Eat the same thing Most Days? Find out if this is healthy for you.

The Pros

Of all your meals and snacks, if fruit, vegetables, lean protein, whole grains, healthy fat and dairy you’re off to a great start. Variability in your diet including all the important food groups is critical. About 90% of Americans don’t get enough recommended daily amount of vegetables and 85% don’t get enough of the recommended daily amount of fruit, as noted from the most updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Repetition and balance in your daily meal plans is good practice when it comes to meal preparation and planning. Having a healthy plan in place allows you to be prepared and not eat foods when you’re bored that you’re not even hungry for.

Other research does suggest a non-diverse diet is also a great alternative. A study from 2015 highlighted diet quality and variability in over 5K adults and found that the more diverse diet was associated to a greater waist circumference and a higher quality diet was associated with a lower risk of Type 2 Diabetes. Diversity in eating didn’t necessarily lead to a higher quality diet or better metabolic health.  

The Cons

But it’s important to think on the other side because if your daily diet is balanced, it probably doesn’t contain everything you need. There’s really no way you can meet dietary requirements by eating the same thing every day. Variety is essential to a healthy, balanced diet.

Studies have found health benefits associated with eating a more varied diet. A 2015 study, for example, examined the diets of over 7,000 adults who were at least 20 years old. It concluded that greater food variety was associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome compared to those who consumed a less varied diet.

The Bottom Line

Eating different foods is important, what’s more critical is what you choose to eat. A notable research study from 2002 evaluated healthy and less-healthy foods and how it affect mortality in close to 60,000 women.

A woman who followed a healthy diet by eating a high variety of fruits, vegetables and whole grain breads, cereals, fish and low-fat dairy products had lower mortality than women who consumes fewer of these foods.

Artificial Sweeteners: Weight Loss or Gain?

Despite intense scrutiny of artificial sweeteners for years, the product continues to be popular with dieters, diabetics and many just looking for a sweet fix. Even in the face of declining soda sales, the market share of diet soda continues to expand, with the second most popular soda being a diet variety. At the same time, the global market for non-sugar sweeteners has had impressive sales in recent years. In 2010, over 9 million dollars were spent on non-sugar sweeteners, with the industry anticipating continued growth in coming years.

A new report published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal analyzed 37 studies on artificial sweeteners to measure their success for weight management. The studies followed over 400,000 people over the course of 10 years. Across the board, artificial sweeteners didn’t help any of the subjects lose weight. Consumption was evaluated over time , by people regularly consuming them and most patients had a higher risk for health issues like weight gain, obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

This new study is an addition to the growing body of research suggesting sugar substitutes are not the cure for sugar addiction. There isn't enough qualified studies and results that would encourage any individual of any health status to use artificial sweeteners. But it’s not yet clear if they are dangerous but there is a correlation to increasing an individual’s appetite for processed foods when consuming sugar substitutes.

Artificial sweeteners have a role in controlling carbohydrate intake by diabetics and dieters, while also decreasing ones risk of dental cavities. Despite extensive studies, epidemiological research has failed to demonstrate any cancer risks. While, diet products are a safe alternative to their full sugar counterparts. Exercising at least 3 days a week, increasing fiber and focusing on healthy choices are the best way to lose weight and stay fit.

What scientists think is happening is that that when we consume sugar-substitutes, the body expects to see surge in glucose. When this expectation is not met, we continue to crave sweets, eating until the craving is met. So it will definitely take much more than replacing real sugar with fake sugar to lose weight.  Unfortunately there are no real shortcuts here. The key to weight loss is cutting the total number of calories consumed, with clean eating.

While, diet products are a safe alternative to their full sugar counterparts, diet and exercise for weight loss is what will truly help in the long run. Exercising at least 3 days a week, increasing fiber and focusing on healthy choices are the best way to lose weight and stay fit.

One-Minute Tips for Better Health

Sometimes all it takes is one minute to feel and be healthier. Good-for-you habits just take a bit of creativity and will to do wherever you are. Small effort, quick investment - fast return: We’ve done the work for you. Here’s the tips you need to become your happiest, fittest self.

Put SPF on your Ears

Dab a bit on your eyes while you're lathering up your face (hopefully everyday!) Nonmelanoma skin cancer that can be detected on ears has been found to be more aggressive. Tumors can grow deeper and larger than those appearing on the face. They aren’t deadly but can result in muscle and nerve damage. It can difficult to spot potential changes that would indicate skin cancer.

Bring Your Smoothie to the Next Level

Instead of trying Tumeric in your smoothie this morning, throw some coriander in yours. Coriander seeds come from cilantro seed and contain a blend of oils that help calm your gut. They can help relieve bloating symptoms. You only need a quarter of a teaspoon in a single-serve smoothie.

Start something new

Consider your goals and ask yourself what one small step could you take to move closer to your end goal? Getting started is the hardest part but using that first step can be a springboard to a larger and more repetitive habit.

Floss, Floss, Floss

We get it, no one feels like flossing at the end of the day. But flossing along with brushing twice a day and going to your dentist at least twice a year is essential for removing bacteria to stay gum disease-free and keeping your teeth healthy, according to the American Dental Association. From a study in 2011 on older adults who never flossed - many of them had 30% higher risk of dying during the study than those who flossed daily.

Pause for 25 Seconds

Sometimes we think we’re hungry but often we’re just bored or stressed. Wait 25 seconds next time before you each that chocolate or pretzels. According to preliminary research from Rush University in Chicago.

Planks!

This fundamental fitness move targets your abs and lower back and can help you avoid injury. By strengthening your core, you provide more stability to your spine. Start with a 20-second plank hold and work up to a minute.

Stretch Today

Try downward dog pose (from Yoga) to stretch out if you’re feeling stressed. It’s a great full-body stretch to help you rest.

Check the bowl

After you go number one or two, give a little glance—your pee and poop can tell you a lot about your health. If your urine looks dark yellow that’s a signal to drink more water - the ideal is pee that is very light yellow or even better, clear. Pinkish or reddish pee can indicate you have a UTI or other health issue. See your doctor right away!  

Take clues from your poo, too. Hard stool can be a sign of constipation - get at least 25 grams of fiber per day from fruits, vegetables and whole grains. If your bowels are watery or loose, this could be IBS or black stools can indicate GI bleeding. See your doctor right away if you notice any of these symptoms.

Take Care of Your Eyes

Sometimes we forget about taking care of our eyes but it should never be taken for granted. Many studies over the years have showed that people would most be afraid to lose their eyesight of all the senses. Protecting our eyesight over the years is not to be neglected. But some myths confuse people on how to properly take care of their eyes.

But there are are so many myths when it comes to the health of your eyes. Here we debunk some of these myths with tips to better care for your windows to the world (so to speak.)

1. Reading in dim light will harm your eyes

   1. This is not true. But it can put a strain on your eyes making it hard to read or focus on the task at hand, therein causing short-term eyestrain. It’s not pleasurable anyway so the solution is to have a reading light directed to the page and not above you or over your shoulder. The biggest takeaway is having any light pointed directly at what you’re focused on.

2. Starting at the computer harms your eyes

   1. Looking at a computer for long periods of time as most of us do at work these days doesn’t cause long-term harm to the eyes but it can cause temporary eye strain, blurriness or tired eyes. Start to become aware of how often you blink during the day - try to do so as much as possible to no strain your eyes by looking straight at the screen. Couple tips: adjust the lighting so there isn’t a standout reflection or glare on your screen and every 20 minutes look away or at something 20 feet or more away. Consciously blink your eyes as often as possible so they stay lubricated.

3. Carrots are the most nutritious food for eye health

   1. Carrots are rich in Vitamin A which is good for eyes but so are many other fresh veggies and fruits. Antioxidants such as vitamin C and E have strengthen eye health over time. They help protect eyes from cataracts and age-related mascular degeneration.

4. Exercises for the eyes help you to avoid wearing glasses

   1. Eye exercises are not going to cure your need for glasses. Our vision depends on several other factors such as the shape of our eyeball (dependent on genetics) and the health of the tissues around the eye which eye exercises cannot alter or improve. No research to date showcases that eye exercises help.

5. Remove glasses or contacts to give your eyes a break

   1. The reason you need glasses is to see better in basic needs of reading, driving or vision for long-distance. If you take off your glasses or remove contact lenses during the day it can put more of a strain on your eyes, tiring them out instead of resting them because you cannot see properly so naturally you squint your eyes to see.

7 ways to decrease digestive discomfort

We have to eat in order to live but when digestive issues arise such as bloating, constipation, gas, and pain, what normally should be a pleasurable occurrence can take a turn for the worse in a stressed-out stomach looking for relief.

A study from the Technical University of Denmark found that what is referred to as transit time or basically the faster our food can move from the time we eat it to the time of what’s left of it when it leaves our body, the better for our gut health.  The longer food stays in our digestive tract, the more harmful bacteria degradation products are produced.  A shorter transit time means a healthier digestive system helping us feel better. 

Our digestive health is a basic fundamental of keeping us healthy and feeling good each day.  Having a persnickety turbulent tummy can ruin the best of days for us.  By knowing certain tricks to eliminate or at least greatly reduce symptoms, you can avoid tummy troubles and begin to improve digestion today.

1.     Eliminate too much sugar and fat

Too many calories from sugary, fatty or fried foods are hard to digest.  They can irritate your stomach by slowing down the process of digestion creating a very full, uncomfortable feeling.  Excess sugar makes your blood sugar skyrocket setting up an unhealthy duo of too much sugar in the bloodstream and too much insulin being pumped by the pancreas to compensate for the situation.  The excess insulin means extra storage of calories contributing to weight gain. 

The solution? Choose more fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds and choose meats lower in fat such as fish, poultry, lean beef and pork.  Replace butter and margarine with olive oil.

2.     Fill up with water

In order to digest food water is necessary.  Good digestive health will not happen without adequate water intake.  Water helps speed transit time of food through the digestive tract and prevents constipation by creating a softer, bulkier stool.  Aim for 9-13 cups of fluid each day or until your urine looks clear.

3.    Move more

We all see what exercise can do for how we look on the outside but keeping active also does wonders for us on the inside.  Physical activity is vital for good digestive health. It stimulates blood flow to all organs including the gastrointestinal tract while stimulating and toning muscles within the stomach and intestines keeping contents moving quickly.  Aim for at least 30 minutes each day but avoid strenuous workouts right after eating.

4.     Include probiotics

Our gut needs to be feed healthy food but it also requires live microorganisms for the good bacteria to nibble on.  The best source of this is supporting our immune system and achieving a digestive tract in tip top shape.   Best food sources containing probiotics are yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, miso soup, soft cheeses like gouda, sour pickles, tempeh, or acidophilus milk.

5.     Slow down when eating

Our digestive system doesn’t like to be rushed so that means slow down when eating.  Taking time to eat gives the stomach ample opportunity to properly digest and absorb the nutrients within food and allows your body and brain to give you the signal when you’ve had enough.  Turn off the TV and resist looking at your computer or smartphone while eating – distracted people will eat significantly more food than when they put the focus just on eating. 

6.     Eat more fiber

For a substance that really doesn’t get absorbed in our body, we depend on it a lot to keep our digestive tract purring like a kitten.  Fiber comes in two types – soluble and insoluble.  Soluble fiber dissolves in water helping slow down digestion and absorption making you feel fuller longer.  It also slows down the amount of glucose entering into the bloodstream keeping blood sugar levels at a more even level.  Insoluble fiber passes through unabsorbed but it attracts water to it in the colon creating a softer, bulkier, easier-to-pass bowel movement, reducing constipation and pain. 

7.     Achieve and maintain a healthy body weight

A healthy body weight is associated with less symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).   This condition allows contents from the stomach to backflow into the esophagus due to a weak valve that doesn’t close completely between the stomach and esophagus.  The strong stomach acid backs up into the esophagus causing unpleasant symptoms of pain, burning and irritation of the lining of the unprotected esophagus.  Losing excess weight reduces the pressure and can help avoid heartburn and other discomfort. 

Learn how to achieve a healthy body weight by visiting here. 

Choose Meaning Over Happiness

Don’t you ever find yourself having an existential crisis? Why are we here? What is our purpose? Should I feel good or happy in this moment? Our brain is setup to make us feel scared at sometimes the best moments of our lives. But is it really worth our while to focus all of our energy on happiness? Can we really be happy all the time?

There may be another approach to viewing this concept is choosing meaning over happiness. Searching and finding your purpose and understanding why you’re here and why you’ve gone through what you’ve gone through can be a powerful mental healing exercise with a long-term benefit.

Sometimes we feel such an intense desire to chase happiness and the feeling of bliss but this path could be making us chase the wrong thing.

What makes life truly worth living is meaning. This should be the foundation of everything we do, no matter how small or big. This blissful feeling we’re talking about can slip away so fast.

Mental health tips to avoid losing sight of your meaning:

1. Value who you are right now and treat yourself with respect

2. Take care of your body physically to continue through with your feeling of purpose

3. Surround yourself with positive people

4. Give yourself a treat or gift everyday, small or big!

5. Quiet your mind to de-stress

6. Break up your routine

7. Set realistic goals