Prevention, September 2010 issue, has this amazing and surprising information about Coffee.
"A deluge of new studies confirm that java delivers a major health jolt, thanks to it's rich sources of nutrients that lower cholesterol, improve insulin sensitivity, and destroy damaged cells. Even caffiene is protective, so don't opt for decaf unless you suffer from insomnia, headaches, or high blood pressure. Compared with people who drink the least, here's how your health habit stacks up."
Here is what Prevention reports:
AT LEAST ONE CUP PER DAY Lowers your risk of early death from all causes by 37%
AT LEAST TWO CUPS PER DAY Reduces your risk of death from heart disease by 25%.
AT LEAST THREE CUPS PER DAY Slashes your risk of dementia and Alzheimelr's by 65%.
AT LEAST FOUR CUPS PER DAY Makes you 56% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
You may be able to get some extra willpower against the munchies by following your nose.In a study, inhaling the scent of peppermint every couple of hours helped people eat less overall --andeat better.
The Nose Knows By the end of the 2-week study, the people who had sniffed peppermint every couple of hours during the day had also consumed fewer calories and eaten less fat, less saturated fat, and less sugar than the nonsniffers did. Bonus: Peppermint also reduces feelings of hunger.Here's another scent that may help curb your appetite.
The Weight Is Over A healthy weight and trim waist keep blood pressure down and lower your risk of lots of things you don't want -- like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and certain types of cancer. And although there are plenty of tips and tricks for helping you eat less, a calorie-controlled diet and regular exercise remain the mainstays of weight control. But when you need a shrink-my-waist boost, try some of these ideas on for size as well:
Maintaining a constant desirable weight can make your RealAge 6 years younger.
Follow your nose, it always knows. And here's a way to get your subconscious in on it, too. Pick up a couple of packs of diffusing reedsand somebottles of peppermint essential oil. Place the reeds in the oil and set a bottle in your home, your kitchen, and your office. Your nose will be happy, and you'll eat less without thinking about it.
Next time you plan supper, think about having it a little earlier. You could be rewarded with sweet dreams.
That's the advice of Dr. Maoshing Ni, PhD, author of Second Spring. He notes that late-night dinners may disturb your sleep because they divert your body's resources to digesting when you need to be resting.
Time for Supper! Ni suggests eating no later than 7 p.m. to help free up your liver to perform its daily detox duties while you get a good night's rest. So put aside those work e-mails and get home in time for dinner. Long workdays and an endless list of personal obligations are two of the biggest culprits in erratic mealtimes.Another nifty way to get more sleep: Stretch.
More on Meals What and when you eat affects not only your sleep but also your energy levels. To help keep energy levels steady throughout the day, Dr. Ni recommends eating five small meals instead of three large ones. And don't forget to exercise daily. It's one of the best ways to combat fatigue. Get an intro to the ancient practice of chi-gong in this video.
Get thin, get smart. One little oval package helps make both happen, and you don’t even have to get a prescription for it (yes, it’s legal).
Eggs were reinstated as a health food a while back, when major studies cleared them of increasing heart attack and stroke risk. Now there's evidence that people who scramble, boil, or poach one for breakfast -- versus eating a bagel with the same number of calories -- bypass junk-food cravings and eat fewer calories for at least 24 hours. Without even trying. While eggs are a good source of nutrients and protein, for reasons that aren't completely clear, it turns out that they make your body feel fuller longer.
Not only are you smart, waistwise, for eating them; they’re good brain food, too. Eggs are packed with selenium, a nutrient that can help keep your memory sharp and your thinking fast. In fact, people who get at least 55 micrograms (mcg) a day of selenium have cognitive test scores that put them in a league with people 10 years younger. An egg (14 mcg) on whole-grain toast (10 mcg) gets you almost halfway there. Round out your day with some albacore tuna (63 mcg for 3 ounces), turkey (27 mcg for 3 ounces), or Brazil nuts (a mother lode at 270 mcg per half ounce). Repeat the next morning.Find out why eating eggs in the morning can help you wake up faster.
You know that line about "the incredible, edible . . ."? Looks like the jingle writer had a clue.
You struggle to drop those unwanted pounds, but the weight returns like a bad sitcom you thought had bitten the dust. Time to take a new approach to weight loss.
If you could figure out why the weight keeps coming back, maybe it would be gone for good. So take the "why" test. Here's how.
"Why" Questions to Ask To make sustainable changes and get off the weight on-again, off-again roller coaster, you need to know what's prompting you to abuse your body and engage in unhealthy eating habits. (Answer these questions to see if your eating habits are healthy.)
So start asking yourself "why" questions. Here's an example of how this might play out:
Why do I want to lose weight? Because I'd have more confidence.
Why do I want more confidence? Because I'm hoping to start a new relationship.
Why do I want to start a new relationship? Because I'm feeling lonely.
Ah-Ha Moment The questions stop when you can link the first question to the last answer. In the example above, you want to lose weight because you're lonely. And the likely cause of your weight gain is the very same thing. (Learn more about the psychology of overeating in the YOU: On a Diet Center.)
Whatever's been keeping you awake at night -- the neighbors, the price of gas, the thought that maybe pro wrestling is rigged -- you can get a good night's sleep. And you don't have to solve the world's problems. All you need to do is stretch. When a group of women did a simple stretching routine every day, they fell asleep more easily than nonstretchers. Why isn't clear, but who cares, if you're out like a light? A basic yoga routine's probably perfect, but just stretching out the day's knots slowly and soothingly should do the trick.
If stretching is too subtle for you -- or if you're going to do something physical, you want to torch some calories while you're at it -- consider moderately intense exercise. But do it in the morning. Women who did a.m. workouts for a total of at least 3 hours and 45 minutes a week (about half an hour a day) also joined the better-sleep club.
But shorter morning workouts didn't help much. And women who worked out that much at night didn't see sleep benefits, though that's no surprise: Exercising within 2 hours of bedtime can leave you wide-eyed.
Another candidate for natural Ambien: tai chi. People who did an hour of tai chi three times a week for 6 months fell asleep about 18 minutes faster and slept almost an hour longer than a control group.
There's a bonus to all this ZZZ time: Better sleep not only makes you feel good but also reduces overeating, arterial aging, and heart attack risk. So get moving and go to bed.
The Link between Belly Fat and
Dementia by Kathleen Hall
Reviewed by QualityHealth's
Middle-age adults with excess belly fat now have yet another reason to reduce
their waist circumference. Research shows that abdominal obesity nearly triples
their risk for dementia. Belly fat is already a known risk factor for diabetes,
stroke, hypertension, hyperlipidemia (elevation of lipids such as cholesterol),
and heart disease.
Obese people, who have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or higher, are at
increased risk for mental health disorders. Depression and anxiety often lead to
an increase risk of obesity, and obesity is common in people with depression.
However, even people with normal BMIs who have large abdomens are much more
likely to develop dementia.
Abdominal obesity is associated with lower total brain volume in otherwise
healthy, middle-age adults, and a smaller brain is associated with a higher risk
for subsequently developing dementia. In a study published in May 2010,
researchers determined that visceral fat-the fat surrounding our organs-is
linked to smaller brain size, more so than subcutaneous fat (fat that lies under
our skin).
Exercise is an important component of a healthy lifestyle. While allergies may be a nuisance, there are lots of options for working your workouts around your symptoms. In fact, a good workout may even help reduce your allergy symptoms. Your body produces extra adrenalin during exercise, which benefits the body by lowering your allergic response (temporarily). This means that exposure to outdoor allergens while you are working out might not result in a reaction. But once that workout is over (and adrenalin levels return to normal), allergy symptoms are more likely to flare up.
Here are 12 tips that will help prevent and reduce your allergy symptoms so you can exercise comfortably.
1.If you're allergic to dust mites, you can avoid breathing indoor dust by exercising outdoors.
2.If you're allergic to grasses and weeds, avoid these allergens by exercising indoors during the height of the allergy season.
3.If you're allergic to pollen and want to exercise outdoors, plan your workouts for times when pollen counts are lowest. They tend to peak between 5 a.m. and 10 a.m., so try an afternoon or evening exercise session.
4.Avoid contact with outdoor pollutants by exercising at low-traffic times and locations or exercising indoors. Air pollution can trigger a tightening of the airways in sensitive individuals, making it difficult to breathe when exercising within 50 feet of a road.
5.If your seasonal allergies are severe, you may need to limit your outdoor workouts completely.
6.Remember that outdoor allergens can travel several miles. Although you may feel better when exercising further away from allergens like grass and trees, you may still exhibit allergy symptoms while on a tennis court, an asphalt track, or even at the beach.
7.To prevent itchy, watery eyes when outdoors, wear wrap-around sunglasses to prevent allergens and wind from compounding the problem.
8.Consider wearing a paper face mask to filter out allergens while you exercise.
9.Spend at least five minutes doing a proper cool down. And don't forget to stretch!
10.If you exercised outdoors, change you clothes and shower as soon as possible to remove allergens from your skin and hair.
11.Keep windows closed and use the air conditioner to clear the air even more.
12.Consider using a nasal spray (saline) to clear allergens from your nose.
from Sparkpeople. com
It's becoming
more and more common for consumers to forgo medication when looking for a
natural alternative to treating conditions like depression. But the FDA does
not regulate supplements for safety or effectiveness. "Natural" or
not, supplements can lead to overmedication, drug interactions and serious side
effects. Always talk to your doctor if you are even thinking about
combining a dietary supplement with your conventional medical treatment.
Discuss the following supplements with your doctor to decide which ones might
be right for you:
5-HTP
(a derivative of the amino acid tryptophan) is converted into the
neurotransmitter serotonin, which helps regulate mood, sleep and appetite.
Fish oil
supplements, which are high in (an herb) may improve mood, and decrease
the anxiety, physical symptoms, and insomnia related to mild to severe
depression. But it's less effective than conventional
antidepressants and may cause drug interactions.
When it comes
to treating depression, avoid the following supplements, which lack
research about their safety and effectiveness: Acetyl-L-Carnitine, Chromium,
DHA, DHEA, Inositol, Kava, Lavender, L-Tryptophan, Melatonin, Phenylalanine,
Phosphatidylserine, and Tyrosine.
There's nothing wrong with looking for alternatives to treating depression.
While many people are opposed to prescription medications, possibly fearing
adverse side effects, it's important to remember that prescription drugs are
tightly regulated, tested, and evaluated and approved for use by the FDA. No supplements
are tested as thoroughly as medications are. Using supplements, vitamins, and herbs involves risks as well. Always
discuss supplementation with your health care provider before making a decision
on your own.
Follow your nose, it always knows. And here's a way to get your subconscious in on it, too. Pick up a couple of 
