Nutrition Frenzy

When it comes to weight loss, some calories count more than others. In a yearlong study of overweight people on a reduced-calorie diet, those enjoying soup each day lost more weight than people who got the same number of calories from other foods eaten for lunch or snacks.

The reason the soup-eaters lost more is likely because a bowl of it has a low ratio of calories to ounces. In other words, the soup takes up more space in people’s bellies, and those who ate it felt less hungry later and ate less of other foods over the course of the day.

What won’t work: Cream-based soups (after all, heavy cream packs 400 calories per half cup!). To keep you satisfied and help you trim down, choose soups with a base of low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth and varieties loaded with vegetables, kidney beans, lentils, or brown rice. Those who ate two servings of low energy-dense soup per day (as part of a reduced-calorie diet) lost an average of almost 16 pounds in a year. People who got their calories from high energy-dense snack foods lost much less — an average of only 10.5 pounds.

Don’t love soup? Other foods with a low calories-to-ounces ratio include air-popped popcorn and fresh produce.

Apple Cider Vinegar does have scientific backing for various health claims.

Recently, a friend told me that Apple Cider Vinegar (in either liquid or tablet form) would help reduce my blood sugar, lower cholesterol and blood pressure. I was reluctant, because I had never heard of that before. For a few weeks I was looking for Apple Cider Vinegar Tablets and finally found some in a far off drugstore.

To back the claim, I did some research and found this:

Here’s a rundown of some more recent ones.

Diabetes. The effect of vinegar on blood glucose levels is perhaps the best-researched and the most promising of apple cider vinegar’s possible health benefits. Several studies have found that vinegar may help lower glucose levels. For instance, one 2007 study of 11 people with type 2 diabetes found that taking two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar before bed lowered glucose levels in the morning by 4%-6%.

High cholesterol. A 2006 study showed evidence that vinegar could lower cholesterol. However, the study was done in rats, so it’s too early to know how it might work in people.

Blood pressure and heart health. Another study in rats found that vinegar could lower high blood pressure. A large epidemiological study also found that people who ate oil and vinegar dressing on salads five to six times a week had lower rates of heart disease than people who didn’t. However, it’s far from clear that the vinegar was the reason.

Cancer. A few laboratory studies have found that vinegar may be able to kill cancer cells or slow their growth. Epidemiological studies of people have been confusing. One found that eating vinegar was associated with a decreased risk of esophageal cancer. Another associated it with an increased risk of bladder cancer.

Weight Loss. For thousands of years, vinegar has been used for weight loss. White vinegar (and perhaps other types) might help people feel full. A 2005 study of 12 people found that those who ate a piece of bread along with small amounts of white vinegar felt fuller and more satisfied than those who just ate the bread.

While the results of these studies are promising, they are all preliminary. Many were done on animals or on cells in a lab. The human studies have been small. Before we will truly know whether vinegar has any health benefits, much larger studies are needed.

Newsweek posted an article on the six worst diets of 2009 so far.

As we all know, and say it with me, there’s no such thing as a diet! Newsweek has taken the trouble to research and find the worst of the worst. Without further ado:

1. The Fat-Free Diet
The theory: Eat whatever you want as long as it has no fat. If your diet contains no fat, you won’t get fat.
Reality check: While it’s true that extra fat in your diet adds calories, just sticking to foods touted as fat free doesn’t necessarily help. Supermarket shelves are crammed with products advertised as fat free that are loaded with sugar and empty calories and that offer little in the way of fiber, vitamins or minerals. Check product labels before you buy.

2. The Snack-Pack Diet
The theory: Cookies and chips sorted into 100-calorie packs help limit the damage from an attack of the munchies.
Reality check: The dozens of 100-calorie snack pack foods on the market now may offer a lower-calorie alternative, but few of them are truly healthy choices, and they aren’t likely to be very filling or fiber rich, which can send you running for another bag or something less healthy.

3. The Couch-Potato Diet
The theory: Who needs exercise? You can lose weight without working out! Cutting back on calories is enough.
Reality check: Who needs exercise? You do. Studies have shown that dieters who change what they eat and increase their regular activity are more likely to lose and keep weight off. Increasing activity has other health benefits as well, such as lowering your risk of heart disease, the leading killer of women. Even a brisk 20- to 30-minute walk most days of the week can make a big difference.

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A new study shows eating half a grapefruit before meals helps dieters lose more weight.

The crux of the study is this: Go Whole. Although grapefruit juice and grapefruit capsules also may have pound-shedding potential, whole fruit was clearly the winner in the study — probably because the whole fruit has appetite-controlling fiber as well.

Back in the 70s and 80s, I remember my mom buying crates of Grapefruit. She’d eat one a day to help lose weight and control her appetite. (What she didn’t do was change her eating habits overall and exercise at that time). The study followed a group of people over twelve weeks who ate 1/2 a grapefruit before meals, ate sensibly and walked for 30 minutes a day. They lost more weight than the other group who didn’t eat 1/2 a grapefruit.

Although I love the aroma of grapefruit, the immunosuppressants I take due to the kidney transplant I have bar me from eating it. It’s thought even the smell of grapefruit may have weight loss benefits. Do they make grapefruit-scented air misters?

That’s an awful lot of grapefruit though. One-half before each meal every single day? Don’t know if I could do it, but there are alot of people who swear by it. Do you or would you try this meal plan? It’s important to remember you still have to eat sensibly (low-fat, low-cholesterol and low-carbohydrate) and exercise (at least walk 30 minutes per day).

Study shows 34% are obese and 32% overweight, per the numbers posted by the National Center for Health Statistics .

As science has proven, being overweight or obese raises the risk of heart disease, diabetes, some cancers, arthritis and other conditions, more and more Americans are growing around the middle. Alarmingly, the CDC reported that 32 percent of U.S. children fit the definition of being overweight, 16 percent were obese and 11 percent were extremely obese. Want tosee of you fit the category of health? Find out your Body Mass Index here.

This makes me wonder if the figures (statistically) would be shown that as more and more Americans are losing their jobs, homes and way of life, that all they can afford to eat are the cheaper, high carb, high fat foods. The Government and the Food and Drug Administration spout that Americans should be buying and eating healthy, nutritious, low-fat, low-carb, high-fiber foods daily. That is an admiriable goal. From the FDA’s website, eating their recommended meal planwould cost between $200-300 per person per month. Who can afford to eat like that in this economy?

If the Government is truly concerned about the health of Americans, I propose that they start a reality check: Americans cannot afford healthy, nutritious foods. Start subsidizing each American’s monthly food bill at $200 per person per month. This would be cheaper in the long run than treating heart disease, heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, organ failure, gastric bypass surgeries and the myriad other health problems and issues stemming from obesity.

In my article, “How I lost 41 Pounds”, I discuss how I mentally prepared to lose weight and how I went about eating and exercising.

I firmly believe that one must deal with losing weight, exercising in their minds first, or they will ultimatley fail. The year before I lost weight but gained it back. Why? Because I hadn’t wrapped my mind around wanting to lose weight first. Sure, the prospect of losing unwanted fat was appealing, but there was no long-term plan to keep the weight off.

Losing weight is a lifetime committment. No pillls, liquids or strange diets will ever work unless you’re totally and 100% committed to sticking with them for the rest of your natural born life. That would get old, at least for me.

What did work for me, was eating sensibly: A variety of fruits and vegetables, fixed in appetizing looking and tasting ways. I knew I wouldn’t stick to eating steaming lumps of goo twice a day for the next thirty or forty years. So, I began buying vegetarian and low-fat cookbooks. I still eat meat (afterall, i’m a midwestern-meat-and-potatoes boy from the midwest). Over the past few years, I have definately opened my palate to new foods and experiencing new and interesting tastes.

Exercise was a four letter word. But, I knew I had to do something or i’d die of a heart attack or stroke. I lost 41 pounds by walking. It took a year, and I followed the FDA’s recommended guidelines of losing a pound a week. No, it wasn’t exacty a pound a week. The first few weeks I lost ten to twelve pounds, then nothing for weeks and weeks. Then five or six more came off. That’s how weight loss worked for me. It came off in spurts. There was plateaus when I felt like giving up, but I kept picturing myself at my previous weight.

What do I suggest? Start small, make acheivable goals, expand your palate.

Here’s a snack that ought to stop you from, well, snacking: whole-grain bread dipped in olive oil.

Restaurants have the right idea. Some serve a plate of aromatic, fruity olive oil with whole grain bread with cracked pepper. Delicious, wholesome and good for you!

That’s because olive oil is rich in a special appetite-controlling kind of fat. Wow, a fat that may help with weight control! That’s something to write home about.

Getting the Message
Olive oil contains oleic acid, a monounsaturated fat. Upon reaching the small intestine, oleic acid triggers the production of oleoylethanolamide (OEA), another fatty substance. OEA then finds its way to nerve endings that carry a hunger-curbing message to the brain. And that message is loud and clear: “Hey. Stop eating! You’re full!!” Researchers are hoping that new appetite-suppressing drugs using OEA will be developed to reduce obesity.

Learn about belly fat and how to lose it:

Three Kinds of Fat
See, fat is like real estate: It’s all about location, location, location. We all have three kinds of fat: fat in our bloodstream (called triglycerides), subcutaneous fat (which lies just beneath the skin’s surface), and omentum fat. The omentum is a fatty layer of tissue located inside the belly, where it hangs underneath the muscles in your stomach (which is why some men with beer guts have hard-as-a-keg bellies — their fat is under the muscle). You may hear people on the street refer to it not only as a beer gut but also as belly fat, love handles, a beach-ball belly, or a spare tire. Doctors refer to it as visceral fat or intra-abdominal adiposity (IAA).

Because this omentum fat is so close to your organs, it’s their best energy source. (Why go to the gas station on the other side of town when there’s a station at the next corner?)

What Belly Fat Does

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Calorie Cutback Cuts Women’s Odds of Middle-Age Weight Gain

Women who don’t try to eat less more than double their risk of substantial weight gain in middle age, a three-year study shows.

If you’re a 40-something woman, it doesn’t matter whether you’re thin or overweight — odds are, you’ll gain weight over time if you don’t make an effort to cut back on what you eat.

The finding comes from a study of 192 women with an average age of 40 by Brigham Young University researchers Larry A. Tucker, PhD, and Laura Bates. The women were not obese, had not yet reached menopause, and did not smoke.

At the start of the study the women underwent detailed physical exams, including measures of weight and body fat. They also underwent a seven-day analysis of the food they ate, in which they weighed and recorded every bit of food they put into their mouths.

Three years later, the women underwent another round of physical exams and food-intake analysis. The bottom line was no surprise: Women tend to gain weight and body fat as they age and become less physically active.

But not all women gained weight. Even if they didn’t exercise more, women who made an effort to eat less were 69% less likely to gain more than 2.2 pounds and were 2.4 times less likely to gain 6.6 pounds or more.

It’s never too soon, or too late, to watch what you eat, Tucker and Bates suggest.

Personal trainer says even a 10-minute workout gets you closer to fitness goals

NUTRITION

Dr. Melina Jampolis, a San Francisco, California, physician nutrition specialist, is the diet and fitness expert for CNNhealth.com. She focuses exclusively on nutrition for weight loss and disease prevention and treatment.

1. Go for very specific goals.

Make an actual list. Don’t be vague. Instead if “looking better,” write down specifics, such as being able to run around with kids at the park or not wearing a baggy T-shirt to the beach. It’s an internal motivator.

2. Volunteer.

Good karma could be good fitness. Volunteer activities such as coaching a youth soccer game, walking shelter dogs or cleaning up a beach encourages movement and exercise, Jampolis said. When it comes to burning calories, think outside the gym.

“Look for active volunteer opportunities with any form of movement,” she said.

Cheryl Forberg is a behind-the-scenes nutritionist for NBC’s show, “The Biggest Loser.” She is a registered dietitian and chef. She has a weekly blog and is the author of the book “Positively Ageless.”

1. Make over your kitchen.

Get rid of foods that have lower nutritional values, such as white sugar, bread and pasta. If junk food isn’t in your kitchen, you can’t be tempted, Forberg said.

2. Healthy snacking helps.

Having a snack sustains healthy blood sugar levels and energy. This way you don’t feel famished and end up overeating. She recommends a piece of fruit with a protein or healthy fat — perhaps a few nuts with an apple, a cheese stick or a carton of yogurt for a snack.

“Combining protein and carbohydrates keeps you full longer and sustains blood sugar longer and keeps your energy levels,” she said.

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Between the three major Southern California grocery chains — Ralphs, Albertsons and Vons — there are six supermarkets in South Los Angeles, serving a population of about 688,000. By comparison, 19 supermarkets serve West Los Angeles’ population of about 395,000.

Retailers blame theft in urban supermarkets, high employment turnover and lack of space for choosing to locate their stores elsewhere.

While farmers markets and trucks peddling fruits and vegetables have taken root in South Los Angeles, they are inconsistent and inadequate for the area’s population, Kim said.

Some cities are trying to get more supermarkets into urban areas. The state of Pennsylvania invested $30 million five years ago and got 61 supermarkets opened in rural and urban areas.

Chicago and New Orleans are considering similar programs, but legislation to bring the same assistance to California cities died in the Legislature in 2006 due to budget constraints.

The food disparity in South Los Angeles is an echo of the area’s history, marked by decades of segregation and racial strife, dating back before the deadly 1965 Watts riots.

In the state’s post-riot report, residents alleged price gouging and the sale of stale bread, rancid meat and rotten produce — complaints that re-emerged decades later after race riots erupted in the wake of the Rodney King verdict in 1992, said City Councilwoman Jan Perry.

South Los Angeles has shifted from a mostly black to a mostly Hispanic community in the last decade, with Latinos making up about two-thirds of the population, according to 2006 Census figures.

Today, fast food is king in South L.A. Nearly three-quarters of restaurants offer food on the go, compared to 42 percent in pricier neighboring West Los Angeles.

The city’s Community Redevelopment Agency estimates the area could support 14 new grocery stores and 74 more restaurants. But few businesses are biting on incentives that include hiring tax credits, 35 percent electricity discounts for a year and low interest loans.

“You throw public subsidies at them, and they still don’t come,” Kim said.

Like many residents of Lozoya’s community, where 28 percent of households live below the federal poverty line, she relies on the small corner grocery a few blocks from her home for chicken, fruit and vegetables.

Until recently, Los Compadres Market and Restaurant looked like most others. But Lozoya and her classmates gave it a healthy makeover through a grant from The California Endowment, a private health foundation that aims to create healthy communities.

Regardless of where you find yourself on the scale after the holidays, a few extra walks will still do wonders for your heart.

Even if you’re well above your ideal weight, burning off about 1,000 calories a week helps improve your cardiovascular health and reduces your risk of heart disease.

Batting 1,000 — At Least
After a decade-long study, researchers have found that burning about 1,000 calories a week through exercise was enough to significantly lower the risk of coronary heart disease in women who are obese. It didn’t totally erase their risk, but study participants were far better off than obese women who got little or no exercise.

Exercise, in any shape or form, is proven medicine for your heart — lowering blood pressure, improving blood vessel function, and possibly inhibiting certain types of blood-clot-encouraging chemicals released by fat cells.

How to Make the Mark
So what does it take to shed an extra 1,000 calories a week? Depends on your size and how hard you work out. You could burn anywhere from 125 to 200-plus calories with 30 minutes of walking — so you’d need to hit the pavement several times each week. No matter how big or small your New Year’s fitness goal is, RealAge can help you stay on track.

You really can power up your metabolism with the right menu

Go organic

Canadian researchers report that dieters with the most organochlorines (pollutants from pesticides, which are stored in fat cells) experience a greater than normal dip in metabolism as they lose weight, perhaps because the toxins interfere with the energy-burning process. Other research hints that pesticides can trigger weight gain. Always choose organic when buying peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, lettuce, imported grapes, and pears; non-organic versions tend to have the highest levels of pesticides.

Always include protein

Your body needs protein to maintain lean muscle. Add a serving, like 3 ounces of lean meat, 2 tablespoons of nuts, or 8 ounces of low-fat yogurt, to every meal and snack. Research shows protein can up postmeal calorie burn by as much as 35 percent.

Eat iron-rich foods

It’s essential for carrying the oxygen your muscles need to burn fat, says Tammy Lakatos, RD, co-creator of the diet. Until menopause, women lose iron each month through menstruation. Unless you restock your stores, you run the risk of low energy and a sagging metabolism. Shellfish, lean meats, beans, fortified cereals, and spinach are excellent sources.

Get more D

This vitamin is essential for preserving metabolism-revving muscle tissue. Unfortunately, researchers estimate that a measly 4 percent of Americans over age 50 take in enough through their diet. Get 90 percent of your recommended daily value (400 IU) in a 3.5-ounce serving of salmon. Other good sources: tuna, shrimp, tofu, fortified milk and cereal, and eggs.

Skip the second cocktail

When you have a drink, you burn less fat, and more slowly than usual, because the alcohol is used as fuel instead. Knocking back the equivalent of about two martinis can reduce your body’s fat-burning ability by up to 73 percent.

Drink milk

“There’s some evidence that calcium deficiency, which is common in many women, may slow metabolism,” says Lakatos. Research shows that consuming calcium through dairy foods such as fat-free milk and low-fat yogurt may also reduce fat absorption from other foods.

You really can power up your metabolism with the right menu

Eat enough

You need to cut calories to lose weight. But going too low delivers a double whammy to your metabolism. When you eat less than you need for basic biological function (about 1,200 calories for most women), your body throws the brakes on your metabolism. It also begins to break down precious, calorie-burning muscle tissue for energy, says Dan Benardot. “Eat just enough so you’re not hungry — a 150-calorie snack midmorning and midafternoon between three meals (about 430 calories each) will keep your metabolism humming.”

Rev up in the morning

Eating breakfast jump-starts metabolism and keeps energy high all day. It’s no accident that women who skip this meal are 4 1/2 times as likely to be obese.

Drink coffee or tea

Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant, so your daily java jolts can rev your metabolism 5 percent to 8 percent — about 98 to 174 calories a day. A cup of brewed tea can raise your metabolism by 12 percent, according to one Japanese study. Researchers believe the antioxidant catechins in tea provide the boost.

Fight fat with fiber

Research shows that some fiber can rev your fat burn by as much as 30 percent. Studies find that women who eat the most fiber gain the least weight over time. Aim for about 25 g a day — the amount in about three servings each of fruits and vegetables.

Buy the big bottle

German researchers found that drinking 6 cups of cold water a day (that’s 48 ounces) can raise resting metabolism by about 50 calories daily — enough to shed 5 pounds in a year. The increase may come from the work it takes to heat the water to body temperature.

Lab tests find unlisted ingredients that can cause heart attacks, strokes

If you’re looking for a little help shedding extra pounds after the holidays, the government is warning you to stay away from nearly 30 weight-loss products that contain unlisted and possibly dangerous ingredients.

The pills are advertised as “natural” fat busters and have intriguing names like Imelda Perfect Slim and Zhen de Shou. Some suggest they are innovative “herbal” remedies from Asia.

But the Food and Drug Administration on Monday said the concoctions contain unlisted ingredients, including powerful appetite-suppressing drugs and a suspected carcinogen.

FDA lab testing found 28 dietary supplements that could land unsuspecting users in the emergency room.

Many contain sibutramine, a powerful appetite suppressant that’s a chemical cousin of amphetamines. It can cause heart attacks, strokes, heart palpitations and other problems. Some contain phenolphthalein, a chemical long used as a laxative, but which is now being withdrawn from the market because of cancer risks.

None of the supplements lists the dangerous ingredients on the label. “Consumers have no way of knowing that these products contain powerful drugs that can cause serious health consequences,” Woodcock said.

The FDA is considering criminal charges against some of the companies, because they have not responded to requests for recalls.

The products are:

Fatloss Slimming, 2 Day Diet, 3x Slimming Power, 5x Imelda Perfect Slimming, 3 Day Diet Japan Lingzhi, 24 Hours Diet, 7 Diet Day/Night Formula, 7 Day Herbal Slim, 8 Factor Diet, 999 Fitness Essence, Extrim Plus and GMP.

Also:

Imelda Perfect Slim, Lida DaiDaihua, Miaozi Slim Capsules, Perfect Slim, Perfect Slim 5x, Phyto Shape, ProSlim Plus, Royal Slimming Formula, Slim 3 in 1, Slim Express 360, Slimtech, Somotrin, Superslim, TripleSlim, Zhen de Shou, Venom Hyperdrive 3.0

I lost 41 pounds in 2008, by carefully watching what I ate, all healthy meats, low starchy-carbohydrate vegetables and exercising more. It can be done. Is the weight loss fast? No, but it is healthier.

In this Childhood Obesity Bootcamp, your child will learn:
FitWit’s program is a six-week after-school boot camp competition

CDC data shows childhood obesity is a huge problem in the U.S.

Program rewards participants with prizes for meeting fitness goals

One of the best gifts you can give a child this holiday season may not be the latest gadget, toy, or tasty treat, but instead the gift of a healthy lifestyle.

An Atlanta-based non-profit organization is doing its part to combat childhood obesity by teaching kids proper nutrition and exercise in a six-week fitness boot camp similar to NBC’s “The Biggest Loser.”

The FitWit Foundation hopes its program will catch on nationwide.

“We wanted to work with teens in a meaningful way, and we saw firsthand how fitness and physical activity in general is being neglected in this population. With a lot of help from volunteers and donors, we’ve started a program this past spring that encourages hard work and is a fun way to get in shape,” said FitWit instructor Ben Thoele.

FitWit’s program is a six-week after-school boot camp competition which rewards participants with prizes for meeting fitness goals. An iPod Nano was the grand prize for Atlanta Public Schools students completing a recent fitness session.

The need for increased fitness across the country is striking. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 17.6 percent of U.S. teenagers were obese in 2006 — more than triple the rate in 1980. Obesity puts the teens at increased risk for heart disease, bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, and social and psychological problems, the CDC says.