Brain Boosting Foods You’ll Love To Eat

May 23rd, 2010
Lee Dobbins asked:




Don’t you just love it when you’re thinking clearly and everything just comes together – you feel on top of the world! Would you like to feel like this more often? Well, chances are that you can if you eat more of these brain boosting foods which are packed with nutrients that have been shown to help increase brain function not to mention boost your immune system and help with your overall health.

Avocados
You love them in guacamole, but did you know that avocados can aid in healthy blood flow and may even help to lower blood pressure as well as play a role in preventing strokes? Sure, they are quite fatty but it’s the good fat that’s helpful to your body not harmful. But you don’t have to stock up on guacamole to get enough of them, avocados taste good on lots of things – put them in salads or combine them with tomatoes in between two slices of toast for a delicious and filling sandwich.

Blueberries
It’s no news that blueberries are one of the healthiest foods you can eat, but studies show that eating them can help reduce the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. These power packed berries can also help your brain deal with stress as well as improve learning capacity and motor skills.

Omega 3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3 fatty acids found in cold water fish such as mackerel and salmon are good to eat for host of healthy reasons and one of these includes healthy brain function.

Seeds and Nuts
Vitamin E has been shown to improve declining cognitive functions which happened so often with aging and what better way to get vitamin E then by eating nuts and seeds! To get your best bang for the Buck choose sunflower seeds, cashews, sesame seeds, almonds or peanuts.

Tea
Tea seems to be the superfood of the century and with many good reasons as it is filled with powerful antioxidants. These antioxidants can help boost your immune system but they can also help increase blood flow which is vital to get oxygen to the brain and a key to good brain function.

Whole Grains
Brown rice, oatmeal and foods made with 100% whole wheat flour can also help increase the blood flow which can help give your brain oxygen it needs to be at peak performance. They also help supply the brain with glucose, something your brain needs for clear functioning. Whole grains are better than refined grains like white rice and white flour as they do not have the vital nutrients stripped out.

Dark Chocolate
Chocolate lovers will be happy to know that dark chocolate is loaded with antioxidants and also has natural stimulants which can help boost your concentration and focus. In addition it revs up the production of endorphins which help elevate your mood. But not any chocolate will do, you need to buy a good quality dark chocolate that has only 70% cocoa.

So there you have it, seven great foods that can help boost brain function and that taste great too!

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Adult Stem Cell Production Surges with Micronutrient Supplementation

May 2nd, 2010
Scott Saunders asked:




Turn on the news, open a newspaper – in today’s age a person can’t do either without running into news relating to stem cell research and the controversy surrounding stem cell proliferation. Stem cells have been made out to be the panacea for regenerating and repairing of the human body. Stem cells are known for their ability to change into any other type of cell the body requires at the time. A liver cell? No problem. A bicep cell. Done.

It’s no wonder the research community would like to find out how to increase the body’s natural production of stem cells from the bone marrow where they are made. In a 2003 article from the Journal of the American Medical Association, a group of researchers from John Hopkins Medical Center released a study that donor stem cells had been found to have the ability to cross the blood brain barrier. Their next question was could these stem cells help to correct problems in the brain by changing themselves into the defective brain cells and to promote the growth of new neurons?

At the same time in a separate field of study- nutrition – Dr. McDaniel from the Fischer Institute had been trying to understand how many patients with neurological disorders began showing improved brain function after their diets were supplemented with glyconutrients and other micronutrients.

The next logical step after this observation was to determine if, in fact, the glyconutrients had anything to do with increasing the production of stem cells. If this could be proved true, as it seemed to be, it would mean that with a diet supplemented with glyconutrients, a person’s body would be capable of creating more stem cells. These stem cells with their inherent knowledge of where they are needed, would head to the brain to promote growth of new neurons to replace the damaged and defective neurons there. In time, this could mean increased and improved brain function in patients suffering from many neurological disorders.

Currently, the scientific community is conducting studies to prove this correlation. However, for those looking for answers now, take a look at the individual cases studies where numerous people have found that by adding glyconutrients to their diet they have been able to better their neurological brain function. One study, conducted by Dr. McDaniel, appears to support the theory that glyconutrients dramatically boost adult stem cell production.

To add to the need for further rigorously conducted studies on glyconutrients, several smaller studies have found that when glyconutrients are added to the diet, for unknown reasons, they tend to cause adult stem cell production to increase up to 300 times. Take for example that a normal pint of blood has 1 adult stem cell while a pint of blood from a person supplemented with glyconutrients has 300 stem cells. The implications of this are far reaching and much more study is warranted.

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Food and Nutrition in the News – 2006

April 28th, 2010
Danna Schneider asked:




The year 2006 has really been a landscape for changes in food and new and exciting news about food and nutrition, hasn’t it? Just a few of the news items that come to my mind in this arena are the fact that cloned foods have been approved by the FDA, and the ever so controversial trans fat ban that has been a raging debate for much of 2006, and may likely continue into 2007.

So, let’s take a look at the 2006 food headlines, and see why this may go down in history as one of the most interesting years in the history of food and nutrition!

First off, and most interestingly, at the end of 2006, we saw the FDA approval of cloned foods go through. Wait, weren’t we just debating the morality of cloning not too long ago? And now we’ve had one of the most notoriously fickle organizations, the FDA, approve cloned foods, including animal foods like pork, beef and chicken? Well, yes, it wasn’t too long ago, and yes the FDA did approve foods from cloned animal to be available to the public.

Perhaps this was an issue of supply and demand, and was seen as a way to revolutionize the food supply, but I for one will be shopping more and more at my local natural foods store, where they only offer pure, unaltered meats and dairy, and are guaranteed to be of an “original” gene pool.

There just seems to be something about eating cloned food that is “wrong”. Isn’t there somewhere down the line when these cloned animals and their byproducts may be found to cause some sort of health issue in the creatures that consume them (us?).

To me, the concept of cloned food seems almost too futuristic, even for this day and age, and I’d like to see more long term studies done on the implications of cloned food consumption. But hey, rumor has it, KFC has been using cloned chickens for their notoriously savory chicken for years, so it must be fine, right?

Further down the line, after we start seeing so many foods in the store that may or may not be from a cloned animal, many are also speculating that this will lead to new food labeling, like the certified Organic labels that now must be placed on foods that have passed certain organic guidelines.

Many companies such as Ben and Jerry’s ice creams want to make it clear that their ice cream is only made from animal fat (dairy fat, that is), that is from non-cloned, grain fed animals without the use of hormones. There will very likely be many other food companies that want to distinguish themselves this way as well, as they know full well many Americans will not find the idea of eating cloned animal byproducts particularly savory.

2006 was also the year that we saw the first trans fat ban go into effect, and not without controversy, in New York City. Trans fats are a dangerous fat that have been used in cooking, especially in fast food restaurants, for years now.

Trans fats actually make food extremely tasty, and some argue, even addictive. They have been the subject of much dire warning from the health community, to consume trans fats in extreme moderation, or even better, not at all. Trans fats really do not have one speck of nutritional value, and in fact can just be called a pure health hazard.

Trans fats are actually a partially synthetic fat derivative that was the brainchild of scientists who actually added hydrogen to vegetable oil in order to cheapen the process of fat production as well as increase taste and affordability. Hydrogenated oils also can greatly increase the shelf life of foods (I know, kind of scary).

They raise the bad cholesterol levels in the blood and have been implicated in the increasing levels of obesity and heart disease in this country also though, and there have been many lobbyists campaigning for their elimination and outlaw for a while.

They did partially succeed, as in a bid for an increase in overall health awareness, many politicians took it upon themselves to institute trans fat bans. Now, many fast food restaurants are currently making the switch over to healthier fats that will not clog arteries as readily and are not so highly addictive in nature.

Some agree with government intervention in the health and well being of American citizens, while some disagree and believe this is undue government intervention, and that education should be used instead of seemingly intrusive laws.

I for one, am on the fence on this one. While I believe it is our right to choose the foods we eat, I also know the dangers of trans fats, and recognize that not everyone has the knowledge or willpower they need to avoid these types of foods, which by the way, also happen to be cheaper and easily accessible to a wide range of the population.

One thing is for sure, 2006 has seen some pretty radical changes in the food sector, and 2007 may just bring some more interesting developments as the debate over nutrition continues to be a hot subject.

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Heart Disease and Protein Needs

April 27th, 2010
Jim Duffy asked:




Cardiovascular disease kills over 16 million people worldwide every year and is the direct cause of over 30% of all deaths. In the United States, both heart disease and strokes account for over 40% of all adult deaths (Source: Natural News 2006). In 2006, there were over 450,000 coronary bypass surgeries performed in the United States and there were over two thousand heart transplant surgeries the following year. (Source: The Texas Heart Institute Heart Information Center). The risk for developing heart disease of any kind can depend on a number of factors, including:

- Family history

- Weight

- Diet and exercise habits

- Smoking

- Gender

- Other health risk factors

Having a family history of any type of heart disease may increase your risk of developing certain conditions and may also increase your risk for heart attack or stroke, even without other risk factors being present.

Weight is one of the major risk factors for heart disease, especially with diseases that are caused by clogged arteries and plaque buildup. Weight can be most dangerous when it includes having a BMI of 27 or more and a waist to hip ratio of.9 or more. A woman’s waist measurement should be 33 inches or less. A quick look at your shape is also very telling as well: if you resemble an apple, with most of your weight above the hipline, you are at greater risk of heart disease than those who are pear shaped, or carrying their weight below the hips.

Diet and exercise habits are also an important risk factor to consider. It is recommended that you should get at least 30 minutes of exercise a day. (Source: Ammer, 2005). The choice that you make for exercise is entirely up to you, but your doctor may have some suggestions as well. Good choices for exercise include walking, yoga, swimming and other water sports. A healthy diet is also important, including all of the important nutrients. The diet that is suggested by the American Heart Association is an important one. The DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is also a valid suggestion.

While smoking is known as a risk factor for a number of other diseases, its role in heart disease, including heart attack and stroke, is very important to keep in mind as well, especially for those who have the other risk factors. Smoking raises the risk of heart disease in women five times or more than nonsmoking women of the same age.

It was long thought that most types of heart disease struck men more often than women, however, the dangers of heart disease for women have become more thoroughly researched in the recent years. Women do tend to get heart disease later in life, however, and it tends to be more severe. It is now the leading cause of death in women who are over 66 years old and claims six times more than the number of breast cancer deaths (Source: Ammer, 2005).

Diabetes, a serious disease on its own, can also raise the risks of heart disease by damaging the arteries, raising the blood pressure and possibly worsening the cholesterol levels. Having a poor overall lipid profile is also a dangerous risk to keep in mind. Women who have reached the age of menopause that are not taking estrogen may face the same risk of heart disease as a man who is ten years younger.

Diet Suggestions for Heart Disease (Before Heart Disease Starts)

Research by the Nurses’ Health Study showed that women who started eating a diet plan similar to that of Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) had lowered their risk of heart disease and stroke. DASH is based on healthy proteins (such as plant based rather than animal based protein choices), fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy products. The study stated that at the end of period, those eating from this plan were almost 25 percent less likely to have heart disease and almost 20 percent less likely to have a stroke. (Heart Insight 2008)

Protein should be included in any healthy diet and, in fact, is nearly impossible to omit even if it were to be tried. However, the right type and the right balance must be found. Protein should not make up more than 35% of the daily calories according to the American Heart Association. Two servings of soy protein each day can lower blood cholesterol by 9 points and may also lower the blood pressure as well as the chance of heart attack. (Source: Natural News, 2006)

Whey protein is also beneficial for heart disease as well. Not only may it improve blood vessel function, it may also help with blood flow by inhibiting the conversion of angiotensin I to its vacoconstrictor form, angiotensin II. (Source: Mercola 2009) Whey protein is a byproduct of cheese and is a mix of lacto-globulin, alpha lactablumin and serum ablumin.

Protein is important in the diet and can be gained from food or supplement sources. No matter which type is picked, they are either animal based or plant based. Animal based proteins include turkey, chicken, fish, dairy products and eggs. Plant based proteins include beans and soy products as well as rice. Supplements of all kinds can be made from any of these and are often a blend of protein types. Vegans and vegetarians who are interested in adding protein supplements to their diet can do so by eating more rice or soy dishes or adding rice or soy protein powders.

Shocking Food Pairs for Heart Health

Some foods and nutrients work better when they are put together. For an after-workout, pick-me-up drink, the blend of carbs and protein in chocolate milk is considered to be one of the best. Popcorn mixed with a little trail mix is a good snack choice, blending protein and a little fat. Garlic and onions blended together blend organosulfur compounds for healthier blood vessels and heart. Olive oil (phytochemicals) and vegetables combine together to give better anti-inflammatory protection, and citrus fruits (vitamins C and E, flavones) and oats (phytochemicals) work toward a healthier heart, lower cholesterol levels and improve the health of the blood vessels. Nuts, such as almonds, cashews and walnuts (vitamin E), and fish (omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D) lower cholesterol. (Source Magee, 2008)

References

Christine Ammer The New A to Z of Women’s Health Fifth Edition Checkmark Books New York 2005

The American Heart Association

Heart Insight Magazine August 2008

Elaine Magee, R.D. Food Synergy Secrets Today’s Health and Wellness October/November 2008

Dr. Mercola Whey Proteins Improves Heart Health Mercola.com August 29, 2009

Research Links Soy Protein With Heart Health Natural News November 18, 2006

The Texas Heart Institute Information Center

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Fast Food – The Good Vs the Ugly!

March 17th, 2010
Lauren S Johnson asked:




Sometimes we just can’t help but to stop at a fast food joint. We may be traveling or simply running late with our daily chores. Our busy schedules often give us very little time to prepare healthy meals at home. So when we do find ourselves in a drive through, is there anything we can order that will not make our waist line suffer?

Well, if you absolutely have to eat fast food one day, there are certain factors to take into consideration. For instance, calorie wise, the red headed girl with the pigtails is the best place to go. Once you are there, try to order either a side salad or a grilled chicken sandwich without the mayo. You can also opt for a small chili but you should absolutely stay away from the loaded baked potato and fried foods.

When you go to a fast food sandwich joint, try buying a turkey or ham sub on wheat bread; stay away from mayo and be sure to add plenty of veggies. Try to avoid the calorie packed meatball and Italian subs. As for hamburger joints, be sure to stay away from fried! French-fries, onion-rings, sodas and supersized meals are all bad news. They quickly rob you of your health and of your slim waist. Try to order a side salad with fat free dressing or a grilled chicken sandwich. And whatever you do, don’t make your fast food joint visits a daily habit. We all know that the food is delicious and ready in less than five minutes, but the outcome of that type of a diet is anything but good! And if you need a little discouragement, get on the World Wide Web and look up the nutrition facts of some of your favorite fast food meals. I guarantee you will be shocked!

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Quick and Easy Nutrition From the Frozen Foods Aisle

March 15th, 2010
Allie Moxley asked:




When it comes to eating delicious healthy meals, the nutrition books and television diet plans can make it sound a whole lot easier than the reality. When the magazines recommend throwing several cups of organic cranberries into a delicious healthy salad, the average consumer may cringe. Nobody, between a job, family, friends, and hobbies, has time to comb every specialty food market in town looking for esoteric ingredients that swear to be the secret in celebrity diet plans. For the layman, organic cranberries can very quickly turn into raisins, and the nutritional value can very quickly diminish. There must be a way to enjoy quickly healthy meals made with long lasting ingredients, right? In order to take advantage of the many health benefits of fish, many dieters and health nuts are enjoying Frozen Seafood. Even much of the freshest seafood is flash frozen, and with its versatility and quick cooking time, Frozen Seafood may just be the health food answer you’ve been looking for.

Working with Frozen Seafood allows the amateur seafood enthusiast to work with a wide variety of herbs, spices and flavors, as well as many different kinds of cuisines from Italian to Asian, Greek to Mexican and more. Besides being delicious, seafood is packed with protein and nutrients like Omega-3 fatty acids. Simultaneously low in cholesterol, choosing coldwater seafood like that from Alaska’s icy waters, even when frozen, is shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, lower blood pressure, lower triglyceride levels, and more. Many people are under the impression that frozen food just can’t be as nutritionally valuable as the fresh stuff, but with Frozen Seafood, the item is frozen right at its peak. That means that when the seafood is finally unfrozen, it’s almost as if it had never left the ocean. That’s good news for heart healthy diets, as well as hungry diners that crave great taste.

In order to get the most out of Frozen Seafood, new chefs should pay extra special attention to the thawing process. Some items will only require longer cooking times, while others will need to be fully defrosted before cooking. Should a recipe ask for coating, stuffing, or rolling the item, plan ahead by defrosting the seafood overnight in the refrigerator. For last-minute fixes, place the seafood in a sink full of cold water for around an hour, or until thoroughly defrosted. Try to avoid microwaving, but if all else fails, microwave the seafood on a low setting until slightly softened. Keep in mind the fish should still feel cool, even after microwaving.

Now it’s time to follow your favorite recipes! Use the internet and get creative, but above all else, remember to enjoy your surprisingly fresh, incredibly nutritious Frozen Seafood meal!

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Froot Loops Gets a Healthy Food Label?

March 6th, 2010
Ruth Tan asked:




My two young girls are mad about Froot Loops, the brightly coloured, sugar-laden cereal snack that turns parents naggy whenever their kids pick them up from the store shelves for obvious reasons – they are too unhealthy to be indulged in and there are far too many wiser choices of sweet treats such as fresh fruits, yoghurts, and honey sticks.

Recently, much to my disgust, I learned from the news that in a food-labeling campaign to help shoppers identify healthier food choices, Froot Loops has been given a Smart Choice checkmark! How did such a sugary snack win its endorsement as a nutritionally superior food for kids? What criteria are being used by the Smart Choice program run by food consortiums and nutrition experts? For sure you don’t need to be a nutritionist to know the great amount of processed sugar in that cereal. You instantly know it when you put them in your mouth! And by just doing a little research, you’ll find out that it is 41 percent processed white sugar and contains processed flour, partially-hydrogenated vegetable oil, and synthetic colouring chemicals. So, isn’t this too blatant a move, especially in these days when so many kids and parents are so deeply troubled by the obesity epidemic?

What came across as the biggest ridicule is how Dr Eileen Kennedy, dean of Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University and president of the Smart Choices board tried to rationalize the recommendation of questionable choices such as Fudgsicles, Lunchables, Mayonnaise, and Froot Loops as Smart Choices. According to the New York Times,

She said the program was also influenced by research into consumer behaviour. That research showed that, while shoppers wanted more information, they did not want to hear negative messages or feel their choices were being dictated to them.

“The checkmark means the food item is a ‘better for you’ product, as opposed to having an x on it saying ‘Don’t eat this,’ ” Dr. Kennedy said. “Consumers are smart enough to deduce that if it doesn’t have the checkmark, by implication it’s not a ‘better for you’ product. They want to have a choice. They don’t want to be told ‘You must do this.’ “

“You’re rushing around, you’re trying to think about healthy eating for your kids and you have a choice between a doughnut and a cereal,” Dr. Kennedy said, evoking a hypothetical parent in the supermarket. “So Froot Loops is a better choice.”

Since when consumers are complaining about food warnings? Choosing Froot Loops over doughnuts is considered “healthy eating for kids”? So doughnuts can also become healthy if they are compared to deep-fried Mars bar? It’s hard to believe that a prominent nutrition expert would provide such an irrational, eye-popping report, but then, in the face of all the ongoing conflicts of interests between sales revenue and consumer’s health benefits, it might not appear so bizarre after all. Nevertheless, let’s all be very vigilant when it comes to appraising and selecting foods from the grocery. Apparently the food industry has skewed many of its decisions when setting nutritional criteria. Shortcomings in the food can now be quickly masked by highly regarded health food labels like the Smart Choices. A lot of cereals and breads made of refined grains can easily get the seal of approval by just adding a few minerals and vitamins. As food fraud turns rampant and dishonest food marketing gurus become more dextrous in their selling tactics, I think as consumers, we should also gear ourselves up for enough information to dodge and keep ourselves shielded from all the flying darts in the shops.

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Coming Soon? Super Bread from Turned-On Wheat Genes

February 4th, 2010
Sarah Sandori asked:




Here’s good news on the nutrition front … that is, if you’re not on a strict low-carb diet and do not fear genetically modified food.

It seems that scientists in California have discovered how to “unlock” a gene in domestic wheat seeds that increases the plant’s nutritional value. Called Gpc-B1 (can’t they come up with sexier names for these things?), this gene can increase the iron, zinc and protein levels in the wheat kernels.

The scientists, who are associated with the Agricultural Research Service’s Western Regional Research Center, based in Albany, California, hope their discovery will lead to improving the health of millions of malnourished people around the world. It could also improve the health of people in developed countries such as the U.S. where people generally are already getting their caloric needs met.

The scientists discovered Gpc-B1 in a wild type of wheat that grows in the Middle East, then they figured out that the gene controlled the level of iron, zinc and protein in the plant. Next they discovered that cultivated wheat has this same gene, only it is nonworking–”turned off.” By sticking a cloned copy of the gene into cultivated wheat seeds, they found they could boost those critical nutrients by anywhere from 10 to 15 percent.

Pretty soon, some farmers could be growing wheat varieties that incorporate the cloned Gpc-B1 gene. But it’s too soon to know when you’ll be able to buy a loaf of bread made from naturally nutrition-enhanced wheat.

My diet already includes a wide range of 100-percent whole wheat breadstuffs, from cereal to pita pockets to tortillas to sandwich loafs. I am not one who can easily give up bread, but at least I know that my bread choices are near the top, nutritionally speaking. I look forward to being able to buy bread that is even better for me and my family, thanks to this breakthrough on the genetic front.

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How Bad is Your Nutrition

February 4th, 2010
Craig Ballantyne asked:




Chances are your nutrition is terrible. Or at the very least, your nutrition plan is good but you allow yourself far too many treats. Take today for example. How many Halloween candies have you treated yourself to at work? And you still have to go home and resist the leftover candy bowl or your child’s Halloween loot. The bottom line: You can’t succeed in your fat loss program if your diet is average.

I need to bring up this point because of the many emails people send me about their nutrition. From what I read, most people’s nutrition plans are far too poor to allow them to lose fat. And yet they are working harder than ever in the gym and wondering why they aren’t losing fat. No workout will help you build muscle and lose fat if you keep eating at fast-food restaurants, drinking sugary sodas, and raiding bags of leftover mini-candy bars.

And it’s frustrating because the secrets to fat loss nutrition are so simple. The best approach is eating several small meals per day, with each meal containing lean protein, vegetables, and other whole foods. You must eliminate unnecessary calories such as soda and high-fat, high-sugar snacks (like that mini-Snickers bar that’s on your desk right now). If you’re trying to lose fat, you can’t have treats every day. If fat loss is the goal, then cookies, apple pie, ice cream, nachos, fried foods, etc. just don’t make the cut, as unfortunate as it is.

Research shows that an increased intake of fruits and vegetables is associated with fat loss (nutritionists never put a limit on the number of vegetables that people should eat – provided they are not fried or covered in fat or sauces). Other research suggests that replacing carbohydrates with almonds (a source of fiber, protein, and monounsaturated fats) leads to greater weight loss. Almonds are a very healthy snack and help curb hunger. A typical serving is 1 ounce of almonds (about 22 pieces) and can replace chips, chocolate bars, and cookies in your diet.

Make sure you are logging your food intake and making notes about your energy levels when you eat certain foods. Soon you will identify the nutritional reasons for your fatigue or for your consistent energy levels. You will quickly associate sugar and fried foods with poor mental performance, while noticing that small, whole, natural food-based meals and snacks help keep you alert and full of energy.

If you are overweight and just starting to improve your nutrition, I have some good news for you. You should begin losing at least 1 pound per week (probably 2 or more) simply from the nutritional changes.

Nutrition is that powerful. Don’t expect to start eating perfectly tomorrow, but you should slowly build up to eating much better and healthier than you were yesterday. Try to improve your nutrition plan everyday. Stay consistent and focused with your nutritional approach. You can do it. Here are three nutrition changes that would pay huge dividends for a fat-loss beginner:

1) Eat several small, whole food meals per day.

2) Don’t consume any unnecessary liquid calories (i.e. no soda, alcohol, or sweetened beverages). Drink more water – nutrition experts recommend 3 liters per day.

3) Eliminate processed carbohydrates and sugar from your nutrition plan (no soda, cake, chips, white bread, or chocolate bars).

If you’re fed up with the body fat and spare tire around your middle, then it’s time to take a structured approach to fat loss.

If your current nutritional plan is preventing you from losing fat, then it’s time for you to start working on building better eating habits. This can be as simple as committing to one small nutritional improvement per day (such as replacing your lunchtime soda with water) and one large nutritional change per week (such as setting aside time on a Sunday to prepare a weekly menu and all of your meals).

But you need to have a plan to make this work, just like how you have a plan for your workouts. Your nutrition plan should include the contents of every meal, as well as your grocery list for the week. This will enable you to have meal alternatives for nights when you might need to be running from one event to the other with no time or healthy snack alternatives when you are on the road between meetings.

It’s important that you make your plan something you can follow. If you are currently eating 7 meals per week at the golden arches, it wouldn’t be realistic to plan to replace those meals with carrot sticks and tofu this week. A better plan would be to substitute a couple of those meals with healthier sandwich options and then work on improving things even more in the following weeks.

So here’s a three-step guideline on building a better nutrition plan:

1) Prepare a weekly menu. Outline each meal and snack for every day of the upcoming week. Take into account the possibilities that you might work late or get invited out to lunch. The more options you have and preparations you make, the better you will be able to stick to your fat loss plan.

2) From your menu plan, you’ll now know what foods and ingredients you need to make it through the week. Make your grocery list and stick to it (see mine below). Grocery shopping is your first opportunity to break some bad nutritional habits. You can’t eat chips, cookies, or cakes if you don’t have them in the house – so don’t buy them and you’ll avoid any future temptation.

3) Prepare the meals or prepare the ingredients so that making the actual meal doesn’t take a lot of time. Like shopping, it’s best to do all of these preparations at one time (such as on a Sunday or another day off).

My shopping list includes:

Fruits

? Apples

? Oranges

? Blueberries

? Melon

? Peaches

? Grapefruit

? Raspberries

Vegetables

? Peppers (red, yellow, green, & orange),

? Spinach

? Asparagus

? Broccoli

? Snow Peas

? Mushrooms

? Frozen mixed vegetables

? Tomato sauce

Protein Sources

? Chicken breasts

? Turkey breasts

? Salmon fillets

? Lean beef

? Skim milk & low-fat, low-sugar yogurt

Carbohydrates

? Oat bread

? Oatmeal (no sugar added)

? Whole-wheat pasta

Other

? Green tea

? Unsalted, not roasted, Almonds

You’ll notice that most of these foods come without a food label. Most of the foods that you should avoid come in a bag or a box. Building a shopping list that contains very few bagged or boxed items is something to aim for. But when you do purchase something with a label, make sure to avoid two of the unhealthiest ingredients created by man:

1) High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS)

2) Hydrogenated or partially-hydrogenated vegetable oil (the sources of trans-fatty acids)

You might have heard of these two ingredients. They are strongly associated with obesity and other lifestyle-diseases (such as diabetes).

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Food That is Not Suitable For Children (2)

January 27th, 2010
He He Jian asked:




It is a known fact that we should pay attention to what we eat every day. Actually there is much food that is not suitable for people, especially children. Here I list some food that may do harm to children.

1. Canned goods

Canned good is also a kind of favorite food of many children. However the additives contained in canned foods have a great impact on the normal growth of children and can cause

2. Popcorn

As another kind of favorite food of children, popcorn is delicious but it contains a large amount of lead which may go into human body and damage the nervous system, digesting system and hematopoiesis.

3. Instant noodles

In the modern society, more and more people eat instant noodles in order to save time because they are very busy at work and sometimes they do not have time to have a good meal. At this time, an instant noodle is a good choice. However, instant noodles contain a lot of food dye and preservative which is harmful to human body.

4. Polly seed

Polly seeds contain a large number of unsaturated fatty acid with which may damage the normal function of liver tissues. Thus it is better not to take in too mch polly seeds.

5. Cola drink

Cola drink is a kind of popular drink especially among young people. However, cola drink contains a certain amount of caffeine which is likely to do harm to the undeveloped organs of children.

6. Animal fat

If children take in animal fat too often and too much, they are likely to cause obesity have an impact on the absorption of calcium.

7. Kabob

Such kind of food wins favor of a large amount of people, but they always contain a lot of substances that can cause cancer.

8. Chocolate

Chocolate is really popular among a large amount of people, especially among children and women. To take in too much chocolate will make nervus centralis keep in a state of excitation. Therefore, make children feel anxious and lose appetite.

9. Salt

If children take in too much salt, they are likely to suffer from diseases like high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, stomach cancer etc.

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