Diet & Weight Loss Programs - Choose One Thats Right For You

If you are overweight and searching for the diet program or weight loss product that will be the best suit your individual needs and help you lose the weight as fast as possible, you may be confused considering the numerous diet programs and free diet plans available to you online. When choosing a weight reduction plan, it's important to consider several factors. If you enjoy meats and other protein-rich foods, then a low carb diet may be best for you. If your tastes turn towards pasta, rice, and bread, then a diet that limits or excludes carbohydrates will not be practical.

For the moderately overweight to the severely obese, a diet program that will assist in fairly rapid weight loss is very appealing. Do remember that very fast weight loss may be unhealthy in itself and the weight you lose will most likely reappear as soon as you end your diet plan and attempt to simply maintain your new weight. There are many free diet plans that consist of healthy lifestyle changes rather than extreme changes in your eating habits. You will need to find a diet program that you can live with for the rest of your life if you want to lose weight and keep it off.

Many weight loss companies offer varying diet plans depending on your personal tastes. From low carb to diets high in carbohydrates, the diet you choose to follow should be one that allows you to continue to eat your favorite types of foods and give you the most nutrition for the calories you consume. Almost any diet program, whether it is a free diet plan or a diet program you pay for will require that you exercise, restrict fat and calorie consumption, and sacrifice certain types of foods. If you are overweight and searching for a diet plan you can live with, consider the amount of weight you need to lose, the amount of exercise you get, and the types of foods you enjoy.

If you are overweight you increase your risk of certain health conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. Losing the excess weight can provide you with a better quality of life and a lower your chances of developing potentially deadly health problems. Choose your diet program carefully to be certain of succeeding in your weight loss quest.

To view our recommended sources for weight loss and read more articles about dieting, visit: Recommended Diet Sources & Diet Articles.
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By Carrie Reeder

Carrie Reeder is the owner of eZerk, an informational website about various topics with articles and the latest news. Visit her website to read articles from various sources on dieting & weight loss.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

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Top 5 Weight Loss Strategies From A Top Level Personal Trainer

You are ready to shed those energy draining, body crippling, unattractive extra pounds and you are ready to make it permanent this time. You are on the right track because you've taken the most important step toward your goal. That step is the decision to take action and stay committed. The following five proven strategies will serve as essential elements in your quest to achieve your weight loss goal.

1) You must put yourself into the right mindset. Don't think of your new efforts at weight loss as trying to do certain things every day. See your self living a new lifestyle, a new lifestyle that naturally includes behavior conducive to positive changes in your health and fitness levels. You transition into this new lifestyle by makng adjustments to your daily habits until these habits are in alignment with the goals you are aiming for.

2) Find an exercise partner. It can be a friend, a co-worker, or a family member. Why is this important? An exercise partner is a tremendous source of support. A partner is crucial on those days when you really don't feel up to exercising. Unless you are sick, a good partner won't let you slack and likewise your partner will need you to pull them up when they are not up for the workout. You being needed is an indirect but important type of support. With an exercise partner comes the element of accountability, which subconsciously reinforces your commitment to your quest.

3) Have a baby or get a puppy. These two strategies work in the same manner. I write about this one from first/second hand experience. My wife, Jeri-Jo, gave birth to our daughter, Darah, nine months ago. Today, she weighs less than she weighed before she got pregnant. What is the mechanism here? Jeri-Jo claims, "With Darah to care for, my mind is focused on her and her needs. Don't get me wrong, I'm not at risk for malnutrition, but I don't eat out of boredom any more simply because there is always something to do. The day flies by and I don't have time to snack on foods that cause weight gain."

The puppy strategy is very similar to the baby strategy. If you are not playing with it, training it, feeding it, walking it or cleaning up after it you are too tired to overeat. And, before you know it your new puppy is done napping and ready for more activities. Like caring for a baby, your puppy requires a lot of attention and mental energy. This prevents many people from unnecessary snacking that prevents weight loss.

4) If you are not ready for a baby or a puppy then take a up a new hobby. A new hobby will get you out of the house, stimulate your mind and prevent you from eating out of boredom. If your hobby is a fitness related activity, such as mountain biking or hiking, then you are really going to make some progress.

5) Drink more water. I know, you've heard this one before. But, can you truthfully say you are doing it? Not many people can. Ponder this. You consist of about 73% water. Your body gives off water all day and all night. You must continuously replenish your water levels in order for your body to function at its highest levels. Many fitness professionals talk about the metabolism slowing down as a result of too little food intake. However, just as important, yet rarely mentioned is water intake and its effect on metabolism. Not getting enough water can cause water retention and a slowing of the metabolism. Both of these can prevent weight loss and cause weight gain.

One little known strategy for boosting water intake is to drink 8 - 12 ounces as soon as you wake up. This helps wake up your metabolism. Another way to boost your water intake is to drink 10 - 12 ounces when you start to feel hungry. Instead of immediately reaching for food, drink the water and see if that calms your hunger until you are ready for your next meal.

Each one of these strategies can help you lose weight. But, by utilizing all of them, you are creating a formula for success. A formula that can be the foundation of your new lifestyle.

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By Joey Atlas,

MS - Exercise Physiology, is considered one of the top personal trainers in the US. He is the author of the best selling audio CD "Controversial Secrets of a Personal Trainer", http://www.ControversialSecrets.com. Joey is a co-owner of GAC Personal Training, http://www.GACtraining.com, where he continues to guide people toward a better quality of life through proper exercise programming and nutritional guidance.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

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Weight Loss Is All To Do With Calories

What is a calorie? The definition of a calorie is “the amount of energy, or heat it takes to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree Celsius”. A calorie is a unit of energy that is associated with food and drink and is a measure of the energy, or heat, that food produces as your body uses it as fuel.

The first step in counting calories for your personal weight loss is to calculate how many calories you burn in a day (your total daily energy expenditure), this is the total number of calories that your body expends in 24 hours, including all activities. This is known as your maintenance level and will be the reference point (number of calories) from which to start your dieting.

The average calorie maintenance level for women in the United States is approx 2000 per day and the average for men is approx 2500 per day. These are only basic averages and are usually much higher for athletes or active individuals.

A quick and easy method to find out how many calories you require per day for weight loss and maintenance is to calculate a calorie value with a multiplier as set out below.

Fat loss = multiply your bodyweight in pounds with 12 calories (12 x lb).

Maintenance = multiply your bodyweight in pounds with 15 calories (15 x lb).

This is a very easy method to estimate your daily caloric requirements, but it has its drawbacks as it doesn't take into account your particular activity levels or body fat levels. Despite this it will give you a good estimated figure that you can work with.

The maintenance figure that you get is the amount of calories that you need to consume to stay at your current weight. To lose weight your calorie intake must be lower than the calories you burn.

In order to lose one pound of fat per week, you must reduce your weekly calorie intake by 3,500 calories, which works out at five hundred calories per day. This can be done by reducing your calories by 500 or combining a diet with physical activity. The bottom line is to balance your caloric intake with the amount of calories that you are burning, that's the secret to successful dieting and weight maintenance.

Becoming more conscious of counting calories in your everyday eating regime is imperative if you are trying to lose weight. Studies have shown that men and women underestimate their daily calorie consumption by 500 to almost 1000 calories. You can get a truer picture by keeping a, seven day eating plan of what you typically eat and drink during the day.

At the end of each days eating, add up the total amount of calories consumed and write them down on to the eating plan. At the end of the seven days, add the total calories for the whole week and then divide by seven, you now have your daily calorie intake.

Using a calorie calculator can make counting calories easier - you can total how many calories you will need for your daily activities to give you more control over how many calories you should include in your daily diet. Moderation is always important when you are counting calories, severely restricting calories, causes the body to lower its metabolic rate, which reduces its ability to burn fat. At the same time, hunger signals increase and you quickly start to crave high-energy foods loaded with fats and sugar, the same foods you are trying to do without.

This is because when you return to normal eating habits, the drop in metabolic rate caused by the restriction in calories means that your old eating habits actually represent excess in calories. Not only do you regain the fat stores just lost, but also you may even gain a bit extra.

Dieting by counting calories means that all foods are allowed, nothing is forbidden as long as the calories consumed don’t go over your daily calorie allowance. Counting calories can also be flexible enough to accommodate most busy lifestyles.

Health professionals agree that healthy eating which includes counting calories and a low fat diet are essential for long-term healthy weight loss. The way to lose body fat and maintain muscle is to have a food program for life. Quality food and more energy output are the basics you’ll need to go for.

Bulk foods that fill you up and don’t fill you out, foods that are low in fat and sugar which aren’t refined should be the ideal. Small frequent meals should be consumed during the day each containing a little protein to maintain muscle mass and energy levels.

As before get the calories from high quality food but if you can’t, utilize a blender to make mixtures from skim milk with whatever nutrient additives you want to use, just as long as you keep count of the calories for your daily total.

Now use these out of the blender mixtures and solid food for your daily feedings. Spread it out over many small meals a day instead of the traditional three meals a day.
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By Gary Matthews

Gary is the author of several ebooks, including "Maximum Weight Loss in Ten Weeks" - the complete ebook and time-saving solution for burning away unwanted fat, and "Maximum Weight Gain in Ten Weeks" - easy-to-use and follow techniques that serve as a guide to muscle growth without having to "live in the gym".
Visit Gary’s website at http://www.maximumfitness.com/
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

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Fun Facts About Ice Cream

To this day, the history of ice cream remains a mystery. However, many say that the first ice cream is credited to Emperor Nero of Rome. It was a mixture of snow, nectar, fruit pulp, and honey. Others proclaim that Marco Polo, a 13th century adventurer, brought ice cream to Europe from the Far East. However, regardless of where it came from, today's average American consumes 23.2 quarts of ice cream per year, with the first ice cream parlor in America opening in 1776 in New York City.

So, which countries like ice cream the most? The United States, New Zealand, Denmark, and Australia top the list. The favorite flavor is the classic vanilla. Then comes chocolate, strawberry, neapolitan, and chocolate chip.

How do these line up with your own list of favorites?

The most popular topping for ice cream ---- chocolate syrup. Who would of thought ; )

Around 13% of men and 8% of women will admit to licking the bowl clean after eating ice cream.

Biggest ice cream sundae - 12 ft tall! This one was made with 4,667 gallons of ice cream in California in 1985.

The average single-scoop ice cream cone takes 50 licks to finish. Try it out with the following recipe.

Quick Strawberry Parfait:

Ingredients

1 quart of strawberry ice cream

1 pint of whipped cream

Instructions

Mix the strawberry ice cream with the whipped cream at serving time. Serve in a glass of your choice and top with whipped cream, with a strawberry on top. (Feel free to top your parfait with other fruits as well.)

This recipe will fill eight glasses.

For other parfait flavors, simply use a different flavored ice cream.

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By: Alli Ross

GranMamma is the webmaster at the Baby Names Box - http://www.babynamebox.com - Where you can explore over 20,000 first names and their meanings. Read articles on parenting, family, home and gardening. Be sure to say hi to GranMamma!

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10 Interesting Facts About Tea

Tea comes from the leaves of a tree called Camellia sinensis. The three main types of tea are Black, Oolong and Green. Herbal tea does not come from the leaves of a tea plant, therefore, is not considered to be real tea. Roots, stems, flowers and parts of plants are used to make herbal tea.

Studies in the Netherlands have shown that men who drink black tea which contains catechins are 50 percent less likely to die of ischemic heart disease. This takes place when our arteries become clogged and are unable to work properly because of constriction.

Recent studies have shown that drinking between one and two cups of tea per day may promote fertility by stopping abnormalities in our chromosomes. In a recent test 250 women drank as little as half a cup of tea per day and their pregnancy rates were twice as high as those who did not.

To cure puffy eyes lie in a horizontal position and place either a moist teabag or tea compress over both eyes and leave for about 20 minutes. The swelling around the eyes will to your amazement disappear and your eyes will return to their former glory.

Tea will absorb odors around it. Here is a tip for removing food odors from your hands. Pour some tea over your hands and the tea will remove all odors from your fingers, and leave them smelling great. It even works great with fish odors!

Black tea bags can be used to treat planter warts. Tannin in tea is acidic and can be just as effective in removing warts as various over the counter wart removers! Leave a cooled bag on the wart for about 15 minutes three times daily and slowly the wart will shrink and disappear.

Scientists have reported for many years that men in Asian countries who drink green tea have very low instances of prostate cancer. Many prominent researchers believe that this is due to green tea containing many powerful antioxidants and preventative anti-cancer agents.

In recent Australian studies CSIRO scientists found that the occurrence of skin cancer in laboratory mice was greatly reduced when they were given black tea. It is thought that polyphenols which are very strong antioxidants and are contained in the tea are the most likely reason for this phenomenon.

Tea can be used to soothe burns and sunburns. Put wet tea bags onto the affected areas or keep in place with gauze. You can also put tea into your bath water. This works for other types of burns as well.

The costliest teabag ever was created for the 75'th anniversary of the PG TIPS tea company. The bag was filled with two hundred and eighty diamonds and expensive limited edition tea leaves. The bag cost 7,500 pounds and would be auctioned to raise money for a Children's hospital in Britain.

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By: Lorraine Bevan

Lorraine Bevere is the owner and operator of FOG Tea, a worldwide Tea Directory and a premier source of information about tea. For more information, go to: http://fogtea.com

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Top Cookie Flavors For Baby Showers And Other Parties

Cookies are a very popular treat at any party event and as a snack in general. There are now hundreds of different types of cookies that can be served to your guests and at parties. In case you are having difficulty choosing which flavors to serve, here are the five most popular cookie flavors based on our research study:

1. Chocolate Chip - This should be no surprise but chocolate chip tops the list by a landslide. Every cookie maker offers chocolate chip cookies, a delicious combination of batter and chocolate. Chocolate chip cookies were actually invented in the 1900's by Ruth Wakefield and have remain strong in popularity since then.

2. Fortune Cookies - Fortune cookies have also become popular at many occasions. A simple sweet cookie with a message inside that can be customized for any occasion. The history of the fortune cookie dates back to the 13th and 14th century, when secret messages were placed inside of moon cakes to coordinate an uprising against the Mongols, who were known to have no interest in lotus paste. In the mid 1900's, Chinese railroad workers exchanged happy messages in biscuits instead of cakes for their moon festivals. The first automated fortune cookie factory was started in 1964.

3. Sugar Cookies - Sugar cookies are also popular and embody the simple sweetness that people often think about when they think about cookies. This cookie is one of the easiest to make and is a great treat at kid's parties.

4. Peanut butter cookie - Peanut butter has become a favorite flavor among chidren and adults as well. Although use of peanuts in recipes dates back to the early 1900's, it was not until the 1930's when peanuts became a listed cookie ingredient. Since then, peanut butter cookies have enjoyed popularity at bakeries and cookie shops.

5. Oatmeal cookie - In today's health conscious society, oatmeal cookies continue to remain popular. Although they are not entirely healthy, the typically contain less fat than other cookies and still taste great.

Other popular cookies include Oreo cookies, oatmeal raisin cookies, chocolate cookies, and Girl Scout cookies, which contain a variety of sweet cookie flavors. Whichever cookies you choose to have at your party, your guests are sure to enjoy this sweet delicious treat.

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By: Criss White

Criss White is a professional web writer on baby and new mother topics for baby and pregnancy websites. For baby shower cookie favors, go to Baby Shower Cookies (http://www.mybabyshowerfavors.com/cookies.htm) and for more baby shower articles and ideas, see Baby Shower Ideas (http://www.mybabyshowerfavors.com/articles)

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Nutrition for Physical Activity

Q: I am physically active, but do not always eat a well balanced diet. How can I improve my overall nutrition to complement my active lifestyle? Samara Felesky-Hunt, a registered dietitian in Calgary, provides advice:

A: Good nutrition plays an important role in exercise performance. The recommended diet for active individuals, at all fitness levels, is a high carbohydrate diet containing adequate protein, vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids and fluids. Carbohydrates are the primary energy source for exercising muscles. The more vigorous the exercise, the more carbohydrate is required to fuel the activity.

Use Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating to figure out how to balance your food choices for your age, sex and activity level. Enjoy a wide variety of carbohydrates such as whole grains, breads, cereals, fruits and vegetables. As protein and mineral needs are also important, choose lower fat dairy products, legumes, nuts, eggs and leaner meats. Regular exercise may increase the loss of some minerals and alter the needs for certain vitamins. To ensure you meet your daily quota of vitamins and minerals, be sure to vary your food choices.

Due to hectic lifestyles, it can be a challenge to obtain your nutritional needs on a daily basis. I recommend that active individuals take a daily multivitamin, such as Centrum®, and eat well-rounded healthy meals to support their nutritional needs. Centrum® contains the essential vitamins and minerals necessary to maintain good health and to meet the needs of physical activity.

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by: News Canada

News Canada provides a wide selection of current, ready-to-use copyright free news stories and ideas for Television, Print, Radio, and the Web.
News Canada is a niche service in public relations, offering access to print, radio, television, and now the Internet media, with ready-to-use, editorial "fill" items. Monitoring and analysis are two more of our primary services. The service supplies access to the national media for marketers in the private, the public, and the not-for-profit sectors. Your corporate and product news, consumer tips and information are packaged in a variety of ready-to-use formats and are made available to every Canadian media organization including weekly and daily newspapers, cable and commercial television stations, radio stations, as well as the Web sites Canadians visit most often. Visit News Canada and learn more about the NC services.

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Nutrition And Mental Function

(NC)-Eating well and getting the vitamins and minerals we need over the course of our lives is important for overall good health. It may also help preserve memory and cognition in the golden years.

There is growing evidence to suggest that good nutrition plays a role in preventing or possibly reversing cognitive decline. One recent study found that healthy people in their late 60s were able to boost their mental capabilities by taking nutritional supplements.

Certain B vitamins, such as niacin, contribute to the formation of proteins that are needed for memory. As well, antioxidants like vitamins A, C, and E, and selenium may play a role in enhancing mental ability and protecting against dementia and diseases like Alzheimer's.

Because our understanding and means of dealing with cognitive decline is limited, prevention is key. Eating a well-balanced, low-fat diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables is important for good health and may slow brain aging. Seniors in particular are more susceptible to changes in their bodies that result in reductions in vitamin and mineral levels. Taking a well-balanced multivitamin supplement like Centrum Select® on a daily basis can provide good nutritional insurance.

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by: News Canada

News Canada provides a wide selection of current, ready-to-use copyright free news stories and ideas for Television, Print, Radio, and the Web.
News Canada is a niche service in public relations, offering access to print, radio, television, and now the Internet media, with ready-to-use, editorial "fill" items. Monitoring and analysis are two more of our primary services. The service supplies access to the national media for marketers in the private, the public, and the not-for-profit sectors. Your corporate and product news, consumer tips and information are packaged in a variety of ready-to-use formats and are made available to every Canadian media organization including weekly and daily newspapers, cable and commercial television stations, radio stations, as well as the Web sites Canadians visit most often. Visit News Canada and learn more about the NC services.

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Proper Nutrition Can Make Your Kid a Top Student

It is important that your child gets his or her nutrition early o­n, preferably form Grade 1. This is the most important time for brain development, as they start to learn new things and create new ideas all the time. Brain development revolves around getting the right amount of:

1) Glucose – Simply put, it is the blood sugar level. Glucose provides energy, and is vital in determining attention span. Lack of glucose can cause your kid to feel sleepy in class. The most important meal is breakfast, and glucose should be a part of every child’s breakfast, to ensure that the blood sugar level is maintained through out the day’s activities. Kids who usually skip breakfast tend to have a shorter attention span and difficulty remembering their lessons.

2) Vitamin B – Vitamin B helps to release the energy in glucose. Lack of Vitamin B can cause aggressiveness and depression. There are 12 types of essential Vitamin B, so it may be difficult to get all in a meal. Cereals are a good provider of Vitamin B.

3) Iron – Helps to transport oxygen in the blood system to each individual cell, including brain cells. Lack of iron results in anemia, which is common in children who don’t get a balanced diet. Besides having less attention span, iron-anemic children are less motivated to participate in challenging tasks that stretch their imagination and ability. Having a good selection of red meat, tuna, chicken, or leafy vegetables like legumes and broccoli, can give your kid all the iron he or she needs.

4) Folic Acid – Important in the formation of red and white blood cells. Lack of folic acid results in your kid feeling tired, irritable and forgetful. Food sources like fresh vegetables and fruits are good sources of folic acid.

5) Zinc – Important to maintain communication between nerve cells and brain cells. Deficiencies in zinc can cause your kid to have difficulty solving academic problems, something the medical world calls cognitive impairment. Zinc in its natural form can be found in cereals and peanuts.

6) Vitamin A – An important nutrient for the nervous system of a fetus. Vitamin A is most commonly found in beta carotene, from dark leafy vegetables and orange or yellow fruits.
How to Ensure Your Kid Gets the Right Nutrition

A healthy, balanced diet, consisting of the right amount of cereals, meat, fish, vegetables, fiber-rich fruits, and lots of clean, unprocessed water will provide your child with the magic formula to succeed in school, both academically and in sports. Does that mean that the parents of ‘A’ students go out shopping each day, cook their own food, and sit down with their kids o­n the breakfast table to ensure that they eat what they’re supposed to?

Not necessarily. Parents are discovering the importance of nutritional supplements to balance out their diet, as well as their children’s diet. Nutritional supplements provide the answer to the close the gap created by a busy lifestyle and the need for better health. Adults can take multivitamins and mineral supplements out of their own determination for better health. Children, o­n the other hand, especially the younger o­nes, need to be educated, tricked or forced to take nutritional supplements. Any way you do it, it has to be done for the better future of your child.

Kids generally detest swallowing any sort of multivitamin pill, especially if it’s like really huge o­nes or if it tastes bad. Understandably for them, taste is more important than the benefit of the pill. Educating your kid is important in the long run, but younger children need to be introduced to supplements in a more subtle way. o­ne good way is by giving them chewable supplements, which disguise the fact that they are supplements by giving a good taste and flavor. Kids are generally more receptive to taking chewables than regular pills.

Another trend today is taking liquid nutritional supplements. Liquid nutritional supplements go o­ne step further than chewables by eliminating the need of pill forms. Liquid nutrition can be diluted and mixed into our drinks, cereals and whatever else you eat during the course of a day. Children today love taking liquid supplements that are mixed into their orange juice or other beverage. Even adults who hate taking pills are attracted to liquid multivitamin supplements. Liquid nutrition is also more readily and easily absorbed by the body.

Start Early to Determine Success

If you really want your kid to grow up smart and popular in school, you have to start early. Mothers should take Vitamin B supplements during their pregnancy months to ensure complete fetal growth. Even though nutritional supplements are generally not recommended to kids below 2 years, ensure that from that age o­n your children are introduced to taking chewable or liquid nutritional supplements.

Grade A students and kids who excel in school generally don’t have anything special that your kid does not already have. The o­nly difference is that they have parents who emphasize the benefits of good nutrition. Now that you know their secret, start today by analyzing your kid’s eating habits and take action to change their life, and yours.

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by: Gobala Krishnan

Gobala Krishnan is a representative of Veriuni Nutritionals, a great solution for children and adults who don’t like taking pills. For more information o­n Veriuni Nutritionals and information o­n living a healthy lifestyle visit http://www.veriuni-products-store.com.

Copyright 2005 Gobala Krishnan

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Why Our Healthcare System Isn't Healthy

Most people are well aware that an estimated 45 million Americans currently do not have healthcare, but is the crisis simply the lack of health insurance or even the cost of health insurance? Is there a bigger underlying problem at the root of our healthcare system? Although the U.S. claims to have the most advanced medicine in the world, government health statistics and peer-reviewed journals are painting a different picture -- that allopathic medicine often causes more harm than good.

People in general have always felt they could trust doctors and the medical profession, but according to the Journal of the American Medical Association in July 2000, iatrogenic death, also known as death from physician error or death from medical treatment, was the third leading cause of death in America and rising, responsible for at least 250,000 deaths per year. Those statistics are considered conservative by many, as the reported numbers only include in-hospital deaths, not injury or disability, and do not include external iatrogenic deaths such as those resulting from nursing home and other private facility treatments, and adverse effects of prescriptions. One recent study estimated the total unnecessary deaths from iatrogenic causes at approximately 800,000 per year at a cost of $282 billion per year, which would make death from American medicine the leading cause of death in our country.

Currently, at least 2 out of 3 Americans use medications, 32 million Americans are taking three or more medications daily, and commercials and advertisements for pharmaceutical drugs have saturated the marketplace. Although our population is aging, exorbitantly expensive drugs are being marketed and dispensed to younger and younger patients, including many children who years ago would never have been given or needed medication, for everything from ADHD to asthma to bipolar disease and diabetes. Clearly, the state of health in this country is not improving even though there are an increasing number of medications and treatments. Between 2003 and 2010, the number of prescriptions are expected to increase substantially by 47%. In recent years, numerous drugs previously deemed safe by the FDA have been recalled because of their toxicity, after the original drug approvals were actually funded by the invested pharmaceutical companies themselves.

According to the media, thanks to advances in U.S. drugs and medical procedures, Americans are living longer statistically, but they are living longer sicker, with a lower quality of life, and often dependent on multiple expensive synthetic medications that do not cure or address the underlying causes, but only suppress symptoms, often with a plethora of dangerous side effects to the tune of billions of dollars for the drug industry. Considering that the U.S. is supposed to have the most advanced technology in the world and the best health care system, it is at odds that we spend the most on healthcare, yet are the most obese and most afflicted with illness outside of the AIDS epidemic in some third world countries.

Unless you have an acute emergency that requires emergency room care, being admitted to a hospital environment may also be more dangerous to your health than staying out. In 2003, epidemiologists reported in the New England Journal of Medicine that hospital-acquired infections have risen steadily in recent decades, with blood and tissue infections known as sepsis almost tripling from 1979 to 2000. Nearly two million patients in the U.S. get an infection while in the hospital each year, and of those patients over 90,000 die per year, up dramatically from just 13,300 in 1992. Statistics show that approximately 56% of the population has been unnecessarily treated, or mistreated, by the medical industry.

Additionally, as a result of the overuse of pharmaceutical drugs and antibiotics in our bodies and environment, our immune systems have become significantly weakened, allowing antibiotic-resistant strains of disease-causing bacteria to proliferate, leaving us more susceptible to further disease. Not surprisingly, incidences of diseases have been growing at epidemic levels according to the CDC. Now diseases once thought conquered, such as tuberculosis, gonorrhea, malaria, and childhood ear infections are much harder to successfully treat than they were decades ago. Drugs do not cure. They only suppress the symptoms that your body needs to express, while they ignore the underlying root cause. Side effects of synthetic and chemical drugs, which even if they are partly derived from nature have been perverted to make them patentable and profitable, are not healthy or natural, and usually cause more harm than any perceived benefit of the medication.

Where "physician errors" are concerned, these may not be entirely the fault of the doctors, as they are forced to operate within the constraints of their profession or risk losing their license, but doctors have become pawns and spokesmen for the drug companies, and the best interest of the patient has become secondary. In the name of profit, physicians are also under great pressure from hospitals to service patients as quickly as possible, like an assembly line, increasing the likelihood of error.

In conclusion, increases in healthcare costs are not just the result of frivolous law suits, but are primarily the result of a profit-oriented industry that encourages practices that lead to unnecessary and harmful procedures being performed, lethal adverse drug reactions, infections, expensive legitimate lawsuits, in-hospital and physician errors, antibiotic resistance due to overprescribing of antibiotics and drugs, and the hundreds of thousands of subsequent unnecessary deaths and injuries. Many people do not realize that there are healthier natural options, and anything unnatural or invasive we are exposed to is likely to cause either immediate or cumulative damage over time.

For more information on how to help your body heal itself naturally without chemicals, information on drug side effects, and harmful disease-causing chemicals in the foods you eat and your environment and how to avoid them, please visit the NatureGem web site at http://www.naturegem.com.

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by: Deb Bromley

Deb Bromley is a science and technology researcher and the President of NatureGem Nontoxic Living, an organization devoted to promoting awareness of toxins in our food and environment that can cause disease, and providing access to nutrition information, natural remedies, and alternative health resources. Please visit http://www.naturegem.com for more information.
debbromley@legacyhealthfoundation.org

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20 Ways to Reduce Blood Pressure Naturally

Do You know someone who suffers from high blood pressure? Maybe You? Then this is good news!

Are you aware that there are simple and inexpensive ways to control blood pressure with food and supplements you already have in your kitchen?

Intelligent health conscious people like You can naturally understand these strategies to help maintain lower blood pressure levels.

Because when you understand and follow through with these steps, you will feel more energy and enjoy the benefits of lower blood pressure.

In my 10 years of studying nutrition and over 5 years of helping others solve their health problems, I have found that the experts agree that these steps are some of the most effective in lowering blood pressure naturally.

1. CoQ10 supplements – CoEnzyme Q10 or CoQ10 For short is a powerful anti-oxidant which is in every cell in your body. Your body uses CoQ10 to derive Energy.

In a double-blind placebo controlled study published in The Journal of Human Hypertension, The group which took CoQ10 for just 8 weeks showed a significant reduction of blood pressure.

Also in a University of Texas study, people taking oral CoQ10 after just one month experienced significant lowering of blood pressure and 51% of participants were able to discontinue blood pressure medication.

As a side note, blood pressure medication prevents the body from not only manufacturing its own CoQ10, but also your body’s ability to absorb CoQ10. recommended dose: 100-200 mg gel caps each day to help lower blood pressure.

2. Vitamins, Herbs and Anti-oxidants

The following are Doctor recommended daily amounts.

Vitamin C - 1000 mg Garlic - 2 cloves Hawthorn berry - 500 mg Omega 3 fatty acid fish oil Gel caps - 1000 mg Vitamin b6 in a natural multivitamin Magnesium - 500 mg Astragalus root 500mg

3. Food Sources:

In a Greek study that examined the effects of the Mediterranean diet on 20,000 people proved that olive Oil, Fruits and Vegetables were significantly associated with lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure.

Celery - 4 sticks a day, relaxes the smooth muscles in the blood vessels.

Fresh cold water fish which is high in Omega-3 fatty Acids.

Salt - let’s understand the real reason why salt is important to your blood pressure.

We’ve all heard that you need to cut down on sodium in your diet, although this is not bad advice, it misses the point. High sodium intake alone does not increase blood pressure, it is an excess of sodium to potassium ratio.

The ideal ratio is five times as much potassium as sodium in Your diet. You’ll get the best results by eating three servings A day of potassium rich foods such as:

Bananas – 1 large Avocados – 1 cup Beans – ½ cup Squash – 1 cup Tomatoes – ½ cup
Low levels of magnesium can also contribute to high Blood pressure, so here are some Magnesium rich foods:

Almonds – 1/3 cup Tofu – ½ cup Cashews – 1 cup Raisin bran – 1/3 cup

And finally lets talk about what level of blood pressure is considered high. Right now the threshold pushed by mainstream medicine is 115/75 – 120/80 which WAS considered borderline LOW just 5 years ago.

This is because the standard for “high” blood pressure, just like the standard for cholesterol is repeatedly lowered to put more people on medication. Your individual risk factors and age play a big role in determining what is a good blood pressure level for YOU.

So don’t just accept a one size fits all number when it comes to your blood pressure. Ask questions and discuss your health with a nutritionally educated Doctor to find what is best for you.

So what about YOU? Are You going to let the silent killer Sneak up on you? Or are You going to take action that will make this highly unlikely?

When You safe-guard Yourself with these proven techniques which You can easily incorporate into your life, then You will reap the healthy benefits.

Used in combination these natural, safe and proven techniques work wonders to keep your blood pressure down and allow you to experience a higher level of health without the unwanted side effects.

So take action now and get started today to do one thing from each of the three points above. Each day incorporate the food and supplements listed and You are well on Your way to lower blood pressure. These are proven, safe and inexpensive steps so You can enjoy the benefits now.

Sources:

Singh RB, Niaz MA, Rostogi SS, et al. “Effect of Hydrosoluble coenzyme Q10 on blood pressure in Hypertensive patients with coronary artery disease”. Journal of Human Hypertension. 1999 Mar;13(3):203-208.

Dr. Al Sears, Lynn Sonberg, The Doctor’s Heart Cure, St. Paul MN, Dragon Door Publications, pgs 176-181

Daily Dose, Dr. William Campbell Douglas, “Of spice and men” 3/15/2005

Dr. Al Sears, Health alert, “Lower Blood pressure Naturally”, 3/8/2005

Dr Al Sears, Health Alert, “Lower blood pressure without drugs”, 7/3/2003.

___________________________

by: Lee Cummings

Lee Cummings has been helping real people solve real problems and feel better with expert proven nutrition for over 5 years.
Report - mailto:report@lc-nutrition.com
Discover proven nutrition information: http://www.LC-Nutrition.com
leeman@lc-nutrition.com

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The Ultimate Weight Loss Red-Flag Guide

Weight Loss Red Flag Guide

Despite claims to the contrary, there are no magic potions or effortless ways to burn off fat. There are thousands upon thousands of weight loss web sites, low carb diets, diet pills and other "so-called experts" that prey on desperate overweight people and use overly optimistic claims that get you to believe and buy into their flat out lies -- reaping billions of dollars each year while your left still overweight and looking for answers.

In an effort to help and keep you from falling victim to the countless bogus weight loss claims of all the diet pills and many other weight loss products (essentially saving you money and time), here is a little guide that helps set the record straight as well as provide you with red flags to watch out for when researching or looking for weight loss help and support. A portion of this information is via The United States Federal Trade Commission...

If They Say ...

"An easy plan for losing up to 13 pounds in two weeks with little or no exercise...A program to let you keep losing"

"These patients started losing weight as soon as they went on the diet within the first week. These patients kept losing too...20, 30 even 50 pounds within months. They kept it off too."

Sorry, But The Truth Is ...

Red Flag Claim 1 --

Lose two pounds or more per week (for a month or more) without dieting or exercise.

The Truth --

Meaningful weight loss requires consuming fewer calories and/or increasing exercise. Ads that promise substantial weight loss without diet or exercise are false. A claim is false if it states or implies that users can lose lots of weight fast without changing their lifestyles, even if the ad doesn’t mention specific amounts of weight loss or time periods.

If They Say ...

"Eat cake... a hamburger... toast with butter... and practically anything else you enjoy! This simple plan gets you thin - without sacrificing your favorite foods!"

"One of my overweight patients refused to give up his daily dish of ice cream. As a result of the diet he lost 30 pounds quickly. His weight has stayed off even though he never exercises and he still has his daily ice cream."

"Lose weight by eating more meals! Astounding reason on page x..."

"You decide how many pieces of meatloaf you want -- and the pounds still slip away!"

Sorry, But The Truth Is ...

Red Flag Claim 2 --

Eat what you want!

The more you eat, the more you lose and we’ll show you how.

The truth --

It is impossible to eat unlimited amounts of food – any kind of food – and still lose weight. Any claim to that effect in an ad or commercial is false. Some products may help curb appetite or cravings. For these products, its okay to say people can eat what they want so long as it is clear from the ad or commercial that people will not want to eat as much food as before they started using the product.

If They Say ...

“The Super Fat-Fighting Formula inhibits fats, sugars and starches from being absorbed in the intestines and turning into excess weight, so that you can lose pounds and inches easily.”

“These diet pills block fat before your body absorbs it; the pounds will melt away effortlessly.”

Sorry, But The Truth Is ...

Red Flag Claim 3 --

Block the absorption of fat or calories, and lose substantial weight.

The Truth --

No fat blocker or diet pills can block enough fat or calories to cause lots of weight loss. Even the very few legitimate fat blockers must be used with a reduced-calorie diet to work.

If They Say ...

"Got a little extra baggage in your belly... thighs... buttocks? Here's the only sure way to trim the fat in those "trouble spots."

"We once thought a diet couldn't target fat in specific areas of the body. But the "xxx diet" changes that and proves that you can."

Sorry, But The Thruth Is ..

Red Flag Claim 4 --

You Can't Spot Reduce -- Period!

The Truth --

You absolutely can't tell your body where it will lose weight and shed pounds (spot reducing). The notion of a food or diet tricky enough to burn fat in specific areas is flat out ridiculous. You can "build up" specific areas in your body thru weight training, but losing weight in specific areas that you may want to improve is simply NOT possible.

If They Say ...

"But I have lost 6 pounds the very first week on this new low card diet..."

"I lost 11 pounds the first 2 weeks on this diet."

"Lose 13 pounds in 2 weeks with this brand new diet -- Guaranteed!"

Sorry, But The Truth Is ...

Red-Flag Claim 5 --

Water Weight, Water Weight, and More Water Weight --

The Truth --

Glycogen, your primary source for energy, attracts water. Your muscles are mostly made up of water. When you limit your carbohydrate intake, you hold onto less glycogen. Therefore, the initial weight loss you experience is due to water loss from your muscles. This can account for 4-10 pounds in the first week. Rapid water loss is the trick behind these diets. They make it appear quick and easy, while in reality it is a temporary solution

***********************
by: Liz Guzzo, MS, RD., Mari Kudla
Liz Guzzo is one of the nations top dietitians and Mari Kudla is the 4th ranked Fitness Professional and Figure Model in the world ...Their Weight Loss Bible contains weight loss secrets from the worlds elite fitness professionals, figure models and dietitians. Mari Kudla contributes to weight loss magazines such as Muscle & Fitness Hers, Oxygen, and Flex magazines -- just to name a few. Their "Weight Loss Bible" has been said to make weight loss ... "amazingly simple to understand and easy!" For more info: http://www.ultimate-weight-loss-bible.com.

More about → The Ultimate Weight Loss Red-Flag Guide

The Ultimate Weight Loss Product Guide

Are you one of the many who may be tempted by advertisements for diet pills and other weight loss products promising easy, quick ways to lose weight? Were you aware that a simple 30 minute infomercial can cost anywhere from $80,000 to 120,000 dollars to make. Pretty crazy don't you think? Yet time and time again you see countless weight loss infomercials selling product after product.

Fad Diets and many diet pills are pitched by persistent advertising and many people, possibly even you will join the parade of followers. Yet 95% of the time, these weight loss products will prove to fail you once again -- leaving you with nothing but charges to your credit card and set-up to regain all those pounds. So why are people constantly and willingly paying their hard earned money for these weight loss products?

"Stop Throwing Your Hopes Into Every Weight Loss Product That Comes By"

We want you to stop being their guinea pigs and understand and realize just how many of these diet pills and other weight loss companies are cashing in at your expense. To help you avoid getting "trapped or suckered" into believing or choosing a weight loss product or service that does nothing but contribute and add to the problems.

Stop Getting Taken! The following factors are exactly what many weight loss products and services use and exploit in order to get you to buy into their utterly false claims...

Factor 1 -- HOPE

Hope is a good thing, you need hope. But the problem is that many times you have such high hopes that you put those hopes into anything, regardless if its legit or not. By putting your hopes of weight loss into products and services that are not providing the necessary means you need, your ultimately setting yourself up for failure and your hopes will get crushed. Have hope, just make sure you put your hope into the right service and don't let your strong sense of hope blind you into not seeing the red-flags and other lies.

Bottom Line -- Don't let your strong sense of hope make you believe things that are not true!

Factor 2 -- Emotion

Lets face it, your weight and appearance can be a touchy, emotional subject. And it should be, its your life! But how many times have you seen a weight loss infomercial where someone breaks down into tears while talking about how miserable they were when overweight and how deeply happy and relieved they are now ... and how they owe it all to that particular weight loss product or "revolutionary system." The product is doing this intentionally!

Weight loss products know you're emotional about how you look ... they also know that when your emotional, it causes you to act on impulse. They have a better chance to "hook- you" when you're emotional and "touched." Products try to stir up your emotion in an effort to get you to act impulsively and buy into their claims. You should be emotional about your health and the way you look, but don't let them use your emotion against you. Don't let your emotion blind you into not seeing the red-flags and real reason that they're really there -- to get the "2 easy payments of $39.99" out of you!

Factor 3 -- Marketing Savvy & Media

Just because you're constantly seeing weight loss ads and commercials for diet pills and the new "xxx diet" does not mean it works and is credible. Just because you see a celebrity hosting the weight loss infomercial or program (who has been generously paid off ... do you really think a movie star is going to do an infomercial for free?) does not mean it's effective. What it does mean is that they have thousands, if not millions of dollars to pay for advertising and marketing so they can get their product in front of you, be it radio, television, internet etc. so they can constantly "pitch you."

How affective is marketing? Recently, a diet pill company was making the bogus claim "take our weight loss pill and you can eat what you want and burn fat as you sleep" and made $152 million in profit over 3 short years by doing radio commercials at over 600 stations across the country! That is until the Government stepped in and cracked down! And all the restaurants that are adding the "new xxx diet approved" menus, all they're doing is trying to make money too! Restaurants know that people are willingly paying, so why wouldn't they add low carb diet dishes (even though the number of calories in these dishes are alarmingly high and will cause you to pack on pounds!)

Realize, that just because you see a weight loss product time and time again on the television or radio does not mean it will be effective in losing permanent weight. All these weight loss companies are trying to do is get their product in front of you over and over so it will be there when you're ready to buy. Many people make the mistake of assuming a product is credible simply because it's constantly on television.

Factor 4 - Repetition

Diet pills and other weight loss products figure they more they can get in front of you, the more likely you're going to buy it when that time comes. Lets face it, if you were interested in building a deck, when that time comes don't you think your going to choose the "smith deck company" that you saw time and time again on TV. Most people will simply use the one that's most convenient and right there. Many times people just pick the first product or service that comes to their head and have high hopes that everything will just work out. Unfortunately, many times it's no different with weight loss products.

This is exactly why you see the same infomercial every day, every hour of the day for like 1 month straight ... and then all of a sudden it's gone. They get in, make their money on desperate people looking to lose weight, and then they get out! And if you see it again in like 3-4 months down the road, this means they made a lot of money on it previously and are back to make more. They wouldn't be there if they weren't making money - period!

The product is trying to pound it into you head and keep coming at you because they know, the more you see it, the more likely you will be to buy it. Don't get suckered! Just because they are always there, does not mean it will help you.

Factor 5 - Pressure

This is a big one. The bottom line -- when people are pressured they act impulsively. Often times you put way to much pressure on yourself. In today's society so much emphasis is placed on health and appearance. People feel pressured to look a certain way and this is certainly the case with being overweight as people will do anything to lose weight. Weight loss products go out of their way to put additional pressure on you, knowing that it will cause you to act and buy. Many of the weight loss infomercials are very good at the art of getting you to believe that ... "finally this is it, the only product that's going to change your life!" The truth is that all they're doing is adding additional pressure.

Bottom Line -- Don't let the pressure you feel to lose weight allow you to buy into and believe false claims. A sense of urgency to lose weight is good, but don't feel so pressured that it causes you to act impulsively and spend your hard - earned money on the first thing you come across that sounds good. When you feel pressured, it will allow you to start believing and putting your hopes into things that are not true because you feel like "I need to do something about my weight and I need to do it now!" Weight loss products know this and that is what they are wanting you to do. Don't allow it and don't allow yourself to be one of their guinea pigs! It will just cost you in the end!

General Rules To Keep In Mind When

Dealing With Weight Loss Products

Be Realistic -- If there was a way to "lose 30 pounds in 30 days and keep it off" or "eat what you want and still lose weight" don't you think that we would all look like supermodels?

Use Common Sense -- If there were magic diet pills or easy way to lose weight and keep it off, don't you think the top movie stars and celebrities who make millions and millions of dollars would have it.

Allow Yourself To Believe Both Sides -- If you're going to make the mistake of believing the lies and fabrications many weight loss products are telling you, at least allow yourself to believe that they may indeed be "lying and deceiving you" as well. It's only fair that you allow yourself to look at both sides as this will help you to form a better judgment.

"If It Was That Easy..." Lets face it, if it was as easy as all these health and weight loss infomercials and ab contraptions make it, the statistic of 95% failing would not exist! There would be no problems. Don't believe their lies and fabrications.

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by: Mari Kudla

Mari Kudla is the 4th ranked IFBB Fitness Professional And Figure Model in the world. She has been featured and contributed in numerous world wide media weight loss giants such as Muscle & Fitness Hers, Oxygen, and Flex magazines -- just to name a few. Her new book, "The Ultimate Weight Loss And Fitness Bible," has said to make weight loss ..."amazingly simple to understand and easy" More info at http://www.ultimate-weight-loss-bible.com.

More about → The Ultimate Weight Loss Product Guide

Just the Cold Hard Facts About Diets, Weight Loss, Exercise and Losing Fat

This is a layman marketers' observations on diets and weight loss based upon selling and working first hand with weight loss products for over 10 years.

We avoid the weight loss drugs, we do not recommend them as they can be dangerous, however I suppose in some extreme cases with certain obese people the benefits may outweigh the negative side effects.

Here is where we believe the majority of people go wrong when trying to lose weight.

First most people consume way too many carbohydrates and they don't take in enough protein on whatever diet they are on so in effect they are causing their bodies to instead of burning fat to burn lean muscle.

In effect lean muscle burns at rest about 17 times more calories per day at rest than the same amount of fat. The amount of muscle you have greatly determines your metabolism and how many calories your body burns each day. This is why people when they come off their diet and start eating regularly again they can put the weight right back on as their body is now naturally burning less calories than before. In effect they have slowed down their metabolism. This is especially true it seems of women who have less natural muscle mass than men.

This explains why the Atkins diet is so effective. It cuts out a lot of the carbohydrates, which because people often eat too many of them cause weight gain. And by eating more protein it is making sure that you don't lose any muscle and may even gain some additional muscle mass.

The second major factor why people don’t lose weight is lack of exercise and to a lesser degree the wrong types of exercise. For example a brisk walk can cause your body to go into the fat burning state called ketosis better than running will.

We earlier discussed how important muscle mass was in maintaining a healthy weight. This is why light resistance exercises (weight training) is so effective in losing weight because it help you add muscle mass. This doesn’t have to be massive amounts of weight, any light resistance amount of weight can be effective at adding muscle.

This is why men and women who participate even in light resistance exercises 2-3 times a week for 15-20 minutes almost always lose weight when they combine this with their weight loss program. This has been our observation over the last 10 years or so.

So to sum it up, the formula to lose weight is fairly simple, following it is much more difficult.

Cut your excess carbs, eat more protein and do moderate exercise like walking and light resistance exercises like weights. Do this and control what you eat and you will lose weight.

Now there are a number of weight loss products on the market that can help facilitate your weight loss, but unless you are willing to do what we just mentioned, you will not achieve your total weight loss goal.

This is not to say particular products aren't effective as they may prevent you from adding additional pounds or even help you lose a few pounds. Also is the issue of carbs, we are not idiots here, we realize carbohydrates are used for energy. However, the bottom line is most people consume much more carbohydrates then they need on a daily basis and the excess gets converted to fat. You know the story.

As far as most weight loss products, most people have varying opinions. Here is the issue, most of the reputable weight loss products work to a certain degree. The problem is most people look at them as miracle workers, that will allow them to continue to eat way too much (this is kinder than saying they eat like a pig), not exercise and expect to lose weight on the product. So at the end of 30 or 60 days they weight or measure themselves and think that product sucked, as they didn't lose anything. Meanwhile they conveniently forget their lifestyle over that period.

This is why recording eating habits in a journal is so effective and why it is recommended.

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by: Nick A. James

Nick A. James offers informative tips and information on nutrition, health and working from home. His many years of Internet Marketing expertise puts him in unique postion to help others starting a home business (http://www.health-goji-juice.com/home-business.html). For free newsletter, free reports and amazing info contact him at: http://www.health-goji-juice.com.

More about → Just the Cold Hard Facts About Diets, Weight Loss, Exercise and Losing Fat

Every Pharmaceutical Drug LEECHES Nutrients From Your Body

Are you currently on one or more pharmaceutical drugs? Perhaps you are not aware, but every pharmaceutical drug depletes the body of various nutrients, depriving your cells of the essential raw materials which drive normal, natural cell function. The data on our industrialized food supply already suggestes that each of us is not getting enough nutrition from diet alone. If you're taking one or more pharmaceutical drugs, your situtation is likely to be even worse.

In the Drug-Induced Nutrient Depletion Handbook the following information is listed.

"HMG CoA Reductase Inhibitors delete the body of Coenzyme Q10, an important nutrient, and that result of this depletion could lead to mitochondrial dysfunction, decreased body function, and decreased cardiac output."

How could that be affecting your life if you are currently on one of those drugs? Perhaps you should consider a high-quality supplement that contains Qoenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) so make up for your depletion.

If you found our your were iron deficient (anemic), you'd probably take an iron supplement, right?

Other items listed in the Drug-Induced Nutrient Depletion Handbook.

"Many anticonvulsants cause a depletion of Vitamin D, folic acid, and calcium. Depleting these nutrients has the potential to cause problems such as osteoporosis, muscle weakness, blood pressure irregularities, and heart disease."

In this case, perhaps you should consider a high-quality multivitamin supplement to simply replace the nutrients your body needs.

"Almost every antibiotic causes a disruption of normal bowel flora and a reduction in the production of important vitamins, leading to diarrhea and other gastrointestinal side effects."

I have a personal experience where my life was saved through antibiotics, but I certainly experienced these side effects. Fortunately there are quality bowel flora supplements which help provide the body with normal levels of intestinal bacteria. This is critical in the metabolization of many vitamins, such as the Vitamin B family.

Here's what the Drug-Induced Nutrient Depletion Handbook has to say about Estrogen Replacement Therapy.

"Taking Estrogen Replacement Therapy can cause a depletion of important B vitamins, leadingto anxiety, depression, cardiovascular disease, and depression."

Again perhaps you should choose a high-quality multivitamin supplement and also provide the nutrients that support normal endocrine function.

The Drug-Induced Nutrient Depletion Handbook provides a drug index, which alphabetically lists drugs by both brand and generic name, with cross-references and the scientific basis, studies and abstracts for the research which determined which nutrients are depleted by the particular drug. It also lists nutrient information with concise descriptions of the effects of depletion. What medications are you taking that are depriving your body of essential nutrients?

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by: Dave Saunders

Dave Saunders is a certified nutritional educator, wellness coach, member of the American International Association of Nutritional Education (AIANE) and author. He is also the host of a weekly, nation-wide telephone lecture on health and nutrition. For additional information, please visit www.glycoboy.com or www.glycowellness.com or email Dave at dave@glycoboy.com

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Understanding Nutrition

With the release of the new dietary guidelines, in the form of the new food pyramid, I still find that many people don't actually understand what nutrition actually means. Because of this, dietary choices can seem overwhelming. Even greater confusion can be generated by prime time news specials which only strive to educate through clever sound-bites and diet fads which lead some to believe that all of their answers are found in one single "magic food." So what is nutrition and how can you understand it in a way that helps you apply it to your life and to the benefit of those you know and love? Here's an analogy I have found helpful in teaching those who attend my free Sunday Night Wellness Call.

Your body functions in a manner similar to a car assembly plant. At that plant, a steady stream of new parts, the correct parts and parts in the right ratios to each other are absolutely necessary in order to keep that plant open for business and running smoothly.

What would happen if someone in purchasing forgot to provide that plant with steering wheels? The cars would be almost functional. But because of a single part deficiency, that car would not be able to carry out its intended function.

If this only happened to a few cars, it probably wouldn't be a big deal. You wouldn't see any symptoms of a parts deficiency. But what if that plant had no steering wheels for an entire month? How about year? First the plant would probably close, the community would fail. Good people would move away and the "bad elements" would most likely take over the town. The lack of balanced parts would eventually lead to dire conditions.

What happens when the cells of your body are missing parts?

You eat to provide your cells with nourishment. It's not just about calories. That nourishment is the collection of parts every cell in your body needs to function properly. You provide your cells with parts and those parts are assembled according to instructions in your DNA to create a variety of finished products. That could include new cells, of which there are many kinds, anti bodies to fight disease, neurotransmitters to carry signals between nerves, and hormones to regulate your body.

So again, there are beneficial raw materials in foods, which our bodies use, and need, to carry out vital cellular functions.

These functions keep us alive.

These functions combat disease.

These functions allow us to heal.

These functions allow our cells to build new cells and all of the other finished materials that are necessary for normal life and optimal health.

And these raw materials are called nutrients.

We eat to give our body access to nutrients.

Sadly, our food does not contain the nutrients it once had in abundance, so it is necessary to supplement a good diet with quality nutritional supplementation to ensure that our cells do not suffer from a parts deficiency. We should still strive to have a good diet, from as many whole foods as possible, with supplementation being a means to supplement, not substitute, the benefits of a good diet.

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by: Dave Saunders

Dave Saunders is a certified nutritional educator, wellness coach, member of the American International Association of Nutritional Education (AIANE) and author. He is also the host of a weekly, nation-wide telephone lecture on health and nutrition. For additional information, please visit www.glycoboy.com or www.glycowellness.com or email Dave at dave@glycoboy.com

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Resolution: Stop Dieting for the Health of it!

"Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual. Yesterday, everybody smoked his last cigar, took his last drink, and swore his last oath.

Today, we are a pious and exemplary community. Thirty days from now, we shall have cast our reformation to the winds and gone to cutting our ancient shortcomings considerably shorter than ever." -- Mark Twain

Hello Everyone! This is part of my annual anti-resolution newsletter. Hope you enjoy it and are already having a great new year.

New year's type resolutions have never worked because they are usually associated with something the person doesn't want [as opposed to what they do want] anyway, or with something that is wrong/missing in their life. Focusing on what you don't want or what is missing also has the tendency to produce more of that in your life.

The word resolution itself means to re-solve...again...again...again. Not a good word to describe permanent change. "New Year's" makes it sound as if change is not possible at other times only one day per year. How's that for a limiting belief?

Being overweight, for example, is a focus on what you don't want. Diets and the deprivation that go with them as well as exercise we'd rather not do...eeks...more of what we don't want!

One of the strange ways that people motivate themselves to lose weight is to feel bad about being fat and then use those feelings to fuel the program to lose weight. As soon as they lose some weight they are thrilled [good feelings] and thus lose the motivation to continue to lose weight which was based on bad feelings. Sounds crazy but that's how professional yo-yo dieters do it.

Think about how crazy that is: feel bad about what we don't want! The only thing stranger is to know that most people motivate themselves this way for everything! You have to feel bad to stay motivated and focus on what you don't want.

Far better to motivate yourself with good feelings about the things that really do matter to you. Good feelings across the board for everything.

How about a focus on gaining [what we want] instead of losing [what we don't want]? Gaining health/fitness instead of losing weight. Gaining all the perks vs. doing all that stuff you hate cuz you feel bad about it...

Remember I'm only a hypnotist and these are merely suggestions so...Michael

__________________________

by: Michael Dimas

Michael Dimas is a performance consultant, workshop leader, motivational speaker, coach and health/fitness mentor. He teaches you how to empower your body, mind and spirit. He can be reached via email: michael@selfchangetechnologies and on the web at www.selfchangetechnologies.com.
michael@selfchangetechnologies.com

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Take Control of Your Health

In large part, you’re in control of your health, not your doctor. And taking control of your health doesn’t really depend on whether or not you have medical conditions.

Taking control means developing habits and discipline.

The most important thing you can do is educate yourself. Learn about your health problems and how you can take care of your body. What do the latest studies say? The Internet is an excellent place to research health issues. Sometimes just finding different ways of doing things can help.

Now, take the time to decide what your health goals for the next year will be. Write the goal(s) down. Some examples of goals might be:

- to stop yo-yo dieting and focus on get healthier.

- to start exercising regularly.

- to move toward my perfect weight.

- to find alternative ways to control diabetes.

Then list specific ways you can accomplish these goals. For instance, try a new healthy dinner recipe once a week, go to the gym five days a week, or research nutrition on the Internet 10 minutes a day.

Work on your mind and thought patterns. You have to believe that you can become healthy and reach your ideal weight before you will be able to do so. Learning to accept what you can’t change, but striving to change what you can, is key. A large part of succeeding in health improvement is being comfortable with yourself to begin with.

Find time to do something good to reward yourself for making this commitment to improve your health. Reward yourself each week as you find yourself accomplishing your goals.

If you have another person to work with, you will be more successful in meeting your health goals. This partner should be someone you can trust to share your feelings with.

It helps to have a partner for accountability. We work harder when we know someone is watching us and holding us accountable. A good partner also helps us stay realistic in our goals and challenges us to grow.

Try to find someone who will encourage you in the down times and celebrate your successes with you as you accomplish your goals. And of course you need to be that kind of a partner to your friend in return.

You might consider forming an informal support group with some of your friends or acquaintances. People who belong to a group with mutual interests and a shared purpose accomplish more. A group might get together weekly or monthly and discuss progress or concerns and help encourage each other. Sometimes all a person might need is another opinion or just a little encouragement to help them get past a place where they are having problems. Even if you are doing great, perhaps you could be of help to someone else who is struggling.

Communication is important when putting together a group. Set up a regular time and method to report progress to each other and stick to it. Set realistic benchmarks to monitor your progress. Reward yourselves for your effort. Do something fun as a group once in a while.

There can be great rewards in working with others toward common goals. It makes the journey more enjoyable as well as more productive.

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By Dianne Ronnow © 2005 Mohave Publishing. All rights reserved. From the Enzyme-health Blog found at Enzyme-Health.com.
Dianne Ronnow’s best selling book, “Coconut Oil Diet Secrets” reveals how thousands of people are losing weight and getting healthier with coconut oil diets. To find out what the secrets of coconut oil dieting are, Check out her site at: Coconut-Oil-Diet.com. Get the book now and start losing weight today!

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Is Coffee The Most Popular Drink In History?

As far back as 850 A.D it is said that a lonely sheep herder and his charge stumbled across a strange and mysterious berry growing on a secluded and forgotten hillside. Before he could stop them, some of his sheep had already began to sample this strange fruit. After about ten minutes or so the shepherd began to notice something unusual about his sheep. They no longer looked tired after their long trek that day. In fact they appeared to be wide awake and very alert. The shepherd had never seen them behave this way and he was curious. Now being a little tired and weary himself the shepherd decided to try the berries for himself. Just as had happened with his flock he too became wide awake and pardon the pun, extremely "full of beans". Just then a monk happened by and after hearing what had happened proceeded to scold the poor shepherd and lecture him on his foolish indulgence. Having had his say the monk continued on his journey but before he set off he made absolutely sure that a plant was secured amongst his belongings.

Back at the abbey the monks decided to try this new magical stimulant. Soon the endless hours of praying became easy to endure. Coffee the beverage had been unleashed. Its widespread use first took hold in the Ethiopian regions before then moving on to the Arabian empire. Here it was to be held for many years as a sacred substance until it was illegally exported to the outside world by an Arab called Baba Budan. Word of its effects then began to spread and in a short while coffee was to become one of the most treasured commodities in our history. Today we drink a staggering 4 billion cups each and every year and there are many among us who would simply refuse to start our day without it.

Although coffee is well known for keeping us awake there are also health benefits associated with the drinking of coffee. It is said that those who suffer from asthma and partake of the drink have 25% less symptoms due to a substance called theophylline. This is what is known as a bronchodilator and quite simply it is claimed to help those who suffer from the disease to breathe a little easier. Drinking Coffee on a regular basis is also meant to help lower your risk of colon cancer by a figure also in the region of around 25%. It is thought to do this simply by helping to keep you regular which in turn helps fend off disease and illness.

Apart from the benefits that have just been mentioned it has to be said that simply drinking coffee as a beverage is a delight that cannot easily be surpassed. The amazing thing is that the average person has no idea of the varied tastes that this hallowed bean has to offer. One of the growing trends of recent years has to be the rising popularity of ordering coffee via the wonder we call the internet. Never before have we been able to sample such a wide variety of tastes, blends and aromas without having to endure the tedious trials of hiking around the city. I myself tend to place small orders but I always make a point to record the name, blend and of course exactly from whom I purchased.

Now you know the story of the magic beans I hope that next timeyou are considering popping into the local coffee shop you recall the story of the wandering sheep herder and consider just what you might be drinking were he not to have wandered with his flock onto that lonely hillside. Take the time to try the many different varieties available and I promise you the joys of coffee will be sure to tantalize your senses,tease your tastebuds and delight your friends and associates.

Cappuccino or mocha?

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By: Mary Chambers

Mary Chambers is a regular contributor to the Fuzzy Coffee Directory http://www.fuzzycoffee.com

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A Shopper Thrives On-Line

The Internet SHOULD be “the place to shop” for low-carb dieters, diabetics, celiacs, and anyone else on a special diet. The posted prices are well below those in retail stores, the variety is greater, you are dealing with firms whose specialty is dealing with your need, and the products for sale are described fully in type that is designed to be read (isn’t that a pleasant contrast to the packages you see in your local store.)

The bad news, of course, is the shipping charge that is attached to every order. Shortly after being diagnosed with celiac disease, I ordered a box of breakfast cereal ($4.00) on-line and paid a $7.00 shipping charge. I learned from the experience that $11.00 box of cereal.

My solution stems from the fact that the cost of shipping items drops dramatically with the size of the total order. For example, the Gluten-Free Pantry charges $6.85 to ship a single but will ship $499.00 worth of merchandise for less than twice that much. At Bob’s Red Mill, the shipping charge depends on the weight of the total shipment and depends on where you live, but in my particular ZIP code, a single item ships for $7.39. A 34 pound shipment would cost $13.43. You can probably find similar examples by browsing through the web sites you would like to patronize.

The strategy is to order as much as you can in a single shipment. Don’t throw money away, of course, but do everything that you can to increase the size of the order and thereby decrease the cost of shipping each individual items. Work with people who share your diet. The only requirement is that the entire order be sent to the same place and paid for with the same credit card.

Good luck. Eat well. Obviously, internet shopping is easier for persons who are ordering big-ticket items where the shipping cost is largely insignificant. But the system I have just described works.

Paul Colligan is the webmaster at sugar-and-gluten-free.com, a site that employs the shopping system described in this article. Contact him at paul@sugar-and-gluten-free.com to share ideas.

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by: Paul G. Colligan

Paul feeds himself primarily with food purchased on-line. He has thrived for five years on a diet that is very restrictive for a person living in a small town with few highly-specialized food stores. He established to allow others to profit from what he has learned. paul@sugar-and-gluten-free.com

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