Food tips for weight loss

Despite all of the attention given to popular diets today, most nutrition experts agree that minimizing dietary fat, controlling portions and staying physically active are the real keys to healthy weight management.

We know from decades of research that a diet rich in high-carbohydrate foods--such as whole grains, vegetables and fruits--helps prevent disease, maintain healthy body weight and optimize athletic performance. There is no substantial evidence to support a change in that recommendation, says Debra Wein, MS, RD, nutritionist and exercise physiologist at the University of Massachusetts in Boston.

What formula can you follow to manage your dietary fat as well as your portions? Nutritionist Carroll Reider, MS, RD, suggests an easy-to-follow low-fat eating plan, adapted from the USDA Food Guide Pyramid. Each day, count down your food choices from the following list::

• 5 Servings: Whole Grain Breads, Pastas and Cereals
  Serving: 1 slice bread, ˝ slice bagel, ˝ cup cereal, 1/3 cup rice, ˝ cup noodles or potatoes.
  Whole Grains: wheat, oats, rye, corn, brown rice, barley or millet in the form of cereal, side dishes, pasta or bread.
  Also include: potatoes, yams, winter squashes, chestnuts, beans and peas.
• 4 Servings: Raw or Cooked Vegetables
  Serving: 1 cup raw vegetables, ˝ cup cooked vegetables, ˝ cup vegetable juice.
  Include: Dark green and yellow or orange vegetables.
• 3 Servings: Fruits
  Serving: For most fruits, a serving of whole fruit fits in your hand. Fruit juice (1/2 cup) is also a serving.
• 2 Servings: Dairy Foods
  Serving: 1 cup nonfat milk, 3/4 cup nonfat yogurt, 2 ounces nonfat cheese.
• 1-2 Servings: Fish, Poultry or Meat
  Serving: About the size of the palm of your hand and the thickness of a deck of cards. A serving of shrimp is about 2 ounces; lean red me, 3.5 ounces.
  Vegetarian Options: 6 ounces beans or low-fat tofu, 2 ounces non-fat cheese.

Weight Loss Tip:
If you are concerned about your weight, Reider says, go wild on vegetables. They�re only about 25 calories per serving. But do not eat more than three servings of fruit or five servings of grains. If your weight is fine, you can eat as many grains, vegetables and fruits as you want.

Monitor and Moderate:
Many nutrition experts agree that monitoring your eating with a food diary can be invaluable to weight management planning.

• Moderation is essential. Some foods include several food groups, and you will naturally eat servings that are both larger and smaller than the single serving size. A good goal is to eat the recommended amounts and balance of food groups 80 percent of the time, says Daniel Kosich, PhD, author of GET REAL: A Personal Guide to Real-Life Weight Management. That will give you a solid foundation for an active, healthy lifestyle.
• Both quantity and quality count. A low-fat diet that is too high in calories or a low-calorie diet that is too high in fat will not be healthy for you over a lifetime.
• The quality of the carbohydrates you eat is important. Heavily processed convenience foods with a lot of refined sugars may have a negative impact on your blood sugar level and cholesterol ratio, your mood and your ability to manage your portions. You can get caught in a dangerous cycle of eating excessive portions of unhealthy foods with little or no nutritional value. The solution is to stick to fresh whole grains, vegetables and fruits for up to 60 percent of your diet.

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source: http://www.wholefitness.com

Diet for your heart

Cholesterol Lowering Foods

'Functional' for your heart

For years, a "healthy diet" has been largely defined by foods that should be avoided. We've learned to (try to) stay away from potato chips, cookies and virtually everything else that tastes good. Now, the focus may be about to shift toward foods you should work to include in your diet. When major food manufacturers introduce new, specially engineered product lines, their message may be: Eat our cereals, pastas, and even cookies and potato chips as part of your healthful diet.

These new products, enhanced with natural ingredients, are being called "functional foods." According to the American Dietetic Association (ADA), functional foods may provide specific health benefits beyond basic nutrition when consumed as part of a varied diet. Many of the first functional foods to hit the shelves will tout the ability to lower cholesterol, a major contributing factor in cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in the United States and other industrialized countries.

However, you don't need to wait until functional foods reach supermarket shelves to make your diet more heart-healthy. "The idea of functional foods came, in part, from understanding which components in natural foods help lower cholesterol, such as soluble fiber, soy protein and plant sterols," says Tu T. Nguyen, M.D., an endocrinologist at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.

A careful review of what's already in your kitchen may reveal a ready cholesterol-fighting menu.

Natural foods

Natural foods fight cholesterol in a number of ways. Although dietary supplements are available for many of these natural substances, they are generally not as effective as the real thing.

Consider increasing your intake of foods containing the following cholesterol-lowering components:

Soluble fiber
We've all heard the phrase, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." But did you know that adage also holds true for lentils? Apples and lentils are both rich in soluble fiber, which regulates your body's production and elimination of cholesterol. Other good sources of soluble fiber include dried beans, peas, barley, citrus fruits, carrots and oats. Products containing lots of rolled oats and oat bran were the first to receive approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to boast on their labels that they may reduce the risk of heart disease when combined with a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol. However, in order to reap the cholesterol-lowering benefits of oats, you must eat a sizable portion � the equivalent of about 3/4 cup of raw oatmeal each day.

Soy
Scientists first suspected a connection between soy and lower cholesterol levels after observing that people in Asian countries where diets contain much more soy than in the United States � have significantly lower levels of heart disease than Americans. Experts believe natural soy compounds called isoflavones act like human hormones that regulate cholesterol levels. A 1998 study concluded that regular consumption of soy isoflavones may reduce total cholesterol levels by up to 10 percent.

A minimum of 25 grams of soy protein must be consumed daily in order to reap optimal cholesterol-lowering benefits. Good sources of soy protein include soy milk, tempeh, tofu, and textured soy protein, a main ingredient in many meat substitutes.

Fish
Researchers have found that, in general, the more fish people eat, the less coronary artery disease they have. Fish contain high concentrations of a unique type of fat, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). In addition to lowering blood fats (triglycerides), studies suggest that omega-3 PUFAs make the blood more slippery and less likely to clot.

A unique study completed in 1997 provided compelling evidence that eating fish can reduce blood cholesterol levels. Researchers studied people in two African villages located 40 miles apart. People from both villages had very similar lifestyles, but their diets were quite different. While one group ate a fish-heavy diet, the other group ate a healthy vegetarian diet consisting largely of rice and maize. Researchers found that the villagers who ate lots of fish had lower cholesterol than the vegetarians. The American Heart Association recommends eating fish two or three times a week.

Plant sterols
Foods containing plentiful plant sterols naturally occurring compounds found in certain plants and vegetable oils also may improve cholesterol levels. "Plant sterols are known to specifically block cholesterol from being absorbed by the intestine," Dr. Nguyen says.

However, very large portions of plant sterols extracted in powder form must be consumed in order to benefit. Functional foods may soon make heart-healthy consumption of plant sterols more feasible.

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source: http://www.wholefitness.com

Simple Diet Program

Caryl Ehrilch proposed a simple diet process in which there are four stages of breaking a food-addiction. Overcoming these four stages would mean, leading a more healthy life. When we eat, we don't count the calories. We eat what we find on the table or pick up something, which is easily available. And the easiest things available could be bread, desserts or beverages. Fast food joints will also give you unhealthy food like cheeseburgers, French fries, huge portions of steak, large portions of salads with mayonnaise and chunks of cheese. You end up gaining more calories. Our body finds it uneasy to digest the food. And slowly you put on weight. After eating a meal, you should feel energetic and not tired. Here, you have drugged your body with a high fat meal. Now let's perceive the four stages of addiction and take a new step towards weight control and fitness.

Saying NO to changes

You are so comfortable with your eating habits that it takes a lot of determination to change for the better. It's easy to say:

o Cut down on beverages during break fast. Restrict it to two or three in a week
o Soup is a healthy meal. So have it more often
o Weight your self twice. Put your fork down between bites

But it's tough to change. However, if you can get to alter these little things, you will be surprised at your weight loss speed.

Begrudging attempts

Join a diet group or purchase a book on weight loss, you will certainly give it a go. Though you dislike skipping your coffee, having cereals for breakfast or limiting your alcohol intake, you would still do it unintentionally.

You are changing

It comes to you as a pleasant surprise. You actually enjoyed taking the cereal. You felt good after sipping warm water instead of coffee. You gradually change and begin to enjoy your new health pattern.

You have found the rhythm in life

Once you come down to healthy eating habits, you get more comfortable here than elsewhere. Soon, you will realize that the addiction you had towards foods of all kinds have died to interests, which center on less oily healthy food.

Congratulations, you have succeeded in overcoming your food cravings.

This will not only help you in your weight losing programs but will also bring you lots of happiness and peace because there is nothing as important as health, and you have just taken the perfect step.

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source: http://www.hateweight.com

Caveman Diet

Possessing a well-toned figure is a cherished desire for everyone. To make this distant dream into a reality, you can opt for the "Caveman Diet". This paleolithic nutrition plan is based on the idea that modern processed and cultivated foods is the main culprit behind obesity. The follower of this diet eats an abundance of fruits, vegetables, wild game meats, and fish like salmon but stays away from cereal and sugar.

Caveman diet emphasizes on the fact that excessive carbohydrate intake leads to obesity by increasing insulin and fat storage which leads to various ailments. Besides controlling your weight, this unique diet plan can truly benefit your brain. Technically it's called a Paleolithic diet, but what it basically means is eating what our ancestors did 40,000 years ago.

This unique diet almost resembles the familiar nutritionists' food pyramid--turned upside down. Though it's a meat-rich diet still it's in many ways healthier than our own.

As far as diets goes, the caveman diet or Paleolithic diet is based on a simple concept. Eat like our stone age ancestors did, lose weight and lead a healthier and happier life. The caveman and cavewoman for that matter ate a radically different diet than most of us are accustomed to. There was no agriculture 40 thousand years ago, so they relied mostly on meat from game, fish and seafood, berries, vegetables (mostly root vegetables except potatoes which arrived much later) and nuts. Research has shown that the caveman didn't live nearly as long as we do today but as an early society, they were healthier, taller and stronger as compared to our time.

In general, the caveman diet's subsistence ratio was 35% plant and 65% animal. This suggests that humans evolved on a diet that was primarily animal based and consequently low to moderate in complex carbohydrates, high in protein and low to moderate in fat. If the caveman's diet sounds familiar, it's because many of the low carb, high protein diets of today such as the Atkin's Diet, and the South Beach Diet have adopted this line of thinking when it comes to weight loss and healthy living.

So, give this diet a chance to treat your obesity but always remember that most diets can work only when complemented with physical activity. Along with eating more lean meats and avoiding highly processed carb-packed foods such as potato chips and fast food, you need to spend more time outdoors. It's been proven that diets work when it includes a change in lifestyle. Maybe learning more about the caveman can change your way of thinking and help you achieve an enviable figure of your desire.

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source: http://www.hateweight.com

Soy and Diet

Low in saturated fat, soyfoods provide dietary fiber, high-quality protein and key vitamins and minerals

Media coverage of a recent statement by the American Heart Association failed to note that soy protein could reduce coronary heart disease (CHD) at a level that would positively affect the nation's public health, according to experts at the global Soy Nutrition Institute.

According to Dr. Mark Messina, adjunct associate professor and internationally recognized expert on the health effects of soyfoods, sufficient amounts of soy protein could potentially reduce CHD at the population level by as much as 10 percent.

"Soy protein alone is certainly not going to bring cholesterol levels down to the target goal in hypercholesterolemics (people with high blood cholesterol), but soy's modest cholesterol lowering effect by itself is beneficial. Plus, soyfoods are a good substitution for foods higher in saturated fat, which helps consumers follow an overall heart-healthy diet," says Messina.

In fact, the AHA Nutrition Committee noted that soy products such as tofu, soy butter, soy nuts and soy burgers should be beneficial to cardiovascular and overall health. The report concludes soyfoods should be considered beneficial because of their high content of polyunsaturated fat, fiber, vitamins, minerals and their low content of saturated fat and cholesterol. Additionally, soyfoods can substitute for other foods that are known to contribute to blood cholesterol levels.

The AHA's recent advisory statement on Soy Protein, Isoflavones and Cardiovascular Health has focused media attention on the modest effects of soy protein in lowering cholesterol levels in individuals. The AHA found an overall reduction in LDL cholesterol of three percent, which would translate into a six percent reduction of CHD risk (based on a one percent cholesterol reduction equaling a two percent CHD risk). However, Messina cites a recent meta-analysis of 33 studies involving more than 1,749 subjects, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, which showed that the addition of soy protein to the diet resulted in a 5.3 percent reduction in LDL cholesterol, which translates into a 10 percent CHD risk reduction. The impact on a public health basis could be significant and reduce CHD morbidity and mortality rates. Intriguing evidence also suggests that soy may exert other coronary benefits such as decreasing triglycerides and improving blood vessel elasticity.

Soyfoods' health benefits extend far beyond heart health. Some cancer researchers are beginning to believe that prostate and colon cancer progression can be impacted by dietary changes that include soy consumption. More research is beginning to show a stronger role for soy in bone health, as well, and many soyfoods contain calcium. Finally, research on menopause indicates that soy may help offer relief for women who experience greater numbers of hot flushes each day, though there is a great variability in responses.

Soyfoods have been enjoyed worldwide as a dietary staple for their versatility and great taste. Registered dietitian Kerry Neville offers simple ideas to add a little healthy soy to the diet. "Try starting the day with a soymilk-based smoothie, sprinkling green soybeans called edamame onto the salad you serve with dinner or popping a soy burger in the microwave for a quick and convenient lunch," Neville suggests.

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source: http://www.emaxhealth.com