|  About Carbohydrates:Friend or Foe?
There is considerable debate about carbohydrates and whether they are good or bad for you. Some doctors advocate carbohydrates to provide energy for exercise,while others recommend carbohydrate reduction as a way to lower total calories. The answers to this debate can be found by asking questions about what type of carbohydrates are being discussed. About Carbohydrates:The DifferencesWhen we are talking about carbohydrates,it is good to understand the differences. At the most basic level,when we talk about carbohydrates,we are talking about sugar. The differences are determined by the steps required to break the food down into sugar. Generally,the more steps,the slower the process. When most people think about carbohydrates,they think of bread and pasta,but the range is wider and includes sugary drinks on one end and root vegetables on the other. About Carbohydrates And Blood SugarIn general,complex carbohydrates are better for the simple reason that they change blood sugar levels more slowly. Rapidly changing blood sugar levels cause the body to react in an attempt to restore the optimum state,known as homeostasis. The body does a wonderful job of this when we are younger,but when we age,it wears out. One of the nastier side-effects of repeated insults in the form of rapidly-changing blood sugar levels can be excessive weight and at the extreme,adult-onset diabetes. Adult-onset diabetes occurs when a roller-coaster ride of blood sugar levels places repeated demands for insulin on the body and leads to insulin resistance. The body becomes less able to process sugar due to this insulin resistance,since insulin is what allows the sugar to be utilized in the cells. The Solution:A Low Glycemic Index DietThe low glycemic index diet involves taking care not to cause rapid changes in blood sugar. For instance,eating a hard-boiled egg before a slice of toast causes a gentle rise in blood sugar rather than the other way around. It also involves making informed food choices regarding which foods elevate blood sugar. This is not necessarily intuitive. For example,yams taste sweeter than potatoes,but have almost half glycemic index (medium as opposed to high). To learn more about the low glycemic index diet,visit:http://www.glycemicindex.com/ …and that’s all about carbohydrates for today. Anti-Inflammatories:Foods That Heal Inflammation seems to be the source of a great many health conditions,from arthritis to heart disease. Apart from such directly related conditions,inflammation also plays a role in other ways,such as soreness after exercise or recovery after injury. Part of the problem is that foods that cause inflammation often taste good,so eliminating them is difficult. Instead we advocate increasing anti-inflammatories.
5 Key Anti-Inflammatories To Add To Your DietWe recommend putting these 5 anti-inflammatories in your kitchen and adding them to your diet. - Ginger –Fresh ginger is wonderful,but powdered ginger is just fine,as is the pickled ginger that comes with sushi
- Tumeric –Long-regarded as one of the best anti-inflammatories,this yellow Indian spice is a component of many curries
- Cumin –Often used in Mexican food,these ground seeds add the zest of a fiesta to south-of-the-border dishes
- Cayenne –It might seem odd that ground pepper pods (which seem hot) reduce inflammation,but they do
- Fish Oil –Contains many health benefits attributed to EPA and DHA. Norwegian Cod Liver Oil must pass a medical standard.
Foods Can be Anti-InflammatoriesDr. Andrew Weil went to the trouble to create an Anti-Inflammatory Food Pyramid which demonstrates that proportions of foods eaten make a big difference. He advocates concentrating primarily on fruits and vegetables as anti-inflammatories. Next,include grains and legumes (grains in whole form are better). Above that come nuts and healthy oils and above that,fish and other seafood. (Fish oils are anti-inflammatories). On the level above that,Dr. Weil places soy products and I beg to differ on the basis that non-fermented soy products have not stood the test of time as anti-inflammatories. He allows unlimited amounts of cooked mushrooms and the spices listed above,but limits dairy and red meat. He recommends tea rather than coffee,but allows a little red wine and scant amounts of chocolate. (I guess he wants to keep the anti-inflammatories livable!) The Healthiest Foods:Quality Is Key Many people want to know what the healthiest foods are. Often they expect to discover which foods are the healthiest foods,but often the answer lies in the quality of foods eaten. Naturally the question arises,what determines food quality? The answer lies in the number of steps taken to get to your table:The fewer,the better.
The Healthiest Foods:Local,Living,Low Heat,Low On The Food ChainLocal means that foods are fresh and more nutritious. Living means that you can feel the life force when you eat. Low Heat means that nutrients are not destroyed by over-cooking. Low On The Food Chain means that toxins have less chance to bioconcentrate. Let’s look a bit deeper: The Healthiest Foods Are LocalThe very healthiest foods you can eat are those you grow or catch yourself,but many people are too busy to do so. A good second alternative is your local farmer’s market or fish market. Even if you can’t grow a complete garden or go fishing,a planter box of fresh herbs or a rack of wheatgrass can supply enzymes missing from processed foods. The healthiest foods are fresh organic foods. The Healthiest Foods Are LivingThis applies to both plant and animal foods,which is why you often see a tank of live seafood in some restaurants. The fact is,that the moment food is killed,it begins to deteriorate. For this reason,you will want to make sure you eat your food as soon as possible after it is picked or slaughtered. The Healthiest Foods Are Prepared With Low HeatHigh heat destroys enzymes,creates carcinogenic heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in meats and unnecessarily consumes power. Low-heat cooking can be taken to a fine art. Some Asians go so far as to say “Never boil rice”and recommend “Braising”rather than frying or grilling (No “char”). The Healthiest Foods Are Low On The Food ChainPeople don’t always take Bioconcentration into account and may not select the healthiest foods as a consequence. Bioconcentration is what happens when toxic compounds become concentrated in the food chain. For example,a person might select a Salmon steak over ground Bison feeling that fish is somehow healthier,but if they were to take a closer look,they might see that Bison eat plants,whereas Salmon eat Herring and Herring eat Copepods. This means that methyl mercury levels are higher in salmon. The farther up the food chain you go,the worse it gets. So Trout and Tuna have higher levels and Shark,Albacore,Pike and Halibut have the highest levels. This has been further complicated in the northern Pacific with radioactive isotopes (I-131,Cs-137) from Fukushima and as bisphenol A, PCBs,and derivatives of polystyrene. The Healthiest Foods Are WildFinally there is the genetic quality of wild foods. The healthiest foods are those closest to their original state,such as wild rice or quinoa. Factory farming with seed stocks modified through hybridization or the use of genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) has subtracted substantial nutrient value from foods that would otherwise be highly nutritional. Unfortunately,wild foods are becoming scarcer,so we must settle for the healthiest foods we can get. Switch To A Healthful Lifestyle One thing many people don’t realize is that having a healthful lifestyle is part of succeeding at healthful eating. Healthful lifestyle means considering sleep,water and exercise as if they were food groups and regarding stressful activities and relationships as toxic substances to be reduced or eliminated like drugs,alcohol,tobacco or junk food.
Start A Healthful Lifestyle With Small ShiftsOften times people have a hard time seeing themselves switching to a healthful lifestyle because there is so much to change. For this reason,we advocate making the transition to a healthful lifestyle incrementally. Here are a few examples: - Start looking for opportunities to take short walks or putter around the house.
- Fill a jug with a gallon of water in the morning and make sure you finish it each day.
- Let stressful callers know you only have a short time to talk.
- Get help with tasks you find daunting.
- Make time for active pleasurable activities such as playing guitar or dancing.
- Consider shifting your sleep schedule so you go to bed earlier (You’ll also wake up earlier and have the early morning hours to yourself.) Insomnia? Click Here!
Find Friends That Support A Healthful LifestyleMany people don’t realize that their social circle keeps them trapped inside certain modes of thought. A well-meaning neighbor stopping by with doughnuts and the Wednesday night poker game with drinking buddies can both pose serious obstacles to a healthful lifestyle if we have a hard time saying “no.”Instead,say “yes”to a more healthful lifestyle by expanding your social circles and activities. Find friends to take walks with and to share healthful recipes with. One Secret To Healthful Eating And A Healthful Lifestyle Consider making time to buy fresh groceries daily. Think about it:By combining a short walk with a purchase of a fresh food item,you “kill two birds with one stone”supporting healthful eating with a healthful lifestyle.  Healthful Eating:A Key To Healthy Living
Healthful eating,together with a program of regular exercise and a healthy lifestyle is the basis of healthy living. There is some debate over whether the most healthful eating is vegan, vegetarian,grain-centered,raw or omnivorous but no matter what a person’s dietary choices are,they should be fully informed of the consequences of those choices. It is generally agreed that healthful eating involves steering away from highly processed foods and relying on simply prepared foods in their least-processed form (such as steamed broccoli or baked fish). Healthful Eating ConcernsIn today’s modern world,sticking to healthful eating can be a daunting task. People are pressed for time and money often settle for the quickest or least costly ways to feed themselves and their families. This has led to a lamentable situation among the poor that because of a lack of healthful eating,society picks up the hospital bills that are the consequence. Even for those who are financially well off,having time to prepare meals or making the best food choices for healthful eating can be difficult. This gets even more complicated when one takes into account the differing tastes of children. A Simple Trick For Healthful EatingA friend once showed me I could solve the question of healthful eating all at once with a simple strategy which saves time and money both shopping and with meal preparation,and here it is: Do your food shopping around the perimeter of the store and not in the aisles. Why? - Fresh foods are generally around the edges of a store,whether meats,vegetables,fruits,dairy or deli items. (Avoid the aisles!)
- When you are pressed for time,you can still make good choices for healthful eating by making one big loop around the store.
- When you get to the deli section you can order prepared items and save time at home by making up meal-sized packets of deli-prepared foods and taking them with you for an on-the-go lifestyle.
I hope this trick helps with healthful eating! Want to lose weight the healthy way? Click Here! | Want To Lose Weight The Healthy Way? |
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