Tips to Stay Young!

Research has found that people who generally live longer do so partly because of good habits. Here, Dr Vernon Coleman and others provide some of the following good habits for longevity.

1) Laugh & fun, don't be gloomy
2) Let bygones be bygones. Dwelling on the past inflicts unnecessary stress.
3) Early to bed, early to rise, is healthy & wise
4) Stay lean, being just 30% overweight is bad.
5) Keep learning, reading & socializing - an alert & active mind keeps brain cells healthy.
6) Keep working, doing something you like. Don't retire, it slows down your body.
7) Be the boss of your own life. Letting others push you around produces stress.
8) Too many pills ruin your body, take just what you need.
9) Constantly alternating between weight gain & loss is bad.
10)Exercise, quit smoking and eat less fatty foods.
11)Do not worry about health & death, just get on with your life and enjoy it.

Health Tips-Fruits!

Kiwi : Tiny but mighty
This is a good source of potassium, magnesium, Vitamin E & fibre. It's Vitamin C content is twice that of an orange.

Apple : An apple a day keeps the doctor away?
Although an apple has a low Vitamin C content,it has antioxidants & flavonoids which enhances the activity of Vitamin C thereby helping to lower the risks of colon cancer, heart attach & stroke.

Strawberry : Protective Fruit
Strawberries have the highest total antioxidant power among major fruits & protect the body from cancer causing, blood vessels clogging free radicals.

Orange : Sweetest medicine
Taking 2 -4 oranges a day may help keep colds away, lower cholesterol, prevent & dissolve kidney stones as well as lessen the risk of colon cancer.

Watermelon : Coolest Thirst Quencher
Composed of 92% water, it is also packed with a giant dose of glutathione which helps boost our immune system. They are also a key source of lycopene - the cancer fighting oxidant. Other nutrients found in watermelon are Vitamin C & Potassium.

Guava & Papaya : Top awards for Vitamin C
They are the clear winners for their high Vitamin C content. Guava is also rich in fibre which helps prevent constipation. Papaya is rich in carotene, this is good for your eyes.

Cooking Tips-For Nutritional Values!!

• Always mash potatoes when they are still quite hot. They can be mashed more easily and finely.
• To clean the surface of vegetables like potato, radish, sweet potato, carrots, etc., use a separate plastic scrubber or toothbrush kept for the purpose. Hold under running water and scrub.
• Use a pair of sharp scissors instead of a knife to chop chillies or leafy greens.
• Add a few teaspoons of milk to cauliflower while boiling to get rid of the raw smell. Drain and wash before adding to the recipe.
• Always hold fresh vegetables under running water for a minute after boiling and draining, to enhance their colour, e.g. carrots, greens, peas, etc. Hold in a colander or strainer so that the water passes through.
• Add a pinch of soda bi-carb to green vegetables while steaming or boiling or cooking in the microwave to retain the fresh green colour.
• For use of greens like sarson ki bhaji out of season, microwave to dehydrate till crisp. Soak in hot water for half an hour before proceeding.
• Store chopped vegetables in air tight plastic containers in the fridge to keep from browning and drying up.
• Add some salt or vinegar drops while washing vegetables and greens to make them clean and germ free, e.g. cauliflower, spinach, etc.
• Place tomatoes in hot water for 5-7 minutes before using. It would be easier to peel and better to taste in any recipe where tomatoes are required to be cooked.
• Add a pinch of turmeric powder to the oil before adding green vegetables. The vegetables will retain their greenness better even after cooking.
• Blanch green leafy vegetables (fenugreek, spinach, etc.) in boiling water for 2 minutes. Hold under cold running water, press out excess water, and store in freezer for about 2 weeks without spoiling.
• If there is a lot of leftover paneer crumbs, dry in a warm oven. Fry till crisp and store in the fridge. Soften in boiling water, drain and add to thicken gravies of any vegetables and curries.
• Wrap potatoes which you may want in foil to retain moisture and also to avoid becoming sooty black.
• To bake potatoes crisp and brown, soak the peeled potatoes in hot water for a while, pat dry and pierce all over with a fork before placing them in hot fat along with the roast.
• Always soak cauliflower in warm salted water for some time to get rid of the tiny insects sometimes present deep inside the florets and not visible to the eye.
• Use chilli oil instead of the ordinary oil, if you want to make the dish spicier.

Fish-Health Benefits

Fish is almost always an essential element of a good diet. It has long been noted that people from certain regions, where the diet is largely composed of fish, appear to have a reduced risk of heart disease.

Fish must be consumed twice weekly to get its health benefits.

Health Benefits:

• They lower the rate at which the lever manufactures fat.
• They reduce the tendency of blood to clot.
• They repair arteries damaged by lack of oxygen owing to fatty deposits.
• They lower the blood pressure.
• A study followed and found that those who ate 225 gms of fish a week had a 40% lower risk of fatal heart attack than those who ate no fish.
• Fish eaters have lower risk of oral and digestive track cancer. Scientists speculate that fatty acids prevalent in sea foods inhibit tumour growth.
• Fish oil is reported to be beneficial in rheumatoid arthritis.
• Oily fish helps block breast cancer because the omega-3 fatty acid content boosts the immune system ability to respond to developing tumours.

Stop Snoring Tips

The following tips will hopefully give you relief with your snoring problems. It's important to remember that different remedies will have varying success depending on the individual.

• Elevate your head by sleeping on a thicker pillow or multiple pillows will help reduce your snoring.
• Don't drink alcoholic beverages, take sleeping pills, tranquilizers, or antihistamines right before going to sleep, they will cause your muscles to relax and limit your air passage way.
• Avoid dairy products, which can cause mucus build-up right before you go to sleep.
• If you are overweight, losing some weight will reduce snoring by increasing the space in your air passage way.
• Sleeping on your side instead of your back will help to prevent snoring.
• A common remedy to prevent sleeping on your back is to sew a tennis ball to the back of your shirt; the discomfort of sleeping on the ball will prevent you from staying on your back.

Try following a regular sleep routine.

• Try taking in a little bit of honey before sleeping.
• Don't eat a big meal right before bed, if your stomach is full it will push up on your diaphragm and limit breathing passage ways.
• Avoid eating "rich" foods such as cakes, cookies, chocolate and pizza.
• Sleep on a firmer pillow, a pillow that's too soft encourages your throat muscles to relax and narrows your air passageway.
• Inhale steam before sleeping or sleep in a room with a humidifier turned on, which will reduce congestion and moisturize the throat.
• Purchase some nasal strips and put them on before going to sleep. Nasal strips will open up your nostrils and allow more air to come in, thus reduce snoring.
  
• If you are a smoker, stop smoking, if that is not feasible then avoid smoking right before you go to bed. Smoking causes inflammation and swelling of the throat.
• Take anti-snoring pills or use anti-snoring nasal spray
• Consult a medical profesional if your snoring continues to adversely affect your sleep.

Weight Loss Tips!!

1. Weigh yourself at least once a week. If you are serious about weight loss, consider buying a battery powered digital scale.

2. Before you start your weight loss diet, take your body measurements around your bust, waist, hips, upper arms and thighs. Check them every month.

3. To set realistic achievable goals, quantify the results you desire.

• I will lose ten pounds in two months.
• When I get home I will walk for 20-30 minutes.
• I will eat 2 servings of fresh fruit everyday.
• Post your weight loss goals on or near your bathroom mirror.

4. Read the "warning" label of nutritional facts on all foods and beverages you buy. Avoid trans fats and high fructose corn syrup. Buy grape juice instead of grape drink. Grape drink is sugar water with grape flavoring. Pay attention to calories per serving. If you watch what you eat 90% of the time, the other 10% is not a problem.

5. Eat more fiber. Eat Raisin Bran or Oatmeal for breakfast. Buy wholegrain/wholewheat bread. Look for wheat pasta - Barilla Plus. Fiber makes us feel full faster, lowers cholesterol and keeps us regular. Fiber makes it easier to achieve our weight loss goals.

6. Watch your portion size, especially when eating out. Instead of ice cream for desert or snacks, try individual cups of Luigi's Real Italian Ice or Sunshine Ice Cup Flavored Shaved Ice. Thaw briefly in the microwave for 10 seconds.

7. Stop eating the second you feel full. Eat until you are satisfied, not until you are stuffed, regardless of what is still on your plate. Eat slowly. Relax. Don't eat your kid's leftovers when you clear the table or use food as a reward. Learning to recognize when you have eaten enough (and acting on it) is the primary key to weight loss.

8. Eat soup 3 times a week. It helps speed up your metabolism and reduces hunger cravings. It is the best way to eat your vegetables. At the store, buy a large bag of frozen mixed vegetables, navy beans or lentils, and flavor with onions, garlic salt, chili pepper, soup bones or chicken wings. Consider adding cabbage and rice. If eating canned soup, try Bean with Bacon, Black Bean soup or Clam Chowder. Don't forget to soak your beans and lentils first.

9. Avoid fried foods and steam, broil or bake your meat, chicken and fish. When eating out, avoid donuts, french fries and KFC fried chicken.

10. Substitute olive oil for other fats, plain yogurt for sour cream and Dijon mustard for mayonnaise whenever possible. Forget about buying low fat 1%, 2% or skim milk. Most adults don't drink that much milk anyway. It is far better not to drink sodas and soft drinks. Drink more orange juice. Treat yourself with a small glass of red wine an hour before bedtime. Better yet, mix it with a glass of orange juice.

11. Memorize these weight loss affirmations and denials. Remember, our thoughts control our bodies and our circumstances.

• My body is a temple - not a warehouse.
• I am not in bondage to food cravings.
• It is no sin to be thin.
• I am slim and trim.
• It's my fate to take off weight.

Weight Management!!

Have you ever wondered why, for so many people (and especially for anyone older than 30 years old), weight gain seems to be a fact of life? It's because the human body is way too efficient! It just does not take that much energy to maintain the human body at rest; and when exercising, the human body is amazingly frugal when it comes to turning food into motion.

At rest (for example, while sitting and watching television), the human body burns only about 12 calories per pound of body weight per day (26 calories per kilogram). That means that if you weigh 150 pounds (68 kg), your body uses only about:
150 X 12 = 1,800 calories per day

Those 1,800 calories are used to do everything you need to stay alive:

· They keep your heart beating and lungs breathing.
· They keep your internal organs operating properly.
· They keep your brain running.
· They keep your body warm.

Your body, it turns out, is extremely efficient at capturing and storing excess calories. Whenever your body finds that it has excess calories on hand, it converts them to fat and saves them for a rainy day. It only takes 3,500 excess calories to create 1 pound of new fat on your body. If you are taking in just 500 extra calories per day, then you are gaining a pound of fat per week (500 calories x 7 days in a week = 3,500 calories/week). Since it is easy to get 500 calories from just one ice cream cone or a few cookies, you can see that weight gain is completely effortless in today's society. Food is just too easy to find.

THE IDEA BEHIND DIETING

Let's imagine that you are overweight and you would like to lose several excess pounds. To lose 1 pound of fat, what you have to do is burn off 3,500 calories. That is, over a period of time, you have to consume 3,500 calories less than your body needs. There are several ways you can create that deficit. If you assume that you weigh 150 pounds and that your body at rest needs 1,800 calories per day (150 * 12 = 1,800) to live, here are several examples (some realistic, some not):

· You could lie in bed and starve yourself. Since you are lying in bed, you are consuming 1,800 calories per day. Since you are starving yourself, you are taking in no calories. That means that, every day, you create a deficit of 1,800 calories and, approximately every two days, you will lose 1 pound of body weight.

· You could consume fewer calories than your body needs. For example, you might choose to consume 1,500 calories per day rather than the required 1,800 by controlling what you eat. That creates a 300-calorie deficit every day. That means that approximately every 12 days, you will lose 1 pound of weight (12 days x 300 calories = 3,600 calories).

· You could consume 1,800 calories per day and then choose to jog 2 miles (3.2 km) every day. The jogging would burn about 200 calories per day, and over the course of 18 days you would burn about 1 pound of body weight (18 days x 200 calories = 3,600 calories).

· You could consume 2,500 calories per day and run 10 miles per day. You will burn 1,800 calories per day at rest and then 1,000 calories per day running, for a total of 2,800 calories. You are consuming 300 calories fewer than you need, so you would lose a pound every 12 days or so (300 calories x 12 days = 3,600 calories).

As you can see from these examples, the only way to lose fat is to consume fewer calories per day than your body needs. For every 3,500 calories that your body takes from its fat reserves, you lose 1 pound (0.45 kg) of body fat. You can create the deficit either by monitoring and restricting your intake of calories, or by exercising, or both.

BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE DIET

The first step is to start counting the calories that you consume in a day so that you become conscious of two things:

· You need to understand exactly how many calories you are eating on a "normal" day.

· You need to realize where each calorie comes from -- you need to build a calorie database in your brain so that you know, whenever you eat something, just how many calories it is supplying.

The second step is to figure out how many calories you need in a day. You can use the "12 grams per pound" rule, or you can get more precise by looking at our Calorie Chart.

The third step is to compare the two numbers -- You may be startled by the difference between the "number of calories you need" and "the number of calories that you take in" in a day. That is where the extra pounds are coming from.

The fourth step is to figure out how to bring the two numbers in line. What you will soon realize is that 1,600 or 1,800 or 2,000 calories per day just isn't that many. You have to watch and count everything you eat and drink every day and stick to your daily limit.

The fifth step might be to add exercise to the mix so that you can raise the number of calories you can consume per day.

Good Luck To All Those Who Are Trying To Loose Weight.