An Overview Of Trans Fat

Do you have regular cholesterol level checks? If you do youprobably have heard there is "good cholesterol" and "badcholesterol." Trans fat is the enemy to us all. Trans fatraises your "bad" cholesterol and lowers your "good"cholesterol. Trans fat is considered by some doctors to be theworst kind of fat of them all because of this double-barreledimpact on cholesterol levels. I am a bit more interested in this issue because for the firsttime in all the blood levels I have ever had drawn mine showeda rise in the "bad" and a lowering in the "good." I have such ahunger for donuts, cookies, cakes and candy; I imagine this waspart of the problem. Needless to say I am finally taking a gripon this problem and have eliminated all those items. I just hopeI can keep them out of my diet for good. I may nibble still alittle bit on my favorite peanut butter fudge recipe. Commercial baked goods like crackers, cookies, cakes and manyfried foods like doughnuts and French fries contain the "bad"trans fats. Shortenings and some margarine are also high intrans fat. It is such a shame I feel that these foods are so"bad" for us. I would be thrilled if I could have donuts forbreakfast every day, a cup of coffee, then some peanut butterfudge. I suppose I could if I wanted to continue to increase myrisks for stroke, heart attack and heart disease. I don't wantto. So I will at least enjoy these tasty treats only once inawhile. A high LDL cholesterol level is a major risk factor for heartdisease. If the LDL levels is too high, over time, this cancause atherosclerosis, a dangerous accumulation of fattydeposits on the walls of your arteries. The deposits are called"plaques," and they can reduce blood flow through your arteries.If the arteries that supply your heart with blood (coronaryarteries) are affected, you can experience chest pain and othersymptoms of coronary artery disease. I must say I have a veryintelligent personal physician. If the plaques tear or rupture,a blood clot may form and block the flow of blood or break freeand plug an artery downstream. If blood flow to part of yourheart stops, you will have a heart attack. If blood flow topart of your brain stops, you can have a stroke. Pretty scarystuff, isn't it? It truly is not worth eating a lot of foodwith trans fat. It is so important to find a personal physician you can trustand develop sort of a partnership approach to your health care.I have been with this same physician now for over 20 years andhe knows me fairly well. He has known me during the healthiesttimes of my life, so he ought to be fairly quick in picking upon the times I may become "unhealthy." From all I haveresearched so far, however, he is right on target withpreventative measures. Trans fat has also been shown to have some other harmfuleffects. Those include: � Increases triglycerides: A high triglyceride level maycontribute to hardening of the arteries or thickening of theartery walls, which increases the risk of stroke, heart attackand heart disease. � Increases Lp(a) lip oprotein: This is a type of LDLcholesterol found in varying levels in the blood and dependsupon your genetic makeup. At this time researchers say it isunclear how high levels of Lp(a) � independent of othercholesterol levels � increases the risk of heart disease. Moreresearch is needed. � Causes more inflammation: Increased inflammation is a processby which your body responds to injury. It is thought thatinflammation plays a key role in the formation of fattyblockages in heart blood vessels. Trans fat seems to damage thecells lining blood vessels. This can lead to inflammation. At your grocery store you can expect to see less trans fatshowing up in the food on the grocery store shelves. Beware ofeating out a lot. Many restaurants continue to use trans fat aspart of the oil used to fry food. For example, a large servingof French fries at some restaurants can contain 5 grams or moreof trans fat. Even though more and more restaurants are putting nutritionalinformation on their menus, most are not required to list transfat content. One change in this area, however, is in New YorkCity. New York City recently banned trans fat from being usedin restaurants, which seems to be a great step forward, we canhope other restaurants will follow suit. This was another problem of mine, eating out a lot. I don'tlike to cook. I rather spend my time doing something else thenrun to the nearest restaurant or fast food place and pick up abite to eat. This is exactly what has caused my blood levels tobe out of normal range. I never had this before. I have beenquite concerned. I was reluctant at first to take another pill, as my doctorsent me a letter and said: "Are you willing to take a pill forhigh triglycerides?" I wrote back and said: "No, will increasemy exercise routine and adjust my eating habits, I do not wantto fish around for more money to buy more pills." You see, heknows me pretty well. He asked: "Are you willing��." Next time I saw him, first thing, he said: "Your triglyceridesare too high, much higher than we want to see them." I felthorrible as I almost always do while waiting to see the doctor,and I said, "Well, how high were they?" He said again: "they aretoo high," and handed me a piece of paper where he had writtenthe name of a "pill" for me to get over-the-counter. It wasNiacin. He said, take this two times a day for six months andwe will do a repeat blood level to see if they have come down.He said, "How old are you now?" I said: "50." He drops theselittle subtle hints as if to tell me, "you are not 25 anymore,right?" Regardless of age, though, now that I have learned about thedanger of trans fat, they should be eliminated from any agedperson's diet as far as my opinion goes in the matter. At thistime, researchers do not know exactly how much trans fat aperson can consume without any negative impact on thecholesterol level. The issue is still debatable. However, theysay there is no question that you should limit trans fat,according to the Food and Drug Administration and the AmericanHeart Association. The Niacin was not expensive at all. The reason food nutrition labels in the United States do notlist a Percent Daily Value for trans fat is because it isunknown what an appropriate level of trans fat is, other thanit should be low. The AHA recommends no more than 1 percent ofyour total daily calories be trans fat. For example, if youconsume 2,000 calories a day, the total of trans fat you canconsumer is about 2 grams or less. On the other hand don't think a trans fat-free food isautomatically good for you. Food manufacturers are substitutingother ingredients for trans fat. Some of these ingredients liketropical oils, coconut, palm kernel and palm oils contain a lotof saturated fat. Saturated fat raises your LDL cholesterol. Ahealthy diety includes some fat, but to limit that fat. For a healthy heart diet try using olive, peanut and canolaoils. Eat nuts, fish and other foods containing unsaturatedomega-3 fatty acids. Fish oil supplement is also another heart healthy additive toyour daily diet. Source: The Mayo Clinic, and Trilogy Online. Disclaimer: This article is not meant to diagnose, treat orcure any kind of a health problem. All health problems shouldbe addressed by a Health Care Professional of your choice. Thisarticle is for information. This article is FREE to reprint with the resource box.About The Author: Connie Limon, Trilogy Field Representative.Visit http://nutritionandhealthhub.com and sign up for aweekly nutrition and health tip. The article collection isavailable as FREE reprints for your newsletters, websites orblog. Visit http://www.healthylife27.com to purchase an arrayof superior quality, safe and effective products inspired bynature, informed by science and created to improve the healthof people, pets and the planet.

Plain & Simple - How To Lose Unwanted Weight

By Mary JoyceLike it or not... sad but true... in today's 'pretty' societythere are social and career successes that are tied to how onelooks or their appearance. Today's popular and marketed imageis that being fit and successful are ultimately tied together. The weight loss industry and the marketing of such is huge.More and more people today are feeling the effects of aninternet / sedentary lifestyle in which their physical activityhas literally slowed to a crawl. So, if you're ready to dropsome of those lbs let's take a look at the simple, honest,brutal truth. The first thing you need to do is take an honest look at yourdiet. In fact, don't rely on your memory and speculation. Ifyou want to get serious about this then start keeping a diet(what you eat each day) journal. Leave nothing to recollection.If you put it in your mouth then write it down. This alone is usually an eye opener for everyone... even thosethat just feel like they want to lose only a few extra pounds.After a week or two do some honest evaluation about your eatinghabits. Do you rely too much on fast food, junk food,convenience food... whatever you want to call it. Are you getting any fruits and veggies at all? If you want to get on the road to changing your lifestyle andlosing weight, you have to get off of the high powered junkfoods first and start eating healthier. You must understand that your body does not like to 'throwthings away' that it may have to use later... such as energy.When you eat foods that contain more energy that your bodyneeds, it will not just discard this excess potential energy...it will store it in case it needs it later... can you say fat. The problem for all of us is that our stomach doesn't get onboard right away and cries out for food. The key... to eathealthy foods that are much more frugal in potential energy(calories) and eat them is smaller more frequent portions. Thiskeeps the stomach (appetite) suppressed and gives your body theenergy it needs without going overboard and storing energy(fat). The second part of your weight loss blueprint is exercise. Withall of today's modern conveniences, hardly any of us willnaturally get enough exercise in our daily routine. So, we nowknow how to keep your body from storing all of that excessenergy by eating healthier, but you want the weight to startcoming off right? So, you need to convince your body to get rid of that extrapotential energy (fat) that it has so faithfully been storingaway for you in the past. If you're overweight, begin to take baby steps with yourexercise. The goal is to initiate a change in your lifestylenot train for a triathlon and then crash and burn. Start with a walk a day. Short and as brisk as you can earlyon. On you walk, focus on everything around you and use thistime to decompress and relieve stress. Soon your walks willbecome a nice treat for you that you will genuinely lookforward to... and this a good thing. Celebrate these smalldaily successes. Seriously, if your first walk is only for aminute or two, that's great! Next week, we'll go for three...and so on! Of course the more you can physically build to the moreefficient your body will become... and by the way... the moreyour cravings for those 'dangerous' will subside. You'll now bemoving toward a positive lifestyle loop. Just keep 'rinsing andrepeating' and your body... and your mind will respond! There you have it. A whopping two part approach to losingweight, gaining more energy, and feeling better. No matter whatthe diet. What the weight loss plan, and there are thousandsupon thousands, they will all boil down to these twostrategies. If you struggle with your weight... I don't like the word'diet'. To me when people are on the latest 'diet' theimplication is that there is an ending point. A point in timewhen you no longer have to be on 'the diet'. If you struggle with your weight this being on a 'diet' isnonsense and the completely wrong mental approach for you.Think changing your life style not 'going on a diet'. And whenyou've lost some weight and people begin to ask you what 'diet'you've been using.... say "I'm not on any specific diet. Rather,I've changed my lifestyle and I'm now (and forevermore)eatingmuch healthier."About the Author: For more important information on weight lossbe sure to visit http://www.weight-loss-won.com where you willfind product reviews and tips on weight loss, dieting, andmore.Source: http://www.isnare.com

A healthy diet is crucial to the detoxification process

A healthy diet is crucial to the detoxification process. It can be achieved by abstaining from animal products, sugar, alcohol and fat, and replacing them by organic fruits, nuts, wheat and vegetables. An excellent way to kick off the detoxification process every morning, while giving your body all the nutrition it needs, is Dr. Kousmine's breakfast.Doctor Catherine Kousmine (1904-1992), has devoted her life to medical research in Switzerland with special interest in the effects of food on overall health, and cancer and disease prevention. The diet she recommends is rich in cereals, raw food and essential fatty acids, and has thousands of faithful health-conscious followers around the world.The highlight of Dr Kousmine's diet is her power breakfast the infamous Kousmine cream- based on a mixture of ingredients that she developed with German doctor Johanna Budwig.Dr Budwig (born in Germany in 1908- 2003) has been referred to as a top European Cancer Research Scientist, Biochemist, German Pharmacologist, and Physicist. Dr Budwig was a seven-time Nobel Prize nominee. She is considered one of the world's leading authorities on fats and oils. Her research has shown the negative effects that commercially processed fats and oils have in destroying cells and their function in the food processing in our body, resulting in chronic or terminal disease.Her research demonstrates that the commercial processing of fats destroys the field of electrons that allow the cell membranes in our bodies to function properly. Without the proper metabolism of fats, every vital function and every organ is affected. This includes new cell regeneration, and the elimination of waste and toxins, which triggers various chronic diseases.Not only is Dr Kousmine breakfast recipe delicious and highly nutritious, but it also allows your body to kick start the detoxification process upon rising.Kousmine-Budwig breakfast recipe: - 4 Tablespoons low fat cottage cheese (or yoghurt)- 2 Tablespoons organic flaxseed or organic sunflower oil Mix the cottage cheese and the flaxseed oil in a bowl with a fork, until you obtain a rich, white and creamy blend.Add to this mixture:- 1 small ripe banana (or 2 tsp honey)
- a lemon juice -2 Tablespoons freshly ground flaxseeds or 6 almonds, 6 hazelnuts, or any other type of nuts, excluding peanuts-2 Tablespoons fresh whole-wheat rice, millet, buckwheat, oats (not oatmeal) - 1 portion of seasonal fresh fruit. (strawberries, raspberries, cherries, grapes, apple etc..)Grind the nuts, or flaxseed and the cereals. Crush the banana with a fork. Add all the ingredients to the cottage cheese and mix well. A part from being rich in Calcium, Iron & Zinc, this breakfast contains vegetable oils rich in linolenic acid (healthy fats) and provides substantial levels of vitamins and minerals. The combination of these ingredients is what makes this recipe particularly efficient.Dr Kousmine diet is based on 5 principles amongst them a healthy diet and a healthy colon. She recommended intestinal cleanses, including enemas and colon irrigation. France Guillain, who wrote 2 books on the Detox Bath method, particularly recommends combining the Kousmine breakfast with the Detox Bath for a highly effective natural daily detox. The good fats, contained in this breakfast are the vehicle which transports the bad fats into the intestines for elimination. This breakfast will boost the action of the Detox Bath and increase its effectiveness.The Detox Bath is based on an ancestral detox technique which has been proven to encourage toxin, waste and fat elimination. The Detox Bath's working principle is to refresh the core area of the body (groin) during 10 minutes daily on average. This process creates a vibration in the fascia (interconnecting tissue covering all internal organs), which sets in motion a roll-back effect transporting waste, fat and deposited toxins back to the intestines, where they are later eliminated. The benefits of this simple technique are numerous and include:Toxin, fat and cellulite elimination, improved digestion, improved natural sleep, mood and energy boost and a clear skin and radiant complexion.Visit: http://www.pureinsideout.com/index.htmlTo learn the Detox Bath please go to: http://www.pureinsideout.com/detox-bath.html

Fitness Mistakes Commonly Made

If you've decided that you are ready to make some lifestylechoice good for you. Those changes should include changes inattitude, diet, and fitness. Sadly there are some fitnessmistakes that are commonly made so make sure you don't makethem. Almost anyone who has attempted to diet or get into shape hasdropped out at least one time. It can a number of reasons whyfailure occurs lack of free time, social commitments, familycommitments, diet or fitness programs that are to hard or notappropriate. Whatever the reason it is important to choose afitness program that you are comfortable with so you stick withit. Failure to plan ahead is a very common mistake. If you go tothe gym and you don't have a specific target in mind you willfail. If you make you target unclear you won't know if you'vereached it or not? If you aren't sure of your ideal weight ask your doctor andthat should be your goal. Or you can focus on the number ofinches you want to loose around the middle, on you bottom orthighs. That's an excellent method. Another common mistake is to come up with excuses to avoidgoing to the gym. Sure life and those never ending appointmentsor events get in the way, but that can be arranged with somemore planning. Don't use it as an excuse to quit the programand make sure you don't get lazy. Too little too late and you will fail so don't work out toolittle. This may seem too obvious so not worth repeating but alot of people lift two dumbbells a couple of times and theyfigure they're done for the day. Sit down at the table and comeup with a sound training program that you can stick to. You might be surprised to find out that too much fitness isalso bad. Your muscles need time to recover from the work out,and then time to grow, and your body needs time to burn up thefat. The body doesn't just burn fat during exercises and themore muscles mass you have the faster the calories will burnbecause muscles needs energy all the time. If you over trainyou will make your muscles tired without any additionalbenefits. Never compare yourself to others. Each of us is a uniqueindividual with our own unique genetic make up which controlssome of our weight gain, weight loss and even how our musclesrespond to training. Don't rate your accomplishments accordingto the achievements of others; instead continue at your ownpace and your own goals. If you try too hard you simply setyourself up to fail. Don't do the same exercises over and over mix it up or youwill lose your motivation. Learn to form your routines and thenreplace them with new ones every four weeks. Try to findvariations to a classic exercise to make things interesting foryourself. And last of all think about how important your fitness programwill be to your over all health. We aren't getting any youngerand so let's take longevity to a new level.About The Author: Get all the latest information about Fitness,from the only true source at http://www.1fitnessinformation.com.Be sure to check out our Fitness pages.

The Importance Of Drinking Water For Health

No matter where you look today you will invariably encountersomeone carrying bottled water. Water has become the earmark ofa healthy lifestyle offering hydration and purification. It'sno wonder so many of us have heeded the advice of the expertsand significantly upped our water intake. Drinking water forhealth makes sense when you understand the role that waterplays in the human body. Over half of the human body is made up of water; for thisreason, drinking water for health is absolutely crucial inmaintaining a healthy lifestyle. Experts have long recommendedthe drinking of at least sixty-four ounces of water a day inorder for our systems to function at optimum levels. Waterallows our body to effectively absorb the nutrients that weneed from food and systematically flushes our kidneys of waste.In fact, all of our internal organs operate at higher capacitywhen we are well hydrated. When we are drinking water forhealth our blood thins as it should; when we are dehydrated,blood becomes thicker making our bodies work harder to pump it;this makes the overall functions of the body slow andinefficient. A part of drinking water for health is to allow our body toeffectively digest our food; without water our body cannoteffectively eliminate waste. Water has an enormous effect onweight loss as well, speeding our metabolism and acting as anatural appetite suppressant. Drinking water for healththroughout our lifetime means, in many cases, the long termsuccessful maintenance of a healthy weight. Drinking water for health also means an outward glow andyouthful appearance. Experts relate a clear complexion to theadequate intake of water that flushes toxins from our bodies. The evidence is clear; in order to keep our bodies functioningat an optimum level drinking water for health is vitallyimportant. Keep water with you at all times and drinkthroughout the day. You will find that your overall health and appearance is improved.About The Author: For easy to understand, in depth informationabout drinking water for health visit our ezGuide 2http://drinkingwater.ezguide2.com

Abs Exercise Equipment - The Essential Buying Tips

Are you in perfect shape for summer yet? Those sunny days arejust around the corner and everyone is out shopping for theirrevealing, sexy bathing suits. How will your new swimwear fiton you? Let's run a quick check. Are those legs toned and thosearms fit? Have you been keeping up with your daily crunches andsit-ups? Uh-oh, that one always gets people, I know it . Those darn absworkouts. Let me tell you the truth. Although they can be alittle annoying at times, they're necessary to say the least. Ican't overemphasize them. Come on, we all want to display agreat set of abs and walk around showing them to everyone. Whyelse do you think we have so much abs exercise equipmentreigning the fitness market at all times? Regardless of yourgender, the abs are absolutely critical. Are you testing outsome of the new-age abs exercise equipment? When it comes to abs exercise equipment, I don't have any. Iprefer to do all my exercises without machine interference. Youknow, all those traditional exercises like pull-ups, push-ups,leg-raises, dips, etc. Now, this is not the chosen route forevery individual who is striving to stay fit. Many peopleprefer some of the latest benches, treadmills, stairmasters,and abs exercise equipment on the market. This stuff is greatif you can afford it. Why not take advantage of anycontemporary aids if available? If you have the money and thinkit fits you, I say go for it. Let's take my wife as an example. My wife has one of those bigrubber balls you see pretty girls swear by on television ads.While I'm pretty certain that they have a more politicallycorrect name, I don't know what it is. She uses this absexercise equipment for a wide array of stomach and backworkouts. I have to admit that I was rather surprised the firsttime I saw it. I could certainly see how it would provide youwith a strenuous workout and build your muscles. She continuesto use it daily for a variety of exercises. What abs exercise equipment do you prefer? Maybe you get yourfrequent dose of abs exercise equipment at the local gym orfitness club. They typically have a variety of abs exerciseequipment ready at your service. Regardless of what regimes youprefer, you know that your daily dose of abs workouts arecompulsory for keeping that bare, tight, flat tummy. If you arein need of advice concerning abs exercise equipment or justsimple routines, you can hop online and acquire anything yourheart desires. From diet plans, to fitness regimes galore, youwill find it all on the World-Wide-Web. They are abundant andfree! Get started today and get those abs you've always wanted!About The Author: http://www.natural-acne-removal.info providesour readers with the latest reviews, articles and write-ups onall health and skin care http://www.acne-help-provided.info.

Recipe 1

Healthy Recipe:SEAFOOD AND LEMON RISOTTO - Serves 42 table spoons extra virgin olive oil 1 small leek, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced, or 1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic 1 cup long-grain rice 1 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth 1/2 cup low -sodium vegetable broth 1 cup dry white wine 8 ounces scallops 8 ounces calamari (squid) rings 3 ounces fresh chopped green beans 1/2 chopped yellow bell pepper 3 tablespoons grated Romano cheese 2 tablespoons fresh basil finely chopped 2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice Cooking Instructions:Cook leek and garlic in olive oil - medium heat for until leek is fairly tender. Add rice. Stir well. Cook for 5 minutes, constantly stirring. Add 1 1/2 cups of broth. Bring to a boil over high heat, while stirring. Lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes, while stirring. Add remaining chicken broth and wine. Cook over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes, while stirring. Add scallops, calamari, green been, and yellow pepper. Cook everything together, stirring frequently, until liquid is almost absorbed, for approximately five minutes (rice should be just tender and slightly creamy). Stir in 3 tablespoons Romano cheese, lemon juice and basil, cook for one more minute. Serve right away. This recipe is low in fat, cholesterol and sodium. Its a good choice for a healthy heart and fits in to any diet plan.