A Healthy and Balanced Diet

Every day we are told to eat more healthily and take greater responsibility for our health. So what does this mean? What is a healthy diet? What should you buy and eat to ensure that you are following a healthy eating regime. The concept of healthy eating is not new, but what constitutes a healthy diet does change. 50 years ago a healthy diet would have looked rather different to that of one today. Optimum Diet and Health Much of the current research into nutrition is concerned with determining the optimum diet for health. It is known that many foods help to combat diseases, and likewise, others cause disease. In an ideal world everyone will know what to eat to ensure that they achieve optimum health, even if the food is not always available. It is important to mention first that there are not really any “bad” foods. A bad diet is not one that includes a few “unhealthy” foods, but a diet that is unbalanced. Sugar, fat and salt are all essential in a healthy diet, but consuming too much is what causes problems. How Much Should You Eat – Calories Firstly, for a diet to be healthy it [...]

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The Dangers of Dieting – Bad Dieting Can Be Bad For Your Health

Every year we hear reports of people becoming ill from following extreme “diets”. In some rare cases the diets prove fatal. While many products are regulated and sometimes banned, ideas, misconceptions and bad advice cannot be so easily controlled. Some diet systems are not inherently unhealthy, but due to lack of care and attention and often a disregard for the rules, people put themselves at risk by modifying and tweaking the diet plan. Here we look at a selection of diet plans and products that have hit the news in recent years. Some due to the controversial nature of the research that is behind them, and some for more tragic reasons. Raw Vegan Diets Can Be Bad for Your Health In June 2008 the Independent newspaper published an article about a family who had gone vegan, with terrible consequences. A mother, Holly Paige, adopted a raw vegan diet for her family thinking that it was a very healthy and nutritious way of eating. But the diet led to her daughters having growth problems, both being below average height and weight for children of their age, with reduced bone density and very skinny arms and legs. They had also swollen bellies and pinched cheeks, [...]

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Does Green Tea Really Aid Weight Loss?

Recently there has been increased interest in “tea diets”. Sometimes referred to as Green Tea Diets, but more recently marketed as Wuyi Tea Diets, these so called “diets” use effective advertising tricks to sell tea to vulnerable people on the premise that it can help them to lose weight. Much of the publicity surrounding the tea was caused when it was discussed by Dr. Nicholas Perricone on the Oprah Winfrey show. More recently celebrities such as Johnny Depp, Justin Bieber and Victoria Beckham have all claimed that green tea forms a part of their daily diet. Although these Wuyi teas do have some health benefits that other drinks do not provide, they are not a cure for obesity, and their ability to help a person lose weight is debatable. Usually it is advised that a healthy diet and exercise is also taken while on the “tea diet”, which makes the effectiveness of the tea itself seem all the more unlikely. According to one aggressive sales pitch, Wuyi tea has the following properties: “zero carbohydrates, zero calories, zero fats, Wu-Yi Tea extremely powerful“. Being free of carbs and calories is in itself debatable, but advertising a tea to be fat free is just taking the [...]

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A Guide To Workout Nutrition

If you are exercising intensively you need to start thinking about nutrition. Whether you are trying to lose fat or build more muscle, or both, then getting your diet right is vital for success. For bodybuilding, training for kickboxing competitions, football, athletics or any other active sport, you need to get you nutrition right. Here we look a nutrition for fitness in general, then take a look at how martial artists and runners manage their nutrition. Finally we look at some supplements and share some warnings. To maintain a healthy weight all you really need to do is eat a reasonable well balanced diet and stay within your daily calorie needs to avoid gaining weight. However, if you are looking to lose fat while building muscle, nutrition becomes more complex. Nutrition for Exercise and Sports Pre Workout Nutrition What you eat before your workout affects how much energy you have. If you eat too little then your muscles may become fatigued too soon. If you eat too much you risk gaining weight. You should consume your pre-workout meal 2 hours before your workout to ensure that it is fully digested and that the energy and nutrients are being passed on to the [...]

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The Paleo Diet – Weight Loss Diet By Paleolithic Man!

The paleolithic diet, also known as the Stone Age Diet or Caveman Diet, is simply a return to eating the foods that humans would have consumed before agriculture and farming became common. Also, it emphasises eating raw foods, as cooking would have been a rarity. It is the oldest known diet to man! The paleolithic diet is intended to emulate the ancient diet of wild plants and animals that humans consumed up until the end of the stone age, which was about 10,000 years ago. It is based upon commonly available modern foods, including lean meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, roots, and nuts. It mostly excludes grains, legumes, dairy products, salt, refined sugar and processed oils. Some salt and dairy (fresh goats milk etc.) may have been consumed, but not on a large scale. Although fire was used in cooking it may not have been a daily luxury. The Original Paleo Diet for Weight Loss To start a Paleo Diet you just need the Paleo Cookbook from www.paleocookbooks.com. It was first popularized in the mid 1970s by a gastroenterologist named Walter L. Voegtlin. Building upon the principles of evolutionary medicine, it is based on the premise that modern humans are genetically adapted to the [...]

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The Red Meat Debate – Is It Safe?

Red meat has the potential to be very important in our diet. It is a rich source of protein, which is essential for athletic development (muscles) and also contains iron, zinc and phosphorus, plus vitamins B12, thiamin and roboflavin. Red meat is also one of the best sources of a antioxidant called Alpha Lipoic Acid, and contains creatine, which also aids muscular growth. However, various studies over the years have highlighted the health problems linked to the consumption of red meat. British Meat Industry and the World Cancer Research Fund There has been a debate between the British meat industry (which consists of the National Beef Association , the National Sheep Association and the National Farmers’ Union) and the World Cancer Research Fund. In the report on bowel cancer published in 2007, the main concerns were surrounding processed red meats. Meats such as salami and ham are still considered to be very unhealthy, and pose great risk to health. The increased salt content, plus the additional saturated fat in salami, is bed for cardiovascular health. However, there has been some criticism on the scientific method, and also on the filtering of data and ommission of research that dod not provide any conclusive link [...]

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Diet and Heart Health

Over the years much research has been carried out to examine the relationship between diet and heart disease. Many studies lead to the idea of “superfoods” to prevent heart disease developing, however, these reports are generally misleading. Some studies have led to campaigns to ban butter and other fats as they are deemed so dangerous to health. A well balanced diet with plenty of exercise is really the best way to reduce the risk of developing heart disease. Here we look at Western Diet Causes Heart Disease Research published in Circulation in 2008 has shown that the western diet is responsible for the increased incidence of heart disease and heart attacks. The research carried out McMaster University in Canada has suggested that switching fried and salty foods for salads and fresh fruits could cut the global incidence of heart attacks by 30%. The researchers analysed the diets of 16,000 people in 52 countries and identified three global eating patterns. The typical Western diet, high in fat, salt and meat, accounted for about 30% of heart attack risk in any population. A more prudent diet high in fruit and veg lowered heart risk by 30%. The Oriental diet, which is high in [...]

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The Atkins Nutritional Approach – a.k.a. The Atkins Diet Plan

The Atkins Diet is often misunderstood. It is still a great way to lose weight and does not have to be an unhealthy diet.

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Sugar, Carbohydrates and Your Health

Sugar remains a mostly misunderstood part of our diet. On the one had sugar provides vital energy for healthy body function and fuels the brain, on the other hand it often contributes to calorie excesses and weight gain. Excess sugar poses more risks to health than just weight gain though. Here we look at some of the health issues surrounding sugar and some measures that are being taken to mitigate that risk. 10 Ways Sugar Harms Your Health Sugar is possibly the biggest cause of obesity. For years people have been told to go on low fat diets to lose weight, but in reality most people do not receive most of their energy from fat, most comes from sugar. Sugar in excess causes many other health problems too, although the biggest health problem society is facing at the moment is the obesity crisis that is caused by an energy surplus in most people’s diets. In short, sugar makes you fat and kills. 1. Sugar Causes Blood Glucose To Spike And Plummet Unstable blood sugar often leads to mood swings, fatigue, headaches and cravings for more sugar. 2. Sugar Increases the Risk of Obesity, Diabetes and Heart Disease Large-scale studies have shown that [...]

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How Super are Superfoods?

The media love reporting news of superfood discoveries, but is there really any such thing as a superfood? The fact is, often the foods are not all that super at all. Sensationalist reporting just makes them seem super.

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Not Another Forking Fad Diet!

It seems that the nation that gave us the first well structured diet plan for some time, the Dukan Diet, has now opted for a slightly more faddish diet craze. In France they call it Le Forking or Le régime fourchette, however it is derived from Ivan Gavriloff’s Dine With A Fork idea that is set out in his book Dine avec une fourchette : Un nouvel art de bien manger written in 2005. The idea is simple – the only food you can eat must be that which can be consumed only with a fork. So French onion soup seems to be off the menu! The logic behind the fork diet is that foods which contain a lot of sugar or far cannot be eaten with a fork. Ivan Gavriloff believes it is the food we eat with a knife that causes us to gain weight. Foods in this category include meats, sausages and cheese. This idea is not without merit though. The research by carried out by Dr. Richard Wrangham shows that it is the processing of food through cooking and grinding that allowed humans to develop more rapidly. For example, studies have shown that cooking eggs allows us to absorb [...]

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Anti Hay Fever Diet

It is that time of year again when pollen ruins an otherwise lovely day. More and more people are starting to suffer from hay fever. Each year more children develop the condition and also adults, that never had hay fever before, are starting to develop symptoms. What can you do to prevent, or at least reduce the symptoms of hay fever? Hay fever is caused by allergens that enter your body through the nose, throat or skin and then attack the immune system. The first step then in combating hay fever is to improve your immune system. The best way to boost your immune system is to start eating a healthier diet and get more sleep. Boosting your immune system will help to deal with mucus building up which is one of the biggest problems people have. Mucus building leads to catarrh which can be very unpleasant. Eat Natural Antihistamines Vitamin C and antioxidants are natural antihistamines. Antihistamines reduce the allergic reaction to allergens. The best way to get more vitamin C is to eat a diet rich in fresh fruits. The general rule is the more colorful the food the healthier it is. Omega 3 also helps fight hay [...]

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The New Food Pyramid – USDA Reviews Its Healthy Eating Guidelines

Since 1992 the USDA has used the Food Pyramid to provide Americans with a guide to healthy eating. Now it is updating its message and using a new tool to help American to eat well and live healthier lives.

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Glut Recipes To Shrink Your Gut

Growing your own vegetable can be fun and also provide you with a healthy supply of vegetables and fruits. However, sometimes you get a glut and it is hard to know how to use it all before it goes off. Here are some healthy glut soup recipes that will also help you to lose weight.

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The Low GI Diet Plan – Glycemic Diet eBook

Following a low GI diet is not a guaranteed way to lose weight - there is really no such thing as a guaranteed method. You still need to follow the rules, manage your eating and ideally do some regular exercise. However, it is one of the best ways to control your blood sugar levels and this helps with appetite management and stabilizes insulin which means less fat accumulation and more fat burning.

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Healthy Vegetable Smoothie Recipes

Vegetable smoothies are the fastest way to consume nutrient rich vegetables. If you have a blender then you can make healthy vegetable smoothies which provide you with all the carbohydrates that you require and also provide a huge vitamin boost. They are much healthier than consuming refined carbohydrates for energy. The high quality carbohydrates can actually aid fitness and muscle development.

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Healthy Fruit Smoothie Recipes

Fruit smoothies are possibly the healthiest drinks you can have. Made with fresh fruit, they are high in vitamins and nutrients and easily digested. Here we share our favorite fruit smoothie recipes, including Triple Strawberry and the Banana, Kiwi and Pineapple. Zesty, vibrant and delicious these smoothies provide an excellent source of energy and vitamins.

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Health Benefits Of Eating More Broccoli

It turns out that the humble broccoli is not so humble after all. In fact, it could well be one of the most important and mist readily available "super foods". Its secret ingredient is called sulforaphane which is thought to reduce damage at the cellular level.

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The Dukan Diet – The French Weight Loss Diet System

The Dukan Diet was developed around the same time as the Atkins Diet Revolution and follows a similar pattern - an intensive induction period of around 2 weeks called the Attack Phase, then the Cruise and Consolidation phases that are aimed at developing a healthy diet in the long term. Like any diet system the key is to follow the diet through each stage until the end, and then carry on eating healthily.

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The Tomato Diet

Tomatoes reduce hunger - see our tomato diet tips. A tomato diet is simple to implement. The key rule is to eat tomatoes with most of your meals, and also eat some tomato snacks. Tomatoes are very healthy and provide a few little secret ingredients that aid weight loss.

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