Everything You Need To Know About Juicing

-->
Everything You Need To Know About Juicing

Why should you make homemade juice often? Benefits commonly reported include increased stamina and energy, faster metabolism, reduced cravings for fattening foods, and an overall feeling of improved health. Do you want to learn how to make your own juices? Fortunately, you have just discovered a wealth of helpful information.

If you want a juice that has great benefits for your hair and skin, cucumber juice is fantastic. Cucumbers are rich in silica. Silica not only helps with your skin but it is also great for bones, tendons, ligaments and muscle strength.

You can use vegetables and fruits that you do not really enjoy in your juices and add other ingredients to mask the taste. This will help you to get all the nutrients you need, especially ones you might miss otherwise. Apples and lemon juice are great ways to cover up tastes that you might not desire.

A coffee filter works well in removing pulp that you might not be able to keep out of your juice. While some believe no delicious juice is complete without its pulpy texture, you may not share their convictions. You can get rid of most of the pulp by straining the juice with a coffee filter.

If you're going to be making juice with dark, leafy greens, throw some cucumber into the mix. Many leafy greens don't taste very good. Cucumber will freshen your juice and hide unpleasant tastes. Using cucumbers with the peel on will add a lot of nutritional value to your juice.

Before you eat, drink juice. Juice is a healthy snack anytime, but you get the greatest benefits from juice if it is ingested while the stomach is still empty. And then, when it is time to dine on a main meal, you won't have a tendency to overeat since you won't be starved.

Fresh juice might taste a bit bitter, but this can be masked by adding in sweet fruits and veggies. Oranges, strawberries and carrots impart sweet and unique flavors. A good combination is something like cherries, blueberries, strawberries, and cranberries. Mix them to your own liking.

When juicing for health, the most effective ingredients you can use are greens like spinach, kale, broccoli, parsley, chard and the like. Try to keep your juice content to 50-70 percent greens, making up the rest with fruits and vegetables that add better flavors. Fruit juices contain a lot of sugar which is best to limit on a healthy juicing program.

Delicious recipes for juicers

Vegetables your children won't eat may be palatable to them in the form of a juice. A lot of children do not like vegetables. Juicing fruit and vegetables in one drink will give you children a tasty, nutritional option.

Now that you've learned more about some of the benefits of juicing, we hope that you'll consider juicing as a means to improved health and quality of life! There are a variety of delicious recipes for juicers, and you'll doubtless find it easy to incorporate many of them into your daily routine.

Wonder Juice, How Juicing Can Affect Your Life

Well done, you! You have just arrived at some excellent tips and tricks for juicing. If you are interested in incorporating important vitamins and minerals in your diet, juicing is an excellent way to achieve this goal. The advice in this article about juicing will assist you in getting the most out of your new juicer.

Try juicing with a masticating juicer. These types of juices extract the juice in a gentle manner. This gentle juicing method allows for more nutrients to remain in the juice that you drink. These are also more storage-friendly.

When deciding on a juicer, look for one that is easy to take apart and clean. You don't want to waste a lot of time putting together and cleaning a juicer, you want to just get the job done and get to juicing. Make sure that you clean your juicer immediately, before the pulp has had time to dry and harden.

Get everyone involved when it comes to creating tasty juices! The child can clean off the vegetables and fruits as an adult cuts them up.

Pay attention to the cues your body will provide you regarding what you drink. There may be some that your system doesn't agree with. If you experience nausea or other stomach upset, take the time to identify the ingredient that might have caused it. Often this will be something you rarely consume. You can decrease the amount of ingredients that don't agree with you until you get used to them.

When trying new veggies in your juicing routine, only try one new one for each batch. Do this so if there are any problems with the way your stomach reacts to the juicing, you'll know which vegetable is the culprit and can eliminate it from your routine.

After you have completed your juicing, immediately wash all the equipment that you used. Certain juices can stain the juice jug you use or dull the blades if they're not cleaned immediately.

Juice fruits in their entirety, including peels and skins. The skins and peels of fruit are loaded with fiber, nutrients, and antioxidants. The truth is that in items like apples, the peel contains more flavoring than the actual flesh. Orange and grapefruit are the most notable exceptions to the rule; you should not use peels from either of these fruits. Such peels often contain deleterious elements and are likely to have been subjected to pesticide treatments.

You should keep the vegetable and fruit juices separate from each other. Although they do blend well and pack some awesome benefits, the enzymes required to break fruits and vegetables down are different. Therefore if you combine the two types of produce, this makes your body work two times as hard, and it won't be as efficient. The apple is an exception to this. Apples are neutral and can be used in either fruit or vegetable juices, and are a great way to add some sweetness to your vegetable juice.

Juices not only have many health benefits, but they also taste delicious. Just follow these tips to become a real pro at juicing - a practice that can save you money and enhance your health.

Tips On How To Properly Juice

Drinking freshly squeezed juices is the perfect way to ensure that your body is nourished, even when you are not at home. This article will provide you with the information you need to begin juicing.

If you are juicing due to a health concern, start with dark green veggies as the base for your juice. At least half of your juice should consist of broccoli, spinach, chard or other healthy vegetables. The rest of your juice should be made with delicious fruits that will help give your juice a great overall taste.

Use cranberries as part of your juicing routine if you are suffering from a bladder condition or urinary tract infection. Once you feel problems starting, begin to add them to your juice.

A really good juicer to own that makes great fruit juice are masticating juicers. These juicers have supplemental features which other juicers may not have like puree, grinding, milling, and even a function where you can make tasty frozen deserts. These features can add variety to the juices that you can make.

Consider your juice to be a whole meal. After you have done this several times, you will find out how much food is needed for one cup of juice, and you will start to realize how effective this can be. Juice should be consumed as a meal by itself so the nutritional value of it gets into your bloodstream much quicker.

When juicing, you may end up with quite a bit of pulp. The amount of pulp you create depends on the type of vegetable or fruit that you juiced. Instead, add it in to your favorite baking recipe as a healthy ingredient.

The sooner you drink fresh juice, the better. It should be served shortly after it's made.

To create a healthy juicing habit, keep your juicing machine on your kitchen counter or within reach at all times. Putting your juicer at eye level will keep you conscious of your healthier options.

Working to slim down

If you're working to slim down, you may want use pineapple in your juices. Try adding apples and berries with the pineapple to create some excellent mixes. You can lower the calories by adding an equal amount of water. The best way you can drink pineapple juice is to drink it served over ice.

Learn more about the ingredients you want to use before juicing. There are big differences in minerals and vitamins, along with the wide amount of produce that you can get. Use vegetables and fruits that give you an assortment of your daily needs. You will not only supply your body with the right nutrients, but also find some interesting blends you may enjoy.

The phytochemicals naturally found in many vegetables and fruits can effectively neutralize any carcinogens in your body. Find out which fruits contain these phytochemicals and incorporate them into your juice mixes!

As previously stated, juicing on the go is a fantastic way to consume nutrients. You can make healthy, great tasting juices in lieu of eating whole vegetables and fruits. Take advantage of the knowledge you've learned from this article, and start enjoying the benefits of juicing.

How You Can Accomplish Your Weight Loss Goals

-->

Accomplish Your Weight Loss Goals

Losing weight isn't easy, but it also isn't as complicated as people believe it to be. It can pay off with the right amount of drive and patience.

Having handy packets of healthy food can fight those urges that can damage your weight loss. Try getting a few sandwich bags and fill them with dried fruits, nuts, or some pretzels. You can keep these in your bag, your desk, or your car so that when ever you want a snack, a healthy one is available.

It's important to drink lots of water. Sometimes the feelings you think are hunger pangs are really manifestations of thirst.

A great way to lose weight can be done by running along the beach. In addition to the scenic benefits, the sand on the beach provides a more difficult terrain than running on concrete.

If you are trying to lose weight, you should consume more fruit. Fruits like bananas, apples and oranges have a small amount of calories so you can include more of those in your diet, but you should stay away from high calorie fruits like grapes.

Weight Loss Products

Avoid pills and miracle weight loss products that promise you lightning quick weight loss. Even if it seems to work initially, you'll just regain the weight when you stop using the pills.

Try reducing your calorie consumption to lose weight effectively. Lowering your calorie intake by 500 calories is what you should shoot for.

Do not eat before bed, no less than three hours before is a general guideline; this meal also needs to be low on carbohydrates. This will also maintain nourishment while you sleep.

Hypnotizing yourself may aid your weight loss goals. After going through hypnosis, you will be more willing to make changes to your life and this could include your diet and activity level.

You may not want to, but you should take a picture of yourself in nothing but your underwear. Looking at a picture of yourself before you started dieting compared to how you are now can really help make the difference in motivation when you feel yourself starting to slip.

You now have the tools to ensure successful weight loss. You should now be able to see that weight loss is within your reach, not the uphill battle that you thought it would be. It's simply a matter of sticking with it. So try these tips, and see which ones work for you, or discover other ones over time better suited to your goals.

Need Weight Loss Advice? Try These Tips

Need Weight Loss Advice

Once you have committed yourself to weight loss, you still need to set a goal for yourself and plan out a strategy to achieve it. These tips will boost your weight loss and your confidence.

Eliminate or reduce caffeine from your diet. Studies show that caffeine can make you burn fat at a slower rate.

Don't eat any sooner than three hours prior to going to sleep and be sure that whatever meal you do eat is low in carbohydrates. Doing so will keep you nourished while sleeping.

An effective activity in losing weight is running on the beach. It is tougher to run on sand than it is to run on grass.

Although taking a photo of yourself in your underwear may seem uncomfortable, it is necessary that you do this. Looking at pictures that feature the positive changes in your body will help you stay motivated.

Most fitness plans focus on repetitive exercise because you burn a lot of calories, but you shouldn't focus on just one activity or routine to lose weight. You should change what kind of exercises you do so you do not get burnt out.

Over time, you should be able to identify when your body really needs food as opposed to when you simply have a craving or are tired, angry, or otherwise emotional. Using food as a crutch is quite common, it may surprise you how often you do it too.

Creating a meal plan in advance will make your weight loss easier, at least on the nutritional side. Plan your day and find the time to eat 5-6 meals. You can then make them and eat them as you go.

People tend to use high calorie milk or creamer for their coffee. If you are already using two-percent milk in your coffee, replace that with skim milk.

When you have someone else eating with you, you will be more alert of what you are consuming. If you eat alone, there's nothing to focus on except your plate of food. This focus will cause you to eat more food rather than engaging in conversation and eating sporadically as you would if you were with a friend.

As this article stated previously, losing weight is not easy, but it is attainable. It involves setting goals and understanding what you need to do to reach those goals. The above tips provide a logical and effective foundation for any beginning weight loss plan.

Ideas That Really Help You Loose Your Weight

Ideas That Really Help You Loose Your Weight

There are so many fitness products from which to choose, that it can be hard to determine which are credible. Before you begin throwing money at products and services that may or not work for you, take some time to read this article to sort your thoughts and find what may work for you.

You make weight loss simpler bu figuring your meals out in advance. Decide when you will eat your five or six smaller meals throughout the day. Have them packed and ready in a cooler so that you can grab them when you are hungry.

Self-hypnosis can actually have a positive effect on your weight-loss program. Some people are not believers, but hypnosis can make a real difference in your life and remove barriers that keep you from making permanent lifestyle changes.

Reducing your daily caloric intake will be an effective means of weight loss. You should strive to reduce the amount of daily calories that you take in by five hundred.

While exercising is crucial, you will benefit more from trying a variety of exercises than from focusing on a single routine. Change your workout routine every day and rotate your workouts each week to help you stay interested and motivated.

One way to cut down on the amount of food you eat is to find a dining partner. When eating alone, we typically eat more because our food becomes our sole focus.

Consume more fruits in order to reach your weight-loss target. Fruit with high calories, such as grapes, should be avoided. Instead consume fruits that do not contain many calories.

Dancing is a fun and exciting way to burn some calories, and learn some new moves that you can use at your next party. You can check with your local community center to find a variety of dance class options.

You need to be able to tell the difference between actual hunger, a snack craving and a desire to eat for comfort. It is common to crave food even when the body does not really need it.

Use 2-percent milk in your morning coffee instead of the high-fat whole milk or light cream that you normally enjoy. Even if you were already using milk with two percent fat, try skim milk instead. You will remove additional fat and still keep the same taste.

If you feel good about your efforts, it is easy to stay motivated. Remember that only you can control your weight.

Making A Change: Ideas To Help You Get Started On Your Weight Loss Journey

Ideas To Help You Get Started On Your Weight Loss Journey

Everyone knows that to lose weight, you need a lot of good foods, and a lot of exercise. But there are so many different kinds of exercises that you can do, which makes it difficult to know what sort of routine you should do to get the best out of your work out. Here are some ideas to help you choose.

If you already walk for weight loss, here is a simple tip to easily boost your results. Start adding short bursts of jogging at regular intervals during your walking routine. This extra effort will burn more calories, and you will finish your route a little more quickly. The extra impact will help to strengthen your bones, also.

Drink coffee one hour before you go to workout. Caffeine is not at all good for your body in large quantities. However, one cup of coffee an hour before working out can give you quite the adrenaline rush, allowing you to exercise more effectively and see results much faster.

Invest in a food scale. It will become one of your best friends. Look at the amount of calories and fat grams per portion and stick to that size/amount. Do not rely on your estimating a portion. Keep some measuring cups on hand with your scale.

Keep track of the calories you receive from condiments and dressings like mayo, butter, French dressing and others. Some people forget to include these when calculating their caloric intake. They end up consuming a great deal more fat, cholesterol and calories than they expect. Removing or decreasing these condiments, can improve your overall health.

We live in a modern world and that should be taken advantage of. This includes all kinds of things like applications for smart phones, online calorie trackers, websites and communities for support and tips and even online magazines. Make sure you are finding the tools that you believe will help you and then using them to their fullest.

If you want to help your children lose weight, make sure they get enough sleep. The body of a child grows mostly during his or her sleep and burns a lot of calories in the process. A growing child needs about eight hours of sleep every night. Explain to your children how their body grows and why they need sleep.

One way to help yourself lose weight is to prepare your meals ahead of time. You can make a large batch of something that will last you a few days. Think you might want pasta for a few dinners this week? Make the pasta ahead of time and add different fixings for each meal. Doing this will keep you from going to the fast food places, which will greatly hinder your weight loss efforts.

For weight loss, make sure you consume the right amount of food daily. You don't want to eat too much or too little. To ensure a proper balance throughout the day - eat something every few hours - but not too much. Just manage your meals properly and have healthy snacks in between - this should help!

Make sure your workout shoes are comfortable. You're going to be pushing your body and the last thing you need is extra soreness or even an injury because you didn't take the time to find shoes that fit properly. Your shoes don't have to be expensive, just make sure to walk around in them a bit to make sure they fit your feet well.

All of these exercises are great in their own way, and when combined in a full routine you'll find yourself feeling better after the very first workout. Hopefully you will now have a good idea of the sort of routines that are available to you, and which ones will help you the most.

Learn The Tips And Tricks To Make This Diet Your Last!

Tricks To Make This Diet Your Last

Wanting to lose weight is just the beginning of the journey to weight loss. If you want to get rid of extra weight, you have to do more than just want the weight to fall off. With weight loss, knowledge is power. We give you the tips that you need, in order to make your journey a success.

Eating a large breakfast, medium sized lunch, and small dinner has been shown to assist in losing weight. Eating your carbohydrates, meat, and dairy earlier in the day is also helpful. It makes sense that you take in the nutrients that you need to burn early during the day so you have them to use when you need them.

-->


Plan all your meals ahead of time. Doing this will help you stay away from feeling starving and just choosing something that is quick but not healthy for you. This will also avoid leaving you stressing about what to make for dinner, and give you the chance to prepare your meals ahead of time.

Use the plate method to lose weight. To do this one-half of your plate needs to be fruits and vegetables. These need to be colorful fruits and non-starchy vegetables. One-quarter of your plate should be grains. Cooked grains, bread, pasta and starchy vegetables are all examples of acceptable grains. The last quarter of your plate should be meat and/or bean. Choose lean meats or different beans.

Plan your meals ahead of time. Sitting down and planning everything you are going to eat for the day either the night before or first thing in the morning makes it simpler to make smart food choices. It's much easier to lose weight if you avoid that last minute, quick food choices that derail your diet.

Manage your emotions to make sure your weight loss becomes permanent. Maintaining a healthy weight is really just changing habits. Like any other habit, people fall off the wagon every now and then. Go easy on yourself and if you give in and have a treat, just accept it and renew your commitment to staying on your eating plan. And remember -- it's ok, you deserve treats every now and then!

When making breakfast in the morning, try to choose cereal for the majority of your meals. Selecting a cereal that is high in whole grains and fiber will help you control blood sugar, which will ultimately lead to weight loss. Stay away from cereals that are loading with artificial flavors and colors.

If you enjoy foods with any type of spread on them (like cream cheese) try using peanut butter or almond butter instead. These are protein based, which will keep you full longer, and also have more nutritional content than cream cheese or butter has. Get used to new tastes and textures with your food.

When you are trying to lose weight, you should make sure to weigh yourself regularly. This ensures that you stay on track and helps you to focus on the progress you've made. Most experts recommend weighing about once a week to get a good idea of your weight loss or gain.

In order to assist with weight loss you should consider not working out. This would apply to those who do not enjoy the idea of exercise for the sake of exercise. Instead, trick yourself into doing fun activities instead such as walking the dog, throwing a football, riding your bike, or going on a nature walk. This can be rewarding and may not seem like work,

Arming yourself with what you need to know about how to lose weight, can help you take off the weight you want or need to. Our helpful tips are proven and will help you to lose the extra weight and keep it off. Having the desire and gaining knowledge, are two of the main things that you need for successful weight loss.

Excellent Bodybuilding Routines

Bodybuilding Routines

I want to share with you some of my bodybuilding routines that are developed particularly for the female bodybuilders. These can allow you to push your self to new limits with weight and muscle.

When you want to improve the way your body looks, spot training won't work if you you have excessive body fat. The fat will cover the muscles and you won't be able to see the definition. After you're closer to your goal weight and have a healthy body fat percentage, spot training will be much more effective.

The first and most significant workout I feel each bodybuilder ought to do is dead lifts. The physiological advantages of this exercise are completely awesome. I've heard buddies tell me that they will not do anything that functions their legs due to the fact they got "big legs". This exercise plays a bigger roll than operating legs and back. It results in your body producing extra testosterone. This can be an incredible thing it is possible to do as a female to improve your overall muscle creating prospective.

A different terrific physical exercise could be the squats. It really is a lower body one just like the previous one. This has exactly the same effect. Overall, your body will probably be in a position to create much more testosterone. The reason is the fact that this exercise is so compound and has an highly exceptional tension impact on your body, you start to generate much more testosterone. The far more testosterone you might have within your method, the a lot more possible you have to construct muscle.

It may help increase your motivation to work out if you buy some new exercise clothes. Even if it's a minor purchase, you can show it off. Ideally, by going to the gym!

Lastly, you will wish to do bench presses. This really is essentially the most crucial 1 for the upper body and functions by far the most amount of muscles. This one doesn't have really the same overall impact with regards to testosterone as dead lifts and squats do, however it nevertheless has an impact and ought to definitely be completed for greatest outcomes.

Federal exercise guidelines include strength training for all

The government has raised the bar for physical activity levels — and nobody's exempt, not even children or older adults. And exercise researchers couldn't be happier.

The new Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, released Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, are the most comprehensive federal recommendations ever and the new gold standard. "These are really well done, and I don't think they could get any more practical," says Tim Church, director of preventive medicine research at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge.

Among the recommendations:

• Adults should get at least 2½ hours of moderate-intensity physical activity each week, such as brisk walking, or 1¼ hours of a vigorous-intensity activity, such as jogging or swimming laps, or a combination of the two types, to get the most health benefits from exercise. These aerobic activities should be done in at least 10-minute bouts.

• To get even more health benefits, people should do five hours of moderate-intensity physical activity each week or 2½ hours of vigorous activity.

• Adults should do muscle-strengthening (resistance) activities at a moderate- or high-intensity level for all major muscle groups two or more days a week. This should include exercises for the chest, back, shoulders, upper legs, hips, abdomen and lower legs. The exercises can be done with free weights or machines, resistance bands, calisthenics that use body weight for resistance (push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups), or carrying heavy loads or doing heavy gardening such as digging or hoeing.

Rapid weight loss can lead to shedding more in the long run

Crash dieting is an effective way to slim, scientists have found. Despite health warnings from nutritionists, research showed that dieters who shed the most weight in their first month also lost more in the long run.

And they were just as likely to maintain their new shape as dieters who lost less.

The message, says the study, is that the first few weeks of a diet are critical and may spur dieters on.

University of Florida researchers followed more than 250 obese women who were asked to cut their calorie intake and increase their exercise for 18 months. Those who lost more than 1.5lb a week during the first month lost more than two stone within six months on average.

But those who initially lost less than half a pound a week ended up losing just 11lb overall. The 1.5lb a week figure is well within the safe limits recommended by most dieticians.

The Diet versions of citrus drinks such as Sprite may reduce risk of kidney stones

Fizzy citrus diet drinks may help stop people developing painful kidney stones, research suggests.

An ingredient in some soft drinks could be a preventive measure for those at risk of the disorder, scientists say.

The drinks - 7Up, Sunkist, Sprite, Fresca and Canada Dry ginger ale - contain high amounts of a compound called citrate.

This is known to inhibit the formation of calcium oxalate stones, the most common form of kidney stone.

Researcher Dr Brian Eisner, of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, said that patients are advised to drink two to three litres of fluids a day to reduce the problem.

'If drinking these helps reach that goal, that may be a good thing,' he told the Journal of Urology, adding that he is not advocating that those prone to stones 'run out and get diet soda'.

Recipe: Chicken and Mango Salad

Roast chicken tastes fantastic in this fruity mango salad and makes an idea light snack or side meal.

INGREDIENTS

* 1 portion lettuce, Romaine or cos, torn into pieces
* 2 stick celery, thinly sliced
* 4 portion spring onions, finely chopped
* 1/4 chunk cucumber(s), thinly sliced
* 300 g Mango(s), without stone, (1 large), peeled, pitted and chopped
* 400 g roast chicken, skinless, boneless, torn into pieces
* 150 g very low-fat plain yogurt
* 1 teaspoon curry powder, mild
* 1/8 teaspoon pepper, black, freshly ground
* 4 sprig fresh mint, to garnish


METHOD

Share the romaine or cos lettuce, celery, spring onions and cucumber between 4 serving plates or bowls. Top with an equal amount of the mango chunks, then share out the chicken between the portions.

To make the dressing, mix together the yogurt and curry powder. Spoon over the salads.

Serve, seasoned with a little freshly ground black pepper and scattered with a few mint leaves.

Notes:



Try adding 1 tsp freshly grated root ginger to the dressing for an added kick.

eating fatty food and watching TV can cut 12 years off your life

A couch potato lifestyle could make the difference between living into your 80s and dying in your 60s, research shows.

A large-scale study of the habits and health of British adults revealed that smoking, drinking, not exercising and eating badly can take 12 years off a person's life.

Although previous studies have estimated the impact of the various vices individually, few have looked at their combined impact on the body.

With most people having more than one bad habit, the latest study, say the researchers, gives a better picture of how the choices we make each day affect our health.

To make the link, they first analysed the answers health survey of almost 5,000 adults from across the UK carried out in the mid-1980s.

Olive-Oil Enriched Diet Helps Breast Cancer Survivors Lose More Weight

The findings may be of significance to women with breast cancer, since excess weight at the time of diagnosis, or even moderate weight gain during cancer treatment, is associated with an increased risk of cancer recurrence, particularly in post-menopausal women.

In this pilot study, women followed two 1,500-calorie diets -- a conventional low-fat diet recommended by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and a plant-based olive oil diet similar to the Mediterranean diet. After eight weeks on each diet, participants selected one diet to follow for an additional six months of continued weight loss or weight management.

According to the findings, published in the June issue of the Journal of Women's Health, 80 percent of women who started with the plant-based olive oil diet lost more than 5 percent of their baseline weight, compared to 31 percent who started with the NCI diet. But researchers were most surprised to find that after trying both diets, most women chose to stick with the less conventional, higher fat olive oil diet, saying they found the food more appetizing, accessible and affordable.

Mary Flynn, PhD, RD, LDN, the study's lead author and a research dietitian at The Miriam Hospital, says many breast cancer patients don't realize there is a link between weight and cancer recurrence.

"That's why it was important for us to compare these two diets and determine which one the women not only enjoyed following, but also produced the best weight loss, because that's the diet they're more likely to stick with," says Flynn. "In this case, it was a diet enriched with extra virgin olive oil, which is a source of healthy fats, and includes foods associated with improving one's health, such as vegetables, beans and other plant products."

Extra virgin olive oil has been associated with decreasing breast cancer risk in Greece, Spain and Italy, where it is consumed in great quantities. Many studies have also demonstrated the cancer protective properties of carotenoids, a phytonutrient found in the red, orange and yellow pigments of fruits and vegetables. The NCI lists obesity as a risk factor for disease recurrence but does not recommend a specific diet for weight loss, although it has consistently recommended lowering dietary fat to prevent breast cancer.

source: sciencedaily

College Linemen at Risk for Obesity, Diabetes

Despite the high-intensity workout that college football linemen get out on the field, they are not protected from developing obesity, heart disease and related ailments later in life, a new study finds.

Ohio State University football team physician James Borchers studied 90 players from the team in 2007 for a range of health measures and looked for obesity risk factors.

The study, detailed in the December 2009 issue of the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, found that linemen were more likely to be obese and at risk for related ailments later in life, particularly diabetes. Since it pays to be big when you're a lineman, Borchers suggests that rather than packing on fat poundage, players should focus on gaining muscle mass.

The study adds to other evidence that football can lead to poor health later in life. Previous studies have also shown that professional football players are prone to developing dementia and depression, in part because of the number of concussions they receive over their careers. Another study presented earlier this year at the American College of Cardiology Annual Scientific Session found that retired professional football players had a high prevalence of sleep apnea, which can be associated with obesity and heart disease, though another studied detailed earlier this year in the American Journal of Cardiology found that retired pro football players did not have a higher prevalence of heart disease compared to other men in the same age range

Linemen at risk

The players in the new study were grouped by size and similarity of position - offensive and defensive linemen; wide receivers and defensive backs; and tight ends, linebackers, quarterbacks, punters and kickers.

Researchers measured the athletes' blood pressure, blood sugar, insulin levels, cholesterol, triglycerides, height, weight, waist circumference and body fat percentage. The measurements were taken during a single visit after a 10-hour fast.

One in five players, all linemen, registered as obese, because they had 25 percent or more body fat. (Body mass index, a ratio of weight to height, wasn't used to determine obesity because it isn't considered a valid measure for strength-trained athletes, Borchers noted.)

Of the 19 obese linemen (out of a total of 29 linemen), 11 showed signs of insulin resistance, a condition in which the presence of insulin in the blood doesn't initiate the transfer of sugar from the blood to the tissues, where the sugar is used for energy. Insulin resistance tends to develop in people who are overweight and not active, and increases a person's chances of developing diabetes and heart disease.

Of those same 19 linemen, eight met the criteria for metabolic syndrome, which is characterized by having three or more of the following conditions: excess fat in the abdominal area, borderline or high blood pressure, cholesterol problems that foster plaque buildup in the arteries, insulin resistance or glucose intolerance, and a high level of triglycerides, a form of fat in the blood.

Among other players, only 8 percent were considered overweight, and none met the criteria for metabolic syndrome. Linemen accounted for 68 percent of the players in the study who showed signs of insulin resistance.

source: yahoo

A Weight-Loss Resolution That’s Light on the Wallet

For most people who resolve to shed pounds after the holidays, the decision means shelling out cash — on packaged foods, books, health club memberships, a scale, liposuction consultations. Problem is, the only thing many people end up losing is money.

But on a cost-per-pound basis, the newest class of weight-loss innovation could beat them all.

Free and nearly free cellphone applications for dieters and aspiring hard bodies are proliferating in the various app stores for iPhones, Android handsets, BlackBerrys and others. In some cases it feels like the Internet, circa 1999, in that companies are giving away products that seem fairly valuable.

Just as that early Internet practice screeched to a halt once everyone (well, almost everyone) came to their senses, this will too. So if you are thinking of shedding a few pounds, it might make sense to load a couple of these programs onto your phone before you devour your next pig in a blanket.

I tested a handful of the most popular applications, including Lose It! (free, for the iPhone), Calorie Counter (free, on Android and BlackBerry) and Calorie Tracker by Livestrong ($3 on iPhone, BlackBerry and Android).

Lose It!, from FitNow, is the top choice of calorie counters, with 3.5 million downloads in the 14 months since it became available. But more noteworthy is that 190,000 people have bothered to rate the app, usually with high marks, which suggests that the software has some staying power.

Based on a week or so of playing with it, the ratings are well-earned, and probably would be just as high if it cost a few dollars or more.

At its core, Lose It! is a calorie counter and weight tracker, with tools for logging and watching your food intake. Enter a few personal metrics into the program along with your weight-loss goal and deadline, and Lose It! sets a budget for your calorie intake.

source: nytimes

Obesity in adolescence may increase girls' MS risk

A woman's risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) during her lifetime is doubled if she was obese at age 18, new research shows.

"This is the first study to link MS risk with obesity," study co-author Dr. Kassandra L. Munger of the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston told Reuters Health in a telephone interview.

MS is a disease of the central nervous system. Up to half a million Americans have MS, with about 10,000 new cases diagnosed every year. While it is not usually fatal, it's a chronic unpredictable disease with no known cure. The symptoms, including dizziness, blurred vision, slurred speech, sexual dysfunction, incontinence, shakiness, loss of coordination, and weakness, can be debilitating when flare-ups occur.

It's not a common disease. According to Munger, women, generally, have a 1 in 100 risk of developing MS during their lifetime compared to the 1 in 8 lifetime risk of breast cancer.

Munger and her colleagues studied women enrolled in the Nurses' Health Study and Nurses' Health Study II over a 40 year period. Participants answered questions throughout the study about weight, height, body size, smoking and exercise habits, and disease status.

Among the more than 200,000 participants in the two groups, there were 593 cases of MS.

The study found no association between MS risk and having a large body size at ages 5 and 10 or as an adult. However, obesity at age 18 was associated with a greater than twofold increased risk of MS and a large body size at age 20 was associated with a 96% increased risk of MS, the study team found.

The findings, reported in the medical journal Neurology, underscore the obesity threat, Munger said. "We have another disease which being obese is associated with."

The findings also provide another reason to encourage a healthy weight in young people.

"The prevention of adolescent obesity may contribute to reduced MS risk," they conclude in their report.

The investigators caution that the study has its limitations. The findings need to be validated with further research and only apply to white women.

source: news.yahoo

Have a Daily Dose of Omega-3s

"I like to call them the anti-aging fat," say Forberg. Getting the recommended amount can help lower cholesterol, keep cells functioning properly, and combat inflammation, which reduces your risk of cancer, stroke, and heart attack. Flaxseed, walnuts, and some leafy greens contain omega-3s, but seafood is the best source. Research published in the December 2008 Journal of Nutrition found that DHA, an omega-3 found in cold-water, fatty fish, helps keep aging brains healthy.

Add it: Have two 3-ounce servings of salmon, herring, lake trout, or other fatty fish a week; and a daily serving of ground flaxseed, walnuts, soybean oil, spinach, or kale.

2. Eat Antioxidants Every 4 Hours
These nutrients slow the aging process by protecting our cells from harmful free radicals. But some, such as vitamin C, are water soluble. "That means they only remain in our body for 4 to 6 hours, so you have to replenish regularly," explains Forberg. Vibrantly colored fruits and vegetables are loaded with these disease-fighting substances.

Add it: Have a fruit or veggie at every meal and snack--and aim for three to five different colors a day.

3. Double Your Fiber
It may help protect against cancer and can keep blood sugar levels steady and promote heart health. In fact, according to research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, every additional 10 g of dietary fiber consumed daily reduces the risk of death from coronary heart disease by 17%. The daily recommendation is 25 to 35 g per day; most Americans eat half or less.

Add it: Boost your intake with star sources: cooked lentils (8 g per 1/2 cup), cooked chickpeas (6 g per 1/2 cup), barley (16 g per 1/2 cup), apples (4 g in one medium), and raspberries (8 g per cup).



4. Stop Before You're Full
Centenarians in Okinawa, Japan, practice this eating ritual; they also consistently consume a lower-calorie diet--which researchers hypothesize is a key component to longevity. Eating slowly can automatically help control calories: A recent study found that women who ate at slower rates felt fuller and ate fewer calories than those who ate more quickly.

Fix it: The key is to stop when you're satisfied, not stuffed, says Forberg. A reminder: "You shouldn't have to unbutton or unzip anything."

5. Eat Enough Healthy Fats
The good-for-you variety--like monounsaturated fatty acids--can lower bad LDL cholesterol, raise cardio-protective HDL cholesterol, and decrease your risk of atherosclerosis. Plus, studies suggest that a higher intake of these fats may also contribute to longer life expectancy. Ideally, you should get about 25% of your daily calories (or 44 g based on a 1,600-calorie diet) from healthy fats.

Add it: Healthy fats include 1/4 cup of pistachios (7 g), 1/4 cup of almonds (11 g), 1 tablespoon of olive oil (10 g) or 1/4 cup of avocado (3.5 g).

source: prevention.com

Glazed Gammon Steaks with Nutty Apples

Yield: 4 servings

 4    6 to 8 oz Gammon Steaks
    2 tb Clear Honey
    1 ts Ground Ginger
    4    Apples, cored
    1 oz Butter
  1/2 oz Hazelnuts or almonds,
         -Chopped
    1 oz Wholemeal Breadcrumbs
    1    Egg Yolk
         Salt and Pepper

TO SERVE

Vegetables

Snip fat around edge of gammon. Place steaks on a grill rack. Warm
 honey and stir in ginger. Baste steaks with honey glaze. Cook under a
 medium grill for about 8 minutes each side, basting occasionally with
 glaze.

 Score apples around the centre. Melt butter, and saute seeds and
 nuts. Stir in crumbs, yolk and seasoning, then pack into apples.
 Microwave on HIGH for 2 minutes. Serve steaks with apples and
 vegetables.