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Tips for losing weight...and keeping it off
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Yesterday Anne Fletcher, MS RD, author of Thin for Life and a new release, Weight Loss Confidential, was a featured author on Gather.com. She shared some important, yet often overlooked, tips that are crucial in fighting the battle of the bulge. Here are a few:*fad diets don't work! A key question to ask yourself before embarking on any weight loss regimen is, "will it work for life?" If not, it won't have long lasting effects*watch portion sizes*snack smarter...fill up on fruits and vegetables*keep track of what you eat, paying attention to not only portion size, but how the food is prepared and what it contains. Keep ing a food log is so important...its amazing how much you can eat if you are not paying attention!*cut back on fat (notice this is not cut out fat entirely)*exercise regularly Read the entire transcipt of Anne's chat here. <!-- ckey="19FDF96A" -->
More About: Tips , Losing Weight , Sing

Probiotics...what is that?
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Probiotics is a relatively new buzzword in the world of food. But what exactly does it mean?Probiotics are found in foods, and they help our body's immunity by increasing the "good" bacteria found in the gut.What foods contain probiotics? Fermented foods are the best source; yogurt being probably the most well known. Food manufacturers are jumping on the probiotic bandwagon and are coming out with foods that have probiotics added to them. A new one on the market, Vive, is a cereal made by Kashi. This "good for the digestive tract" cereal contains 12g of fiber and Lactobacillus (the "good" bacteria), ginger and brocolli extract.Probiotics are live organisms, thus this cereal should be eaten soon after purchase. Storing it in the refrigerator may prolong the effectiveness of this cereal, too.Be on the lookout for more processed probiotic-containing foods in the grocery stores.Any takers?
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Bitter Orange as a weight loss supplement
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Are you considering taking a weight loss supplement? One that you may have seen sold either alone or as an ingredient in another supplement is Bitter orange. Here's the low down on it...Also known as Sour orange, Bitter orange has been heralded as the next ephedra of weight loss supplements. There are several chemicals contained in bitter orange that appear to work similarly to ephedrine, an active ingredient in ephedra. One of these, synephrine, is a stimulant that may cause high blood pressure and abnormal heart rhythms, leading to stroke, heart attack and perhaps even death. These risks are increased when bitter orange is taken with other stimulants such as caffeine and decongestants.Most preparations of bitter orange are made from the concentrated extract of the orange peel, and contain 1 to 6% synephrine, but this may vary as much as 30% or more depending on what part of the plant and what type of processing method is used.There is also evidence that the active ingredie...
More About: Weight Loss , Weight , Men , Orange , Supple

Nutrition Facts 101
2007-01-31 01:47:01
How much time have you spent reading nutrition labels? (And I'm not talking about a quick scan to find out how many calories the food contains!)There really is quite a bit of information contained on a Nutrition Fact s label, and once you know what it all means you are equipped to make the most informed decisions possible about the foods you buy and eat.For example, ever wondered what % Daily Value (DV) refers to? What does it mean when the label on the box of your favorite cereal that you eat every morning for breakfast lists the potassium content at 230mg or 7% DV? Is that adequate to meet your needs or not?Daily Values are a way to represent your requirements for a given nutrient assuming you follow a 2000 calorie diet. Why 2000 calories? Its a good, average figure for an adult's calorie requirements, although some people need more calories than this and others less, depending on age, weight and physical activity levels.There is a fun online learning tool, Make Your...

Discussion Forum activation now needed...
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Our Discussion Forum was created to offer a free, easy to use and safe place to discuss your food and nutrition issues. Unfortunately, yesterday the privilege to post freely was abused by some peddlars of rather distasteful pictures...rather disgusting stuff, to say the least!In order to prevent this from happening in the future, I have had to add an account activation step to the registration process. Its still free, but you will be able to read and post on the Forum only after your account is activated.The process works like this: enter your registration information and an email will automatically be generated to me. Once received, I'll activate your login information and send you notification of your activated status. You will then be free to view and post in the Forum.Sorry for any inconvenience this causes.
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New book: Weight Loss Confidential
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Anne Fletcher, MS RD, author of the award winning book, Thin for Life, has just come out with a new weight loss book for teens and their parents entitled Weight Loss Confidential .In it she discusses her interviews with teens who have successfully lost weight and kept it off--what works and what doesn't work. Her own son's struggle with weight loss, coupled with her professional training, truely make her an authority on the subject.She was a guest on the CBS Early Morning Show yesterday (1/8), where she discussed this new book. Read about it and watch the segment with her here: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/01/ ... 4951.shtml
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If I were you, I'd chose the donut!
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Yes, you read that right. Let me explain...Let's just say you found yourself in Dunkin' Donuts, absolutely famished. You know you won't walk out of there without something to eat.At this point if you are thinking about having one of their relatively new cookies, I'd recommend thinking it over. These tasty treats come with an awfully hefty caloric price tag, between 480 and 590 calories each*. That's worth repeating...between 480 and 590 calories each. That's probably 1/4 to 1/3 of your daily caloric needs in one cookie!! Even though they don't contain trans fats, these cookies do contain between 14 and 29 grams of fat and 1/4 cup of sugar each. Wow. Try an experiment, you'll be amazed. Measure out 1/4 cup of sugar onto a plate. Take a good look and imagine yourself eating all that. You probably can't even stomach the thought, but in a cookie, how would you ever know it contained so much?Like I said, choose the donut.* Consumer Rep...
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Check out nutritionist first, lose weight second
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Click on the following link to read about one man who neglected to check his nutritionist's credentials prior to purchasing a weight loss package. A wolf disguised in sheep's clothing :sad http://wcbstv.com/seenon/local_story_3482 01402.html
More About: Weight , Lose Weight , Nutrition , Check , Second

Nutrition on the web: don't believe everything you read
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Nutrition information abounds on the Net these days! Like anything else in life, along with the good comes some bad. That's right, there are plenty of sites out there dispensing wrong, inaccurate information. Here's a tip: if it sounds too good to be true, click on that mouse and move on! One thing to check out when you read an article is the author. Look for professional credentials. RD, or registered dietitian, means the person has at least a bachelor's degree in nutrition (although at least half of all RDs have an advanced degree) and has passed a national registration exam. Don't be fooled by anything less!Check out this article for some more helpful information: http://www.ajc.com/living/content/livin ... toeat.html
More About: Nutrition , Read , The Web , Everything , Ever

Eating healthy on the run
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Here is some advice from the American Dietitic Association that can help you eat healthier while on the go...Increasingly, consumers want fast, easy and good-tasting foods to fit a busy lifestyle. Whether it's fast food, take out or a sit down restaurant, eating out has become part of the American lifestyle. Food is available everywhere we go, schools, businesses, drugstores, convenience stores, bookstores, supermarkets, vending machines, sports and cultural events and recreation centers. You can make healthy food choices everywhere you go, too:Choose fried foods only occasionally. Go for grilled, broiled, or steamed foods more often. Order the regular or kid-size portion. Mega-sized servings are probably more then you need. Make milk or a low-fat shake your beverage for an extra calcium boost. Try a side salad instead of fries. Split your order. Share fries or an extra large sandwich with a friend. Boost the nutrients in all kinds of sandwiches by adding tomato, peppers and ot...
More About: Health , Healthy , Eating , Heal

What I Learned from Sue...a student's perspective
2007-01-31 01:47:01
As a Registered Dietitian, Sue Robert's educational background and expertise in the field of nutrition gives her the ability to clarify the often complex science of foods and their nutrients, for the layperson. I found the knowledge that I gained from her to be life altering and have since incorporated what I have learned about nutrition into my daily experience.As Sue's student, I learned how nutrients interact with the body to keep us alive and well. I was taught about the dynamics between food choices that impact the body negatively or positively, and how those choices can affect the body's health over time. I learned about Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI's) a criterion developed by researchers and experts in nutrition, used to prescribe the amounts of energy, nutrients and other dietary elements and physical activity that support optimum health. I was taught the importance of calculating the vitamin and mineral content of foods, along with the fats, carbohy...
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Having a virtual nutritionist works!
2007-01-31 01:47:01
That's right...getting advice from a nutritionist by email, phone and/or chat is beneficial, says Dr. Thomas Wadden, researcher and president of the Obesity Society. Read more in this article recently published in the USA Today. Click on the link below to access: www.usatoday.com/news/health/2006-10-18-o besity-usat_x.htmYou know where to find me :WINK: !
More About: Work , Nutrition , Works , Virtual , Virt

Coca-Cola rolls out a new one...
2007-01-31 01:47:01
What will they think of next?A new green tea-based beverage called Enviga will soon be on your grocery store shelves. What so special about this one? Coca -Cola , the manufacturer, claims that this drink can actually burn calories. That's right. Coke claims drinking 3-12oz. cans in any 24 hr. period will burn off between 60 - 100 calories. In addition to green tea extract, it contains calcium and caffeine.Read more about it here... http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/busi ... 745384.htmWhat do you think? Any takers?
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The High Cost of Dieting
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Have you taken a ride on the dieting roller coaster? You know what I mean. Trying one diet after another, losing weight but then quickly gaining it all back again?You are not alone.In fact, Forbes.com in 2005 reported the following:"Last year Americans spent an estimated $46 billion on diet products and self-help books....a government review found that two-thirds of U.S. dieters regained all the weight they had lost within a year, and 97% had gained it all back within five years."Pretty depressing. But there's more. Ten popular diets were examined to see how much a dieter spent on their weekly food to follow one of these diets. Here's how they compare:Jenny Craig............$137.65NutriSystem...... .......113.52Atkins...................... ..100.52Weight Watchers.......96.64Zone................. ...........92.84Ornish................... .......78.74South Beach...............78.61Slim Fast.....................77.73Sugar Busters!............69.62Subway.......... .....
More About: Diet , Cost , High , Dieting

Please Pass the Cranberries
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Its hard to believe the holiday season is fast approaching (even though the stores with all their decorations for sale have let us know weeks ago)! Food plays a big part in our holiday celebrations, especially the dinner meal. What are your favorites? Turkey? Stuffing? Pumpkin pie? Don't forget the cranberries! Yes, that's right. Those teeny red berries are chock-full of nutrients, an indulgence that's really good for you! Dr. Joe Vinson, a research chemist at the University of Scranton in Pennsylania, reported that "cranberries contained the most antioxidant phenols compared to 19 commonly eaten fruits. Cranberries are loaded with antioxidants and should be eaten more often." Looking for a new way to include cranberries in your holiday meal? Try this one from Eat Fit, Be Fit: Health and Weight Management Solutions by Linda Arpino, MA RD: Cranberry Pecan Stuffing ½ c. onion, yellow2 cloves garlic, minced½ c. celery, chopped1 T. olive oilTurkey gizzards2...
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Are you an emotional eater?
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Is emotional eating preventing you from losing weight?Watch this great video clip of Joy Bauer, RD on the Today show discussing emotional eating. She has some great tips to help for those times when that pint of Ben & Jerry's in the fridge keeps calling your name... http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15720217/
More About: Motion , Emotion , Eater , Emotional

Organic Trade Association's Grocery Store Wars
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Watch out for those organic foods!If you are a Star War s fan (and even if you are not), you are in for a treat! Get ready for a chuckle or two...Click on the following link to view this clever video for the Organic Trade Association--created and produced by freerangestudios.com. http://www.storewars.org/flash/index.html
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'Tis the Season
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Oh yes. The holidays are now upon us, and for many of us that spells... O-V-E-R-I-N-D-U-L-G-E-N-C-E...the seemingly endless parties and get togethers are built around food...and more food...and more food...Its the time of year when we are especially prone to eat in response to what is going on around us, many times overriding our own internal hunger cues. You know what I mean. We eat because its there, we eat because everyone else is, we eat because that cherry cheesecake just looks too good to resist! And the list goes on and on.According to Cornell marketing professor Brian Wansink, in his new book, Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think , these external cues cause us to eat much more than we are actually aware of. (Are your jeans getting tight? :WINK: )What to do about it? Here are a few tips to help:--engage yourself in the conversation going on around you, not the food--choose smaller plates, bowls or cups. Studies show that we actually eat more the larger our p...
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Another reason to lose that weight...
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Think you've heard all the good reasons to lose weight? Here's a new one. Carrying less weight may actually prevent some of the mental decline that can happen as a result of aging. An interesting study reported on in the October issue of Neurology suggests just that.In the study which involved 2200 men and women between the ages of 32 and 62, French scientists found that those individuals with the highest BMI (Body Mass Index) experienced the greatest decline in performance on memory and word tests which were given to assess learning.These researchers also found that generally speaking, lower mental functioning scores were evident in those study participants who had the highest BMI at both the beginning of the study and at the end five years later. Factors such as physical activity, age, sex and education were all controlled for. Can brain cells can be damaged by fat cells? Interesting to think about. Keep in mind, though, that this is just one study. It shows an a...
More About: Weight , Other , Hat , Reason , Another

Larger Portions = Calorie Underestimation
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Here's another interesting study reported on in the September issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.105 lunch patrons of fast food restaurants were asked to estimate the amount of calories in the meal they were consuming. Another group consisting of 40 university undergraduate students were asked the same thing, when given meals of 15 varying sizes. In both study groups, participants were able to pretty accurately calculate the calorie contents of smaller meals, but when portion sizes were larger this was not so. The calorie calculations of the larger meals were underestimated by 22 - 38%, regardless of the patron's body weight.Bottom line: People underestimate calories when their meals are larger, regardless of how much they weigh.Hmmm...food for thought...could you be eating more than you think you are?Read the abstract of the study here: www.annals.org/cgi/content/abstract/145/5 /326
More About: Port , Estima , Rest , Calor , Calorie

Tip of the Day: Steering Clear of Fats
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Every day the American Dietetic Association publishes a 'Tip of the Day' on their website, http://www.eatright.org . Here is today's tip:The new Dietary Guidelines call for 20 percent to 35 percent of your total calories from fat, with less than 10 percent of total calories from saturated fat, to keep dietary cholesterol to less than 300 milligrams a day and to have as little trans fat as possible. The following tips will help you buy foods to lower your intake of saturated fat, trans fats and dietary cholesterol. <a href="http://www.technorati.com/clai m/4vywma39ur" rel="me">Technorati Profile</a> --Choose vegetable oils or trans fat-free soft margarine, rather than solid fats. Read labels and compare. --Buy the leanest cuts of meats, including lean ground beef. --Buy skinless chicken breasts. --Limit your intake of high-fat processed meats and look for lower-fat versions as alternatives. --Choose fat-free or low-fat milk, yogurt an...
More About: Ring , Clear , The D , Fats , Erin

Are you making one of the 5 most common dieting mistakes?
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Think you are doing all the right things and that weight still just doesn't want to come off?You are not alone.Take a look at these 5 common dieting mistakes...are you making any?--Eating too many healthy foods. Excess calories from any source = weight gain!--Every bite counts, not just what is on your plate. Stop and think, how often to do take a bite here, a bite there, finish up what's left on the kids' plates? You get the picture.--You eat well during the week, but pig out on the weekends.--The calories in drinks count, too. These can really add up if you are not careful!Read more about these dieting pitfalls at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14802078
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Goodbye Trans fats!
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Trans fats are on their way out in New York City. That's right, legislation passed earlier this week will eliminate those "bad" fats (you know, the ones implicated in artery-clogging heart disease, stroke and even death) from all restaurant foods. This is just the beginning, as other cities are sure to follow suit.The law will also require those restaurants with calorie information available to post that information where customers can have access to it prior to ordering.Read the details from this USA Today article : http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/200 ... -ban_x.htm
More About: Good , Trans , Goodbye , Tran , Fats

Nutritious reads: book recommendations for the health-conscious on your gi
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Looking for a gift for the health-conscious ones on your holiday shopping list this year? Or perhaps you are looking for a good read yourself. Here's a few that are worth considering (in no specific order):1. 365 Days of Health y Eating from the American Dietetic Association by Roberta Larson Duyff, MS, RD, FADA, CFCS. Wiley, 2004. Contains a practical tip per day for incorporating healthy eating and regular exercise into your life. Recipes included. 2. What to Eat by Marian Nestle. North Point Press, 2006. A grocery store guide that contains a wealth of practical information on foods found in every section of the supermarket.3. The Dish On Eating Healthy and Being Fabulous! by Carolyn O'Neill, MS, RD and Densie Webb, PhD, RD. Atria Book s, Simon and Schuster, 2004.Practical, common sense nutrition advice. Contains some tasty recipes!4. Shed Pounds Without Even Trying! Diet Simple by Katherine Tallmadge, MA, RD. Lifeline Press, 2004. Includes recipes...
More About: Men , Your , Read

Bottoms up could lead to bottom spread* (from msn.com)
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Don't let the cuteness of this title obscure the basic point...calories from alcoholic beverages can add up quick! Here's a link to the complete article: *http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16096540/ Remember, partying doesn't have to be so calorically-laden. Try some club soda with a twist or a diet soda instead, and keep that "bottom spread" under control.
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Can nuts equal weight loss?
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Here's another 'Tip of the Day' from the American Dietetic Association, www.eatright.org: Despite nuts being high in fat and calories, new research indicates that nuts can also aid in weight loss. Researchers at Purdue University have found that adding almonds to a calorie-controlled eating plan can assist in weight loss. Although the study was short-term and small in sample size, it does demonstrate that people were able to eat nuts and control or lose weight. How? The mechanism is still unclear, but the researchers think that the fat content in nuts may promote satiety, the feeling that you are full, or the protein in nuts may burn more calories during digestion.Nuts are high in calories but are also cholesterol-free and they provide good sources of protein, phosphorus, zinc, magnesium, vitamin E and selenium. In small portions, nuts can be a healthful food choice.
More About: Weight Loss , Weight , Loss , Equal

Eating to lose: some helpful tips
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Check out these no nonsense tips on losing weight from Health magazine...no fad dieting needed! http://www.health.com/health/article/0, ... 90,00.html
More About: Tips , Eating , Some

Online Nutrition Tools: The Google 15 Weight Tracker
2007-01-31 01:47:01
Do you weigh yourself very often? Did you know that getting on the scale frequently may actually help you fight weight gain? Its true...According to the National Weight Control Registry, a listing of adults who have lost at least 30 pounds and kept it off for one year, frequent, even daily, weighing is essential!If you think an online tool for tracking your weight would help you, Google has just the thing! Its called the Google 15. You can record your weight and then see how it changes over time. Here's what the graph looks like: Add it to your Google homepage!You can read more about it here: http://www.red-bean.com/fitz/ig/google15/ faq.html
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