Sunday, September 12, 2010

Weight Can Increase due to Hormones

It is not easy to lose weight, let alone defend it. But, if you are already exercising and adjust your diet but still failed to reach the weight you want, do not immediately feel guilty. Sometimes this failure has nothing to do with your lack of effort.



Apparently, there are certain hormones that play an important role in regulating our body weight. Hormones and behavior are influenced by a particular health condition that makes you struggle to prevent the scales go up.



When your break time is reduced, or not sleeping soundly, you must feel exhausted the next day. Well, this lack of rest time can spoil your healthy eating habits. The study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine showed that people who slept only four hours a day for two consecutive nights will increase ghrelin (hormone that triggers hunger) 28 percent, and lowered leptin (a hormone present in the brain that you are full ) up to 18 percent.



Hormone disorder that causes increased appetite, where you can be tempted to eat sweet foods, high carbohydrate, and vegetable refuse. If this condition is still added stress can double the risk, because cortisol (stress hormone) can also improve appetite and encourage us to eat foods that are high in fat and high in calories.



If you feel tired and hunger began attack, you can still eat, as long as selecting healthy snacks and are able to provide extra energy. The combination of complex carbohydrates and proteins, such as whole wheat bread with peanut butter, could be an alternative. To reduce stress, you can do any sport you like. Yoga and breathing exercises also help.



Outside the hormone, there are actually other health conditions that can affect your weight. You may have heard of metabolic syndrome, which according to the American Heart Association has affected more than 50 million Americans. This syndrome is a set of medical conditions, including high insulin levels, high blood pressure, and fat around the waist, which can increase the risk of heart disease and other health problems.



Increased insulin levels often associated with weight gain, according to Jacob Warman, MD, chief of endocrinology at The Brooklyn Hospital Center in Brooklyn, New York. When they appear together with cortisol, insulin causes fat stored inside the abdominal cavity. These fats can also increase the risk of heart attack and stroke.



However, never too late to correct this condition, if you want. For that you simply change your lifestyle. Eat a diet low in calories and low in fat, minimizing carbohydrates, and exercise at least 30 minutes three times a week.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Benefits of Eating Fresh Fruits

Tonight we have a guest blogger, Mr. Robert Michael Burlingame. He offers a review of the benefits we gain from eating fruit. Make sure you check the link to his recommended site, especially if you believe you don’t get enough healthy fruits in your diet.

Thanks Robert!

mixed-fruit

Benefits of Eating Fresh Fruits

Everybody has probably heard of the saying that “an apple a day keeps the doctor away” at one point or another. Nevertheless, there are many people who aren’t aware of the truth behind the adage; including fruit in their diet can have them reaping many health benefits.

Eating fruits lessens chances of getting chronic diseases.

Individuals who eat more fruits as part of their overall diet are more likely to have less chances of getting afflicted with chronic diseases. This is because fruits have nutrients that are essential for the health and maintenance of the body. Researchers have found that individuals who eat fruits daily are less likely to have a stroke or cardiovascular diseases.

Eating fruits helps people cope with the stresses of everyday life.

More people nowadays are working longer hours, are exposed to more toxic fumes, and are under more stress. Eating fruits can help a person not just in lessening the risk of getting chronic diseases, but also in coping with the daily stresses of everyday life.

Fruits fight free radicals.

Free radicals are molecules that the human body produces when it reacts with oxygen. These free radicals react with other molecules found within cells and may damage their membranes, genes, and proteins. Free radicals can speed up aging and even lead to the onset of various diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, and heart disease. People are exposed to more free radicals everyday and need more antioxidants to neutralize them. Fruits have antioxidants that help in fighting free radicals.

Different varieties of fruits provide different kinds of nutrients.

When eating fruits, it’s also important to try a wide variety. There are so many fruits available in the market that one can choose from. Some unripened fruits, however, taste sour. These fruits can provide individuals with nutrients that are essential to their health, but the taste may not be to their liking. For those who only want to eat sweet fruits, it would be a good idea to try consuming natural sweeteners before eating the fruits so that they’ll taste better.

Aside from the abovementioned benefits, eating fruits can also help reduce a person’s blood cholesterol levels. The dietary fiber found in fruits can also aid in the body’s digestive process. With all the health benefits that one can get from eating fruits, more individuals should definitely get into the habit of eating these on a daily basis.

This article was written by Robert Michael Burlingame, a personal trainer who enjoys added fruit to his high mass/high protein diet through miracle fruit tablets sweetening enhancers