Fight Hypertension With The Right Diet

We all want to stay fit throughout our lives but many a timethe wish is not granted. And when one finds that one issuffering from high blood pressure, it could come as a shockbecause not many who are apparently healthy even think thatthey could be suffering from any disease at all. High blood pressure is condition that can be a result of anumber of factors. Smoking, high stress, physical inactivity,and excessive alcohol consumption are few of them. Besidesthese factors, our daily diet plays a vital role not only incontributing to high blood pressure but also in effecting theoverall health. It is always advisable for the patient of high blood pressureto reduce the intake of foods rich in sodium and salt, as theyare found to be a major contributing factor to high bloodpressure. No doubt that with the reduction of the quantity ofsalt in your daily diet you can lower sodium content to someextent but the best way to avoid sodium is to have a diet ofwhole foods such as fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.In addition to the above, even with the lowering down of theconsumption of canned and frozen foods you can limit the intakeof sodium. The quantity of water should be increased to eight glasses perday. This would make your diet healthy. Start having grilledlean meats rather than fried variety of foods. A reduction inthe consumption of white flour and sugar also helps. After reading the above said dietary needs, you may feel thatthe high blood patient will have to bid adieu to his favoritefoods forever. But it is not so. The intake of recommendedfoods helps you lead a healthier life and you may still enjoyyour 'favorite' food once in a while. Keep your visits to your physician regular because that wouldkeep your condition well monitored. This would help you a greatdeal in keeping your high blood pressure within acceptablelimits and below danger levels. It is a fact that there is no cure for high blood pressure, butone can still keep it under control with the help of properdiet, medication and exercise.About The Author: To get more information visithttp://www.blood-pressure-updates.com/bp/magazine/edition/Low-Blood-Pressure.htm,http://www.blood-pressure-updates.com/bp/magazine/edition/Blood-Pressure-Diet.htmandhttp://www.blood-pressure-updates.com/bp/magazine/edition/High-Blood-Pressure.htm

Fitness Scams

By: Tracie Johanson Caveat emptor is Latin for "let the buyer beware". Nowhere is this phrase more applicable than in the weight loss industry of today.It seems that every time we turn around we are blasted and bombarded with the latest, greatest, new and improved treatment for obesity. From miracle pills to the latest fad diet, the gimmicks just keep coming. The sad truth is that few of these products work. Even fewer will result in real, permanent and lasting fat loss. A very few of the weight loss gimmicks on the market today are not only a consumer rip-off, but they are also quite dangerous.....even deadly. Caveat emptor indeed! A PRIME SUSPECT?As an example, consider the prescription diet drug Meridia. Does it help you lose weight? For some people, the answer is yes. For others, the answer is no. Can it kill you? The answer to this question seems to be a nervous 'maybe'. "The consumer group Public Citizen had petitioned the Food and Drug Administration for a ban, citing Meridia users who died of heart problems as young as their 20s and 30s. Even before Meridia was approved for sale, the FDA knew it could increase users' blood pressure, the group contended." (Source: cnn.com)This week the FDA again refused to ban Meridia, even though whistleblower David Graham (an FDA drug safety officer) testified to Congress last fall that his agency was allowing five unsafe medicines to stay on the market, including Meridia. ANOTHER PRIME SUSPECT?Ephedra was banned in the United States last year, in part due to numerous deaths attributed to this popular weight loss supplement. On April 14, a federal Judge in Utah reversed the short-lived ban on ephedra. Within minutes, spammers were filling our email boxes with messages to BUY BUY BUY before ephedra was banned again.One of these spammers, on their website, states that "Finally, the forbidden fat-burning herb banned for being 'too effective' - Ephedra - is available to the public again".Yes, ephedra will help some people lose weight. Yes, ephedra is safe for some people in low doses. But there is that little nagging fact that people have DIED and that their deaths have been attributed to ephedra use..... MORE EXAMPLES:"The Advertising Standards Authority in Great Britian has ordered L'Oreal to pull ads for an anti-cellulite cream. The board found that claims as to the effects and timeliness of the skin treatment were misleading and could not be backed up by any research. The ads featured Claudia Schiffer and L'Oreal has agreed to make changes to the advertisements." (Source: adjab.com)For whatever reason, some people have decided that anabolic steroids are the best way to lose weight. Despite the well-documented and serious side-effects of steroid use, the lure of easy weight loss has caused many to throw caution to the wind. Perhaps the most concerning trend is steroid use among our teenage population: "Teens also listed steroids, growth hormone, amino acids and other potentially unhealthful products among those they'd tried in the previous year." (Source: cnn.com) THE SAFE AND EFFECTIVE ALTERNATIVE:Caveat emptor (let the buyer beware) is indeed the rule when it comes to many weight loss gimmicks. However, there is one weight loss method that has never been banned, has never led to an investigation, and has never been been listed on a 'whistleblower' fraud report: EXERCISE.Exercise is the only path to health and fitness that virtually every doctor in the world agrees upon. Exercise is safe, effective, and brings many more benefits to our lives than diets or drugs ever will. Exercise is fun, invigorating, motivating and the single most powerful way to improve our life and well-being!Instead of looking for another short-cut to weight loss success, choose the proven method that gets results. Choose exercise.Article Source: http://www.nulife-weightloss.com/articles Tracie Johanson is the founder of Pick Up The Pace, a 30-minute exercise studio for women, focusing on fitness, health and nutrition for maximum weight loss. Please visit www.letspickupthepace.com/ for more information.

How Cookie Monster Can Help You Lose Fat

By: Tracie Johanson When was the last time you watched Sesame Street? If you have a youngster at home, maybe it was this morning! For most of us, however, it's been years since we last viewed Big Bird and the gang. But, even now as adults, our friends from Sesame Street still have a lot to teach us.Everyone loves Cookie Monster, that blue fellow that can never seem to get enough cookies. Cookie Monster never worried about calories, fat content or serving size.....he just wanted cookies! Who can forget the song "C is for cookie - that's good enough for me!"?But in this age of skyrocketing obesity rates and health care costs, even Cookie Monster has changed his eating habits. There's even a new song: "A Cookie Is a Sometimes Food," where Cookie Monster learns there are "anytime" foods and "sometimes" foods. (Source: The Associated Press, 2005; MSNBC)Cookie Monster still eats cookies. After all, he is the Cookie Monster! But now he eats cookies in moderation. Rumor has it that Cookie Monster is even experimenting with new, healthier types of cookies to sometimes replace his old favorite chocolate-chip cookies.So what can we learn from Cookie Monster? First of all, it's important to note that Cookie Monster is not 'on a diet'. Cookie Monster knows that trying to force yourself to give up your favorite food is a sure path to failure. When we try to 'willpower' our way into giving up our absolute favorite treat, we inevitably fall off the wagon. It's a much better plan to simply cut back on fattening foods, eating them less often and in smaller portions. That way we won't feel deprived or even depressed, which leads to bingeing and a feeling of failure. Cookie Monster knows that if he tried to give up cookies altogether he would fail and soon be sneaking cookies late at night. Cookie Monster even knows that failing this way is very dangerous because it can lead us to believe that we are failures....."I can't do it, so why even try?"Instead of giving up cookies altogether, Cookie Monster is doing the smart thing and just cutting back. That's a great lesson for us! If you've failed on your last ten diets because you were trying to give up pepperoni pizza.....and you love pepperoni pizza as much as Cookie Monster loves cookies.....then why try to give it up again? Take a lesson from Cookie Monster and simply cut back instead; eat smaller portions less often. Remember, cookies are a 'sometimes food' now!The second thing we can learn from Cookie Monster is to substitute healthier foods for fattening favorites. Cookie Monster is experimenting with healthier alternatives to his chocolate-chip cookies. He knows that he can still enjoy his treat without putting on the pounds. How can we adapt this lesson? How about trying veggie pizza instead of pepperoni pizza? If that doesn't work for you, then how about asking the pizza place to put on 1/3 less pepperoni? Another alternative would be to make your own pizza at home and use the reduced fat or turkey pepperoni that's available in every supermarket meat department. How about cutting back on the cheese by 1/3, or making your own using low-fat cheese? There are a lot of ways to modify pepperoni pizza to make it healthier!The third fat-loss tip we can learn from Cookie Monster is that we need to continue our own health, fitness and nutrition education. "This season, each episode opens with a 'health tip' about nutrition, exercise, hygiene and rest. Sesame Street also will introduce new characters, such as talking eggplants and carrots, and offer parodies, such as 'American Fruit Stand.' Even guest stars will address healthy activities, such as Alicia Keys talking and singing about the importance of physical activity. Politicians have gotten into the act, filming public service announcements with Sesame Street residents. In one taping, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist taught Elmo to exercise - jumping up and down. In another, Sen. Hillary Clinton and the small red monster discuss the various textures and tastes of foods." (Source: The Associated Press, 2005; MSNBC)We all watched Sesame Street when we were growing up, and I must confess that Cookie Monster was one of my favorites. While we may think that we've outgrown him and his friends at '123 Sesame Street', they still have a lot to teach us.Take a moment this week to watch Sesame Street. Take a trip down memory lane. Remember when the Sesame Street gang helped you learn your ABC's and 123's, and then think about what they can teach us today.Article Source: http://www.nulife-weightloss.com/articlesTracie Johanson is the founder of Pick Up The Pace, a 30-minute exercise studio for women, focusing on fitness, health and nutrition for maximum weight loss. Please visit www.letspickupthepace.com/ for more information.

The Causes Of Obesity

Far and away, the most common cause for obesity is unhealthyeating habits combined with an overall lack of any type ofphysical activity. If the food that you consume results inintaking more calories than you burn, you body opens up the ol'store room and puts it away as fat. Very basic, simplified concept... but that's the bottom line. Bad eating habits are by far the number one reason why peoplehead down the path to obesity. With today's emphasis on timeand convenience when it comes to eating and planning one'smeals it is no wonder at all that obesity is propagatingthroughout the entire world. And that's just the diet side ofthe equation... throw in the fact that with all of today'sother conveniences, people get less and less activity in theirdaily routine and you've got a world wide health issuedeveloping. When it comes to genetics; you can be more naturallysusceptible to obesity and being overweight if it runs in thefamily. But having said this, it is still up to you to controlyour eating habits and your lifestyle in order to effectivelykeep obesity at bay. As I mentioned just a bit early, personal time and conveniencecombined together more often than not add up to junk food. Ifyou find that you are eating out more than you should, youshould start looking at what you are about to eat. Forinstance, fast food and restaurant food's portioning areusually way more than your body needs... not to mention thetype of food. A single burger in and of itself is a completemeal as far as your body is concerned because of the fat andcalories involved. The problem is your stomach will not 'feel'full after consuming but one singe burger... so it cries outfor more... regardless of the fact that your body is at it'smaximum. If you want more volume... eat healthier foods tobegin with. Changing your eating habits is a much better mind set to getinto than 'dieting'. The problem with the 'dieting' mentalityis that most people will tend to lose a few pounds on theirlatest 'diet' but return to their old destructive eating habitsonce they get bored or constantly inconvenienced with the diet.Then to add another layer of difficulty, once you go from dietto diet restricting your body from nutrients; your body will gointo a defensive mode storing everything that it possibly canand make it even more difficult for you to lose weight. Any successful 'diet' is actually a successful 'lifestyle'change... which by the way includes exercise. Forbiddingyourself from certain foods that you enjoy immensely just makesthem all the more attractive to you. So, think lifestyle and not so much diet. Work to eathealthier, and keep those 'forbidden' foods moderated andproportioned... and get some regular exercise. Not only doesexercise withdraw those calories from your body's storage bank;but you'll feel better, reduce your boredom, your stress level,and those cravings.About The Author: For more important information on weight lossbe sure to visit http://www.weight-loss-won.com where you willfind product reviews and tips on weight loss, dieting, andmore.

How To Get Great Womens Fitness

As a woman your exercise program includes a variety ofdifferent needs than a male counterpart would be looking for. You will want to loose excess body fat, tone, and build curvesso that you look your best. Read on to discover how to getgreat womens fitness. When it comes to womens fitness women will usually head to thetreadmill, step master, or multi exercise machines for theirworkout as well as a few other machines. But women commonlywalk right past the free weights. You've probably seen those infomercials that claim that in just4 weeks you can have that toned curvy body? They tell you thatyour curve fitness can be purchased with their womens fitnessequipment for just a few thousand dollars and you'll even get atraining video. You can exercise the entire body and neverchange machines. Five minutes more and they've got you sold on giving up thatgym membership and putting your trust in the new miracle womensfitness machine. Heck in just a couple of years it will be paidoff and those curves are worth every nickel. What would you say if I told you could do just that for under ahundred dollars you could have all those curves and you wouldnot have to have a room for all that womens fitness equipment. What would you say if I told you that a set of free weights foryour workout is all that you need to get those sexy curvesevery women dreams of? One of the biggest problems with those fancy womens fitnessmachines is that on top of the huge price tag they are alsovery complicated. They are difficult to set up and configure,the instructions are next to impossible to understand, andcontrary to what the infomercial says it is hard to get thosecurves. For womens fitness and to get those curves you don't have tospend crazy amounts of the money and you sure don't need to getcomplicated. With a proper workout with your free weights youcan get those beautiful curves. And the great thing about freeweights is that you can mix it up a little by changing routinesany time you like. Free weights are one of several very affordable ways to getthose curves with a womens fitness program. There are otheroptions. Pilates is has become very popular and it takes up nospace and what an easy way to get those curves by usingresistance. For womens fitness that entails toning those abs you areworking on the hardest area of the body to get into shape butnever give up because you can do it with real determination andyou don't need any equipment to do it. As we get older those extra calories tend to land on ourstomach and mid section and putting it on is much easier thantaking it off but the right womens fitness will make it a wholelot easier. Now that you know how to get greats curve with your womensfitness program and on a budget and without having to learncomplex equipment what are you waiting for?About The Author: Get all the latest information about Fitness,from the only true source at http://www.1fitnessinformation.comBe sure to check out our keyword pages.