An excellent source of fiber: whole grains

Any food made from wheat, rice, oats, corn, or another cereal is a grain product. This includes bread, pasta, oatmeal and grits are all grain products. There are two main types of grain products: whole grains and refined grains.

Whole grains contain the entire grain (bran, germ and endosperm). Ex: whole wheat, oats/oatmeal, rye, barley, corn, popcorn, brown rice, wild rice, buckwheat, triticale, bulgur, millet, quinoa, and sorghum. Refined grains have been ground into flour or meal which results in the bran and germ being removed. This gives grains a finer texture and improves their shelf life. This process removes some important nutrients, including B-vitamins, iron and dietary fiber. Ex: wheat flour, enriched bread and white rice.

Whole grains are nutritious because they have a lower glycemic index. They lead to a smaller rise and fall in blood-sugar levels after a meal than refined grains do. Including whole grains in your diet plan may help you reach or manage a healthy weight.

Whole grains contain important source of many nutrients:

·       Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3 and Vitamin B9

·       Folate (folic acid & B vitamin) helps the body form new cells and can prevent certain birth defects

·       Iron is used to carry oxygen in the blood

·       Magnesium is a mineral that is involved in more than 300 processes in the body.

·       Selenium is important for a healthy immune system and regulating thyroid hormone action

It is important to include a variety of grains in your eating plan because grains differ in their nutrient content. Whole grains can be a good source of fiber - refined grains usually are not

Choose whole grain foods that contain one of the following ingredients first on the label’s ingredient list:

·       Whole wheat, graham flour

·       Oatmeal

·       Whole oats

·       Brown rice

·       Wild rice

·       Whole-grain corn

·       Popcorn

·       Whole-grain barley

·       Whole-wheat bulgur and whole rye

Health tips for weight loss

1.      Drink lots of water – aim for 7 to 8 glasses every day.  In addition to staying hydrated, research shows that drinking two glasses (8 ounces) of water before every meal, in combination with a reduction in portion size, can help you lose weight and keep it off for up to one year.

2.      Aim to sleep at least 7 hours every night.  Research has demonstrated that the hormones leptin and ghrelin, both of which affect feelings of fullness and hunger, are affected by how much or little you sleep.  Furthermore, good quality sleep allows your body to repair any cellular or systemic damage accrued throughout the day.

3.      Exercise at least 30 minutes, most days.  It goes without say that exercise helps stimulate your metabolism and helps create the caloric deficit necessary for weight loss.  The more lean body mass you have, the higher your metabolic rate tends to be.  To aid in the caloric deficit, decrease your portion sizes at every meal.  

4.      Give your metabolism a boost. Try supplementing with Xanthigen and/or l-arginine.  Xanthigen is a combination of brown seaweed and pomegranate seed oil extracts. Brown seaweed contains the compound fucoxanthin, which increases the rate at which the body metabolizes calories, and pomegranate seed oil contains punicic acids, which decreases the accumulation of liver fat.  Research has indicated that these two compounds are more effective in reducing weight in combination, rather than alone.  L-arginine is a semi-essential amino acid, meaning that the body can make it under some circumstances, but in other situations, you have to obtain it via your diet.  L-arginine is converted to nitric oxide, which helps increase blood flow via vasodilation, or the widening of blood vessels.

How to boost energy without caffeine

We are sorry to be the bearers of bad news but the best way to boost your energy is to eat well.  There are no real short cuts to boosting your energy in a consistent and healthy way.  Doubling up on coffee, 5-Hour energy or energy drinks will give you a boost of initial energy but lead to a crash after a few hours.  This caffeine crash can leave you feeling worse and more tired than before.  So try these simple lifestyle changes to increase your energy level without the caffeine:

1.     Drink more water: Even slight dehydration will cause a drop in energy level.  You may be surprised to know that dehydration actually makes your blood thicker, making it harder for your heart to pump oxygen and nutrients to your muscles and organs.   Ultimately, this will slow you down.

2.     Don’t skip breakfast: Dubbed the most important meal of the day, skipping breakfast can often lead to fatigue throughout the rest of the day. Breakfast is the best way to boost the metabolism after a night of sleep.  Why? Because the body burns food and nutrients even as we sleep, leaving our reserves depleted by morning.  A meal shortly after waking up is important to replenish this depleted energy and energize the body.

3.     Disconnect from your electronics:  One of the most important ways to maximize your energy is to get a good night’s sleep.  The light given off by our electronics – our phones, TVs and tablets - can actually throw off our sleep cycles.  Your body works like this: ‘if it’s bright it’s time to get up, if it’s dark it’s time for sleep.’  Our body treats artificial light the same as it would natural sunlight.  The glow from our tech devices can keep us awake for longer and make it difficult for our bodies to wind down.

4.     Skip the drink before bed:  It’s a common habit many adults enjoy, an alcoholic drink after a long day of work to unwind before bed.  Seems like a great idea, except that alcohol can actually interrupt your sleep at night.  Initially, alcohol will depress your nervous system and produce a tranquilizing effect helping you to fall asleep.  However as it is broken down as you sleep, it gives the body a surge of energy, likely to wake you up at night.

5.     Don’t change your sleep schedule because it’s the weekend: Altering your sleep cycle on the weekends can leave you feeling tired by the time Monday rolls around.  Obviously, it is unrealistic to expect people to get to bed early on the weekends, but trying to stay close to your regular bed times can be helpful.  If you can’t stay near your regular bedtime, sticking to the same wake time is essential for your body to feel regular and stay energetic throughout the day.

High Fiber and Weight Loss

We've always known fiber to be an important part of a healthy diet. But what is it about fiber that makes it the secret to losing weight and keeping it off?  Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that the body can't digest. Though most carbohydrates are broken down into sugar molecules, fiber cannot be broken down into sugar molecules, and instead it passes through the body undigested. Fiber helps regulate the body's use of sugars, helping to keep hunger and blood sugar in check.

Aside from fiber’s regulatory benefits, high-fiber foods are rich in vitamins and essential nutrients, especially when compared to other food groups.  Fiber has been shown to lower blood cholesterol and blood pressure. As an added benefit, especially for keeping a healthy weight, fiber fills you up and keeps you feeling fuller longer. Recent studies have shown that people who added more fiber to their diet picked up other important healthy habits like exercising regularly.  So it seems that a simple high-fiber diet can provide immense health benefits and easier to stick to when compared to other diets that require multiple changes in eating habits.

The ease with which people can incorporate fiber into their diet makes it easy to stick to long term.  Many people struggle to follow complex dietary recommendations, with reason.  The easier something is, the more likely we are to stick to it.  When changes are too drastic, or involve an entire overhaul of or current lifestyle, these big changes often lead to falling off the wagon much sooner than anticipated. A simple diet that only requires you to increase your fiber intake may be an easier alternative and a great starting point for those who have tried many different diets and ways to lose weight.

In general, Americans have a lot of room for improvement when it comes to their fiber intake.  The truth is that fiber supplements do not provide the same health benefits as the natural fiber you get from whole foods.  Therefore, it is important to expand your fiber intake through high-fiber foods rather than only supplements. The recommended daily intake of fiber is between 25-30 grams.  Some of the best sources of fiber are fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds and beans.

Here are some of the best foods to add fiber to your diet, and support your weight loss goals:

·      Raspberries

·      Avocado

·      Chia seeds

·      Flaxseed meal

·      Oatmeal

·      Lentils

·      Broccoli

·      Cabbage

·      Apples

·      Brussel sprouts

Trick yourself to lose weight

1.     Trick your brain into eating smaller portions. Eat on smaller plates. A huge piece of chicken looks a lot larger on a medium sized plate than it does on a large platter. And a small serving of rice is much more appealing in a small bowl than in a large one. You can only fit so much food onto smaller dishes. Just don't use this method as an excuse to go back for seconds.

2.     Always try to eat at a table. Eating on the go, at your work desk, or in front of the television can be harmful to your weight-loss plan. Research shows that focusing on food, with minimal distractions, can help you enjoy flavors and reduce overeating. Eating at the table can also help with portion control: Prepare your meal, and then commit to yourself that you won't go back to the kitchen for seconds.

3.     Eat before going to the grocery store. If you go to the grocery store on an empty stomach, you’re more likely to buy whatever you think would satisfy your hunger at that moment. Research shows that shoppers bought more high-calorie foods in the hours leading up to dinnertime than earlier in the day. So make sure to have a snack that is packed with protein before you go to the grocery store. Or, plan your trip to the grocery store after a meal. And don't go grocery shopping without a list of healthy foods.

4.     Only eat half the portions at a restaurant, pack the rest to go. Restaurant meals are often too big and loaded with calories and sodium. This is hard to do halfway through the meal, so ask for one half to be packed up as soon as it arrives. This leaves you with a reasonably sized plate of food, as well as an additional meal for another time.

5.     Keep healthy food stocked and visible. A recent study shows that thought process is pretty common. The research suggests that people who eat healthy often do so because nutritious foods like fruits and veggies are visible and easy to reach. Therefore, buy a fruit bowl and put some fruit you like in it. Another option is to keep cut up veggies right in front in your fridge. 

Make time for tea time each day

Before you read this article, go make yourself a cup of hot tea.  You’ll be joining over 158 million other Americans who drink tea, hot or cold, on any given day.  It is one of the healthiest beverages people have consumed for the past 5,000 years and is second only to water as the most widely consumed beverage in the world.  Tea is an all-natural, environmentally sound product coming from a renewable source and tea manufacturers often use recycled paper for packaging. 

Tea is naturally sodium, fat, calorie and sugar free. Tea contributes to good health in many ways – it helps maintain proper fluid balance in the body, it contains flavonoids that neutralize free radicals along with other antioxidant properties that appear to be good for heart health and reduce risk of cancer. 

Hot tea does have some advantages over drinking cold tea.  When tea is steeped, the hot water permeates into the tea leaves drawing out the flavonoids found in the leaves which contain powerful antioxidants.  If you allow the tea to cool down, it loses some of that antioxidant content whereas drinking hot tea allows for maximum antioxidant effect.  In addition, hot tea has a stronger aroma and flavor than cold tea.          

Take time each day to have a cup or two of hot tea.  It’s an excellent healthy alternative to other beverage choices such as sugary juice or soft drinks.

Listed below are several varieties of tea each with their own unique health properties to try out:

·      Green Tea – Made from unfermented leaves, green tea contains the highest concentration of powerful antioxidants called polyphenols that fight free radicals damaging DNA and changing cells.  In traditional Chinese medicine, green tea has been used as a stimulant, a diuretic to get rid of excess fluid in the body, and to improve heart health.  A phytonutrient green tea contains is EGCG making it very effective at fighting cancers by inhibiting growth of cancer cells.  It may also help prevent or slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s Disease. An 8 ounce cup contains 24-45 mg of caffeine.

 ·      Black Tea – This tea is made from aged leaves and stems whereas green tea is made from fresh leaves of the Camellia sinesis plant. One 8 ounce cup provides anywhere from 14-70 mg of caffeine thus possibly affecting mental alertness and thinking.  Black tea also contains powerful polyphenols helping to prevent tooth decay and kidney stones.  The antioxidants in black tea prevent plaque from building up on the teeth leading to an added bonus of fresher breath. 

·      White Tea – Compared to green and black teas, white tea is the least processed and has the highest antioxidant levels.  It has one of the lowest caffeine content at 15-20 mg per 8 ounce cup.  The impressive antioxidant content of white tea performs various health functions ranging from preventing growth of cancer cells, lowering blood pressure, reducing cholesterol, improving bone density, naturally kills off bacteria and viruses, prevents tooth decay and promotes healthy, radiant skin.  It has a flavor ranging from delicate to robust.

 ·      Oolong Tea – This tea was used widely in China 400 years ago.  It is a fermented tea that has combined qualities between green and black teas.  One of the more common features of oolong tea is it being touted as aiding in weight loss.  It contains a polyphenol that is effective in controlling metabolism of fat by activating certain enzymes that boost the functions of fat cells in the body.  However, more studies need to be conducted before that can be determined.  Oolong tea appears to possibly help reduce eczema, protects teeth from decay, strengthens bones, regulates blood sugar and insulin and may reduce cancer risk. Drinking 8 ounces of oolong tea will provide 30 mg of caffeine.

 ·      Peppermint Tea – If you’re looking for a clean, fresh, invigorating taste from a tea, peppermint tea may just be your choice.  This is an herbal tea sometimes called mint tea.  Peppermint tea is caffeine free making it a relaxing tea to try before bedtime without disrupting sleep.  Health benefits it provides include helping to reduce a fever as it contains menthol which can cause sweating to break the fever, can reduce chances of nausea and vomiting, can relieve coughing, bad breath, stress, and helps reduce the pain of cramps, bloating and indigestion.

 ·      Chamomile Tea – This caffeine-free tea is an herb coming from a flowering plant from the daisy family.  For centuries, both the fresh and dried flowers of chamomile have been used to make tea to treat different health conditions.  It contains an essential oil called bisabolol, having anti-irritant, anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties.  Are you allergic to ragweed, pollen or hay fever?  Chamomile tea may not be for you as it may cause severe symptoms and it can also interfere with blood thinners. Its health benefits include treating insomnia, anxiety, stomach cramps, migraine headaches, and reducing excess gas and bloating in the intestines associated with irritable bowel syndrome. 

 There are many other varieties of tea to try out – have fun discovering which ones you like best and in the process obtain the many health benefits each provides.