Healthy News

Due to the recent media attention of Maple Leaf Foods and the Listeriosis outbreaks, more people are fearful of their food safety. This is one of the reasons many people choose to stay away from processed foods, eat more organics and follow the 100 Mile Diet.

Maple Leaf has been a well respected company for many generations but when something goes wrong with such a huge company, the impact is massive. Many people are sick and many have died because so many people eat food from this company. Because they package meats for many other brands, the problems aren’t even limited to just their own trademark which can hurt other brands as well.

Regardless of all of this, a good theory to follow is to minimize the amount of processed foods you eat and to maximise your health and wellness efforts so you are in a great position to be able to fend off any illnesses that do happen to come your way.

Tomorrow, we’ll discuss ways you can minimize food poisoning impact.

If you’re lacking motivation to diet and exercise, it can be a bit of a cycle. If you find a little bit of oomph to get started, you will find that energy comes naturally once you have changed a few things about your lifestyle.

Exercise releases endorphins that can help your mood and your energy. When you exercise, you oxygenate your blood and that will provide hugely positive health benefits as well.

If you’re fighting to get off the couch, start slow. You’ll find that with each day, you’ll have more energy to push yourself a little bit farther. Start with walking, stretching and rebounding and before you know it you might crave high energy workouts and weight training.

Once you start to see and feel the results, you might suddenly find an addiction to exercise instead of an addiction to junk food and coach potatoism.

There are a lot of fad diets out there. One of the popular ones today is the Calorie Shifting diet. It’s known by many names like the Zig Zag or Fat Loss 4 Idiots Diet and is based on an online e-book that shows you how to switch your caloric intake around so that you don’t plateau and your metabolism will work at a high level.

This diet includes moving calories around, having low calorie days and very high calorie days and is a great way to diet and cheat on your diet at the same time. Some people find that after doing a diet for a while their weight loss slows to a crawl and they have trouble with their last stretch of weight to go. This is the kind of diet that says it can switch things into high gear for you so that you can keep losing at a high rate and get the results you’re hoping for.

With the grapefruit diet from the 1970’s, you eat grapefruit at every meal. Grapefruit can have a big impact on your metabolism. Grapefruit juice can also be helpful but studies show that the maximum benefit for weight loss and good health is from the fruit itself.

Is the grapefruit diet safe?

Of course man cannot live on grapefruit alone but adding grapefruit to your regular diet can be very beneficial with many health benefits and increasing of your metabolism. You need to be extremely careful when taking any medication or supplements while having grapefruit because your metabolism moves so fast that you could overdose on medication. This is especially true with time release drugs because grapefruit will make you metabolise them quickly which could pose a danger to your health.

There are a lot of fad diets out there and the Special K diet is no exception. To do this diet you need to eat a lot of cereal for two weeks. What can that do for you? It can reduce your caloric and fat intake and can result in about a five pound weight loss.

How To Do The Special K Diet

*Eat 2 meals of cereal a day and one regular meal. Be sure to have a snack between each meal that consists of fruit, cereal, cereal bars or vegetables.

*You can choose to eat a regular meal for dinner each day or you can mix it up as well.

**Make sure you take advantage of the different Special K cereal varieties that are out there! You can have Red Berries, Vanilla Almond and more*

*Mix your cereal with extras like bananas, blueberries, strawberries or a smushed up Special K cereal bar .This adds texture and flavour!

Note: You might consider taking a multivitamin and a fiber supplement for your two weeks and lower your rate of exercise due to the fact you’ll be getting an average of 1200 calories a day for the two weeks.

Health bytes is a series where I”ll provide quick tidbits about Some foods have nutrients lost through the cooking process and there are ways to cook to minimize that but if you eat more of your food raw you can maximize the benefits you get. As this post is being written it’s nearly the end of the summer and the perfect time to get great produce at great pricing. Take advantage of this and do the following to increase the raw food intake:

-Salads. Eat salads at lunch and at dinner and use a variety of raw vegetables. Don’t forget about fruit salads with summer sweet berries and lots of melon. Not only is it nutrition and delicious but filling as well and can help you lose weight!

-Veggies or Fruit and Dip. Have raw vegetables and a low fat dip as a snack. For a great fruit snack, make up a platter of bite sized fruits with a dip made with low fat pudding and fruit juice mixed with a spoonful of light sour cream. This snack is something the whole family will enjoy instead of a baked dessert or fried snacks like potato chips. You’ll get the same sweetness or crunch you desire and loads of vitamins.

-Juicing. Juicing is a great way to get loads of vitamins and nutrients and to get all the health power available in the fruits and vegetables. Experiment and come up with some signature smoothies as well!

Some people are weight obsessed but in actuality, having a scale in your home is a very good idea. It’s shown that people who weigh themselves on a regular basis are at less of a risk of becoming morbidly obese than those who choose to go the ostrich route (aka putting head in sand) and not get weighed regularly.

Weighing yourself at least weekly can help you stay within five pounds of your goal weight as you’re less likely to binge beyond a specific amount. While many will gain weight over holidays, having a scale can help you get back on track as you are able to track your progress regularly.

Whether you’re on the road to weight loss or in maintenance mode, a scale for your home can be inexpensive and can even be personalized to your specific goals and body mass index.

Fluctuations

Do realise that your weight can fluctuate up to five pounds throughout the day due to factors like hydration, etc and that fitness can be about more than just the number on the scale too.

Spices can do more than add flavour to your food. They can help with health issues as well.

Here are some things certain spices can do for you:

Cinnamon can help your memory and has a high level of antioxidants plus has shown help for diabetics and cancer fighting. (Mmmm, Cinnabon!Ok, it doesn’t negate the fat content and sugar content though. )

Garlic is anti-inflammatory and antibacterial and can boost your immune system as well as kill harmful yeasts like candida.

Turmeric is a powerhouse and can help with a plethora of issues including liver cleansing, boosting immune system and metabolism, can slow the growth of tumors and more

Ginger settles your stomach, prevents nausea and can even slow down degenerative diseases like Cancer and Alzheimers.

Go for fresh spices whenever you can for opimum flavour and health benefits.

Asbestos is a scary thing and many people are concerned when they find it in their home. If disturbed, the fibers can get into your body and penetrate your lungs and cause Mesothelioma cancer or Asbestosis.

Should it be removed from your home? Perhaps. In some cases it’s safer to simply cover it up. You should definitely consult with a professional and NOT attempt to remove or dispose of it on your own.

Should you seek medical attention? Yes. If you suspect you’ve been exposed to asbestos fibers it could take ten, twenty or more years to develop into a problem. Many factors can dictate whether or not you become ill so do speak to your doctor and if necessary, speak to a lawyer in the case that negligence may have caused you to be exposed to Asbestos.

The problem with many diets is that the food is bland and leaves you wanting more. This is not so with the sonoma diet. This diet was designed by a nutritionist and takes nutrition and flavour into account above and beyond calories, carbs and fat.

Here is a sampling of the diet’s power foods:

1.almonds
2.bell peppers
3.blueberries
4.broccoli
5.grapes
6.olive oil
7.spinach
8.strawberries
9.tomatoes
10.whole grains.

By trying to eat healthy and choose a diet that not only results in healthier eating but that also leaves you satisfied instead of feeling starved and deprived, you can expect great results. The diet recommends lean meats and has three phases. The third phase is simply a maintenance phase and even allows for the occasional treat that’s not in the previous two waves.

Another key factor of the Sonoma diet is portion size so instead of heaping platters filled with food you might invest in smaller plates and bowls. This diet has been getting positive reviews from people and even from physicians.