Wed, Mar 10, 2010 by Saluterra.

A promise of losing twenty pounds in a week may seem exciting. However, you didn’t gain all that excess weight overnight, and losing it so quickly won’t do either your health or your long-term weight loss goals any service.

Appetite suppressants, fat blockers, and other diet pills may accelerate your weight loss - very unsafely. Same with crash diets (those that make you starve yourself) or diets that promote removing a whole major food group (carbohydrates, fats, or proteins) from your daily menu. Taking diet pills or practicing deprivation-based diets may result in malnutrition either from not taking in enough nutrients, or from being unable to absorb some of them properly. For instance, fat blockers may impede your absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K. This can lead to malabsorption of other nutrients, as well - for instance, vitamin D is necessary for calcium to be utilized by your body. If you don’t absorb a nutrient, you might as well not have consumed it at all.

In addition to the risk of malnutrition, rapid weight loss resulting from any practice can lead to heart strain, dehydration, kidney trouble, and impairment of the immune system. Not to mention dark circles around your eyes and skin bags hanging down your arms and under your chin - not exactly the effect most dieters are aiming for.

Also - how long can you possibly last on a 600 calorie diet or one that won’t let you have a cookie? Chances are you’d quit after a couple of weeks - even if you do lose twenty pounds during that time - and try another diet a month later (after you’ve gained your twenty pounds back, and then some). Losing and gaining weight repeatedly due to such yo-yo dieting presents its own set of health issues and can make your future weight loss endeavors even more difficult due to inefficient metabolism.

So how fast is fast enough? - The general rule of thumb is: you should strive to lose NO more than two pounds per week (less than that is fine), and ensure that you’re losing them in the form of fat (rather than muscle or water).You can achieve that through a balanced diet that includes all nutrients, adequate physical activity, and effective stress management.

The TLS website can easily guide you through proper food choices (including weekly menus with recipes), exercise recommendations, stress reduction tips, and plenty of other information that will make your weight loss journey smooth and safe.

To your health!

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Weight Management, Nutrition | No Comments »

Tue, Mar 9, 2010 by Saluterra.

Caffeine might make your blood pressure worse if you have genetic tendencies towards hypertension or already have elevated blood pressure. However, there’s a whole group of beverages that are a lot worse for your blood pressure than coffee - those are sodas, both “diet” and regular.

In a recent study, drinking just one soda drink a day was associated with about 15% higher risk of hypertension, while a daily cup of coffee appeared to have little impact. Both regular and “diet” sodas were shown to increase the risk of hypertension, and having more than one soda drink per day increased the risk to a larger extent.

In another study, drinking two or more soda drinks per day was associated with a 44% to 50% increase in the risk of metabolic syndrome and heart disease.

Since coffee did not have the same effect on participants’ health, the researchers concluded that it was not the caffeine that made sodas bad for you, but rather some of the other ingredients - possibly the high amounts of sodium used in the carbonation process. Sweeteners and colorants were also suggested as possible culprits.

If you are sensitive to caffeine, it can temporarily increase your blood pressure, so it’s best to limit your caffeine intake if you have hypertension, are at risk for it, or are sensitive to caffeine in any other way. For healthy individuals, drinking one or two cups of coffee per day appears to be safe.

To your health!

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Heart Health, Nutrition | No Comments »

Mon, Mar 8, 2010 by Saluterra.

What’s on TV or at the movies tonight? A comedy? A thriller? - Your choice of entertainment may affect the length and quality of your life.

In a study, healthy men and women with normal blood pressure watched either a comedy or a violent action movie while researchers measured their blood flow. The comedy watchers’ blood vessels relaxed and increased their blood flow by 22%. The action movie watchers, on the other hand, experienced mental stress as a result of which their blood vessels constricted and decreased their blood flow by 35%.

While watching an occasional action movie, thriller or boxing game won’t kill you immediately, a steady diet of violent entertainment may contribute to chronic stress and chronically constricted blood vessels, putting extra strain on your heart and increasing your risk of heart disease.

Frequent laughter - for any reason or even for no reason whatsoever - can help you maintain good heart health by relaxing your blood vessels and thus increasing your blood flow. This helps decrease strain on your heart as it doesn’t need to work as hard to pump your blood for you. Laughter is also a great stress reliever that anyone can use and that doesn’t cost a penny!

To your health - have you had a good laugh today yet?

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Heart Health, Mind & Spirit | No Comments »

Sun, Mar 7, 2010 by Saluterra.

Your body consists of (1) lean body mass (muscles, organs, bones,  fluids, etc.) and (2) body fat. When you want to “lose weight” - whether for better health or merely to fit into cuter clothes - you need to decrease the ratio of your body fat to your lean body mass. To reach that goal, you need adequate physical activity and proper nutrition.

Increase physical activity to build muscle and burn fat:

• Strength (resistance) exercise - builds muscle and, consequently, helps burn fat even long after you’ve stopped exercising
• Endurance (aerobic/cardio) exercise - burns fat while you exercise at the right heart rate
• Flexibility (stretching/balance) exercise - helps cool down and reduce muscle soreness after the other exercise types

Modify your eating habits and food choices to prevent excess body fat forming:

• Maintain stable metabolism and avoid both starving yourself and binging - have several small meals or snacks each day, instead of just 2 or 3 large meals
• Consume a balanced diet of complex carbohydrates (vegetables, fruits, whole grains), lean proteins, and “good” fats
• Hydrate - have 1 ounce of water for every 2 pounds of your body weight each day; more if you’re an athlete

How will you know if you’ve improved your ratio of body fat to lean body mass? - You can measure your body fat percentage using a special scale. You can also use a tape to measure the circumferences of your chest, waist and hips. Or just watch your clothes become looser and looser, and yourself fitting into smaller and smaller dresses and pants.

Browse the Health & Fitness and Nutrition sections of this blog for more information.

To your health!

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Weight Management | No Comments »

Sat, Mar 6, 2010 by Saluterra.

Metabolic syndrome consists of high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high triglycerides, imbalanced cholesterol (low “good” HDL and high “bad” LDL), and usually a large pad of extra body fat around the middle. If not controlled in time, it may become a precursor to diabetes and/or heart disease. Increasing magnesium in your diet may help you prevent or revert metabolic syndrome.

Magnesium may help improve your body’s use of insulin and thus regulate blood sugar, and research shows that consuming a diet high in magnesium could lower your risk of metabolic syndrome by as much as 30%. Sadly, only about a third of Americans consume their daily recommended amount of this mineral.

Foods that are high in magnesium include vegetables - especially the green leafy variety - as well as spices, nuts, seeds, and whole grains.

Magnesium overdose can give you the runs, so if you supplement, do so cautiously. An overdose is highly unlikely if you obtain this mineral exclusively from food - if your kidneys work properly, they can easily handle any extra amount that might result from splurging on a spinach salad with chopped walnuts.

To your health, and bon appétit!

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Heart Health, Diabetes, Nutrition | No Comments »

Fri, Mar 5, 2010 by Saluterra.

Cold feet feel uncomfortable and may make falling asleep difficult. For some people, they can make bathroom visits more frequent, as well. But that’s not the only reason why socks can help!

As your body prepares itself for sleep, the blood vessels in your feet and hands dilate and release heat. If your feet or hands feel cold at bedtime, you can help this process along by warming them with socks and gloves. Once your feet and hands become warm, take off the socks and gloves to help your extremities release the heat, and thus make falling asleep easier for you.

To your health, sleep well!

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Sleep | No Comments »

Thu, Mar 4, 2010 by Saluterra.

Does your mind feel like a race course each night? Where your worries race each other and won’t let you go to sleep? You can stop them in the tracks by giving them some thought before you go to bed.

Insomnia specialists suggest that writing down your worries and possible solutions to them can clear your mind enough to fall asleep more easily.

1. Before you lie down, take a sheet of paper, draw a vertical line through its middle, and on the left side write down everything that’s worrying you at the moment.

2. On the right side, jot down some ideas of how you can deal with all that’s worrying you. These don’t have to be “set in stone” solutions - just ideas that are “good enough” for here and now.

To your health, sleep well!

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Sleep, Mind & Spirit | No Comments »

Wed, Mar 3, 2010 by Saluterra.

Your sleep habits can significantly affect your weight gain tendencies or your weight loss endeavors.

In a study conducted over a 16-year period, middle-aged women who slept 5 hours or less per night gained, on average, 33 pounds more than the women who slept 7 or more hours. Women who slept 6 or fewer hours per night also tended to gain more weight than the 7-hour sleepers.

The most surprising part of the study was that the short sleepers were pretty much staying away from their refrigerators during their sleepless nights - they actually consumed about 50 fewer daily calories than their skinnier, longer-sleeping counterparts.

The researchers speculate that lack of sleep may interfere with your metabolism, making you burn fewer calories in general, and thus contributing to increased weight gain.

So do your best to get 7-9 hours of sleep each night - and when that doesn’t work out, try making up for your sleep deficiency with a mid-day nap.

Come back tomorrow for some tips on how to stop your daily worries from taking your sleep away.

To your health, sleep well!

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Sleep, Weight Management | No Comments »

Tue, Mar 2, 2010 by Saluterra.

Blueberries are a superfood full of delicious and nutritious phenolic antioxidants that can help keep you healthy and young. Some foods enhance the goodness of blueberries, some others diminish it.

Blueberries work great on their own, or mixed with other fruit in fruit salads and smoothies. They also create a wonderful synergy with oatmeal - steel cut oats cooked in plain filtered water work best for your heart and your health in general. Another synergistic combo is that of berries mixed with nuts, especially walnuts. “Synergy” means that the combined benefit of having an oatmeal or nuts with blueberries is greater than the benefit of consuming these foods on separate occasions. It’s as if 1 plus 1 equaled 3 or more instead of just 2.

On the other hand, research shows that the protein in dairy products, such as milk or yogurt, impedes your body’s absorption of the antioxidants in berries and other fruit. That’s why it’s best to use plain water in your oatmeal or smoothie. Similarly, dairy also interferes with your absorption of antioxidants in tea and chocolate.

Learn why antioxidants are so important to your health.

To your health, and bon appétit!

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Nutrition | No Comments »

Mon, Mar 1, 2010 by Saluterra.

Metabolism is a set of chemical and physical processes in which food is converted to provide energy and to build and maintain cells and tissues. Your metabolism is controlled by your hormones and body composition, which, in turn, are controlled by your genes, as well your lifestyle.

While there isn’t much you can do about your genes at this time, you can change your daily habits and develop a healthy, metabolism-friendly lifestyle, by following these four steps.

1. Cleanse your body of toxins every 3-12 months

• Try a raw vegetable and fruit detox diet for 7 days. If raw vegetables don’t agree with you, try steaming, boiling, baking or grilling them, using no or very little unsaturated fat. For added flavor, you can use herbs. Limit proteins and fats, and avoid stimulants, sugars, and hot spices during your detox week.

2. Develop healthy eating habits and choices

• Eat frequent, small meals rather than 2 or 3 big meals (neither starve nor binge)
• Eat slowly and chew your food diligently
• Eat a balanced and varied diet of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins, and “good” fats
• Drink plenty of water (amount appropriate for your body weight and physical activity level)
• Limit white flour, sugar, stimulants, and saturated fat
• Avoid fried foods, trans fats, and artificial food additives (colorings, flavorings, preservatives, etc.)

3. Exercise regularly, at an adequate level

• Strength (resistance) exercise
• Endurance (aerobic/cardio) exercise
• Flexibility (stretching/balance) exercise

4. Relax and get enough rest

• Sleep 7-9 hours in any 24-hour period; try making up with mid-day naps if you don’t get a full night’s sleep
• Avoid stressors, and learn to control your reactions to those that you can’t avoid
• Apply relaxation techniques that work for you

Browse appropriate sections of this blog for more information, especially Nutrition, Health & Fitness, and Mind & Spirit.

To your health!

© 2004–2010. Saluterra. All rights reserved.

Posted in Mind & Spirit, Nutrition, Health & Fitness | No Comments »