The other day I was talking to a friend in Illinois who was excited that the sun had finally come out after being MIA for the previous ten days. Living in California and getting a fair share of mild temperatures and sun even in winter, I often forget other parts of the country have to deal with waist-high snow, ice, below-zero temperatures, and long stretches of sunless days. Her excitement about finally seeing the sun got me thinking about a recent article I had read on the importance of Vitamin D.
Vitamin D is one of those vitamins that researchers are starting to eye more closely because of its health benefits. Several research studies in recent years seem to indicate it can potentially assist with everything from lessoning the severity of influenza symptoms to preventing and treating diabetes Type I and II. It has also been found to protect against certain cancers such as colon, prostate, and breast cancer, and play a role in preventing hypertension, osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, schizophrenia, rickets and osteomalacia.
Let’s talk fat.For decades, we have heard that eating fatty foods were bad for us.In true “sky is falling” fashion, we concentrated on eliminating all fats from our diets instead of focusing on lowering or eliminating the truly harmful fats from our diets and keeping the good ones.Yes, there are actually good fats and our body needs these fats.
As a nation, we became obsessed with the idea of eating low-fat foods because we were told ingesting fatty foods contributed to everything from obesity and high blood pressure to heart disease and high cholesterol.Do not get me wrong, consuming large quantities of bad fats over one’s lifetime will cause major health programs, but not getting enough of the good fats can also cause health concerns.
Metabolism has a starring role when it comes to your health; it is the energy (calories) your body burns to maintain itself. Learn how to increase your metabolism, and you effectively use more energy, i.e. burn more calories.
The end, rather enjoyable result is that you lose weight. I often talk about one of the best ways to increase your metabolism and that is by exercising regularly. Lifting weights and resistance training are great ways to build muscle, and having more muscle mass means you will use more energy (i.e., burn more calories).
This time, I want to talk about another important component for keeping your metabolism high and that is your diet.By eating well-balanced meals made up of the right foods, you can provide your body with the right nutrition, which in turn, can keep your metabolic rate high. Foods high in protein and fiber, but low in fat are effective in boosting your metabolism. Foods high in protein generally take a longer time to breakdown, which means you burn more energy in the process.
High fiber foods work similarly to proteins, and can be tremendously helpful if you are trying to lose weight. You definitely cannot go wrong by including fresh fruits and vegetables, beans, and whole-grain breads in your diet.
If you were to name a food product that went from being touted as the next best thing since sliced bread to a food nightmare, soy would probably be at the top of the list.The American Soybean Association believes soybeans are a “miracle crop” and the world’s foremost provider of protein and oil.Several out-of-date (sounds better than delusional) websites also purport that soy promotes heart health and healthy bones, prevents cancer and lessens menopausal symptoms.However, a growing body of research runs contrary to these assertions, and instead suggests soy is one food product that should not have a starring role in your diet.
Trying to avoid soy or soy-based products is difficult.Sure, you can easily cut back on or eliminate soy products like milk, tofu, soy nuts, edamame, tempeh, and miso.You know what those foods are, but what about all those other foods that contain soy.Soy-based ingredients are found in a significant number of our foods such as baby foods, breads, pancakes, noodles, cereals, cheese, gravies, hot dogs, hamburgers, and mayo.Given how prevalent soy is, chances are you are unknowingly consuming much more than what is healthy.
The laundry list of health benefits from drinking green tea has just gotten longer, and green tea lovers have yet one more reason to pour themselves another cup, especially if they also happen to be smokers. If you are a smoker, I will spare you the health lecture.You know how bad smoking is for you and that your best path to good health is to quit.However, I know it is often easier said than done.Fortunately, until you are able to kick the habit, you may be able to at least increase your odds of not developing lung cancer.
A recent study conducted in Korea and presented at the 2010 AACR - IASLC Joint Conference found that green tea was effective in reducing the risk of lung cancer in smokers. In the study, it was found that those smokers and non-smokers who did not drink green tea had a 5.16-fold increased risk of lung cancer compared with those participants who drank at least one cup a day.However, among smokers, the results were more dramatic.Smoking participants who did not drink green tea at all had a 12.71-fold increased risk of lung cancer compared with those smokers who drank at least one cup of green tea per day.The results seem to support the conclusion that green tea is effective in reducing the effects of smoking-induced carcinogens.
