Coffee, with its caffeine level, can be beneficial for some people, such as those that experience migraines. There are other people, however, who drink cup after cup of coffee without knowing if they are drinking too much.

According to the Mayo Clinic, coffee can help fight fatigue, increase wakefulness and help with concentration and focus. It accomplishes all of this by stimulating the central nervous system.

Generally, 200 milligrams of coffee a day does not do any harm. This is the equivalent of between two and four cups a day. There are some things that are warning signs that a person needs to cut back or cut out their caffeine intake.

Four cups

When a person drinks more that 300 milligrams of caffeine a day they may suffer from irritability, fast heartbeat, nervousness and other symptoms. Even a small amount of caffeine may cause some people to feel these effects. They may start to feel restless or have trouble sleeping just by drinking one cup of coffee.

Other factors that vary the amount of caffeine a person can consume with few side effects include a person’s body mass, their age, any medication and certain health conditions.

Pregnancy

According to Public Health, there are mixed results on whether a pregnant woman who drinks a high quantity of caffeine is at risk of miscarriage. However, it is known that the fetus is highly sensitive to caffeine, which passes through the placenta. The fetus is not able to metabolize the caffeine very quickly. For these reasons pregnant women are advised to keep their coffee intake very low, perhaps as low as one cup a day.

Metabolic syndrome

Daily News explains about a study linking coffee consumption with metabolic syndrome. The study states that a study of mice has shown that if a person drinks between five to six cups of coffee per day, they could develop this syndrome. The risk factors include large waist size, high blood pressure and high triglyceride levels. When a person has the risk factors and drinks coffee at the rate states they become more susceptible to chronic diseases like diabetes and stroke.

Within limits, caffeine can be beneficial to some people. It has been shown, in moderation, to lower the risk of type 2 diabetes, breast cancer and prostate cancer. However, the important words to remember are it is fine in moderation, as are most things. As long as its consumption is controlled, most people will not be harmed.

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In a survey conducted in 2013 by the National Coffee Association it was found that 83% of Americans had consumed coffee within the past year. One of the top reasons for consuming coffee was the assumption of more than 70% of the participants that coffee increases alertness and reduces sleepiness. The assumption that coffee acts as a stimulant is correct since it contains a chemical called caffeine, a psychoactive drug that acts on the central nervous system by increasing alertness and focus.

But the story of coffee and its stimulant properties is not a recent one and has been known for centuries, since it began approximately in the ninth century in the Ethiopian providence of Kaffa (hence the name coffee). It then spread through Africa to Arabia where reports of the first coffee beverages can be found in Yemen in the 15th century and then, with the help of the Dutch, to Europe and then rest of the world.

Coffee was therefore widely acknowledged through the centuries for its stimulant properties of reducing symptoms of physical fatigue and increasing alertness, but does it have any other medicinal effects?

The medicinal properties of coffee can be divided into short and long term effects since coffee (or more precisely caffeine) can act either directly on blood vessels causing immediate health effects, such as increasing blood pressure or curing a headache, and also through the antioxidant properties of coffee long term effects have been reported according to the daily consumption and the duration of consumption.

Short term health effects and medicinal uses of coffee

Headaches especially headaches after a spinal or epidural anesthesia

Most women who have given birth either naturally or with a cesarean section have received an epidural or spinal anesthetic. One of the complications of these anesthetic techniques is a post-dural puncture headache that although harmless does cause a lot of discomfort and may last for days or even weeks. One of the treatment options in this case is the consumption of coffee because of its caffeine content. Caffeine seems to affect pain pathways therefore helping in the cure of these headaches

For this reason and the ability to cause the blood vessels to constrict (the blood vessels become narrower) caffeine is often added to pharmaceuticals containing Non-Steroid Anti-inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen since not only does caffeine help in the better absorption of these drugs but also caffeine has healing properties of its own. This leads to a smaller amount of the NSAIDs being necessary in order to achieve pain relief. These type of medication have been especially helpful in the treatment of migraines that are caused by the dilation (the blood vessels become wider) of the blood vessels since caffeine-containing pain killers reverse this effect.

But can caffeine also cause headaches? If on average too much coffee is consumed daily a sudden withdrawal from coffee can cause what is known as ‘caffeine withdrawal headaches’. So yes too much of something good can be bad for you.

Increases blood pressure

Because of the vessel constricting properties of caffeine, coffee consumption helps increase blood pressure and should therefore be avoided if you have high blood pressure. Nevertheless symptoms such as dizziness caused by low blood pressure can be cured by drinking a cup of coffee!

Laxative properties

Caffeine helps against constipation because it has laxative properties. So instead of medicating for constipation drinking a cup of coffee is just as effective! Coffee helps bowel movements and induces the release of stool but again too much coffee can cause diarrhea.

Improves short-term memory

Caffeine increases brain activity so drinking a cup of coffee improves both short-term and working memory, improving also reaction times in adults.

Long term health effects and medicinal uses of coffee

Cancer protection

A correlation has been found between the consumption of coffee and the reduction of colorectal cancer, liver cancer and breast cancer. These properties may be primarily attributed to the antioxidant substances found in coffee that reduce oxidative cell damage and therefore protect against certain types of cancer.

Despite containing antioxidants a positive correlation has been found between carcinogens (substances that cause cancer) found in coffee and pancreas cancer.

So although coffee helps in the prevention of some types of cancer it seems to have an opposite effect on other types of cancer.

Preventing or delaying Parkinson’s disease

Consumption of coffee, especially in men, has been correlated with both a delay in the development and the prevention of the development of Parkinson’s disease. Interestingly men are more affected by the daily consumption of coffee and the prevention of Parkinson’s disease than women.

Prevention of diabetes mellitus Type 2

A study conducted in 2009 with 40,000 participants showed a correlation between the consumption of 3 cups of coffee or more a day and a reduced risk for developing diabetes. The anti-inflammatory properties of coffee mainly because it contains anti-oxidants called polyphenols seem to be responsible for reducing the possibility of the development of diabetes type 2 in adults.

Preventing gallbladder stones

The risk of developing gall stones is also reduced by the intake of 4 cups of coffee or more a day.

Protects the heart

Although coffee consumption has been associated with increased cholesterol levels and an increased risk for a heart attack, a study conducted in 2012 came to the conclusion that moderate coffee consumption lessened the risk for developing heart failure especially if 4 cups of coffee were consumed daily.

It must be nevertheless noted that information regarding the protective properties of coffee on the heart are contradictory and to a great extend inconclusive.

Antidepressant

Interestingly coffee has positive effects also on affect and mood. In a study conducted on more than 50,000 women in the United States in 2011 it was found that the risk of developing depression decreased with increasing coffee consumption.

Delays Alzheimer’s disease

Adults over 65 years of age who consume 3 cups of coffee or more a day seem to develop Alzheimer’s disease 2 to 3 years later than non-consumers. It seems therefore that coffee not only has a positive effect on short-term memory but also on the development of dementia later on in life.

It is important to stress that despite the many positive effects or even medical uses of coffee there is on strict contra indication to the consumption of coffee consumption and that is during pregnancy and breast feeding since coffee increases the risk for abortion and is not metabolized as quickly by the fetus causing adverse side effects.

The information provided in this article is intended for informational purposes only and is not advise also provided without any representations and no warranties whatsoever. The provided information should never substitute the consultation, opinion , diagnosis, and treatment options provided by a professional healthcare provider.

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Having a low carb diet food list can make sticking to your diet a lot easier since you know what you can and can’t eat on the diet plan. Low carb diets are not usually based on calories but are instead based on the number of carbohydrates that you are consuming. Foods that have a higher carbohydrate level are not allowed on the diet or only allowed in a very small moderation.

There are several different low carb diets that have been popular over the past years. Some of them include the Atkins diet, The South Beach diet, and the Sugar Busters diet. Each of one these diets will have different specific foods that can be eaten or should be avoided but most of them are pretty much the same when it comes down to the basics. You will find that some are stricter such as the Atkins diet when you compare it to the South Beach diet and fewer carbohydrates are allowed, especially in the beginning.

The low carb diet food list below will give you a good idea of the foods that you should be eating on a low carb diet if you want to lose weight.

Proteins

When following a low carb diet, proteins will make up a large portion of the foods that you can eat. This is because most pure proteins have very few carbs in them, making them perfect for this type of weight loss diet. With some of these proteins you should watch the sodium levels as some of them such as lunch meats and pork can have high salt levels, which should be avoided as well. Here are the main proteins to choose from on this diet.

Eggs
Chicken
Ground meats
Fish
Red meat – beef, lamb, and venison
Pork including ham, bacon and sausage
Shellfish
Cured meats that have no added sugar such as lunch meat or hot dogs
Tofu
Beans

Vegetables and Fruits

Vegetables will also play a big role in your low carb diet. In fact vegetables will account for most of the carbs you do eat, but these are natural and healthy carbs that your body needs. Below are just some of the vegetables that are acceptable for a low carb diet food list.

Spinach
Lettuce
Cucumber
Peppers
Onion
Mushrooms
Eggplant
Celery
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Radish
Green beans

On certain low diets you may also be allowed to eat some starchier vegetables as well as some fruits that are low in carbohydrates. Most of the time you can add in these vegetables and fruits slowly after a beginning detox phase to gradually add more carbs to your diet.

Cabbage
Carrots
Sweet potatoes
Brussels sprouts
Blueberries
Strawberries
Pumpkin
Cantaloupe

Fats, Dairy, and Other Foods

Unlike other diet plans, low carb diets actually encourage the consumption of some fatty foods to help you stay full longer as well as help your body absorb the carbs as energy and not store it as fat. When it comes to eating fatty foods, this is where many diets differ from low carb diets and often times they are criticized for allowing this much fat. There are some low carb diets, such as the South Beach diet that do restrict some fatty foods so you do need to look into this if you are following a certain type of low carb diet plan. Here are just some of the fats, dairy, and other foods that you can eat on this diet plan.

Butter
Mayonnaise
Hard cheeses
Soft cheeses
Sour cream
Olives
Salad dressings that are low in sugar
Heavy cream
Mustard
Ketchup – low sugar
Milk

This low carb diet food list is definitely not all encompassing as there are other foods that you may be able to eat as well depending on the specific diet plan you are following. This gives you a general idea of the foods that you can eat if you choose to follow a low carb diet for weight loss.

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Diagnosed with hypoglycemia (or low blood sugar) several years ago, I had to drastically change my eating habits. A typical college student, my diet consisted of Ramen noodles, frozen pizzas, Chinese takeout, and canned tuna. After seeing several specialists, ranging from quacks to certified dietitians, and listening to my body, I developed a list of food items that I could not eat.

If you are suffering from hypoglycemia or just seem to literally “crash” after eating certain items, you should speak with your doctor about your dietary needs.

Refined sugar products

This includes any sugar rich foods from the obvious donuts, candy, and pastries, to food like pasta, white rice, and white bread. Learn how to read the food labels. I stay away from anything that has more than 15 grams of sugar (or sugar alcohol) listed, and usually opt for food items that have less than 5 grams of sugar.

Juice

First off, many juice products actually are sugary drinks with juice flavors. Secondly, juices have such a high concentration of fructose (sugar), that some may even have as many as 50 grams of sugar in a single serving! Instead, if you want orange juice, eat an orange, or if you really want apple juice, you can eat no sugar added apple sauce or an apple. A little trick? If you really want the taste of juice, drink half the serving recommended. (Added note: when you are heading for a hypoglycemia crash, a small glass of juice may be the best thing to give you a quick sugar boost, but quickly follow it up with some food that has protein and complex carbs).

Processed food

Listening to my own body, I realized that whenever I eat processed foods (most microwaveable foods, anything in a box, fast foods), shortly after I feel the dizziness, crankiness, headache, and shakiness that accompanies a blood sugar crash. Instead, I try to eat as fresh and naturally as possible, avoiding preservatives.

Caffeine

While I can usually stomach a small serving (4 ounces) of hot cocoa, whenever I try the 16 ounce super duper latte’, I actually get a severe headache, get nausea (nope, its not pregnancy!), and being to violently crash. My body can only handle small doses of caffeine. So for long drives or project deadlines, I have to work around my hypoglycemia and have manage my time wisely. I do most of the work when I am most productive and awake.

Alcohol

Alcohol leads to an instant hypoglycemia crash and sleepiness!

So you may ask, how can I possibly have any fun when I can’t enjoy the “finer” things in life because of my hypoglycemia? I work within the limits of hypoglycemia. I can enjoy may foods, just with smaller portions.My hypoglycemia does not act up with one or two pizza slices, a hamburger on a whole wheat bun, homemade peanut butter oatmeal cookies, homemade sweet potato fries, fresh fruit and veggies, or whole wheat rice and pastas. For me, the dangerous hypoglycemia crash that can follow a sugar binge of donuts or a big plate of spaghetti is not worth the risk.

Avoid these foods for a month, and see how your body changes in relation to hypoglycemia. You may find you have more energy, crave sweets and junk food less, and maybe even lose a few pounds!

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Thai food in America has recently become the next big sensation. Restaurants serving Thai dishes have appeared everywhere across America. They have opened their doors to a bewildered and sometimes intimidated audience of eaters. If you’re not sure what you should try at your local Thai restaurant, then here are some suggestions.

Phat Thai

Pronounced “pad tie,” it is considered the most popular and common dish, Phat Thai is a pan fried dish of noodles with fish sauce, sugar, lime juice, chopped peanuts, and egg combined with chicken, seafood, or tofu. To add spice to this dish, Thai chefs will also add red chilis, which are the premier ingredient when it comes to adding heat to a Thai dish. Phat Thai is very easy to enjoy for someone who has never experienced Thai food, and you will be wowed by its unique flavor. It’s an excellent dish for beginners to Thai food and one that you can enjoy over and over. It is also simple enough that you may want to try cooking it yourself, if you can find the Thai ingredients at a store near you.

Basil Rolls

These are not served in all Thai restaurants, but are a treat when found. Basil rolls are like a salad of basil, shrimp, some crunchy rice noodles, and lettuces all wrapped within a translucent rice paper into an egg roll like shape. This delicious dish is light and flavorful and usually is served with a delicious dipping sauce. Often served as an appetizer, this dish will not fill you up too much because it’s so light and you’ll enjoy the crispness and simplicity of it compared to the spice of most other Thai dishes.

Thai Iced Tea

This drink is maybe not for everyone, but if you enjoy a creamy, sweet drink with a unique flavor then this may be for you. Thai Iced Tea is a mixture of their unique brewed tea, cream, spices such as orange blossom water and tamarind, and sugar. It is pale brown color normally. This drink is very popular with American Thai eaters, so you should definitely try it.

Coconut Soup

Also called Tom Kha Phrak or sometimes Tom Kha Gai. This is a delicious soup of coconut milk, galangal root, lemon grass, red chili, chicken, and often mushrooms. This dish is my personal favorite because of its levels of flavor. It works very well as a small soup before your larger meal. You may enjoy it so much that you’ll want to get some to go for later.

Massaman Curry

This dish is Muslim in origin, but it is one of the most popular Thai dishes. It is most commonly made with beef, but it can be made with any meat. Massaman curry is made with a unique curry powder (mix of spices) that is different from red, yellow, and green curry. This dish is made with coconut milk, roasted peanuts, potatoes, bay, cardaman, cinnamon, palm sugar,fish sauce and tamarind sauce. It is a sweeter curry than most, and you will be sure to enjoy it. It is served with rice.

There are many Thai dishes out there for you to try. I also recommend that Mango with sticky rice for dessert. This dish is simply cut up slices of fresh mango and specially prepared chilled creamy and sweet rice. Thai food gives us the opportunity to experience a whole new set of flavors. Enjoy!

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I find I have with regard to keeping skin cells protected from the inside out, stimulating healthy regeneration that starts from within and grows outward. Here’s a list of some of the foods that she advocates for healthy skin most.

Coffee

For those of us that are big on coffee, here’s some good news. A study that was conducted including more than 93,000 women published in the European Journal of Cancer Prevention found that those drinking even one single cup daily decreased their skin cancer risk of developing a specific cancer called non melanoma by around 10 percent. What’s interesting, is that it showed the more they drank, upwards of around 6 cups, the lower their risk. I guess there’s nothing wrong with that 4th or 5th cup I’m always pouring!

Strawberries

Research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that consuming more vitamin C rich foods may be helpful in keeping wrinkles at bay. The free radical quenching power of this nutrient is what cleans up free radicals that are produced by UV rays. Vitamin C also plays a big role in the synthesis of collagen, the skin firming component composed of fibrous protein. Vitamin C is available in a number of cosmetics but food sources are always more effective. Foods like strawberries, broccoli, red peppers and papaya are great sources.

Salmon

In a 2009 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that the healthy omega 3 fatty acids EPA and DHA abundant in tuna, sardines, trout and salmon may protect cell walls from free radical damage done by UV rays. Omega 3’s are also helpful in decreasing compounds that cause the inflammation that contributes to tumor growth.

Tomatoes

Lycopene, a carotenoid that gives red and pink fruits and veggies their hue can be beneficial for keeping UV exposed skin protected from sunburn, according to a study done in 2008 in the European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics. Research found that half of the 20 individuals studied, who consumed higher levels of lycopene foods had smoother skin that was less susceptible to sunburn. These results came after each individual consumed 2 ½ tablespoons of tomato paste or 1 2/3 cup of carrot juice daily. This study also concluded that supplements were not as effective in this regard.

Just more evidence to back up the theory regarding a healthy diet’s positive effect on healthy younger looking skin, that’s more resilient against skin cancer. Lower your risk of skin cancer daily by including these beneficial foods in your day.

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The only way you can lose weight through dieting is by eating fewer calories, which means you’ll probably have to eat less than what you’re used to. So, it’s no surprise that people who are trying to lose weight often complain that they don’t feel full. An easy way to avoid this problem is by eating foods that will trick your body into feeling more full than it actually is. Here are four foods that are both healthy and filling:

Apples

Apples are fat free, low calorie and loaded with dietary fiber. Dietary fiber improves your digestion, reduces your cholesterol and makes you feel full. According to one study, women who ate three apples or pears each day instead of three oatmeal cookies lost more weight. Alan Aragon, the author of “Girth Control: The Science of Fat Loss & Muscle Gain,” says foods that are crunchy make a person feel more full than other foods.

Eggs

Eggs are the best source of protein according to the biological value (BV) chart, and protein is very filling. A study from the “International Journal of Obesity” found that people who ate two eggs for breakfast instead of a bagel lost more weight even though both foods have roughly the same amount of calories. The reason is because the people who ate eggs were more satisfied throughout the day.

Non-Starchy Vegetables

Non-starchy vegetables, such as broccoli, spinach, carrots, and celery, are nutritious, fat free, low calorie, and fill you up… a lot. Just like apples, non-starchy vegetables are high in dietary fiber. It’s also virtually impossible to overeat them. Think about it this way: you could eat a whole bag of frozen vegetables and you still would only be eating about 200 to 300 calories, depending on the vegetable.

Almonds

Almonds are relatively low-calorie for a nut and they’re also high in protein and dietary fiber. One ounce of almonds contains roughly 160 calories, plus 6 g of protein and 3 g of fiber. They’re also crunchy like apples. So, the next time you’re looking for something to snack on, grab a handful of almonds.

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The popularity of low carb diets such as South Beach and Atkins means that low carb foods and beverages are commonly available in grocery stores and restaurants. Some of these diet foods fall flat and others balance taste and nutrition wonderfully. Beer is no exception and there are a number of low carb beers on the market. Although beer is not usually considered figure friendly, these versions contain fewer calories and carbs than traditional beer. Here are five popular low carb beers to sample as you search for the perfect beer to please your palate as you watch your waistline.

Amstel Light

A 12-ounce serving of Amstel Light has 95 calories and five grams of carbs.

Bud Select

With 99 calories and 3.1 grams of carbs, Bud Select is great choice for dieters.

Coors Light

A serving of Coors Light has 102 calories and 5 grams of carbs.

Corona Light

It is only fitting that the star of those beach commercials has a light variety. Corona Light has 109 calories and five grams of carbs.

Miller Lite

Miller Lite is a popular brand dieters and non-dieters alike. With only 3.2 grams of carbs, Miller Lite is a great choice for South Beach or Atkins dieters.

Smart Shopping Tips for Buying Low Carb Beer

Take a minute to read the labels and find diet-friendly beer. The label may say low carb, light or lite, but those terms are subjective. Actually read the nutrition label to see the calorie count and carb load per serving.

Keep in mind that low carb and light beers have a slightly different taste and consistency than traditional beers. Do not buy a case of beer if you have not already tried that variety.

A good way to try different brands is at parties or a friend’s house. You can also buy single servings when you are dining out.

Ask other dieters for their reviews and recommendations. They can give you the best advice and let you know where to buy a certain brand in your neighborhood.

Once you convert, stick to drinking a light beer. The subtle difference in taste will become glaringly obvious if you alternate between traditional and light or low carb beers.

Sticking to a low carb diet is easier than ever thanks to the mass availability of diet-friendly foods. Shop around and try different brands to find a great replacement for your regular brand.

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It’s hard for me to turn down a plate of Pad Thai, but with summer looming, gorging on Thai food can send my weight (and body fat) skyrocketing. Getting your fill of Thai food needn’t be an impossibility, however–by eating smart, Thai restaurants can be a great way to wind down your evening without overdoing your calorie count. Here’s how to make it work.

How to Diet at Thai Restaurants

Need to stay on your diet while eating out? Use these tips to keep your calorie count low:

1. To save calories, skip the appetizers. Most Thai appetizers can carry unnecessary calories and fat–extra if you order something crunchy, like fried egg rolls. It’s best to skip the appetizers here and focus your meal on the main course instead. If you’re absolutely stared for food, however, you can keep the calorie damage to a minimum by looking for appetizers that are rich in veggies but low on the fry factor–such as summer rolls or satay. Alternatively, you can opt for a broth-based soup, which can take the edge off your hunger without adding extra calories to your diet.
2. Avoid noodles. Most Thai restaurants serve a plentiful amount of noodle-based dishes, such as Pad Thai, Pad See Ew, and Khao Soi. Unfortunately, most of these dishes tend to be higher in calories and carry extra fat. For slimmer pickings, look for dishes with meat and vegetables as the main constituent–such as Phat Kraphao, Phat Phak Ruam, or Kai Phat Khing. For soups, the same still holds true here. Skip the noodle-based soups and go for something lighter instead, such as Tom Yum soup.
3. If you love curry, ask for Gaeng Pah. Gaeng Pah is a spicy, nutritious curry filled with spices, vegetables, and your choice of meat. How it’s better: Unlike most Thai curries, which has a base of coconut milk, Gaeng Pah has a base of water, meaning it has fewer calories and fat, according to Men’s Health . Although it’s not as creamy, it’s still flavorful and filling–the extra spices help fill you up without the extra poundage!

Other Tips for Eating Out

If you plan to eat out at a Thai restaurant, then use common sense–obviously, eating fried meat or ordering a curry with a creamy coconut base probably won’t be friendly for your waistline. To avoid eating too many calories, focus on eating dishes plentiful in lean meat and vegetables while cutting out the higher calorie portions, such as rice and noodles.

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According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the recommended amount of potassium the average adult should eat every day is an incredible 4,700 mg. That’s equal to 11 bananas in a single day! Many experts say that a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean meats will provide plenty of potassium on a daily basis, but I’m not so sure.

See, after using My Fitness Pal, a popular mobile phone app that tracks calories and nutrition, I discovered that, on average, I’m consuming less than one-fourth the amount of potassium I’m supposed to. I also realized that no single food has anywhere near the amount of potassium the USDA recommends, so the deficit can’t be fixed easily. Instead, the answer lies in eating more potassium-rich foods throughout the day. Through trial and error, I’ve learned some simple ways to do just that.

Here are three easy ways to get more potassium into your daily diet:

Drink more potassium throughout the day

One easy way to add more potassium to your diet is by drinking it. For example, drinking just one 8-ounce glass of orange juice every day adds 474 mg of potassium to your diet. That’s pretty good! Of course, orange juice is also high in calories and sugar, so look for brands that are lower in both. You can also try other fruit juices, such as apple, prune, cranberry or peach. Check the nutrition labels and choose only those juices that are higher in potassium and lower in calories and sugar.

Add a serving of fresh fruit to every meal

Instead of eating high-carbohydrate side dishes like French fries, potato chips or pasta salad, add a serving of high-potassium fruit to each meal. Try sliced bananas, cantaloupe, apples, or strawberries to start. Of course, making the switch from tasty carbs to fresh fruit isn’t easy, so take it slow. Begin by eating just a few bites of fruit with each meal, along with fewer bites of the carbs, and keep at it until you’ve fully switched over. You’re diet will be much healthier without the carbs, and the added fruit will give you an extra 100 to 200 mg or more of potassium.

Mix vegetable and protein servings together

Another easy way to add more potassium to your diet is by combining your vegetable and protein servings. Instead of eating, say, a grilled chicken breast with a side of steamed broccoli, try dicing the chicken into small chunks and mixing it together with the broccoli. The new combo will taste better and, thanks to the fiber-rich veggies, you’ll need less protein to feel as full. Even better, the added vegetables will boost your potassium intake by as much as 200 to 400 mg or more per meal.

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Exercise, though a painful thought to some, is nevertheless essential for one to lead a healthy life. In addition to the weight loss benefits it provides, regular exercise has also been shown to help in the prevention of such diseases heart disease and osteoporosis. This is a list of simple exercises that don’t involve a machine that one can do in order to build sculpted calf muscles. However, it’s important to always remember to check with your doctor before adopting a new exercise regime.

Running

Running or jogging, twenty minutes a day, three times a week, is a fantastic way to not only help build calf muscles, but lose weight in general. If not done properly, however, this exercise can be harmful -such as when people don’t stretch before running. Always make sure to stretch beforehand and not over-do it in the beginning. Otherwise, your body will be too concerned with trying to repair broken muscle tissue that it won’t be able to do anything else.

Cans, Bottles, or Weights

One exercise that I have done for several years is to get on the floor on all fours, place an item of canned food, a bottled drink, or light weight behind my knee, squeeze the leg so that the can stays in place, and then lift up and hold for a few seconds. Repeat up to twenty five times on each leg and you’ve done an easy, quick calf muscle exercise that won’t leave you too tired for anything else.

Squats

Doing squats is not only great for the legs, but the abs and buttocks as well! Simply stand with your feet apart (so that they line up with your shoulders) and then move as though there’s a chair behind you and you’re going to sit down. Hold the position for a few seconds and then stand back up. Do this at least twenty five times. If it starts to become too easy for you, include weights in the exercise or add more repetitions. Take it slowly and don’t hop up and down like a jack in the box!

Calf Raises

These are similar to squats, except instead of bending back, bend straight down, like a ballet dancer. These are a bit more difficult, since more balance is required. If you have trouble maintaining balance, have something to hold on to, such as a chair, bar, or even a broom. Once this becomes too easy for you to do and you no longer require help balancing, incorporate weights into the routine.

The Bicycle

This is a fun exercise that requires very little effort at all! Simply lie on your back on the floor, raise your legs into the air, and move them in circles at a rapid pace, as though pedaling a bike. Actual bike pedaling is another great way to work on your calf muscles, but the floor exercise is good for rainy days or if you don’t have a bicycle. It’s quick, easy, fun, and any exercise that can be done in front of the television is definitely a winner!

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Step workouts are some of the best ways to get a total body workout, and the step is versatile. It can be used for aerobics, toning and strength training workouts. Curvy women who carry their weight in their thighs and buttock benefit from step workouts because they lift the butt and reduce sagging. However, in order to find good step workout DVDs, the instructors should be people who are experts in this form of exercise.

Gin Miller’s Everybody Step

It is no surprise that this is one of the top workout DVDs because Gin Miller is the woman who created step training in the 1980s. Thus, she knows all the basic moves needed for a good step workout, and she uses them in this beginner’s workout. People unfamiliar with step aerobics learn the basic moves and step terminology while burning fat. She gradually adds difficulty to her workout on this 56 minute DVD. At Collage Video, this step workout DVD costs $19.95.

Gin Miller’s Simply Step, Classic Moves

Gin Miller’s step aerobics DVDs should always be on lists of the top workout DVDs because she’s energetic as well as experienced. This simple workout DVD includes simple step combinations such as the up and down, V-step, straddle, step touch, and knee lifts. As she instructs exercisers, her voice and perkiness draws people. This intermediate/advanced, 63-minute workout costs $19.95 at Collage Video.

Shapely Girl-Let’s Go Stepping!

This is a beginner step workout DVD that specifically designed for plus-size women. People who are not drawn to workouts because they cannot relate the skinny workout instructors will like this DVD. Debra Mazda, the instructor, once weighed 310 pounds and now wears a size 12. Now, she’s creating workouts for real women. Mazda conducts a basic, 46-minute exercise routine and gives clear clues. In addition, none of her fellow exercisers are full-figured women. The step DVD includes a 15-minute tutorial and a 9-minute bonus toning workout. This DVD costs $19.95 at Collage Video.

Gin Miller’s Serious Strength

Gin Miller’s Serious Strength is a total body, toning step workout DVD and one of the top toning workout DVDs. This advanced workout works the entire body. The DVD includes a 19-minute upper body section, a 20-minute lower body section, a 5-minute combination section, and a 10-minute abs workout. The complete workout is 72 minutes long. Exercisers will need 3- to 10-lb dumbbells and a barbell. This workout DVD costs $19.95 at Collage Video.

The Firm: Advanced Cardio

The Firm is one of the top workout DVD programs for women. The workouts are designed to work common trouble areas of the body. The Firm step workouts have been my favorite programs since I was in my late teens. Lisa Kay, the instructor on this workout, speaks in a tone that is easy to understand as she guides people through the workout. This advanced, 30-minute workout includes jumps and lifts. Although The Firm has its own step, any aerobic step can be done with this workout. This workout costs $19.95 at Collage Video.

These are a few of the top workout DVDs for people who want to do step aerobics. Step aerobics is one of the best workouts increase strength and work areas of the body that are sometimes hard to maintain. The above-mentioned step workout DVDs are specifically designed for real women who want to maintain a regular workout routine.

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Aerobic exercise is a form of exercise that uses large muscle groups to increase the heart rate. Aerobic exercise allows you to take in more oxygen, which helps convert the fat and glucose that I stored in your body into energy. These exercises can be used as a weigh of burning calories and losing weight or you use aerobic exercise a way of warming up for other types of exercise. Running, walking, bike riding and swimming are common forms of aerobic exercise. However, the exercise ball can also be used in aerobic exercise. Here are five exercises that can be performed using an exercise ball.

1. Bouncing on the ball. Seat yourself on the ball with your feet about 18 inches apart with your knees directly over your ankles and your arms by your sides. Push off the floor and begin bouncing yourself up and down, allow your bottom to come slightly oft the ball. Bounce gently at first, increasing in strength as you become more comfortable with the feel of the ball. Keep up your breathing and relax as you bounce.
2. Half Stand-ups. Seat yourself on the ball with your feet about 18 inches apart with your knees directly over your ankles and your arms by your sides. Push your feet into the floor, activating your thigh muscles as if you were going to stand up, but come up only far enough for your bottom to lift about 1 inch off the ball, then sit back down. As you lift up, raise your arms to eye level, and then relax your arms down as you sit back down.
3. Foot taps. Begin by being seated on the ball in a normal sitting position. Make sure your feet are 18 inches apart with your knees directly over your ankles and your arms by your sides with your hands lightly touching the ball. Step your right foot out to the side, putting your weight on it, then lightly tap your left foot in front. Repeating on the other side beginning a bouncing action as you move from side to side. Bounce gently at first, increasing in strength as you become more comfortable with the feel of the ball.
4. Jacks. Begin by being seated on the ball in a normal sitting position, feet 18 inches apart, knees over ankles, arms down by your sides. Begin a bouncing action, extending your right arm and right leg out sideways on the first bounce and bringing them back to the starting position on the second. Repeat on the other side, keeping a steady rhythm. Bounce gently at first, increasing in strength as you become more comfortable with the feel of the ball.
5. Rocks from side to side. Begin by being seated on the ball in a normal sitting position. Walk your feet out to the sides to a wide position, knees bent turning your legs out so that your feet and knees are pointing out at a 45-degree angle. Push forward into the hips so that your weight is right at the front of the ball. Push your weight over onto your left leg so that you left knee is bent and your right knee is extended. Make sure that your left knee is directly over your left ankle. By pushing off the floor and activating the left thigh muscle, push yourself all the way over to the other side. You should now have your right knee bent and your left leg straight. Continue to push from side to side, allowing the ball to roll underneath you.

Aerobic exercise is necessary for a healthy heart. The exercise ball is easy and convenient. You can actually do these exercises while you are watching TV. If you are looking for something different in the way of aerobic exercise, you may want to consider trying these aerobic exercises designed for the exercise ball.

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Asthma can feel crippling for people who suffer from it, but it doesn’t have to keep you from getting the exercise you desire. If you have Asthma, you just need to take more precautions and you can achieve the same routines as many other people. What exercises are recommended for people with Asthma though? This article will address a few exercises that are perfectly safe for people with Asthma and how they should approach them:

Swimming

Swimming is an excellent exercise with people with Asthma because of the warm environment that the pool offers you. This environment is very unlikely to stir up any of the symptoms commonly associated with Asthma. Swimming is a great exercise because of how much of your body it uses, it’s a great calorie burner.

Yoga

Yoga has been seen in a positive light by many people who have Asthma because it’s an easy going exercise that makes your body feel great and incorporates many breathing techniques that are said to help people with Asthma. This doesn’t make it any less important to use your inhaler, but if it makes you feel better there is no harm in doing it in addition. Yoga also promotes good mental health, which is important for anyone.

Walking

Walking is an easy activity than almost anyone can do that is often overlooked as exercising due to how easy it is. Walking during your lunch break or taking the stairs instead of the elevator is extra exercise that is sure to make you feel better every day. Walking is perfectly fine with people with Asthma because it can be done anywhere and is not particularly strenuous when done in moderation.

Team Sports

Team sports such as football and basketball are perfectly fine for people with Asthma. They required quick bursts of energy rather than prolonged energy, which means it’s perfectly acceptable for people with Asthma. Always explain to the coach and teammates that you have Asthma and that you may need their help, and always keep an inhaler close by.

If you need further help deciding what kind of exercise is right for you or a close loved one who suffers from Asthma, please consult your doctor or fitness expert. This article covered just the base of what people with Asthma can do, don’t limit yourself to just these, but keep these particulars in mind.

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Your liver is a football sized organ that is located on the right side of your abdomen. If your liver does not function properly, you can’t process nutrients, rid your body of toxic chemicals, or digest food. The liver also is the main organ used in the processing of any medications you may take. The liver is also used by the body to store some vitamins, minerals and sugars. Basically, a non functioning liver equals death, so it is very important to maintain a healthy diet and monitor your intake of certain vitamins if you have liver problems.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is an antioxidant that assists the liver in its detoxification the body, as well as reducing any inflammation of the liver that may be present. Vitamin C is not stored in the body, so it is important to have it included in your diet daily. Citrus fruits and green peppers are a good dietary source of Vitamin C, and it is available as a dietary supplement on its own or as part of a multivitamin.

The B Complex Vitamins

The B Complex group of vitamins are important for many bodily functions, not the least those of the liver. Vitamin B3, or niacin, assists the liver in its digestive functions, and has a role in the energy production of cells, including liver cells. Vitamin B9, or folic acid, aids in cell repair. These vitamins are present in most cereals, and in over the counter multivitamins.

Vitamin K

While Vitamin k deficiency is rare, it often occurs in people with liver problems. Vitamin K is necessary for the liver to produce blood clotting factors, which are essential for good health. Green, leafy vegetables, such as spinach, kale, and romaine lettuce are good sources of vitamin K.

Vitamin A

While Vitamin A is an important part of basic nutrition, it is toxic to the liver in large doses. Therefore, it is important for those with liver problems to monitor their intake of this vitamin and to avoid over the counter vitamin supplements which have “mega doses” of vitamin A.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E, like Vitamin C, is an antioxidant. Vitamin E helps the liver with detoxification. It also is toxic to the liver in large doses, so high intake of this vitamin should be avoided if you have liver problems.

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Vitamins are essential to healthy skin. A vitamin deficiency is known to cause dry and itchy skin. Vitamin A has been found to be the most important vitamin for healthy skin. Other vitamins like Potassium, Sodium, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, and Vitamin B are also important for healthy skin. Understanding the vitamins necessary for healthy skin can help you balance your diet properly to avoid and/or resolve skin problems as well as maintain your overall health.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A is essential for cell growth especially skin cells. It also helps with night vision, bone growth and the immune system. Not enough vitamin A will lead to skin, hair, nail and eye problems. The recommended dosage for vitamin A ranges from 300mg to 1300mg depending on your health and age. The Beta Carotene is easily absorbed but too much of the retinol form of vitamin A can cause problems such as , dry skin and headaches. Good sources of vitamin A include: Carrots, peas, apricots, kale, spinach, pumpkin, squash, oranges and liver.

Potassium

Potassium is necessary for all bodily functions. It is the most abundant mineral in the body. It is necessary for proper cell growth and function. A deficiency of potassium may contribute to dry itchy skin. In addition to proper cell function potassium helps regulate fluids in the body and deficiency can lead to dehydration and contribute to dry skin. Good sources of potassium are potatoes, Squash, Peaches, Bananas, and Tomatoes.

Sodium

Sodium helps keep the body hydrated and sustain the delicate balance of electrolytes essential to efficient functioning. There is an inverse connection between Potassium and Sodium, when Potassium is high sodium is low and vice versa. A proper balance is necessary for healthy skin and a proper balance is best achieved through a balanced healthy diet.

Vitamin D

Many people have Vitamin D deficiencies because we protect ourselves from the sun which is a primary source of vitamin D. There are foods with vitamin D such as Milk, but most of us do not consume enough vitamin D to make up for the deficiency. A vitamin D deficiency can cause chronic dry skin, If you suffer from chronic dry skin try a vitamin D supplement, the most effective ones will have vitamin D3.

Vitamin E

Antioxidant qualities of vitamin E will protect skin cells from elements that produce free radicals. This is of course important for cells to remain healthy. Vitamin E helps to regulate vitamin A which helps to keep skin healthy. Vitamin E helps keep skin young looking by reducing fine lines and wrinkles and eliminating free radicals which age the skin. Vitamin E helps protect against the harmful effects of sun light and as a result also protects against skin cancer.

Vitamin B

There are eight vitamins in the B complex and several other substances. Vitamin B is important to healthy skin for a number of reasons: it helps maintain healthy skin tone; fights acne; it improves circulation and metabolism which help ensure nutrients get to the skin; it is also an antioxidant.

Conclusion

Making sure you get the right vitamins is essential for healthy skin. If you suffer from dry skin try changing your diet to make sure you get the right balance of vitamins. If necessary take supplements, you might be pleasantly surprised at how quickly your condition clears up.

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Vitamins for hair; I’ve tried a lot of them hoping to get thicker, faster growing, shiny-soft glamorous hair. Some seemed to help, but wound up giving me faster growing nails. I never thought about vitamins or vitamin combinations that could let you say goodbye to gray hair. Dying hair does a lot of damage that isn’t apparent at first. It can make your hair fall out and make it look extremely dry and burned up. Gray hair comes early for some and the Adrenal Glands could very well be responsible. When the body is lacking in Pantothenic Acid it in turn causes the Adrenal Glands to malfunction.
Here’s what cold happen:

Hair turns gray, stress levels rise, allergies develop and can cause sore scratchy throats, and uneasy breathing, fatigue steps in, muscles lose strength, uric acid explodes, gout shows up, some forms of arthritis occur, and tempers flare.

If you go to the doctor for treatment of Adrenal Gland mishaps they might prescribe Cortisone not considering an overworked Adrenal gland to be the cause of any of the above problems. Healthy bodies produce Cortisone to fight stress. People who do not produce any Cortisone will pass out from a good scare because they can’t handle any stress. Abraham Lincoln was said to have taken Cortisone because his body couldn’t produce it. A swelled puffy face and facial hair in women are some of the side effects of Cortisone. All of that can be avoided by taking Pantothenic Acid and it won’t cause all the grueling side effects. You might want to consider that stress quickly depletes Pantothenic Acid from the body. If after a stressful situation you can calm down enough for stress levels to remain low the body can produce Pantothenic Acid in twenty-four hours.

Pantothenic Acid does more than keep the Adrenal Cortex safe from harm. It can thwart off Alzheimer’s by keeping cognitive abilities sharp. It maintains the water amount and digestive efficiency of our bodies and it guards against nerve deterioration.

Look for Pantothenic Acid in peanuts, liver, brewer’s yeast, wheat germ, royal jelly, and egg yolks. Anywhere from five to 1000mg have been taken daily with no toxicity.

Para-Amino-Benzoic Acid or long for PABA is another B Vitamin said to change gray hair back to its natural color. PABA has been used to treat Vitiligo, a condition where patches of skin lose color. Lack of Hydrochloric Acid is thought to be another factor in which Vitiligo may emerge.

PABA is used in a variety of ways such as sunburn and cancer protection when topically applied. It has been used in the treatment of eczema and other skin eruptions.

PABA is found in eggs, molasses, whole-wheat. Brewer’s yeast, yogurt, liver, eggs, and milk. Raise the warning flags on taking too much PABA in supplement form for it may cause kidney, liver, and heart problems. 30mg of PABA seems to be a safe dose to take every day.

Biotin frequents multi-vitamins and hair, skin, and nail mixes. It is thought to restore health to hair. Certainly low levels of Biotin can make hair fall out, but so can stress. Check out this helpful B vitamin in rice, brewer’s yeast, soybeans, and liver.

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After a gastric bypass surgery, you’ll need to take a number of vitamin and mineral supplements for the rest of your life. That’s because part of your small intestine has been bypassed, so you no longer absorb nutrients as well as you did before the surgery. It’s vitally important to take your vitamin and mineral supplements faithfully, because serious health problems can result from vitamin and mineral deficiencies.

Following are the most commonly recommended supplements. In addition to these, other supplements may be prescribed for you by your doctor based on the results of your blood tests. Blood work should be done periodically to make sure you are getting all the vitamins and minerals you need.

Multivitamin

Most bariatric doctors and dietitians recommend you take a multivitamin twice daily. Chewable vitamins are usually recommended, as they are more easily absorbed. Also, especially right after your surgery, large vitamin tablets can get “stuck” if swallowed whole.

Centrum makes a chewable vitamin for adults, but I personally don’t like the taste of it. Both Celebrate and Bariatric Advantage make chewable vitamins specially designed for gastric bypass patients. I like the mandarin orange flavored ones from Celebrate.

Both Celebrate and Bariatric Advantage will send you free samples of their multivitamins and other nutritional supplements if you email them and ask. That way you can find the one you like best.

Some people take Flintstones children’s vitamins, since they are chewable. Some doctors and dietitians even recommend them. However, they are designed for children, not for adults, especially not adults who have malabsorbtion issues due to weight loss surgery. They will not provide the nutrients you need.

Calcium

There are two kinds of calcium, calcium carbonate and calcium citrate. Calcium citrate is much more easily absorbed and it is the kind of calcium you should be taking. Make sure you read the label to make sure you are getting the right kind. Some people take Tums or a similar product for the calcium, but that is calcium carbonate, and won’t meet your nutritional needs.

You may have trouble finding calcium citrate in the grocery store. Health food stores will certainly have it, or you can order it online. Again, you can get free samples from Celebrate and/or Bariatric Advantage.

You should not take your calcium supplements with iron (if you are taking an iron supplement). They interfere with each other. Leave at least two hours time in between the two.

Vitamin B-Complex

B vitamins are some other nutrients you won’t absorb as well after a gastric bypass. You’ll need to take a B-complex supplement. You can find these at any grocery store. They usually come in a tablet, but the smell and taste of the tablet upset my stomach. I found some B-complex vitamins in a capsule from Bariatric Advantage. They are small capsules and have no smell or taste, and they sit much better with me.

Vitamin B12

B12 is another vitamin you won’t absorb as well. While a B-complex will contain some B12, it won’t be enough. You’ll need a B12 supplement as well.

B12 supplements come in many forms. There is a sublingual (under the tongue) form, which you dissolve under your tongue each day. There is a nasal spray that you use once a week. There is also a patch, which is worn once a week for 24 hours. Finally, there are injections you can take once a month.

The body stores vitamin B12 for a long time, which is why some forms only need to be taken weekly or even monthly. You can choose whichever form is most convenient for you.

Iron

An iron supplement is recommended for menstruating women or anyone who shows signs of anemia on blood tests. Iron should be taken with vitamin C to aid absorption. Remember not to take your iron supplement along with your calcium supplement, but to leave at least two hours between the two.

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My husband suffers from internal and external hemorrhoids. Internet searches yielded interesting information. Vitamin P, or Rutin, a phytonutrient, anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and free radical scavenger, also relieves hemorrhoids. Rutin known also as Vitamin P, isn’t a true member of the vitamin family, but it is a bioflavinoid.

Rutin is found naturally in plant sources such as apricots, cherries, prunes and the soft inner rinds of citrus fruits. Buckwheat also contains rutin. Buckwheat is a plant, but not a grain or cereal plant. Buckwheat is more commonly eaten as groats. The Japanese make noodles from buckwheat also.

As a bioflavinoid anti-oxidant, rutin (vitamin P) acts on the circulatory system to strengthen blood vessels, especially the tiny capillaries in the eyes. Rutin is very effective in easing bleeding and circulation problems, such as glaucoma, cataracts, varicose veins, hemorrhoids, canker sores in the mouth, poor circulation, cirrhosis, even hay fever.

Rutin, or Vitamin P, as an anti-inflammatory, works very well to reduce swelling. Hemorrhoids are caused when delicate blood vessels inside and near the rectum and anus swell and bulge. Hemorrhoids are terribly painful. Hemorrhoids burn, itch and ache.

Having suffered with hemorrhoids for almost 30 years, off and on, my husband has tried all the over-the-counter creams, ointments and pads. At one point, he even had hemorrhoid surgery to remove to repair the worst hemorrhoids. With this most recent bout of hemorrhoids, my husband has had little or no relief. Even the tried and true home remedies, such as topical witch hazel, oral colloidal silver and goldenseal and Sitz baths brought no relief of hemorrhoids. An internet search led us to try rutin for which we had high hopes, primarily because it was a natural supplement. Taking rutin supplements has greatly reduced my husband’s hemorrhoid symptoms. He now swears by rutin (vitamin P) for hemorrhoids.

Rutin is available at health food stores and many large grocery stores. For maximum effectiveness, rutin is best taken with vitamin C. Cost for rutin is about $12.99 for one hundred rutin capsules. Visit Amazon.com for best price comparison of Rutin online.

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Vitamin K is one of the critical components in your blood that ensures you have proper clotting. Without it, you would likely hemorrhage and die.

Blood clotting is a complex bodily function, requiring the action of at least a dozen different proteins and calcium as well as vitamin K. (Hemophilia is not related to vitamin K deficiency; it is, rather, caused by the body’s inability to create several of these proteins.)

A lack of vitamin K also contributes to the bone fractures tht so often plague the elderly. If you don’t have enough vitamin K, one protein bone cells normally produce that adds strength to their stucture is synthesized incorrectly, leading to faulty bones or bone sections that are brittle. And researchers are starting to realize that we know less about vitamin K than we thought we did; it functions in a variety of other protein synthesis reactions affecting many different organs and organ systems.

Fortunately, vitamin K deficiency is rare. Our bodies don’t produce it directly, as we can with vitamin D, but the bacteria in our large intestines do produce it. This means that only a few people are at risk for deficiency: infants, people with intestinal disorders, and the like. Infants are most at risk; not only do they not have the critical bacteria (intestinal flora aren’t established for several weeks after birth), but they also have a number of other factors that create a clotting or hemorrhagic danger. To prevent this, most newborns are given oral or injected vitamin K as a supplement. Some people have questioned the possiblity of this leading to cancer in the baby, but research shows this to be unlikely.

It is rare that people get too much vitamin K, but if you’re recommended for some reason to take vitamin K supplements, it can happen. Toxicity results in dangers like jaundice, increased chance of blood clotting, and even brain damage. Those who are taking anticoagulants are at the most increased risk of suffering harm from too much vitamin K; the vitamin interferes with proper action of these drugs.

The Least You Should Know

Fat-soluble, so must be taken with a meal or a glass of milk. Most people don’t need to take anysupplements, as their intestinal bacteria provide all they need.
Adult RDA: 120 micrograms/day
Max recommended dose: Unknown, but probably no more than the recommended RDA unless
advised otherwise by a doctor.

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Vitamin A intake is a natural way to achieve healthy skin. Many people, young and old, are interested in maintaining beautiful and healthy skin. A great way to have wonderful skin is to make sure you eat the proper amount of foods that contain vitamin A. Get this into your regular diet and you will receive the results you desire.

Vitamin A is an antioxidant that influences healthy skin and protect your body against certain dangers. There are many vitamin A benefits. Things like free radicals, radiation, and tobacco smoke are harmful to your body. The vitamin A guards cells in your body against potential damage caused by these free radicals. A deficiency in vitamin A may cause skin to become dry and rough. It reduced the appearance of wrinkles and brown spots caused from sun exposure and aging.

Keratinocytes are cells in your body that contribute to healthy skin. Keratinocytes have a large amount of protein called keratin. The surface of the skin contains dead keratinocytes, which sheds over time, uncovering newer cells below. Vitamin A benefits the body by supporting these cells in your skin. It supports the skin by directing their growth and development.

Melanocytes are pigment cells that promote healthy skin color. Vitamin A promotes healthy development of melanocytes and healthy skin pigmentation. These cells in your skin are important for protection against ultraviolet rays. New skin pigmentation must be produced by melanocytes after exposure to ultraviolet rays.

The best way to achieve and sustain healthy skin is to eat foods that contain vitamin A or other vitamins that contribute to the overall health of your skin. Foods that contain vitamin A include certain fruits and vegetables, eggs, meat, and dairy products. Raw carrots, mustard greens, spinach, bell peppers, and sweet potatoes are several vegetables that are an excellent source of Vitamin A. Apricots, watermelons, grapefruits, plums, and oranges are great fruit sources of vitamin A. Calf liver, whole milk, and eggs are great animal sources of vitamin A.

A great way to have healthy skin is to consume the proper amount of vitamin A each day. Each person is recommended a specific amount of vitamins in micrograms (mcg) of Retinol Activity Equivalents (RAE) or International Units (IU). Men are recommended to intake 900 mcg RAE or (3,000 IU) and women 700 mcg RAE or (2,310 IU) of vitamin A every day. Consume the recommended amount of vitamin A each day and enjoy healthy skin and a healthier body!

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Did you know that your skin is the largest organ within your body, and its primary responsibility is to protect your body from outside elements as well as connecting you with the world? Over time, the top layer of your skin begins to thin, which results in a reduction of elasticity. While the current beauty and skincare market is full of products that claim they can enhance your beauty and “turn back time,” many of these claims are nothing more than advertising hype.

Proponents of vitamin E proclaim this vitamin can help restore the elasticity of your skin while also enhancing the overall beauty of this organ. While there are studies currently underway to determine the truth behind this statement, upon publication scientific data is not available to fully support the effectiveness of vitamin E for skin elasticity repair.

What is Vitamin E?

Vitamin E is one of the most potent antioxidant vitamins currently known by scientists, and this fat-soluble vitamin is available in eight forms; however, the research has found that alpha-tocopherol is the most potent form of this vitamin within the human body.

The primary role of vitamin E is to protect your body’s cells from ROS, or reactive oxygen species. ROS is a naturally occurring phenomenon that occurs when your body converts food into energy. While this is natural process, it can disturb the functionality and health of bodily cells.

You may consume vitamin E through supplements as well as with dietary sources , and if you have excess vitamin E, any unused portions are stored within your liver and then released as your body needs it. It is suggested by the Office of Dietary Supplements that you should consume a total of 15 mg of vitamin E per day.

Vitamin E and Skin Elasticity

According to beauty expert Diane Irons, vitamin E antioxidants are able to enhance natural collagen production. This enhanced production of collagen helps to increase skin elasticity as well as reducing the visibility of scars and stretch marks. While natural health proponents claim that vitamin E can dramatically enhance the appearance of your skin, modern scientific studies have not found that the topical application of vitamin E enhances skin elasticity and appearance.

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Vegetable oil is not just for cooking. You may be aware of all the wonderful things in the kitchen you can do vegetable oil–from deep frying a Three Musketeers bar to baking a cake–but are you aware of all the other ways in which that bottle of vegetable oil can come in handy?

Car Wash

Adding just a few precious drops of oil to the water you use for washing your car can be of surprising help. Oil and water may not mix, but that doesn’t mean you can stir the bucket. Doing so will lend your cleaning efforts extra power in stripping away dirt that accumulates on the exterior of your vehicle.

Splinter Removal

Soak any body that will fit into a container filled with vegetable oil to assist with removing splinters. The vegetable oil will grease the machinery, so to speak, thus making removal of any splinter easier. The easier the removal of a splinter, the less painful and traumatic it will be. For the kids, I mean. For the kids.

Averting Barbecue Disaster

You’ve got the charcoal bricks all perfectly built into a pyramid and heaping helping of food just waiting to be grilled. What’s that? You just now realized that you ran out of lighter fluid! Put down those car keys and stay off the road; you already have a perfectly good alternative to lighter fluid in your kitchen. Douse the charcoal liberally with vegetable oil and strike a match. Voila! Your barbecue party is ready to go.

Winter Weather Helper

If you live in climates that get cold enough during the winter that your car door actually freeze shut, you can use the power of vegetable oil to make waking up to snow much less irritating. A light massage of the rubber gaskets that help prevent shutting car doors from doing damage to the frame will keep them from freezing shut. The vegetable oil will acts as a lubricant that obstructs the process of cold weather causing car doors to stick. The same principle can also be applied to your snow shovel. A coating of vegetable oil should make shoveling snow easier by reducing the tendency of snow sticking to it and weighing you down.

Egg Yolks Preservation

If for some reason you find yourself with a surplus of egg yolks–for instance, if you only needed the egg whites for cooking purposes–you can keep them fresh and healthy for use for a few more days courtesy of vegetable oil. Place the egg yolks into a bowl and then apply a thin coating of vegetable oil over the top and then place in the refrigerator. You may still be able to use these egg yolks with no serious concern about contamination as long as four days later.

Sticky Locks

A lock that has become difficult to open with your key may be fixed by dipping the key in vegetable oil. Lubricating the key in this way can help with an older lock that has become more unforgiving than it used to be. Keys and locks can get worn down over time and create more friction during insertion. Vegetable oil can give the key a smoother ride into place.

Birdbaths

Birds really don’t mind a slick layer of vegetable oil on top of the water in your birdbath. Some may mind it more than others, but no bird is going to find the addition of vegetable oil as distasteful as mosquitoes will. If you find you are having trouble enjoying the yard as a result of mosquitoes, try adding a little vegetable oil to your birdbaths and any other spots containing still water as an effective mosquito repellent.

Zippers

Whether the problem is getting the zipper closed or pulling the zipper down, vegetable oil can come to the rescue. Use a cotton swab or a balled up piece of paper towel to apply the oil to your zipper, making sure as best you can not to stain the nearby fabric. Slowly work the zipper up and down, applying more oil as deemed necessary.

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So you have finally decided that this is the year you’ll plant a vegetable garden. If you do it right, you’ll probably have more vegetables than you can eat in one season. That is why it is important to know what vegetables freeze well and how to do it correctly. Freezing vegetables allows you to have fresh tasting vegetables all winter. It also helps reduce your grocery bill.

The majority of freeze-worthy vegetables need to be blanched first. Blanching means to plunge the vegetables into boiling water for a few minutes, remove, and freeze. Before blanching, be sure to clean, peel, and cut your vegetables. You want to be able to take them from freezer, to stove, to table in the future with no worries. To blanch properly bring a large pot of water to boiling. Then take your prepped vegetables and put them in either a large hand-held strainer that you can lower into the water, or just drop them in by the handful. The water should begin to boil again within a minute. If it doesn’t, you are trying to blanch too many vegetables at one time. Follow the approximate times below for some common vegetables for blanching.

• Asparagus – 2 to 4 minutes depending on thickness
• Green Beans – 3 minutes
• Broccoli – 3 minutes
• Brussels Sprouts – 3 to 5 minutes depending on size
• Carrots – 3 minutes
• Cauliflower – 3 minutes
• Corn – Blanch for 3 to 6 minutes on the cob. Remove the kernels after blanching if desired
• Peas – 1 to 2 minutes
• Bell Peppers – 2 to 3 minutes or just freeze
• Zucchini – 3 minutes

Onions and tomatoes do not need to be blanched to be frozen. Onions can simply be chopped and frozen. Tomatoes need to be peeled, cored, cut, and dried slightly before freezing. Bell peppers are an optional vegetable for blanching. If you want to blanch them follow the guidelines above or just prep them and freeze. Once you have blanched for the recommended times, place the vegetables into ice water to stop the cooking process. After they’ve cooled, let them dry and then pack them into freezer bags or containers. You can dry them easily by just laying paper towels onto a baking sheet and laying the vegetables on them. Make sure to squeeze all of the air out of freezer bags before freezing. Most vegetables will keep for up to six months.

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Austin, Texas offers a few notable vegetarian/vegan restaurants in a wide range of styles and cuisines.

Bodhi Cafe Downtown

Bodhi offers not only foods and juices, they support the full body wellness following with yoga studios, showers, massage rooms and even a boutique. Their farm to table food concept supports the local economy since they purchase all locally grown, organic products when possible. They cater to any eating program including vegetarian, vegan, low fat, low carb, and gluten free. Chef Dan Ost is a certified organic chef with over 25 years experience. he brings his knowledge and skill to all they serve at their restaurants. Their menu features salads, sandwiches, smoothies, juices and organic, fair trade coffee. The favorite dishes are apple pecan chicken salad and Buddha bowl which is vegetable and brown rice.

Casa De Luz

Casa De Luz is open 7 a.m.-8:30 p.m. daily and offers not only food but a vegetarian culinary school, Tai Chi and Macrobiotic classes among other interests. Their menu changes daily so you must check their website. casadeluz.org. This restaurant is considered to be the epitome of vegan/vegetarian eating in the Austin area.

Veggie Heaven

This tiny, modest restaurant advertises ‘vegetarian cuisine with an oriental flavor’. They offer a huge menu of a variety of dishes including steamed buns in vegan, curry and sweet, spring rolls of various types both steamed and fried, white noodles vegetarian style and Kung Pao chow mien. All at very modest prices of under $10. Also be sure to check their popular ‘bubble teas’ in over 25 flavors and combinations for $2.50. Be sure to get the tapioca included. Hours are Mon.-Fri 11-9 p.m., Sat and Sun. 12-9 p.m.

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The Boston area is full of soul food restaurants that serve traditional southern fare. From sweet cornbread to juicy barbecue ribs, these soul food restaurants cook it up right. As a result, you get a mouthful of flavor when you visit them. So which soul food restaurants are the best in the Boston area? Below are the top three spots. These soul food restaurants are the ones everyone in town (and on the Internet) rave about and, as a result, are worth a try.

CHEF LEE’S SOUL FOOD

Chef Lee’s Soul Food restaurant is one of the most popular spots in Boston area. It has a lot to do with their mac-and-cheese, savory collard greens and fried chicken. These folks know how to put the extra “oomph” in a plate of food that makes you want to eat a second helping. The atmosphere is family-friendly. You will actually see famous African-American photos along the walls as well as Chef Lee’s own family. Go to Chef Lee’s Soul Food restaurant when you are ready to blow your diet and feel justified afterward.

MAGNOLIA’S SOUTHERN CUISINE

Magnolia’s Southern Cuisine is a New Orleans themed restaurant that offers up authentic soul food that makes you want to slap your mama. From their jambalaya to black-eyed peas, everything is seasoned well and full of flavor. The atmosphere is casual and fun for the entire family. It is set off of a busy avenue, so keep this in mind as you travel up their street. What should you try? Save room for their sticky pecan pie. It’s the kind of dessert that’ll will melt in your mouth.

DICK’S LAST RESORT

Located in the historic Quincy Market, Dick’s Last Resort is the kind of restaurant that serves soul food designed to fill up your belly. Dick’s environment is lively and fun. So, it’s a great place to host a party at. Also, their food is slathered with every kind of sauce imaginable guaranteeing a need for a bib or wet wipe. Therefore, it’s not the restaurant you visit if you are afraid to get dirty. What’s should you try? They serve a great slab of BBQ ribs and honey roasted BBQ chicken. You won’t go wrong with either of these dishes.

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The best seafood restaurants in Atlanta, Georgia, offer casual, romantic to fine dining opportunities. Tantalize your taste buds as you savor some awesome shrimp, crab and lobster dishes.

Six Feet Under Pub & Fish House

Acclaimed as the “Best of Juke Box” in 2004, this pub and fish house stands on the “the original stick-frame structure that was built in the 1920’s” although the restaurant was remodeled in the 1950s.

With two locations in Atlanta, the restaurant serves steamed shellfish that includes its Signature Six Feet Under Steamer consisting of steamed oysters, shrimp, snow crab legs, mussels, clams, sausage served with corn on the cob, hush puppies and new potatoes on the side.

Guests enjoy a wide variety of salads, soups, appetizers, along with platters of tuna, shrimp, scallops, blackened shrimp tacos, Georgia fried catfish and many more. Indulge in fried seafood entrees served with home-style chips, jalapeno tartar sauce and hush puppies.

Six Feet Under’s drink menu features its house specials like lemonade, Bloody Mary, Tombstone Tea and an exhaustive list of margaritas, beer, wines, martinis and oyster shooters.

Atlanta Fish Market

The Atlanta Fish Market beckons travelers with an upscale-casual ambiance, a 65-feet copper fish sculpture in front of the restaurant, a train station styled building, wide veranda and rocking chairs. The Geeche Crab Lounge adjoining the restaurant offers five television sets that make it an ideal place to unwind and watch the game with a group of friends. Lunch is served Monday through Friday, while dinner is available ever night.

Awarded the “Best Seafood” by Atlanta Magazine, the restaurant serves the largest selection of fresh seafood in the Southeast. According to their website, “The menu is printed twice daily to accommodate the freshest seafood available.” Apart from the day’s catch, the restaurant also offers sushi rolls, salads and several pasta entres. The Atlanta Fish Market also offers a wine and bar menu.

Ray’s in the City

Ray’s Group features three seafood restaurants in Atlanta. Among them is the Ray’s in the City, commended as the “World’s Best Seafood Restaurant “by the Delta Sky Magazine.

Along with a lunch, dinner and a side bar menu, this upscale restaurant offers a sushi and oyster bar, which features “freshly shucked oysters that are flown in daily from the East Coast, Gulf and West Coast.” Signature dishes highlight Ray’s “New Orleans” BBQ shrimp, chilled seafood tower, Ray’s 25th Anniversary salad, hand-cut steaks and jumbo crab cake. A live entertainment is performed every Friday through Sunday.

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I hear this cliché from out-of-towners way too often: “LA is full of artificial, shallow social climbers.” Really? So is Manhattan, so is Buckhead, so is South Beach. You came here and went to Geisha House, Pink Taco, and the Beverly Center and you think you’re qualified to speak on who Angelinos are or what LA is about? Sit down……

LA is a diverse city full of all kinds of people. Immigrants from all over the world come to LA to build new lives for themselves in America and get a piece of the American Dream. Communities with roots all over the globe have become established here. Domestic migrants from the South, the Midwest, and the Northeast came here to find industrial jobs in the 1930s and defense industry jobs in the 40s and 50s. Los Angeles County is home to the busiest port facilities in the U.S. Those people eat somewhere, and it’s not the same places the “Real” Housewives of Beverly Hills or the vapid blondes from The Hills eat. Here is a list of, in my opinion, the top 25 places to eat real LA food and see real LA people in the Greater Los Angeles area.

Philippe the Original

Philippe’s is an old school sandwich stand on the northern end of downtown, within walking distance of Union Station, Chinatown, and the LA Men’s Central Jail and Central Courthouse. Known for its famous French Dipped sandwiches, Philippe’s serves up coffee for 9 cents and some pretty damn good pies, along with a great cross-section of the LA characters.

Roscoe’s House of Chicken n’ Waffles

I almost hesitate to put Roscoe’s on the list. I will, however, but with this caveat. NOT THE GOWER LOCATION. That’s for tourists and the Hollywood crowd. The “realness” of Roscoe’s cannot be found at that location. Granted, they still make great fried chicken and the awesomest waffle ever made. But if you want to get an authentic Los Angeles Roscoe’s experience, you gotta go to one of the other ones. My personal favorite is the Long Beach location, at 730 E Broadway in Long Beach. If you’re near the airport, you might be happy to know that Roscoe’s has now opened a sixth location at La Brea and Manchester in Inglewood. Roscoe’s is a STAPLE for black Angelinos and its popularity has spread to Angelinos of all races, colors and creeds. And you won’t find better chicken and waffles anywhere, I promise.

McDonald’s

MCDONALDS?!??!?! DID HE SAY MCDONALDS?!?! This isn’t just any McDonald’s though, folks. This is the oldest continually operating McDonald’s in the world, opened by Ray Kroc himself. You’d think it would get some tourist traffic, right? WRONG. Tourists don’t know where Downey is. Downey is a middle to working-class, primarily Chicano, suburb in Eastern LA County that is, honestly, unremarkable aside for this McDonald’s. And the giant Downey Studios complex where tons of movies you love are shot on soundstages – the facility used to be an aircraft factory in the heyday of LA’s aviation industry.

In N Out

Did he really list another fast food place? Yes I did. In-N-Out is a SoCal original, and, for my money, the best damn fast food burger chain in the country. And this is its first location, right here in unspectacular Baldwin Park, another primarily Chicano suburb east of Downtown LA in the San Gabriel Valley along I-10. Getcha some!

King Taco

In a city known for its taco trucks, taco carts, taco shops, and just tacos in general, King Taco is probably the only taco chain worth talking about. King Taco serves up a good, authentic taco and will usually only be found in a good, authentic part of the Ciudad. I’d recommend trying the location on Soto and Cesar Chavez Avenue, in Boyle Heights, in the heart of Chicano Los Angeles.

Langer’s Delicatessen

Located across the street from landmark MacArthur Park on one of the busiest intersections in the city, Langer’s Deli is an LA landmark, having operated here since 1947. The neighborhood around Langer’s has changed significantly, but Langer’s continues to be known as one of the best pastrami sandwiches in the city. And the people-watching opportunities to be had on the corner of 7th and Alvarado are unrivaled. You won’t see a lot of Hollywood types down there.

Hawkins House of Burgers

That’s right, I said Watts. I’d argue no neighborhood in LA has as colorful a history as this little pocket of Southeast Los Angeles. It was in Watts where America’s largest civil unrest of the 60’s took place. It was also in Watts where Crip and Blood gangs called a truce in the aftermath of the 1992 riots. In a neighborhood known for a history of poverty, unrest and gang warfare, two monuments to the creativity and spirit of man are worth coming to Watts for: the iconic Towers of Simon Rodia, and the hamburgers at Hawkins House of Burgers. Hawkins builds burgers that, unlike the towers, cannot stand up on their own; greasy, sloppy disasters that will inevitably end up getting all over the place. Hawkins also makes some of the best chili cheese fries in the city. While this community treasure has gained a lot of popularity with Yelpers and hipsters in recent years, it’s far enough from Silver Lake and the Westside to be too overcrowded with the newcomers, and chances are that the people you meet at Hawkins will also be Watts originals.

Sakura Japanese Restaurant

Los Angele is full of great sushi restaurants and popular sushi restaurants. A few places can actually be both at the same time and still keep an authentic neighborhood feel and a true local customer base. Sakura is one of those places. Located in the working class Mar Vista/Del Rey pocket of the otherwise affluent Westside, Sakura serves up GREAT sushi in an unassuming atmosphere with friendly service to crowds of laid back Westsiders who are bypassing the trendy scenes of Abbot Kinney and Downtown Culver City and looking for a good meal.

Woody’s Barbecue

Woody’s Barbecue is another cornerstone eatery of LA’s black community. A mainstay on the corner of Crenshaw and Slauson (arguably the geographic epicenter of black Los Angeles) for decades, Woody’s has recently expanded operations to downtown Inglewood. While “best barbecue in LA” is certainly a title that is up for grabs and subject to neighborhood and family loyalties, Woody’s is ALWAYS part of the debate.

Phillip’s Barbecue

Phillips and Woody’s are probably the 1 and 1A of top barbecue spots in Los Angeles west of the 110 freeway. Phillips serves up delicious barbecue from three locations around Southwestern Los Angeles and Inglewood. If you’re a fan of really heavily sauced barbecue, Phillips is probably your best bet, while Woody’s is less sauce and more smoke. Either place you go, you’ll meat real LA people and you’ll get a real LA meal brought to you by the sons and daughters of the men and women who left the Jim Crow South to assist the US war effort in the 1940’s.

Fisherman’s Outlet

Fisherman’s Outlet is almost completely unknown to the Hollywood crowd, but a hit amongst cops, truck drivers and the blue-collar crowd around the southern end of downtown LA. Located near skid row in the warehouse district, most locals who have made the trek agree that this place has the best fish in LA. Nothing fancy, nothing ostentatious at all about it, just good fish at a good price in a part of town where people earn their living the hard way.

Tito’s Tacos

Tito’s Tacos makes the best “fake” tacos in Los Angeles. Another Westside mainstay, Tito’s serves up crunchy shell tacos and pretty decent burritos right next to a freeway over pass on the border between Culver City and the Mar Vista section of LA. While there is always a line at Tito’s, their ordering process is very streamlined and you’ll often get your tacos in a relatively short amount of time. Tito’s has also given LA one of its best-known local commercial jingles: “the only thing better than a Tito’s taco, is TWO!”

Kogi

In a city known for its mobile eateries, ranging from the warehouse-district roach coaches and taco trucks to the popular gourmet trucks like the Shrimp Pimp and Nom Nom, Kogi is the king of the food trucks. Kogi, serving up Korean-Mexican food, or Korean food served Mexican style (BBQ shortrib burrito, anyone?), is actually a mini-fleet of four trucks that operate five days a week, making up to three stops a day all over Los Angeles and Orange counties. Kogi is a hit with Angelinos of all stripes: actors, producers and screenwriters, construction workers, college students, surfers, hipsters, stoners and gang members. And while the novelty and trendiness certainly hasn’t hurt Kogi’s popularity, Kogi serves up some of the best tasting food you will ever put in your mouth. Go to their website or follow their twitter, find them, enjoy the wait in line, and enjoy the food.

Kings Hawaiian Local Place Bakery and Café

This little spot, adjacent to the large King’s Hawaiian bread factory/industrial bakery, is a local gem for the lunch break crowd. When I worked in nearby Torrance, I got a teriyaki chicken and Kailua pork mix plate from here at least once a week. Cops from the Torrance PD, LA County Sheriff’s Office, LAPD and California Highway Patrol are always here, along with EMT’s and firefighters, so you know it’s good. They also serve up amazing baked goods, including the layered “Paradise” cake. Yummmmmmmmm…….

Oki’s Dog

Oki’s Dog is the poor man’s Pink’s, and I mean that in the best possible way. Instead of standing in line with tourists and Hollywood elites to order hot dogs named for actors, you wait in line with people waiting for Comedy Union to open or who didn’t want to wait for a table at Roscoe’s and order hot dog creations that have no business in your stomach. The Oki Dog, itself, is a double chili dog wit pastrami wrapped in a tortilla. This is the kind of food you have to look forward to.

Lucy’s Drive In

Lucy’s Drive In serves up Mexican and American classics 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to the people of Mid-City and the Pico-Union and never fails to satisfy. Their extensive drive-thru menu includes numbered meals up into the 80’s, everything from a classic American breakfast or a cheeseburger to a carne asada burrito or an enchilada. Lucy’s is the BEST place to eat when you’ve been out drinking around the Hollywood Blvd crowd and you decide you need something real in your stomach to soak up those overpriced drinks but you don’t want to wait for a table at Mel’s with all the overdressed drunk girls who came up from San Diego for the weekend. The locations are usually a bit sketchy at night but….well if you’re afraid of sketchy neighborhoods you wouldn’t really be paying attention to this list, anyway.

M&M’s Soul Food

This is another legendary black establishment in Los Angeles, a tradition for black Angelinos. M&M’s soul food, however, has not reached the same level of fame among celebrities and tourists as has Roscoe’s, probably due to the fact that most M&M’s are in neighborhoods that celebs and tourists don’t go. They serve a great bowl of grits and a damn good fried pork chop, and no snobby bullshit or waiting hours for a table. Just good food, quickly, for not a lot of money, around people who aren’t trying to do anything more than eat a good meal quickly for not a lot of money.

Johnnie’s Pastrami

Johnnie’s Pastrami is another local classic, first opening its doors (at the Culver City location) in 1952. Johnnie’s serves up pastrami sandwiches, French dip, burgers, fries and pickles to a pretty sizeable cross-section of Angelinos from its two locations, and keeps a 50’s roadside diner kind of feel. It’s sort of like Johnny Rockets with better food and servers who aren’t in high school.

The Serving Spoon

The Serving Spoon might serve up one of the best breakfasts in the Greater LA area, which is good, because that’s what the Serving Spoon does. Serving Spoon keeps odd hours, but the general rule is that it is not open for dinner, because they really don’t do dinner. But if you want the best grits, biscuits, and cheese eggs in town, stop by this little storefront joint and get you some.

Dinah’s Family Restaurant

Dinah’s is that place your dad always wants to go and read his newspaper and eat his coffee. Interestingly enough, they’re also the place with some of the best fried chicken and most awesome daily specials in town. Established in 1959, the restaurant offers original pricing once a year in an event that draws crowds of local residents numbering in the thousands, complete with a vintage car show and live DJ spinning oldies. Dinah’s is a classic diner. While the food is, aside from the chicken, unremarkable, it’s good, the service is friendly and the environment is unassuming. It’s like everything Denny’s could be if they had good food and didn’t suck.

Bludso’s Barbecue

It’s not really a trip into the heart of the REAL LA without hitting the CPT, straight up. This is the home of gangster rap, once – and perhaps still – the name most synonymous with American ghettos and all the attached stigmas and stereotypes. But Compton is much more than that. Compton is a center of industry and logistics, a proud, working-class city that was plunged into post-industrial crisis and has worked very hard to escape the ghosts of its impoverished, violent recent past. Bludso’s Barbecue has been around throughout all of that. Widely considered the best barbecue spot in Greater LA, Bludso’s serves up Texas-style ‘cue that has gained the attention of local food writers and bloggers in recent years. Despite its recent fame both in print and online, Bludso’s location in Compton ensures that the place is not going to become the next trendy hangout for wannabe starlets and struggling screenwriters.

Grand Central Market

Grand Central Market got its start as an agricultural market during the First World War, and while you can still buy fresh food and bok choy here, it’s really more of a giant food court nearly 100 years later. All sorts of cuisine are available for purchase and consumption here, and all of it is good – although none of it is great. It’s a great opportunity to grab a quick bite while exploring old Downtown LA and surround yourself with the people who make this city work every day.

Mitsuwa Marketplace

Mitsuwa Marketplace is a large grocery catering almost exclusively to the Japanese population of West Los Angeles that has carved out a niche in the Sawtelle neighborhood for generations. And while the grocery store is in itself something to behold, what gets Mitsuwa on this list is the food court. The food court offers sushi, teriyaki, udon, yakisoba…..and Ramen. And not that cheap, tacky crap that Americans think is Ramen, but REAL Japanese Ramen noodle soup. This is where Japanese-Americans and Japanese immigrants who know their cuisine come to get a quick Japanese meal and do their personal grocery shopping, not some contrived American-friendly sushi and Kobe steak spot for Hollywood producers and pretentious tourists.

Isaac’s Café

Isaac’s Café serves up the best carne asada in Los Angeles. Yeah, I said it. You would be hard pressed to find a better-marinated piece of carne asada in a city known for great Mexican food. This place is also perhaps the most salt-of-the-earth place you’ll ever find. Located in the “heart of the Harbor” Wilmington district, across the street from the Longshoremen’s Union hall, Isaac’s is a local legend that, despite serving up some of the best burritos in town for generations, still remains relatively unknown outside of the Harbor community. I almost feel wrong for giving up my secret, but I’m a man of the people. Isaac’s serves a burrito that is to die for and features no bullshit. Tortilla. Avocado. Tomato. Onion. Lots and lots of tender, tasty, marinated carne asada. No sour cream. No guacamole. Isaac owns the place, his kids work the register, and his wife and mom make the food in the back. The place is always full of REAL blue-collar Angelinos, especially the Longshoremen who man the docks at the busiest container port facilities in the United States. If you buy anything made in China (and you did today) it probably came into the US through the Ports of Los Angeles or Long Beach, and was probably taken off the ship and put on a truck by a longshoreman. And that longshoreman just might have had a belly full of Isaac’s.

A real LA burger stand

I tried and tried to pick just ONE classic LA burger stand, but I can’t. There’s too many and they’re all great. But you have not experienced LA until you’ve eaten at at least one. You could go the easy route and choose Fatburger or Tommy’s – both chains got their start as old-school burger stands – but please don’t. Find a place like Omega Burger, Fabulous Burger, Tam’s Burgers, etc. that has bulletproof glass and may or may not have indoor seating. These places are great. They serve up awesome burgers, great fries, and often serve up burritos, tacos, fried chicken, and other goodies as well. These are the backbone of the real LA food culture – the original fast food burgers. But, thank God, they haven’t gone the way of the major fast food chains and still understand that in LA, where you can’t get anywhere very fast anyway, we want some good food to sit in traffic with.

I hope you’ll give our fair city a shake and try out some real LA food with real LA people. If you eat at some of the places on this list and meet some of the people you’ll meet if you do, and you still don’t like us, well then you’re just a bad person and should stay in flyover country. We really don’t care, it’s 72 degrees and sunny. Peace.

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Despite boasting two major universities and several smaller ones in the immediate area, Ann Arbor looks like a ghost town after the bars close at two a.m. If you find yourself craving an omelet or a hot fudge sundae in the middle of the night, your dining options might seem slim if you don’t know where to look. Fortunately, a few late night diners stay open 24 hours to satisfy those late night urges.
Fleetwood Diner

Locals affectionately call this diner “The Fleetwood.” Located at 300 S. Ashley St. in Ann Arbor, this Airstream trailer converted into a restaurant is hard to miss. Don’t let its gritty appearance put you off, though. The Fleetwood is known far and wide for its excellent hippie hash, a generous potion of hash browns grilled with feta cheese and a wide assortment of vegetables. While the Fleetwood serves all the usual diner staples, it also offers vegetarian options such as tempeh Rueben sandwiches.

During the winter, seating space is extremely limited in this small diner. During their busy times, they do not offer refills on beverages and encourage diners not to linger. It’s not uncommon to bump elbows with strangers here, but it’s an excellent place to get to know your fellow late night eaters.

The Fleetwood is best experienced in the summer when diners can also be seated at the outdoor tables. The outdoor seating provides the added benefits of watching people on this busy street and feeding sparrows your leftover fries. Diners are also welcome to bring their well-behaved dogs to sit with them outside.

Denny’s

As far as 24 hour dining goes, Denny’s remains a late night staple. Every Midwest town seems to have a Denny’s, and Ann Arbor is no exception. You can find it at 3310 Washtenaw on the east side of Ann Arbor, right off US-23. Just look for the familiar yellow sign. The Ann Arbor Denny’s recently underwent a major remodeling, and the new interior features new wood paneling and coffee house-style light fixtures.

Despite the updated appearance, the menu has the same old Denny’s food. Burgers, fries, wings, and shakes can be very satisfying after a long night at the bar, but don’t expect any surprises here.

The one thing that sets Denny’s apart from the others is a consistently warm, attentive, late night wait staff. Even the other customers seem friendlier than most, although the weekend bar rush can get pretty rowdy.

Steak N Shake

More like a glorified fast food joint than a restaurant, there’s nothing terribly special about Steak N Shake. You can find this one at 4120 Ellsworth in Ypsilanti, right by the Ann Arbor Meijer on Carpenter Rd. The brightly lit interior shows every speck of dirt here, so fastidious eaters should avoid this place.

Fortunately for Steak N Shake, they do have a couple things going for them. First, the food comes out extraordinarily fast, so this is a good place to go in a hurry. Second, the milkshakes can’t be beat. If you’re in the mood for a half and half shake, or a shake drizzled in caramel and hot fudge, this is the place to go. The rest of the food isn’t anything to write home about, and the shoestring fries have to be eaten in clumps of three or four to feel like you’re eating anything at all.

Unlike dining at Denny’s, you just might have to hunt your server down for a second cup of coffee or threaten to break someone’s leg to get your shake. The service at Steak N Shake on the midnight shift is hit or miss, but mostly miss. Come here when Denny’s is closed for cleaning.

Double Eagle Coney Island

Before this 24 hour diner was the Double Eagle, it was known to locals as Yanni’s. After closing for over a year and reopening under new ownership, the place hasn’t changed much. You can find it at 533 W. Cross St., right across from Eastern Michigan University’s main campus in Ypsilanti.

The menu here is standard coney island fare, but not bad for a greasy spoon. The chili is even worth recommending. Because this diner is right across from campus, expect to be eating with drunk college kids and late night studiers.

Abe’s Coney Island

Abe’s has been around for as long as Ypsilanti can remember. It is located at 402 W. Michigan Ave. in Ypsilanti, right across the street from Eastern Michigan University’s College of Business. Decorated in Eastern’s colors, the diner obviously takes great pride in serving the community. Servers frequently know quite a bit about happenings on campus, and they often know the game scores before the school paper prints them the next day.

The food here is Greek coney island style, but the huge dinners feel like home cooking. This is the place to come if you want a heaping plate of good, cheap food. The waitstaff here runs like part of a well-oiled machine, as Abe’s is used to handling huge crowds of people on weekend nights. For a quieter late night dining experience, come during the week when the restaurant is much slower.

A word to the wise, though: Although Abe’s is considered perfectly safe during daylight hours, Abe’s is located in a rough neighborhood, and diners have to walk through a dark parking lot and past an alley to enter the restaurant. If the promise of excellent food can’t keep you away despite the late hour, take a buddy and use common sense.

Tios

Although Tios is only open 24 hours on the weekends, it is worth mentioning here because it is the only Mexican restaurant in the area that stays open late. Although there are three Tios in the Ann Arbor area, the only 24-hour one is at 2224 Washtenaw in Ypsilanti.

Tios’ claim to fame is its collection of over 200 hot sauces and salsas, many of which are made in house. The menu is standard Mexican fare, and locals are divided as to whether Tios serves the absolute best or the absolute worst Mexican food they’ve ever eaten. Because people either love it or hate it, you’d probably be best off deciding for yourself whether Tios is worth the trip.

Unlike the other 24-hour restaurants in the Ann Arbor area, Tios is the only one that is strictly non-smoking.

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Are you suffering from vitamin D overdose? In the past few months the media has been covering the importance of vitamin D. Many people are at risk for deficiency, but the symptoms are sometimes vague and mimic those of other conditions. However, there is a very real danger of overdose for someone who tries to swallow vitamin D supplements without consulting a doctor. A person suffering from pain, or one of the more serious diseases found to be linked to vitamin D deficiency, may try to cure himself with over the counter pills, and become very ill from too much vitamin D.

When my doctor told me about vitamin D, she prescribed the dosage I should take based on the results of my blood test. She warned me not to take more because of the many problems that can be caused, due to overdose, toxicity and interactions with other drugs. She also told me my vitamin D had to be balanced with the amount of calcium in my system. Effects of Vitamin D Overdose:

Vitamin D Overdose Can Cause Hypercalcemia

According the Merck website, regular ingestion of large doses of vitamin D can cause Hypercalcemia, or excess calcium in the blood. In turn this may cause bone loss, already a concern for many older women. Calcium deposits may form in soft tissue and eventually harden, leading to pain. This can also lead to very serious complications. Early symptoms may be nausea and vomiting. This may be followed by weight loss, excessive thirst and urination, weakness and fatigue. Hypercalcemia may also cause headache, dry mouth, and vertigo. Eventually too much vitamin D will cause damaged kidney function and calcium deposits on many of the organs within the body.

Vitamin D overdose in pregnant women can cause retardation in the baby

She should be very careful to not exceed her doctor’s recommendation, based on result s of her blood test.

Vitamin D overdose can cause nerve damage

Numbness, pain, pricking and hearing impairment can result from too much vitamin D.

Vitamin D Overdose can cause muscle damage

This can be as little as some pain, weakness, numbness, stiffness, and tingling. However it can be as severe as loss of reflexes or loss of muscle control and atrophy.

Vitamin D Overdose can cause urinary stones

These mineral stones may become quite large and painful and sometimes have to be surgically removed.

Vitamin D Overdose can cause less severe symptoms too

Too much vitamin D can cause sleepiness in the daytime, nausea, high blood pressure, skin irritation, and pain. Some of these are the same as symptoms of deficiency.

In the mistaken belief that vitamins are not harmful, a person may be tempted to take too much. If one is good, that does not mean that several are better. Vitamin D maintains the proper level of calcium and phosphorus in the blood. Too much can cause irreparable damage, and overdose may be more serious than the deficiency you are trying to correct. My doctor plans to monitor my vitamin D levels with blood tests and I plan to follow my doctor’s direction.

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I became extremely sick twelve years ago. I was in extreme pain, with bone-crushing fatigue, and my anxiety was in overdrive. I literally spent a year on my couch. I got up to go to the bathroom, get some food and twice a day I milked 2 goats. My doctors thought I was nuts and they almost had me convinced. I was diagnosed by a chiropractor with fibromyalgia. Giving a name to my ailment helped me psychologically, but not physically.

There was a point in time that I had the stamina to stay up for a couple of hours at a time. My mom took me to a woman who practiced alternative medicine. I had hair analysis done, and she put me on supplements. I took almost all of the supplements for many years. There was one that I did not take; I do not know why. I think I was just tired of swallowing “things”.

Two years ago, I started reading about vitamin D deficiency. In articles by Dr. Frank Lipkin and on Natural News, they explained the symptoms of vitamin D deficiency. Guess what? To my surprise and curiosity, a lot of the symptoms were like fibromyalgia. I went back through my paperwork and saw that the nurse had indeed told me to take vitamin D.

I ordered Bio-D-Mulsion from Biotics Research Corporation and started taking it. It was in liquid form, and each drop was 2,000 international units of vitamin D. I used 2-3 drops every day, along with magnesium, vitamin C and B-complex. Nothing is a quick fix when using supplements.

That next summer, I started fishing again. I had given it up because of pain and fatigue. I noticed that I felt better if I was out in the sunshine. I could fish all day and not be laid up on the couch for a week like previously. I started gardening with enthusiasm again that same summer. The difference was quite noticeable to my husband, family and friends.

I dreaded going into winter that year. I always have severe SAD (seasonal affective disorder) and depression. Imagine my complete disbelief when I failed to turn into an anxious, depressed hermit? I handled deaths, bad news, and stress like regular people. It did not throw me into a dark hole, and I did not have that constant black cloud hanging over my head.

The last two summers and winters have been the same. I still get what they call a fibro flare and have to go easy sometimes. I suffer pain and once in a blue moon, I still get panicky. Overall, my quality of life is better by at least 50 percent.

When I was asked by another fibromyalgia sufferer what had made such a stark difference, I had to think about the answer. Going back through the supplements, I remembered that I had started on vitamin D. The fact that I spent more time out in the sun had to play an immense part in my better health too. After all, the sun is said to be the best source of vitamin D.

I suffered many of my fibro symptoms as a kid. That lead me to remember that I could not drink milk as a baby, teen or adult. I was allergic to milk and given soybean formula instead. I worked long hard hours and was not on a healthy diet. When I had jobs, like raising outside hogs, I felt better. When the hog operations went to confinement facilities, I started feeling worse. Again the connection between my health and the sun and vitamin D is recognizable.

I am not suggesting that everyone with fibromyalgia will instantly regain their health with vitamin D. I am not a doctor, please check with yours before you start taking a new supplement. For me, vitamin D deficiency clearly played a monumental part in my health deterioration. Vitamin D has given me the chance to enjoy my life.

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I found out about Vitamin D deficiency very recently. I had been in the hospital a little more than 3 years ago for pneumonia. I was there for over a month with only two very short trips outside, in the shade no less.

All of a sudden, on the day I was to leave the hospital, I got very nauseous and I ended up vomiting a few times. I returned to the hospital emergency room several times over the last three years with uncontrollable vomiting where they would have to give me shot to stop vomiting. I began to have several bouts of diarrhea a week, my joints and muscles also starting aching all the time not to mention, I was having some anxiety and just could not get enough sleep. I never felt rested.

As far as the pain, anxiety and lack of rest, the doctors would say that maybe it is this or that, not really coming up with anything concrete despite the battery of tests I was put through. They suggested I reduce my stress and take some Motrin. I did but this didn’t help.

They kept telling me all of the stomach issues were due to all the antibiotics that I had been on. This certainly made some sense since antibiotics kill good bacteria in our digestive tracts. So I got some Probiotics from a friend who sells natural products and the stomach issues seemed to get somewhat better when I took several of them a day. But there were still several times a month that I was running to the bathroom for one reason or another.

The worse I felt, the less I went outside. The less I went outside, the worse I felt. I did not see the connection to not being outside and not feeling good until after I realized I had the Vitamin D deficiency.

At the beginning of 2008, I decided that I would feel better and I would go back to the doctor and insist they help me. They decided since my condition was not improving, they would send me to get a colonoscopy. I went in to have a series of tests before the procedure. I remember the doctor saying that my Calcium was a “little low” and that I should add a supplement. He did not mention that the level of Vitamin D in my system at the time was almost non-existent.

Basically when the colonoscopy was over, the doctor told me that I had a beautiful colon and nothing was wrong. I thought this was an unusual compliment but figured if anyone would know…………To this day, not one doctor has actually brought up that test result that indicated I was deficient in Vitamin D.

About a month after the exam, my symptoms returned with a vengeance for no particular reason. I signed up for the online service that my HMO provides and looked through every single test I had done in the last three years. To my surprise the Calcium that my doctor told me I was deficient in was actually just on the low side of normal and my Vitamin D registered at a 7. This is dangerously low. This was the only thing that looked off.

Could it be? Could this little vitamin that I had been deficient in be causing all these awful symptoms? YES!! I started taking Vitamin D supplements and everything started to get better. Within a week my stomach was almost back to normal and within a couple of weeks my muscles and joints were feeling better than they had in years.

Now let’s talk about the facts of Vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D is produced by your skin in response to exposure to ultraviolet radiation from natural sunlight. Through my own research, I found that Vitamin D deficiency is very common in people who are hospitalized for long periods of time like I was because of the lack of sun.

It can also occur in situations where there is little to no exposure to sunlight since it is really difficult to get an adequate amount through one’s diet. A person would have to drink about 10 glasses of milk a day to get the daily recommended amount. The deficiency can also be found in infants and the elderly who do not get a chance to be outside enough. It can occur in those with darker skin and those who live in northern countries. Anyone who covers their face and body when they go outside is also at risk.

Rickets may occur in children and Osteomalacia may occur in adults who are deficient in Vitamin D.

Symptoms of Vitamin D deficiency include muscle weakness, fatigue and non-specific type of aches and pains, not feeling rested when you have slept for an adequate amount of time, Fibromyalgia type symptoms, moodiness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, depression and anxiety. A person with a Vitamin D deficiency will notice the symptoms are usually more extreme in the winter.

Why are so many people deficient in Vitamin D these days? There are several factors that can be attributed to the lack of Vitamin D in recent years. First of all, how many of us work outside? Well, not nearly as many of us work outside as just a few decades ago. Also, it has been beat into most of our heads that we must avoid the sun like the plague because of skin cancer so we tend to steer clear of the sun as much as possible or use tons of sunscreen not knowing the terrible side effects of not getting enough sun. Despite what you have heard, all sun exposure is not bad, just use some common sense when you are going outside.

What is the best treatment for a Vitamin D deficiency? That is a good question. Reasonable exposure to natural sunlight is the best way to get Vitamin D. Most experts will tell you that 10-15 minutes in the sun with some skin uncovered is all that most of us need to get adequate Vitamin D. You may also need to add a supplement. Please ask your doctor how much you should be taking as you will get a different answer from everyone. I personally take 2000 IU on a day when I get plenty of sun. On days I do not get any sun or very little I will increase it to 3-4000 IU. Please note that these amounts are very high because I was very deficient and am still on the low side of normal.

There are certainly other reasons why you should be concerned about getting enough Vitamin D. Ever growing evidence suggests that the lack of Vitamin D may have dangerous effects. Multiple sclerosis, schizophrenia, high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, lung disease and heart disease are among numerous conditions which it is believed to play a vital role.

“The high prevalence of Vitamin D deficiency combined with the discovery of increased risks of certain types of cancer in those who are deficient, suggest that Vitamin D deficiency may account for several thousand premature deaths from colon, breast, ovarian and other cancers annually,” they say in the online version of the American Journal of Public Health.

I would encourage you to have your Vitamin D levels checked especially if you do not get enough sunshine. I would encourage anyone who has unexplained symptoms that are the same or similar to that of Vitamin D deficiency to be tested as well. Do you have similar symptoms but have a diagnosis and even with treatment aren’t feeling any better? If this is the case, get your Vitamin D checked. Even if none of these things are happening, it couldn’t hurt to have it checked!

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Do you reward yourself for losing weight? Did you know that building in a reward system can be motivating and can help you reach your weight loss goals? So, what kind of reward would be ideal for weight loss? It’s really up to you. Whatever floats your boat or pleases your fancy can be a reward on your way to your ultimate goal. You can reward yourself for every pound lost, every 5, 10, or 20 pounds lost, or any mini-goal you’ve set. If you have no idea what type of reward to set, here are several ideas that might work fine for you.

1. Reward your weight loss with a manicure or pedicure.
2. Reward your weight loss with a new book, music, or video game.
3. Reward your weight loss with a new workout video.
4. Reward your weight loss with a donation to your favorite charity.
5. Reward your weight loss with dinner at a restaurant that serves food on your plan.
6. Reward your weight loss with a new scented candle.
7. Reward your weight loss with $5 added to savings for each pound lost.
8. Reward your weight loss with a new garment or accessory for your wardrobe.
9. Reward your weight loss with a short vacation to the beach or mountains.
10. Reward your weight loss with a facial or new hairstyle.
11. Reward your weight loss by going to see a new movie or play.
12. Reward your weight loss with a total room makeover.
13. Reward your weight loss by visiting a day spa.
14. Reward your weight loss by attending a major sports activity.
15. Reward your weight loss with a visit to your favorite coffee spot.
16. Reward your weight loss by adopting a new family pet.
17. Reward your weight loss with a seasonal picnic at the park.
18. Reward your weight loss with a movie marathon.
19. Reward your weight loss with colorful new flowers for the garden.
20. Reward your weight loss with luxurious new bedding for your bed.

What could be more motivating than a reward that you’ve been looking forward to? Rewards for meeting your diet goals can make a great difference when it comes to motivation for staying on plan. Decide on some rewards to match those diet goals you’ve set. Select from these listed rewards or come up with your own. Reward yourself for achieving success, and motivate yourself for further success.

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If you’re dieting, either to get ready for a competition or just to shed a few pounds, then you need to know about these 12 common foods that are actually slowing down your progress. Although most of these are nutritious, they are not your best bets for ripping your midsection or shedding the maximal amount of body fat.

Pasta

While virtually a fat-free food, the 40 grams of carbs per cup can easily push your daily carb intake to a level that can prevent you from leaning out or losing weight. Try mixing a half cup of fiber rich vegetables with a half cup of whole grain pasta which helps keep the carb levels lower and allows you to feel fuller with the extra fiber that whole grains and vegetables provide.

White Rice

White rice is extremely refined and is rated as a high glycemic carbohydrate which fairly rapidly breaks down into glucose. High glycemic carbs stimulate the appetite, thus making you more hungry. Switch to brown or basmati rice which is a low glycemic carb and as with pasta, mix with high fiber vegetables to cut back on calories and fill you up more.

Bagels

A single small bagel yields approximetely 40 grams of carbs and a large one can yield up to 75 grams. Though bagels are low in fat, their high carb content is something to consider when you are trying to limit carbs. For alternatives, try rye bread and oatmeal bread which are both the lowest glycemic breads, which means they stay with you longer and don’t leave you feeling hungry.

Rice Cakes

While rice cakes are low in calories, they are very high on the glycemic index and do not fill you up or leave you feeling satisfied. They are like any other snack food and it can be hard to stop at just a few and it is very easy to eat the whole bag. Exercising restraint in the volume of food you eat is vital in losing weight. It is best to stay away from these empty calorie snacks and instead eat a snack that is in high fiber and low in calories that will leave you feeling full and satisfied.

Cream of Wheat

Cream of wheat is fast digesting high glycemic carb and shoots in and out the stomach without triggering a feeling of fullness or satiety. Oats, oatmeal, oat bran and cream of rye cereal are much slower digesting alternatives that quell the appetite and provide more sustained energy due to their significantly higher fiber content.

Cold Cereal

Most cold cereals are terrible weight loss foods as they are easy to overeat and provide absolutely no appetite support. Even the high fiber, no sugar cold cereals can pack a lot of carbs per bowl. If you can stick to eating a controlled portion, you’ll do better with the high fiber hot cereal such as oatmeal, oat bran, and cream of rye.

Fruit juice

Unlike whole fruit, juices are devoid of fiber and take up little space in the stomach, which leaves you more hungry rather than satisfied. Fiber rich foods help keep the appetite under control, so opt for whole fruit instead of fruit juice. You’ll be less hungry while you benefit from a greater fiber, vitamin and mineral content.

Dried Fruit

While you can benefit from an ample amount of whole fruits providing important vitamins, minerals and fiber, dried fruit is simply to dense in carbs and sugar to aid in weight loss or leaning out. At about 65 grams carbs per half cup, dried fruit is very high in calories and can easily be overeaten. Stick to low carb whole fruits such as peaches, plums, strawberries, and cantaloupe.

Ground Turkey

Turkey breast is extremely low in fat and calories, but on the other hand, ground turkey meat is usually a mix of darker meat and turkey skin which boosts the fat content upward of 14 grams per 6 oz serving. Ask the butcher to ground up turkey breast meat for you instead of buying it off the meat shelf.

Ground Beef

Stay away from the ground beef you find in the grocery store because it’s much higher in fat than grinding your own select cuts. A single serving can yield as much as 26 grams of fat! Ask your butcher to grind up eye of round, round or flank steak as these are the cuts that are lowest in fat.

Deli Turkey Slices

Though low in fat, many deli-style breasts are filled with sugar and salt. Read labels, check ingredients and look for sliced turkey devoid of added sugar and low in sodium. As a rule of thumb, less expensive sliced turkey yields more sugar and salt than the pricey versions.

Alcohol

Alcohol is a sugar and has no nutritional value. It should be avoided at all costs when you are dieting. If you must consume, a small amount ( a small glass) of red wine daily is okay, but you must remember that it is calories and needs to be included in your daily calorie allowance.

Eating a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and healthy fats high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals will keep your appetite under control and leave you feeling full and satisfied while consuming less calories. Stop sabotaging your weight loss diet and hard work in the gym and eliminate all unnecessary foods that only provide empty calories and no nutritional content. As your body becomes accustomed to a high fiber diet, you will no longer crave the high glycemic carbs and you will begin to lose weight by following a sensible weight loss diet and exercise program.

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While you are having those frustrating dates with Acne, you should remember the proper dos and dont’s of the anti-acne diet. Even you need to know some common misinterpreted facts that may cause more harm than good. For example, vitamin and mineral rich foods enhances acne than reducing it. So, a proper knowledge of diets would be effective in getting you a clear and acne free skin faster. However, it remains with you how to implement that.

1. A daily breakfast diet of two eggs with a glass of milk helps fighting acne.
2. Drinking coffee induces unwanted toxic substance inside body to cause acne. So, avoid it.
3. Items like cucumber, onion, carrot, mint, etc can be used to prepare salad and taken in diet.
4. A garlic rich diet helps body fight acne. Even you can use it in salads, too.
5. Plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables like: apple, banana, pine apple, grapes, pomegranate, papaya, lettuce, peppers, spinach, broccoli, etc are the ultimate edible items against acne. They should be included in daily diets.
6. Carbohydrate and protein related foods helps fighting acne, while pretentious food abets it. So, take sufficient milk, beans, seeds, chicken, fish, beef, whole wheat, oats etc.
7. Take multivitamin pills, however as it balance off the low vitamin and mineral diet and not cause acne enhancing symptoms.
8. Not only raw fruits, but taking good amount of juices and shakes of apple, pomegranate, guava, and pine apple, etc helps.
9. Provide plenty of liquid to your body. Taking at least 8-12 glasses of water per day, helps to flush out toxins. Addition of fresh lemon juice to your water increases chance of warding off acne.
10. Greasy and sweet foods like sugar, chocolates, ice-cream, cookies, cakes, pies etc induces acne causing wastes inside body causing harm to skin.
11. Taking a paste of yogurt with 1 teaspoon honey at breakfast improves your skin condition.

Don’t waste your time Start eating anti-acne diet!

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In today’s hectic world, women face unique challenges when it comes to eating a healthy diet. Below are ten tips on how to achieve a balanced diet that reflects a woman’s special needs.

1. To protect their bones and reduce their risk of developing osteoporosis, women need at least 1,000 milligrams of calcium daily (and post-menopausal women should get up to 1,500 milligrams). Therefore, women should be sure to incorporate healthy calcium-rich foods, like low-fat milk, yogurt and cheese into their diets every day.
2. Sufficient vitamin D and magnesium are critical in a balanced diet for women, since they are needed for the absorption of calcium. Vitamin D comes from the sun, but also can be provided by fortified foods like orange juice and milk. Magnesium is found in green vegetable, nuts, and legumes.
3. Women must be aware of heart health. There is an increasing recognition that heart disease is a significant health risk for women as well as men. As a result, women should be sure to eat a heart-healthy, balanced diet that is, among other things, low in saturated fats and high in fruits and vegetables.
4. Given their busy schedules and child care responsibilities, many women find themselves skipping meals and filling up, instead, on snacks. This pattern may be unavoidable, but replacing salty, high-fat foods with nutritional snacks like fruit or yogurt can contribute to a healthy, balanced diet for women.
5. When women embark on a diet to lose weight, they should diet smart so as to create the best opportunity for success near term and long term. Many studies show that a weight-loss diet that results in lasting weight control is one that incorporates new, healthy habits (and exercise) that can be maintained after the diet ends. That means emphasizing a reduced-calorie, balanced diet that includes a variety of healthy foods.
6. For women, breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. It can make all the difference in energy levels and productivity during the day and in weight control. It is easy to eat healthy at breakfast. Yogurt; low-sugar, whole-grain cereal or oatmeal with milk; orange juice; whole-wheat toast; and fruit all are easy and healthy breakfast foods.
7. Women who eat lunch at work should plan their lunch menus as thoughtfully as they do the menu for the evening meal. Bringing a salad with chicken or tuna, nuts, beans, or vegetables can be a healthy and satisfying alternative to eating out or getting takeout. Fruit and yogurt also are good choices.
8. Water is a great beverage option and a good replacement for soda (even diet soda) for women. It is filling, has no calories and is good for the skin and general health.
9. As much as possible, women’s balanced diets should incorporate fresh, rather than processed foods, including plenty of natural foods and fruits and vegetables. Food writer Michael Pollan’s rules like don’t buy processed foods with more than five ingredients or with ingredients you can’t pronounce (which probably are preservatives or chemicals) can be helpful guidelines.
10. A well-balanced diet doesn’t have to mean a flavorless diet with no indulgences. In fact, indulgence should have its place in a healthy diet. For example, chocolate and wine, in moderation, have been shown to have some important physical benefits, to say nothing of pleasure they bring us.

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Fiber seems to be the latest miracle diet food. A person can hardly open a magazine or newspaper without seeing an article singing the praises of the health benefits of fiber. It’s not just hype. Adding more fiber can be an effective tool for dieters. Fiber-filled foods take more time to break down and consequently they stay in the digestive tract longer.

Fiber comes in two types – soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber dissolves in water and helps regulate cholesterol and blood sugar. It is commonly found in beans and fruits. Insoluble fiber does not dissolve in water. It acts as a scrubber in your digestive tract. Insoluble fiber can be found in vegetables and whole grains.

Fiber can help you feel fuller for a longer period of time. However, many people equate fiber with endless salads or food that tastes like cardboard. This does not need to be the case. By following some of the tips listed below, you can increase the fiber in your diet effortlessly.

1. Switch to whole grain pasta. The average pasta made from refined white flour has very little in the way of fiber. In contrast, whole grain fiber has 5 or more grams per serving. Whole grain fiber does have a slightly different taste and texture. An alternative would be to start by using half regular pasta and half whole wheat. You can increase the ratio of whole wheat pasta as you become more accustomed to the taste.
2. Use whole grain pastry flour in your baking. Regular whole grain flour can add a bit of grittiness to baked goods. Whole grain pastry flour is more finely ground. Using it in your baking boosts fiber while being closer in texture to products made with refined flour. By substituting a cup of whole grain pastry flour for white flour, the fiber content of the recipe is boosted by 14 grams.
3. Sneak oats into your favorite meat loaf recipe. A cup of oats adds an additional four grams of fiber.
4. Bulk up your favorite convenience foods with extra veggies. We all have to rely on convenience foods, from time to time. The problem is processed foods are notoriously high in fat and low in fiber. You don’t have to feel so bad about serving them though if you boost the vegetable content. Chop up a couple cups and add them to your favorite convenience meals. The vegetables cook while the entr�e is cooking. Quick and easy.
5. Use finely-ground Fiber One cereal in the place of bread crumbs for faux fried foods. This saves calories too! Use it to make oven fried chicken, onion rings, and even cheese sticks. A mere cup of Fiber One cereal adds 14 grams of fiber. You can’t beat that!
6. Replace part of the fat in baked goods with fruit and vegetable purees. Pear, apples, and even pumpkin can replace part of the fat in your favorite recipes, as well as being an additional source of fiber. It is alright to experiment. The best recipes for replacement are darker and strongly flavored, like ones containing chocolate. Would you believe you can add beet puree to brownies without altering the taste? It’s true!
7. Use white varieties of whole grain bread. Even finicky children can’t tell the difference. This adds a couple of grams of fiber per sandwich.
8. Eat the peel. The peel of fruits and vegetables is where the majority of the fiber lies. So don’t throw it away, missing out on the 2 grams of fiber it provides. Instead of using instant potatoes, make the real thing. No need to peel them, just wash and quarter. Mash them with the skins still on for a fiber boost.
9. Eat the fruit rather than drinking the juice. The peel and pulp are where the majority of the fiber is located. Whole fruit is more filling than juice, so don’t cheat yourself.
10. Add beans to your entrees. For example, a cup of white beans adds a whopping 11 grams of fiber. For those of you that can’t stand the texture of beans, mash them up and add them to soups, spaghetti sauce. Mash a cup of cooked beans and add them to your favorite meatloaf recipe. The kids will never know!

The best sources of fiber are fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. By adding a variety of these foods to your diet, you can successfully increase your fiber intake. Current dietary recommendations advise fiber intake of 25 to 35 grams daily. If you did not previously consume much fiber, it would be wise to increase your fiber over the course of a couple of weeks to allow your body time to adjust. Also, be sure to drink plenty of water.

Adding fiber to your diet can be effortless if you think outside the box. With a little creativity and sneakiness, a high fiber diet can become a reality.

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Weight loss is a multi-billion dollar business. As more and more Americans are “super-sizing” what they eat, they are also becoming “super-sized” themselves with “two-thirds of American adults now obese or overweight. The number of obese and overweight children has now climbed to 30 percent in 30 states.”

With these disturbing statistics, it’s no wonder that you may want to lose weight and lose weight fast. Even a 10% reduction in weight offers immediate health benefits such as decreased risk of certain cancers, lower blood pressure, and more energy.

So, how do you choose the correct way to lose weight? Is there a miracle diet? Diets abound and weight loss tips can be found everywhere. I provide my solution to healthy weight loss at the end of this article. First, look at the 10 worst ways you can try to lose weight. I write, “try” because these diets and ways to lose weight are not only dangerous, but also temporary.

Crash Diet (stop eating)

If you want to lose weight, why not stop eating for a while? Not only is this practice dangerous (can you say “malnutrition?”), but it often backfires. When you stop eating, your body goes into starvation mode, which slows your metabolism and the majority of the weight loss is water weight. When you resume eating, you’ll gain the weight back and with your body in starvation mode, you’ll have even more trouble losing weight because your body will cling to the calories believing your life is threatened.

Binge and Purge

While bulimia is more about distorted body image rather than a weight loss tool, some people who are not technically bulimic get eater’s remorse, especially when dieting and having a slip at a nice restaurant. Once back at home, they induce vomiting to correct their mistake. Bulimia-like behavior risks your health because it wears off the tooth enamel, leads to gastrointestinal problems, and can cause an irregular heartbeat leading to a possible heart attack.

The Christian Bale Diet

Bale dropped over 60 pounds for his role in The Machinist by eating just one can of tuna and an apple each day. Says Bale, “Everybody told me that I was risking my health the first time around, so doing it twice? I’m probably being an idiot.” (3)

Drunkorexia

This newly coined term describes the practice of starving all day to offset the calories in the alcohol consumed later, such as when a person wants to go clubbing. (4)

Orthorexia

Is an obsession with what is perceived as healthy food – eliminating fats and preservatives, for example. Focusing on healthy food sounds good, right? The trouble is people with this condition can dangerously deprive themselves of needed nutrients. For example, we all need a certain amount of fat in our diet to provide energy and to allow the absorption of certain vitamins, which are only soluble in fat. (4)

Laxatives

Using laxatives to purge your body of food wears out the bowel muscle, which may result in a permanent decrease in bowel function. Surely you don’t want to be constipated the rest of your life.

Exercising

Getting at least 30 minutes each day is beneficial for your health, but exercising for several hours each day to lose weight does not necessarily work. That much exercise makes you hungrier and you may end up consuming even more calories, or mistakenly believe you can reward yourself because you exercised. Furthermore,” a pound of muscle burns approximately six calories a day in a resting body, compared with the two calories that a pound of fat burns. Which means that after you work out hard enough to convert, say, 10 lb. of fat to muscle – a major achievement – you would be able to eat only an extra 40 calories per day, about the amount in a teaspoon of butter, before beginning to gain weight. Good luck with that.” (5)

Fad diets

Diets do not work for two main reasons: diets deprive you of certain foods or perhaps even groups of foods, such as Atkins, which cuts out carbs, and diets disappear. Once achieving their goal weight, most dieters return to their pre- weight loss eating habits and the pounds come right back.

Appetite Suppressants

You are essentially taking speed to lose weight. Risks include addiction to the substance you are taking, nervousness, insomnia, high blood pressure and more seriously, strokes and more serious heart problems.

Liposuction

If you can’t lose the fat, why not have it vacuumed out of your body at considerable expense? Liposuction is not for weight loss, it is for body sculpting on a body that is already at a healthy weight. As with any surgical procedure, there are risks of infection, risks to the cardiovascular system, and nerve damage.

Healthy, sustainable weight loss occurs at a rate of one to two pounds per week. When my weight creeps up a few pounds, I get myself back on track with proper portion control. Try these healthier ways to lose weight – it’s not dieting or calorie counting, just a sensible way to eat.

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Being lazy makes weight loss hard. Though it usually involves a lack of action when you have the means to improve, laziness can come in many forms, whether it is a lack of motivation to exercise or a failure to make the effort to choose positive and healthy foods and activities.

I gained way too much weight for my little frame by making poor choices for my health, and when I had to take it off, I attacked the problem from as many angles as I could until I found what worked for me. When I did, I lost 33 percent of my body weight and felt healthier than I ever have in my life.

These easy weight loss tips are for generally healthy people seeking weight loss, not those in dire straits with their health. Also, some people are just big and beautiful and healthy that way, so make sure weight loss is actually a good idea. Before starting any weight loss plan, talk to your doctor, and don’t do anything dangerous unsupervised. This means exercising in pairs and keeping a spotter for any weight lifting you do and consulting a doctor before you do anything outside of your normal range of ability or comfort.

Don’t hurt yourself

This may seem like an obvious suggestion, but I was well on my way to healthy weight loss when I hit a big obstacle: injury from exercise. Injury from exercise can come from many sources. Injuries from exercise not only stop you in your exercise-bound tracks, but they can also be a deterrent and a bit of a disappointment that can send you spiraling back into an unhealthy state. I think I was down and out for a both a month when, in a burst of enthusiastic yoga, I broke my foot on a poorly placed living room exercise bike.

You can be injured if you lift too much weight, if you run more than your body can take, or if you simply whack yourself when you are not paying clear attention to your body and the exercise. You can also hurt yourself by eating too much, eating too little or eating foods that do not give you proper nutrition. When you cut calories, you also cut vitamins, so make sure you are getting the ones you need.

When exercising, wear the proper safety gear, and always be mindful of your limitations (the real ones, not the ones in your head) and err on the side of caution unless you are working with a professional fitness trainer who knows where to stop.

Save the big dinner plates for guests

One easy way to control portions is to make it impossible for you to heap more on your plate than you should eat. When I was losing weight, I ate only from saucers and bread plates; the small plates in your dinnerware set. It’s a lot harder to pile a ridiculous amount of food onto a tiny plate without spilling.

If you are short like me, you can put the big plates on the top shelves so you can easily access small plates whilst having to work to access the large ones. Second helpings are fine, but make sure you are eating because you are hungry and not just because the food is tasty.

If you don’t want it, don’t eat it

Does this surprise you as a tip? Take a moment to think about the things you may have been offered that you took just to be polite or because everyone else was doing it. Every morning doughnut, every sample at Costco and every piece of office birthday cake you eat has calories that add to your weight and affect your health. Learn to say “no” to these snacks. This includes snacking on the peppermint candies at the office receptionist’s desk.

A helpful way to think about this is to consider saving calories for what you really want. Because on this easy diet plan, you can have it, but you don’t get it all.

Eat what you really want, but only eat a little

Many millions of dollars have been spent to help sugar-addicted dieters get a taste for the sweet tooth without overdoing the calories. When I was losing weight, I didn’t touch any diet cookies like Snackwell’s or any Weight Watcher’s meals. I ate my favorite fast foods, pizzas and desserts and enjoyed fine decadent foods at restaurants. The trick is to eat just what you need to experience the food instead of eating it all, and to challenge yourself to experience it when you really want it.

How do you do this? By planning food celebrations. Instead of denying yourself that bag of potato chips, tell yourself that you will buy the potato chips at a particular time. The time should potentially be a long time away, like a month or whatever you can stand to do. This does not necessarily have to be a date; I buy myself potato chips when the price drops below a level I have set for myself. Then I buy one bag of chips, and I share it.

Food is a joyful experience, and denying that pleasure for good is impossible for a lot people. So order that decadent pie or volcano cake dessert at your favorite local restaurant, and ask the server for extra spoons so everyone at the table can enjoy while you savor every precious bite so you can make sure you remember everything about it.

Make no excuses and feel no guilt about what you ate. Then when you crave it, simply remember it in every glorious detail before giving in again. However, if you got a stomachache or felt unhealthy after eating a decadent food, remember that as well, because it gives you an important clue about what is good for your body.

Go lite when it matters

Many types of food these days have “Lite” or “Diet” versions that you can choose if you want to lower the calories or fat in your food. Some of these may be worse for you than the original, and they certainly don’t always taste good. Read the nutritional information if you plan to go low calorie. Some lighter foods have such negligible calorie differences that you are better off enjoying the full-calorie version than suffering over a paltry calorie savings.

Some lite foods even have more sugar to make them taste better after they lower the fat. But, as mentioned in #7, eat only what you really want. Having low calorie or light foods is not an excuse to pig out, and you may end up eating more calories than you would have if you just ate the one you really wanted. Here’s an easy tip: If the light version tastes good to you, go for it. If not, read about what makes it “light” to determine if the difference is enough to justify the taste sacrifice.

Do everything faster

Get things done and burn calories by just stepping it up a little. If you can get yourself a bit winded by doing physical tasks like housework just a little faster than you usually do, you will burn more calories and have the added bonus of getting your stuff done faster. If you are feeling particularly spry, throw a dictionary or two in your backpack and wear it around the house as you clean.

Good activities for this include cleaning the kitchen, making the bed, doing laundry and vacuuming the house. You can also choose to take the stairs instead of the elevator, and if you already take the stairs, you can decide to take them a little faster. Just don’t overdo it, and know that it doesn’t count as actual exercise. (Sorry.)

Nerd out when you exercise

Exercise is not the time for worrying about how you look or whether your thighs look dimply on the treadmill. When exercising, give it your all and even punch it up to try to look as dorky as possible so you have a good time. Wear a stupid hat or get the most ridiculous jogging suit you can find.

If what tickles you is video games, get a Wii and do the fitness exercises or simply hook up a Playstation while you pedal on your exercise bike. Make exercising “you time” by making it all about having fun while getting fit and you’ll find yourself doing it a lot more often.

Cook your own food.

When you eat out, you almost never know what kind of calorie content you are getting. A plate of spaghetti with meat sauce at the Olive Garden can run you upwards of 700 calories, while a plate of the home version only runs around 400 calories per serving. If you are a junkie for a certain type of food, whether it is pizza, cookies or creme brulee, making an at-home version can give you the satisfaction of a job well done while giving you the same food for lower calories. You may find you even prefer the healthy version. Bonus: you also burn calories while cooking it.

YOU are beautiful

Being fat seems to be somewhat of a litmus test for total jerks. It angers me that being fat in public can yield a host of humiliations from unkind strangers, and in extreme situations, getting fat can even expose who among your friends is true to you. If you learn to feel good about yourself when you are not at the weight you desire, you will feel good about yourself all the time.

Getting skinny is not going to make dumb people genuinely like you, but they may start faking it better. Realize that you are an amazing creature and celebrate that. Own what you are and do not deny it.

If you are fat and you are healthy and you feel good and you exercise, maybe you should not mess with success. If people around you are putting you down for your weight, hang out with other people who react to you more positively. If you do it for you, you do it for good. If someone’s putting you down, either confront them or get out of there. You deserve real love.

Losing weight so you will look good is losing weight for other people. Getting skinny so people will like you just makes it obvious that you are hanging around with a bunch of jerks. Most likely, losing weight will not fix your emotional, social or financial problems, but it can help you feel better if you are not at a personally healthy weight. Encourage yourself and surround yourself with people who support that frame of mind.

If you are one of those big beautiful folks and need some help feeling good about yourself, check out the fat-positive book Fat!SO? by Marilyn Wann.

There is no diet. There is no quit

Lots of people embark on an ambitious diet just to quit when it gets hard or doesn’t work out. This is not a diet that you can just quit. When you lose weight the lazy way, you lose it slow and healthy; that’s just the way it is. You are not on a diet; you are on a lifelong quest to enjoy a healthy life through good, mindful eating habits and joyful exercise. Yay!

When these tips begin to work for you, take the time to create your own tips that work for your life, because they may not necessarily be what worked for me. Challenge yourself to make positive changes until you are the best you can be.

Be fat positive. Weight loss is not for everyone; having more body fat than others may be healthy for some people and unhealthy for others. I got myself to my unhealthy weight with a consistent sedentary lifestyle and binge eating of delivery takeout, but some people are just big and beautiful. Is this you?

The post 10 Lazy Weight Loss Tips to Get Healthy and Lose Unwanted Fat appeared first on Health & Wellness.

Getting a set of six-pack abs is as much about dieting as it is exercise, since no one will be able to see the results of your workouts if your stomach is covered by a layer of fat, warns the experts at Bodybuilding.com. Cut out white bread, soft drinks and other empty carbohydrates, suggests Muscle & Fitness magazine, and increase the amount of protein you eat. Men’s Health magazine recommends aiming for a gram of protein for every pound of body weight. Then, pair your ab-friendly diet with ab exercises that various exercise publications and research studies have identified as being some of the best for your washboard stomach.

But don’t waste your time on inefficient exercises. Fitness professionals and exercise experts have identified some of the best movements to get you a lean, strong core. Your new, ripped torso is just a few crunches away!

Hanging Knee Raises

While you may think of your pullup bar as reserved for just shoulder and chest development, Men’s Fitness magazine notes that doing knee raises on a pullup bar ranks as “the most effective abdominal workout there is.” Grab a pullup bar with your hands spaced just slightly wider than your shoulders. From this neutral hanging position, tighten and contract your core while raising your knees toward your chest as high as you can go. Pause, then slowly uncurl and straighten your body into a neutral hanging position.

One-Hand Bicep Dumbbell Presses

Bicep presses work your chest to build impressive pecs, but make one slight change and you’ll also target your abs for what Men’s Health magazine calls one of the best ways to “chisel your core.” Lie down on a bench just as you would if you were doing a traditional dumbbell bench press, holding a dumbbell in each hand. However, instead of pushing both dumbbells into the air, keep your left dumbbell in the starting position and push the right dumbbell up in the air until your right arm is straight. Pause, then slowly lower your right hand back down toward your chest and repeat for your left hand. In essence, you’re splitting a traditional dumbbell bench press into two moves instead of one. This lopsided, weighted movement works your abdominal muscles as they try to stabilize your body, and Men’s Health says you “won’t believe how hard your abs and glutes contract.”

Isometric Crunches

Isometric workouts, involving holding a tense muscle group in one position for a few seconds, are one of the top seven ways to develop abdominal muscles, according to Muscle & Fitness magazine. One of the best examples is the isometric, or static, crunch. (Reference 6) Perform a crunch as you normally would, lying on your back on a mat or towel. At the peak of the traditional crunch movement, pause. While keeping your abs contracted with your belly button sucked down toward your spine, hold the position for 30 seconds. Once this time is up, try to bring your torso up even higher and pause for another 30 seconds before relaxing and lying down completely.

Air Bicycle

In a study commissioned by the American Council on Exercise, researchers found that the bicycle maneuver engaged the abs even more than stereotypical ab workouts, such as traditional crunches. Lie down on your back with your thighs pointing in the air, perpendicular to the ground, and your calves parallel to the ground. (Reference 8) Clasp your hands behind your head, elbows out, and bring your right knee in and toward your left shoulder while slightly straightening your left leg. Repeat for the opposite side of your body, creating a movement that makes you look like you’re pedaling a bicycle in the air.

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When your joints hurt and swell due to a form of inflammatory arthritis, exercise is usually the last thing on your mind. But, doing yoga in a slow, controlled way can build balance, flexibility and strength, according to The John Hopkins Arthritis Center.

Why Yoga is Helpful

Being inactive increases pain, stiffness and arthritis flares. When I started to doing yoga, I noticed a same-day reduction in lower joint pain. Although morning ankle and knee swelling continues, yoga has lessened my bouts of joint swelling throughout the day.

When a group of 30 sedentary adults participated in an 8-week yoga course monitored by John Hopkins University, the participants noted fewer swollen and tender joints, according to The Arthritis Foundation.

Yoga Works for Me

Somewhere I read something to the tune of, “Don’t let you joints get rusty. Use them!” For me, yoga is a low-impact slow stretching routine that not only burns calories, but also builds muscle which ultimately reduces the amount of strain on my joints. That’s a win-win.

I try to do 20 to 30 minutes of yoga four to five times per week. It may not sound like much to an avid gym rat, but it definitely eases arthritis swelling. Although I change my routine on occasion to add variety to my exercise sessions, the following three yoga poses always make it into my workout.

Sun Salutation

My routine usually starts with this pose. Fully elongating your body at the start of the pose helps stretch a stiff back. When I sit too long — a definite work-related hazard for a writer — my back gets sore. The second half of this yoga pose stretches your lower back and calves. Here is an animated guide to perform the Sun Salutation, or Salute to the Sun. I only do steps 1 through 3 to prevent strain on my wrist and ankle joints.

The Warrior

When my hips are stiff and swollen the warrior pose gently stretches my hip flexors. When I’m especially sore, my stance isn’t very wide. As I become more limber I space my feet further apart for a more thorough stretch. Here is an animated guide for the version of the warrior pose that I enjoy.

The Tree Pose

I have quite a bit of swelling in my ankles due to rheumatoid arthritis, an inflammatory form of arthritis. When my ankles are visibly puffy, but not in pain, I enjoy doing the tree pose. The act of balancing not only uses my ankles and moves fluid away from the joints, it also stretches my inner thighs and hips. Use this link to see an animated guide of the tree pose.

Talk with your rheumatologist or family doctor about starting a yoga routine of your own. Your physician can recommend which joints and muscles to focus on stretching to benefit your form of arthritis.

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When it comes to building a sexier back, diet is important–but so is using exercises designed to build and sculpt your entire backside. And that doesn’t mean doing endless repetitions using paper-light weights. It means lifting heavy, just like a bodybuilder.

If you’re worried these exercises will make you manly and bulky, don’t–women have very little testosterone, so your muscle-building potential is pretty slim. Instead, you’ll develop a more defined, leaner back, with a backside that would make any man (or woman) swoon.

To get a leaner back, add these exercises to your exercise routine:

Pull-Ups

Muscles worked: Pull-ups are great for developing your lats–the muscles located just below your shoulder blades, according to Bodybuilding.com. Building your lats helps create definition and firmness to your middle back.

How to do it: To do a pull-up, grip both hands on a pull-up bar, with your palms facing forward. Your hands should be about shoulder-width apart.

Next, draw your shoulders and upper arms downward and backward. Do this until your chest touches the pull-up bar. At this point, your arms should only move–not your torso or legs. Hold this position for a second before releasing.

Variations: If you can’t do this exercise at first, try doing it on an assisted chin-up or pull-up machine. As you get stronger, you’ll need less assistance from the machine to do a pull-up, and eventually, no assistance at all.

Bent-over Barbell Row

Muscles worked: This exercise works numerous muscles, including the middle back, shoulders and lats. It’s an excellent exercise for targeting multiple muscle groups without having to do more exercises.

How to do it: This exercise must be completed with a barbell, so have one pre-loaded with your desired weight before doing this exercise. To begin, grab the barbell with your hands with your palms facing down. Bend your knees and bend your torso forward while keeping the back straight. Imagine your body is trying to look like the letter Z. Your arms should hang downward, with the barbell and your hands just below your knees.

Next, bring the barbell up with your upper arms while keeping your elbows close to your body. Bring up the barbell until it touches your torso, then hold it for a couple of seconds. Make sure to squeeze your back muscles. Now release it and return to the starting position.

Variations: You can also complete this exercise with dumbbells, using the same grip as before or using a palms-in grip, like you normally use while doing hammer curls.

Wide-Grip Lat Pull-Down

Muscles targeted: Done correctly, this exercise targets the lats. It also works the middle back and shoulders, which can really give a defined, lean appearance to your back.

How to do it: For this exercise, you need a pull-down machine, which is typically found in any standard work-out gym. To start off, grab the bar with both palms facing forward, making sure there are wider than a typical shoulder-width grip.

Once you grip the bar correctly, move your torso–not your body–back by 30 degrees while bending it backward, so that it maintains a slight curve. Now puff your chest out.

Slowly, use your back muscles and arms to bring the bar down to your upper chest. Focus on contracting the back muscles. Use a slow, steady force to bring it down. Hold the position for a second before returning to the starting position.

Variations: To change how the exercise targets your back, try using a narrow grip. You can also use a reverse grip.

Recommended Repetitions

To help make your back more lean and sexy, stick to what are called the “bodybuilding” rep ranges. This is between 7 to 12 reps. You should struggle to finish the last rep. If you find the reps are too easy to finish when you reach 12 reps, it’s time to increase your weight load. Aim for at least two sets per exercise.

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Seniors often utilize water exercises since the water has a dual purpose. Water is more buoyant on any achy joints for arthritis and it also provides resistance aside from gravity for strengthening muscles when you get the body moving. All you need is a simple swimming pool for the most popular water exercises that do the most good. Here are some movements that will get your blood pumping if your joints feel older and achy.

Just because you are in the water, that doesn’t mean you should over exert yourself. You should still take it easy and don’t exercise beyond your means. If you get out of breath and need to take a break, by all means just relax your muscles and take it easy. The water will already help keep you cool as opposed to the warmer air.

Water Walk

Simply walking in the water offers more resistance when you lift your legs than normal walking due to the weight of the water. When you swing your arms through the water you add more resistance to your arms as well. Cupping your hands will increase the weight for your arms to move and improve your arm muscles beyond just lifting them when you walk normally. Your hands will push away more water offering better resistance for your forearms and elbow.

Walking in water is ideal if you have shaky legs or stiff joints and there is a fear of falling. If you fall in the water there is a much less chance of getting hurt even though you should still take it easy.

Push Ups

Using the wall of the pool for a push up can be better for your arms than you think. Get in water that goes up to your shoulders and place your hands shoulder width apart against the edge of the pool. Then push your arms up and down like you are doing a normal push up.

The beauty of this exercise is that your entire body weight isn’t being held up by your arms. All you are doing is getting a light workout as you push against the water up against your back. This is a great exercise to get your arms and shoulders moving with little resistance so you can gradually work up your arm strength.

Just For Kicks

You’ve seen little kids with their first swimming lesson that grab on to the edge of the pool, lay with their legs straight out, and kick the water. This elementary movement for swimming lessons is also a great workout for your legs, knees, and hips.

While you don’t need to splash up sea foam with every kick, you can kick along at your own pace according to how your joints and muscles feel. Even if you don’t splash water on the surface, the simple kicking motion will give your entire leg a workout. The beauty of all three of these exercises is that they can be done at your own pace with less risk for injury due to falls since the water will help keep you buoyant.

As with any exercise routine, having a partner with you is helpful in case you need assistance and encouragement. Consult with your physician if you plan on starting a water exercise routine or any physical workout to keep in shape.

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Have you ever wished you could jump a few inches higher so you could finally start throwing down slam dunks during basketball games? Well you’re not alone! Athletes from all sports, from basketball to volleyball, all are constantly looking for ways to jump higher. Some athletes try special shoes, some try ‘super jumping pills’, and still others drink special protein shakes that are supposed to give your jumping ability a quick boost. These ways are almost always guaranteed to fail and not help athletes at all. If you really want to help increase your vertical jump, there are three very effective types of exercises you can do.

Plyometrics

This type of exercise is designed perfectly for any sport that involves jumping. Plyometrics helps athletes increase their ‘explosiveness’, which could be anything from sprinting really fast across the basketball court to quickly jumping to spike a volleyball. Here’s an example of an easy plyometric exercise you could do at home. Find a sturdy bench, or find any kind of step. Now use as much energy as you can to jump up on top of the step, then quickly jump back down. If you don’t feel like it’s effective, then you probably need to move faster or the step is too low. This is a very basic exercise, but it’s also very effective too.

Improving Your Jumping Technique

Many athletes, even if they can dunk or jump over a volleyball net, don’t have perfect jumping technique. By working on improving your technique, you could easily add anywhere from 1-4 inches to your vertical jump within a week. To see whether your technique is right or not, you should record yourself before, during, and after you jump. You should look for things like which foot you’re jumping off of, the angle of your knees and body when you jump, and how tensed up your muscles are during your motion (tense muscles take away from your vertical jump). The more you work on improving your vertical jump technique, the higher you’ll be able to jump.

Stretching The Right Muscles

You use a lot of different muscles when you try to jump as high as you possibly can, so it’s important to be as limber as possible. You don’t want to go up for a dunk and end up pulling your quadriceps because you weren’t in good shape. Make sure to always stretch your back and legs in order to prevent injury and also to make your jump more effective.

These three exercises all can help your vertical jump in different ways, but if you do them consistently, you will definitely be able to jump higher then you ever have before.

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Many people would like to have a six-pack without a ton of work and now this can be done with less than an hour of your day. I have put together three work-out exercises that use the abdominal muscles. These exercises are easy to do and do not require any machines.

The abdominal muscles are the muscles that line in the center of your chest and go down to the pubic bone. There are many exercises that you can do to strengthen these muscles but these three exercises are quick and easy to do.

The crunch

Many people already know how to do this but for those of you who don’t crunch is a workout that is done while lying on the ground. Your feet should be flat on the floor and hip length apart. Your arms should be either laying out beside you or under your head for support. The upper body should rise forward toward your knees but only slightly. The crunch exercise should be done in twenty repetitions holding each crunch for two seconds each. During this exercise you should feel more stress in the upper abs.

Reverse crunch

A reverse crunch is similar to the crunch exercise but only opposite. Instead of raising your chest up you lift your knees towards your chest. The reverse crunches should also be done in twenty repetitions with a two second hold on each. Reverse crunches should cause you to feel more stress in your lower abs since this is the area that you will be working on.

Double crunch

This exercise is the crunch and reverse crunch brought together into one exercise. Lying on your back you should bring you hips and chest together by lifting your head and knees together simultaneously. This exercise should be done with ten repetitions and holding each for two seconds. This exercise works both the upper and lower abs.

Now that you know what exercises are quick and easy to strengthen your abdominal muscles you should have no problem in getting your abs to tighten up. These exercises should be done at least three times a week for great results.

Before doing any of these exercises you should consult with your physician to make sure that you are healthy enough to do them. If you are not use to doing these then you should take a break in-between days of doing them so that you don’t overdo it.

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Vitamin B-complex consists of eight different B vitamins: thiamine or B1, riboflavin or B2, niacin or B3, pantothenic acid or B5, pyridoxine or B6, biotin or B7, folate or B9, and cobalamin or B12. The symptoms of a vitamin B complex deficiency are manifested differently depending on which specific component the body is lacking.

A deficiency of thiamine (vitamin B1) is called beriberi and occurs rarely in the U.S. Thiamine is primarily involved in muscle and nerve function. Per the University of Maryland Medical Center, when the body is not getting enough thiamine, symptoms of a vitamin B deficiency include: swelling or tingling in the hands and feet, difficulty walking and breathing, and numbness.

Riboflavin (vitamin B2) plays a role in the production of energy and cellular function. When the body is lacking in riboflavin, the deficiency is called ariboflavinosis, according to the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University. Among the symptoms of a vitamin B2 deficiency are a sore throat, dry cracked lips, and a swollen or irritated tongue.

A deficiency of niacin (vitamin B3) is scientifically known as pellagra. Because niacin plays a role in skin health, a deficiency of niacin often causes skin problems. When the body is lacking in niacin, the symptoms of a vitamin B complex deficiency include skin rashes or very dry skin, diarrhea, and neurological impairment.

Pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) is crucial to the production of energy and metabolism of various nutrients. The Linus Pauling Institute reports that a deficiency of pantothenic acid is incredibly rare, occurring only as a result of extreme malnutrition. A mild deficiency may cause symptoms of fatigue.

A deficiency of pyridoxine (vitamin B6) is associated with alcoholism, and some medications.

In mild cases, symptoms of a vitamin B6 deficiency include sores on the tongue, irritability, and depression, per the National Institutes of Health. Vitamin B6 plays a role in neurological function so when the body experiences a severe deficiency, seizures and other neurological problems develop.

Biotin (vitamin B7) plays a role in the nervous system, the skin, and digestive health. A deficiency of biotin in rare, though it can occur as a result of eating raw egg whites for an extended period of time, per the Linus Pauling Institute. Symptoms of a vitamin B deficiency of biotin can include abnormally low blood sugar, hair loss, and skin rashes.

Folate (vitamin B9) is involved in the production of proteins and blood cells, per the National Institutes of Health. Symptoms of a vitamin B deficiency of folate include blood anemia. This anemia can eventually cause fatigue and lack of energy.

Cobalamin (vitamin B12) deficiency can also cause anemia. The Harvard School of Public Health reports that a vitamin B12 deficiency can cause mental problems such as memory loss and confusion. According to the UK’s National Health Service, symptoms of a vitamin B12 deficiency can also include frequent oral ulcers.

The symptoms of a vitamin B-complex deficiency largely depend on which specific vitamin is lacking in the body. Many of the B vitamins are responsible for functions of the nervous system, digestive system, and skin health, and symptoms of a deficiency manifest themselves in these systems. Any questions about the symptoms of vitamin B-complex deficiency should be directed to an individual’s doctor.

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Frozen fruit is a very versatile food. Keeping your freezer stocked with a few different kinds of frozen fruit, either store-bought or frozen at home (see my article “Tips for Freezing Fruit” for tips), will allow you to make last minute breakfasts, snacks or desserts. Frozen fruit is a great time saver and a good thing to keep on hand in your freezer. Here are six uses for frozen fruit that will make you glad you have it on hand in your freezer.

Smoothies

The easiest and best use for frozen fruit is to make smoothies. Because the fruit is frozen, there is no need to add ice. Just put ½ cup of yogurt, ½ cup of milk or juice and ½ cup of frozen fruit in the blender. Whirl it around, and you have a fast, easy, healthy and delicious smoothie! Any combination of fruit will probably turn out ok. Try strawberry and banana, strawberry and blueberry, raspberry, coconut and strawberry or mango and peach.

Fruit Sauce

Fruit sauce made with frozen fruit is easy to make and is great on pancakes, waffles, or ice cream. Just cook 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 1/4 cup orange juice. Stir in 2 cups frozen fruit and cook until it bubbles. If you like, you can strain the sauce and make a syrup. This is delicious with strawberries or raspberries.

Desserts

Frozen fruit works very well in desserts. Make a strawberry sauce and pour over strawberries in a strawberry short cake. Use frozen peaches or berries to make a cobbler and serve warm with vanilla ice cream. Or use frozen fruit to make pie filling.

Replace Fresh Fruit

When frozen fruit is thawed, it can sometimes have an undesirable texture. For this reason frozen fruit works best in cooked dishes. However, if the texture doesn’t bother you there are many more options available to you. You can use frozen fruit in just about any dish you would use fresh fruit in. Slice up some strawberries to add to a spinach salad. Or put frozen strawberry and mango slices and frozen blueberries on a fruit pizza. Put any type of sliced thawed frozen fruit on a tortilla spread with cream cheese, and roll up for a quick snack.

Baking

There is basically no difference between fresh and frozen when using blueberries or raspberries in muffins. Just thaw beforehand, stir them into your batter and enjoy the delicious taste of fruit when it is not in season. You can also mix thawed frozen berries into pancake batter.

Flavoring Drinks

Stir some frozen fruit into a pitcher of juice or lemonade to add an extra flavor. Frozen fruit works very well for this because it disintegrates into the juice and spreads its flavor better. Try different combinations of fruit and juices. My favorite is raspberries with limeade.

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If you haven’t heard you should eat more vegetables you must live on another planet. The news about these life-altering vegetables is everywhere nowadays: magazines, newspapers, television, and your favorite web portal.

What’s great about this news is……it’s no hoax. Choosing fresh, colorful vegetables over processed foods means choosing vibrant life. Processed foods are rapidly becoming the wrong way of the past. Packaged convenience foods are not only expensive but they are packed full of dangerous preservatives and chemicals.

I chose these five amazing vegetables because they are my favorites. The list of life changing vegetables is much longer. The CDC has a calculator for how many fruits and vegetables you need a day. The result is based on age, sex and physical activity level.

Bell Pepper

Why they are super ?

These colorful gems are full of vitamin C and A. These two powerhouse antioxidants work in the body to conquer free radicals. These radical villains can cause illness ranging from high cholesterol to arthritis.

When to plant ?

Bell peppers should be planted after there’s no chance of a frost. The soil temperature should be 70 to 85 degrees before placing seeds in the soil.

Tomatoes

Why they are super ?

(Yes, yes, I know a tomato is a fruit but for this article lets pretend it’s a vegetable.)

Lycopene! Need I say more? Tomatoes have this in spades! With cancer rates on the rise, this is one veggie you shouldn’t shun. So far, the list for cancers that tomatoes protect against are pancreatic, breast, endometrial, lung, prostate and colorectal. Lycopene is not the only valuable nutrient in tomatoes but it’s the player that shines the brightest.

When to plant ?

Tomatoes require a constant outside temperature of 50 degrees before they will grow well. Growing can be started inside from 6 to 8 weeks before the last expected frost date.

White Onions

Why they are super ?

With diabetes and insulin resistance showing no sign of disappearing, onions can be a major player in helping cells respond to insulin. Onions are rich in sulfur-containing compounds and also the trace mineral chromium. Chromium is depleted with diets of refined sugar, white flour and lack on exercise. Amazingly, one cup of onions boasts over 20% of the Daily Value for Chromium! Pass the Onions and Altoids!

Onions also contain the always important vitamin C.

When to plant ?

A good time to plant white onions is in March. Plant them 4 to 6 inches apart with full sun on them.

Purple Eggplant

Why they are super ?

Eggplants were made to be amazing. Have you had a good look at an eggplant lately? They are a beautiful color of purple. Is there another vegetable that’s that same purple? If there isn’t, that makes the eggplant uniquely valuable.

Did you know a compound found in all eggplant varieties, chlorogenic acid, is the most powerful of the free radical scavengers found in plants?

A growing number of people take medicine daily, to lower their cholesterol numbers. Those medicines don’t come without side effects. Testing has been done on subjects with high cholesterol using eggplant juice. The juice reduced their blood cholesterol significantly, along with improved blood flow.

One more thing about this amazingly odd vegetable: it’s an iron chelator! Excess iron is thought by some to be a possible a factor in the reason women who menstruate or menstruated, outlive men by a few years. Too much iron increases the production of free radicals, which is linked with heart disease and cancer. Blood donation centers should make men aware of that possibility to increase their often-dwindling blood donations.

When to plant ?

Eggplant can be planted about a week after the last frost date.

Orange Sweet Potatoes

Why they are super ?

• Vitamin A (beta-carotene)
• Vitamin C
• Manganese
• Copper
• B-6
• Potassium
• Iron
• Fiber

With all these nutrients, sweet potatoes are a must to boost your health. Since these nutrients have anti-inflammatory properties, these orange heroes are good choices for reducing the severity of asthma and rheumatoid arthritis.

Interestingly, research at Kansas State University concluded that if you are a smoker or are the unfortunate victim of second hand smoke, foods with vitamin A, like sweet potatoes, might save your life.

When to plant ?

Around the first of May is a good time to plant these powerhouse potatoes. If the soil is too wet and cold, they could rot.

The great thing about these particular vegetables is that they can be planted around the same time. It could be called, the outdoor medicine cabinet with no side effects.

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Out of the five fruit salads with marshmallows listed below, the traditional fruit salads and jello salads are the two with the most variations. Any fruit can be used in either salad with miniature marshmallows.

When it comes to the using marshmallows for these fruit salads, many people will use the miniature marshmallows. Some people like using the white marshmallows in their salads because that is their preference. Other people like using the colorful miniature marshmallows in their fruit salads.

These five types of fruit salads with marshmallows are the ones I am most familiar with. While they may be the basic fruit salads with marshmallows, there are several jello salads with marshmallows that more than my grandmothers and mom use to make. Several aunts and friends have made their own variations of jello fruit salad.

Many people make these 5 types of fruit salads with marshmallows for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter dinners. I have seen them pop up during July 4th dinners too. I don’t feel they should be kept just for holiday dinners. I have made small fruit salads throughout the year because I have had a craving for them.

Fruit Salad

This type of fruit salad I grew up eating and making had at least two types of apples, grapes red and green, oranges mandarin and naval, bananas, sometimes strawberries, coconut, miniature marshmallows, nuts, whipped topping and a few other ingredients.

Watergate Salad

Watergate Salad may better known to some as Pistachio Fluff or Pistachio Nut Salad. This is one of the few salads I will eat with marshmallows. If you like pistachios like I do, you will love this salad too.

Ambrosia Salad

Ambrosia Salad is one version of a fruit salad. This commonly made salad during the holidays often uses sour cream and powdered sugar as part of the ingredients. It also has pears, peaches, and canned mixed fruit as three other main fruit ingredients where some of the other fruit salads will not have these items.

Jello Salads

Both of my grandmothers and mom would sometimes make a jello salad with fruits or vegetables (carrots and raisins) with marshmallows. The jello salads would range from cut jello with fruit, marshmallows, and whipped cream to the dry jello being added to the whipped cream and other items.

Waldorf Salad

Waldorf Salad is another fruit and marshmallow salad that has a 100 different variations it seems. I’ve seen it made with and without marshmallows. I have seen it made with and without chicken as well.

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Currently, there are two methods to lower your cholesterol, diet and/or medication. Medications work well in lowering your cholesterol number, but you might be concerned about long term side effects of taking the medication. For some people, diet and exercise without medication will not sufficiently lower their cholesterol number.

What’s a person to do? Try adding some, or all of, these 15 foods to your diet that have been proven to naturally lower cholesterol.

1. Apples: eaten daily, preferably three times a day. one in the mid-morning, one in the mid-afternoon and one in the evening.
2. Barley: it works by lowering the livers ability to produce cholesterol. Use barley as a cooked cereal or in baked goods.
3. Beans: one cup a day of cooked pintos or navy beans. Beans work two ways, they lower the bad cholesterol and raise the good.
4. Carrots: eating three raw carrots a day has been shown to reduce the bad numbers.
5. Chili Peppers: another food that suppresses the liver’s ability to produce cholesterol. Add some jalapeno peppers to your favorite foods every day.
6. Eggplant: it serves a special function by blocking the cholesterol in the blood from rising when fatty foods have been eaten.
7. Garlic: five fresh cloves of garlic minced and mixed with your other foods daily. If you don’t like the taste or the residual bad breath, try a quality garlic supplements that can be purchased almost anywhere.
8. Skim milk: as the ad says-‘milk, it does a body good’.
9. Olive Oil: use it in cooking or just take a couple of teaspoons every day.
10. Onions: another food that lowers the bad number and raises the good number.
11. Fish: eaten several times a week keeps the cholesterol level from elevating.
12. Sweet potatoes: they contain a large amount of water soluble fiber, plus beta carotene. Eat 4-5 times weekly.
13. Yogurt: three cups a day can lower you cholesterol significantly in just one week.
14. Soybeans: any product made from soybeans will work. Soybeans help break down fatty deposits so your body can flush them out more readily.
15. And last but not least, is good old oat bran. Who would have thought that a cup of oatmeal a day could be one of the best things you could eat? No time for sitting down and eating breakfast in the mornings? No problem, grab an oat bran muffin and go.

If you are trying to lower your cholesterol by diet alone, or are thinking about trying a natural method, just by adding one of these foods to your diet, you can see your bad numbers lower. The more of these foods you add, the lower your cholesterol numbers can go. Some of these foods are also good for other ailments and will serve you by doing double duty in your diet.

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