Set the par this Mother’s day by ensuring your children’s dietary future is secure

Easy ways to lose weight fast

As mothers we all seek to offer our children the best possible future. We aspire to give them everything they could ever need in order to set them in the right direction when they grow up. But what if we were to tell you that you can begin offering your children a healthier route to a happier body from the moment you conceive them? Would you be interested in learning more?
Well, according to the Medical Research Council the way we eat during pregnancy can have a detrimental influence upon our children’s eating habits in the future.
Under their thesis, they believe external environmental elements such as our diet can affect how our genes are passed onto our children. Depending on the type of external element, for example a carbohydrate based diet, could in turn cause particular genes to end up being capped.
And once capped, it is harder to activate within the body when needed - weight loss being a prime example of this scenario being put into action.
In a study performed by the Canadian Cardiovascular Genetics Research Centre they found that when a particular mechanism within our muscles is capped it can have dramatic affect upon our ability to lose weight.
Now whilst this theory is still under testing and is yet to be clinically proven in terms of knowing how much this could possibly influence a child’s eating habits, it does put what we eat as a parent into a whole new perspective.
Everything we do, every action we make in some shape and form is passed onto our children. From conception to beyond our diet choices could be having a subconscious impact upon our children.
So what do you do? Begin making the changes - today.
Scientists may believe that this is all down to genetics, but you CAN still have a positive influence over your children’s eating habits – beginning with what you do this Mother’s Day.
You can make this momentous day into one that is truly worth celebrating by ensuring that you set a clear precedent for your children. From exercising regularly to cutting down on their saturated fat content, you can begin making the right changes that will continue to guide them as adults and parents themselves.
So whether you already have children or are planning to have some more in the future, make this Mother’s day one to remember – as the day you took that first step to setting them on the right path.

Easy ways to lose weight fast

Some Fat Facts

There are basic facts you should know about fats. There are mainly two classes of fats; saturated fat, and unsaturated. The unsaturated ones are the polyunsaturated fats, and monounsaturated fats. Some fats are dangerous, while some are not. When fats come combined with proteins in the body, they form a complex called Lipoproteins. We will look at these later in a broader view to see why some are desirable and some are not, but first, let’s look at the major kinds of fats.
Saturated fat- Fatty acids are made up of several chains of carbon atoms, it is said to be saturated because the carbon atoms have no free bonds to link with other atoms. Normally a carbon atom has 2 free bonds that are ready to attach with other atoms to form a compound. When these free bonds are used up entirely, usually by another carbon atom or a hydrogen atom, the fat becomes saturated. That is because there is no room for any more attachment.
These are the bad type of fat and the one we must avoid in trying to stay healthy. The body has a tough time processing saturated fats, because of the number of bonds it needs to break down in the process. Saturated fats raise cholesterol levels, which increases the chances of a heart attack. For a healthy dieting plan, saturated fats must be reduced significantly from the diet. Examples of sources of saturated fat are all forms of fat in animal flesh (meat), palm oil, and coconut oil etc.
Polyunsaturated fat- Polyunsaturated fat comes in two types: omega 6 and omega 3. It is ‘poly’ because there are more than one unsaturated bonds in the compound. It is Omega-6 because the first unsaturated bond exists at the 6th carbon atom. Same is applicable to omega3. Omega 6 type comes mainly from vegetables, and omega 3 come from oily fish.
This type of fat is actually the healthy type and helps to reduce the level of bholesterol! So a small consumption is important for health. Remember, ‘small’.
Monounsaturated fat- They have only one carbon atom carrying unsaturated bonds. They are derived mainly from vegetable and are found in olive oil and almond oil. They also have the ability to help reduce cholesterol levels.
Lipoproteins: They are fat-protein complexes and play important role in the development of heart attacks. They are two classes of these lipoproteins.
High Density Lipoproteins- These lipoproteins reduce the chance of a heart disease.
Low Density Lipoproteins- Increases the likelihood of heart diseases. If the level of LDL is higher than that of HDL, the likelihood of a heart disease, stroke diabetes etc. is increased and vice versa.
Fats produces very high levels of energy and the daily intake shouldn't exceed 30% of your total calories. In other words, for an average daily intake of 2,000 calories, only about 600 should be fat derived. This of course is if you are not trying to loss weight, but if you are; your daily fat consumption should not be enough to produce 600 calories.
Every 1g of fat gives out 9 calories. That leaves you with about 66.7g of fat per day. But for weight loss, it should go lower than that.
This can be achieved by cutting down on all fatty foods and eating more of vegetables and fruits, a little of pure carbohydrates. With little or no fat at all, you will soon be getting used to the low fat diet.

Fast way to lose weight

The Cabbage Soup Diet

Just imagine looking slim, sexy and feeling confident

Ahh, the famous Cabbage Soup diet. Most people interested in dieting have certainly heard of this one. many of them have actually tried some version of it. Since nobody has ever claimed to be the inventor of this diet, there is no definitive cabbage soup diet, but rather a string of versions floating around magazines and the Internet. Every expert who tried to promote this diet has either added or replaced an existing feature, which means that aside from that cabbage soup you can expect to see a wide range of other foods, although nothing spectacular.
The biggest problem with the cabbage soup diet is all the hype that surrounds it. Some people claim that cabbage has fat burning properties, which is nonsense. Others say that one could shed a whooping 10 pounds in a single week on this diet, which is not true. There’s no magical ingredient in cabbage that helps weight loss. The basic idea behind the diet is to starve yourself by drinking a lot of cabbage soup and some water on the side. The trick is to keep your stomach filled with cabbage soup in order to keep hunger away while the body burns fat to maintain itself.
The early version cabbage soup diet featured nothing else than the basic soup. Recent versions have added fruit, vegetables, skimmed milk, lean meat or brown rice to the eating plan in order to help people stick to it for a longer time. Dieters are not allowed any alcohol. The only drinks allowed beside the cabbage soup are water and unsweetened fruit juices. The soup itself is based on cabbage, onions (or onion soup mix), tomatoes, green peppers, celery, carrots and mushrooms. There are some variations even here, but nothing important.
Unfortunately, the cabbage soup diet is not a good idea. Many people cannot stick to a diet that forces them to starve every day, especially people who have to go work. Another issue is the fact that most of the weight lost through this diet comes from water and muscle mass, instead of fat. This means that seven days later the dieter still has all the initial fat on and a good chance of replacing all the lost muscle mass with even more fat. Moreover, the low calorie intake at the core of the diet will force the body to enter starvation mode and hang on to the existing fat for its survival. This is not a good way to lose weight.

Just imagine looking slim, sexy and feeling confident

The Coconut Diet

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Some people are willing to sell anything and this is why some bad ideas are actually launched on the market, much to the dismay of unsuspecting customers who are duped by the hype and advertising. One such bad idea is the Coconut Diet, which is yet another of those diets that add some kind of miracle ingredient to a strict eating program and hope that everything turns out great. The magic ingredient in this case is the coconut oil and its metabolism boosting capacity. It seems that coconut oil can be rapidly burnt by the body, despite the fact that it is rich in saturated fats.
This diet is in fact a regular low-carb diet, very similar to Atkins. During the first stage of the diet, users are not allowed to eat any kind of carbohydrates and must do with lean foods, such as eggs, nuts, cheese, fish, chicken, turkey and up to 10 glasses of water per day. They also have to swallow 2-3 tablespoons of coconut oil per day. The first stage lasts for three weeks, only to be followed by an optional detox stage. This stage lasts for 4 weeks and focuses on cleansing the liver, kidneys, gallbladder and colon through certain interesting means (such as drinking water mixed with lemon juice and olive oil).
The third stage of the diet is the reintroduction of carbohydrates in the daily eating plan. Starting with fruit, wholegrains and potatoes, the dieter is once more allowed to eat carbs. It is assumed that the dieter has lost more than 10 pounds by this point and still maintaining a weight loss pace of 1-2 pounds per week. The fourth stage of the diet means that even more carbohydrates are added to the eating plan, while still drinking coconut oil.
Unfortunately, the person behind this diet provides no sound explanation for the alleged positive influence of coconut oil on weight loss. While it’s true that coconut oil helps regulate the thyroid gland, it has far too much saturated fat to be healthy. Furthermore, it’s not very clear whether the coconut oil plays any kind of role in this diet, since the weight loss can easily be ascribed to the strict “no carbohydrates” eating plan. Most dieting experts and dietitians agree that access to saturated fats should be limited during diets, so it’s pretty strange to see one that claims the opposite.

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The Grapefruit Diet

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The Grapefruit Diet is one of the fad diets that were really popular back in the 1980s although it has been in one form or another since 1930. Most of the time, the grapefruit diet has been discounted by experts as dangerously unbalanced or simply unable to deliver on its promises. It was generally thought that consuming vast quantities of grapefruit cannot influence weight loss in any way, which relegated this diet to the status of yet another fad, one of those things people go crazy about without any real reason. However, time has passed and new discoveries are about to rock the traditional view.
The basic idea behind this diet is to eat grapefruit whenever you can, drink a glass of unsweetened grapefruit juice with every meal, add grapefruit to cocktails and also to salads. Grapefruit is supposed to go well with the lean meat from crab and chicken and with vegetables, such as red onions, spinach `nd celery. The biggest advantage is, of course, the fact that grapefruit is virtually fat-free and has few calories. An entire grapefruit has about 70 calories, which means that you can eat about as much as you can stomach and still lose weight.
The best thing about the Grapefruit Diet is a recent study carried out by a team of scientists led by Doctor Ken Fujioka, from the Nutrition and Metabolic Research Center of the Scripps Clinic in San Diego. The study has found that, contrary to the opinions voiced by experts in the 1980s, adding grapefruit and grapefruit juice to your diet can actually help you lose weight. And what’s really great about it: you don’t have to change your eating habits at all. Naturally, eating less fat and sweets and doing some exercises is a very good way of speeding up the weight loss process, but you don’t have to go out of your way with this diet.
According to the study, eating half a grapefruit before each meal and exercising a bit every day helped a group of obese people drop an average 3.6 pounds in 12 weeks without any change in their eating habits whatsoever. A second group had to drink a glass of grapefruit juice before every meal and lost 3.3 pounds in the same 12 weeks. While it’s true that losing 1 pound per month gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “slow diet”, you have to appreciate a diet that lets you eat whatever you like and still shed a pound per month. If weight loss is not a stringent affair, then you can stick to this diet for a long time and reap the benefits.

Easy ways to lose weight fast

The South Beach Diet

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The South Beach Diet is one of the odd fishes swimming in the treacherous waters of the international weight loss industry. Many people love it and are perfectly willing to swear by the good name of M.D. Arthur Agatston, while others find it hard to stick to the obligatory induction phase. The South Beach Diet belongs to the low-carbohydrates group of diets and has been derided as a fad diet, although its fans claim that it is not a fad diet and that it is, in any case, much more responsible and healthy than Atkins. Then again, not many diets manage to be less healthy than Atkins.
Dieters who choose the South Beach Diet can expect to see their food intake restricted to lean meat, seafood, eggs, low fat dairy products, nuts, vegetables (most of them, anyway), artificial sweeteners and a couple of carbohydrates of the low glycemic variety. During the first phase of this diet, the shock phase, most fruit and vegetables are still on the banned list, just like the rest of carbohydrates. Unfortunately, some people find it hard to cope with the low energy level, the fatigue and sometimes nausea that accompany this phase. However, it should be noted that not all dieters experience these symptoms. It’s all in our genetic make-up.
The bets part of this diet is the focus on removing simple carbohydrates (sweets, pasta, bread) from the diet and replacing them with the healthier complex carbohydrates from wholegrains and vegetables. The worst part is the marketing jargon that makes it sound like a fad diet and the tough first phase of the diet, which sacrifices the long-term healthy eating approach for an instant gratification technique based on the catch-all slogan “lose weight fast”. Any such approach will have the dieter lose a lot of water and not that much fat.
On the other hand, the second phase of the diet is a bunch of quite sensible eating advice and the recipes provided by the author are very good. There are also pre-packaged South Beach foods for those who lack the time or the inclination to cook for themselves. All things considered, the South Beach Diet is not a bad idea if one could clear away the hype and marketing lingo and focus on the healthy eating part and the good food choices. This information is something that should stay with you through the years if you’re looking to keep that weight from returning.

Best ways to lose weight fast

The Sugar Addicts Diet

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Sugar seems to be addictive to a certain degree. The human body learns fast that sugar means energy and that a lot of energy running through the system translates into a good overall mood. Unfortunately, the good mood lasts just as long as the amount of sugar in your blood stays above a certain level.
Once the amount of sugar drops below that particular level, the mood changes and the body starts craving the next sugar fix that will make everything look good once more. In this respect, sugar seems to operate just like any other psychoactive substance or like adrenaline. You can learn to get high on all these substances.
The Sugar Addicts’ Diet focuses on breaking the addiction to sugar in order to prevent the mood swings that prompt the addict to reach out for one more sugary treat. These mood swings are hard to resist and the promise of the next fix is so tempting that many people have no idea they’re hooked on something that is not healthy. Truth be known, most addicts don’t want to face reality and understand the truth about their addiction and many people hooked on sugar or adrenalin have absolutely no idea that they’re using a substance to prop up their moods.
This diet is largely based on the Glycemic Index approach because its purpose is to weed out the sugary foods and replace them with foods belonging to a lower Glycemic Index that release their sugar content slowly into the bloodstream and do not trigger the rush. The basic idea is to identify hidden sugar in the foods you eat. Many people don’t know that it’s not just sweets or soft drinks that contain sugar, but also a lot of sauces, dips, yogurts and ready-to-eat foods have enough sugar in them to cause the mood swings.
It’s pretty easy to figure that this diet is more of a lifestyle choice than a proper diet. Of course you will lose weight by avoiding the foods rich in sugar, but we cannot be sure if this is the best way to go for a committed user. If you want to lose a certain number of pounds in a certain number of weeks, then you’re probably better off choosing another eating plan because nobody knows how fast you can lose weight under this one. Still, as a long-term maintenance solution, this eating plan is a good idea, especially for those who are used to eating a lot of sweets and are afraid that all those lost pounds will come back.

The best detox to lose weight

Why bad diets are bad?

Easy ways to lose weight fast

Introduction
According to popular diet advice, bad diets are generally those diets that are unhealthy and do not address the problems that caused you to gain weight in the first place. If you don't learn something about the foods you eat, you will gain the weight back when you reestablish old eating habits.
Following are some of the major side effects associated with bad diets.
1- Unbalanced and unhealthy: Some so called fat burning diets frequently require the elimination of perfectly healthy foods. As a result, what you eat is not a healthy, balanced combination of food and lacks several vital minerals and portions of food such as complex carbohydrates, dietary fiber or essential fatty acids.

2- Can cause starvation: If a fat burning diet plan asks you to a skip a meal in a day, it probably will not work for you. In reality, it could cause quite the opposite effect i.e. weight gain by slowing your metabolism. That’s why; having frequent smaller meals instead of 2 or 3 larger meals in a day is always preferred.

3- Can devoid you of exercise: Most bad diets claim that with their regular use, you would continue to lose weight even if you don’t exercise. This is completely untrue. In fact, to achieve long-term weight loss goals, a perfect combination of diet and exercise is must.

4- Results are temporary: Bad diets may be effective for weight loss in the short term because you will lose some extra fluid as well as some fat. However, the weight loss is usually temporary because you're going to return to your old eating habits when you go off the diet. In a few weeks, your weight will be right back where it was before the diet.

5- Inconsistent effects: Another problem with bad diets is that these diets only work when you stay on them so that means you have to be on a diet the rest of your life to be successful.

6- Expensive in long run: Naturally, when one has to strictly follow a certain diet regiment and for long time period, it will definitely cause a burden on the user’s pocket

7- Undesirable health hazards: Some of diets contain ephedrine, a dangerous, addictive drug that is not only illegal in high-level athletes, but also potentially deadly because it can increase incidence of strokes, seizures, and heart attacks. They are even more dangerous when combined with caffeine or other herbs. These dangerous chemicals can also be found in teas and drinks.

8- Risk of excessive fluid loss / dehydration: Most bad diets cause paid and excessive fluid loss. This naturally results in fast weight loss and many dieters mistakenly think of this as a major benefit of such diets. Typically, this levels off after 8-12 weeks. When normal intake of carbs resumes, the weight is usually regained. Also, excessive fluid loss in the early stage of such diets (e.g. low carb diet regime) can cause low blood pressure resulting in dizziness and fainting.

9- Constipation: A diet restricted in carbohydrates will not permit sufficient fiber from fruits, grains or vegetables. Result? Constipation is a frequent side-effect of low carb dieting. On the other hand, fiber itself is important in causing sustained and long term weight loss which is usually deficient in these diets.

10- Frustration: The meal plan for these so called low carb or fat burning diets is very strict and demands that participants make no changes. With the exception of a choice between coffee and tea, no options are offered. Because the diet is so demanding, dieters are likely to give up before they have finished and might potentially be frustrated from attempting to diet in the future as a result.

Easy ways to lose weight fast

Citrus fruits and obesity

Easy ways to lose weight fast

Weight loss benefits…

Citrus fruits include grapefruit, lemons, limes, tangerines, and oranges. They are best eaten fresh and are high in vitamin C as well as a wide range of nutrients and protective phyto-chemicals like pectin and naringenin. When eaten raw they are a good source of soluble and insoluble fiber. By adding Citrus Fruits to the daily diet, one can greatly increase metabolism, increase ability to get rid of fat and, hence, citrus fruits can be called as an effective weight-loss weapon. It has been shown that people can actually eat large quantities of food without consuming too many calories by choosing foods high in fiber and water content. Besides being a refreshing source for the mind and body, citrus fruits have been also recognized for their numerous other health benefits.

How do citrus fruits help in weight loss?
According to researchers, Vitamin C & naringenin, found abundantly in all citrus fruits, have a fat burning quality.

Vitamin C
Vitamin C reduces the effectiveness of fat. It reduces its content and can liquefy or dilute fat. By diluting the fat, it makes it less effective, and easier to flush out of your system. Vitamin C also works on cholesterol deposits. Vitamin C can help burn out the cholesterol, hence, making it difficult for cholesterol deposits to form in blood vessels.

Naringenin – A phytonutrients present in citrus fruits
Citrus fruits mainly consist of various water-soluble plant pigments collectively called as flavonoids. Of all the flavonoids, the most abundant one is naringenin, a naturally occurring alkaline compound in all citrus fruit, but most significantly in grapefruit, orange and tomato.
Naringenin has a significantly positive bioactive effect on human health as a fat blaster (weight loss agent), antioxidant, anti-inflammatory agent, carbohydrate metabolism promoter and immunity system modulator.

US study – Naringenin, a key to fighting obesity
In 2006, a scientific study was performed by the Florida Department of Citrus at the Balifornia Scripp's Clinic. It was found that by adding 4 ounces of grapefruit juice or half a grapefruit to meals, participants had an average weight loss of 3 1/2 pounds a week without altering their diet in any other way. Researchers believed a compound, naringenin, in the grapefruit helped the liver lower cholesterol and also helped regulate insulin levels. Both of these factors had a significant impact on overall weight reduction of the subjects.
It should be noted that obesity constitutes the main part of the “metabolic syndrome” that is also characterized by hypertension, elevated blood cholesterol and disturbed glucose and insulin metabolism.

Canadian study – Naringenin, as an effective weight reducer and maintainer
In another study performed at the Roberts Research Institute at the University of Western Ontario, the study mice were divided into four groups. They fed one group a normal, healthy diet. The second group received a high-fat, high-calorie diet. The third and fourth groups received a high-fat, high-calorie diet along with a naringenin supplement.
After just four weeks, the mice on the high-fat, high-calorie diet became obese. In addition, they became insulin and glucose intolerant. On the other hand, the two groups who received the naringenin supplement fared much better. Despite the same high-fat, high-calorie diet, these mice did not gain weight like their counterparts. In addition, the naringenin mice did not develop key health factors linked to Metabolic Syndrome. In fact, they lowered their triglyceride and cholesterol levels. They also continued to metabolize glucose normally and they never developed a resistance to insulin. At the end of the study, it was found that naringenin had marked lipid- and lipoprotein-lowering potential, without affecting caloric intake or fat absorption.
It was also found that naringenin, in concentrations far above levels found naturally, makes the liver burn fat instead of storing it. These effects were independent of caloric intake as the mice ate exactly the same amount of food and the same amount of fat. There was no suppression of appetite or decreased food intake, which are often the basis of strategies to reduce weight gain and its metabolic consequences.
As a conclusion, it was suggested that naringenin metabolizes hepatic VLDL (very low density lipoprotein) production, improves glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity and prevents obesity associated with high-fat diet.
(Mulvihill et al., Diabetes journal, July 10, 2009)

Easy ways to lose weight fast