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When I coach my clients on how to get more energy in their lives, I’m delighted
when they spend time truly making wise food choices.
But I see many of these energy-change seekers overlooking the very
beginning of their valuable relationship with their body. For example,
breakfast time.
If I was to join you for breakfast, what would I be served?
I hope it’s not a bagel or croissant with coffee or even worse, nothing!All of which
would leave me wondering whether I am going to have enough energy to get out the
door! Or would you prepare something different, “more special”, than what you
serve yourself?
It is imperative to create a start to your day that has you ready to live a day rich with
energy, productivity and being available for yourself and others. In the morning, be
sure to:
1. Thank your body for waking up!
Take time to stretch, yawn, and move around a bit before you shove food down your
throat and head out the door (or vice-versa!).
2. Let your body know what else is coming.
For example, do you have time to sit and eat before you head out into the world,
turn on your computer or do anything else that has your day jump started? This is
ESPECIALLY important if you live in a city or go to a job that has you moving,
engaging, or navigating right away. I mean, really, we HAVE to prepare our bodies
for this onslaught of stimulation. If you don’t take time to fuel your body, there’s a
chance that it won’t be available for you later in the day, or will panic and slow down
your metabolism or worse develop a cold or other sickness.
3. Make it feel personal.
Include some enjoyable music, flowers, a peaceful or inspiring reading with your
breakfast and a clean, organized space to sit for a moment to enjoy your food, if
you can. Making breakfast a personal moment helps me feel like I know I am going
to have a good day, and, remember, this is also important because I’m more likely
to easily digest my food (which always means more energy) and be in a better place
to get things done throughout the day.
4. Ask for ideas.
If you REALLY feel that what is holding you back from creating good, solid breakfast
moments are the other people in your household then take some time to chat with
them about this. This fast-forwards your relationship with your family by making
them realize you care about them, their bodies, yourself, your body and how you are
all experiencing each day in this world. Something like this will do: “I’d love to hear
what YOU think we can do to make breakfast a priority, [Child/Spouse/Parent/
Partner Name Here].” Put some options out there and make it a conversation.
Communication is a big part of health and a key to better energy.
You can also start stocking the fridge with yummy EnergyRich food and
see what happens. A client of mine who was temporarily living with her in-laws was
shocked when she noticed that her fresh fruit was disappearing. (I hear about it
happening ALL the time. You THINK they won’t go for the good stuff, but the
bottom line is: it is good stuff and every-BODY instinctively knows it!)
5. Give your OWN body something special first thing.
Why not encourage yourself to take advantage of EnergyRich food first
thing in the morning? For example, you could tell yourself, “I know I want to be
feeling great in my body and to be living each day with as much energy as possible.
Why not get started right away? My body will thank me for it throughout the entire
day and I’ll feel it immediately.”
(I make about an extra thousand better choices a day, just from this one decision!)
For further inspiration, you can have the good food already made or ready to be
made in your fridge; this makes it irresistible!
6. Recommended Choices.
First, know your body. What fuels you? Are you the type of person who can get up
and go on a bowl of oatmeal? Or does that choice have you starving one hour later?
Find one or two options whose EnergyRich content matches your needs
but that doesn’t take a lot of preparation. This process is also called “co-creation.”
The choice might be:
A half of melon (for summer)
A bowl of oatmeal of other whole grain with berries (again, summer) and/or nuts
(better in winter)
A piece of whole grain bread with almond butter
A bowl of citrus fruit sprinkled with flaxseeds
A hard-boiled egg
A cheese less omelet with a cooked green inside
A salad (think out of the box)
… And there are more.
Remember, You’re Laying the Foundation
The point to all this? By taking extra care with your start of the day, you lay the
foundation for a long and profitable relationship with your body and your life. Do
you need a better reason?
Want to use this article on your website or your own ezine? You absolutely can!
But here’s what you MUST include: Heather Dominick, Certified Nutrition-Energy
Coach, is founder of the EnergyRich Lifestyle Program, the proven
step-by-step program to help you achieve your best health and fullest life. To sign
up for her freebie how-to articles and no-charge teleclasses on creating your best
energy life, visit http://www.individual-health.net
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There are numerous diets out there that guarantee that they are the ones that will work. We all know who and what they are. There is the no carb, low carb, carb and low fat, grapefruit, and soup diets, to name a few. While I believe that each of these diets can work for certain individuals in the short term, research shows that crash diets don’t work. Over the long term, these diets are not sustainable. After returning to normal eating patterns the average person not only gains the weight back but often put on a few pounds more than their original weight.
I would like to suggest an alternative. Make fiber your friend. Research has shown that a daily diet high in fiber can help stabilize blood sugar, lower cancer risk and control the appetite. How does this work?
There are two types of fiber, soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber dissolves in water and forms a gel which coats our intestines. Insoluble fiber speeds up the passage of material through the digestive tract. A diet rich in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes and nuts will provide us with both types of fiber. The suggested amount of fiber for the average person is 25-30 grams. Most of us, in the United States, consumes less than one half of the suggested amount.
Some easy ways to introduce more fiber in our diets is to try to attain a goal of 90% fresh food to 10% processed. Start out slowly according to what your lifestyle requires. If you now subsist on a diet of wholly processed foods, try 50-50. Fiber has no nutrients. Therefore, high fiber foods which are low in fat are surprisingly low in calories. One of the best and most delicious sources of fiber are berries. Whole foods are better than juices. Try an orange instead of a glass of orange juice. A pear has more fiber than an apple. One ounce of nuts makes a good pick-me-up in the afternoon and has 2 grams of fiber.
A word of warning: Introduce fiber slowly to your diet over a period of two to three weeks to avoid cramping and gas. In addition to making these changes drink plenty of water. This help to create the bulk which, in turn, enhances the positive aspects of a diet rich in fiber.
Constance Weygandt is a balance mentor who specializes in finding answers for those individuals who are seeking an alternative to conventional weight management. For more information or to sign up for Constance’s newsletter, visit her website at http://www.balancedwellnessonline.com
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The Benefits of Green Tea Extract: Anti-Aging, Anti-Cancer, Weight Control
One of the great advancements in nutrition in the twenty-first century is the scientific confirmation of the many benefits of green tea extract. Here are just a few. Green tea:
- Lowers cholesterol
- Slows arthritis
- Prevents the growth of cancer cells
- Assists weight loss
What accounts for the health benefits of green tea extract? Over 1,800 scientific studies have found that the active constituents in green tea are powerful antioxidants. These are called polyphenols (catechins) and flavonols. Epigallocatechin gallate (you can just call it EGCG) is the most powerful of these antioxidants.
Milligram for milligram, EGCG has 25 to 100 times the antioxidant power of vitamins C and E. A cup of green tea has more antioxidants than a serving of broccoli, spinach, carrots or strawberries.
These abundant antioxidants power the benefits of green tea extract. They keep DNA intact and they stabilize the membranes of cells. These effects of green tea make it a powerful support in many health conditions. Let’s look at the benefits of green tea supplements in more detail.
Green tea has been shown to lower “bad” LDL cholesterol and serum triglyceride levels.
Who would have imagined that simple green tea could be as potent as Lipitor or Zocor or Crestin with none of their side effects? Scientific studies show that middle-aged men and women in Japan who drink 2 or more cups of green tea a day almost always have normal cholesterol. Scientists have also recently reported that if you drink green tea after you eat a fatty food, less cholesterol will go into you bloodstream.
And if you have high cholesterol when you begin taking green tea supplements, your body will convert less of it into a form that clogs your arteries.
Green tea protects your joints against osteoarthritis.
This is one of the least known but most beneficial effects of green tea extract. Green tea prevents inflammation. When there is less inflammation, there is less wear and tear on your joints.
Green tea prevents the growth of cancer cells.
The EGCG in green tea prevents cancer cells from growing by binding to a specific enzyme. This health benefit of green tea is especially important in cancers of the prostate, breast, and lung.
Researchers studied two groups of men who a pre-cancerous condition of the prostate. One consumed the equivalent of 12 to 15 cups of green tea a day. One did not. One year later, 30% of the men who did not consume green tea supplements developed prostate cancer. Only 3% of the men who took green tea supplements developed cancer.
Another of the benefits of green tea extract is support for women who have breast cancer. Green tea provides chemicals that bind estrogen. This hormone is not then free to stimulate breast cancer cells.
Women who consume the greatest amount of green tea before menopause have the least severe forms of breast cancer when the disease occurs. Women who drink green tea are less likely to have recurrences of breast cancer after treatment. And most important of all, women who consume green tea are 50% less likely to develop breast cancer at all.
Another of the benefits of green tea extract is protection against lung cancer.
The Japanese have both the highest rate of smoking and the lowest rate of lung cancer in the developed world. Japanese smokers who consume a lot of green tea seem to be protected against lung cancer.
And green tea can even help you lose weight. In a clinical trial, men eating a high-fat diet were given enough green tea provide the caffeine in a single cup of coffee. Although this amount of caffeine has no effect on weight loss, when the caffeine comes from green tea, it is highly significant.
The green tea supplement boosted the number of calories burned by 4.5%. While this is just 135 calories a day, the study showed that taking green supplements could help the average man on a high-fat diet lose 18 lbs (8 kg) in a year’s time. It could help the average woman on a high-fat diet lose 11 pounds (5 kg). This is without eating less or exercising more.
How Can I Take Green Tea?
The benefits of green tea extract are greatest if you take green tea supplements rather than drink green tea. A study in the December 2004 edition of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition confirmed that green supplements get more antioxidants into your bloodstream that drinking green tea. Two capsules of green tea extract a day can provide all the benefits of 20 cups of green tea-all you need to support even difficult health conditions.
Green tea is safe and effective. Take 1 to 3 capsules of green extract every day. It is better to take green tea supplements in the morning or afternoon rather than at night. In the unlikely event of stomach upset, take with food.
Oktay zadam has an avid interest in health and well-being and is a senior editor of Nutritional Supplements Health Guide. The site discusses about vitamins, minerals, medicinal herbs, and other health supplements.
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You may use this article in its entirety with the Author Bio and with all links intact and hyperlinked properly.
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Some fats are good for you. Your body can’t function without them. Those fats help you to absorb nutrients. You can even have a fat-intake deficiency, when you are not getting enough of them. Your skin will get dry and your hair will get brittle.
Other fats can be also bad for you. They increase the level of cholesterol in your blood, which clogs your arteries and can lead to a heart attack. Those fats also have a natural tendency to be easily transformed into a body fat, which tends to blow up your hips and totally eliminates your waist line.
The good news are - those two groups are not the same types of fats. So by cleverly picking fats from the first group for your diet, and by avoiding fats from the second group, you can stay healthy, slim, and enjoy your life to the tilt.
Well, easier said than done. When you are facing those endless product labels on shelves in a supermarket, no manufacturer will tell you that they are selling a bad type of fat. On the contrary, they all claim that their product is the most healthy and good for your body. They claim that they used good natural ingredients to make them.
But why would those manufacturers want to sell you bad fats in the first place? Don’t they want to benefit their prospective consumers? That is precisely the point. They are first and foremost business people. They need to turn a profit, to benefit themselves before they can benefit their consumers. They can’t do that, if their products will not have a long shelf life.
The basic facts are beyond arguments - all natural fats and oils, which are in the good group of fats, will get rancid in a short time without proper refrigeration. The manufacturers increase their product’s shelf life tenfold and even hundredfold by putting them through a process called hydrogenation.
This is a process in which hydrogen is added to vegetable oils in order to turn those oils into a more solid fat. Such solid fats are used in vegetable shortening, some margarines, crackers, candies, cookies, snack foods, fried foods, baked goods, salad dressings, and many other processed foods.
The hydrogenation process produces saturated fats, which are known to increase risks of heart disease. The manufacturers are required now to disclose all saturated fats in their products. Since awareness of the risks associated with saturate fats consumption is wide spread lately, they know that such labeling will spell a kiss of death for their products.
Most manufacturers came up with a different solution - they subject their oils to a partially hydrogenating process. Such process produces only partially hydrogenated fats. The new term they label such products with - Trans Fat, which stands for trans fatty acid.
The new studies show that trans fat is actually worse for your heart than saturated fat. It raises the levels of bad cholesterol and lowers the levels of good cholesterol. Under the new FDA regulations, from the beginning of 2006 all food manufacturers will be required to list percentages of trans fats used in their products. Consumers will be able to find this information on food nutrition labels directly under the line for saturated fat.
How to know which fats to avoid ?
The good rule of thumb in deciding which processed foods you should avoid - if they can stay on a shelf for many months, their nutrition value is questionable. Check their expiration dates. Their long shelf life comes only after extensive processing, which limits their ability to interact with anything, including the elements within your own body.
Buy fresh natural fats and cold-pressed oils. Eat more fat fish and lean red meat. Cook your own food. That way you don’t have to eat something that was prepared many months ago. This is not the healthy way nature intended your nourishment to be. So called “convenience” of deep-fried fast foods or preprocessed foods comes with a heavy price. Don’t pay it.
To learn more about how to acquire better health, lose weight and save money visit Wise-Consumer.net
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I confess: I’m completely addicted to Pringles. My determination
weakens every time I think about munching into one, hearing the
crunch, and getting that first taste of its salty flavor. Pure
heaven. Although you don’t flip over chips, probably there’s
another food that lures you into the refrigerator or the pantry
cabinet. According to one study, 97% of women (compared to 68%
of men) experience cravings on food.
How do you control these urges that drag you in an intoxicated
shape away from your diet plan and down into the swirling vortex
of pleasure? I researched on the topic to give you expert advice
on how to enjoy that art called eating without turning in into a
feeding frenzy. Read on - and never again feel guilty about
eating a chocolate chip cookie.
Take Charge of Your Eating Habits.
Try to control the number of food cravings you experience. It
appears to be impossible for humans like us, but if you psyche
yourself and develop fewer cravings, then slowly you’ll submit
to fewer cravings.
According to one study of nearly 500 women, researchers found
that women who received a daily 1, 200 milligram calcium
supplement reduced their number of premenstrual food cravings
by 54%. To reach the same result by getting the needed calcium
intake from food, rely on skim milk and yogurt. Sounds a bit
difficult for all lactose intolerant? Try some calcium-fortified
foods or juices like cheese and calcium-filled orange juices.
If you don’t feel you can get sufficient calcium from food, make
up the difference using a supplement of calcium carbonate or
calcium citrate.
How about something relaxing? When you’re anxious, the body
produces more of the hormone cortisol, which may increase the
amount of carbohydrates you want to eat. Sweets or carbohydrates
temporarily increase our levels of serotonin, making us feel
calm and relaxed.
Thus, one way of helping curb your sweet tooth, rent some videos,
text your funniest friends, or schedule a spa weekend. Why not
have a bit of chocolate once in a while? When you begin including
small amounts of these forbidden foods into your diet, a funny
thing happens: You don’t crave them anymore.
Distinguish specific cravings from hunger. Suppose you drive by a
fast food outlet and all of a sudden, you develop a deep craving
for French fries. Rather than rushing down the drive thru section,
reassess your urge. Turn on your favorite music and switch your
attention away from the fries idea. Suppose, on the other hand,
you feel the need to satisfy not the urge but your hunger, select
an apple pie or salad as a substitute.
Cut Hundreds of Calories.
Sure you can cut on hundreds of calories on what you eat every
day! How? By making the appropriate choices on replacing
high-calorie to low-calorie foods, such as cheese, creams, whole
milk, butter, etc. Here are easy tricks to keep you cooking and
eating minus the calories.
When cooking, use nonstick pan to eliminate the use of butter
and/or oil.
Remove the fat from the meat.
Remove the skin of chicken before serving.
Use butter-flavored seasoning on vegetables instead of
sprinkling butter.
For casseroles, desserts and sauces, use evaporated skim milk
(12 cal./tbsp.) instead of heavy cream (51 cal./tbsp.)
Cook stews and other casseroles ahead of time. Refrigerate.
Remove congealed fat before serving.
Choose real orange (71 cal.) over an orange juice (90 cal./6 oz).
For snacks, low-calorie fruits (cucumbers, asparagus, carrots,
apples, pickles) are good replacements for crackers and breads.
Use bottled chocolate extract for milk shakes instead of
sweetened cocoa.
Use two egg whites (34 cal.) for cakes instead of one egg
(82 cal.).
Choose diet margarine (50 cal.) instead of the regular
margarine (100 cal.).
Choose cereals with the least calories then add fresh fruits
to be more nutritious.
In parties, good substitutes for snacks are carrot strips,
pickle slices, and raw mushroom caps.
Drip away fats by cooking hamburgers on the rack.
Avoid chips with dips.
Staying in healthy shape depends on the right attitude. So how
strong is your will power to control the urge?
Michael Lee is the author of “How To Be A Red Hot Persuasion
Wizard,” an ebook that reveals powerful secrets on how to get
anything you want, including how to tremendously improve your
relationships, explode your profits, win arguments, and
magically influence others. Grab a sample chapter at
http://www.20daypersuasion.com
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In this fast paced world, good nutrition may sound very simple but it is indeed really difficult to practice it. We eat too many processed foods or we tend to miss some meals. Some of us even smoke or drink alcohol. We also choose food on the basis of the taste. This not only make us overeat but also we ignore rich nutrient food items which we feel have bad taste. Foods lose substantial nutritional value during storage. There are many such factors which rob us of the nutrients we need for the maintenance of general well being.
We all talk of balanced diet, but how many of us really know the actual meaning of the balanced diet? Balanced Diet is a diet which has adequate amount of all nutrients required for healthy growth and activity. Sounds simple!
We have divided food into five groups on the basis of their nutrient content which are the most integral part of balanced diet.
Group One :
Wheat, Rice and Cereals. They are major sources of starch, carbohydrates, B-Vitamins and fibre.
Recommended Servings: 6-8 servings daily.
Group Two:
Dairy products. They are major sources of calcium , protein and vitamins (A,B2, B6, B12 and D).
Recommended Servings: 2-4 daily.
Group Three:
Fruits and Vegetables. They are major sources of vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates and fibre.
Recommended Servings : 4-6 daily.
Group Four:
Meat, Fish, Poultry and Pulses. They are major sources od protein, Vitamin B12 , zinc and iron.
Recommended Servings: 2-3 daily
Group Five:
Fats, Oils and Sugar. They are major source of energy in our body.
Recommended Servings: Should be barely adequate.
Recommended servings of each group daily comprises a balanced. Now does it still look simple? To make it worse, our hectic life schedules make it more difficult for us to achieve this goal. Hence it has become a challenge now. We cant ignore this vital part of our life too. So we should better gear up for it!
Random Tip: Eating fruits increases your immunity against the development of age-related maculopathy and eye diseases.
About the Author: Jasdeep Singh
For http://weightloss-health.com/ your complete and most comprehensive family guide on Health.
Also get free sample low carb recipes, low fat recipes, low calorie recipes, low sodium recipes, low sugar recipes at Low Carb Recipes
If you wish to reproduce the above article you are welcome to do so, provided the article is reproduced in its entirety, including this resource box and LIVE link to our website.
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Bread is one of the oldest known recipes to man. It has been around for several millennia …
The recent low-carbohydrate craze has given bread a bad reputation, but not all breads are created equal. There are more varieties of bread than there are supplement companies. This article will explain the history of bread, the types of bread, and the role that bread can play in the quest for good health and a better body.
The History of Bread
It is estimated that the first bread was made around 10000 years BC or over 12,000 years in the past. This bread was more than likely flatbread, similar to a tortilla, made simply of ground grains (flour) and water that was mashed and baked. The first tools and implements used in the making of bread are dated to about 8000 years BC.
Egypt is attributed with popularizing the art of making bread. Egyptians are considered to be the agricultural pioneers of the old world, probably benefiting from interactions with Samaria. The closed oven was invented circa 3000 BC and allowed for more varieties of bread to be produced. It is around this time that leavened bread is first described, that is bread, bread with yeast added so that it would rise during production. Refined grains were considered superior and therefore were prevalent in the higher courts, so the poorer populations used barley and sorghum in their breads.
Around 1000 BC the Mosaic laws were introduced. These laws, in the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy, contained instructions to the nation of Israel regarding proper food preparation. When the Hebrew people fled Egypt during the legendary Exodus, they were forced to make unleavened (flat) bread in their haste. Leviticus declares a feast commemorating the exodus using flatbread. Bread is a common symbol of bounty in the bible - Leviticus 21:22 declares, “He shall eat the bread of his God.” When the people of God were lost in the wilderness, they were fed manna, which was described as bread from heaven. The Christian Savior, Jesus Christ, is called the “Bread of Life”.
The bible also gives one of the earliest recipes for sprouted grain bread. It reads, in Ezekiel 4:9-17: “The thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof.” While more than a year of nothing but this bread sounds like quite a marathon diet, analysis of products today using the same recipe show that it was a well-balanced, nutritious bread that yielded plenty of protein, fiber, carbohydrate, and healthy fat.
In 400 BC, around the time when Socrates was providing sage dietary advice, Plato imagined an ideal world. In this world, men would live to a ripe old age. Their main source of sustenance would be whole grain bread from local wheat.
168 BC saw the establishment of baker’s guilds in Rome. Bread even played a major role in politics when, in 40 BC, as part of a campaign, it was decreed that bread should be freely distributed to every male adult.
In 1202 AD, English laws were passed to regulate the production of bread. While many people are aware of the differences between whole grain (brown) bread and white breads, few realize that it caused quite a stir in 1307 when the white bread bakers and brown bread bakers split to form separate guilds! It was not until two centuries later, in 1569, that the guilds were reunited and called the “Worshipful Company of Bakers.”
As early as 1826, the whole grain bread used by the military was called superior for health to the white, refined bread used by the aristocracy. In fact, the term refined today comes from this fact. Before the industrial revolution, it was more labor consuming (and therefore costly) to refine bread, so white bread was the main staple for aristocracy. This made them “refined”.
In 1910, Americans were eating 210 pounds of wheat flour every year. The commercial bread-slicing machine was invented in 1912 by Otto Rohwedder, and unveiled in 1928. The 1930s saw the United States pursue a diet enrichment program to begin fortifying breads with vitamins and minerals after their discovery in the late 1920s. In 1941, calcium was added to help prevent rickets, observed in many female recruits to the military. In 1956, it became the law to enrich all refined breads. By 1971 consumption of white bread had dropped to around 110 pounds per year, but by 1997 (possibly due in part to the low fat, high carbohydrate craze and the food pyramid) consumption was up to 150 pounds - still 60 pounds shy of the fit, trim Americans at the turn of the century.
Types of Bread
There are many types of bread. This is by no means an exhaustive list.
In the most basic form, grinding grains, adding water, and heating it produces whole grain flatbread. Whole grain bread is similar, only yeast is added so that the bread rises. White bread starts out similar to whole grain bread. The grain is processed, however. The hard, outer portion of the grain is stripped, removing fiber and many vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats that are naturally available. The remaining portion is ground to a fine powder, the enriched with a generic spray of vitamins and minerals. This is then used to bake the bread.
Spelt bread is a grain-bread, but made from special wheat that does not contain gluten. Gluten, a form of protein, is a common allergen and gluten intolerance or allergies are quite common.
Since whole grains are not sweet, sourdough bread is simply wheat bread with no sweetener added. Once a sweetener is added - often high fructose corn syrup in commercial breads, but typically brown sugar, honey, or molasses in fresh baked breads - it becomes the typical bread you are used to buying.
Varieties such as oat, barley, rye, kamut, triticale, millet, and even rice bread are simply variations using different grains other than traditional wheat. Sometimes seeds and spices are added, creating varieties such as basil, garlic, onion, or cinnamon bread.
Sprouted grain bread has increased in popularity in recent years. Traditional bread is made from ground flour from the hardened kernel of grain. Sprouted grain bread involves soaking the grain and allowing it to sprout. The sprouted seedlings are then mashed together and baked. Sprouting allows the enzymes in the grain to convert some of the carbohydrates and fats to vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. Due to the changes that take place, sprouted grain bread typically is higher in protein, fiber, and certain vitamins and minerals than regular bread. It is also less refined and processed than even stone ground wheat bread, so it has less of an impact on your blood sugar.
Bread and Nutrition
Many commercial types of bread are highly refined. Enriched breads have the original nutrients stripped out and replaced with inferior, often lesser quantities of standard vitamins and minerals. Some companies will try to produce wholesome-looking bread by adding grains to the outside, even when the main ingredient is enriched bread. High fructose corn syrup is often added as a sweetener.
The first thing to look at when purchasing breads is the ingredients list. Look for breads where the very first ingredient is “whole grain” or “stone ground” rather than “enriched” (even if whole grains follow the enriched flour ingredient). Look for natural sweeteners like molasses or honey over high fructose corn syrup. Preferably, the sweetener and salt should be last on the ingredients list. If you consume high quantities of bread or keep the bread refrigerated, it will last longer and you can purchase fresher varieties that do not contain additives or preservatives. The most basic ingredients list will look like this: whole-wheat flour, water, salt. There should be a few grams of protein and fiber per slice - low protein and/or fiber is a sign of excessive processing that has stripped these nutrients, and implies that the other nutrients will be missing as well.
Rye bread typically contains moderate portions of protein and fiber per slice. A 100-calorie slice will contain a few grams of protein, a few grams of fiber, around 20 grams of carbohydrate, and decent amounts of calcium and iron. The addition of flaxseed increases protein and fiber (for the same 100 calorie slice) but also adds trace amounts of health, unsaturated fats.
There are actually some amazing bread recipes that can be very beneficial for the bodybuilder. A variety of bread called “Men’s Bread” by French Meadow Bakery contains the following: Organic whole wheat flour, filtered water, organic flaxseed, organic pumpkin seeds, organic oat fiber, organic low fat soy flour, organic wheat flour, organic sesame seeds, organic raw sprouted fava beans, organic sunflower seeds, organic millet, organic pea protein isolate (non-GMO), organic wheat flour (wheat germ restored), soy germ isoflavone concentrate (non-GMO), organic sprouted quinoa, organic sprouted amaranth, organic sprouted spelt, organic sprouted kamut, wheat gluten, organic sprouted barley, organic sprouted oats, organic sprouted wheat, unrefined sea salt.
This power-packed ingredients list provides a 100-calorie slice of bread with essential fatty acids, 5 grams of fiber, and 8 grams of protein to only 11 grams of carbohydrate. It is abundant in over 13 vitamins and minerals. Compare this to a typical slice of white bread, which contains no fiber, trace amounts of protein, and double the carbohydrate.
Summary
Bread has been around for ages. While trends such as low carbohydrate nutrition or low fat dieting come and go, bread is here to stay - people “earn their bread” or “bring the bread home” and are constantly looking for the “best thing since sliced bread”. Before eliminating bread from your program, consider the many types of bread that are available and decide if there is one that suits your needs. Bread can increase your protein intake, add fiber to your diet, refill you muscles by supply quality carbohydrate in addition to healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals. People are always looking for the next great protein or power bar. Why not try a slice of bread?
Jeremy Likness is an International Health Coach and motivational speaker. After losing 65 pounds of fat, he discovered his true vision to coach thousands around the world to better health. A Certified Fitness Trainer and Specialist in Performance Nutrition, Jeremy is the author of the internationally-selling e-Book, Lose Fat, Not Faith and the companion 5-CD set. Jeremy has been published in major online publications including Tom Venuto’s Fitness Renaissance and Bodybuilding.com. Jeremy’s approach is unique because he focuses on fitness from the inside out. Visit Jeremy online at Natural Physiques.
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Approximately 30 years ago, food manufacturers were competing against the American Homemaker for consumable dollars. Women, traditionally prepared food fed to the family and the food prepared came fresh and cheap!
Food scientists knew then that we have glutamate receptors on our tongues. Humans are driven to eat foods containing glutamates, even when we can’t taste them. Glutamates can enhance taste or the sensation of taste, but it also causes a chemical reaction soon after the glutamate receptors are activated.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) and other glutamates (called free glutamates) can appear naturally in foods or may be included as additives by manufacturers in order, among other reasons, to increase the popularity of their products.
When glutamates are added to foods, they can release high levels of insulin, which cause changes in the metabolism. In a report written by Drs. N.A. Togiyama and A. Adachi and published in the medical journal Physiological Behavior, applying monosodium glutamate to the tongues of animals will release high levels of insulin within three minutes.
The hunger that follows such an insulin response could increase cravings, cause weight gain, and if repeated over tine, increase the likelihood of adult-onset diabetes.
Check you ingredient listing. Glutamates can go under a variety of names, including:
Anything enzyme modified
Anything fermented
Anything protein fortified
Anything ultra-pasteurized
Autolyzed yeast
Barley malt
Broth
Bouillon
Calcium caseinate
Carrageenan
Flavoring Gelatin
Hydrolyzed oat flour
Hydrolyzed plant protein
Hydrolyzed vegetable protein
Malt extract
Maltodextrin
Natural flavors (or natural flavoring)
Pectin
Plant protein extract
Potassium glutamate
Sodium caseinate
Soy protein
Soy sauce
Stock
Textured protein
Whey protein
Yeast extract
Yeast food
D.S. Epperson is the top formulator for Home Blend Gourmet / South Pacific Health, a leader in the functional food industry in the U.S. With 20 years of experience in Nutritional Biochemistry, she has written reference books on botanicals and manufacturing of medicines from botanicals, and published articles on health, fitness and foods. She has formulated over 240 formulas and inventions for health, the environment and agricultural uses, and continues to research and study microbial advantages in nutraceuticals and functional foods. For more information or to view the articles that she has written: http://www.sugarblend.com
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The Human Body is in a constant flux with the environment. Matter and molecules flow in and out, casting themselves into its complexities. Although the body lends them structure, it is the intakethe dietthat decides its physique. To control what goes in a diet is to choose what stays inside. Dietary decisions reflect an awareness of metabolism and the nutrients needed to modify it. There may be a host of diets purported for each activity and illness. However, the one macronutrient that is invariably required, in substantial amounts irrespective of the physiological state, is protein.
Proteins hold this special place in every diet for a variety of reasons. They connect the DNA to the rest of the cell and modulate all cellular functions and responses. They are the scaffolds of the human body that struts a billion cells. Proteins are also the workers that shuffle around the body relaying messages, carrying out repairs and digestion. Oxygen from the lungs and many nutrients from the gut are protein packed and delivered to their destination. The motors in the muscles and the antibodies in the immune system are all proteins. If genes code life in a helix of DNA, then proteins are life in its decoded form. Their pervasiveness makes them indispensable and, protein synthesis a priority in metabolism.
Add to this myriad of functions the astronomical turnover rate of proteins, and continuous protein synthesis becomes vital. Every protein has a short life span and is soon broken down into its constituent amino acids. New proteins are required to take their place. The skin itself is renewed every seven days. Then there are proteins that get used up, damaged or excreted, and need to be produced again. Protein synthesis goes on at a frantic pace even in normal people. Then there are periods of rapid growth, like athletes in training, teenagers, convalescent patients, babies, pregnant or lactating mothers, where protein synthesis reaches an all time high. Proteins are broken down for other reasons as well. In times of stress, illness or starvation, the body just cannot find enough sources of energy. In such circumstances, proteins are taken apart into their constituent amino acids and are used as fuel. Therefore, in all physiological states, cells are constantly at work, churning out new proteins.
To maintain this obligatory and intense rate of protein synthesis, the body needs a dedicated supply of amino acids. Unfortunately, unlike carbohydrates and fats that are stockpiled, the human body has no arrangement to store extra amino acids. The persistent demand for proteins and amino acids has to be met anew every day and from three possible sources: cellular production, the diet or breakdown of other body proteins. Of these, cellular production would be most convenient. If the cell could produce all the required amino acids, there would be no compulsion to provide them in the diet. However, there are amino acids that just cannot be produced in the body. These ‘essential amino acids’ have to come from the diet.
Proteins, from the diet or supplements, are the best alternative. The supply of all amino acids can be ensured and in sufficient amounts. Cellular metabolism is relieved of the obligation to produce amino acids except for making minor adjustment in the supply chain. Protein synthesis can go on uninterrupted. Unless the diet meets the perpetual demand for amino acids, other, relatively expendable, body proteins are broken down to fulfill the requirement. In effect, a dietary deficiency of proteins forces the body to feed on itself.
The need for proteins in every diet is undeniable. The average American diet provides 1.2 g/kg of protein against the recommended daily allowance of 0.8 g/kg. The question, then, is whether to add protein supplements to an existing diet? While proteins from food may seem adequate, there is no telling whether all essential amino acids are supplied, and there is little way of knowing how easily those proteins are digested and assimilated into the body. A carefully researched protein supplement like Profect, when taken regularly, would remove such uncertainties.
Apart from supplying amino acids for protein synthesis, a high protein diet based on Profect has other advantages. Studies on high-protein diets have demonstrated their ability to induce weight loss. A high-protein diet produces early satiety and decreases the total energy intake. Protein synthesis, an energy consuming process, is promoted. The energy to assimilate such a diet, calculated as the ‘Thermogenic effect of feeding’, is high. More calories are burnt, more proteins are synthesized and the lean body mass increases while the body weight goes down. Brawn is exchanged for flab.
Proteins from Profect form bioactive peptides in the gut that can enhance gut defenses. The harmful gut bacteria are killed and normal flora is allowed to colonize the intestinal lining. Profect also protects the system from free radicals, free electron molecules produced during intense activity and stress. Free radicals are known to damage cell membranes. Their role in aging, cancer and blood clotting is being intensely investigated. Profect increases the levels of Glutathione, a free radical scavenger that mops up free radicals shielding the cell from their effects. The added water-soluble vitamins and mineral in Profect prevent the loss of calcium and other micronutrients seen on high-protein diets.
About Protica
Founded in 2001, Protica, Inc. is a nutritional research firm with offices in Lafayette Hill and Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. Protica manufactures capsulized foods, including Profect, a compact, hypoallergenic, ready-to-drink protein beverage containing zero carbohydrates and zero fat. Information on Protica is available at www.protica.com. You can also learn about Profect at www.profect.com.
Copyright 2004 - Protica Research - http://www.protica.com
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According to the renowned research scientist and inventor of the Z one Diet Plan Dr. Barry Sears, studies are increasingly focusing on high dose fish oil. Actually, fish oil has been studied for some time. However, it has been looked at with more intensity ever since the Greenland Eskimos were analyzed by Danish and other European doctors in the 1970’s. They wanted to know why the greenlanders suffered very little in the way of heart disease-even though they had a lot of fat in their diets.
Fish oil effects a specific set of hormones. The more fish oil that is consumed, broadly speaking, the more “good” and the less “bad” eicosanoids (a certain type of hormone) an individual will have in their body. A key for 21st century medicine will be to balance these hormones as much as possible.
High dose pharmaceutical grade fish oil may be the top source of omega-3 fatty acids since purification methods have become so advanced in recent years, particularly with molecular distillation. And quite unlike traditional cod liver oil, newer methods have mostly eliminated impurities such as mercury and pcb’s from high-grade fish oil. Fish oil has EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), which are both long chain omega-3 fatty acids.
Essential fatty acids(EFA’s) are grouped into two distinct families, omega-6 EFAs and the omega-3 EFAs. Broadly
speaking, omega 6 fatty acids promote the production of the
“bad”eicosanoids, responsible for cellular inflammation within the very cells of
the body, while long chain omega 3 fatty acids do just the opposite.
The US National Institutes of Health has recognized the benefits of DHA and EPA and has published Recommended Daily Intakes of these important fatty acids. They recommend a daily intake of 650 mg of DHA and EPA, and 4.44 g/day of linoleic acid.
Dr. Sears has said that the purity of the fish oil is the single most important factor to think of when taking it as a supplement. To manufacture ultra refined or pharmaceutical grade fish oil requires a lot of purification. It takes some 100 gallons of health-food grade fish oil to make a single gallon of ultra refined or pharmaceutical grade fish oil! Dr Sears has 13 U.S. patents in this field of medicine, and is the author of the 1995 New York Times bestseller ‘The Zone’ and several other books.
If you intend to supplement your diet with fish oil, it may be a good idea to take pharmaceutical grade fish oil as you do not have the same concerns about mercury and pcb’s as you may have with an inferior fish oil product.
A.M Wilmont is a writer and researcher. For more information go to http://www.fishoil-omega3.com/ or http://www.omega3fishoil.org/
