Healthy Eating During The Christmas Party Season

The Christmas party season is rapidly drawing near, and with it the endless canapés, buffet tables, and 3 course meals, not to mention the alcohol!
So how to navigate the events with out piling on the additional pounds? The first and most important rule is to by no means go to a party on an empty stomach. You most probably will not be capable of make any sensible selections about what and what kind of food to consume whilst your tummy is rumbling and also your nose is fine-tuned to note the entire tantalising smells wafting from the trays of canapés being offered to you.

Having a little snack must subsequently be a part of your getting ready regimen. The snack must come with some protein to keep the hunger at bay for longer. in case you are in a hurry, have some natural yoghurt with muesli. Or when you've got more time, opt for a boiled egg with rye toast soldiers.
At the party, don't stand next to the buffet table, you will be tempted to select at bits. Instead take a plate filled with the items you in reality want to eat and enjoy them back at your table. Steer clear of any deep fried canapés comparable to mini spring rolls and samosas, and opt for the ones that include some protein. Look out for chicken satay sticks or prawns. They are simple, but will fill you up more quickly and keep you going for longer. If you can't help selecting something, see if there are some olives being offered. The fat they include is in reality good for you.
And just a delicate caution on the alcohol aspect. On the day of a large celebration, keep a 2 litre bottle of water in your table at work and look to to complete throughout work. This way you are fully hydrated earlier than you begin to drink alcohol. Steer clear of punches and pre mixed cocktails, they are going to be loaded with sugar; as a substitute keep on with champagne... only ninety cals per glass. if you're consuming wine, you should look to match each glass of wine with an equal glass of water and you'll feel significantly better the next day.

And should you do end up over indulging somewhat, don't panic - there's always the new year to get back on course with your weight loss journey!

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Learn why Minerals are so Important for your Body!

The Health Risks Of Microwave Cooking And Microwave Food

Convenience drives many things these days. The value placed on good health is often sacrificed in the name of getting things done quickly and easily.

Microwaves can sadly be found in most homes. We say sadly, because not only does food cooked in a microwave oven never taste quite right, it is proven to have a lower nutritional value, and more importantly, poses a risk to long term health.

There are many causes for the increase in serious health conditions in the Western World, demineralized soils, environmental toxins, processed foods, poor nutrition, medical malpractice, the list goes on. But standing proud in the vast majority of kitchens, is the Microwave Oven, which may well play an underestimated role.

Raw food offers significantly higher levels of nutrition than cooked, and it is advisable to include at least some raw food elements in your diet, even if you don't wish to follow an entirely raw diet.

Microwaved food is a long way from being a source of nutrition.

How Do Microwaves Cook Food?

Evidence is growing of the risks to human health from microwaves emitted by mobile phones and phone masts. The underlying reason being that the cells in your body are disrupted by the EMF frequencies. The same thing happens to food in a microwave oven.

When food is cooked normally, heat goes naturally from the outside to the inside. The reverse is true of microwaved food. Food is cooked from within the cells and a violent process takes place that completely alters the chemical structure of any substance cooked this way. Microwaves bombard the food and cause molecules to rotate millions of times a second.

The structure of the molecules are literally deformed and destroyed, and new, unnatural compounds are created, these compounds cannot be broken down by the human body. Vitamins, minerals and proteins are rendered useless, foods lose their bio-availability, and their energy field is altered.

Of further concern is the leaching of chemicals from the plastic containers / wraps used to microwave food.

Of course, many scientists, and bodies such as the FDA will tell us this is nonsense, but forward thinking people in the scientific community are growing in numbers, and those of interested in natural health and healing are quick to understand that this unnatural process has no place in the pursuit of good health.

The Risks of Microwaves - Studies

Research is dreadfully lacking in this important area, and of course there are political aspects to this; however, we include below some very pertinent research that has been carried out.

You may be surprised to discover that Microwave technology is over 70 years old. The technology was originally developed by the Germans during the Second World War as a radar system. Soldiers who gathered around these radars to warm themselves up developed illnesses including Cancer. It was this ability to heat that led to the Humboldt University in Berlin being given a grant in the early '40s to develop microwave ovens to provide hot meals for soldiers fighting in the Soviet Union.

Just like the soldiers who huddled around the radars, these soldiers also had major problems with their immune systems. The use of Microwaves was subsequently banned. The research fell into the hands of the Russians and research continued through the 50s and 60s. In 1976, the Soviet Union themselves issued a state law banning the use of microwave ovens, and published an international statement of warning. They came back into use during the period of Perestroika, but even today, the Russians remain far more vigilant about the acceptable use of microwaves.

Hans Hertel, a Swiss food scientist, (fired for questioning food processing methods), is well known for a small, but carefully controlled study on Microwave ovens.Working with Bernard H. Blanc of the University Institute for Biochemistry, the results were published in 1992 and are certainly fascinating.

The eight study participants were strict macrobiotic eaters from the Macrobiotic Institute at Kientel, Switzerland. In intervals of two to five days, the volunteers in the study received one of the eight foods listed below. Blood sample were taken on an empty stomach before each meal, and at set intervals after eating.

• raw milk from a biofarm
• the same milk conventionally cooked
• pasteurized milk from Intermilk Berne
• the same raw milk cooked in a microwave oven
• raw vegetables from an organic farm
• the same vegetables cooked conventionally
• the same vegetables frozen and defrosted in the microwave oven
• and the same vegetables cooked in the microwave oven
• Blood tests after the consumption of microwaved foods showed marked changes in the following;
• Haemoglobin values decreased
• Lymphocytes (white blood cells) showed a short-term decrease
• HDL (good cholesterol) decreased

The ratio of good to bad cholesterol (LDL) was affected negatively. These results got worse in the second month of the study. Quoting Hertel - "There is extensive scientific literature concerning the hazardous effects of direct microwave radiation on living systems, it is astonishing, therefore, to realise how little effort has been made to replace this detrimental technique of microwaves with technology more in accordance with nature.

Although only a small study, these results should have been enough to prompt further research. However, as is often the way with these things, a large trade organization, the Swiss Association of Dealers for Electro apparatuses for Households and Industry, known simply as FEA, forced a 'gag order' through the courts against Hertel and Blanc in 1993. This was finally lifted in 1998 by the European Court of Human Rights, who held that there had been a violation of Hertel's rights in the 1993 decision.

"Effects of Microwave Radiation on Anti-infective Factors in Human Milk". Quan, Kerner, et al appeared in the In the journal Pediatrics (vol. 89, no. 4, April 1992). "Breast milk can be refrigerated safely for a few days or frozen for up to a month; however, studies have shown that heating the milk well above body temperature-37°ree;C-can break down not only its antibodies to infectious agents, but also its lysozymes or bacteria-digesting enzymes"

The November 2003 issue of The Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculturereported that microwaved Broccoli lost 97% of its antioxidant chemicals it contains, compared to a loss of 11% from steamed broccoli

Dr. Lita Lee of Hawaii reported in the December 9, 1989 Lancet: "Microwaving baby formulas converted certain trans-amino acids into their synthetic cis-isomers. Synthetic isomers, whether cis-amino acids or trans-fatty acids, are not biologically active. Further, one of the amino acids, L-proline, was converted to its d-isomer, which is known to be neurotoxic (poisonous to the nervous system) and nephrotoxic (poisonous to the kidneys). It's bad enough that many babies are not nursed, but now they are given fake milk (baby formula) made even more toxic via microwaving."

In Comparative Study of Food Prepared Conventionally and in the Microwave Oven, published by Raum & Zelt in 1992, at 3(2): 43, "A basic hypothesis of natural medicine states that the introduction into the human body of molecules and energies, to which it is not accustomed, is much more likely to cause harm than good. Microwaved food contains both molecules and energies not present in food cooked in the way humans have been cooking food since the discovery of fire. Microwave energy from the sun and other stars is direct current based.

Artificially produced microwaves, including those in ovens, are produced from alternating current and force a billion or more polarity reversals per second in every food molecule they hit. Production of unnatural molecules is inevitable. Naturally occurring amino acids have been observed to undergo isomeric changes (changes in shape morphing) as well as transformation into toxic forms, under the impact of microwaves produced in ovens".

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Top 10 Foods High In Protein 2016 [HD]

Healthy Eating While Traveling

Sticking to healthy foods while traveling can be one of the most difficult things to do in your life. If you learn how to make smart choices, then healthy eating is really not that difficult. This is probably not the best time to start a healthy eating program, but if you are currently making healthy choices in your foods already, modifying your diet slightly to accommodate travel is not as it first may seem.
When you are traveling by airplane, you may have to eat airplane food which can often be of poor quality, depending on the selection. When you book your flight, ask about your food options and ask if a vegetarian dish is available. Vegetarian dishes are sometimes more nutritional in this case, but it really depends on what they will be serving. If you can eat a larger meal before your flight, you don't have to eat the meal that is served.

When driving or taking a bus, you may be tempted to stop at fast food restaurants. Avoid this whenever possible! If you're on vacation, you may wish to splurge a tiny bit, but having fast foods more than once during a week can really be bad for you. If you must, choose the healthiest options available chicken breasts and diet soda is good choices.
Remember that you can take your own food when traveling. Carrying a loaf of whole-wheat bread or pita wraps, some lean lunch meat, and low-fat cheese in a cooler is a great way to avoid high-fat and high-cholesterol junk food meals. These are much better choices and you'll save a lot of money as well. Call ahead to ask if there will be a refrigerator in your hotel room.
Lastly, make smart choices when you eat out. If you choose salads or pasta get the dressing on the side and ask about low-carb options. In fact, many places print these options directly in the menu for the health conscious people. Control your portions by ordering lunch menu sizes or splitting the meal in half and don't forget to get a doggie bag. You'll be well on your way to healthy eating, even away from home.
Yes, eating healthy foods when you travel can be a challenge. Your health is worth it. When you eat good foods, you will also fight off illnesses that you are likely to encounter when traveling and you will be more alert so that you can enjoy your trip.
Healthy Eating and Peer Pressure
Whether you are on a diet or simply enjoying a healthy lifestyle, you probably know that peer pressure to eat foods that are not good for you, is a major part of your life. If you are concerned about the food that goes into your stomach, don't worry, there are ways to overcome peer pressure. It simply takes a little know-how to get people off your back!
Parties are a major source of peer pressure, especially with alcohol. Alcohol contains hundreds of calories in just one drink take beer for an example: "one beer equals a loaf of bread" so when you go to a party, people might be pressuring you to have a drink and relax. It can be difficult to say no when they are constantly trying to convince you. Offer to go with to a bar instead. That way, you become the designated driver, they won't want you to drink and drive, in fact, they will not pressurise you to drink. It's a win-win situation for everyone.
Other times when you may feel under pressure to eat, is at work, when the boss orders lunch for everyone at a meeting or when you have to visit a client. Instead of giving in to temptation, simply politely decline the food by letting your boss know in advance or order a meal that is healthy and split the portion in half so you have a meal for tomorrow's lunch as well.
Baby showers, weddings, birthday parties, and other special events can also wreak havoc on your diet, even if you are good at resisting temptation on your own. When someone hands you a piece of cake and won't take no for an answer, it can be difficult to know what to say! Here a little white lie might be appropriate. For instance, say that your stomach was upset earlier in the day, will convince a person that you don't want to eat at the moment or pretending to have a chocolate allergy, will get people to allow you to enjoy the party without a hassle surrounding food.
Refusing bad foods is fine, you should be eating good foods.
If you do not change your eating habits, disorders can develop, which will give your family, friends and doctor a real reason to be worried about your health. It's ok to say no to peer pressure, but don't say no to food in general!



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Good Health and Longer Life Span

Cultivating healthy eating habits strengthens your body's resolve against diseases. Fruits and vegetables are the ultimate sources of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals which our body needs to function properly. These antioxidant-rich foods help fight the damaging effects of free radicals. By eating less fat and sugary foods, you are essentially reducing the risks of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and other chronic disorders.

Glowing Appearance
This is another tried and tested advantage brought about by healthy eating. People who eat more fruits and vegetables on a daily basis almost always exude that vibrant, youthful look. The secret is simply eating high antioxidant fruits and vegetables, along with foods rich in vitamins and minerals, and lots of water. Proper nutrition and hydration are the keys to healthy, younger-looking skin.
Positive Outlook in Life
Depression can be attributed to poor diet. Eating foods rich in B vitamins helps counter the blues. A happy disposition is the culmination of a healthy diet and a regular exercise program. The more you engage yourself in living a healthy lifestyle, the better it is for your emotional well-being. Nothing beats a well-nourished and active body, alongside good sleep and youthful appearance, to make you feel good about yourself. At the end of the day, happy people are healthy people.

Kate Trillin is a freelance writer who specialises in proper nutrition, healthy eating, and healthy living. She has been an avid health enthusiast for the past 5 years, and has recently ventured into the world of online publishing in an effort to reach a wider audience. Her writing focuses on providing useful tips and information on the benefits of healthy eating and healthy lifestyle. 



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Magnesium

Magnesium is the fourth most abundant cation in the body. Almost 60% is found in bone and the rest stored intracellularly.
Magnesium has an effect on many cellular functions, including transport of calcium and potassium, DNA and protein synthesis, energy metabolism, and blood sugar maintenance. It is also important for normal neurological and muscular function, including key involvement in cardiac and smooth muscle contractions (Groff, Gropper et al., 1995).
Most Americans consume less than the estimated average requirement for magnesium. This comes as no mystery when examining the standard American diet - refining foods has removed magnesium from many foods that would have otherwise provided it while fortification practices have not included magnesium when adding back some of the lost nutrients.
For example, olive, corn and peanut oils are all devoid of magnesium, while their whole-food predecessors are rich sources of this mineral.
Similarly, white flour contains far less magnesium than whole-wheat flour (Seelig 2003).
Other significant food sources of magnesium include green leafy vegetables and legumes, which are low in the standard American diet. Additionally, people are consuming less “hard water” (water that contains magnesium and calcium), and more “soft water” or distilled bottled water, shorting them on another historical source of magnesium (Seelig 1980). 

The Magnesium Website (www.mgwater.com) highlights this concept with a quote from Groundwater Resources of British Columbia, Canada:

"According to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (1977) there have been more than 50 studies, in nine countries, that have indicated an inverse relationship between water hardness and mortality from cardiovascular disease. That is, people who drink water that is deficient in magnesium and calcium generally appear more susceptible to this disease. The U.S. National Academy of Sciences has estimated that a nation-wide initiative to add calcium and magnesium to soft water might reduce the annual cardiovascular death rate by 150,000 in the United States." ( Dr. Harold D. Foster, " Groundwater and Human Health," Groundwater Resources of British Columbia, Ministry of Environment, Lands, and Parks and Environment Canada, pp 6.1-6.3 (reprint), 1994. 

Though only negligible amounts of magnesium are lost in sweat under normal conditions, there is still some evidence that prolonged exertion in hot and humid environments can decrease serum magnesium, which could prove to be clinically significant in individuals with marginal magnesium status.
Additionally, although magnesium levels may return to normal after some training sessions, over a prolonged period of regular exertion, magnesium levels may remain suboptimal. One theory is that elevated metabolic activity, such as that found in prolonged exertion, increases the requirement for magnesium. A plausible mechanism could be increased lipolysis, or the breakdown of fat, which has been shown directly relate to a decrease in plasma magnesium (Rayssiguier, Guezennec et al., 1990).
Dr. Whang, in his paper entitled “Electrolyte and Water Metabolism in Sports Activities,” makes the argument for the addition of magnesium to sports beverages to support healthy circulation, blood sugar control and potassium levels (Whang, 1998).
Furthermore, some researchers have even implicated magnesium loss (and not the traditionally assumed sodium loss) in the pathogenesis of “miner’s cramps” (a condition, also known as “heat cramps,” in which minors, after prolonged exposure to a hot environment, would experience painful cramps when attempting to rehydrate with plain water) (Rayssiguier, Guezennec et al., 1990; Berning and Steen 1998).
Even at the 2008 Superbowl, played at a moderate temperature of the mid-70’s indoors, numerous well-conditioned athletes had to leave the field of play due to muscle cramping.


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Balanced Diet

10 Things You Didn't Know Your Microwave Could Do!

Eat Oatmeal Everyday And See What Will Happens To Your Body - Benefits O...

What Happens to Food After it Leaves the Stomach? What is Bile?

The mix of partly digested food saturated in acidic stomach juice is progressively routed into the small bowel. This part of our intestinal tract is the location from the majority of digestive enzyme action and also the assimilation of vitamins. The wall of the small intestine presents a very sophisticated pattern of folds and projections.

This style enables the small intestine to possess an absorptive surface approximating the size of a tennis court. This enables for really effective absorption. When the foods mixture is spurted to the little bowel in the stomach, it hardly resembles what we ate. Yet most of the vitamins nevertheless need further digestion to reach their absorbable state.

Very first, bicarbonate created by the pancreas enters the little bowel and neutralizes the acidic food mixture draining from our stomach. Then digestive enzymes that are also produced by our pancreas and bile from the gallbladder and liver make their way towards the little bowel as well. These factors, together with digestive enzymes created by the cells that line the small bowel, will total digestion.

Bile is made up of several ingredients, probably the most outstanding being bile acids (bile salts). During digestion, the small bowel is really a watery place to be. Together using the drinking water entering our digestive tract in foods and beverages, drinking water is also the basis of digestive juices. Water-insoluble ingredients in our diet plan, this kind of as fats, cholesterol, and fat-soluble vitamins, will clump together into droplets within the little bowel.

This would decrease their digestibility and absorption. This really is exactly where bile is available in. Bile acts as an emulsifier or detergent interacting with lipid droplets so that many smaller lipid droplets outcome instead of fewer bigger ones. The benefit to creating numerous smaller lipid droplets is that more contact happens between lipidsand lipid-digesting enzymes.

If bile had been absent, as in certain disorders, lipids would stay as bigger droplets in the small intestine and for that most part remain undigested and unabsorbed and wind up within the feces. Bile is produced by the liver and oozes within the direction from the little intestine 24 hours each day, 7 days a week.

The liver is connected to the little intestine by way of a series of tubes or ducts. Throughout periods of time in-between meals, a few of the bile drains into the gallbladder, exactly where it's stored. Then throughout a meal the gallbladder squeezes the bile out and it heads to the little intestine. This allows for much more bile to become present in the small intestine throughout digestion.


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Losing Weight by Cleaning Your Intestine - How Do You Remove Fat Inside Your Colon?

Our body accumulates a lot of toxins from the food that we eat and these are flushed out of our system by the colon. What is the colon? It is the last portion of our "digestive track" where all the wastes are segregated from the useful parts of the food we eat. Colon cleansing has been introduced in the past few years to aid in the flushing out of harmful toxins accumulated by our body. But did you know that fat is also accumulated in here and you can begin losing weight by cleaning your intestine? So how do you remove fat inside your colon? Read on and find out.

There are a lot of cleansers that are available in the market and they also come in various forms. You may find some tablets, capsules and even shakes. You'll see that are a lot to choose from. So how does losing weight by cleansing your intestine work? You do this by literally flushing out toxins from your intestines. How? You may take colon cleansers or you do this naturally. There are many foods that are good in cleaning your intestines. And these are foods that are rich in fiber. Foods that are high in chlorophyll content are also good in cleaning your intestines. Here are foods that you should eat and will help remove fat in your colon:

o Green leafy vegetables

o Fruits and juices

o Cereals and grass: wheat, barley, oatmeal, fax seeds

By maintaining a diet that is rich in fiber, you are able to remove the fat inside your colon. Fiber "drags" little bits of food that were not flushed out during normal bowel movement, including fat. Fiber-rich foods also give the feeling of being "satiated" and hence keep you from being hungry easily. When you have less food intake, you lose weight in the process. Keep your intestines clean and expect a huge effect on your lose weight plan.


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The Benefits of Poo - How Many Times a Day Do You Go?

Let's have a bit of fun today and talk about something so rarely spoken of... Poo!

When I ask my clients to talk to me about their daily habits on the toilet, most get embarrassed and wonder why I'm asking.

Simply put... If you are not going to the toilet frequently, you are not releasing toxins.

Let's just say... today, you woke up and had your morning bacon and eggs. Then you go to work, sitting behind the wheel of your car in traffic. An hour later you show up and the food has just sat in your tummy.

Then you have your morning coffee on the way into work because you need that hit of caffeine to get your day started. You get to work and take the lift up to your floor and then sit behind your desk typing away at the keyboard.

You get a bit hungry and decide to have a pastry that the office has brought in for the staff. Then sit back down again.

Off to lunch where you have a sandwich that likely has more bread than fillings and remember the sugary sauce you add to it so that it tastes better.

Then back to the desk.

For your afternoon tea, if you remember to move away from your desk to eat it, is a piece of fruit.

Are you getting the picture? Eat... sit. Eat... sit.

Now, where in the day was the toilet stops? I am amazed at how many people think it's OK to spend even one day without going poo! Never mind the lack of water in people's diets, and consequently a lack of urination.

So why is it important to frequent ourselves at the toilet?

To EXPEL SH#T! Excuse my language but that's what you are doing! You take in all this food and please remember that food is not something we should eat just because it tastes nice and we are emotional beings, so we must eat to suit our cravings.

Food is a source of energy. Once the body has gotten what it needs out of the food, then the rest needs to be eliminated. When you don't eliminate it, then you get a build up of toxins in your body and your colon.

The toxic build up can actually cause decay in your body. This decay can attract viruses and bacteria and all sorts of yucky bugs to the area. When the yucky bugs are there many of the good bacteria that keep our system clean, gets killed off.

Imagine an animal killed on the street with bugs flying around it and eating it from the smell of the decay. That's what your insides can start to look like! YUCK! No Thanks!

All of the build up and bugs can lead to disease and sickness. The first symptoms may be fogginess, forgetfulness, restlessness, fatigue, and lack of endurance and energy.

So, in order to keep your insides healthy, you MUST POO! Going to the toilet a couple times a day is a GREAT thing! Also remember that you must drink water to flush out your system as well. If you don't have enough water in your body, then the fluids that move your food through get sticky and it makes it more difficult again for your body to flush out the toxins.

How can you keep your insides clean?

To start with, eating a diet high in fibre is part of a healthy lifestyle. This doesn't mean go out and buy some high fibre shake to get your bowels moving. Eat things with roughness that will clean you as they move through! Eating fruit and veggies is nature's way of cleaning you.

Exercise!

Get up and move and things inside of you move! You know you should do it. The question is, "Are you?"

To fast or not to fast?

The thought of not eating for some people sounds like the craziest, stupidest thing you can do. I know it did to me when I first heard about it. The more that I have learned about fasting, the more I understand it's wonderful benefits, if it's right for you.

The most common fasts that I have seen are...

Water fast, where you don't eat anything and only drink water and...

Juice fast, where you don't eat solid foods, but can juice anything and also drink water.

They can be done for different durations depending on the results you are after.

If a fast seems like too much for you, then you can do a cleanse.

There are multiple ways to cleanse. All of them should eliminate anything processed. That also means no added sugars to anything. All the ones that I have seen eliminate dairy as well. This leaves you with eating yummy fruits, vegetables and proteins.

The reason for doing your cleanse, will determine how far you take it.

For either a cleanse or a fast, please speak to a healthcare professional before you start to make sure that it is safe for you. Look for naturopaths or dieticians who specialize in this area or who have worked with these in the past.

The benefits to fasting or cleansing are amazing!

You will regain vitality, have glowing skin, can help with eczema, headaches, pains in the body, and respiratory and circulatory conditions, kick starts weight loss, increases your metabolism, boosts your energy and so much more.

I will give you fair warning from personal experience... Although these are the benefits and they do come eventually... The first few days can be horrible. Your body is releasing all the toxins and dead smelly stuff filled with bugs into the system to get it out. By doing so, it's likely you will feel worse before you feel better. Trust me though, it's worth it, so stick with it!

Colonics and Enemas... What the heck are they?

Okay, so this gets into messy territory. I know many of you don't want to imagine something being stuck up your bum filling with you with water so that you can have it all flow back out again. But you just did!

It took me a long time to get the courage up to actually try this. Since doing it, I'm a huge fan!

The difference between the two is simple. With a colonic, there is a tube gently placed up your bum and water is moved through so that it gets all the way through your colon. As it is happening, your faeces is happily moving through another tube and out of you, so you will not see or smell it. This is administered by a qualified practitioner.

You can do an enema at home with a kit that you can buy online or at some chemists. It only gets to the lower part of the colon. You allow the water to go up and let it sit for a while, then you go to the toilet and let it all come out. My husband and I did this together for the first time... Let me tell you it was a bonding experience.

At first it's a bit uncomfortable, having the pressure of water inside of you, but the results are wonderful!

My tummy is flatter, I feel clean, have more energy, my skin gets a glow back, I am more focused and my overall sense of well-being is lifted. It truly only takes 30 minutes at home, if you do an enema, and is well worth it!


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Turmeric: Nature's Wonder Drug - Or Not?

Unless you've been living underground, you have likely heard an overwhelming amount of information related to turmeric this past year. Somewhere along the way it was awarded super-spice status and now can be found almost anywhere you look, from supplements, to grocery store products, to even toothpaste!

The benefits of this wonder-spice are mainly anti-inflammatory in nature and for that it has been reported helpful in many diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, depression, and possibly even cancer. In Indian culture they even use it topically to speed wound healing. What can't this spice do?

Recently, however, a report came out saying that we were duped. Curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric, has little bioactive activity in the body. The report pointed out few studies showing curcumin itself to have any health benefits, and that in fact the compound often breaks down before it can elicit any sort of positive health impact.1

Oh no! How could we have gone so far astray, especially regarding an ancient spice that has been used for centuries therapeutically in other countries? Is it simply placebo effect.

Let's hold up for just one second. For starters, before we go dumping all our turmeric capsules down the toilet, let's read the article fully. What exactly are they saying?

Pay careful attention to the wording. The author in this article is mainly discussing the inability to successfully create a drug utilizing curcumin. Essentially they are saying we have been unable to isolate this active compound in such a way that has a positive and reproducible effect in the human body. Instead of acting on a target protein as they had hoped, the compound broke down and apparently produced no anti-inflammatory result. The article then goes on to say that we have very few published studies to show any benefits from turmeric, and specifically, curcumin usage, so in their conclusion, the time and money spent on turmeric is worthless.

That is all very interesting, however it is also misleading. First of all, just because they cannot isolate curcumin in a stable form suitable as a drug does not mean that curcumin does not work. The body, as we discover daily, works in mysterious ways. Simply because curcumin does not work on one specific target protein does not mean that it is not producing health benefits by other means.

Secondly, we do in fact have some studies to show beneficial effects. Do a quick search on PubMed and you will see what I mean. Some of these studies use the isolated curcumin, and others use the turmeric whole. Both do have research to show some effectiveness. One study, in fact, showed that turmeric was just as effective as ibuprofen in reducing pain from osteoarthritis.2 That is exciting news if you ask me! In fact there are many studies showing positive outcomes with arthritis patients.

Additionally, there are also many in-vitro and rat studies demonstrating the anti-inflammatory benefits this spice can have. While obviously these results are not always directly relatable or applicable to humans, the take-away is that this compound is very active and holds promise for a wide variety of disease states.

On the whole, based on this one critique, I would not be so fast to discount the powerful effects turmeric can have for our health. Ancient tradition and wisdom aside, there are actually studies showing benefit which should lead us to conclude that turmeric is actually doing something, but maybe not in the precise way we are looking at it currently.

Don't forget that like with most things in nature, compounds work synergistically. Another reason why food, not supplements and fortification, is paramount for health. For example, we know that the phytochemicals in fruit are more powerful when eaten together in the whole food. When we try to isolate specific phytochemicals to make a pill, we find that the compound is unstable and frankly doesn't work. But these compounds DO work when ingested in the right form and combination that nature intended.

All that to say, keep up with your turmeric if you find it to be working for you. Consider eating it in the whole form in cooking rather than isolated pill forms. If you do choose a pill, purchase from a reputable company and even consider purchasing the same forms used in the studies. When using the whole spice for the root, combine it with other foods known to enhance the bioavailability such as fats and black pepper.

The use of spices, and especially turmeric, is a great addition to an overall healthy diet. While important to take into consideration, don't let one detracting article like this completely change your viewpoint just yet.

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Slow Cooking For Vegetarians

Over the last several decades, more and more people have decided to take the exciting leap into the wonderful world of vegetarianism. Whether an individual has chosen an alternative diet because of health reasons, religious reasons, or ethical reasons, there is one reliable kitchen standby that no vegetarian should ever live without: the slow cooker. They are, by far, the perfect option for preparing a wide, exciting variety of delectable vegetarian dishes. Because slow cookers allow food to cook "low and slow," vegetables, grains, legumes, fruits, and other ingredients have lots of time to develop intense, rich, complex flavors and textures.
Soups, casseroles, and stews are some of the most simple and hearty kinds of dishes vegetarians can choose to create. These substantial dishes are great for those looking to find delicious yet satisfying foods that can take the place of "traditional" proteins such as beef, pork, poultry, fish, and seafood. Filling foods such as lentils, beans, and rice are ideal to use because they hold up to extended cooking times-in fact, these longer cooking times are actually ideal to aid in achieving optimum taste and texture.

Slow cookers are especially appropriate for a vegetarian that is looking to save some time in the kitchen. Because they allow the vegetarian cook to spend just a few scant minutes selecting, gathering, and combining ingredients, vegetarians with tight schedules can still count on being able to come home and find a tasty home-cooked meal at the end of a long day at work or school.
Vegetarians with tight budgets also stand to gain a lot more wiggle-room in their budgets by using slow cookers. A meal based around a slow-cooked meal is extremely economical and often yields leftovers that can be used for additional meals for lunches or dinners later in the week.
For the vegetarian who has become bored with the same-old, same old, slow cookers can open up a whole new world of culinary possibility. Because slow cooked meals only require a small time commitment, vegetarian cooks can feel confident in trying out a wide range of new vegetables, herbs, spices, and even meat alternatives made of soy or tempeh. Why not try something different that can be created in a slow cooker, like hearty vegetarian chili, tasty vegetarian chow mein, or even delicious chocolate cake?

The slow cooker can be a real boon to the vegetarian cook. Slow cooked meals are delicious, nutritious, economical, and most importantly, simple to create. Vegetarians looking to spice up a boring or repetitive meal repertoire will be pleasantly surprised to discover the options and benefits that come along with using a handy slow cooker.

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Airport Food Survival

Traveling a great distance can get a bit tiresome. Whether you are traveling for an occasional family vacation or professional trip, long flights and airports stays can actually be stressful. Some of the factors that make travel and airport stays stressful are canceled or delayed flights and flights being diverted to other airports. Unfortunately, stress can result into added bulge in your waistline. Research studies show that an individual tends to overeat when he is stressed or bored. The airport is like a one stop shopping for every unhealthy and ultra tempting food on the planet such as chocolates, pastries, doughnuts, fast foods, soft drinks, junk foods. Here are some of the airport food survival tips that will surely help you, especially when faced in a stressful situation.

Stopovers can really consume a great deal of time. Just think about the time wasted in boarding and exiting various planes. Sometimes, stopovers can take hours. A stressful situation like this calls for a tasty treat. While occasional indulgence to tasty treat is fine, consuming large amounts are not. Tasty treats and sweets contain lots of sugar. If you are a frequent flier, you might want to cut down your sugar intake. Once in the body, sugars are converted into calories. Calories that are not burned by the body are turned into fats. And there is no way you will be able to burn those extra calories while sitting in the plane.
Another airport food survival tip is not to eat too much while on the plane. Meals and beverages are already included in long distance flights. While it's tempting to eat a large meal, setting limits to your food intake will help you experience a pleasant flight. Remember that stress can also cause upset stomach. Surely, you would not want to travel with an upset stomach, right?
Avoid caffeinated beverages such as teas, colas and coffee. Teas can cause you to urinate frequently. You also won't be able to have a restful sleep during your flight, because caffeinated beverages make you awake. Water, juices and decaffeinated coffee and teas are better choices.
Although you are not allowed to bring any food and beverage inside the plane, you are, however, allowed to eat while at the airport. Be careful though, to what and where you're eating. Before, the only dining place that you can find in airports is fast food. Avoid fast foods as much as possible. Nowadays, there are actually food chains inside the airport where you can have decent meals. There is, however, one drawback with airport restaurants. They are a bit expensive.

If you are low on the budget, a good airport food survival thing you can do is to pack and bring your own food. If you are stopping over Japan, for example, you can go by the local markets and grab something to eat. It's a lot cheaper there in comparison to the restaurants in the airport. One good thing about the markets is that there is always room for bargain. Bargaining is a great deal to save traveler money. So there you have it, airport food survival tips that can help you avoid unsightly belly fats and upset stomach, especially when faced in a stressful situation.

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4 Healthy Tips For Busy Mums

As a busy mum, you have the hardest job in the world. On top of having to take care of the kinds, the husband, the house and the pets, you also have to take care of your own careers.
More often than not, mums always seem to put their needs on the back burner and end up last on the list.
It's time to stop putting yourself last and take some "me" time for a change.
It's time to take care of yourself.
Add these 4 tips into your life today!
#1 Find Gratitude and Joy
You don't need me to tell you that being a mum is stressful.
Just remember, that these days will be gone very quickly and one day you will look back longingly at the days when your children were young.

You have been blessed to raise these little girls and boys. To watch them grow day by day from the young children they are now to the adolescents and young adults they will become.
Try to savour the joy in those moments. Find something to be grateful for every day.
#2 Limit Sugar Intake
Sugar is one of the most unhealthy, yet widely consumed foods.
It is highly processed, has absolutely no nutritional value and is one of the main causes of weight gain and obesity. It is found everywhere.
Not only in things you'd expect such as chocolate, cake and cookies but also in places you wouldn't expect such as ketchup, peanut butter and even orange juice.
It's unrealistic to avoid all sugar. You can limit your intake though.
#3 Eat Whole, Unprocessed Foods
The low fat, low carb, low calorie processed foods are an illusion. If you take a look at the label of any of these foods, are you able to pronounce the ingredients, yet alone understand what they are.
If you can't understand the ingredients chances are your body can't either.

Many food manufacturers mask the real ingredients with names that you've never heard of.
#4 Learn to say "No"
Learning to say no is one of the best feelings in the world. As a mum, you have a tendency to try and please everybody with all the demands and requests you receive on a daily basis. This is on top of your already overloaded schedule. Whether it be volunteering at school or baking the cookies for the school bake sale, just learn to say no. No matter how much you try and make everybody, there will always be someone who doesn't think your best is good enough. Don't feel guilty. You only have so much time and energy.

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Does Eating Before Bed Make You Fat?

This might be one of the most common nutrition questions out there. People are constantly worried about eating too late for fear of gaining weight. For example many people ask, "If you eat before bed isn't your metabolism really slow and therefore that food gets turned to fat?"
Not only do people blame late night eating on weight gain but they also blame it on crazy, vivid dreams. (Get ready I'm about to quote A Christmas Carol) Even Ebenezer Scrooge blames food on seeing the Marley Ghosts in A Christmas Carol by saying, "You may be an undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard, a crumb of cheese, a fragment of an underdone potato." Let's break down what eating before bed causes.
Health Effects of Eating Before Bed?
Newsflash: to date there is no conclusive scientific evidence that illustrates that eating before bed causes weight gain in the average individual. When it comes to night time eating and weight gain, registered dietitian Sarah Remmer said, "This is a myth. What matters when it comes to weight, is the total calories consumed in any given day, not the timing of these calories." Weight gain still comes down to total caloric consumption over the course of the day! Eating a healthy snack at night is actually better than going to sleep hungry because hunger can cause restless sleep (more on that below).

The only concern with night time eating is that most of these snacks aren't the best food choices. Most of the time these snacks are comfort foods that we think will help us sleep better. They may make us feel emotionally better, but these bad food choices like a couple cookies or a bowl of ice cream can lead to us going over our daily caloric recommendations leading to weight gain.
Harmful Consequences?
Eating before bed can cause heartburn, bloating, and insomnia which all lead to a night of restless sleep! A night of restless sleep in which you get less than 6.5 hours of shut-eye has actually been shown in a 2013 American Journal of Health Promotion publication to be correlated with a higher body fat percentage! This is probably attributed to getting less sleep causing us to be hungrier the next day according to a 2013 Endocrine Society study leading to weight gain!
Lastly, when it comes to vivid dreams Ebenezer Scrooge was right. Foods that can induce a restless sleep can cause us to think we had crazy vivid dreams because we are more likely to remember them! Dr. Ware (Chief of the Division of Sleep Medicine at Eastern Virginia Medical School) explained, "The rule of thumb is that you need to wake up within five minutes of having a dream to recall it." When you sleep soundly you may have incredibly crazy dreams but you don't remember them; food induced sleep disturbances allow you to vividly remember those bizarre dreams

Conclusion
As stated, there is no scientific evidence that demonstrates that eating before bed causes the average person to gain weight. But when it comes down to it, just be smart. Even though it may comfort you, crap food is crap food no matter the time of day you eat it! Forget the carton of rocky road; go for the apple instead before bed!

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Food That Helps With Sleeping

Sleeping is necessary for everyone in the world. It is the basis of health. It seems to be an easy activity. But in fact, many people have sleeping troubles. Some people have difficulties in going to sleep. And some people do not have high quality sleeping. Experts tell us that sleeping troubles are closely related with our diet. They suggest that people should eat more food that helps with sleeping.
As we all know, many kinds of food, such as milk, can help with sleeping. But we do not know that some food would bring sleeping troubles to people. First of all, food like sweet potatoes, corns and peas may produce flatulence during the digestion process. As a result, if people eat such food before sleeping, they would feel too full to sleep. Secondly, similar to coffee and tea, spicy food and salty food would excite the nerves and make people difficult to sleep. Besides, these kinds of food would make stomachs uncomfortable and consume the substances which are helpful to sleeping. Thirdly, fatty food influences the sleeping quality, too. Such food burdens the digestion system and stimulates the nerve system so that the human body works all the time. What is worse, it delays the sleeping time.

To improve the sleeping quality and prevent from insomnia, people are suggested to eat some food that can help with sleeping instead of eating the above food. The following food can be a good choice.
The first kind of food is kiwifruit. Kiwifruit is famous for its rich nutriment. It is a good source of calcium, magnesium and vitamin C. These three kinds of nutriment, especially calcium, are helpful to combine and transfer the neurotransmitters, which can clam the emotion and restrain the sympathetic nerves. Moreover, eating kiwifruit, together with milk and honey, not only is useful to sleeping, but also helps ingest vitamin E in order to make skin more elastic.
The second choice is milk. Milk is familiar to all people. Scientific research has found that there exist two chemicals which make people sleepy. One chemical is tryptophan, which promotes the brain to produce certain neurotransmitter called hydroxide. It is this neurotransmitter that makes people easy to sleep. The other chemical is a peptide that is similar to opium. It would combine with the central nerves to calm and relax the human body.

Besides, food with zinc and copper is beneficial. If the human body lack these micro elements, the brain cells would metabolize fast and the incretion is too excited to sleep. Therefore, people are advised to eat more fish, shrimps, eels and oysters to improve the health of the nerve system.
In one world, to have a good sleep, people should have a balanced diet and eat less food that is harmful to sleeping.

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How Many Calories Do I Need to Lose Weight? The Shocking Truth

If you want to burn fat and keep it off, then the first thing you must do is forget all this nonsense you hear about low calorie diets or starving yourself. If you're wondering "How many calories do I need to lose weight," then it's important to understand how to work with your body's metabolism... instead of against it.

Low calorie diets don't work for long term weight loss and here's why:
When you drastically reduce your calorie intake, your metabolism naturally adjust and burn less calories. You may see some initial results, but you will quickly gain it all back and probably even have a few extra pounds as a gift for all your hard work. This is why you've failed in all your past dieting experiences.

You see, your body has natural protective mechanisms that are in place to protect you. When you starve yourself, your body goes into "survival mode" and makes the proper adjustments.
Eating food is not why you're unable to lose weight. Food is not the enemy. As a matter of fact, fat-burning hormones are release after every meal you eat. Eating more can actually encourage weight loss.
What? Eat more? This may sound like a contradiction, but that's exactly what has to happen if you want to burn fat. But you have to do this a certain way.

That way is called calorie shifting. Calorie shifting means you eat many different types of calories throughout the day. By eating a wide variety of foods in the right patterns, you confuse your metabolism and it never has a chance to adjust. So how many calories do I need to lose weight? It's not about the amount of calories, it's about the type. Calorie shifting is the most effective, enjoyable and natural way to lose weight and keep it off.

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