An Overview Of Agoraphobia

An Overview Of Agoraphobia
Though anxiety is often referred to as a singular disorder,
there are actually several variations of the anxious
condition. One of the more dramatic variations of anxiety
is agoraphobia. Agoraphobia defined is a sense of fear or
unease in unfamiliar environments. Agoraphobia is a mostly
rare condition, affecting roughly five percent of the
population, with women most often affected.

Agoraphobia is not inherently dramatic in the way it
presents itself, but it can become so in extreme cases. In
an extreme case of agoraphobia, the person affected becomes
so overwhelmed by fear or unease or both, that they
literally confine themselves to the perceived safety and
security of their home. Agoraphobics that have these sorts
of extreme symptoms are not people anxious per se:
agoraphobics who confine themselves can often personally
interact provided the interaction takes place within their
confined comfort area.

It’s thought that agoraphobia has a connection to
feeling insecure over a lack of control. Agoraphobics who
find themselves in unfamiliar environments may become
fearful about the possibility of circumstances occurring in
this unknown territory that could leave them in some way
damaged. The agoraphobic obsesses then over perceived
dangers that may occur in unfamiliar places, and this
obsession often leads to a high state of fear or panic.
While agoraphobics may have panic attacks, it is the focus
on unfamiliar environments triggering panic that defines
their condition. An agoraphobic may panic only in
unfamiliar settings in other words, whereas someone with
panic disorder can have a panic attack at virtually any
time.

People with a generalized panic condition may confine
themselves, as the agoraphobic does, but this confinement
for the person with generalized anxiety is not necessarily
a solution to ending panic as it may be for the
agoraphobic. Agoraphobics are different from people with a
social anxiety condition as well because the
agoraphobic’s unease is not with people so much as it
is with settings. And again, agoraphobics can comfortably
interact with other people within a physical comfort zone.

The outcome for someone with agoraphobia can be quite
confounding, both for the person with agoraphobia as well
as for people who are close to them. Some persons with
extreme agoraphobia have been known to confine themselves
to a perceived comfort zone for literally years on end. At
its core, agoraphobia is an anxious condition, and though
anxiety can be extremely painful and damaging, it is a
highly treatable state. So it is with agoraphobia: with
proper treatment, agoraphobia can be completely overcome
and the agoraphobic can lead a normal existence
that’s free of worry and fear.

----------------------------------------------------
Zinn Jeremiah is a freelance author. To find help with
anxiety, visit
http://www.hubonline.biz/feel-better-today.htm or
http://www.hubonline.biz/healthy-mood.htm .

8 Simple Tips on How to Get in Shape

8 Simple Tips on How to Get in Shape
“No matter what I do, I just can’t seem to get
in shape.” Does this statement sound familiar? Do you
put effort out each week in trying to eat right and
exercise, only to fall short by the third day?

If you are constantly starting a healthy exercise and
eating program, only to let it fall by the wayside by the
middle of the week you are destroying your metabolism, and
killing any motivation you might have had.

Getting in shape is just as much as a mental approach as it
is a physical one. If you want to get in shape once and for
all you have to make some changes. Below are some tips on
how to get in shape to prevent falling off the wagon again.

Tip #1

Make a committed goal – Goal setting, blah, blah,
blah. You may think this is an unnecessary step and a waste
of time, but NOT making a committed goal can be your
biggest reason for failure.

As cliché as it is, it is true… Failing to
plan is planning to fail.

Goal setting doesn’t have to be a written contract
outlined like a house deed; it can be as simple as marking
out your training and nutrition on a calendar for a quick,
daily birds-eye-view. Simply map out a week or two on your
calendar and follow it.

Tip #2

Stick to your goal - Don’t keep changing your mind
– Sure, just because you have some goals written down
or outlined on your calendar doesn’t mean you will
get in shape. You have to actually follow your plan.

The problem many people have with goal setting is they make
the decision in their mind, and they may even write it
down, but they keep changing their minds of what they want
on a weekly basis.

You have to decide, do you want to lose fat, build muscle,
or transform? There are no right or wrong answers here, and
it’s not anyone else’s decision. You have to
decide what you want to do, and stick to it.

Constantly changing your goals every week will only cause
you to lose motivation and lead to frustration.

Set a goal, and stick to it.

Tip #3

Eat balanced meals – Eating balanced meals is one of
the most important aspects of getting in shape. Most people
tend to think that a can of tuna or an apple is a meal.
Wrong. A meal is a combination of a complete protein and a
carbohydrate.

Your body needs nutrients from all the macronutrients in
order to build hormones, burn fat, build lean muscle
tissue, and just keep you healthy and functioning.

To keep your energy levels high and to stay motivated, eat
several balanced meals throughout the day.

Tip #4

Eat real food – Any food won’t do. You should
be feeding your body quality nutrients in the form of
natural foods.

Far too many people rely on processed food-like items in
boxes labeled “healthy,” low-fat,”
low-carb,” etc. for health and weight loss.

There thousands of synthetic chemicals in processed foods,
and many of them have carcinogenic properties. The human
body isn’t designed to process chemicals to the
degree we are putting them in our bodies.

These synthetic chemicals become lodged in your fat stores
as toxins and make fat loss an even greater chore. To add
to the equation, the amount of toxins trapped in your body
makes your body work even harder to purge them, adding
stress to your immune system and leaving you open to
illnesses and diseases.

For the best quality food, eat those that Mother Nature has
provided. If you can hunt, pick, gather, or harvest it, you
can eat it. More importantly, it would be wise to eat
organic as much as possible.

Tip #5

Don’t skip meals – Many people think that in
order to get in shape they have to be in a caloric deficit
mode. While this might stand true to an extent, most people
are going about it in the wrong manner by skipping meals.

Your body relies on food from your meals to rebuild itself,
to keep you healthy, to build lean muscle tissue, and to
burn fat. When you skip meals you miss out on opportunities
to get in shape and transform your body.

Missing meals leads to metabolic downgrade.

Tip #6

Don’t cut the carbs – The no-carb craze is
still in high gear. Granted, lowering carbs can have an
effect on fat loss to a certain degree, but there’s a
certain procedure you have to use to do it correctly to
prevent fatigue, burnout, and excess muscle loss.

Too many people jump into extreme low carbs and burn out in
a matter of days. Take the lowering carb process slowly for
it to be fully effective.

Tip #7

Don’t kill the Cardio - Cardio is fine, provided you
are eating the right nutrients to support it. The problem
many people have when trying to get in shape is that they
drastically cut their calories AND carbs, and then suddenly
jump on an hour of high intensity cardio a day. This is
simply as recipe for disaster because it leads to metabolic
downgrade.

Cardio does not need to be an all out torture session. When
you eat the correct combination of macronutrients and
implement cardio by listening to your body, you will
achiever far greater results than going through dieting and
cardio abuse.

Tip #8

Don’t put your faith in the latest wonder drug -
People become desperate when they want to shed pounds,
build muscle, or just get in shape. This can lead you to
taking “fat burning supplements” with high
promises and disappointing results.

Supplement companies prey on your emotions. They know you
may be feeling hopeless and despondent. Therefore, they use
that opportunity to employ deceptive marketing techniques
with misleading before and after pictures, false claims,
and a whole host of other marketing tactics used to draw
you in, and make you buy their “latest breakthrough
supplement.”

Now, don’t get me wrong. There are a lot of effective
supplements on the market, but you have to know what they
are and how to take them for them to properly work.

Conclusion

Now that you have some crucial guidelines to follow to get
you on the right path and to literally get you in shape,
use them to your advantage. Nothing worth having comes
easy. So, put forth the effort and the time it takes to get
you in the best shape of your life.

----------------------------------------------------
Karen Sessions has been in the fitness industry since 1988.
She is a nationally qualified bodybuilder and holds two
personal training certifications. She has written 6 ebooks
on fitness and has helped hundreds of clients transform
their bodies.

http://www.Dangerous-Curves-Ebook.com
"Use of this article is authorized provided it is
reproduced in full, and all web URLS are active hyperlinks
directed to the author"

Helan

Helan
Herbs, flowers, extracts…today they are all welcomed
by the market, but in 1976, when Helan was created with the
precise aim of producing natural cosmetics and body care
products, genuine traditions and centuries old knowledge of
herbs seemed to have been forgotten, pushed aside in a
frenetic rush towards modernism.

Only infinite trust in the healthiness of a world seen in a
natural key has convinced Helan of Genoa, Italy to produce
cosmetic and body care ranges made from plant oils and
extracts, essences, honey and scented waters. These
ingredient impart a sense of well-being and beauty, thanks
to the wealth of their main ingredients and their affinity
with the skin.

HELAN is an acronym made with the words “Helios (sun)
and “Animus” (soul, spirit). Thus, sun-filled
soul, to signify that the company’s spirit must be
clear, warm and full of energy like the sun, the source of
all life.

The quality of Helan products is the precious fruit of the
union between; nature, millenary tradition, scientific
research and up to date technological solutions. At the
same time, Helan has always collaborated with the Italian
associations that defend animal rights and in 1998 the
company joined the first International “Not Tested on
Animals” Standard promoted by the LAV
(Anti-Vivisection League). In 2004 it obtained the ICEA n.
002 Certification (Institute for Ethical Environmental
Certification) and the right to use the international
“Stop Animal Testing” logo on all its packaging.

Only to give further examples of Helan’s care for the
environment and life on this planet, the company has joined
the Clean Energy program. This certifies that Helan
respects the environment because every single Kwh of
electricity used by the company is produced from renewable
sources of energy without the use of fossil fuels (verified
by the international DNV organization).

Helan was the first company in the herbalist sector to be
able to affirm that their business is based on combining
the natural riches of plants of the earth for its cosmetics
and body care products, however maintaining respect for the
animals and the environment. A choice of Helan
preparations is one for the union of nature and science and
a product made with care and excellence.

Helan offers many herbal based product care lines, one of
those being Vetiver and Rum, which boasts a swarthy and
woodsy scent for men, with the spices of the Caribbean and
European vetiver interwoven to make a splendid addition to
any man’s bath and shaving needs.

Emozione Blu is the newest addition from Helan of Genoa.
For gentleman, Emozione Blu brings the freshness of
Bergamot of Calabria and Sicilian Lemon, as well as Florida
Grapefruit and Eucalyptus of Corsica, into its fragrant
bouquet. The breez wafting from Ionian algae soon takes
over and blends with the heart of the fragrance, Egyptian
Jasmine. It is then softened by sub-Alpine Violet. The
final notes of Texas Cedarwood and Haitian Vetiver merge
with the unique mossy notes that blend into the natural
scent of skin and warm sensuality. Emozione Blu conjures
up the memories of days in the sun, on the blue sea, with
sand and wind.

----------------------------------------------------
Jacqueline Dubowsky is a self-confessed bath product
enthusiast who has spent 12 years trying all the potions
and bath preparations the world has to offer. She
publishes a monthly Bath and Body Care newsletter available
at her website, TheSoapBar.com. To find out more about
Helan products, visit
http://www.thesoapbar.com/helan.html

Are you a Sumo Wrestler? Weight Loss Lessons From Japan

Are you a Sumo Wrestler? Weight Loss Lessons From Japan
Apologies for the blunt headline, but hey, you know me: I
don’t mince my words, I just tell it like it is!

When I found this out, I just had to share it with you. As
you’re reading the facts, I’d like you to think
about who it reminds you of.

In their training stables in Japan, sumo wrestlers are
taught to eat in a manner that leads to massive weight
gain. Here's what they're taught:

1) Skip breakfast.

2) Eat lots of mostly unhealthy food and drink lots of
alcohol.

3) Eat only two or three giant meals a day.

4) Go to bed right after eating a big, high-carb meal.

Does that list look familiar? Yep, the average overweight
person in the UK eats like a sumo wrestler whose goal is to
weigh 500 pounds!

In fact number 4, which nearly everyone I know who is
overweight does (eats a meal containing pasta or rice or
potatoes then goes to bed) is so effective at storing
body-fat that the sumos do it twice a day!

To be honest, Sumos probably get more activity than the
average 9-5 office worker too! Is it any surprise our
nation is the fattest it’s ever been!?

We can learn several lessons from this:

First, going to sleep after eating a high carbohydrate meal
seems to be VERY popular with the sumos. Maybe, just
maybe, we should avoid eating too many carbs at night if we
want to have a fairly flat tummy?

Second, if these guys, who are trying to get massively fat
and as large as possible purposefully skip breakfast, drink
booze, and eat only two or three large meals a day, maybe
it would be a good idea to do just the opposite to these
500lb monsters!!

How about this?

Start each and every day with a nutritious breakfast, lay
off the booze and junk food, and consume five or six
smaller meals per day?!? Not too hard right?? Just
general advice.

Just a thought …

If you read this article nodding your head, then it’s
fair to say you may need to make some changes –
unless, that is, you plan on donning a large nappy and
trying to push a pony-tailed man the size of a small
elephant out of a ring??

If you have friends or relatives who are behaving like this
just ask them “Are you training to be a sumo?”
- make sure you wear a gum shield whilst doing so!!

----------------------------------------------------
Paul Mort is the North East’s Number One personal
trainer and fat-loss expert.He is head trainer and owner of
precisionfitness.co.uk - the only company in the north east
that can guarantee results 100%. To view more of
Paul’s articles and advice visit
http://www.precisonfitness.co.uk

3 things you must do to lose body fat fast

3 things you must do to lose body fat fast
If I got a pound every time I get asked this question:
'What is the best diet to do and what is the best exercise
for your stomach?' I would be a rich man by now!

This is the ultimate question isn't it? Diet and exercise
is not something you start on Monday morning and finish by
noon! It is a question of lifestyle change. Here are my 3
things you must do to lose body fat fast.

NUMBER 1: There are millions of diet's on the market but
the only way to truly succeed is to approach your nutrition
with the attitude of changing your lifestyle. You must
introduce new eating habits in order to make a significant
dent in your body fat levels. It's not hard, it's
relatively simple...

*NO Processed Meals or Microwave Meals

*NO Caffeine, NO Sugar, Chocolate or Additives

*NO Wheat or Gluten

*NO Dairy

*NO Alcohol

*5-7 meals a day

*Protein with every meal

*Vegetables with every meal (preferably raw)

*Supplement with omega 3 fish oil and a multi-vitamin

*2 litres of water min a day and Green Tea

With out a shadow of a doubt this is the most successful
fat loss formula. The only thing that works better than
this is to combine it with the RIGHT form of exercise.

What's the best form of exercise for fat loss? Weight
training and interval training.

NUMBER 2: Strength training builds muscle and for every 1lb
of muscle you have you will burn an extra 50 calories a
day. It also boosts metabolism up to 10% after a training
program

No matter how much you want to believe it, doing thousands
of crunches is not going to take off any inches from your
waist or fat from your abs.

And a recent study from the prestigious Journal of Applied
Physiology showed strength training also doubled
post-exercise fat burning.

Any "expert" who says strength training doesn't burn fat is
living in the 1970's. Strength training must be a part of
your fat-blasting workout routine.

NUMBER 3: Intervals stimulate a metabolic disturbance
within your cells causing your body to burn body fat for
hours after your workouts.

Back in November 2006, a research study shocked the general
public proving short interval workouts were more effective
for fat burning than long, slow, cardio workouts.

Now I don't mean to boast, But I already knew that...but
there's more big news from "down under"...

According to Australian fat loss expert, Professor Steve
Boucher, "high intensity intermittent exercise (i.e.
intervals) may result in greater fat loss in the abdomen".

Basically, intervals burn stomach fat FIRST, over all other
sources of fat on the body. Nothing else, not crunches, nor
cardio, has ever been shown to result in stomach fat spot
reduction.

This is big news. If you want to lose belly fat, you have
to be doing intervals. If you're doing the same long, slow,
boring cardio workout over and over again, then don't
bother to expect any results.

You have to change your program.

You have to workout with more intensity.

You have to do shorter, less frequent workouts - using
intervals.

What I am sharing with you is not rocket science and
certainly is not new information, however, it is proven to
work and thats why I offer a guarantee with my downloadable
fitness programs and personal training.

Are you following this? Those who have followed my Drop A
Dress Size Challenge or Beach Body Workout will tell you
how well it works!

If not make you sure you start to take action NOW! Eat
something healthier for lunch today. Add intervals into
your next workout. Join a gym. If you hear a little voice
inside your head saying 'I can't

Then

In my opinion Can't just means Won't.

----------------------------------------------------
Dan Thompson is a leading Personal Trainer in the UK, He
specializes in fat loss and is author of the Drop a Dress
Size Challenge available at
http://www.selectworkout.co.uk/program-pages/drop-dress-size
/drop_a_dress_size1.html and the Beach Body Workout
available at
http://www.selectworkout.co.uk/program-pages/beach-body-work
outs/bikini.html

Aspartame - Diet Sodas and Weight Loss

Aspartame - Diet Sodas and Weight Loss
Being involved in nutrition research for such a long time I
can’t stop wondering what’s wrong with our
natural food. Why do sugar substitutes and artificially
created ingredients receive such an enormous attention? Why
can the industry freely and without prove advertise
artificial sweeteners as being a healthy alternative?
Consumers are manipulated to think the label “zero
calories” translates to “good for health”.

Well, I don’t blame the consumers, although nowadays
it is easy to obtain information on the internet and one
has got no excuse. The reason why I’m writing this
article is the misinformation I come across almost daily in
newspapers, magazines and other media. Food and beverages
containing artificial sweeteners are advertised as being
beneficial for health. I regard this as a deception per se.
It means the industry does not shy away from targeting your
health concerns for their business. Let’s zoom in on
an artificial sweetener called Aspartame for example. There
is a long list of products with this name on their
ingredients label. What is Aspartame? Does our body know
how to metabolize it? Our body is programmed to deal with
natural molecule structures and does not know how to
process artificial ones.

Aspartame contains Methanol. Studies show that Methanol is
a dangerous neurotoxin, is carcinogenic, interferes with
the DNA and causes several other severe health problems.
Methanol is needed to fuse together two amino acids to
create the sugar substitute Aspartame. In our body Methanol
breaks down into Formic Acid and Formaldehyde.

Long term studies on rats by an Italian Cancer Institute,
the Ramazzini Foundation, found increases in Lymphomas,
Leukemias and Breast Cancer. The rats were given 20 mg of
Aspartame per kilogram of body weight. This is comparable
to a 50 pound child consuming 21/2 cans of diet soda. This
doesn’t sound alarming as currently the acceptable
daily intake is set at 50 mg/kg of body weight. But there
are hundreds of other products which contain Aspartame and
are likely to be consumed by kids and adults alike. It all
adds up. The Center for Science in the Public Interest
(CSPI) downgraded the rating of Aspartame to
“everyone should avoid”. Experts are calling on
the FDA to review the Aspartame Cancer risk. Remember,
this is a multi billion dollar industry and the pressure on
the authorities to turn a blind eye to this issue is high.
Ultimately you are responsible for your health, so just
stop consuming products containing artificial sweeteners as
a precaution.

If you have got a sweet tooth like I do, use brown sugar or
honey in a moderate amount as a sweetener. It is a natural
substance, tastes lovely and does not do you any harm. And
do you know that pure water as a replacement of diet sodas
is most beneficial to your health by hydrating your body
and flushing out toxins? I’m sure you do! Then I need
to say no more.

----------------------------------------------------
Rudy Tiefnig, is an expert in the area of fitness and diet,
creating nutrition and diet plans for fitness and weight
loss and guiding people to achieve a fit, slim and healthy
body. To read more, go to:
http://www.fit-slim-healthy.com/aspartame.html

Alternatives to filling teeth

Alternatives to filling teeth
Research has shown unusually high levels of mercury in
people who have died in recent years. This hasn't come to
light before, because it's not 'mercury poisoning' that is
written on the Death Certificate. It could be stroke, or
heart attack, or embolism. These are the biggest killers in
terms of numbers, but the question for many researchers has
been, How was the health of these people in the few years
before they died? Were they very healthy? Increasingly, the
evidence shows that people who appear to have died from a
supposedly simple cause, have, in fact, been suffering a
range of illnesses and distressing symptoms over a long
time. These range from depression, to memory loss, to lack
of sleep and low energy levels. Often they are vague and
hard to pin down, such as 'metallic taste in the mouth',
lethargy and no urge to socialise. The first of these is
the clue. Why would people taste metal? The only metal most
people in the West have anywhere near their mouths is
mercury, the basis of amalgam fillings.

Residents of Europe and the U.S. have got used to the idea
that it's a good idea to fill their mouths with metal, yet
this is a relatively recent invention. It only goes back to
the Victorian age, or the end of the nineteenth century. It
then became increasingly popular and became the 'norm'
after the Second World War. Perhaps because of the trend
for children to eat more sweets, chocolate and cakes once
wartime rationing had been phased out, there was a huge
increase in the number of cavities suffered by young
people. The answer from dentists was to drill out the decay
and fill the resulting hole with an amalgam of metal which
composed 50% mercury. This was considered to be the hardest
substitute known for tooth enamel, and certainly seemed to
serve the purpose. Many people born in the 1940s and 1950s
will have a large proportion of filled teeth, with hardly
any complete and untouched. Only in the last few years has
another trend emerged, of using white coloured resin, and
usually this has been restricted to the front teeth, where
it shows. Dentists, it seems, prefer the hardness of the
metal and continue to use it regularly, particularly for
the back teeth, partly because it is a cheaper option.

It will come as some surprise to Westerners then, to hear
that this totally acceptable feature of our modern life is
actually quite new in human history and quite rare in terms
of the rest of the world. If there was a problem with
practice, then, it would have only been apparent
comparatively recently, and only in the countries of the
world that use this method of preserving teeth. It's no
good asserting that millions of people have mercury-based
fillings and it's not doing them any harm. If it was, it
might only be now that we would notice. Of course, if it's
not on the Death Certificate as a cause of death, then it
would be harder to notice. That's similar to Alzheimer's
Disease and other dementias. The growth in these diseases
has been alarming many researchers, but it is rare to see
it given as a cause of death. Usually dementia sufferers
become weakened and succumb to other illnesses, such as
pneumonia. The figures therefore show that the disease is
prevalent and distressing for many individuals and
families, but it doesn't appear 'fatal'. That's simply
playing with words. Dementias never get better. People who
suffer from them, have them until they die. Once you've got
it, you never recover. Why shouldn't we think of it as a
'terminal' illness?

The problem, for researchers into the effects of mercury on
the body, is that they think they've found a link between
dementias and mercury fillings. This is a contentious
claim, and it's easy to play 'Top Trumps' with the research
findings – you may prefer an established name and
respected institution and the research they do, to some of
the less formal and less well known studies. Of course,
that's not how science works. If a link has been found,
then it should be provable in differing settings and with
different populations. That research has yet to be done,
but there is something that is holding it up. Science is
not, as we might expect, totally disinterested and balanced
in its view of what needs to be looked into. The fact that
research on the effects of mercury needs to be done is not
the most important consideration for some academic bodies.
They ask, What is the point? Suppose, for example, that it
could be proved that there was a link between the mercury
in teeth fillings and illness – of any kind –
what impact would that have on society? In litigious
cultures, such as the U.S.A., it might result in
multi-million dollar lawsuits. It might also result in a
complete collapse in confidence in the dental profession in
the West, the one that has been using mercury amalgam for
this generation with such frequency and assurance. It's a
well-paid and prestigious career, with good connections to
the political and economic elites. How likely is it that
these professionals would be prepared to admit that their
treatments are misguided and potentially dangerous?

It's an irony to think that the Baby Boomer generation
might find themselves dying in swathes not from misuse of
illegal drugs, self-indulgent living, or 'sex and drugs and
rock and roll', but from the simplest of things – a
metal they have been carrying around in their lives since
early childhood. Of course, such thoughts may be misguided.
Perhaps new research will confirm the industry's confidence
that mercury amalgam is a completely inert substance that
has none of the poisonous qualities of its major component
– mercury, one of the most poisonous metals known,
and one that if taken orally is completely and horribly
fatal. After all, we now know that the first Emperor of
China was smitten with the look, feel and qualities of
mercury, so much so that he took small quantities of the
liquid metal for his health. It killed him. There's no
dispute about that. The argument, from modern dentists and
their supporters, is that once the mercury is mixed with
its other components, it becomes completely harmless. That
is the claim being examined by recent research.

It's worth remembering that this isn't the only debate
about the use of metals that has gone on in human history.
The Romans used to line their aqueducts with lead to bring
water into the city in the first few centuries of this era.
We now know that people who drink water flowing across such
metal can suffer from many illnesses, including brain
damage in children. The Romans didn't know this, but it may
be one reason for the decline of their culture. The
question many observers are asking is, have we a similar
problem here, and is it worth more effort being put into
considering the possible problems before more damage is
done?

----------------------------------------------------
Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author. He has written
plays, stories and novels, but recently has turned to Self
Help and health matters. If you want to know if his
thoughts on teeth fillings have led to anything, go to his
main website and look under the heading 'Unfinished
Novels'. There may be a title there, something like
'Filling In'. Find it? Try http://www.mikescantlebury.com

How to Decrease the Risk of Getting Colon Cancer by 80%

How to Decrease the Risk of Getting Colon Cancer by 80%
An approximate of over 60,000 people this year will die
from colon cancer. Colon cancer is one of the most common
types of cancer in the United States, with an estimate of
112,340 new cases and 52,180 deaths this year. If you
can’t have a bowel movement more than 3 times a week,
you might be having a symptom of colon cancer. Painful
stomach cramps, unexplained weight loss, bloating, nausea
and vomiting can suggest you might be developing colon
cancer.

The fact is that, you can decrease your likelihood of
getting colon cancer by about 80% by making changes to your
lifestyle. Here are 3 little changes you can make to your
lifestyle – that’ll help you block colon cancer.

1) Change your diet.

This change won’t come all easy at first, but once
you get the hang of it, you’ll see improvements in
your life. Take in more fibers by eating more vegetables,
start reducing cholesterol by drinking green tea
(you’ll see other amazing benefits just by drinking
green tea) and cut down your sugar intake.

The vegetable part is the most important. What are your
favorite vegetables? Eat at least 2 servings of them per
day. You can supplement this by drinking those vegetable
mix drinks that have at least a full serving of vegetables
per can. You might not be able to take the taste of these
drinks during your first tries, but eventually you’ll
start to love them.

2) Avoid smoking.

If you’re a smoker, you’re much more likely to
get colon cancer, and other kind of diseases. Inhaling
smoke can increase the growth rate of polyps/tumor
(abnormal growth of tissue), especially the dangerous kind
that plays a prime role in creating colon cancer. There
have been many clinical trials that link smoking and colon
cancer.

If you don’t smoke, avoid many “second-hand
smoking” areas as possible. These are usually indoor
areas where there isn’t any ventilation, and
you’re virtually smoking as well.

3) Take a colon cleanser.

This is by far the fastest and best way to clean your
colon, and increase bowel movements. These are usually
available in the pill form, and they are different from the
ones you see at your local pharmacy.

These supplements are made for killing parasites
(you’ve got thousands of them in your body), cleaning
the internal organs, and preventing colon cancer so
effectively that you won’t have to worry about colon
cleansing after you’re done with the cycle.

----------------------------------------------------
Watch out for certain products though. There are so many
colon cleansers that promise all kind of things, but most
of them are pure internet scams that don’t work. If
you’re interested in cleansing your colon almost
immediately, try this colon cleanser.
http://www.bowtrol-colol-cleanser.com

Secret Cardio Method Burns Belly Fat

Secret Cardio Method Burns Belly Fat
Shocking weight loss research out of Australia has recently
shown that the old way of using cardio for fat burning just
doesn't work. Medical researchers put women through a 15
week period of cardio workouts, and yet these women did not
lose any weight over the entire program.

Both researchers and subjects were stunned by the lack of
results. But that wasn't the only surprise.

Another group of women were in the exercise study, but they
used a secret form of short fat burning cardio workouts
called "Intervals" for the 15 week study. Now imagine the
surprise of everyone involved when this group of women lost
a significant amount of body fat from shorter workouts
(about half the time of the slow, cardio group).

And not only did the interval training group achieve more
fat burning results than the cardio group, and in less
time, but the interval training also resulted in a dramatic
decrease in belly fat. In fact, the researchers went so far
as to say that interval training results in the "spot
reduction" that all men and women try to achieve with
abdominal training.

When interviewed, Professor Steve Boucher, one of the
Australian researchers, explained, "high intensity
intermittent exercise may result in greater fat loss in the
abdomen". That means that unlike doing hundreds of
crunches, interval training can work to burn belly fat over
everything else.

This is incredible news for all men and women who want to
achieve a lean midsection or even 6-pack abs. While most
men and women spend all their time on abdominal exercises,
the latest research clearly shows we should be doing
interval training, not slow cardio or endless crunches.
Intervals are the best way to lose stomach fat.

Fitness experts in North America have been one step ahead
of this research. In fact, most fat loss programs these
days include an interval training program. If your workout
doesn't use interval training, you could be missing out on
maximum belly fat burning. Plus, some experts believe there
is a "Dark Side of Cardio", that not only provides limited
results, but also might lead to overuse injury.

Intervals work better than cardio due to the increased
intensity of the exercise session. And more importantly,
the workouts are over in less time. The Australian
scientists believe interval training has a superior effect
on fat burning hormones and therefore provides better
results than slow cardio. Professor Boucher expects
interval training to work just as well in men as it does in
women.

If you are new to interval training, you should start
conservatively. Begin by doing 1 minute rounds of interval
training at a slightly harder than normal exercise pace.
Then spend 1 minute at a slow pace as a recovery interval.
Continue to alternate between hard intervals and recovery
intervals for approximately 12 minutes. Always include a
4-minute warmup and 4-minute cooldown to complete your 20
minute interval training session.

As your fitness improves, you can increase your interval
intensity. Perform this type of workout 3 times per week
after your resistance training workout and you will lose
stomach fat, burn off your belly, and sculpt your body to
develop a lean mid-section and toned arms.

----------------------------------------------------
Learn about the "Dark Side of Cardio" and find out more
belly fat burning cardio tips in the free report from
http://www.TurbulenceTraining.com . Discover Men's Health
expert Craig Ballantyne's secret interval workouts to lose
stomach fat.

Start Weight Training Exercises - Save Your Bones

Start Weight Training Exercises - Save Your Bones
I wish someone had told me when I was 30 that I should look
after my bones! For both men and woman, age 30 is when you
have the maximum strength and density in your bones. It's
downhill all the way after that unless you put some stress
on those bones.

So nobody mentioned all this when I was 30! Never heard of
osteoporosis. Old ladies had dowager humps. I didn't know
why.

It hasn't been that long since osteoporosis has come to the
forefront. Now we know that osteoporosis is a disease in
which bones become fragile, lose mass and are more likely
to fracture. It's not just woman who get osteoporosis
either. According the the National Osteoporosis
Foundation, more than 44 million Americans are affected by
osteoporosis. That includes me.

I have discovered that one of the most important things you
can do to ward off or reverse osteoporosis is to exercise
with weights. Stress and strain on your bones stimulates
the formation of new dense bone. Your bone cells are
constantly breaking down to be replaced with new stronger
cells if they are stressed.

To keep your bones strong you need sufficient calcium,
vitamin D, and weight bearing exercise. If you continue
this kind of exercise you will minimize bone loss later in
life. No matter what your age, if you engage in regular
weight bearing exercise you will maintain higher bone
density.

If you have been a couch potato, chances are your bones are
losing mass and becoming brittle. So get up off that couch
and strengthen those bones. Your bone mass can be
increased as much as 5 to 10 percent or more by exercising
with weights.

Exercise is good for the cardiovascular and respirator
system - it improves the circulation of blood throughout
the body. Exercise increases your good cholesterol level.
Exercise maintains strong and healthy bone and muscle.
Bone density and bone mass are increased. Stress and
depression reduced. Exercise even helps in getting a good
night's sleep.

You will notice the benefits of an exercise program when
your body starts firming up. Fat will start burning off,
and even if you can't see your bones, they will also be
benefitting from your exercise. ( I know mine have. )
Adding muscle to your body through weight training will
often increase your metabolic rate. If you increase your
metabolism you increase the amount of fat burning enzymes
in your body. This means you will burn more body fat even
at rest.

If you are anywhere over 30 there is no better time than
now to build and maintain your bones with a vigorous weight
training program. It doesn't have to take up a lot of your
time. Exercising vigorously for a surprising minimal
amount of time a day will not only increase your bone mass,
but you will gain muscle strength, lose weight, and achieve
a body fitness you will love.

----------------------------------------------------
Marsh Nelson A senior interested in helping people get to
a healthy senior age. For a great 12 minute routine to
keep those bones strong, go to:
http://www.enjoybodyfitness.com

Carbohydrate and Calorie Cycling for Maximum Fat Loss

Carbohydrate and Calorie Cycling for Maximum Fat Loss
High carbs, low carbs, moderate carbs – depending on
who you talk to, you will likely hear one of these
recommendations being touted as the optimal approach to
maximum fat loss. So what's the truth? The truth of the
matter is that there is really no one best way. Each of the
above methods has been used by countless people –
from bodybuilding and fitness competitors all the way to
your every day gym rat – and used successfully at
that. In actuality, how many carbs you are eating is not
the key determinant of your fat loss progress; calories
are. More on that later though. The key to successful fat
loss is paying attention to your body, following a plan
designed for your body and making the necessary adjustments
to your program as your body changes. With that said, a
nutritional strategy that includes both carbohydrate and
calorie cycling in a structured plan built around your
training program could be just what you're looking for.
Let's take a closer look at this carbohydrate issue first.

Truth be told, there are benefits to having a fair amount
of carbs in your diet and there are benefits to keeping
them low. So why not use both strategies? Said in a simpler
way, why not cycle your carb intake, and subsequently your
caloric intake? By cycling your carb intake you get the
best of both worlds. Assuming you keep your protein and fat
intakes relatively constant, and only manipulate your carb
intake, you are automatically cycling calories as well. The
first benefit to doing so is that it keeps your body from
adapting to what you are doing. Your body will always try
to adapt to what you’re doing and the further you
move away from your natural set point, the harder your body
is going to try to pull you right back. This is just in
part related to the regulatory hormone, leptin.

Leptin levels are related to things like insulin, your
caloric intake and your current level of body fat. Think of
it as one of the big “fat-loss decision
makers”. The leaner you are the lower your
circulating levels of leptin are going to be. On the flip
side, under normal conditions, leptin is plentiful.
However, while on sub-maintenance calories, and
particularly on low-carb diets where circulating insulin
levels are low, leptin levels drop and they can drop
quickly. Decreased leptin levels cause a cascade of other
regulatory changes, namely a decrease in thyroid output and
metabolic rate, as well as an increase in catabolic hormone
activity and appetite. In an attempt to become more
efficient, your body will try to adapt to make your newly
lowered caloric intake its new maintenance intake; that is,
it will make the necessary changes needed to do the same
amount of work on less energy. Unfortunately, this usually
means having to continuously lower calories to maintain
fat-loss progress, which inevitably makes it very hard to
hold onto all your hard-earned muscle. None of this sounds
too good does it? There has to be a better way, and there
is. Planned and structured days of high calories and high
carbohydrates may help with this.

As previously mentioned, there are benefits to both
low-carb intakes and to high-carb intakes. When carb intake
is drastically reduced you create a temporarily greater
caloric deficit. In addition, low-carb intakes result in
decreased levels of circulating insulin, increased levels
of the fat-burning catecholamines and therefore a much
heightened rate of fat oxidation. Quite simply, when
insulin levels are low, you create an environment in which
fat is more likely to be used for energy. Low muscle
glycogen, as a result of decreased carbohydrate intake,
obviously results in depleted muscles, but there are
benefits to this as well. Low muscle glycogen tends to
promote a higher rate of free fatty acid burning. Result?
More fat loss.

On the flip side however, most people do not enjoy eating
few carbs for very long. While there are clearly benefits
to doing so, there are other things that need to be
considered. Chronic low-carb intake can actually impair
insulin sensitivity and promote insulin resistance. As
already noted, low-carb intakes result in overly flat,
depleted muscles and gym performance typically suffers.
Throw in a day of high carbs and your muscles fill out, you
find yourself more vascular, your workouts are great, and
you look and feel much better. There is also research to
support the fact that these higher-carb/calorie days may
stimulate leptin production, which as we already noted is
an important player in the fat-loss game. Carbohydrates are
also very protein sparing – meaning they prevent
protein from being oxidized as fuel – which is an
important consideration when muscle retention is a primary
focus.

There are psychological factors to consider as well. How
you feel on a diet is arguably just as important to your
progress as any other variable. There are not too many
people that enjoy looking flat and depleted all the time.
And lets not forget one of the reasons most people can
appreciate – carbohydrates simply taste good.

So to summarize, we want some days where carbohydrate
intake and calories are higher and some days where
carbohydrate intake and calories are lower. The simplest
way to set this is to just cycle your carbohydrates and
calories according to your weekly training schedule. For
example, assuming four workouts per week, you might have
your high days on your two big workouts, medium days on
your two easier workouts, and low days on your off days.

PRACTICAL STEPS There is no one best way to cycle carbs or
calories. In fact, there are many, many different
permutations that can be used successfully. Here is just
one example that you could use as a template. Feel free to
tweak it to suit your needs if necessary.

First off is caloric intake. Determine all the
macronutrient totals (protein, carbs, fat, and calories)
for the medium day and then just let the carbohydrate
intake change the calories for the high and low days. So,
assume the medium day is a standard dieting day. As an
aside, but a valuable note to keep in mind, there are many
different calorie equations you can use – however be
aware that they all have the potential to be off by as much
as 20%. So for the sake of simplicity you could just assume
maintenance to be approximately 15x total bodyweight and
subtract 20-25% to create a healthy caloric deficit.
Remember, if you are not progressing based on your caloric
intake, simply adjust it up or down until progress resumes.
Next up is protein. I am sure we are all in agreement that
we need to eat sufficient amounts of protein when trying to
lose fat and maintain muscle, so set it anywhere from
1.0-1.5g/lb of bodyweight and split it up evenly throughout
the day. You are going to have three carbohydrate intakes
– one for high days, one for medium days, and one for
low days. Carbohydrate intake for the medium days is going
to be set at 1.0g/lb of bodyweight. So now we know our
calories, our protein and our carbs. All that remains is to
figure out how much fat we’re to eat. In this case,
fat simply serves as a caloric ballast. Simply make up the
rest of your calories from fat. Your protein and fat intake
from these days will stay constant throughout all three
days. Carb intake for your high days should be set at
2.0g/lb of bodyweight and finally for your low days it is
going to be minimal as you’re only eating fibrous
vegetables; no starch type carbs at all.

Remember the truth of the matter is that there is no one
best method for fat loss. Carbohydrate and calorie cycling
is just one logical and effective way of approaching it.
Many who opt for this kind of approach find it very easy to
follow as you get a few days a week where you get to eat
some fun carbs, and like I said, who doesn’t like
eating carbs?

----------------------------------------------------
Erik Ledin, B.Kin, CSCS, CISSN, is the President of Lean
Bodies Consulting Inc., an online consulting firm that
reaches globally and specializes in physique contest
preparation, fat loss, nutrition and overall physical
enhancement. He can be reached at
http://www.leanbodiesconsulting.com

Chromium May Not Help Your Body Shape But It's Still Vital For Your Health

Chromium May Not Help Your Body Shape But It's Still Vital For Your Health
Chromium is one of the lesser known of the trace minerals
which are essential to human health, but there are two
types you need to know about.

Hexavalent chromium has wide applications for industry, but
is toxic to humans both on external skin contact and
through internal consumption. Trivalent chromium, however,
appears to be not only completely safe, but potentially
highly beneficial to health, and all mentions of chromium
in the remainder of this article will relate only to this
type.

Perhaps the most important function of chromium lies in its
interaction with other key nutrients, particularly niacin
(vitamin B3) and certain amino acids, to form what is known
as the "glucose tolerance factor" (GTF), which enhances the
action of insulin and consequent metabolism of glucose to
produce energy within the body. The correct metabolism of
glucose, of course, is also crucial in regulating blood
sugar levels; and a lack of insulin or a decrease in the
body's sensitivity to it may give rise to the increased
blood sugar levels characteristic of diabetes. Less well
known, perhaps, is that insulin is also important in the
metabolism of dietary protein and fat.

Although the mechanism by which chromium enhances insulin
action is not fully understood there is evidence that
supplements of up to 200 mcg a day may have some effect in
reducing the need for additional insulin in diabetics.
This evidence, however, is based on Chinese research which
orthodox medical opinion remains reluctant to accept as
necessarily applicable to Western diets and obesity
patterns; insisting that more research is needed. But
whilst from the strictly scientifc point of view this may
be true, it is worth noting that the benefits were observed
at relatively low and harmless levels of supplementation.
So, as ever, regard must be had to the likely balance of
risk and reward.

Moreover, but perhaps logically enough, it has also been
suggested that a deficiency of chromium may be a factor
pre-disposing an individual towards the development of type
2, ie late onset, or non-insulin dependent, diabetes.
There is also some evidence that similar deficiencies in
chromium may be implicated in increased levels of blood
cholesterol, although orthodox opinion maintains that this
does not necessarily imply that supplementation in
non-deficient individuals will serve to reduce these
levels.

Chromium's role in the metabolism of glucose, protein and
fat has led to a widespread belief that it may help not
only in the reduction of body fat but in the acquisition of
lean muscle mass. But sadly, although there is some
research to support this idea, there is at least as much
which showed no such benefits, and chromium supplements
should not therefore be marketed or regarded either as a
bodybuilding or diet product.

Owing to the supposed paucity of information on the action
of chromium within the body, neither the US nor European
authorities have currently proposed a Recommended Dietary
Allowance (RDA). But the US Food and Nutrition Board has
suggested an Adequate Intake (AI) level of 35 mcg daily for
men and 25 mcg for women. Slightly higher levels are
suggested for pregnant or breast-feeding women; slightly
lower for children, adolescents and the over fifties.

Chromium in foods is commonly found in small, in fact
minute, quantities. Moreover these amounts have been found
to vary considerably even within batches of the same food.
For these reasons it is difficult to give accurate
indications of the amounts which may be expected in
servings of common foodstuffs. As a generalisation,
however, it may be stated that lean meats such as beef and
turkey (especially when processed), fresh vegetables,
particularly, broccoli and green beans, are probably the
richest readily available sources.

Even these, however, will seldom provide more than around
10 mcg per serving at most, and often considerably less.
It's also important to note that the foods high in refined
sugars which are so common in the modern Western diet are
not only themselves low in chromium but also appear to
increase the excretion of chromium from the body.
Unsurprisingly, therefore, it is estimated that the average
adult daily intake of chromium may be as little as 20 - 40
mcg a day, of which only around 2% may be successfully
absorbed and utilised by the body, and that deficiencies of
the mineral are consequently quite common.

But if supplements of chromium are to be taken, regard must
be had as always to the holistic functioning of the body.
Chromium is absorbed best, for example, when taken in the
presence of adequate vitamin C; whereas an excessive intake
of calcium by contrast, will further restrict chromium
absorption. But taking too much chromium is likewise to be
avoided because any excess may restrict the body's
absorption of the essential minerals zinc and iron.

Happily, however, none of this need be as confusing as it
may sound. Supplementing with between 50 and 200 mcg of
chromium a day appears to be both safe and potentially
beneficial provided it is obtained as part of a
comprehensive multi-mineral supplement. But for best
results, as always, this multi-mineral should be taken in
conjunction with a quality multi-vitamin preparation.

----------------------------------------------------
Steve Smith is a freelance copywriter specialising in
direct marketing and with a particular interest in health
products. Find out more at
http://www.sisyphuspublicationsonline.com/LiquidNutrition/In
formation.htm

Eat Fats for Your Health

Eat Fats for Your Health
Mounting research suggests that getting the right amount of
essential fatty acids is as important as getting your daily
vitamins. There are fats that are very beneficial to our
general health, especially our skin health. There are also
fats we should avoid; usually we are eating the wrong fats.

Many adults are starting to include an EFA (Essential Fatty
Acid) supplement in their daily supplementation program.
The benefits are usually noticeable within a few weeks of
starting supplementation. One of the first things people
usually notice is a reduction in the dryness and itching of
the skin. Research in the prestigious medical journal, The
Lancet, cited an imbalance in fat metabolism, due to the
modern diet loaded with processed foods and hydrogenated
fats or trans fats while being practically void of
EFA’s - as a major culprit in many health problems.
Clearly, a healthy balance of EFA’s is critical to
total body health both inside and out. Essential Four:

• ALA (Alpha linolenic acid) found in flax seeds, has
shown great promise in helping the body with cancer
prevention, protecting against heart disease, improving
immune function, pre-menopausal and menopausal symptoms.
Many women report that hot flashes and night sweats
disappear after a couple weeks of taking 2 tablespoons of
flax seed oil. Improved hormone function equates to
healthier, younger looking skin.

• GLA (Gamma linolenic acid) is recognized for its
abilities in a variety of areas. It is a PMS soother,
arthritis alleviator and major beautifier. Borage oil,
black current seed oil, and evening primrose oil are the
richest sources of GLA. While GLA is found in vegetable
oils, there are numerous dietary and lifestyle factors
which disrupt the absorption. For example, consumption of
sugar, alcohol, trans fats, and lack of minerals and
vitamins can interfere with absorption of GLA, EPA and DHA.
Trans fats usually come in the form of fried foods,
alcohol is alcohol, and sugar is hidden because anything
white converts to sugar immediately. High fructose corn
syrup is the worst but baked products with white enriched
flour convert to sugar and mess with the absorption of GLA,
EPA, and DHA fats.

• Research with the Omega-3’s, EPA and DHA has
shown such great promise in a variety of mental and
physical health issues that the American Heart Association
recently revised its food guidelines to include
Omega-3’s. They are advising everyone’s diet
consist of at least two 3 ounce servings of a fatty fish
weekly. Fish such as salmon, sardines and mackerel.

• These fats are critical to hormone production and
hormone production is at the source of every bodily
function. Because of the necessary of these healthy fats
in hormone production it is easy to see why they are
showing to be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of
degenerative diseases.

• Read food labels before you buy or eat a food.
This is critical you will be surprised what you can learn
from the label. Hydrogenated oils and partially
hydrogenated oils have been indicated in many major cancers
and heart disease. If the product has hydrogenated or
partially hydrogenated oils, lard or any added animal fats
do not consume it. At a restaurant ask what type of oils
or fats are used in preparing this food. Olive oil and
butter are your safest options. There is not a food that
contains these fats that you cannot live without and there
are many alternatives in today’s market place. We
can take action to remove these foods from the options that
are available in the future by not purchasing them.

• Many people today are finding they are sensitive
and cannot eat gluten containing foods. Even those tested
negative for gluten sensitivity still notice their
digestion is better when they eliminate enriched flour
products from their diets. It is not only the gluten that
is a problem in enriched flour products. Digestion is
impaired when we eat enriched flour because all the
beneficial nutrients, fiber and fats are removed from the
enriched product to begin with. Enriched means it is not
whole or it is missing something.

To Summarize:

• Take a multiple vitamin daily.

• Take an EFA daily.

• A daily dose of good fats is a vital component of
overall health and well-being as well as necessary for
beautiful skin.

• Avoid alcohol, trans fats, hydrogenated fats and
excess sugars.

• Read labels religiously.

• Eat nutrient dense foods that provide necessary
vitamins and minerals.

• Eliminate enriched flour products.

----------------------------------------------------
Kathy Wright is a beauty and wellness expert, author,
speaker and CEO of B&P Company the manufactures of
Frownies Beauty patch and skin care line. Read other
articles written by Kathy at http://www.frownies.com/tips

Is the Road to Diabetes and Depression the Same One?

Is the Road to Diabetes and Depression the Same One?
Type II diabetes and depression are co morbid, which means
they happen together more than expected based on the rates
of each disease alone. The question among scientists is
whether one disease can cause the other or whether there
are factors that lead to both at the same time.

For example, having type II diabetes might cause people to
feel more depressed because they are sick. Likewise, having
depression might cause people to not eat healthy or get any
exercise and lead to diabetes. The relationship might be as
simple as that.

Is there more to the story?

Many scientists, me included, feel that there are common
lifestyle factors that lead to type II diabetes and
depression at the same time. There are an abundance of
studies implicating exercise (or lack of it) in the onset
of both diseases. There are also many studies highlighting
the role of nutrition in both diabetes and depression.

Now, a new study, published in the October 2007 edition of
PLOS Biology, sheds more light on this relationship with a
focus on insulin at the center. Anyone with diabetes is
well versed in the importance of insulin. It is a primary
hormone that controls blood sugar levels, which the body
needs to maintain tight control over for survival.

Insulin has many jobs

Your pancreas releases insulin into your bloodstream
whenever blood sugar levels rise. It then goes around
knocking on the doors of cells throughout your body telling
them to take some sugar out of the blood and use it to make
or store energy.

In type II diabetes two things go wrong. One, your pancreas
becomes less responsive to making and releasing insulin;
and two, cells throughout your body start to ignore the
insulin that is released. Since insulin is important in so
many different body functions, this becomes a serious
problem.

The findings in the new study revolve around another role
of insulin in the brain. The researchers discovered that
dopamine activity in a part of the brain that promotes
feelings of pleasure and reward are dependent upon insulin.
In my opinion, this has a couple of far reaching
implications.

Does insulin promote addiction?

The research suggests that diabetics, who lack the ability
to produce insulin, will have a more difficult time feeling
joy and pleasure because the brain circuits that control
these feelings will be less active. This may be one link
between the co-occurrences of type II diabetes and
depression.

From a scientific perspective, this is a very interesting
finding. But from a health perspective how does it help us
prevent these diseases in the first place? This is where
the next implication comes in.

The new research suggests that rises in insulin might boost
the activity of pleasure and reward centers, the same ones
that are stimulated by addictive drugs like amphetamine and
cocaine.

When does your insulin go up? It goes up after a high sugar
meal. What does this mean? It means that high sugar meals
might stimulate addictive centers in the brain.

I’ve been touting the benefits of feeding yourself
and your kids low-glycemic (essentially low sugar) meals
for some time. This new research adds fuel to that argument
by suggesting that sugar might actually be addictive. Maybe
not in the same sense that elicit drugs are addictive, but
that they have some degree of addictive tendencies
themselves.

The irony is that eating high-glycemic meals actually makes
you feel good in the short-term by increasing insulin and
boosting activity of your brain’s pleasure centers.
But after years of eating sugar your pancreas will
eventually burn out and lead to type II diabetes and
possibly depression, leaving you with the opposite feelings
that you ate the sugar for in the first place.

The take home message?

Get the high sugar cereals and other foods out of your
house. Don’t set yourself and your kids up for a
lifetime of battling the cravings for these disease
promoting foods.

----------------------------------------------------
Master Brain Fitness techniques for you and your family.
Your Brain Fitness holds is the key to unlock your maximum
potential. Dr. Simon Evans puts together the right
ingredients in right amount to create the recipe for
success. Visit http://www.BrainFitForLife.com for FREE
Brain Fitness resources.

Surgery For Weight Loss

Surgery For Weight Loss
Overweight has reached epidemic proportions, particularly
in the United States where two-thirds of the population is
overweight and one-third of the population is severely
overweight, or obese. Given the sheer number of overweight
people, not to mention the detrimental effects of being
overweight, it’s expected that various solutions to
losing weight would be available, and that is in fact the
case. One particular weight loss method that’s gotten
a good deal of notoriety is a surgical solution known as
gastric bypass.

Gastric bypass occurs through making the stomach smaller
and by allowing food to bypass part of the small intestine.
The end result of gastric bypass is a sensation of feeling
physically full sooner after eating than is typical, with
fewer calories consumed. Fewer calories are also absorbed
during eating after a gastric bypass procedure because of
the reduced role of the small intestine in digestion.

The specific method for performing a gastric bypass
procedure involves literally dividing the stomach into two
sections, one considerably smaller than the other. This
smaller section of stomach is what food comes into contact
with first: because this initial section of stomach is so
much smaller, it gives off signals of being full with a
small amount of food intake. Though all procedures that
alter the stomach for purposes of weight loss are referred
to as gastric bypass, there are variations in the
procedure. The most commonly performed gastric bypass is
Gastric bypass, Roux en-Y (proximal). As the name suggests,
Gastric bypass, Roux en-Y (proximal) is a complicated
procedure, but what it basically serves to do is alter the
small intestine and produce a feeling of fullness in the
patient soon after eating.

In a very real sense, gastric bypass is an emergency
procedure. Gastric bypass is only performed on obese
individuals. Further still, gastric bypass is typically
only performed on individuals who have been obese for a
period of at least five years. Such individuals would be
considered at high risk for the health risks from extreme
overweight, and gastric bypass could be seen in such a
situation as an effort to extend life. Gastric bypass is
never performed as a cosmetic procedure for improving body
image, as is the case with liposuction for instance.
Gastric bypass is also often considered a last resort type
of procedure and will often not be performed until other
attempts at weight loss have been documented to have
failed. When gastric bypass is performed, the typical time
period for returning to normal activities is three to five
weeks.

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Zinn Jeremiah is a freelance author. To find weight loss
help resources, visit http://www.hubonline.biz/lose-now.htm
or http://www.hubonline.biz/get-fit.htm .