Fast-Food Guide For Teenagers

Americans consume one-third of their calories out of the home

Many of these are eaten at fast-food restaurants. The sheer number of fast-food outlets, the availability of round-the-clock, drive-through service, and low prices make fast food a convenient and affordable option. But fast-food menus are packed with high-fat, high-calorie, and high-sodium options that present a number of pitfalls to anyone trying to live a healthy lifestyle.

A visit to a fast-food chain doesn't necessitate throwing your healthy eating efforts out the window, however. Increasingly, fast-food restaurants are offering alternatives to the standard burger and fries, and it's getting easier to make good choices. This article will arm you with the knowledge you need to navigate fast-food menus wisely. Keep in mind, though, that even the "healthy" options are usually high in sodium — meaning they're not the best options for people who need to limit their sodium intake.

When you make the decision to eat fast food, be sure to gather all the nutrition information you can. Then ask yourself: Does this menu suit my needs? Remember, advertising can be tricky. Just because Subway promotes a "Carb Conscious" menu doesn't mean that the low-carb options fit into a low-calorie or low-sodium plan. Look at the following chart to see the nutrients in Subway's low-carbohydrate Chicken and Bacon Ranch Wrap compared with those in the 6-inch Turkey Breast Sub. What differences do you detect?

Chicken and Bacon Ranch Wrap 

Calories: 440
Fat: 27g
Saturated Fat: 10g
Protein: 41g
Carbohydrates: 18g
Sodium: 1,680mg

6-inch Turkey Breast Sub 

Calories: 280
Fat: 4.5 g
Saturated Fat: 1.5 g
Protein: 18g
Carbohydrates: 46 g
Sodium: 1,020 mg

As you can see, the Chicken and Bacon Ranch Wrap has less carbohydrate than the Turkey Breast Sub, but it also packs in more fat, more sodium, and nearly twice the calories. Which of these options better helps you meet your goals?

"There's Fast Food…Then There's KFC" 

Be aware that fast-food marketing campaigns can be misleading. Take, for example, the KFC ads that ran briefly in 2003. This campaign promoted fried chicken as a healthful food that could fit into low-fat and low-carbohydrate diets. The campaign outraged groups that advocate healthy eating. After all, fried chicken is not typically considered a health food and should be consumed sparingly — not eaten by the bucketful, as the commercials suggested one should.

KFC supported the controversial ads in a 2003 press release by saying, "We want to set the record straight. Consumers should no longer feel guilty about eating fried chicken." In response, the Center for Science in the Public Interest said, "These ads take the truth, dip it in batter, and deep-fry it." The Federal Trade Commission, the group that regulates advertising in the United States, later banned the ads for containing false claims.

Controversy and marketing aside, it is up to you, the consumer, to make informed choices, so let's look at the nutrition facts. Depending on the size, a bucket of fried chicken has up to 3,090 calories and is loaded with saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium. You can decide whether or not this is your best choice.

Making the Facts Known 

How can you obtain the nutrition information for items on a fast-food menu? Many fast-food restaurants have printed information that you can request at the counter. You can also find the information on the Internet, since most fast-food chains publish nutrition facts on their Web sites. Other Web sites, such as www.calorieking.com and www.dietfacts.com, allow you to look up nutrition information for many different fast-food chains.

On some of these sites, you can customize a sample meal, which allows you to add up the nutrition totals for different combinations of foods. For example, check out the McDonald's site and see what a difference a couple of slices of cheese make to the fat and calorie content of a sandwich. Or you can look at Subway's nutrition information to see how adding mayonnaise affects the nutrition facts. These sites are user friendly, and if you print your results, you can file them for future visits. By choosing healthier menu items, you might help bring about more positive changes. As the demand grows for healthy meals, fast-food chains just might keep expanding the options.

McDonald's and Burger King eateries are everywhere, and many are open around the clock. They are therefore convenient sources for various meals. However, some of the more traditional menu items aren't very healthy for someone trying to lose weight.

McDonald's Big Breakfast, for example, packs in 730 calories, 56 percent of which are from fat. The total number of fat grams is 46, and 14 of those are of the saturated variety. Additionally, you would consume 1,470 milligrams of sodium and 53 grams of carbohydrate. In short, if you follow a 1,500-calorie meal plan, this meal would provide about half of your daily intake. And you would take in more than half a day's worth of sodium.

Better choice

Try the English muffin with jam, scrambled eggs, and coffee or water. You would consume only 395 calories (add 35 calories if you put one creamer and one packet of sugar in your coffee), 39 percent of which would be from the 17 grams of fat (5 of which are saturated). Additionally, you would consume 41 grams of carbohydrate (add 4 grams of carbohydrate if you stir one packet of sugar into your coffee) and just 500 milligrams of sodium. This meal provides a smart start for the day, leaving you on track to meet the rest of the day's goals.

Perhaps you have chosen to have lunch at Burger King. As with breakfast at McDonald's, the nutrition content of your meal can vary widely depending on your choices. Say you order a traditional lunch of a Double Whopper with cheese, king-size fries, and a king-size Coke. In this one meal you would take in 1,980 calories, 44 percent of which are from the 97 grams of fat. You would also consume 2,520 milligrams of sodium. This meal alone exceeds your daily calorie and sodium intakes if you plan for 1,500 calories a day.

Better choice: As an alternative to the high-fat, high-sodium meal described above, you could choose a Tendergrill Chicken Sandwich. Add a side garden salad and fat-free dressing and you would eat just 465 calories, 19 percent of which are from the 10 grams of fat. You would also be getting 56 grams of carbohydrate and 1,210 milligrams of sodium. While the sodium content is still relatively high, you could budget the rest of your day's intake to still come in around the recommended limit of 2,300 milligrams.

At most fast-food venues, the various chicken options can fit into your plan. Just know what you are eating. Below you will find the nutrition information for some chicken menu options at KFC, McDonald's, and Subway. This is the type of information you need to evaluate when making decisions about what to order at fast-food restaurants.

KFC Original Recipe Chicken Breast (1 piece) 

Calories: 380
Fat: 19g
Saturated Fat: 6g
Protein: 40g
Carbohydrates: 11g
Sodium: 1,150mg

McDonald's Premium Grilled Chicken Classic Sandwich 

Calories: 420
Fat: 9g
Saturated Fat: 2g
Protein: 27g
Carbohydrates: 32g
Sodium: 1,240 mg

Subway 6-inch Oven Roasted Chicken Breast Sub 

Calories: 330
Fat: 5g
Saturated Fat: 2g
Protein: 24g
Carbohydrates: 47g
Sodium: 1,020mg

KFC Original Recipe Chicken Breast without skin or breading (1 piece) 

Calories: 140
Fat: 3g
Saturated Fat: 1g
Protein: 29g
Carbohydrates: 0g
Sodium: 410mg

(Take into consideration that the McDonald's and Subway sandwiches include the bun, and that the McDonald's selection includes mayonnaise.)

Could you eat lower-carbohydrate meals at these same fast-food restaurants even if the menu doesn't include a specific low-carb item? And can that low-carb item also be low in fat — not drenched with cheeses and sauces? Sure — you just need to be resourceful. Eat half the bun or none at all. You can even double the chicken but eat it on one bun, thus lowering the proportion of carbohydrate in your meal while keeping your protein intake high. The charts below compare each chicken meal to versions without the skin or bun. Watch how the nutrients change accordingly.

McDonald's Premium Grilled Chicken Classic Sandwich 

Calories: 420
Fat: 9g
Saturated Fat: 2g
Protein: 32g
Carbohydrates: 52g
Sodium: 1,240mg

McDonald's Premium Grilled Chicken Classic Sandwich with no bun 

Calories: 180
Fat: 7g
Saturated Fat: 1.5g
Protein: 24g
Carbohydrates: 5g
Sodium: 830mg

Subway 6-inch Oven Roasted Chicken Breast Sub 

Calories: 330
Fat: 5g
Saturated Fat: 2g
Protein: 24g
Carbohydrates: 47g
Sodium: 1,020mg

Subway 6-inch Oven Roasted Chicken Breast Sub without bread 

Calories: 130
Fat: 2.5g
Saturated Fat: 1g
Protein: 16g
Carbohydrates: 7g
Sodium: 660mg

*All nutrition information is taken from the KFC, McDonald's, and Subway Web sites.

Calories from Alcohol Almost Equals Soda for Adults

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a study that found adults get almost as many empty calories from booze as they do from soda.

Soda gets a lot of bad press for contributing to unwanted weight gain, but a recent study points out the fizzy stuff isn’t the only thing we’re sipping that’s making us fat. Turns out that adults get almost as many calories from booze as they do from soft drinks.

Soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages contribute to about 6 percent of the average calories adults consume, while alcoholic beverages account for about 5 percent, according to the study released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

On average the study found that U.S. adults get 100 calories per day from alcohol — with about one-third of men and one-fifth of women actually consuming beer, wine, or liquor each day.

Men's calorie intake from alcohol was three times as high as women's on average —  150 calories a day compared to 50 daily calories. And those who drink alcoholic beverages get about 16 percent of their total caloric intake from them, according to the CDC.

The study found that men aged 20 to 39 consumed the greatest number of calories from alcoholic drinks—about 174 calories per day. Most of the calories for men come from beer, while women displayed no preference among major beverage categories.

In September the New York City Board of Health approved Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s ban on the sale of soft drinks larger than 16 ounces. The ban, which applies to all restaurants and self-service stations, is scheduled to take effect in early 2013.

The study points out while calories from sweetened beverages have been previous examined, “calories from alcoholic beverages have been neglected.”

"We've been focusing on sugar-sweetened beverages. This is something new," said Cynthia Ogden, epidemiologist and one of the study's authors, according to the Associated Press.

New York City Health Department officials said that while studies show that sugary drinks are “a key driver of the obesity epidemic,” alcohol is not, according to the AP.

The alcohol study used data from 2007 to 2010 from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey of more than 11,000 U.S adults.

Good And Healthy Food For Kids

By eating a range of different healthy foods, your child can get the best possible nutrition for growth, development and learning. When children learn about and eat good food from an early age, they can develop healthy habits for life.

What is good food?

Good food means a wide variety of fresh foods from the main food groups – fruit, vegetables, grains, lean meats, fish, poultry and dairy.

Each food group provides different nutrients. That’s why we need to eat a range of foods from across all the food groups.
The good food groups

Fruit and vegetables

Fruit and vegetables help protect your child’s body against all kinds of diseases. This is because fruit and vegies provide energy, vitamins, antioxidants, fibre and water.

Children aged 4-8 years need to eat at least 1½ pieces of fruit and 4½ serves of vegetables every day.

Instead of giving your child full serves of vegetables, you could consider including several smaller serves of vegetables for more variety. For example, you could offer your child 1 cup of green leafy vegies; ½ cup of broccoli, carrots or peas; ½ medium potato and 1 medium tomato.

Eating different-coloured fruits and vegetables is a great way for your child to get a good range of nutrients.

 Starchy foods and grains

Starchy foods and grains give your child the energy she needs to grow, develop and learn. These foods include cereals, breads, rice, pasta and noodles. It’s a good idea to offer them at every meal.

Starchy foods with a low glycaemic index, such as pasta and wholegrain bread, will give your child long-lasting energy.

Lean meats, fish and poultry, and meat alternatives

Lean meat, fish, chicken and meat alternatives such as eggs, beans (legumes), tofu and nuts give your child iron, zinc, vitamin B12, omega-3 fatty acids and protein for growth and muscle development.

Iron and omega-3 fatty acids are particularly important for your child’s brain development and learning.

Milk and other dairy products

Milk, cheese and yoghurt are high in protein and calcium, which helps build strong bones and teeth.

When your child is a baby, breastmilk or formula is the best milk until he’s 12 months old. After that, he can start drinking full-fat cow’s milk before switching to low-fat milk after he turns two.

To get enough calcium, children aged:

    2-3 years need 1½ serves of dairy a day
    4-8 years need 1½-2 serves of dairy a day
    9-13 years need 2½-3½ serves of dairy a day
    over 13 years need 3½ serves of dairy a day.

A serve of dairy can be one cup of milk, two slices (40 gm) of cheese or a 200 gm tub of yoghurt.

 Water

Water is the best drink for your child.

Sweet drinks 

which include fruit juice, cordials, sports drinks, flavoured waters, soft drinks and flavoured milks – can fill your child up with sugar. This might mean she won’t want to eat her meals.

Drinking sweet drinks can also contribute to weight gain and obesity and tooth decay. If kids start on these drinks when they’re young, it can kick off a lifelong habit.
‘Sometimes’ foods

‘Sometimes’ foods include chips, chocolates, lollies, cakes, pastries, muesli bars, soft drinks, juices and takeaway foods – basically anything that’s high in sugar, salt and/or fat, and low in nutrition.

It can be easy to eat too many ‘sometimes’ foods. The important thing is to a find a balance for your child. If you choose sometimes foods for your child, try to make sure he eats them only sometimes and in small amounts.

Babies: starting on healthy food

Going from drinking breastmilk or formula to eating family meals takes time, and starting your baby on solids is the first step.

Many parents start their children off with some rice cereal at about six months or so. From this, you can move on to mashed vegies, fruit and meat, and toast fingers. By about eight months, many babies are ready for some cheese or yoghurt. By 12 months, your baby can try most healthy foods your family is eating.
Healthy food and eating for toddlers

Lots of parents describe their toddlers as ‘fussy’ with food. This can make mealtimes stressful, especially if you’re worried your toddler isn’t eating enough.

Your toddler might seem to eat less than when she was a baby, which is because she’s growing more slowly. But she still needs regular meals and snacks – three meals and several snacks every day. If your toddler isn’t eating, it can help to remember that you decide what your child eats, and she decides how much.

You can offer lots of variety from the main food groups, but try to limit ‘sometimes’ foods as much as you can.

It’s also a good idea to avoid bottles for your toddler. Using a bottle is associated with iron deficiency anaemia and could be linked to a higher risk of overweight and obesity.

Healthy food and eating for school-age children

At this age, your child might have a busy social life, his own pocket money to spend and some definite preferences when it comes to food. He’ll also be influenced by friends and trends, so it’s a great time to reinforce messages about healthy foods.

For example, you can explain to your child that a healthy breakfast can help her concentrate on schoolwork and have lots of energy for the day.

Sharing healthy meals and snacks with your school-age child can encourage him to eat nutritious food and to develop a regular eating routine.

When you’re packing your child’s lunch box, healthy variety is the way to go. You might include vegies, fruit, a dairy food, meat or egg, starchy food (bread, roll, pita, or flat bread) and water.

Best Foods That Boost Your Memory!

Amy Jamieson-Petonic, RD, of Cleveland Clinic shares five foods that harbor nutrients proven to better your brain health.

Worried about losing your memory? Help may be as close as your kitchen. Here are some foods you can add to your daily diet that have been shown to improve cognition:

Blueberries

Berries contain anthocyanin, an antioxidant pigment that increases your ability to remember things. One three-month research study showed improved learning recall in older adults who drank blueberry juice to improved learning recall.

Almonds

 Almonds are an excellent brain food because they contain a protein component that boosts production of a nerve chemical shown to enhance memory.

Dark chocolate

 Varieties of dark chocolate that are comprised of at least 70-percent cocoa contain flavanols that increase blood flow to the brain.

Extra-virgin olive oil

 This type of olive oil contains a chemical called hydroxytyrosol that tends to increase messages to the brain and improves your memory.

Green tea

 You’ve probably heard about its antioxidant power, but green tea has also been shown to help reboot your memory.

Article About Chocolate Addiction!

Chocolate craving is very common, but can we actually be addicted to it? Can these powerful urges to eat truly be classed as an addiction?

We generally crave foods due to external prompts and our emotional state, rather than actual hunger. We tend to be bored, anxious, or depressed immediately before experiencing cravings, so one way of explaining cravings is self-medication for feeling miserable.

Chocolate is the most frequently craved food in women, and many women describe themselves as 'chocoholics.' Chocoholics insist that it is habit-forming, that it produces an instant feeling of well-being, and even that abstinence leads to withdrawal symptoms.

When we eat sweet and high-fat foods, including chocolate, serotonin is released, making us feel happier. This partly explains the cravings common in seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and pre-menstrual syndrome.

In many women, the craving occurs on a monthly cycle, which suggests a hormonal basis. A recent report in the New Scientist magazine suggests people can become overly dependent on the sugar and fat in fast food. Princeton University researcher Dr. John Hoebel found that rats fed on sugar became anxious when the sugar was removed. Their symptoms included chattering teeth and the shakes - similar to those seen in people withdrawing from nicotine or morphine. Dr. Hoebel believes high-fat foods stimulate opioids or "pleasure chemicals" in the brain. This theory is backed up by many other studies.

Chocolate contains several biologically active ingredients, all of which can cause abnormal behaviors and psychological sensations like those of other addictive substances. Researchers at the University of Tampere in Finland found that self-proclaimed chocolate "addicts" salivated more in the presence of chocolate, and showed a more negative mood and higher anxiety. The researchers state that chocolate addicts show traits of regular addiction, because they exhibit craving for chocolate, irregular eating behavior, and abnormal moods.

Although there are similarities between eating chocolate and drug use, generally researchers believe that chocolate "addiction" is not a true addiction. While chocolate does contain potentially mood-altering substances, these are all found in higher concentrations in other less appealing foods such as broccoli. A combination of chocolate's sensory characteristics - sweetness, texture and aroma - nutrients, and chemicals, together with hormonal and mood swings, largely explains chocolate cravings.

Chocolate is seen as "naughty but nice" - tasty, but something which should be resisted. This suggests that the desire is more likely a cultural phenomenon than a physical one. The inability to control eating may be a result of inborn traits and today's environment. "Humans used to have to search for food," according to Baylor College of Medicine researcher Dr. Ken Goodrick. "Now food searches us out."

We are overwhelmed with advertising, large-scale grocery displays, plenty of high-calorie foods, and an obsession with thinness. The stress of modern living often makes us turn to food for comfort, then return to a restrictive diet. The attempt to restrain ourselves before we are satisfied increases the desire for chocolate.

Visit the My Calorie Counter message boards to exchange ideas on how to subdue your sweet tooth.

 Tips to Curb Chocolate Craving

If you can satisfy a chocolate craving with only two chocolate peanuts, then go for it. If you're not so lucky:

•     Discover if the craving is emotional - there are all sorts of reasons why people crave foods. It can often be related to feelings of low self-esteem or depression. If you can identify your reasons, then try another approach to tackling the problem.
•     Incorporate small portions of chocolate into your usual diet, rather than restrict yourself. Moderation is the key. A research trial found that people who limited eating chocolate to within half an hour of eating a meal gradually weaned themselves off their craving.
•     If you are feeling bored and craving chocolate, go for a walk, run errands, call a friend or read a book. If you can take your mind off food for a short time, the craving may pass.
•     Make sure you always have healthy food nearby, so you can replace chocolate with fruit a few times a day. Eat an overall balanced diet, eat regularly to avoid hunger, and eat more slowly. When your blood sugar levels are stable, cravings are less likely to occur.
•     If you think it's necessary, do not allow chocolate in the house. Ask friends and family not to buy you chocolate, or even not to eat it in front of you!
•     Finally, it is a good idea to increase your level of exercise, to burn off excess calories and increase your metabolic rate. Exercise also releases endorphins, which counteracts stress, anxiety and depression.

Women Tell 474 Diet Lies a Year, Survey Says

A new survey found that women are lying about their diets more than once a day. Here, the top lies dieters tell, and how you can hold yourself accountable.

Weight loss takes a lot of personal accountability — you have to make yourself exercise, watch what you eat, and limit your portions. But according to a new survey of 3,000 UK women, women constantly overstate how responsible they are — about 474 times a year, or 9 times per week.

In a survey conducted by Timex, (who’s releasing a new body-monitoring device for dieters) women fessed up to lying to themselves and others more than once a day about their less-than-perfect eating habits.

The single most popular lie? “It was only a small portion.”

The foods that spurred women to lie the most included desserts, cheese, bread, fries and burgers, wine, and beer, the survey found. Sixty-eight percent of those surveyed said they try their best to eat well, but admitted to slipping up occasionally. More than 40 percent lied to others about their healthy habits, simply to give off the impression that they are healthier than they really are.

Here, the top 10 lies women tell about their diets:

1. It was only a small portion.
2. I’ll have a big lunch, so I won’t eat much after this.
3. I treat myself only once in a while.
4. I always eat my five fruits and vegetables a day.
5. I didn’t touch any of the biscuits.
6. I had only one glass.
7. I didn’t eat the last one.
8. I won’t eat again today after this.
9. I was too busy to have lunch.
10. I might as well polish them off now, or they’ll go bad.

If you’ve told one (or more) of these lies today, try these no-fail ways to stay accountable:

    Use your scale.

 A national survey of 4,345 adults found that those who weighed themselves daily were more likely to lose weight and keep it off than those who inconsistently weighed themselves.

    Track calories.

 If you need meal-by-meal accountability, monitor your calories consumed and burned on your computer and on your smartphone with a system such as Everyday Health’s My Calorie Counter.

    Find a diet buddy. 

Partner up with a friend who has similar weight-loss goals, and every time you slip up, be honest with your buddy — and yourself.

Why We Should Eat Fish? Find Out The Reason!

You know fish is a great source of lean protein and nutrients, but a slew of new research has uncovered more amazing reasons to go fish.

 Fish has a reputation for being low calorie, high protein “brain food,” thanks to the long strands of polyunsaturated essential omega-3 fatty acids (popularly referred to as “omega-3s”) found in fish oil. The human body can’t naturally produce omega-3s, but yet they’re needed for a healthy body, inside and out. Although the link between omega-3s and heart health has long been known, several new studies present even more evidence that fish high in fatty acids is essential for total-body wellness.

The good news is if you’re not a fish fan, most new research indicates that eating fish only once or twice a week can be enough to reap the benefits. Meanwhile, the National Institute of Health recommends that people consume at least 2 percent of their total daily calories as omega-3 fatty acids, which equals about 4 grams per day. One four-ounce piece of salmon (one of the highest natural sources of omega-3s) contains about 1.5 grams of the fatty acid. Other fish, such as tuna, sardines, and halibut, also contains high levels. If you don’t eat animal products or have trouble fitting fish into your diet, you can get your daily recommended amount of fatty acids through omega-3 DHA/fish oil supplements. Although new data from Consumer Reports suggests that more Americans are buying omega-3 supplements than ever before, the doctor-recommended way to consume the health benefits of fish is still by eating the real thing.

If the heart-health-boosting, waist-slimming properties weren’t reasons enough to eat more fish, here are seven more ways adding a dose of fish to your diet can improve your health. 

    Prevent Heart Disease

A Danish study of 49,000 women that was published Monday in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association found that women who ate little to no fish had 50 percent more heart problems than those who ate fish at least once per week. Additionally, researchers found that women who rarely ate fish had a three-fold higher disease risk than those who ate it often. Other research has found that eating fish high in omega-3s can slash blood fat levels, which can contribute to a lower heart-disease risk.
  

  Reduce Alzheimer’s Risk

 Eating fish as little as once a week can help preserve gray-matter neurons — the part of the brain linked to memory and cognition — according to a new study presented last month at the Radiological Society of North America’s annual meeting. Researchers found that people who eat baked or broiled — but not fried — fish had larger brains and larger cells in the areas of the brain responsible for memory and learning. Scientists believe the larger brain volume can help lower the risk of cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease.

    Improve Skin and Hair

 One of the biggest drawbacks to a low-fat diet is you often deprive your skin and hair of the healthy fat it needs, leaving it dull and dry. The omega-3s in fish are exactly the type of healthy fat to eat to keep your skin looking nourished and your hair shiny. Research has also linked fish and omega-3 consumption to treatment of skin conditions such as psoriasis.

    Ease Depression

 Several studies have found that when taken along with prescription antidepressant medications, the omega-3s in fish are more effective at treating depression that just prescription medication alone. One study of 52 pregnant women found that taking a 300 mg capsule of omega-3s during pregnancy significantly reduced the women’s risk of postpartum depression.

    Boost Brain Development

 The EFA omega-3 found in salmon and other nutrient-rich fish are essential nutrients for children because they contribute to brain development. Some studies have even found that omega-3 consumption can help soothe symptoms of ADHD. Experts recommend, however, that parents ask their pediatrician before introducing supplements to a child’s diet.

    Dose of Vitamin D

 Saltwater fish is a sun-less source of vitamin D, which scientists say can help ward off disease, promote bone health, and with the help of the omega-3s in fish, ward off cognitive decline. Just one three-ounce serving of salmon contains 75 percent of your daily recommended amount of the vitamin.

    Stronger Sperm

 A recent study of 188 men found that those who ate more fresh fish — along with other healthy foods such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains — had stronger swimmers than those who ate unhealthy diets. Researchers say that more study needs to be done, but preliminary data shows that the better the participant’s diet, the stronger the shape and mobility of the sperm he produced.

Drinking a lot of soda may uncork bottled-up aggression in teens, researchers have found.

Those who drank more than five cans of soft drinks per week were significantly more likely to have carried a weapon and to have been violent with peers, family, and their dates, Sara Solnick, PhD, and David Hemenway, PhD, of the University of Vermont, reported online in Injury Prevention.

"There may be a direct cause-and-effect relationship, perhaps due to the sugar or caffeine content of soft drinks," they wrote.

In their paper, Solnick and Hemenway noted that the murderer of gay rights activist Harvey Milk had his conviction reduced from homicide to voluntary manslaughter by the "Twinkie Defense," which stated that an unhealthful diet made the perpetrator act irrationally.

Some studies have in fact shown that drinking lots of sugary drinks is linked with poor mental health and diminished social abilities, they wrote, though the literature remains unclear.

So to investigate the link between soda consumption and violence, they conducted a survey of Boston public high schools. Students were asked how often they drank soda and whether they carried a weapon or engaged in violence.

A total of 1,878 kids responded to the survey — half were black, 33 percent were hispanic, 9 percent were white, and 8 percent were Asian.

Nearly 30 percent of all respondents reported drinking more than five cans of non-diet soda every week.

Solnick and Hemenway found that those who drank more than five cans of soda per week were significantly more likely to have carried a weapon than those who drank less.

They were also more likely to have been violent with peers, family members, and dates, they reported.

In multivariate analyses, drinking lots of sodas increased the probability of aggressive behavior between 9 and 15 percentage points, the researchers reported, even after controlling for factors such as gender, age, race, body mass index, typical sleep patterns, tobacco use, alcohol use, and having family dinners.

They found that the impact of drinking lots of soda on violence was similar in magnitude to the impact of using tobacco or alcohol.

However, high soda intake's influence on the probability of carrying a weapon wasn't as strong an influence as alcohol or tobacco, although it was significant, they said.

Solnick and Hemenway added that it appears to be a dose-response relationship, with violent effects increasing at greater consumption. The reason for the relationship, however, isn't clear, they wrote. It could be a direct cause-and-effect, as diet can influence behavior, and soda has a host of potentially culprit ingredients — i.e. high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, sodium benzoate, phosphoric or citric acid, and caffeine.

Still, they cautioned that there could be other factors that aren't accounted for, and the survey can't prove causality.

Other limitations include its reliance on self-reported data, having limited information about the types of sodas consumed, and having no information on students' overall diets. The findings may also not be generalizable, given that the survey population was largely black and Hispanic.

Some Of Snacks You Think Are Healthy, But Aren't

Don't let them fool you. These sneaky snacks won't help you stick to your diet.

1. Veggie Chips

The word veggie is in its name, so this snack must be healthier than potato chips, right? Wrong. Many of these chips are made of vegetable flour and don't contain any real vegetables at all! They house as much fat and calories as potato varieties — and a lot more sodium. Plus, veggie chips, on average, cost 30 percent more than potato chips.

2. Energy Bars

Energy bars were originally developed to give athletes a convenient source of fuel during a long workout, but over time, they have become an on-the-go snack for everyone. Nowadays, these bars are often filled with chocolate, high-fructose corn syrup, and artery-clogging saturated fat. You might as well eat a candy bar. If you can't resist, look for a bar that's no more than 200 calories and 20 grams of sugar per serving — coming from dried fruit, not added sugars.

3. Reduced-Fat Peanut Butter

You may think reduced fat means larger portions per serving, but unfortunately, that's not the case. When fat is removed from peanut butter, sugar is usually added to replace the flavor, and the calorie difference is negligible. More important, monounsaturated fat found in peanuts, like in olive oil, is beneficial for your health, so there's no need to remove it from the snack. Try natural peanut butter, which should contain only peanuts and salt, to avoid the sugars and bad fats. Peanuts are high in calories, though, so even when eating natural peanut butter, keep an eye on serving size.

4. Trail Mix

Dried fruit and nuts offer extended energy to hikers, and it may seem like the healthiest option in the vending machine, but it's actually one of the unhealthiest snacks out there. Pre-packaged and processed trail mixes are high in fat and calories. The dried fruit is drenched in sugar and the nuts in salt. Many contain highly caloric add-ins like chocolate chips and coconut. And that yogurt-covered fruit is actually sugar-coated fruit. One handful alone can easily set you back 300 calories or more, and in a snack-size bag, there's typically 2 to 3 servings.

5. Smoothies

All smoothies are not created equal. You're much better off eating a piece of fruit because pre-madeor store-bought smoothies can rack up more calories than a cheeseburger. Some have up to 650 to 1000 calories, due to extreme portions of fruit, vegetables, and sugar from ingredients such as fruit juice, ice cream, chocolate, and whole milk. Talk about a calorie bomb! Not such a smooth choice after all.

6. Frozen Yogurt

It seems so much better than ice cream. When it comes to saturated fat, frozen yogurt is much healthier, but in terms of calories and simple sugars, the two treats are closer than you think. After loading up on sugar- and fat-laden toppings, frozen yogurt's calorie count catches up to its ice cream counterparts. Beware of self-serve yogurt shops. The cups are often large and if you fill them up, you could end up consuming 500 to 800 calories in the yogurt alone. And while regular yogurt contains live active cultures that can keep the bacteria in your digestive tract healthy, most frozen yogurt sold at supermarkets and retail stores have been heat processed, which kills the beneficial live cultures.

Jennifer Aniston's Diet and Fitness Secrets Leaked, Find Out

FITNESS magazine’s “most wanted body” of 2011, Jennifer Aniston,

43, is famous for her long, lean muscles, glowing skin, and iconic hair. In the same FITNESS survey, 65 percent of women said if they could have one celebrity body part, it would be Aniston’s chiseled abs.

What keeps her so toned is a constant source of speculation (in the past, Aniston has been rumored to follow the Zone Diet, as well as a strict yoga routine). In the new issue of InStyle magazine, Aniston dished on the details.

“I work out almost every day, at least five or six days a week,” she says. “I do 40 minutes of cardio: spinning, running, the elliptical, or a combination of all three.” Aniston also says she does one day of Pilates per week, and yoga three days a week, while constantly trying to mix up her routine.

She also revealed that she takes 8-pound hand weights with her when she’s traveling to do arm exercises, and she stretches and does a few sit-ups every night before going to bed.

Aniston admits she loves occasionally indulging on high-calorie Mexican food, but her diet remains healthy the rest of the time.

“Most of the time I eat things like salmon or other fish, quinoa, lentils, and green vegetables,” she says. “I also take liquid fish oil and resveratrol, which is supposed to be good for your heart.”

Six days a week at the gym might not work for your schedule, but Aniston’s routine can still be inspiration for us mere mortals without pricy trainers and nutritionists to keep us on track. Here are a few of Aniston top tips you can try.

 1. Strength train

 Too often women skip strength because they’re afraid of looking bulky, but studies show that strength training can increase muscle tone, help you burn more calories, boost bone health, and more. Add strength training, whether it’s with Pilates, free weights, resistance bands or another method, to your routine at least twice per week.

2. Workout on-the-go

 If a busy celeb like Aniston can squeeze in a few anywhere, anytime workouts, surely you can do, too. Follow her lead and add a few equipment-free exercises, such as stretches, crunches, squats, lunges, or yoga, to your morning or evening routine.

3. Go fish

 Diets full of omega-3-rich fish can help control weight, improve your skin and hair, help your heart health and more. Studies show eating fish just once or twice a week can be enough to reap the benefits. If you don’t eat fish, consider taking an omega-3 supplement to your diet.

4. Splurge — guilt-free

 Aniston’s not shy about occasionally eating the foods she loves (like guacamole), and then getting back on track with her healthy diet the next day. If it’s a special occasion, go ahead and have dessert without beating yourself up about it — just renew your commitment to a healthy diet and exercise when you’re finished.

Some Of Worst Foods for Your Diet!

Buyer beware

 Just because a food’s labeled “healthy,” “smart,” or “all-natural” does not mean it’s the best choice for someone who’s trying to lose weight. For example, honey, vegetable chips, and granola are just a few of the supermarket staples that have tricked dieters into believing they’re healthy choices, when in fact, they are as equally loaded with calories, fat, sodium, and glucose as their more vilified counterparts of table sugar, potato chips, and sweet cereals.

In an effort to help dieters keep it straight, obesity researchers at Otago University in New Zealand have identified a list of 49 foods that they say are extremely calorie-dense, but are almost totally lacking in nutritional benefit. Published in the current issue of the New Zealand Medical Journal, researchers say the list was primarily developed to help overweight and obese people easily identify which foods they should avoid. Lead researcher Jane Elmsile says it’s important to note that the list represents not only high-calorie foods, but also foods that are almost totally lacking in essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals.

Here’s the list, in alphabetical order:

1. Alcoholic drinks

2. Biscuits

3. Butter, lard, dripping or similar fat (used as a spread or in baking/cooking etc.)

4. Cakes

5. Candy, including lollipops

6. Chocolate

7. Coconut cream

8. Condensed milk

9. Cordial

10. Corn chips

11. Cream (including crème fraiche)

12. Chips (including vegetable chips)

13. Deli meats

14. Doughnuts

15. Energy drinks

16. Flavored milk/milkshakes

17. Fruit canned in syrup

18. Fruit rollups

19. Fried food

20. Fried potatoes/French fries

21. Frozen yogurt

22. Fruit juice (except tomato juice and unsweetened black currant juice)

23. Glucose

24. High-fat crackers

25. Honey

26. Hot chocolate, chocolate milk

27. Ice cream

28. Jam

29. Marmalade

30. Mayonnaise

31. Muesli/granola bars

32. Muffins

33. Nuts roasted in fat or oil

34. Pastries

35. Pies

36. Popcorn with butter or oil

37. Puddings

38. Quiches

39. Reduced cream

40. Regular powdered drinks

41. Salami

42. Sausages

43. Soft drinks

44. Sour cream

45. Sugar (added to anything including drinks, baking, cooking etc.)

46. Syrups such as golden syrup, treacle, maple syrup

47. Toasted muesli, granola, and any other breakfast cereal with more than 15 grams of sugar per 100 grams of cereal

48. Whole milk

49. Yogurt with more than 10 grams of sugar per 100 grams of yogurt

Female Soccer Players May Face Health Problems, Find Out The Reasons!!

 

Intense training, poor nutrition might lead to menstrual abnormalities, stress fractures in young players.

 

Intense training combined with insufficient nutrition may threaten the health of young female soccer players, suggests a new study that finds menstrual irregularities and stress fractures are common among these athletes.

Nearly one in five elite female soccer players reported having irregular menstrual cycles, while 14 percent had a stress fracture in the past year, the study found.

Though the toll of so-called "aesthetic sports," such as dance and gymnastics, and endurance sports, such as running, on young women's bodies has been well studied, soccer has largely escaped scrutiny, said lead study author Dr. Heidi Prather, an associate professor and chief of the physical medicine and rehabilitation section at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

"No one has studied soccer much, yet soccer is the most-played sport by girls in the U.S. as far as sheer numbers," Prather said.

The study, scheduled for presentation Tuesday at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons' meeting in San Francisco, included 220 elite female soccer athletes from nationally ranked clubs in the St. Louis area, a Division 1 university team and a professional soccer team. Average age was 16.

Nearly one in five of those already menstruating reported irregular menstrual cycles, in which the time between periods was fewer than 28 days or more than 34 days, and/or skipping a period the previous year. They included 19 percent of the 15- to 17-year-olds, 18 percent of college athletes and 20 percent of pros.

"Girls who have menstrual dysfunction are at risk for long-term health problems," Prather said. "When you have menstrual dysfunction and you are not regularly having a period, your body is not receiving the appropriate estrogen load it should."

Too little estrogen can impact bone health, leading to the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis.

Also concerning are the "relatively high and even alarming rate of stress fractures," said Dr. Mininder Kocher, associate director of the division of sports medicine at Children's Hospital Boston.

Stress fractures are tiny cracks in the bone caused by overuse, Kocher explained. The soccer players in the study mostly had fractures of the ankle or foot.

"A bone is alive. When we run and jump, we make small injuries in the bone, but most of the time we're able to heal them. When we're making injuries at a higher rate than we can heal, we get an overuse problem, such as a stress fracture," Kocher explained.

Stress fractures are too small for X-ray detection, but can be seen with an MRI scan. Treatment is typically rest, a healthy diet and adequate consumption of calcium and vitamin D, although some stress fractures require surgery.

The message for female athletes and their coaches is to make sure that in the quest to achieve excellence in sports, they're not compromising their long-term health, Prather said.

Experts call the three major health risks associated with female athletes the "female athlete triad" — amenorrhea (or absence of periods), disordered eating and osteoporosis.

The good news is that among the soccer players studied, most girls scored in the normal range on a test of eating attitudes, which assesses risk of eating disorders.

Girls who are having irregular periods should bring it up with their doctor, Prather suggested. "And if you've had more than two stress fractures, you definitely should be evaluated to make sure your bone quality is good and you don't have osteoporosis," she said.

Women's bone density peaks at about age 25, so it's important that teens and young women have regular periods and eat a proper diet to maintain their estrogen levels and build bone density to avoid osteoporosis later in life, the experts said.

In another study to be presented at the same meeting, Swedish researchers found that young female soccer players who took part in a 15-minute warm-up were 64 percent less likely to injure their ACL (anterior cruciate ligament), a ligament inside the knee.

The exercises, done twice a week, focused on knee control and core stability. The study involved more than 4,000 female soccer players.

Research presented at medical meetings should be considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed medical journal.

What makes protein good or bad? Find out Here!

Our bodies need protein to build strong bones, muscles, skin, and cells. Because we can’t store protein in our bodies the way we can store carbohydrates, we need to make sure we eat enough protein every day. But is all protein created equal?

Alexa Schmitt, RD, a clinical nutritionist at Massachusetts General Hospital, says that what makes a protein “good” or “bad” is its saturated fat content. Proteins that are high in saturated fats can raise your cholesterol level, which in turn puts you at higher risk for heart disease. Most adults need to eat 40 to 65 grams of protein each day. And though most Americans already eat more protein than they need, we don't necessarily eat enough of the "good" protein. So how can we make smart choices about which sources of protein to choose?

 Good Sources of Protein

Here are a variety of protein choices you probably encounter every day:

    Meats

Schmitt says that salami, steak, and chicken with skin are meats that are high in protein but also high in saturated fat. A six-ounce steak, for instance, has almost all the protein you need for one day, but that same steak has nearly 75 percent of your daily saturated fat intake. Does this mean you have to give up your Italian sub sandwiches or Philly cheesesteaks? Not necessarily. Schmitt recommends moderation: “Try to eat these meats only once or twice a week," she says.

    Lean meats 

Luckily, there are also leaner choices for die-hard meat eaters. Chicken, turkey, fish, and beef that is 95 percent lean are still high in protein but have less fat, especially the saturated fats that can lead to high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

    Soy

 Schmitt says that soy proteins are rich in protein and low in saturated fats. She recommends edamame (baby soybeans) and vegetarian meat alternatives such as soy nuggets and veggie burgers. Look for these in the refrigerator case at your local supermarket. Edamame is usually served lightly boiled and salted, often as a part of Japanese and Chinese cuisine. If you don’t have an Asian specialty market near you, check the freezer section of conventional supermarkets, which sometimes carry edamame.

     Beans, legumes, and nuts

 All varieties of beans are good sources of protein and low in saturated fats, Schmitt says. Chickpeas, or garbanzo beans, taste delicious on salads or in hummus, a low-fat dip. Spicy vegetarian chili recipes can be a flavorful alternative to traditional chili. Legumes such as dried peas and lentils can also be used in chili and stews. And nuts, when eaten in moderation, are another good source of protein that is not high in fat.

    Dairy 

Dairy products are often overlooked as sources of protein, but they are certainly worth mentioning, says Schmitt. Some dairy products are higher in saturated fat than others. She recommends the low-fat versions of cottage cheese, Greek-style yogurt, and ricotta cheese, not only because of their value as a protein source but because they also make an easy and convenient snack.

In addition to choosing good sources of protein, it can also be useful to plan your meals ahead of time. Advance planning can help you identify the foods that you tend to eat too much of, allowing you to make better substitutions beforehand.

 What to Remember About Protein

When choosing protein sources, remember that while you might get the same amount of protein from high- and low-fat options, you run the risk of increasing your blood pressure and cholesterol levels by choosing sources with a higher fat content. Consider leaner cuts of meats and getting more of your daily protein from plant sources to protect your heart.

What Is Hidden Fat Content in Your Diet?

It's probably no surprise that greasy cheeseburgers, French fries, and pizza are loaded with fat. But did you know that even certain vegetables and healthy fish can have a high fat content? Keep in mind that fat is an important part of a healthy diet and while not all fat is bad, the fat content of a given meal should be evaluated just as closely as its calories.

 Fat Content in Your Diet: How Much Fat Is Okay?

It's important to pay attention to how many fat grams you eat each day to make sure you're getting just the right amount of fat in your diet and no more.

The recommendation is that no more than 30 percent of your daily calories should come from fat, says Anne Wolf, RD, a researcher at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. Based on the average daily total intake of 2,000 calories, this means we should eat less than 65 grams of fat each day. "Typically we're eating well over what we need," notes Wolf.

There are two kinds of fats, commonly considered "good" and "bad" fats. Saturated and trans fats are bad, as they are linked to a number of health problems, like heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Unsaturated fats — the good ones — can actually protect your body from some of these conditions. Still, that doesn't mean you can eat them without limit because too much of any fat, or of any food for that matter, can lead to weight gain.

When tracking the fat content of your meals, make sure that most of your fat intake is in the form of unsaturated fats, that less than 20 grams are coming from saturated fats, and that hardly any are from trans fat.

 Fat Content in Your Diet: Fat in Everyday Foods

Think of the foods that frequently make up your daily meals. Have you ever considered their fat content? Here are some commonly eaten foods and where they weigh in on fat (typically the bad kinds):

•     Average fast-food hamburger: 36 grams
•     Average fast-food fish sandwich: 24 grams
•     10 French fries: 8 grams
•     One ounce of potato chips: 10 grams
•     One slice of cheese pizza: 8 grams
•     Two ounces of bologna: 16 grams
•     One hot dog: 14 grams
•     Three slices of cooked bacon: 10 grams
•     One ounce cheddar cheese: 8 grams
•     One cup whole milk: 7 grams
•     Two tablespoons of peanut butter: 14 grams
•     One teaspoon of butter or margarine: 4 grams
•     One serving of most breads, bagels, and cereals: about 1 gram

If some of those numbers don't look that bad to you, pay attention to the amounts and serving sizes of each of them. When was the last time you ate only one ounce of potato chips, just 10 fries, or a single slice of pizza? So think about fat content before you indulge in a burger and fries for lunch followed by pizza for dinner. 

 Fat Content in Your Diet: Surprisingly High-Fat Foods

While the high fat content of certain foods is no surprise, you may not realize that many other foods are loaded with hidden fat:

•     Movie theater popcorn (because of the way it’s processed)
•     Packaged meals with added sauces, butter, or oil
•     Highly marbled red meats, including some cuts of beef and lamb — that white marbling is fat
•     Chicken and other poultry if the skin is eaten
•     Salad dressings

Perhaps the biggest hidden sources of fats to watch out for are prepackaged snack foods and meals. They often contain dangerous trans fats — frequently listed as partially hydrogenated oil or vegetable shortening in the ingredients — because they give these foods a longer shelf life. Trans fats are particularly unhealthy for your heart and cholesterol levels and should be avoided as much as possible.

While you might know that olive and vegetable oils are high in fat, so are nuts, olives, avocados, and certain fish like salmon, mackerel and sardines. These foods contain the good, unsaturated fats — just monitor how much you eat to control your weight.

Given the high fat content of so many foods, if you're not careful, you could exceed your entire daily fat allowance by lunchtime! Keep an eye on your fat intake, and opt for unsaturated fats in place of saturated and trans fats. Your health, your heart, and your waistline will thank you.

Why We Should Eat Fruits and Vegetables More and More

If we are what we eat, then many of us must be tripping all over the place due to a lack of balance. That's because the average American eats about three servings of fruits and vegetables per day — a stark contrast to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) new guidelines stating that we should be eating 5 to 13 servings of nature's best, depending on the number of calories you need.

So if we want to grow to be strong like Popeye, why can't we just down some supplements instead of devouring a pile of spinach?

 Nutrients in fresh fruits and vegetables work together

Kristine Wallerius Cuthrell, MPH, RD, a research nutritionist and senior project coordinator for Hawaii Foods at the Center on the Family at University of Hawaii at Manoa, says that in the past five to 10 years, many large research studies have found that vitamin supplements don't provide the benefits that foods do. The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, created jointly between HHS and USDA and reviewed every five years, say that foods are the best sources of nutrients because they contain naturally occurring ingredients, like carotenoids and flavonoids.

"In addition to the substances we are aware of, there are many present in fruits and vegetables that have yet to be discovered. Food and the nutrients they contain aren't consumed singly, but with each other. As such, they may act in synergistic ways to promote health," Cuthrell says. For instance, eating iron-rich plants, like spinach, with an iron-absorbing enhancer, like the vitamin C in orange juice, is great for people who don’t get enough iron (typically young women).

Fruits and vegetables may prevent many illnesses

Eating fruits and vegetables may reduce your risk of cardiovascular diseases, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and even some forms of cancer. The Nurses' Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-up Study examined nearly 110,000 people over the course of 14 years. Part of the study revealed that the more fruits and vegetables people ate daily, the less chance they would develop cardiovascular diseases.

The relationship between fruits and vegetables and cancer prevention has been more difficult to prove. However, recent studies show that some types of produce are associated with lower rates of some types of cancer. For example, the World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research suggest that mouth, stomach, and colorectal cancers are less likely with high intakes of non-starchy foods like leafy greens, broccoli, and cabbage. Though studies have been mixed, lycopene, a carotenoid that gives tomatoes their red color, may help stave off prostate cancer.

Fruits and vegetables are great for watching your weight

They’re low in fat and calories, and loaded with fiber and water, which create a feeling of fullness. This is particularly helpful for dieters who want more filling calories. Plus, that fiber helps keep you “regular.”

Fruits and Vegetables: Get Your Fill

When adding fruits and vegetables to your diet, remember that variety is the spice of life. It's important to eat produce of various colors because each fruit or vegetable offers a different nutrient — think of it as nutritional cross-training. Trying new foods can be exciting, and be sure to sample every color in the produce rainbow.

The right number of servings of fruits and vegetables for you all depends on your daily caloric intake needs. A good way to find out how many servings you should be eating is by using the CDC's online serving calculator. Or make things even simpler by eating a fruit or vegetable at every meal and snack.

Don't let season, accessibility, or cost affect your fruit- and vegetable-friendly diet. If finding fresh produce is difficult, choose frozen, canned (low-sodium), or dried varieties. Also, 100 percent juice counts toward your servings, though it doesn't offer the full fiber of whole fruit.

The power of prevention may lie in a salad bowl or a plate of fruit. When we take advantage of produce, our bodies return the favor by reducing our risk of developing various illnesses.

How To Weight-Loss Surgery: Accepting Your New Life and Body Is Possible??

After weight-loss surgery, patients can experience dramatic transformations — and not all are easy to spot. As they shed weight and begin to experience life as a thinner person, they often find they must adjust to some changes they never anticipated, in addition to the expected transformations in their eating and exercise habits. Inquisitive questions, new social interests, a changing body image…all can offer special challenges, opportunities, and risks after gastric-bypass surgery. Follow these tips to ease the transition to your new body and your new life.

Practice responding to questions and compliments

Initially, it can be difficult to face common questions from friends, coworkers, and acquaintances, such as, "How did you lose all that weight?" and "Did you have work done?" Even, "You look amazing!" can cause stress if you haven't thought about what to say. Decide how you'd like to reply to these questions and compliments (and any other comments or reactions you anticipate) ahead of time, and practice giving responses with a trusted friend or even in front of the mirror, says Anne Eshelman, PhD, ABPP, clinical-health psychologist at the bariatric-surgery program at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan. Ultimately, you need to feel comfortable with your new body image before you can expect others to be. This confidence will make the transition easier.

Plan for relationships to be affected

Life after bariatric surgery can be trying, and new eating and exercise habits may affect the way you socialize with or relate to certain family members or friends — or even your spouse. Expect relationships to face these challenges and to undergo changes. Also, bariatric-surgery patients often gain self-confidence after shedding a lot of weight, and this can change the long-standing dynamics of a relationship. "People who were always submissive because their weight sapped their confidence may suddenly come out of their shells," says Eshelman, "and that may be startling for their partners or friends." Consider speaking with those closest to you about such issues before the surgery, if possible.

Expect positive attention, but keep a healthy perspective

Rapidly losing weight after bariatric surgery sends some people in search of attention, as they feel more attractive than they ever did when they were obese. Perhaps for the first time in their lives, they're receiving positive reactions from others.

Julie, 46, from Las Vegas, experienced this after she had weight-loss surgery and lost more than 100 pounds. "After losing the weight, for the first time in my life I was the 'belle of the ball' and went looking for attention," said Julie (not her real name). She found the attention she never got pre-surgery, and that attention led to an extramarital affair. "Despite being married to a fantastic person, I was driven to heal the hurt fat girl I'd been for 41 years." That healing, Julie says, ruled her. "Because of the changes I was experiencing, I acted rashly. It's one of my life's biggest regrets."

Discussing the physical and emotional changes that come after weight-loss surgery in a support group can be helpful, says Eshelman. Hearing the insights of others can help bariatric-surgery patients recognize people who may sabotage their transformation and situations that may become emotionally unhealthy. "A support group can help teach coping strategies as well as help a patient develop healthy levels of self-esteem and self-confidence post–weight loss," says Eshelman.

Get Smart Fitness With In Few Days

As it happens, many if not most of the boomeritis complaints I see in my office, including rotator cuff injuries and low-back pain, aren't the result of sports injuries. Rather, they occur in people who are just going about daily chores, like bending over to strap a child into a car seat or picking up a bag of groceries. While some of these injuries are simply the result of weak core muscles and poor flexibility, I also see these problems occurring in the fittest of my patients — or at least the ones that look to be the fittest.

This gets me to another important point

Many people who think they're doing smart workouts may be doing themselves more harm than good. Conventional strength training, sometimes called classic gym, can be counterproductive because it tends to isolate muscle groups and train them in a manner that is not naturally functional. In other words, the workout does not mimic everyday human activities, and it usually neglects the core muscles. The result is muscles that may look good in the mirror or on the beach but aren't much help when it comes to injury prevention or performing active sports or day-to-day tasks.

The best exercises you can do to prevent boomeritis injuries are called functional exercises. These exercises, which are similar to movements you can execute in your daily life, require you to use several muscle groups in one fluid movement. For example, when you bend over to pick something up, you're engaging all your muscles, including your legs, midline, back, and arms. The core muscles support all your other muscles and help you maintain strength, good posture, and balance.

You may be surprised to learn that as a cardiologist

 I place as much importance on core-strengthening exercises as I do on cardio conditioning. The fact is, because this type of exercise promotes stability, strength, and flexibility, it's essential for preventing injury and maintaining a healthy weight. And if you suffer an injury and you're in pain, you're not going to do an effective cardio workout — or any workout at all. In my practice, I see all too many patients who are no longer able to exercise due to injury.

The importance of functional fitness has only recently become appreciated. During my travels, I visit many gyms or fitness rooms associated with the hotels where I stay. I have noticed that more and more of the people who are exercising, with or without a trainer, have incorporated functional fitness into their workouts. I am pleased to find both women and men lifting hand weights while sitting on stability balls, or using pulley-type machines, or standing on balance boards, which all require them to engage their core muscles as the work other parts of their bodies.

How To Burn Fat Easily

Easy steps you can take 

Everyone's metabolism naturally slows down with age. At 40, you could be burning 100 to 300 fewer calories a day than you did at 30, says Pamela M. Peeke, M.D., author of Body for Life for Women and assistant professor of medicine at the University of Maryland in Baltimore. That can translate into a 10-25-pound weight gain in a year. But you can counteract that slowdown and boost your body's fat-burning capabilities by making just a few tweaks to your daily routine. The following strategies will help you bust out of a weight-loss plateau and burn even more fat.

Take five

Do five minutes of exercise each morning. We all have a metabolic thermostat, called the metastat, that can be turned up or down, and morning is the best time to activate it. Each day, your metastat is waiting for signals to rev up, so the more signals you can send it, the better. Your best bet is a light, full-body activity like walking or push-ups. 

Fuel up in the morning

Numerous studies have found that regular breakfast eaters are often leaner than breakfast skippers. "Your metabolism naturally slows at night, but you can jump-start it in the morning by eating breakfast," says Tammy Lakatos Shames, R.D., C.D.N., co-author of Fire Up Your Metabolism. And because both your activity level and metabolism decrease later in the day, it's a good idea to make breakfast or lunch your largest meal.

Fill up on good grains

Whole grains such as brown rice, wheat germ, dark bread, whole-grain cereal, oatmeal and bran leave you feeling full because they take longer to digest than simple carbohydrates. In a study from The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School evaluated the dietary intake of more than 74,000 women for 12 years. Overall, women who regularly ate the most whole-grain foods — about 1.5 servings a day — gained less weight than women who ate the least.

Pump yourself up

Muscle burns more calories than fat does, and decreased muscle mass can be one of the main reasons metabolism slows. Disuse can cause women to drop as much as 10 pounds of muscle between the ages of 30 and 50. Losing that much muscle means you'll burn 350 to 500 fewer calories a day. To build and maintain muscle mass, aim for two to three strength-training workouts a week. If you don't belong to a gym, try push-ups, squats, abdominal crunches and triceps dips off a chair.

Power on with protein

Add a little high-quality, low fat protein, such as chicken, fish and egg whites, to your meals, and you'll help your body burn fat faster. "Because protein requires more energy to digest, it speeds up your metabolism, and protein is necessary to ensure against loss of muscle tissue," says Michael Thurmond, author of 6 Day Body Makeover.

Get your vitamin "I"

That's "I" for intensity. You love to walk, but if that usually means strolling along at a snail's pace, your waistline will pay little attention. Instead, put intensity, or "vitamin I," into your stride. Pick up your pace so you're walking at 4 mph, or one mile per 15 minutes. Once you build up your cardiovascular fitness level, you can even alternate between walking and jogging. The key is to get your heart rate up and keep your workouts challenging.

Say yes to yogurt

In a recent study from the International Journal of Obesity, women who ate three daily servings of lowfat yogurt lost 60 percent more fat than women who didn't. In another study, participants who ate three daily servings of dairy lost more than twice as much fat as those who ate less than that. "Calcium-rich diets reduce fat-producing enzymes and increase enzymes that break down fat," says Michael B. Zemel, Ph.D., lead author of both studies and director of the Nutrition Institute at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. Eat three servings of low fat dairy a day, like milk, yogurt and hard cheeses (Gouda, Cheddar and Monterey Jack).

Get active after eating

Your body's metabolic rate increases 10 percent after eating, and just a few minutes of activity could double that boost for up to three hours. Within 15 to 30 minutes of eating a snack or meal, do five or 10 minutes of light activity. Take the dog for a walk, climb stairs in your house or do some basic strength exercises.

Sip green tea

You might love your lattes, but if you switch to green tea, not only will you get a healthy dose of disease-fighting compounds, you'll also cut body fat. In a study from The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, people who drank a bottle of tea fortified with green tea extract every day for three months lost more body fat than people who drank black tea. Researchers at a health care lab in Tokyo believe disease-fighting antioxidants called catechist in green tea may help decrease body fat.

8 Healthy Habits for Weight Loss With In Days

Losing weight and keeping it off is a matter of cutting back what you eat and increasing your amount of exercise. "The simplest equation in the world, calories in and calories out, determines your weight loss," says Christine Gerbstadt, MD, RD, of Sarasota, Fla., spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association.

But if that's all you do, you may find yourself ultimately regaining the weight you worked so hard to lose. The reason: Weight loss is a matter of lifestyle and, if you don't adopt the healthy habits necessary to sustain your weight loss, you could backslide into overweight and obesity.

Here are some tips aimed at helping you create a healthy lifestyle that will improve your chances for successful weight loss. They might seem like common sense, but many people committed to losing weight neglect these healthy habits and end up struggling to succeed.

 1. Watch Your Portions

Portion control is a key challenge to Americans pursuing weight loss. "The best way to control the calories is to go with portion control," says Dr. Gerbstadt. Piling food onto your plate can make you feel pressured to eat it all. Start with small portions, and go back for (a little) more if you're still hungry. Keep in mind that your stomach will grumble early on, until it has shrunk to adapt to the smaller meals you're now eating.

Portion control is doubly important when eating out. "Most people are catching on to the fact that when you eat out at a restaurant, the calories are two to three times what you really need for that meal," says Gerbstadt. "You might get a salad and an appetizer and call it a meal, rather than get a salad and an entrée."

 2. Eat Slowly

It takes a little while for your body to realize that you've eaten and to stop sending signals of hunger. If you slow down and savor your food, you probably will eat less before your body acknowledges that you're full. 

 3. Eat Your Vegetables First

Vegetables contain plenty of fiber and bulk but few calories. By eating them first, you might eat less of any fatty or high-calorie items on your plate. 

 4. Don't Skip Meals

Skipping meals sounds like a good idea, but it actually undermines your weight-loss plan. Your body thinks it is being starved and starts building body fat in an attempt to store energy away for later. On top of that, you're likely to be even hungrier for your next meal and eat far more than you would have otherwise. The best course is to eat three small meals, with two or three small snacks in between. 

 5. Drink Plenty of Water

Water helps you feel full throughout your day, aiding your weight-loss efforts. Water also provides innumerable health benefits to your skin and your digestive and circulatory systems. 

 6. Switch to Healthy Snacks

Swap out the high-calorie or high-fat snacks in your diet for healthier alternatives. Fruits, low-fat string cheese, peanut butter, and whole-grain crackers are some good options. Create snacks that combine carbohydrates and proteins, like peanut butter on apple slices, as they will make you feel full longer. 

 7. Exercise as Often as You Can

Burning calories through physical activity is essential to weight loss. If you don't burn more calories than you eat, you won't lose weight. "People think they're too busy to walk 20 minutes a day or do a little weight training or ride a bike, and then they wonder why they can't lose weight," Gerbstadt says. "If you try to diet without exercise, it just takes that much more effort." Any physical activity, even long walks, will help.

 8. Keep a Record

Food diaries are a proven aid to people pursing weight loss. Keep track of what you've eaten and how many calories the food contained. If you also keep a record of your exercise, you can compare how many calories you're burning to how many calories you're consuming.

Healthy and sustainable weight loss does not occur overnight, despite the promises of fad diets. Losing a pound or two a week is normal, and shows that you are adopting weight-loss habits as a part of your lifestyle.

8 Health Benefits Of Apples Which You Dont Know

It's no surprise that apples are good for you -- why else would they have earned that "keep the doctor away" reputation? -- but there are a number of lesser-known reasons to pick up a juicy one today.

Some of our favorite health benefits of apples are in the slideshow below. Let us know what else you love about apples in the comments!

Apples Lower Cholesterol

One medium-sized apple contains about four grams of fiber. Some of that is in the form of pectin, a type of soluble fiber that has been linked to lower levels of LDL or "bad" cholesterol. That's because it blocks absorption of cholesterol, according to WebMD, helping the body to use it rather than store it.

Apples Keep You Full

 

Apple's wealth of fiber can also keep you feeling full for longer without costing you a lot of calories -- there are about 95 in a medium-sized piece of fruit. That's because it takes our bodies longer to digest complex fiber than more simple materials like sugar or refined grains. Anything with at least three grams of fiber is a good source of the nutrient; most people should aim to get about 25 to 40 grams a day.

Apples Keep You Slim

One component of an apple's peel (which also has most of the fiber) is something called ursolic acid, which was linked to a lower risk of obesity in a recent study in mice. That's because it boosts calorie burn and increases muscle and brown fat, HuffPost UK reported.

Apples Prevent Breathing Problems

Five or more apples a week (less than an apple a day!) has been linked with better lung function, Health magazine reported, most likely because of an antioxidant called quercetin found in the skin of apples (as well as in onions and tomatoes), the BBC reported.

And the breath benefits of apples extend even further: A 2007 study found that women who eat plenty of the fruit are less likely to have children with asthma.

Apples Fight Colds

While they don't quite rival oranges, apples are considered a good source of immune system-boosting vitamin C, with over 8 milligrams per medium-sized fruit, which amounts to roughly 14 percent of your daily recommended intake.

Apples May Fight Cancer

In 2004, French research found that a chemical in apples helped prevent colon cancer, WebMD reported. And in 2007, a study from Cornell found additional compounds, called triterpenoids, which seem to fight against liver, colon and breast cancers.

Apples Decrease Diabetes Risk

A 2012 study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that apples, as well as pears and blueberries, were linked with a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes because of a class of antioxidants, anthocyanins, that are also responsible for red, purple and blue colors in fruits and veggies.

Apples Boost Brain Power

The fruit has been linked to an uptick in acetylcholine production, Good Housekeeping reported, which communicates between nerve cells, so apples may help your memory and lower your chances of developing Alzheimer's.

A diet rich in antioxidants may have similar effects, so apples, since they are particularly rich in quercetin, are a good bet, according to 2004 research.

All About Pain, How To Get Rid Of Pain

 

What Is Pain?

Though pain is truly both a physical and an emotional experience perceived and processed by the brain, it's a real health problem as well.

"Chronic pain is now considered by the experts as a disease," says Sujittra Tongprasert, MD, an anesthesiologist with the University of Louisville Hospital in Kentucky.

"Pain is the final interpretation of [the] central nervous system to any stimulation, mostly noxious [irritating] stimulation, at the given time," says Dr. Tongprasert. "To put it simply, pain is the perception of unpleasant sensation with the associated feeling of discomfort and/or suffering.” You may not have actual tissue damage, adds Tongprasert. That doesn't mean that the pain isn't real, just that the type of pain and the severity of pain a person feels depends on the individual.

"Each individual has different pain perception, and the meaning of pain is also different from one person to another," says Tongprasert.

Simply put, pain is your body's way of warning you that you are in danger and that you need to pay attention to what you're doing. "Pain is in fact the warning system for the body to prevent it from damage. When we touch [a] hot pan, the burning sensation will signal an automatic response to drop the pan, therefore avoiding or minimizing the burn injury," notes Tongprasert.

 How Pain Is Treated

There are many different ways to treat pain, and the most appropriate pain management method for you will depend on several factors: how severe the pain is, how it affects your life, how frequently you find yourself dealing with pain, and the actual cause of your pain.

“Generally, the most effective treatment of any medical condition is to get rid of the offending cause," says Tongprasert. "For pain, especially chronic pain, this method might not be possible."

Most of the time, the goal of treatment is to decrease the intensity of your pain and make you feel better. For acute pain, this goal is often met successfully. But chronic pain — pain lasting for at least three months or more — has a different effect on the nervous system and needs to be treated differently.

A multidisciplinary approach, using a combination of pain management treatments and techniques, is often the most successful way to manage chronic pain, Tongprasert says. This approach can include:

•     Medications to manage pain, such as analgesics, opioids, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
•     Physical therapy
•     Massage
•     Exercise
•     Heat and cold therapy
•     Blocking nerves from pain at particular points

No matter which combination of pain management techniques you use, staying with that combination approach is often the most effective method.

"It is very rare for any of these techniques to be successful if used alone in chronic pain. With the physiological and psychosocial changes that occur in chronic pain, a multidisciplinary approach is the most appropriate treatment strategy," says Tongprasert.

 Pain Management Includes Your Outlook

It's important to approach pain management the right way. Just like diabetes, hypertension, asthma, and other chronic diseases, chronic pain needs to be addressed and treated as a serious condition.

"That means it can be treated and controlled; however, a patient may need to learn to cope and live with it," Tongprasert adds.

Because the right approach to pain is different for each individual, a cookie-cutter treatment plan isn’t the answer.

"To presume that one strategy would work for every individual with the same pain syndrome is over-optimistic. Each person is unique in the response to the chronic pain state. The most effective way to treat chronic pain is to adjust the strategy to suit each pain syndrome individually," says Tongprasert.