Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Health information on your fingertips

We all are familiar with the saying, "an apple a day, keeps the doctor away." But no matter how many apples you eat, bottom line is you cannot run away from ailments. If you are born healthy without any defect of design then God almighty has been incredibly kind to you.

Else if you are born with a problem or flaw then life gets quite challenging henceforth. This is when health information works as gospel to us.

It’s not that if you have all the health information in your bag then you become a superman, but it’s important because it can keep you away from health problems or will guide you to the best possible cure, as much as possible.

Having the latest health information not only enlightens us towards the latest cure, but also teaches us the 123’s of proper health care and health information that can prevent us from illnesses.

No matter what is the case, everyone should go for a thorough physical check up at least once a year, just to know how your body feels, it’s exactly like our car servicing that we never forget to oblige. And as we all know human body is the most sophisticated machine we can ever think of, so undoubtedly it requires more care than a man made machine, by having proper health information.

Because if the car fails to work, it could be replaced but the human body cannot be. Doctors, websites, government health agencies sometimes have free health information and check up just to make sure we are aware of the changing health scenario.

Many big non-profits like Family Care International, Global Health Council, UNICEF, and Action Against Hunger have health care programs, which serve different sections of the society.

You do not have to be a doctor to spread health information amongst people. If every single person in this society vows to catch up with the latest health information and spread it, then we can save millions of people across the world.

Health information is the key to the growth of the society. Proper health and hygiene comes first in the development of a any class, community or nation. So many organizations and people across the world have dedicated themselves to the cause of health and cure. So remember, it we take this one big step, it could lead to several other big steps and serve a whole class or community.

Someone has so rightly said "health is wealth."

Saturday, March 21, 2009

A Dieting Revolution

The South Beach Diet is a revolutionary way of looking at weight loss. It isn’t low carb or low fat—it’s all about balance and learning to choose good fats and good carbs instead of foods that don’t help your body. This diet was developed by Miami cardiologist Arthur Agaston as a way for heart patients to lose weight in a healthy way and keep it off, but it was so successful that soon everyone wanted to try it.

During the first two weeks on the South Beach Diet you’ll begin the process of learning to eat in a new way. You’ll eat three balanced meals a day with normal size portions of meat, seafood, vegetables, eggs, cheese, and nuts. You won’t be hungry and you’ll learn how to ignore cravings and avoid wanting to overeat.

You get to have snacks twice a day, drink diet soda, and eat out, but there are a few things you can’t eat in the first two weeks. You can’t have bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, baked goods, candy, ice cream, sugar, or fruit. You also can’t have beer or alcohol. But it’s only for two weeks. After that, you get to add these foods back into your diet in a healthy way. After the first two weeks, the next phase of the South Beach Diet begins.

You’ll still eat plenty of lean protein, vegetables, eggs, cheeses, and nuts, but you also get to add in some of your favorite carbohydrates and sugars. You’ll learn the difference between good carbs and bad carbs and learn to balance foods so that you stay full and have plenty of energy! You stick to this phase of the diet until you reach your target weight. Then you can add in even more carbs and sugars while still maintaining your new weight. Once you know how to balance healthy options with not-as-healthy favorites, it’s easy to eat what you love and still keep the weight off.The South Beach Diet is less of a diet and more of a way of life. It teaches you how to eat so that it isn’t such a struggle to be healthy.

The foods emphasized are universally considered to be healthy choices rich in vitamins, minerals, omega-3 oils, and good fats. There are even prepackaged South Beach meal options that can be purchased online or in grocery stores, which makes it even easier to stay on track. More diet tips and diet reviews at www.dietsinreview.com and the diet forum

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

What is it and Can it Help Me

The Zone Diet works on the principle that 100,000 years ago, we were meat eaters, and our metabolism is designed to handle the demands of a meat-based diet.

Madonna, Demi Moore, and Jennifer Aniston swear by the results of the Zone Diet, which was created by Barry Sears, PhD. The Zone Diet contains 40% carbohydrate, 30% protein, and 30% fat and is known as the 40-30-30 plan.

As the food industry evolved, more carbohydrates have been introduced into our daily diet, thus causing an imbalance in our metabolism to burn fat. The reason for our extra weight can also be attributed to the many grains and starches in our diet (pasta, rice, breads, and potatoes). The Zone Diet's approach calls for a return to the diets of our ancestors where meat, fruits, and vegetables are the main dietary foods.

The Zone Diet suggests that you need the right ratio of carbohydrates to proteins and fats in order to control the insulin in the bloodstream. Too much of the hormone (insulin) can increase fat storage and inflammation in the body (conditions that are associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease). Sears asserts that by using the Zone Diet, you are actually optimizing the body's metabolic function. Through the regulation of blood sugar, you allow your body to burn excess body fat.

Although you are not prohibited from any particular food group, it is best to avoid food with high fat and carbohydrates such as grains, starches, and pastas. The ideal sources of carbs are fruits and vegetables and for monounsaturated fats olive oil, almonds, and avocados are recommended. The Zone Diet claims to use food as a drug for overall good health, weight loss and prevention or management of heart disease and diabetes.

Sears says that you can test to see whether you are 'hormonally' correct by eating following the Zone diet and see how you feel four hours later. To simplify the Zone Diet, fill one-third of a plate with low-fat protein, and then two-thirds with fruits and vegetables.

Celebrities and some health experts say that the Zone's recommendations do not stray far from the USDA's (United States Dietary Association) dietary guidelines and therefore are advocates of the Zone Diet. Others argue that the Zone Diet has flawed ratios but Sears argues that the Zone diet is a low-glycemic-load diet that has adequate protein. .

A critic of the Zone diet such as the AHA (American Heart Association) classifies the Zone Diet as high protein and does not recommend the Zone Diet for weight loss. They contend that the Zone Diet has not been proven effective in the long term for weight loss. The AHA issued an official recommendation warning against diets like the Zone Diet. They believe that the Zone Diet is hazardous as it restricts the intake of essential vitamins and minerals present in certain foods. The AHA also contends that the protein ratio in the Zone diet is too high even if the minimal fat ratio is good. Robert H. Ecker M.D of the A.H.A. finds the Zone Diet's theory on insulin flawed and argues that there is no scientific proof that the hormone insulin plays a big role in weight regulation.