Add energy foods to your diet to relieve fatigue

Nutrition advisers used to say, "If you want to lose weight, exercise by learning to push yourself away from the table."

Now, there's new suggestions being made: "For an energy rush, step away from the coffee machine, and eat energy foods."

If you're in need of an energy boost, according to Dr. Cass Ingram, author of "Supermarket Remedies," get more nutrients into your body. "A lack of energy, whether physical or mental, can only be due to a deficiency in nutrients. And with our fast-paced, on-the-go lifestyle, it's especially difficult to consume all the nutrients needed daily."

Dr. Ingram, the author of 13 books on the healing power of food, says one of the most common deficiencies is carnitine, an amino acid responsible for delivering fatty acids to the cells so they can be utilized as fuel.

When carnitine is lacking, said Dr. Ingram, the result is fatigue, weak muscles, muscle soreness and exhaustion. This particular amino acid is found in red meat, poultry, eggs and whole milk products. Peanut butter contains a fair amount, but avocados are the only valuable vegetable source.

Other common deficiencies that cause problems are sodium which regulates the amount of fluids in the bloodstream, and potassium, which is needed for helping to create cellular energy and for the nervous system.

If lack of energy is your problem, the nutrition expert recommends adding these energy foods to your diet.

Almonds -- A snack with a good concentration of vitamins, minerals, protein and fat, almonds help the body create immediate energy. Try eating a handful several times each week.

Basil -- Valuable to eat on a daily basis, basil stimulates metabolism and provides even the most sluggish individuals with extra energy.

Grapefruit and grapefruit juice -- Often called "a power-packed food," this fruit and its juice contains lots of potassium in a highly absorbable form. Grapefruit also is rich in vitamin C which also helps create energy.

STILL A WINNER

The Mediterranean Diet, long considered a winner when it comes to healthy eating, remains high on the list for those trying to improve their eating habits, according to the most recent study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health.

People who stick to the Mediterranean-style of eating, a diet rich in fruit, vegetables, whole grains, olive oil and fish, have at least a 25 percent reduced risk of dying from heart disease and cancer, the research indicates.

The study involved over 22 thousand adults, and demonstrated that a diet that derives about 40 percent of its calories from healthy fat and about half from complex carbohydrates, such as whole grains, fruit and vegetables, combined with daily exercise, promotes health and reduces premature death. A report on the study appeared in the Spectrum Essential News.

The results of the study suggests the wisdom of following a middle course between the diet extremes, ranging from the very low-carbohydrate and high-fat Atkins diet to the higher carbohydrate, low-fat diet prescribed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's dietary guidelines.

How to Exercise to Increase Your Vertical Leap

We get a lot of questions about how to improve sports performance. Without a doubt, one of the most common is: "What exercises can I do to increase my vertical leap?" In other words, many people want to know how to jump higher. Well, here is some of the best information we've found...

From eHow.com:

Strengthening your legs and their fast-twitch muscle fibers can add inches to your vertical jump. This can help your basketball, volleyball or football game tremendously.

Steps:

1. Begin every workout by warming up your muscles and then
doing extensive leg stretches. Because you'll be building muscle
fibers that are used for explosive activities such as jumping,
stretching is of the utmost importance.

2. Jump rope for its excellent cardiovascular conditioning. This
step should never be skipped, as it will be an important
contributor to your results.

3. Sprint. This builds muscle, which will add to your jumping
ability.

4. Run stairs on your toes. Start by running up a flight, one step
at a time. Walk down and run back up, taking two steps at a time.
Repeat as many times as you can manage.

5. Do sets of elevated jumps (see the next section).

6. Do sets of explosive jumps (see the third section).

7. Do sets of double jumps (see the third section).

8. Rest your legs at least two days a week. Results will come
from sustaining the exercise program, not performing it
aggressively for a few weeks and then slacking off.

Learn more...

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Yin Yang Fitness

(Washington Post) - Yogis and gym rats, unite! You each have much to learn from each other, says Steve Ilg, author of "Total Body Transformation: A 3-Month Personal Fitness Prescription for a Strong, Lean Body and a Calmer Mind" (Hyperion Books, 2004).

The book details an intense melding of Western and Eastern fitness traditions: strength and cardio training from the West, and yoga, mind-body awareness and healthy eating from the East.

Ilg says the combination will leave you stronger, calmer and more mentally focused. It could change your whole concept of fitness.

The program may seem hard-core, but there is much to admire here. The basics of Ilg's approach can apply to any almost anyone who is patient and willing to commit 45 minutes daily to physical workouts, plus time and attention for frequent self-checks on body position, balance and diet as you go through your day.

Charging that "there is no purity, rhythm or harmony to the standard bench press. You just crush the weight," Ilg espouses a less-is-more approach to weight training: "A wholistic athlete will take 40-pound dumbbells and make them feel like a 340-pound bench press," he says, mainly by isolating weaker muscles and working them instead of letting the shoulders take the load.

Weight lifting and cardio, Ilg says, suffocate soft tissues and tighten muscles.

"Without doing yoga to expand and elongate our hard-earned musculature, the muscles actually atrophy due to poor nutrient transfer," he writes. Conversely, he writes, yogis who lack muscle fiber from strength training can suffer injuries.

The Total Body Transformation program balances periods of muscle building with muscle lengthening, intense training with recovery periods, aerobic exercise with anaerobic, all complemented by a whole-foods diet, which he spells out in detail.

Read more...

New Fitness Solution: Implanted Contact Lenses

Tired of having to deal with glasses and contact lenses when you exercise? They're definitely a pain in the butt, especially when you lose one while working out or playing a sport.

Luckily, a new vision solution is in the works: Tiny, surgically installed lenses could soon replace eyeglasses, contact lenses, and laser surgery for extreme nearsightedness.

When 369 volunteers tried investigational intraocular lenses (IOLs), 56 percent had 20/20 vision and another 39 percent had nearly perfect sight, report researchers from Oregon Health & Science University.

One IOL advantage: They can be removed and replaced. Good candidates have moderate to severe nearsightedness. The procedure takes 10 minutes, costs $2,200 to $2,500 per eye, and should be FDA approved in 2004.

Hoodia Gordonii: The Diet Cactus

The Hoodia Gordonii Discovery - A few years ago scientists researching in the African Kalahari were amazed to discover the properties of a unique desert plant. The San Tribesmen have been munching for thousands of years on the Hoodia Gordonii cactus as an appetite suppressant.

Food in the region is scarce and the huntsmen sometimes go on long hunting trips which can last for days. In order for them to be able to bring home the food they have caught, they cut a slice of Hoodia Gordonii Cactus and munch on it. This relieves them of hunger and thirst for the duration of the trip, enabling them to take home the food and feed their families without having the desire or temptation to eat it on the way home.

Scientists were dumbfounded and soon after drugs companies descended on the region to study the cactus.

It was not long before Pfizer, the US drug giant responsible for Viagra, had - via one of its sister companies - patented the active ingredient in the cactus, and started a phase 1 program to develop an anti-obesity drug. They discovered that the active ingredient in Hoodia Gordonii sent a signal to the brain 10000 times stronger than glucose, telling you that you did not need to eat and were in a state of satiety or 'fullness.' Since then trials have continued yet the drug itself is up to four years away from full development.

There are, however, natural Hoodia Gordonii products already available worldwide.

More Hoodia Gordonii info:

Wikipedia.org

horticopia.com

bbc.co.uk

cbsnews.com

guardian.co.uk

Case Western

How can you stay in shape when you sit at a desk all day?

MSNBC: Workouts for desk jockeys

Top Ten Traits of Successful Losers

I've worked with hundreds of people who were interested in losing weight. Over the years I started to notice that the people who were successful at losing weight and maintaining that loss, had several traits in common. If your goal is to be successful at losing weight and keeping it off, my suggestion would be to make these traits your own;

1. They make aerobic exercise such as walking, jogging, or swimming part of their DAILY life. They realize that DAILY activity is absolutely critical to their success. They are committed to exercising just about every day for the rest of their lives. It's not a chore for them.

2. They either naturally enjoy the exercise they do, or they make it enjoyable. For example, many of them enjoy walking in the beautiful outdoors, or if they don't, they make it enjoyable by listening to music or taped books, exercising with a friend, or perhaps by varying their route or the type of exercise they do.

3. They don't smoke. I have seen very few smokers who were successful at weight loss.

4. They are typically early risers and get their exercise done first thing in the morning.

5. They don't weigh themselves every day.

6. They have an incredible desire to lose weight and be healthy. But, they don't just talk about it - lots of folks do that. They actually walk the talk. They are willing to do what it takes to get where they want to be. This gets them through the tough times when they feel like giving up.

7. They don't fall for the latest fad diet and they are resolved to the fact that their weight loss will take time. They're not constantly looking for short cuts.

8. They realize that their body functions best and is healthiest when it's getting the naturally healthy stuff - fruits, veggies, and whole grains. They concentrate on eating these with very limited added fat and sugar.

9. They prepare most of their own meals and usually bring their lunch to work.

10. They weight train two to three days per week to maintain muscle tone and elevate their basal metabolic rate.

11.(Bonus) They usually have a great big smile on their face! They know that it may be very tough at times, but they also know that they are slowly but surely reaching the goals they've worked for. That feels great!

Go for it - YOU can do it!

Author and exercise physiologist, Greg Landry, offers FREE weight loss success stories and his "Fast, Healthy Weight Loss" newsletter at his site: Aggressive Weight Loss

How Much Water to Lose Weight?

It's a common fitness question: How much water is necessary to lose weight? Well, the simple answer is that most people need to drink about 70 - 80 ounces of water per day for maximum weight loss and fitness success. The not-so-simple answer is that it varies by individual. In his Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle ebook fitness expert Tom Venuto states: "...8 to 10 (8-oz) glasses of water per day is okay as a ballpark...but water needs vary depending on a number of factors... large individuals need more water than smaller people... highly active individuals need more than those who are inactive ... Climate can also affect your hydration needs..." (Note: In the book he provides a detailed method for calculating exactly how much water you need to lose weight, as well as a list of good water-alternatives.)

An important thing to remember about hydration is to not wait until you're thirsty to begin drinking water. By that point you're actually quite dehydrated. One of the best fitness habits you can develop is to carry a large bottle of water with you throughout the day and sip from it constantly. That ensures you're always well-hydrated and that your fat metabolism is functioning as well as it can. Also, when trying to calculate how much water to lose weight, always err on the high side. Drinking too much water is much better than not drinking enough!

Add healthy nuts to diet without increasing calories

In July 2003, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a qualified health claim for most nuts. The claim states: "Scientific evidence suggests but does not prove that eating 1.5 ounces of most nuts, including almonds, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, might reduce the risk of heart disease."

The following nuts are included in the new claim for food labels: almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, pistachios, walnuts, and pecans. Nut containing foods can have this claim on the food label if they meet criteria for healthful levels of saturated fat and cholesterol, and contain at least the minimum amount of nuts per serving.

How do nuts help with the reduction of heart disease? Nuts of all sorts are rich in the antioxidant vitamin E, which might help lower the risk of heart disease. Almonds are loaded with a form called alpha-tocopherol. Pecans and walnuts are particularly rich in another form of vitamin E - gamma-tocopherol.

Read more...

The Success of Low-Carb Diets

(Opinion Dynamics) - Two of the major debates regarding low-carbohydrate diets involve the success of the diets and the future of the diets. First, do low-carb diets work? That is, do people who follow low-carb diets actually lose weight, and if so, do they usually keep it off? Second, has the popularity of the diet already peaked? Is the incidence of people on low-carb diets decreasing?

These questions are at the heart of ongoing debates within the food industry and the media. On one hand, many experts agree that people who closely follow low-carb diets exactly as recommended in such well known diet plans as the Atkins or South Beach diets, should lose weight. On the other hand, many experts also agree that people rarely follow diets exactly as recommended. It is suspected that low-carb diets, as actually practiced, do not lead most people to lose weight. Many experts think that dieters do not go far enough in reducing their carb intake, or calorie intake, to actually lose weight. Furthermore, it is also suggested that low-carb dieters who have lost weight typically gain it back a short time later.

It is felt by some that this lack of success has already led to decreased interest in low-carb diets. Several experts in consumer behavior believe that the popularity of low-carb diets has already peaked, and that the market for low-carb products has begun to shrink.

Opinion Dynamics Corporation has studied these and other questions over the past several months by conducting monthly surveys on low-carb behavior. Each survey consisted of questions added to a random national telephone omnibus survey of 900 residents aged 18 and over. The surveys have been conducted independently - no outside organization paid for any of the low-carb research. The first study was conducted in December 2003, and the most recent study was conducted in May 2004. Questions on low-carb behavior were asked of those people who have tried a low-carb diet over the past two years, accounting for 24% of the US adult population, according to our most recent survey.

Our research shows that the popularity of low-carb diets has remained stable over the past several months, and has not decreased, as several commentators have asserted. Our research also shows that low-carb diets have proven effective for losing weight, not just in theory, but in practice as well.

General Findings


The percentage of the public currently on a low-carb diet has remained remarkably stable over the past six months, at 12% of US adults. This figure has neither increased nor decreased significantly since December, 2004.
The latest study shows that most people who try low-carb diets say that they were successful in losing weight. Over three-quarters (78%) of those who have tried a low-carb diet in the past two years say they lost weight as a result of the diet.
Two-thirds (66%) of those who reported losing weight say they continue to lose weight, or have kept the weight off. Only 22% of those who lost weight say that they regained some of the weight, and only 9% say that they regained all the weight.
The median amount of weight lost on low-carb diets is approximately 16 pounds; 46% say they lost less than 16 pounds, while 50% say they lost more than that amount.
Low-carb diets are now seen as more effective than low-fat diets for short-term weight loss by a plurality of the public; 39% say that low-carb diets are more effective for losing weight, and 34% say that low-fat diets are more effective for losing weight. Low-fat diets are still seen by a majority of the public as a healthier long-term lifestyle.
The Success of Low-Carb Diets

Most low-carb dieters successfully lose weight on the diets. Based on the results of interviews conducted in May 2004 with current and former low-carb dieters, 78% of people who have tried a low-carb diet in the past two years say they lost weight as a result of being on a low-carb diet. Eighty-four percent of people who are currently on a low-carb diet say they have lost weight. Seventy-one percent of people who are not currently on a low-carb diet, but who have tried it in the past two years say they lost weight on the diet. This indicates that the reason most people discontinue low-carb diets has nothing to do with the success of those diets.

Read more...

Sweating the details on hydration

As you strive to ensure that your kids - and you - get enough exercise, don't forget to add water. A study presented to the American College of Sports Medicine shows that many children in summer sports camps are dehydrated, despite the availability of water and sports drinks and encouragement to drink them.

The study did not examine adult hydration habits, but experts' advice on drinking enough fluids before and during exercise applies equally to kids and adults.

The study of 34 boys and 24 girls aged 10 to 14 enrolled in four-day soccer camps found that most of the children were dehydrated by the second day of camp and that 59 percent of boys and 70 percent of girls were significantly dehydrated by the last day of camp.

Study author Douglas Casa, director of athletic training education at the University of Connecticut and a member of Gatorade's board of advisers, said there is no easy way to say exactly how much each child should drink to be adequately hydrated.

"The key message is that you don't want to lose weight (from fluid loss) during exercise, so whatever you sweat out must be replaced," Casa said. The best strategy, for both kids and adults: Drink 20 to 30 extra ounces of water or a sports drink at least 30 minutes before you start exercising and, if you will be exercising for more than an hour, drink more fluids during your workout.

He and other fitness experts advise against drinking soda or juice just before or during exercise. Sugary drinks like these, they say, sit in your stomach longer and can contribute to cramping.

Read more...

Tips can fend off sweet cravings

heraldsun.com: Tips can fend off sweet cravings

Experts slam low-carb trend as rip-off

Popular low-carbohydrate diets are leading Americans to poor health and spawning a rip-off industry of "carb-friendly" products, health experts and consumer advocates have said.

They announced a new group, called the Partnership for Essential Nutrition, to help educate Americans about the need for healthy carbohydrates such as vegetables, fruits, beans and whole grains.

"When unproven science becomes a sales pitch, some people get rich and the rest of us get ripped off," Jeffrey Prince of the American Institute for Cancer Research told a news conference.

"Eating vegetables, fruits, whole grains and beans, which are all predominantly carbohydrate, is linked to a reduced risk of cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and a range of other chronic diseases."

Prince said low-carb diets that advocate piling on the animal protein and fat are "increasing the risk of developing cancer, heart disease, stroke, type-2 diabetes and other chronic diseases".

The new group includes such organizations as the Alliance for Aging Research, the American Association of Diabetes Educators, the AICR and the American Obesity Association.

Its Web site at http://www.essentialnutrition.org is especially critical of programs, such as the Atkins diet, that advocate throwing the body into a condition called ketosis. During this phase the body sheds water as it tries to get rid of excess protein and fat-breakdown products.

"Losing weight on these extreme low-carb diets can lead to such serious health problems as kidney stress, liver disorders and gout," the group advises.

Atkins rebuttal

Dr. Stuart Trager, Medical Director for Atkins Nutritionals, Inc., said the Atkins diet is healthy.

"In fact, the Atkins Nutritional Approach includes spinach, eggplant, broccoli, asparagus and leafy greens, in addition to other high-fiber vegetables and fruits," Trager said in a statement. "Even during induction, Atkins requires five servings of vegetables and/or fruits a day."

Read more...

Top 20 Benefits of Exercise

1. Elevates your metabolism so that you burn more calories everyday.

2. Increases your aerobic capacity (fitness level). This gives you the ability to go through your day with less relative energy expenditure. This enables a "fit" person to have more energy at the end of the day and to get more accomplished during the day with less fatigue.

3. Maintains, tones, and strengthens your muscle. Exercise also increases your muscular endurance.

4. Decreases your blood pressure.

5. Increases the oxidation (breakdown and use) of fat.

6. Increases HDL (good) cholesterol.

7. Makes the heart a more efficient pump by increasing stroke volume.

8. Increases hemoglobin concentration in your blood. Hemoglobin is part of the red blood cell that carries oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body.

9. Decreases the tendency of the blood to clot in the blood vessels. This is important because small clots traveling in the blood are often the cause of heart attacks and strokes.

10. Increases the strength of the bones.

11. Causes the development of new blood vessels in the heart and other muscles.

12. Enlarges the arteries that supply blood to the heart.

13. Decreases blood levels of triglycerides (fat).

14. Improves control of blood sugar.

15. Improves sleep patterns.

16. Increases the efficiency of the digestive system which may reduce the incidence of colon cancer.

17. Increases the thickness of cartilage in joints which has a protective effect on the joints.

18. Decreases a woman's risk of developing endometriosis by 50%.

19. Increases the amount of blood that flows to the skin making it look and feel healthier.

20. Exercise, in addition to all the physiological and anatomical benefits, just makes you feel GREAT!

Author and exercise Physiologist, Greg Landry, offers free weight loss success stories and articles, and unique weight loss programs at his site... http://www.Landry.com

SuperFoods Rx

It's no secret that a diet rich in fruits and veggies is one key to a healthy lifestyle. But not all foods are created equal. Some fruits and veggies are chock full of disease-fighting antioxidants and phytonutrients. Research suggests that just one cup per day of blueberries, for instance, can lower the risk of heart attack and keep skin looking youthful.

Blueberries are just one example of 14 nutrient-dense "superfoods" identified in a new book, SuperFoods Rx.

The authors contend that by making such foods part of your daily diet, it's possible to actually alter the body's biochemistry and put a stop to incremental changes that lead to diseases such as Type II diabetes, hypertension, certain cancers, obesity and Alzheimer's Besides outlining the main health benefits of each superfood, the book provides suitable substitutions for each, along with recipes and shopping suggestions.

Here's a look at the 14 "superfoods," identified by the authors, and the recommended servings of each.

Beans: Four ½-cup servings per week.

Blueberries: 1 to 2 cups daily.

Broccoli: ½ to 1 cup per day.

Oats: 5 to 7 servings per day.

Oranges: 1 daily serving.

Pumpkin: ½ cup most days.

Salmon: Two to four servings per week.

Soy: 15 grams per day in two meal portions.

Spinach: 1 cup of steamed or 2 cups raw spinach most days.

Tea (green or black): 1 or more cups per day.

Tomatoes: One daily serving processed tomatoes or multiple servings per week fresh tomatoes.

Turkey: 3 to 4 servings per week.

Walnuts: 1 oz., five times per week.

Yogurt: 2 cups per day.

The Workout Herb

Prickly Pear extract has been shown to boost energy and speed healing

Locked in the spiny red fruits of the prickly pear cactus (Opuntia ficusindica) may be the best friend your workout ever had. A French research scientist, Gilles Gutierrez, has established that professional athletes can work out longer and harder using his patented prickly pear extract. Even more important, the herb sped their recoveries from strenuous exercise. Prickly pear appears to accelerate the production of the body's natural restorative compounds.

His discovery doesn't come out of left field. Prickly pear has traditionally been used to promote healing—specifically, as a treatment for inflammatory skin diseases, eye inflammation, intestinal tract inflammation (dysentery), urinary tract inflammation, burns, and joint or muscle inflammation. Interestingly, several different cultures have used prickly pear for chronic joint and muscle complaints, including arthritis and fibromyalgia as well as strains, sprains, and breaks.

Now, science has validated these uses. In lab tests using rats, the extract inhibited experimentally induced joint inflammation and chronic joint inflammation, and it significantly increased wound healing.

I've used the extract, sold under the name Prepair, and have recommended it to other athletic baby boomers. It seems that after using it, we had increased energy and recovered more rapidly from our workouts. What's more, our weak spots—bad lower backs, trick knees, and achy necks—seemed less painful.

Prickly pear is nontoxic and has no known safety problems, even when it is taken in large quantities. Be sure to follow the manufacturer's instructions on the packaging for the correct dose information and when to take it.

As an edible food, the pads (called nopales in Spanish) are often used in salads, soups, fried like eggplant, or cooked on the grill. Some people dislike the slimy, okra-like coating that occurs after cooking. If you're one of them, just rinsed it off.

Read more...

ACE Advocates Functional Strength Training to Enhance Workouts

(ACE) - Whether it’s walking, hiking or lifting, functional strength is needed to successfully complete the task. The American Council on Exercise (ACE), America’s nonprofit fitness advocate, suggests incorporating functional strength training into your existing exercise program to enhance coordination, strength and endurance in everyday activities.

Functional strength training focuses on exercising several muscles and joints together rather than working a particular muscle or group of muscles independently, resulting in an individual being able to perform daily activities with greater ease.

“If functional strength training is utilized safely and correctly in conjunction with conventional strength training, it can help an individual not only improve their performance of a goal movement, but also enhance their overall well-being,” said Dr. Cedric Bryant, chief exercise physiologist for ACE.

If done properly, the strength gained in functional exercises should more directly transfer to real-life activities. For example, if individuals want to improve their abilities to climb stairs with greater ease and less discomfort, they should perform squats or step-ups to train the muscles in a manner that closely simulates physiological requirements of the stair-climbing movement.

In order for functional strength exercises to successfully transfer to daily activities, the exercises need to mimic the goal movement by incorporating several factors. These factors include:


- Coordination
- Types of muscle contractions (concentric, eccentric and isometric)
- Speed of movement
- Range of motion

Once individuals decide to integrate functional strength training into their regular exercise routines, they should consult a certified personal trainer to develop an effective program. According to Dr. Bryant, “Functional strength training is becoming increasingly popular because it offers individuals a practical way to enhance their abilities to safely, effectively, and efficiently perform activities of daily living and recreational sports activities.”

McDonald's adverts push 'healthy diet'

McDonald's reacted to criticism of fast-food advertising aimed at children by launching a campaign yesterday designed to promote a "healthy lifestyle"...

13 Healthy Habits to Improve Your Life

(WebMD) - There are 13 ways to boost your chances of living a happy, healthy life. More can be added to this list, but, for simplicity's sake, we'll stick with this typically unlucky number.

Instead of bringing misfortune, however, the 13 habits promise a life of vigor and vivacity. There are, of course, no guarantees, but many of the practices mentioned here have been published in scientific journals. Disregard them, and you may well be taking a big gamble with your mental and emotional well-being.

Healthy Habit No. 1: Eat Breakfast Every Morning

Breakfast eaters are champions of good health. Research shows people who have a morning meal tend to take in more vitamins and minerals, and less fat and cholesterol. The result is often a leaner body, lower cholesterol count, and less chance of overeating.

"That one act [of eating breakfast] seems to make a difference in people's overall weight," says Melinda Johnson, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association (ADA). She says breakfast can hold off hunger pangs until lunchtime and make high-calorie vending machine options less enticing.

Not only that, researchers at the 2003 American Heart Association conference reported that breakfast eaters are significantly less likely to be obese and get diabetes compared with nonbreakfast eaters.

Another study in the International Journal of Food Science and Nutrition showed that people who consumed breakfast cereal every day reported feeling better both physically and mentally than those who rarely ate cereal in the morning.

For kids, breakfast appears to enhance alertness, attention, and performance on standardized achievement tests, reports the ADA.

To get the full benefits of breakfast, the Mayo Clinic recommends a meal with carbohydrates, protein, and a small amount of fat. They say that because no single food gives you all of the nutrients you need, eating a variety of foods is essential to good health.

Yet, even with so much scientific support that breakfast does the body good; many people still make excuses not to eat in the morning. They include not having enough time and not feeling hungry. For these people, Johnson suggests tailoring breakfast to the day.

"When I'm getting ready in the morning, I don't really want to take the time to eat breakfast because that would mean sacrificing sleep," says Johnson. "So I bring my breakfast with me, and I know I have an hour when I'm reading emails in the office when I can eat it. By that time, I'm hungry because I've been up for almost a couple of hours."

Healthy Habit No. 2: Add Fish and Omega-3 Fatty Acids to Your Diet

The AHA recommends a 6-ounce serving of fish at least two times per week.

Besides being a good source of protein and a food relatively low in the bad type of dietary fat called saturated fat, fish has omega-3 fatty acids -- which have been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease.

Fatty fish such as mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna, and salmon, are rich in two kinds of omega-3 fatty acids: eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

Foods such as tofu, soybeans, canola, walnuts, flaxseed, and their oils contain alpha-linolenic acid (LNA), which convert to omega-3 in the body. Even though the benefits of LNA are controversial, the AHA still recommends foods containing it as part of a healthy diet.

In addition to their heart-health benefits, there is some evidence that omega-3 fatty acids may also soothe an overactive immune system, says Johnson. Even though this benefit is still being studied, she says there appears to be a link between getting more omega-3s in your diet and reducing allergies, asthma, eczema, and autoimmune disorders.


Healthy Habit No. 3: Get Enough Sleep

"Your body has to have enough time to rest," says Michael Fleming, MD, president of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). Otherwise, he says you may find yourself feeling cranky and tired.

This may sound like common sense, but according to the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), more than two-thirds of older adults suffer from sleep problems and many American adults don't get the minimum amount of shuteye needed to stay alert.

Sleep is vital to good health and to mental and emotional well-being. The NSF reports that people who don't get enough slumber are more likely than others to develop psychiatric problems and to use health care services. Plus, sleep deprivation can negatively affect memory, learning, and logical reasoning.

Not enough ZZZs can also be hazardous. More than one-half of adult drivers -- some 100 million people -- say they have driven drowsy in the past year, according to NSF polls. About one out of five of these drivers -- 32 million people -- say they've fallen asleep while driving.

Each year drowsy driving causes more than 100,000 car crashes, 1,500 deaths, and tens of thousands of injuries, reports the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The NSF recommends taking a 15 to 20 minute nap. Because it takes about 30 minutes for the caffeine to work, taking a nap while you wait for the caffeine to kick in can help restore alertness.

To avoid the pitfalls of insufficient sleep, make sure to get at least seven to 10 hours of slumber each night. Kids need more sleep, depending on their age.

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CortaSlim FAQ

Looking for info on CortaSlim? You're not alone. It's one of the most heavily searched and asked about weight loss products on the market. Here's some useful info we found regarding this popular diet product...

Why Cortisol Control?

Stress causes your body to overproduce a stress hormone known as "cortisol" — the cause of so many of our weight problems. Elevated cortisol levels compromise other hormones, including insulin, serotonin, and DHEA. Cortisol also decreases our metabolism, increases hunger and cravings, imbalances blood sugar (glucose) levels, and ultimately signals the body to store excess fat.

CortaSlim is formulated to control cortisol, naturally boost metabolism, burn fat, curb appetite and cravings, and maintain healthy blood sugar levels. CortaSlim is a safe and natural weight loss solution.

Will I have a yo-yo effect with CortaSlim?

Yo-yo dieting is a term often associated with fad diets and stimulant-based products that cause you to gain more weight than you initially lose. The reason this occurs is linked to the stress hormone cortisol. Stimulants and bad dieting actually cause your body to overproduce cortisol, which leads to cravings, hunger, binge eating, and ultimately the weight gain associated with yo-yo effects.

Because CortaSlim works naturally with your body to solve the causes of weight gain, you simply won't experience these yo-yo effects. CortaSlim doesn't work by artificially "jolting" your body like the typical weight loss product. CortaSlim is formulated to work with your body to increase your natural metabolism. This also means you won't experience the jitteriness caused by other weight loss products.

What to expect with CortaSlim.

You won't have to wait long to experience positive results with CortaSlim. Within an hour after taking CortaSlim, many people report a sense of calm and focus, as CortaSlim responds quickly to begin controlling your stress and cortisol levels.

While your cortisol levels continue to fall, you'll experience increased energy throughout the day, sleep more soundly, have better mental focus, and feel healthier overall. You'll have better control of your appetite and cravings. Suddenly, you'll realize that your clothes are fitting more loosely, even before you've lost a single pound! These are all signs that healthy, natural weight loss---at a faster pace—is just around the corner.

How much weight can I lose? How quickly?

If you want a product that guarantees you'll lose 30 pounds in 30 days, then CortaSlim is not for you. Depending on the individual, rapid weight loss over a short period of time can be downright dangerous. CortaSlim does not make irresponsible weight loss claims. Instead, CortaSlim is a serious breakthrough formulation based on the latest published scientific research.

Taking CortaSlim consistently is the best way to reach your weight loss goals safely and naturally. Some people begin losing weight in their first two weeks; others may take longer, depending on their cortisol levels, metabolism, diet and exercise routine. With some individuals, it might take up to four weeks, perhaps longer, to see noticeable weight loss, but rest assured that you will lose weight steadily, consistently and naturally over time. Be patient and confident in knowing that you are losing weight the safe and healthy way...which is the best way to keep it off for life.

Some individuals may want to increase their dosage depending on their stress and cortisol levels, and if they have difficulty losing weight. Please refer to the directions for more information.

Give CortaSlim a chance to work.

Rome wasn't built in a day, and you didn't gain that unwanted weight overnight. In today's stressful world, chances are you have been overproducing cortisol for a number of years.

Everyone is different, and a host of variables (metabolism, diet and exercise) can influence the amount of weight you can expect to lose, and how quickly you will lose it. If you take CortaSlim on a daily basis, eat a healthy diet and engage in regular exercise program, you'll have a greater opportunity of reaching your weight loss goals.

How long should I take CortaSlim?

CortaSlim should be taken as long as you have everyday stress in your life, and as long as you want to manage your weight. If you stop taking CortaSlim, but still have stress in your life, your cortisol levels will shoot back up, and the whole fat-making process will start again. Even after you reach your weight loss goals, you will still want to take CortaSlim everyday simply because of how healthy it makes you feel!

What should I eat while taking CortaSlim?

CortaSlim will complement any healthy diet, but it's always wise to follow some simple rules: Eat fresh and natural whole foods. Avoid processed, artificial foods. Avoid caffeine and sugar. Stop eating past 7pm, or 3 hours before bedtime. Instead of having one large meal, break up your meals into smaller portions spread throughout the day. Also, remember to drink plenty of water and replace soda with water. Water suppresses appetite and helps metabolize fat. On average, a person should drink at least 8 glasses of water a day.

CortaSlim will send you strong signals to avoid reaching for snacks or overeating, but it's up to you to listen. With CortaSlim, it's easier to resist jelly donuts in the morning and a bag of chips in the afternoon. You'll realize that you will eat until you're full, instead of finishing everything on your plate. Instead of craving junk food, you'll start craving healthy foods. When stress and cortisol are no longer a controlling part of your life, you'll find freedom from food, so you'll be free to live your life!

Be sure to follow the directions on the bottle, be consistent in taking CortaSlim on a daily basis, and maintain a healthy diet and exercise regimen. By doing so, you will be well on your way to staying healthy, losing weight, and keeping it off for life! You WILL win the battle against weight with CortaSlim.

Click here to learn more about CortaSlim



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All about cortisol and weight loss

Study: Refined grains contribute to belly fat

Scientists say white bread and other refined grains seem to go to the gut and hang out as belly fat.

Many Americans are like a loaf of bread — soft, with one side round. And some researchers believe their choice of bread may be part of the reason.

The scientists say white bread and other refined grains seem to go to the gut and hang out as belly fat.

“Waist circumference was very much associated with this high-refined grains pattern,” said Katherine Tucker, an associate professor of nutritional epidemiology at Tufts University in Boston. She and her colleagues are studying what happens to the bodies of people who eat lots of refined bread.

The scientists say white bread and other refined grains seem to go to the gut and hang out as belly fat.

Refined vs. whole grains
The researchers have been following the eating habits of a group of healthy, largely middle-aged people in Baltimore. They focused on 459 people with a variety of eating habits, including some who preferred refined grains and others who preferred fiber such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables.

For those who are not food scientists, refining removes the fibrous bran and oil-rich germ, leaving the sweeter endosperm, the whitish-colored meat of the kernel.

The Tufts researchers say that, for some reason, calories from refined grains preferred to settle at the waistline. The belt size of the white bread group expanded about one-half inch a year, which probably put some of the research subjects into a larger size of pants over the three years they were followed, Tucker said. At the end, the white bread group had three times the fiber group’s gain at the gut.

It’s not surprising that the waists of refined-grain eaters expanded, said Dr. David Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children’s Hospital in Boston. Ludwig was not connected to the Tufts study, but his research had found something similar in a look at younger adults around the nation. One of the factors he checked was the waist-to-hip ratio — whether people’s torsos were more tapered or more round. People who ate less fiber were more round.

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Ellipticals Run Ovals Around Treadmills

(Consumer Reports) - The Low-Impact Machines Are Gaining in Popularity; 4 Test Well for Home Use

Giving the top-selling treadmill a run for its money, elliptical exercisers seem to be gaining in popularity: Ellipticals are among the most widely used machines in health clubs, and the number of participants in elliptical exercise rose from 2.4 million in 1997 to 6.2 million in 2000, according to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association.

Elliptical exercisers are the marriage of a stair climber and a cross-country-ski machine. Your feet, on pedals, move in flattened circles. Your arms, hands grasping handlebars, move back and forth. The machine resists the motion of your arms and legs with a flywheel that is braked in one of two ways. On most machines designed for home use, a band around the flywheel's rim provides resistance. Most health-club ellipticals have magnetic resistance, which makes pedaling feel smoother. All in all, elliptical exercise is a good concept:

• The oval-shaped pedaling motion doesn't pound the joints the way running on a treadmill can. People older than 55 and those with knee problems are among the most devoted users.

• Ellipticals provide a weight-bearing workout, which helps protect bones against osteoporosis, unlike pedaling an exercise bike, swimming or using a rowing machine.

• Unlike most treadmills and exercise bikes, a typical elliptical has movable handlebars that add an upper-body workout.

• Ellipticals are easy to master.

• In our tests, ellipticals rivaled treadmills in the number of calories burned with the same perceived effort.

Although home machines don't match the bigger, smoother (and far more expensive) health-club models, the four ellipticals we recently tested proved quite capable of providing a good workout to someone who's moderately fit. Beginning exercisers may have to pedal slowly on these machines to avoid overexertion. And very fit users may find the maximum resistance on some too easy to provide an aerobic benefit. We based our scores on ease of use, ergonomics, exercise factors and durability, as judged by our engineers.

The top pick among our four test machines was the Reebok Elliptical Crosstrainer 6808 ($500), a fixed-incline model that scored the highest among the group in ergonomics. Its pedals hold the user's feet securely, and we found it easy to mount and dismount. Its main flaw was an annoying tendency to sway and twist during vigorous exercise -- enough at times to interfere with its operation if we pushed too hard on its handlebars.

Another very good machine, the NordicTrack VGR990, has more features than the Reebok (including smooth-pedaling magnetic resistance), but at $1,000 it costs twice as much. We were impressed by the ease with which its electronic controls adjusted resistance and incline. Yet the NordicTrack's pedals are too narrow, and you can't get on it from behind. (You have to step over it, as if mounting a bicycle.)

The other two models we tested -- the ProForm 695E ($500) and the fixed-incline FitnessQuest Eclipse 5000 ($600) -- scored slightly lower. Despite high marks for ease of use (we liked its preset programs and electronic control for resistance), the FitnessQuest proved somewhat unstable, at times "walking" across a hard-surface floor during vigorous exercise. The ProForm features manual incline and resistance adjustments, but -- as with the FitnessQuest -- its monitor is placed too close to the exerciser for easy viewing.

Meanwhile, quality control fell short in all the ellipticals, with each developing one or two minor glitches. These included clunking pedals in the ProForm, a broken pulley on the NordicTrack, a scraping pedal linkage in the Reebok and squeaking noises in the FitnessQuest.

Low-carb diets get some vindication

(Los Angeles Times) - Obesity rates are rising, but science has barely weighed in on the best way for people to shed fat. That state of affairs is starting to change, and doctors are getting a surprise or two.

Last month, the popular carb-slashing Atkins diet received a dollop of endorsement from two studies after years of being pooh-poohed by health specialists. The studies, published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, showed that the meat- and fat-rich regimen caused faster weight loss in the short term than a conventional low-fat diet.

More important - because many had feared that the diet, even if slimming, might unfavorably affect cholesterol levels and be bad for the heart - the low-carb regimen also seemed to improve the dieters' blood fat profiles.

But Atkins, like every other diet, is no miraculous fat-melter. The longer of the two studies suggested that a low-carb regimen might be harder to maintain beyond six months compared with a low-fat approach: By the end of the year, the low-fat dieters had caught up and lost the same - very modest - amount of heft.

In addition, even though on average people on low-carb diets didn't experience rises in their so-called "bad" (or LDL) cholesterol levels, about 30 percent of individuals did.

Even with these caveats, "We can no longer dismiss very-low-carbohydrate diets," said Dr. Walter Willett, a nutritional epidemiologist at the Harvard School of Public Health, in a written editorial accompanying the papers. To maximize the diets' healthfulness, he added, people should avoid going hog-wild on fatty bacon and red meat - opting instead to eat healthy oils (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats) and get protein from fish, beans, nuts and chicken.

The weight-loss regimen popularized by the late Dr. Robert Atkins - rich in meat, eggs and cheese but almost bereft of grains, potatoes and fruit - is highly popular but had not been tested in a scientifically rigorous way until last year, when two studies reported that very obese and moderately obese people lost more weight initially on the Atkins diet than on a conventional diet.

The studies published last month bolster and extend these findings.

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Detox diets: Health regimen or latest fad?

(CNN) -- A body detoxification program that urges people to "Be your own doctor" is growing in popularity -- but some doctors say the regimen doesn't do anything that the body doesn't do naturally.

"You can't live in a dirty environment, breathing dirty air ... eating food that's contaminated with poisons and pesticides and be healthy," said John Wood, a co-founder of the "21-Day Detox" program in California.

Organizers of 21-Day Detox say the "full-body detox" program eliminates from the body toxins encountered in daily life -- polluted air and water, hormones in some foods, even harmful chemicals in cleaning products -- by modifying diet.

"[People are] not relying on medicine to cure all their ills," Wood said. "It's a time when people are really taking back their health."

Books and tapes about different detox and fasting programs abound, with claims that include age reversal, body cleansing and stopping disease.

At the American University for Complementary Medicine in Los Angeles, program participants attend classes led by Dr. Richard DeAndrea and learn about recipes, health-food store shopping and meditation, among other things.

DeAndrea said that it's possible for the body to heal without a prescription.

"I've actually seen people reverse conditions like psoriasis, arthritis, nagging conditions," said DeAndrea. "Things they've been told they'd have to take pills for the rest of their lives."

Going vegan, fasting

During the course of the three-week program, the group avoids animal products and dairy and go vegan. The program even includes abstaining from confrontation with others, billing itself as a holistic detox.

Participants start off on a plant-based diet, move on to raw food and then go on a blended liquid fast for seven days, under physician supervision.

The blended liquid is a greenish concoction called "energy soup," which Wood and DeAndrea say supplies all the body's daily nutrients.

Some participants twist their faces at the mere mention of the soup, yet most admit during weekly meetings that it bolstered their flagging energy.

Star Hansen said the program put her on a path to restored health.

"I feel very, very good," Hansen said. "My head is much more clear, I have a ton of energy. Just really refreshed, rejuvenated."

She said the detox also improved a skin condition and helped her kick a serious sugar habit.

"Before, it was really easy to focus on the sugar or focus on the bad things," she said. "But with this you're so busy finding foods that are fueling your body and are good for you, that you really aren't looking for those avenues anymore."

Hansen admits that the detox was not always easy. Other participants admitted experiencing serious lapses in energy, with one person saying she felt dizzy at times.

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Is 'fast casual' healthier than fast food?