A local dentist recommends brushing your teeth twice a day, flossing once a day, and rinsing as needed. He also has this recipe for homemade mouthwash.
If you are trying to lose or maintain weight you should have healthy snacks. Too many people try to avoid snacks thinking they are adding too many calories and that can be a big mistake. Notice the word healthy is bold in the first sentence. This is not a recommendation to eat cookies, chips, candy, etc a couple of times a day. But a healthy snack, especially in the afternoon, can keep you from overeating at dinner. Overeating at dinner is one of the best ways to sabotage your weight loss or weight maintenance plan. So what is a healthy snack? Here are some ideas: A stick of string cheese, nuts (not salty or candy coated), fresh fruit, carrots with hummus, a few chickpeas (tasty roasted), air-popped popcorn, or a handful of pretzels with hummus. This is certainly not a complete list but should give you an idea to get you started.
Another caution to "hidden sugars", that is sugars you don't realize you are eating. Be cautious with BBQ sauce and as always read the nutrition labels.
If you want to shed a few pounds but you hate dieting, and who doesn't, try walking 4 times a week. According to Dr. James Rippe one can lose about 18 pounds a year by walking for 45 minutes 4 times a week. An added benefit will be other health improvements from walking. It's cheap, easy and better than dieting any day, in my opinion.
This post is a little different but important. I think most of us have heard the saying, "When your feet hurt, you hurt all over". It is no wonder that seems true. Did you know that a quarter of all the bones in your body are in your feet? That's right. Each foot has 26 bones which means your feet contain 52 bones. In addition to bones the feet and ankles also have 33 joints and more than 240 muscles, ligaments, nerves and tendons. And we keep all those things busy. The average American will have logged approximately 75,000 miles on their feet by age 50. So don't just take your feet for granted, take good care of them.
Total carbs include fiber. To figure net carbs subtract the fiber count from the total carbs.
I recently saw this article in an outdated magazine I was starting to toss out. Thought it might be helpful to some of you.
The hormone estrogen is involved in 75% of all breast cancer cases. Mushrooms have been shown to reduce breast cancer risk by 66%! Unique compounds in mushrooms, regardless of variety, regulate estrogen levels by blocking an enzyme known for ramping up estrogen production. Be sure you are including mushrooms in your diet. Mushrooms added to soups, salads, sauces etc. can help keep your immune cells strong.
Green tea is known for its health benefits (see articles on this blog). Research has that adding a squeeze of lemon juice to your cup of green tea allows your body to absorb more of its protecting catechins. The experts tell us the lemon's vitamin C prevents the catechins from being degraded during digestion. This allows more of the powerful antioxidants to be absorbed by your body's cells. Lime or orange juice may be substituted.
Studies have shown that dieters who enjoy a favorite comfort food such as pizza, chips or ice cream once or twice a week actually reach their weight goals faster than other dieters! Other dieters tend to splurge everyday trying to satisfy their cravings while those with a planned splurge meal hold out for that meal.
Red bell peppers are high in cancer-fighting carotenoids. When roasted the count is even higher. Like tomatoes, cooking concentrates these cancer-fighting compounds.
Hallelujah! Just what we have been looking for, a study that says go ahead and eat fried foods! But before you get too excited finish reading this post. A fairly large Spanish study a few years ago found that eating fried foods posed no heart risk so long as the foods were fried in a mono- and poly-unsaturated healthy fat. This study was conducted on 40,757 adults ages 29 to 69 and was published in the British Medical Journal. The key here is to use the proper fat for frying! I can personally vouch for this fact. I love fried foods and for many years I had extremely high cholesterol and suffered a heart attack. I have inherited some cholesterol and heart problems but even so after changing my diet to only using olive, canola, or coconut oil for frying my cholesterol has been in the normal range for several years now. I do take a cholesterol medication but had taken the same meds back when it was extremely high, too. So relax, buy the proper oils and enjoy some fried foods from time to time! In fact, heart-healthy omega-3 fats are essential to a healthy diet.
Do not drink sodas on a regular basis but substitute water with a slice of citrus such as lemon, lime or orange. Even a slice of cucumber is a good idea. According to the American Heart Association, drinking two or more sugar-sweetened beverages a day may expand a woman's waistline and increase her risk of heart disease and diabetes. This was stated in a symposium to women but should be applied to men, too.
