficiency of vitamin B12 and should take a dietary supplement, as this vitamin doesn't occur naturally in plant-based foods.

Reference: http://www.sundaytimes.lk/

The Truth about Antioxidant

2008-04-18T14:45:00.008+07:00

An Antioxidant is any substance or nutrient in our foods which can reduce, neutralize, and prevent the damage done to the body by free radicals. Free radicals are highly reactive chemicals that attack molecules by capturing electrons and thus modifying chemical structures. Health problems such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, macular degeneration, etc are all contributed by free radicals.

An Antioxidant has anti-aging effect because it acts as a scavenger of free radicals (and other reactive oxygen species) which is linked with human diseases as well as cardiovascular disease, aging, and cancer. An Antioxidant may also enhance immune defense and lower the risk of infection.

An Antioxidant can be naturally found in fruits, vegetables, and plants in general. It is also synthesized in our body. Vitamin C and E, selenium, and carotenoids are all powerful antioxidants found in foods that are capable of counteracting the damaging effects of oxidation.

Vitamin C, a water-soluble vitamin, is also known as ascorbic acid. Most of the vitamin C in the diet originates from vegetables and fruits. Vitamin E is a fat, also known as alpha tocopherol. Because fat is found in oils, people who follow a low-fat diet may not get enough of vitamin E.

Selenium is an essential trace mineral (trace minerals are needed only in small amounts). It is necessary for healthy immune function and is tied to antibody production and killer-cell activity. Caretonoids are found mostly in plants, provide the vibrant red, orange yellow, and green colors of vegetables and fruits.

People who eat vegetables and fruits, which are good sources of antioxidants, have a lower risk of heart disease and some neurological diseases. Furthermore, some types of vegetables and fruits probably protect against a number of cancers. In fact, a recent study conducted by researchers from London found that 5 servings of vegetables and fruits can reduce the risk of stroke by 25 percent.

Natural Antioxidant Sources
Here are vegetables and fruits collected that high in antioxidant content and categorized among the best antioxidant sources:

Vegetables: broccoli, carrot, garlic, tomato, russet potato, celery, red bean, kidney bean, and pinto bean.
Fruits: apple, plum, orange, olive, avocado, grape, grapefruit, strawberry, crane berry, raspberry, black berry, and blueberry.
Other important source: herbal tea, green tea, black tea, spices, ginger, garlic, and red wine.

Healthy Recipes - Chicken

2008-04-10T10:27:00.005+07:00

Cheesy Chicken (2 servings)

Ingredients:
12 oz chicken breasts
3 thin ham slices
1/2 c cheddar
1/2 c cream
1 T butter
1/4 t liquid smoke
salt, pepper, garlic powder

Directions:
Pound chicken, then saute in butter until done. Add ham slices to pan and warm. Remove chicken and ham. Melt little butter in pan, add cream, seasonings and liquid smoke. Add cheese and stir until melted. Put ham slice on each chicken breast and pour sauce over top.

Nutritional Value
Calories: 613 cal
Carbohydrate: 3 g
Fiber: 0 g
Fat: 43 g
Protein: 53 g

Country Chicken (4 servings)

Ingredients:
16 oz chicken breasts
soy protein isolate (for breading)
1 cup diced canned tomatoes
2 chopped garlic cloves
2 T olive oil
1 cup mixed red & green pepper, cubed (11)
1/4 cup chopped onion

Directions:
Bread chicken and saute in oil til done. Remove from pan and keep warm. Add little oil to pan, saute peppers, garlic, onion and mushrooms. Season with basil, oregano, thyme, parsley, Old Bay (or your choice). Add tomatoes and liquid, breaking up tomatoes with spoon. Pour sauce over chicken and serve.

Nutritional Value
Calories: 212 cal
Carbohydrate: 6 g
Fiber: 2 g (4 Net carbs)
Fat: 8 g
Protein: 27 g

Mustard Chicken (2 servings)

Ingredients:
12 oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 T butter, melted
2 t Dijon mustard
shake or two of: garlic powder, thyme
sage, cinnamon, paprika, pepper
2/3 cup crushed pork rinds
2 T grated parmesan
1 1/2 t soy flour
2 T butter

Directions:
Preheat oven 350. Melt 3 T butter and mix with mustard, garlic and all spices. Mix crushed pork rinds, parmesan and soy flour and place in shallow dish. Cut each breasts in half lengthwise. Coat chicken well with mustard mixture, then roll in rind mixture. Place in shallow baking dish, dot with butter, and bake covered about 30 minutes, then uncover and bake additional 15 minutes.

Nutritional Value
Calories: 529 cal
Carbohydrate: 1 g
Fiber: 0 g
Fat: 36 g
Protein: 48 g

Healthy Recipes - Vegetable Salads

2008-04-09T11:31:00.006+07:00

Cucumber Salad (4 servings)

Ingredients:
2 cucumbers, peeled and thinly sliced
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups water
1 teaspoon white sugar
1/4 teaspoon seasoning salt

Directions:
Mix cucumbers and red onion in a salad bowl. In a small bowl, swirl together water, sugar, rice wine vinegar, and seasoned salt. Pour over vegetables. Chill for 1 hour. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Cucumber pineapple salad (4 servings)

Ingredients:
1 cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced1 carrot, peeled and julienne1 cup fresh pineapple, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch pieces4 cups torn salad greens2 tablespoons water1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion1/4 cup sugar2/3 cup rice wine vinegar1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted

Directions:
In a heavy saucepan, bring the sugar, vinegar and water to a boil. Swirl continually until reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes. Pour to a large bowl and put in the refrigerator until cool. Add the pineapple. Cover and return to the refrigerator for 1 hour. Add the cucumbers, carrots and red onions to the pineapple mixture. Toss well. To serve, divide the salad greens among the plates. Top with the pineapple mixture and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

Avocado Lime Salsa (8 servings)

Ingredients:
2 large avocados
1 medium jalapeno (seeded and minced - optional)1 medium red onion (chopped fine)2 medium tomatoes (seeded and chopped fine)1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil6 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 clove fresh garlic1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt (or to taste)black pepper (to taste)

Directions:
Halve, pit, and peel avocados. Chop avocados into tiny bits and in a medium mixing bowl stir together with remaining salsa ingredients. Salsa may be made 4 hours ahead and chilled, covered.

Cabbage and Jicama Cole Slaw (6 servings)

Ingredients:
1 cup shredded radicchio or red cabbage2 cup shredded savory or green cabbage1 large carrot, coarsely grated1 cup julienne jicama (Mexican potato) 1/2 sweet onion, peeled and cup into match-stick size pieces1/2 yellow sweet bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into match-stick size pieces3 tablespoons fat-free mayonnaise1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
Combine carrot, cabbage, jicama, radicchio, onion, and bell pepper in a large bowl. Add mint and basil. Sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, rice vinegar, and sesame oil; pour over the salad mixture and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate approximately 1 hour before serving. To serve, toss salad again.

Pineapple Cabbage Salad Recipe (6 servings)

Ingredients:
1 pound Chinese cabbage, shredded
1 cup fresh pineapple, diced
1 cup celery chopped
1 green pepper cut into strips
1 red pepper cut into strips
1 teaspoon salad herbs
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt

Dressing:
3 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 cup plain yogurt

Directions:
Put cabbage in large bowl. Add celery, pineapple, red peppers, green peppers, black pepper, herbs and salt. Mix yogurt, sour cream and milk together until consistency of heavy cream. Pour over salad right before serving.

Healthy Recipes - Fish Salads

2008-04-08T14:45:00.013+07:00

Tuna Salad (1 serving)

Ingredients:
1 7-ounce cans tuna, drained
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
2 3-ounce packages cream cheese
1 teaspoon of seasoned salt
¼ cup mayonnaise

Directions:
Mix well to combine all ingredients. Use between lettuce leaves.

Thai Salmon Salad (6 servings)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds salmon fillet
4 tablespoons lime juice
4 tablespoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons brown sugar
4 Thai chiles, chopped
1 large tomato, chopped
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 cup chopped fresh basil
1 head lettuce
1 onion, thinly sliced

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Prepare the dressing by combining the fish sauce, lime juice, brown sugar and chopped chiles in a small bowl; set aside. Place the salmon filet on a baking tray, and rub olive oil over. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until easily flaked. Let cool for at least 15 minutes. Place salmon filet into a big bowl; use fork to break salmon meat into big chunks. Add onion, tomato and basil; pour dressing over, and toss lightly until well mixed. Place mixture on lettuce leaves, and serve immediately.

The Phases of Atkins Diet

2008-03-27T10:37:00.002+07:00

Atkins Diet is essentially a diet that focuses on the consumption of little to no carbohydrates, and higher levels of proteins and fats. It promotes using meat, eggs, and cheese while discouraging high carbohydrate-content foods such as bread and rice.

If excess carbohydrates are taken in, excess enzymes should be generated to digest it. This may lead to disintegration of pancreatic cells in a long run, which may further lead to diabetes.

If you wanna take atkins diet, you should pay attention to four phase of atkins diet: induction, ongoing weight loss, pre-maintenance, and lifetime maintenance.

Phases of Atkins Diet:
1. Induction
Phase of the Atkins Nutritional Approach. Carbohydrate intake is limited to 20 net grams per day, 12 to 15 net grams of which must come in the form of salad greens and other vegetables. Alcoholic beverages are not allowed during this phase.

2. Ongoing Weight Loss
In this phase, you add carbohydrate, in the form of nutrient-dense and fibre-rich foods, by increasing to 25 grams daily the first week, 30 grams daily the next week and so on until your weight loss stops. Then subtract 5 grams of carbohydrate from your daily intake so that you continue sustained, moderate weight loss.

3. Pre-Maintenance
The target of this phase is to make the transition from weight loss to weight maintenance by increasing the daily carbohydrate intake in 10-gram increments each week so long as very gradual weight loss is maintained. Also, you can experiment various other foods to see whether they add your body weight or not. If found safe, you could add it to your Atkins diet food products.

4. Lifetime Maintenance
This phase is designed to maintain your target weight. I encourage you to stick with the fourth phase of atkins diet for life, to remain healthy and avoid gaining weight.

Some recommendations that you should think about:
- Consulting a doctor or physician before trying out Atkins diet meal plans.
- Highly recommended to daily exercise along with Atkins diet foods.
- Atkins diet meal plans are not for people with kidney disorders, pregnancy, and diabetes are advised not to follow.

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2008-03-26T12:26:00.017+07:00

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Contact

2008-03-26T07:23:00.002+07:00

Thank you for coming to diet-wayout.blogspot.com. I will love to have your advice to improve my blog. Please provide me the feedback about this blog to: greelia@gmail.com.
So I can serve the best information to you.

Disclaimer

2008-03-25T21:38:00.002+07:00

The information contained in this site is strictly for educational purposes, you should always consult a doctor about anything medical related. The accompanying materials have used my best efforts in preparing this site. I make no representation or warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability, fitness, or completeness of the contents of this site.

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2008-03-25T20:44:00.002+07:00

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