Health
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7 Ways to Cut Sugar From Your Diet
While there’s nothing wrong with indulging in a craving for a scoop of ice cream or margarita every so often, too much sugar has negative health effects and can be detrimental to weight loss. The FDA recommends getting no more than 10% of your daily calories from added sugars and defines them as sugars added during processing or packaging. This includes syrups, honey and concentrated fruit or vegetable juices with more sugar than would be expected from the same volume of 100% fruit or vegetable juice of the same type. Naturally occurring sugars in things like fruits, vegetables and dairy are much more nutritious than added sugars, because they come…
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What Are GMOs?
GMO is an acronym for genetically modified organism. GMOs are crops or animals whose DNA has been artificially altered in order to improve one or more traits. They could not have evolved or mutated naturally to achieve this change. In many cases, foreign DNA is injected into the organism. Today, the majority of corn and soy in the U.S. are genetically modified, after their DNA was altered to withstand certain pests and herbicides. While this scientific feat is quite amazing, GMOs pose several challenges: GMOs have not been proven safe for humans over the long term. GMOs have not necessarily decreased the use of pesticides or herbicides. In some cases,…
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6 Healthy Habits to Start Doing Today
Dropping pounds and maintaining a healthy weight doesn’t always require a massive lifestyle overhaul! Start with these six simple tips, and you will be well on your way: Lemon Water at Breakfast Some people claim it boosts metabolism; others say it promotes fat burning. While the jury is still out on those claims, I have found lemon water to be a fantastic tool for weight loss and maintenance. And while lemon water isn’t a proven weight-loss aid, it is a delicious way to get your H2O and hydration is key for keeping hunger at bay. Plus, a glass of cold, warm, or hot lemon water is a clean way to…
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5 Weight-Maintenance Tips That Work
Some say maintaining weight loss is harder than losing it in the first place, but it doesn’t have to be that way! Here are five go-to tips you can start using today: Re-evaluate Your Daily Calorie Budget As your body weight drops, you need fewer calories to maintain your weight. So that daily calorie goal might need some tweaking. Here’s a great calculator that takes your height, weight, gender, age and activity level and helps you determine how many calories you need to lose, maintain, or gain weight. Keep What Worked If you followed a weight-loss plan to reach your ideal weight, you probably have a good idea of what…
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Signs You Are Not Drinking Enough Water
You know you should drink more water, but do you know why? Essentially every system in your body requires water to function properly. Water flushes out toxins and waste, and transports nutrients. Plus, more than half your body (55 to 60 percent) is composed of it. When that amount drops by as little as 1.5 percent below your optimal level, you become mildly dehydrated, your energy level decreases and your metabolism slows. To stay hydrated, you should replenish your fluids throughout the day. According to The Institute of Medicine, women need about nine cups of fluids daily, men about 13. Plain water is the best way to rehydrate, it’s quickly…
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Seafood Staples to Add to Your Grocery List This Week
If you made a checklist of the most valuable attributes for healthy foods to eat when you’re trying to lose weight, fish would hit on nearly every one. Seafood is nutrient-dense, so it delivers a high concentration of vitamins and minerals with few calories. Fish is also packed with protein, fueling your body for active days, but it is light on saturated fats, which is good for your heart. Seafood is also one of the best sources of omega-3 fatty acids, which may help lower cholesterol levels and support heart health. For all of these reasons, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends you have two to three servings of…
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How To Curb Your Hunger
We know it can sometimes be tough to stick with a healthy eating plan, but fortifying yourself with nutritious, filling foods throughout the day can really help control your hunger. High-fiber foods, good fats, and lean protein (as well as acidic foods) all help to slow the digestion of the sugars in carbohydrates. When you include a variety of these foods in your diet, your body produces less insulin, which means fewer swings in blood sugar levels. It is these swings that are the cause of cravings and hunger in the first place. Want to curb your hunger? Read the tips below to learn how with healthy foods that are…
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How to Break Your Soda Habit
Whether you drink it for the sweet sugary taste, the caffeine boost or that famous fizzy feeling, the fact remains, soda can hinder your weight loss and can negatively impact your overall health. Soda is notoriously full of sugar and empty calories, meaning you get almost no nutritional value from it. One look at the nutrition facts label and you’ll see that a 12-fluid ounce can of soda contains 150 calories, 15 milligrams of sodium and 39 grams of carbohydrates while a 20-fluid ounce bottle of soda (more commonly seen today), contains about 240 calories, 75 milligrams of sodium and 65 grams of carbohydrates per bottle. The real problem with…
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7 Simple Steps to a Healthier Heart
At the beginning of every new year, the one resolution many of us make for ourselves is to lead healthier lives. But with never-ending family needs, work demands and life in general, your health tends to drop lower on your list of priorities. So, to increase awareness around building healthier lives, the American Heart Association has come up with Life’s Simple 7 which is seven tips to help control your risk for heart disease, the number one killer of women. Making a commitment to your heart health has never been easier thanks to these easy steps: Get Active – Make fitness a priority and try to get at least 30…
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How To Start Getting More Sleep
In North America, the average adult gets about 7 hours of sleep per night while 33% of the population gets fewer than 6.5 hours per night. Deep, consistent, rejuvenating sleep is a major factor in recovering from a stressful day. Improving the amount and quality of your sleep will benefit just about every area of your life. To improve your sleep, it’s important to focus on the outside factors you can control. Instead of getting into bed and hoping for Mr. Sandman to show up, work on crafting the environment and the habits around bedtime to ensure a restful night. Here’s how you can do it: PLAN A SLEEP ROUTINE…