Understanding Carbs to Stay Healthy
Barbara Morris

Low carb diets are popular. How good are they? How healthy are they? It all depends on what you know about the difference between different types of carbohydrates.

Common table sugar represents 20 to 25 percent of the daily caloric intake of Americans who live on the typical All American processed food diet. In the early 1800s average sugar consumption was about 12 pounds per person a year. In 1997, it was 152 pounds per person. Is that too much? You bet it is. Its making us old before we need to be.

Do we need carbohydrates? No, we dont. They are non-essential to the human diet. We do need water, fat, and protein. It is possible to survive for long periods without carbohydrates providing fat and protein needs are met. Fat and protein are broken down to make building blocks of carbohydrates as food and energy. This is something the carb-rich processed foods industry doesnt tell us.

Regardless of what is known about carbohydrate needs, we continue to consume massive quantities of carbohydrates. Therefore, its important to know which carbs are better than others. Its simple: All carbs are broken down into sugar in the body. The key is the rate and the amount that determines the level of sugar in the blood.

Complex carbs such as green leafy veggies, brown rice, potato, whole grain products, and fruits break down slowly. The result is a gradual rise and fall in blood sugar. It is generally understood that most complex carbs are good for you.

Refined, simple carbs such as cake, ice cream, cookies, breakfast bars, so-called cereals, and refined grains break down quickly in the body. This causes rapid elevation of blood sugar levels. These are not good for your health.

It should be understood that while refined carbs should be avoided because they are harmful, some complex carbs such as potatoes are not good because of their relatively fast breakdown.

How do you determine which carbs are really good, and what to avoid? Simple. Become familiar with something called the Glycemic Index of foods. When you look at a glycemic index for foods, bear in mind that the lower the rating, or number, the slower the digestion and absorption process and the better it is for your health.

As useful as the glycemic index is, you will need to learn which foods are good for you.. For example, a cup of low fat ice cream has a glycemic index of 50, which is lower than the glycemic index of a baked potato. Thats because the glycemic index rating of a refined sugar product is lower than that of a starchy food! So, learn to discern the difference between refined sugars and everything else. Just assume that if its made in a factory, its suspect!

Here are some glycemic index numbers for some popular food choices:
Baked Potato: 85; Cheerios: 74; Fanta soft drink: 68; Cheese pizza: 60; Banana: 54; Sweet potato: 54, Low fat ice cream: 50; Carrots: 49; Grapefruit juice: 48; All-bran: 42; Spaghetti: 41; Apple: 38; M&Ms (peanut): 32; Peanuts: 15; Yogurt, lot fat, artificially sweetened:14.

You can see from the above how misleading, yet useful the glycemic index can be.

The bottom is this: Do your homework. Dont rely on advertising or uninformed advice of well meaning friends to give you guidance about healthy eating. Making educated choices about what you put into your body puts you in the drivers seat and allows you to be in charge of how healthy you are, and how quickly or slowly you age.

About the Author

Barbara Morris, R.Ph., is a 76-year-old working pharmacist and recognized expert on unique anti-aging strategies. Author of Put Old on Hold, her message is for Boomers who want to feel and function as a healthy 40 or 50 year old for 25 or more years. She calls it Liberation Living a process she has discovered that bypasses infirmities and indignities of traditional old age. http://www.PutOldonHold.com

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6 Tips For A Healthy Dinner Out
George Williams

Ever wonder how you can possibly lose weight when the average
dinner out contains over 1,000 calories? Well, don’t fret!
Keeping yourself in shape when dining out is simply a matter of
ordering the right menu.

Below are 6 tips for having a healthy dinner out (while still
enjoying your meal like normal!):

– Watch Your Drinks – By not ordering an alcoholic beverage,
you’ve saved yourself a considerable number of calories. Try
sipping iced tea sweetened with a noncaloric sweetener, a diet
soft drink, or water with lemon. You’ll be glad you did when you
consider the calorie savings.

– Have A Salad – One of the best menus to have is salad. Not
only will it fill you up so you’ll consume fewer calories
overall, but it will also give you a hefty dose of antioxidants
which are heart healthy. Be sure to ask your waitress to hold
the croutons and cheese which will further reduce your caloric
load. Also, choose your dressing wisely. Avoid cream based
dressings and go for the vinegar based ones. You also have the
option of using vinegar and olive oil which is heart healthy.

– Don’t Order An Appetizer Unless Necessary – Do you know that
some appetizers have more calories and fat than the main course?
Plus, many appetizers are fried and served with heavy sauces
which will add to your intake of saturated fat as well as trans
fats and calories. It’s not a healthy way to start your meal.

– Choose The Right Kind Of Foods – Go for broiled and grilled
rather than fried. Not only will you save calories and fat
grams, you’ll also avoid trans fats which are so prevalent in
fried foods. Instead, consider asking for a doubles order of
vegetables with your entree. Very few Americans are getting the
7-9 servings of fruits and vegetables recommended for optimal
health. Plus, by avoiding the starch, you’ll be reducing your
caloric and carbohydrate load. Also, stick to tomato based
sauces rather than cream based and you’ll enjoy a considerable
calorie savings. Lastly, ask for the sauce to be served in a
separate dish on the side so you can control the amount you eat.

– Don’t Overeat – Today, many restaurants are serving larger
quantities of food than in the past. If this is the case, put
aside a portion of your entree at the beginning of the meal to
take home with you. If you remove it from your plate before you
start eating, you’ll be less tempted to overeat.

– Say “No” To Sugary, Fatty Desserts – Instead, go for a low fat
or low carbohydrate dessert selection such as a low carb
cheesecake. These are wise choices for the health conscious
eater and still allow you to end the meal on a sweet note. If a
healthy dessert option isn’t available, try a cup of coffee with
skim milk to help satiate your desire for something sweet.

The next time you go out for dinner, keep the above tips in
mind. You will be surprised how many calories you are able to
slash out of your meal just by ordering the right menus! Happy
healthy eating!

About the author:

George Williams is a wine and food enthusiast. He owns Wine Online
Secrets, Wine Rack
Secrets and Free
Wine Storage Info, sites providing free wine information.

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With the success of various weight loss entertainment programs, a lot of people are starting to believe that they need to attend a weight loss boot camp. This is simply not true. Unless there is a medical reason why you cannot lose weight, a calorie controlled diet and an exercise program will make you lose weight.

Dont think about as on a diet. Instead say to yourself that you are following a healthy eating program. Your mindset is probably the most important factor when determining your chances of losing weight. If you believe you will do it, the weight will come off. If you have doubts, you know-how as well give up this day.

Start by educating yourself as to what foods you should be eating more of and the foods that should be irritated on special occasions only. We all know that eating crisps, chips, cakes and biscuits are not energy to help us lose weight. But did you know that you actually should be eating more fat in your diet. What? You want to lose weight and I tell you to eat more fat. Well it is true, you should be maturation the rate of Omega 3 and 6 in your diet. Good sources are oily fish, nuts and pumpkin seeds. You need these fats to provide vital vitamins and minerals in your system but also to stop you becoming depressed.

Weight loss boot camps are not the answer to your long term weight loss. Education and exercise are the way forward. Knowing what you can eat and when will help resolve your weight problems. A good habit to get sympathy is not to eat organ starchy carbohydrates after 5pm.

I am not suggesting you never eat foods from the carbohydrate group any diet that prohibits a complete food group is not a healthy eating plan and should be avoided. But it is a good idea not to eat bread, pasta or potatoes in the evening until you reach your weight loss goal and so only occasionally. Excess calories produced by carbohydrates are stored as fat and as you generally sleep at night; you dont get the chance to burn off the dispensable. You will not go hungry as you can fill up on lean meat, vegetables and fruit. You should notice less bloating and increased levels of energy by following this one simple tip.

Drink more water. Most people do not drink sufficient water and often interpret thirst for craving. If you have recently eaten and still feel hungry, slap drinking some water. You should aim to drink at least 2 litres of water a day. It will help your energy levels as well as your diet.

Losing weight isnt rocket science. Follow the above tips, concede a decent diet book and learn to cook your own chow from fresh every day. Soon your weight issues will correspond to a part of the foregone and you will not be since weight loss boot camps.

24 Hour Fitness
http://www.www.24-hr-fitness.com

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Want To Slim Fast Low Carb Diets Are They The Answer

So you want to slim fast? Low carb diets may be the answer in the short term as you can lose weight very quickly by reducing the profit of carbohydrates you consume.

Putting a carbohydrate curfew in place will help to speed up weight loss as well as reduce bloating ergo moulding you look slimmer. Front end loading your day i. e. eating most of your daily charity of carbohydrates for breakfast will also help you to attain your weight loss goals.

You need to avoid sugar laden cereals as well as alabaster carbs i. e. pasta, bread and rice. Instead switch to granary and wholegrain breads and cereals. If cooking pasta or rice only use the wholegrain varieties.

Cut alcohol out entirely and watch those pounds fall off. Not only is alcohol strapping of empty calories but it also causes you to snack on the wrong sense of foods. Not many persons would get chips and a kebab every evening if they hadnt had a drink first.

Drinking more water will help you to lose weight as will cutting down on tea and coffee. Switching to skimmed milk is also a good idea to reduce your calorie consumption without forfeiting the calcium your body needs.

To slim fast, low carb diets will work but over the longer term they have not been proven to keep weight off. The reason for this is that most people evade to stay on a low carb diet for long. In fact most of us start more diets than we finish. The key to losing weight in the long term is to change your lifestyle not just your diet. You need to eat healthier but you also need to get suffocate the couch and out into the mindtrip. We all need more exercise and if you make it a family activity your kids are less likely to become obesity victims.

This is the first generation of children that are unlikely to outlive their parents and it is all because of their lifestyles. Our diets are too full of sugar and salt and parents are more likely to allow their kids play video games than go outside playing football. Society has changed and it is perceived to appear as more formidable to let our kids play outside. Instead we are comical them slowly via a combination of poor diets and lack of exercise.

Slim fast low carb diet programs are not suitable for your kids unless advised by a doctor. You need to exercise caution when putting side teenager on a diet. Instead change your whole families approach to food. Introduce low GI foods such being those described upper. Put a carb curfew in place for everyone and never let your kids go to school without a filling breakfast. Grilled bacon on wholemeal toast, boiled or poached eggs are much better than a sugar coated cereal.

Good luck with achieving your weight loss goals when following the slim fast low carb plan.

24 Hour Fitness
http://www.www.24-hr-fitness.com

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