Thank You For Visiting Our Blog, FEEL BETTER AND LIVE LONGER!

The purpose of our blog is to share what we have learned about nutrition, weight loss, fitness, and health, in order to help you find ways to feel better and live longer. It is amazing how much our diet and lifestyle affect our health and well-being.

Did you know that you can reduce your risk and even prevent many diseases and health conditions simply by making some changes to your diet? Check back often for valuable tips and information.

HOW TO LOSE WEIGHT & KEEP IT OFF:

For the first time in my life I have found weight loss success. During my adult life I have tried dozens and dozens of so-called "diets" and none of them worked over the long-haul. Oh, I was able to lose weight with some of them, but once I went off of the "diet" I quickly gained back all of my weight (plus some).

I have finally learned that losing weight has to be a lifestyle change, not a temporary fix. Crash diets and all the other crazy diets will not only cause you to fail, they are harmful to your health. To lose weight and keep it off you must NOT go on a "diet." What? Why? Because we all consider a "diet" a temporary thing. For example, how many times have you said, "Oh, I will go on this low-fat diet until I lose 20 pounds." Okay, what happens after you lose the 20 pounds? Or you simply give up? You go back to your old habits and gain that 20 pounds back.

The only way you will ever be successful at losing weight, with the added benefit of improving your health, is to make healthy changes that you can live with for the rest of your life. Period. Not for a week, a month or 3 months, but for life. For me, my initial goal was to lower my cholesterol level. I had to have a blood test for my insurance coverage and my cholesterol level had to be lower than the previous year's levels or I would have to pay a much higher premium. Well, that was a pretty good incentive for me make some positive changes.

I sat down and figured out what I needed to do. I knew I had to change the way I ate and I knew I had to exercise in some form or other every day. So, I made a list and I stuck to it. It was difficult at first. To make matters worse, I am a compulsive eater. However, as the days went by, it became much easier because my body stopped craving sweets and processed foods. For the first time in my life, I was never tempted to binge because I never felt deprived.

Use the list below and make whatever changes you need to make in order for it to work for you. FYI, my cholesterol level dropped 65 points after 7 weeks, and my triglycerides dropped 70 points! Another benefit that I hadn't planned on was that after being an insomniac since my teen-age years, I now sleep like a baby every night!

MY LIST FOR WEIGHT LOSS SUCESS:

1. Avoid "white" Foods & Processed Foods. These foods have no nutritional value and are "empty" calories. Sweets, anything made with white flour,and anything that comes in a package with a long list of ingredients. Always read the food labels. Stay away from those long lists of ingredients. The longer the list, the more chemicals and additives are present. These are extremely toxic to your body.

2. Drink Lots of Water. Water keeps your body's organs hydrated and flushes out unhealthy toxins. It helps to fill you up and reduces your urge to over-eat.

3. Eat a Healthy Breakfast. Instead of coffee and donuts, try fruit, yogurt, grains like oatmeal or whole grain toast, and lean protein. NEVER skip breakfast. By eating a large, healthy meal when you get up in the morning, your metabolism will "rev up" and you will not be hungry by mid-morning. If you skip breakfast, your body will go into starvation mode and store calories in your body as FAT, yes FAT! So do yourself a big favor and eat breakfast.

4. Reduce Your Stress Level. So many of us live with too much stress. Stress lowers your immune system, making it easier to get sick. It also makes us lethargic, tired, and depressed. There are a lot of simple things you can do and a lot of ways to feel better about yourself and your life. Take a long, hot bath, read a book, listen to music, get a massage. Do something nice for yourself. Giving yourself something to look forward to is a tremendous mental incentive.

5. Move! Oh my gosh! There are so many ways to incorporate movement into your day, even at work. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Get up every hour and walk around your floor, your hallway or your desk. Park your car in the farthest space from where you need to be. Walk or bike to work. Skate, dance, golf, jump rope, clean house, play tag. The best exercise you can do is to walk. Try to take a walk every day! The more you move, the more your metabolism will be your friend. (I walk 3 miles every day whether it is raining, snowing or freezing.)

Food Additives - The Dangers of Processed Foods

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We have become a nation of convenience. Processed, packaged, ready-to-eat foods have taken over the American diet. Most Americans spend the biggest chunk of their food budget on processed foods. They come in bags, boxes, cans, plastic, foil wrap, or other artificial containers.

Processed foods have been altered from their natural-occurring state and subjected to some type of chemical alteration such as canning, freezing, oxidation, chelation, refrigeration, or dehydration. Unlike fresh foods that are single ingredient items, processed foods contain a long list of ingredients.

Most processed foods are loaded with sweeteners, salt, artificial flavors, chemically induced fats, food coloring, and preservatives. The reason why so much of these food additives or  "toxic junk" has to be added is because the processing methods strip the nutrients away and change the color and texture of the foods.

Manufacturers must add the chemicals to enable longer shelf-life and improve the looks and taste of the foods. This enables companies to lose less money on products that might otherwise be perishable and have to be discarded.

Is this food healthy for our bodies? No! If you must buy processed foods, PLEASE make sure you read the food labels. If they contain any of the following ingredients, be aware of the harm they can cause to your body and consume sparingly.

ASPARTAME
An artificial, chemical sweetener known as NutraSweet, Splenda and Equal found in many foods and beverages including desserts, gelatins, low calorie foods, and sodas. Aspartame can cause cancer, heart disease, edema, neurological problems, weight gain, increased appetite, bloating, or hallucinations and predispose you to Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer’s. Aspartame poisoning mimics symptoms of MS.

FOOD COLORINGS (BLUE 1, 2; RED 3, 40; GREEN 3; YELLOW 5, 6)
There is evidence that food coloring and food additives contribute to behavioral problems in children, hyperactivity, ADHD, depression, hormonal dysfunction, migraines and various forms of cancer in animal testing. Stay away from any product listing an ingredient with a color plus a number.

HIGH-FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP
High fructose corn syrup can upset our body’s metabolism and encourage overeating.  It is a liquid sweetener that is used because it is cheaper to make and mixes easily with other ingredients.

Research indicates that high fructose corn syrup depletes the body’s reserves of chromium, a mineral that is vital for healthy levels of cholesterol, insulin and blood sugar. The result is an increased risk for heart disease and diabetes.

It is in breads, buns, frozen foods, condiments, soft drinks and sauces. To spot fructose on a food label, look for the words "corn sweetener," "corn syrup," and/or "high-fructose corn syrup."

MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a dangerous food ingredient compound known as an excitotoxin. This is a protein that causes the brain cells to fire their impulses rapidly when they make contact with it. The cells then become so hyper-excited that they continue to fire until the cell subsequently dies.

MSG isn’t only sensed by our taste buds, but it also triggers and excites the neurons in our brain. This highly hazardous ingredient is hidden away in ingredients that go by many different names.

It is not only found in canned soups, dressings, junk foods, frozen foods, restaurant food, and many other foods, it is also in pesticides that are sprayed on fruits and vegetables. MSG is also hidden in drugs, vaccines, infant formula, and dietary supplements. The taste that MSG gives processed food is addictive.

MSG is not only responsible for contributing to the obesity epidemic, but also migraine headaches, depression, irritable bowel syndrome, asthma, diabetes, Alzheimer's, attention deficit disorder, seizures and strokes. Very, very few people are aware of these toxic dangers that MSG can produce.

SODIUM CHOLORIDE
Commercial table salt is highly processed and full of aluminum, chemicals and additives that are toxic and wreak havoc on your health. Most of the sodium that we ingest does not come from the salt we sprinkle on our food. It is hidden in processed foods like canned soups, canned vegetables, fast foods, and preserved meats like hot dogs, bologna, bacon and ham.

Our bodies need some sodium, the kind that occurs naturally in unprocessed foods like barley, beets, carrot juice, celery, and milk. It helps regulate blood pressure, maintains proper fluid balance in our bodies, makes your heart muscles contract and keeps your senses working properly.

A little is needed every day to replace what we lose through normal bodily excretions. When your body gets too much salt, it retains fluid in order to dilute the extra sodium in your bloodstream. This forces your heart to work harder and the veins and arteries to constrict, resulting in a rise in blood pressure.

Choose unprocessed sea salt instead.

REFINED GRAINS
Aren’t grains good for you? No, not if they are refined. “White” foods are refined grains; white bread, white rice, white pasta, sugary cereal, etc. Choosing these over whole grains increases your risk for high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, insulin resistance and heart attacks.

Read the ingredient list on packaged grain products. If the product is one of those that are nutritionally best for you, the first ingredient should be whole wheat or another whole grain. The fiber content should be at least 3 grams per serving.

TRANS FATS
Once considered to be a heart-friendly replacement for butter, lard and oil, research has discovered that trans fats are dangerous for your heart. They increase your levels of bad cholesterol and decrease the levels of good cholesterol. This contributes to clogged arteries, greatly increasing your risk for heart attack and stroke.

Trans fats are found in many foods. Always check food’s ingredient list for any of these words: "partially hydrogenated," or "hydrogenated". The higher up the "partially hydrogenated oil" is on the list of ingredients, the more trans fat the product contains.

If you want to be healthier and reduce your risk for illness and disease, take the time to prepare meals the “old-fashioned” way with “real” food instead of popping a plastic container of food that has questionable nutrient value into the microwave.  ALWAYS check food labels. 



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