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Paul I Costelo asked:


Okay so maybe that’s an exaggeration. After all there are thousands of foods that are good for you and millions that are bad !! There are top twenty lists for muscle building, for endurance, for speed, for losing weight, for every contingency. These are the top twenty foods, in my view ,which can contribute to general health, a healthy diet, keeping illness at bay and in some cases helping you live longer. Although there’s 20 they’re not in any particular order. In this article I’ll be covering my top ten. Look for the follow up which continues with numbers 11-20.

So let’s start off with:

1.Chocolate: Sorry ,only joking !! Its not chocolate but the raw cacao bean which is the main ingredient of chocolate. Whilst chocolate is really not a good contributor to a healthy diet this bean is fantastic ! It contains anti-oxidants that protect the cardio-vascular system, tryptophan which makes you feel great, magnesium and potassium as well as dopamine a neurotransmitter which can help you get motivated. Use the raw bean in yogurt, fruit salad, desserts, smoothies and just about anything else you fancy.

2.The number 2 ingredient towards maintaining a healthy lifestyle is one of the cheapest foods on the planet watercress. This great little food contains lots of Vitamin C, calcium, folic acid and iron. It will even help protect you from cancer as it also contains phenylethyl isothiocyanate , a cancer fighting ingredient.

3.Broccoli weighs in at number 3. One of the most under rated superfoods and possibly the least popular as many people think it tastes bland, this vegetable can also help you live longer. Like water cress it can help prevent cancer as it contains Indole-3-Carbinol. Also like water cress it has lots of calcium,and iron as well as sulphur. Why buy detoxifying remedies-this food will do it all for you !

4.Alfalfa Sprouts: at number 4 the humble alfalfa sprout is great for having a healthy lifestyle. This contains so much stuff that’s good for you that you’ll be bouncing with energy and vitality. Included are : Vitamin K, B vitamins, magnesium, zinc, calcium, as well as amino acids and iron. I’ll ask you again: why buy expensive vitamin supplements when you can buy these ?

5.Beetroots- love ‘em or hate ‘em these come in at number five. The green leafy tops are great for a healthy diet- they contain calcium, iron and beta-carotene. They’re also a great source of vitamin A , potassium and manganese. To finish off with beetroot is also meant to improve your circulation, purify the blood and detoxify your system. Wow !

6.Nettles: Not a romantic food I know but nettles can help you achieve a healthy diet. They can give you energy, and reduce water retention and high blood pressure. Not bad for starters but they also contain iron, potassium and vitamin C as well as cleansing the bowels, the blood and the urinary tract.

7.Ginger: ginger has been used for hundreds of years to help treat sickness and nausea. But did you know that it can also treat indigestion and bad circulation. It can boost the immune system and if you grate it into honey and lemon it will help you fight off colds and get rid of mucus.

8.Hemp seeds; weighing in at 8 to help you with a healthy lifestyle is the humble hemp seed. These have Vitamin E as well as essential fats Omega 3 and Omega 6. Eat them with salad, on their own or sprinkled liberally with sweet potato, soup or just about anything else you fancy.

9.Flax seeds: Sprinkle these on salads and yoghurts. They contain Omega 3 fats and a gel that lubricates the bowel. Not pretty but effective! They can also help lower blood pressure and help balance female hormones as they contain lignans.

10.Artichokes: Great for helping you to keep to a healthy diet. These have been used to stimulate liver cell regeneration and to help stop fatty plaques building up inside the walls of the arteries, which causes high blood pressure.

So what do you think? Are these superfoods or not ? Cancer curing, aids to help you keep a healthy lifestyle. And cheap and easy to buy. What more could you possibly want? In my next article I’ll deal with numbers eleven to twenty. Coming soon.



Ian

Linda Smyth asked:


Now that the Atkins diet has fallen from grace, what type of diet is best for weight loss, and what’s the skinny on fat, carbohydrates and protein?

WHICH DIET IS BEST?

The acute fall in demand for Atkins-type low-carb food products, which led to the recent decision of Atkins Nutritionals, the promoter of the Atkins diet, to file for bankruptcy protection, has left many dieters wondering what type of weight loss diet is best. The short answer is: any balanced diet which is calorie-controlled. The US Department of Agriculture offers two dietary paradigms: it’s own “Food Guide” - a balanced food plan - and the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) eating plan - a diet to reduce raised blood pressure - neither of which merits the description “low-fat” or “low carb”. Furthermore, the consensus among most dietitians and nutritionists is that the precise percentage of fat, carbohydrate or protein, matters less than the type of these macronutrients. Put simply, whether you eat 30 or 35 percent of your calories as fat is less important than the type of fat you eat.

FATS TO EAT, FATS TO AVOID

Recommended fats are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated varieties, with most coming from foods like fish, nuts, and vegetable oils. Oily fish, like salmon, mackerel and sardines, are especially nutritious as they contain omega-3 fats which are not manufactured inside the body and must be obtained from food.

The new “bad guys” are saturated fats and trans-fats (AKA hydrogenated fats). It’s best to eat less than 10 percent of calories from saturated fats and less than 300 mg/day of cholesterol, while eating as few trans fats as possible. Cheese and beef are the main diet foods which contribute to excessive intakes of saturated fat, while cakes, cookies, crackers, pies, bread, animal products and margarine are largely responsible for the high intake of trans-fats. Eggs, while high in dietary cholesterol, are now regarded as a healthy food.

CURB YOUR REFINED CARBS

The rise in digestive disorders such as diverticulosis, as well as metabolic disorders like insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, is directly attributable to our modern dietary preference for white flour foods, as well as our overconsumption of foods and drinks with too much added sugar, including: regular sodas, frosted cereals, cakes, and confectionery. Being easily converted to blood-glucose, these refined carbohydrates can lead to excessive levels of blood glucose and insulin - causing appetite swings, cravings and a variety of metabolic problems. And being easily digestible they can also cause calorie overload and weight gain. All this is reflected in the latest Dietary Guidelines which advocate a reduction in refined carbs and a corresponding increase in the consumption of whole grains, like oats, brown rice, basmati rice, whole wheat breads and pasta. Being largely unrefined, whole grains are richer in fiber and nutrients. In addition, they keep us full for longer, which assists appetite and weight control.

BE GUIDED BY THE GLYCEMIC INDEX

The most comprehensive guide to healthy carbs is the Glycemic Index (GI). Originally created to help diabetics control their blood-glucose levels, the GI classifies carb-rich foods into three categories: high-GI, intermediate and low-GI. Put simply, the higher a food’s GI value, the faster and greater its impact on blood-glucose, and the more health problems it can cause. Intermediate and low-GI carbs are the basis for the new generation of “GI Diets”, which in effect offer all the benefits of traditional low carb diets, without any of the nutritional risks associated with long term carb restriction.

Concerning non-starchy carbohydrates, the message has not changed in years. Eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables of all types, including: leafy green vegetables, deep green, yellow, orange or red vegetables; as well as fruits, notably: blackcurrants, cantaloupe, kiwi fruit, mango, all citrus fruits, and strawberries. All these foods contain important micronutrients many of which are beneficial for metabolism and weight management, as well as general health.

DO CARBS CAUSE A SLOWDOWN IN WEIGHT LOSS?

It’s not accurate to say that eating carbohydrate has a detrimental effect on weight. True, low carb diets are famous for causing fast initial weight loss, but let me explain how this occurs. When we eat a normal amount of carbohydrate, we burn it straightaway or else store it for future use in the form of glycogen. Point is, each unit of glycogen binds with 3 units of water. When we start a low carb diet, we rapidly use up all our stored glycogen along with the attached water. It is this sudden loss of water which accounts for most of the extra weight lost when starting a low carb diet. Naturally, as we reintroduce carbs into our diet, we rebuild our glycogen reserves and re-absorb water. Thus, it is more accurate to say that restricting carbs causes an unnatural loss of water-weight, rather than saying that eating carbohydrate causes a slowdown in weight reduction.

HOW MUCH PROTEIN DO WE REALLY NEED?

How much protein we need depends on our ideal body weight. This is because protein is not needed by fat cells, only by our lean tissue. According to official US guidelines, the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of protein for adults is 0.8 gram per kilogram (2.2 pounds) of ideal body weight. This RDA is said to meet 97.5% of the population’s needs. For example, a woman of 5′4 who is at her ideal weight of 126 pounds needs 45g of protein per day. This amount is easily obtainable as follows:

BREAKFAST (14g protein)

1 cup oatmeal, 1/2 cup skimmed milk, 2 tbsp wheatgerm

LUNCH (18g protein)

Whole wheat pita, 2 oz salmon, sliced tomato and spinach leaves

DINNER (34.5g)

3 oz chicken breast, 1 cup cooked rice, 1 cup mixed vegetables

This daily menu actually includes a massive 66.5g of protein, well over the RDA for a person of her size. Yet it hardly looks like a high protein eating plan, does it? This is because there really is no such thing as a food that is ‘just’ protein or ‘just’ carbohydrate - most foods are a combination of protein, carbs and fats. For example, 1 cup of cooked rice has 5g protein even though we think of rice as a ‘carb’. The same applies to spaghetti - in most people’s mind this is classed as a ‘carb’ food, yet 1 cup of cooked spaghetti contains 7g protein!

WHICH PROTEIN IS BEST?

Protein from animal foods is marginally better than vegetable protein, although many animal protein sources can be high in unhealthy saturated fat. Ideally, include both vegetarian and low-fat animal protein in your diet.

HOW TO GET 10g OF HEALTHY PROTEIN

Here are some easy ways to meet your daily protein requirements. Provided your weekly diet contains some complete proteins from meat, eggs or milk, vegetable protein is perfectly fine.

1.5oz of white fish

1.7oz of oily fish like salmon

1.1oz of skinless chicken/turkey fillet

1.25oz of pork tenderloin/lean beef

3 egg whites

2.5oz of Brazils

1.25 cups of fat-free milk

1 cup of fat-free yogurt

1/3 cup cottage cheese

1.5oz of hard cheese

1/2 cup of lentils

3/4 cup soybeans

2 cups cooked brown rice

2 cups cooked pasta

2 cups cooked oatmeal

2.5 slices of rye bread

1 tbsp wheatgerm

CONCLUSION

There is no best weight loss diet. Provided you choose foods from all food groups, taking care to select the right type of fats, carbs and protein, the exact percentage of these macronutrients is up to you. As a basic guide, eat 20-35 percent of calories as fat; 45-65 percent of calories as carbohydrate and 10-35 percent of calories in the form of protein.



Tom

Sandra Essex asked:


 

Has your midsection grown over the years? Do you have higher-than-normal levels of blood glucose and triglycerides? Is your blood pressure high? Is your HDL (the “good” cholesterol) low? According to the National Institutes of Health, answering yes to all or most of these questions may signify metabolic syndrome. As of 2007, nearly 47 million Americans were diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. If you’re one of them, then that means you are at an increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. Overweight and obese individuals are particularly at risk for metabolic syndrome.        

 

But metabolic syndrome isn’t only thing that can have you wishing for a metabolism boost. Aging often brings about a progressively sluggish metabolism. Beginning roughly at age 25, the average person experiences their first metabolism slowdown, usually by 5 to 10 percent. This metabolism drop continues each decade thereafter. A person living in the United States can expect to see a whopping 20 and 40 percent decrease in their metabolic rate during adulthood. 

The good news is that, by making simple healthy lifestyle changes, you do not have to become a part of these statistics. A healthy diet and regular exercise can do wonders in the treatment of metabolic syndrome and in the prevention of weight gain as we age. In particular, there are healthy foods you can eat that will stimulate metabolism and promote weight loss. 

Which foods boost metabolism? Vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, eggs, and fish are all good examples of foods that help speed up a sluggish metabolism. The key to boosting your metabolism is to eat a variety of unprocessed foods. Unprocessed foods are often higher in fiber than processed foods. Your body will try hard, unsuccessfully, to digest the fiber. All this extra work your body does equates to a nice metabolism boost. 

Increasing fiber intake is only one of the ways good nutrition can boost your metabolism. Eating foods containing omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon and tuna, is an excellent way to speed up your metabolism. Research has shown that fish oils can increase a person’s metabolism by up to an amazing 400 calories a day. 

Omega-3 fatty acids can be taken via pill form, but often leave a fishy aftertaste and the smell can seep out of your skin pores. A better way to obtain these important omega-3s is by eating a healthy fish dinner several times a week. You’ll be able to add your favorite seasonings and will also get a healthy dose of protein, which also helps to boost metabolism by increasing the thermal effect of food. 

So, do yourself a favor and stay away from frozen dinners and other packaged foods at the supermarket. Drive past those fast food restaurants and their artery-clogging meals. Instead, do what healthy people have done for generations—open up a recipe book and cook your own meals. 

The great thing about having a recipe book handy in your kitchen is the control it brings. You have the power to prepare the healthiest meals possible. You can use ingredients that will boost your metabolism. You control the cost of your meals. A healthy recipe book is the best investment you can make when looking to lose excess pounds or maintain your current weight. To find delicious, metabolism-boosting meal ideas, go to www.2yourgoodhealthrecipebook.com. This is one healthy recipe book you don’t want to miss out on!

 



PAS

Joe Golson asked:


Because of so many illnesses and chronic diseases, more and more individuals are paying attention to their diet. Despite hectic schedules and busy lifestyles, people can start and maintain a healthy diet if they really want to. Today, one of the major reasons why people are overweight or suffer from minor and major health risks is that they don’t practice having a healthy diet.

What’s a good, effective formula for a healthy diet ?

Experts advise a mix of food choices from each food group. Having a balanced intake of calcium-rich foods, whole grains, and protein-rich products will also keep you on track. You must also know your restrictions of fats, salt and sugars levels, and intakes. Lastly, you must monitor your body weight regularly to determine if your body is absorbing all the nutrients that it needs.

How do you know if your diet is healthy ?

For those who are having a hard time figuring out what is a healthy diet and what’s not, here are some tips for you. Experts say that a diet is healthy if it is: - based on starchy foods such as bread, cereals, rice, pasta, and potatoes because they are a good source of energy—not to mention being the main source of a range of nutrients in a person’s diet like fiber, calcium, iron, and vitamin B.

1– a healthy diet should consist of lot of fruits and veggies such as orange, apples, celery, broccoli, carrots, beans and peas because eating at least 5 portions of any variety can provide the vitamins the body needs which also satisfies hunger .And you don’t have to worry about fats and excess carbohydrates.

2 - a healthy diet should include fish dishes that have high amounts of fish oil because it can provide protein, vitamins, and minerals that are not available to other food groups.

3 - a healthy diet should be low in saturated fats and excess sugars such as meat pies, sausages, hard cheese, butter and lard, pastry, cake, biscuits, cream and the others because they are high in complex calories that’s stored in the muscles.

4 - a healthy diet should have less salt content because experts believe meals that uses too much salt can raise the blood pressure which can lead to more complicated diseases especially those related to coronary illnesses.

5 - last,but not lease your diet should be high in water content because experts believe that for a person to achieve optimum health and fitness, he or she should take in lots and lots of water and foods that are high in fluid content to keep the body well-hydrated.

Doctors say that though the basic principle of a healthy diet is simple, there are those who are having a hard time sticking to it. The major reasons behind this include a super busy lifestyle, work that causes a lot of stress or even an environment that is not conducive to having a healthy diet.



Ledarna

Valerie Slaugther asked:


A recent study from the Johns Hopkins University and elsewhere discovered that if protein or monounsaturated fat are replaced in your diet for some carbohydrates, it could reduce blood pressure and cholesterol levels substantially. This reduction in blood pressure and cholesterol would result in a significant reduction in overall risk of heart disease.

Imagine, just by changing about 10 percent of carbohydrate calories in the diet to either protein-rich food, mostly from plant sources, or to monounsaturated fats, contained in olive and canola oil, provided a major benefit to the heart according to the Johns Hopkins team.

According to internist Lawrence Appel, M.D., M.P.H., a professor of medicine at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and lead author of the study, “Our study provides strong evidence that replacing some carbohydrate with either protein or monounsaturated fat has important health benefits. There is already agreement that reducing saturated fat lowers risk for heart disease, but the question of which macronutrient to emphasize has been controversial.”

However, Dr. Appel made it clear that his study did not support diets such as the Atkins diet, which is extremely high-saturate-fat, low-carbohydrate and not a healthy diet plan.

Three healthy diets were evaluated that differed mainly in the amount of macronutrients—protein, fat and carbohydrate—that provide calories used for energy in the body. All of the diets were low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium, and rich in fruits, vegetables, fiber, potassium and other minerals.

One diet was a traditional healthy diet rich in carbohydrate, while the other two diets had approximately 10 percent of their carbohydrates replaced with either monounsaturated fat or protein. It should be noted that about half of the protein came from plants.

“All three diets reduced overall heart disease risk, lowering blood pressure and improving cholesterol levels,” says Appel. “But the protein and monounsaturated fat diets had an edge over the carbohydrate-rich diet.”

These findings by the Hopkins study, called the Optimal Macronutrient Intake Trial to Prevent Heart Disease (OmniHeart), presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2005 and published simultaneously in the Journal of the American Medical Association, underscore the significant benefits from making dietary changes, the researchers say.

From the study, it was determined that overall, the protein-rich diet, derived from plant and animal sources, decreased cardiovascular disease risk by 21 percent. “Many people equate protein with meat, but it is not the only source of protein,” said study co-author Phyllis McCarron, M.S., R.D., a dietitian at Hopkins.

“Excellent plant sources of protein are beans, nuts, seeds and certain grains.”

In addition, the monounsaturated fat diet, enriched with olive and canola oils, as well as various nuts and seeds, decreased risk by almost 20 percent.

The carbohydrate-rich diet used was similar to the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, or DASH diet, which Appel helped develop in 1997 and decreased risk by roughly 16 percent.

The OmniHeart study lasted about three years, and researchers enlisted 164 generally healthy adults, both men and women ages 30 and over.

“Because of the huge risk of stroke and heart attack in African Americans, the results are particularly applicable to this group, who made up roughly 55 percent of study participants,” said study co-author Jeanne Charleston, R.N., a research associate at Hopkins’ Bloomberg School of Public Health. Charleston adds that all participants either had high blood pressure (almost 20 percent) or were on the verge of having high blood pressure.

Participants ate all of their food – including breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks—from one of the three diets in six-week intervals. After a two-to-four-week break, participants started the six-week feeding period over again, this time with a different diet. The process was repeated until all participants ate all three.

During this process, the researchers monitored each participant’s levels of blood pressure, cholesterol and triglycerides on each diet.

These measurements were then factored into a standard mathematical model, called the Framingham risk equation, for estimating heart disease risk.

The OmniHeart study results, according to Appel, reconfirm the powerful effects of a diet-based approach to improving someone’s cardiovascular risk profile, for blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and lowering their overall risk of heart disease.

So, if you really want to improve your overall health, and more specifically, your cardiovascular health, you need to pay more attention to your diet.



Edward

Josh Neumann asked:


Let’s cut right to the chase-most people’s diet today is pathetic. The reason that so many people end their lives in poor health and disease infested is due to a lifetime of poor eating habits.

So why do so many people spend their whole life eating garbage, even when they know there is a better way? Simply, they believe that eating according to healthy diet plans is too difficult a process, and as a result they never get started.

Actually, once you’ve begun eating the right foods and feeling the health benefits it provides, you will be very encouraged and you will simply want to eat more and more healthy foods, and less and less of the junk food you used to eat. In fact, the foods you used to consume will begin to look very unappealing to you.

The best healthy diet plans include raw foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes. The reason these are so good for you is that they contain enzymes which your body needs to help itself digest the food. Whenever food is cooked at temperatures over 118 degrees Fahrenheit, the enzymes cannot survive.

Therefore, whenever you eat a cooked meal, your body spends a lot of time manufacturing its’ own enzymes to aid in the digestion process; that is why you feel so tired after eating a cooked meal. Some cooked food will not hurt you, but keep in mind that at least 75% of the foods you consume should be raw.

If you already have that feeling of dread that comes with changing something you love, here is a way to ease the burden and actually make it fun and enjoyable. First of all, establish your goals; where do you want to be at the end of this process?

Do you want to lose 35 pounds within a year’s time? Be able to run 5 miles? Have 8% body fast? Try to make the goals measurable. Simply saying, “I want to feel better,” won’t give you much of an incentive.

Now that this is established, break the goals down into small chunks that are very achievable. Instead of attempting to change your diet overnight, instead maybe try to eat just one healthy meal a week, consisting primarily of raw foods. The next week, try 2 meals, then 3, and so on.

Absolutely nobody accomplishes a goal that they try to establish overnight. You will not change a lifetime of poor eating habits with the flick of a button. Ask anybody who’s ever set a goal and achieved it; they did so by breaking it down into small, manageable chunks that they could focus.

After a very short time of eating these raw foods and healthy diet plans, you will quickly notice your energy picking up, you will need far less sleep, and you will be healthy and alert all day long. Quite simply, without good health you can never achieve all the things you were meant to; let raw foods help you reach your goals in life. Changing to the raw food diet will likely be one of the best decisions you’ve ever made.



Canoas

Steven Godlewski asked:


Society has grown radical about their weight loss programs. The desire for fitness has clouded the fact that weight loss should also include a healthy diet plan to achieve the long term weight loss benefits. As a result, many weight loss programs have sprung up on the internet, in gyms, spas and weight loss programs all over.

You may not have to go to the gym, spa or any weight loss program center and spend much just to slim down or obtain that longed for sexy body. There are many books available in the bookstore, which offer weight loss programs that are convenient and for free, of course the books are not a complete solution. These weight loss programs, or diet plans are gaining immense popularity through publicity, testimonials and reviews.

Before choosing which weight loss programs to follow, read these summaries about the most popular diet plans. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution; by Dr. Atkins: This weight loss program encourages high protein diet and a trim down on the carbohydrates. You can feast on vegetables and meat but should fast on bread and pasta. You are not restricted against fat intake so you can pour on the salad dressing and freely spread on the butter. After the diet plan, you may find yourself lacking in fiber and calcium yet high in fat. Intake of grains and fruits are also limited.

Carbohydrate Addict’s Diet; by Drs. Heller: This diet plan advocates low carbohydrate consumption. The weight loss program depends on eating meats, vegetables and fruits, dairy and grain products. However, warns against taking in too many carbohydrates. Your meals are too high on fats.

Choose to Lose; by Dr. Goor: The weight loss program restrains fat intake. You are given a “fat” budget. The weight loss program does not pressure you to watch your carbohydrate intake. Dr. Goor encourages eating meat and poultry as well as low-fat dairy and seafood. An approval is also given on eating vegetables, fruits, cereals, bread and pasta. This weight loss program is fairly healthy with good amounts of fruits and vegetables as well as saturated fats. Watch triglyceride levels though; if high, trim down the carbohydrates and eliminate more of the fats.

The DASH Diet: A diet plan that suggests moderate amounts of fat and protein intake and high on carbohydrates. Primarily designed to lower blood pressure, the diet plan follows the pyramid food guide and encourages high intake of whole wheat grains as well as fruits and vegetables and low-fat dairy. Some dieters think the diet plan advocates too much eating to procure significant weight loss.

Eat More, Weigh Less; by Dr. Ornish: This weight loss program suggests primarily vegetarian and strictly low-fat. Gives the approval of “glow” foods but warns against non-fat dairy and egg whites. This diet plan is poor in calcium and restricts consumption of healthy foods like seafood and lean poultry.

Eat Right for Your Type: Weight loss program that is based on your blood type, recommends plenty of meat for people with the blood type O. Diet plans for some blood types are nutritionally imbalanced and too low in calories. For the record, there is no documented proof that blood type affects dietary needs.

The Pritkin Principle: Focused on trimming the calorie density in eating by suggesting watery foods that make you feel full. Eating vegetables, fruits, oatmeal, pasta, soups, salads and low-fat dairy is okay. The diet plan limits protein sources to lean meat, seafood and poultry. Although it is healthy by providing low amounts of saturated fat and rich amounts of vegetables and fruits, it is also low on calcium and limits lean protein sources.

Volumetrics: For low-density calorie eating. The weight loss program recommends the same foodstuff as Pritkin but restricts fatty or dry foods like popcorn, pretzels and crackers. This diet plan is reasonably healthy given the high amounts of fruits and vegetables as well as being low in calorie density and saturated fats.

The Zone: Weight loss program that is moderately low on the carbohydrates yet moderately high on the proteins. The diet plan encourages low-fat protein foods like fish and chicken plus veggies, fruits and grains. It is also healthy but lacking in grains and calcium.

Weight Watchers: Weight loss program that is high in carbohydrates and suggests moderation on fats and proteins. A very healthy diet plan, unless you are a diabetic. However, it allows the dieter to plan his own meal rather than give him a set diet plan to follow.



Lucio

Alliance asked:


 

To understand hypertension (also known as high blood pressure), it is important to understand the heart. The heart is a pump. It pumps blood through our arteries, sending nourishment to all parts of our body. A pump works by generating pressure. But too much pressure is a problem. Too much force pushing against arterial walls, called hypertension, can strain the arteries and the heart itself.

 

Hypertension contributes to heart attacks and strokes by damaging the inner walls of the arteries and by speeding up the inflammatory process. Hypertension is the number one risk factor for strokes.

 

Why is hypertension a problem?

 

The higher your blood pressure, the higher your risk of stroke, heart attack, congestive heart failure, kidney disease, and even, new research has found, dementia. Hypertension contributes to heart attacks and strokes by damaging the inner walls of the arteries and by speeding up the inflammatory process. Hypertension is the #1 risk factor for strokes.

 

How did you get hypertension?

 

It is easy to get hypertension if you live in the United States and other affluent countries, like England, where most citizens eat diets high in salt and fat and low in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. An Americans lifetime risk of developing hypertension is close to 90%, reported the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute in 2004.

 

What are the symptoms of hypertension?

 

That is part of the problem. Hypertension usually causes no symptoms, so over time, damage to your arteries, heart, and brain can occur before the condition is diagnosed.

 

What is the right diet for hypertension treatment?

 

Several studies funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute have found that the DASH diet (Dietary Approaches To Stop Hypertension), which is very similar to the Pritikin Eating Plan, lowers blood pressure as well as or better than any drug. Both DASH and Pritikin promote menus that are low in fats, salt, cholesterol, red meat, and sweets; high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and beans; and moderate in seafood, poultry, nuts, and low fat or nonfat dairy foods.

 

Meditation

 

Relaxation techniques like yoga, transcendental meditation or any kinds of meditation are found to be very useful methods to control high blood pressure.

 

Exercise

Regular exercise will help to lower the blood pressure. Start with mild exercise like walking and slowly increase your intensity and duration. Rigorous exercise is a risk of having heart attack. Moderate exercise or walking or jogging helps to reduce the diastolic pressure by about 15 - 20 mm of Hg.

 



Ade

Paul Hata asked:


Years ago such feminine symptoms were quite respectable and were attributed to lovesickness. Doctors had a name for the disease; it was called chlorosis. Nowadays these pallid wallflowers are more frequently diagnosed as victims of nutritional anemia.

Red blood gives color to romance and imparts a rosy glow to the spectacles through which we view the world. Red blood is largely a matter of assimilated iron, and a good many people, especially women, fail to get enough of this romantic mineral.

Consider the career of one of your work-crazy red blood cells.

In the lungs it grasps a big load of oxygen, dashes back through a portion of your 7,000-mile-long circulatory system, dumps its oxygen into a hungry cell, picks up a return load of carbon dioxide and hustles back to the lungs to repeat the cycle. It is good for about 60,000 round trips before it finally wears out.

Oxygen is vital in keeping your tissues alive and rarin’ to go. But if you don’t keep enough iron on tap to manufacture a billion brand new red cells per minute, your blood can’t carry enough oxygen to keep you functioning at your best. It’s as if you took half breaths instead of full ones. You can’t muster enough energy for a respectable lovesick sigh.

You’re too tired out to smile at the boy friend’s puns and the thought of jitterbugging around with him is unbearable. So maybe he goes hunting around for some High-Haemoglobin Hannah who can keep up the pace.

Not that you need such a lot of iron, but you need it every day and even the richest foods do not contain it in large amounts. Once a deficiency is established it is all but impossible to overcome it in reasonable time through ordinary diet. Because of monthly losses, women require more iron than men and are more commonly the victims of nutritional anaemia.

By itself, iron is no great shakes as a go-getter. It is more inclined to lie on its back under a tree. Copper is a sort of truant officer that rounds it up and blackjacks it into going to work in the red cells. Cobalt, according to late word from the laboratories, also has a part in red blood cell formation.

Luckily, iron and copper occur pretty much in the same foods, and you hardly need worry about cobalt deficiencies. Tops among blood-building foods are liver, calf, pork, beef or chicken. Red meats are valuable too. Surprisingly enough, ordinary molasses the blacker the better turns out to be unexpectedly rich in assimilable iron. Three tablespoons of molasses supplies about one-third the daily iron needs. Eggs and apricots are superb blood-builders too.

Leafy green vegetables contain considerable iron, but not all of it is easily absorbed and it is rarely that such foods are consumed in great bulk. Whole wheat flour contains about three times the iron of white flour, although the new fortified products contain added iron that brings the values to practically the same figure. Oranges, the pulp, not the juice contain fair iron. Milk and green vegetables assure ample copper intake; there is iron in milk, too, and although it is in small amount it is easily assimilated. Liver and oysters rank high in copper and nuts, cereals, and dried fruits contain substantial amounts.

Pernicious anaemia is different from the common nutritional type, in that it is caused by specific deficiency of some unknown element. Late word from the laboratories indicates that this unknown factor is a protein it’s not our fault if those important fellows keep bobbing up in the nutritional story. Whatever the factor is, liver contains it and liver extracts are the accepted form of treatment.

Anaemia is sometimes caused, too, by lack of Vitamin C, through loss of blood caused by haemorrhage characteristic of scurvy, or by interfering with the blood-forming cells in the marrow of the long bones.



Caroline

Uchenna Ani-Okoye asked:


One of the most frequently cited reasons that diets and attempts at healthy eating fail is boredom. Many people simply do not know how to keep a healthy diet interesting day after day, and it can be quite a challenge.

Given the huge variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, meats and other healthy foods at the local grocery store, however, it is definitely possible to create exciting, nutritious meals that will keep boredom at bay.

You’re Key to Healthy Eating

The key to the success of any plan for healthy eating is to eat what you like, but to exercise moderation when it comes to the less healthy foods. Improving your level of health and fitness does not mean forgoing that piece of chocolate cake, for instance. It does mean, however, limiting you to one piece. A healthy diet contains all types of foods, including carbohydrates, proteins, and even fats. The key is choosing foods that provide the best combination of taste and nutrition. After all, if your diet consists of foods you hate, you will not stick with it.

The revised USDA food pyramid contains five major food groups - grains, vegetables, fruits, milk and dairy, and meat and beans. When choosing foods from these groups, it is important to eat a wide variety of foods from every food group. Doing so will not only give you a great deal of variety and keep boredom from setting in, but it will provide the best nutritional balance as well. In addition the widely known micronutrients, such as vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin C, etc. all foods contain a variety of macronutrients, like fats, proteins, fibre and water. Though present in extremely tiny amounts, micronutrients are vitally important to good health. That is why a healthy, varied diet is so important.

In addition, when choosing foods from within the various food groups, some choices are naturally better and healthier than others. For instance, choosing skim or 2% milk instead of full fat whole milk is a good way to cut down on both fat and calories. And choosing poultry or lean meat is a great way to get the protein you need every day without extra fat, cholesterol and calories.

Likewise cereals and breads that carry the whole grain label are healthier than those who do not. Even in the world of fruits and vegetables some choices are better than others. For instance, peaches packed in heavy syrup add unnecessary sugar to the diet; while those packed in water or juice provide only good nutrition.

There has been a trend lately to add vitamin fortification to food, and this can sometimes be a good way to maximize nutrition. It is important to remember, however, that proper nutrition comes from a healthy diet, not from vitamin supplements. It is fine to buy calcium fortified cereal, but the bulk of your calcium intake should still come from milk, dairy products and green leafy veggies.

Choosing the Best Foods

Knowing the five major food groups and how much of each to eat every day is only part of the picture. The other part is choosing the best foods from within those food groups. That means things like choosing the leanest cuts of meat, using egg substitutes instead of whole eggs, choosing the freshest fruits and vegetables, etc.

Even with fruits and vegetables, some choices are better than others. Some fruits, such as avocados, for instance, are packed with fat and calories. It is important to check the nutritional qualities of the fruits and vegetables you buy, and not simply assume that all fruits and vegetables are equally healthy.

One way to maximize nutrition while minimizing cost is to buy fruits and vegetables that are in season. Fruits and vegetables that are in season are usually quite a bit cheaper than those that must be shipped hundreds or even thousands of miles, and they are generally much fresher too. Of course, depending on where you live, there may be varieties of fruits and vegetables that are not available locally, so the northerner in search of citrus fruits will just have to watch the sales and buy accordingly.



Mestara