Tips on How to Avoid Weight Gain This Holiday

Most of us are prone to gain more weight during the holidays.

Here are some tips from Dr. Andrew Weil on how to avoid weight gain during the holidays:

Choose Fiber Rich Fruits and Veggies - try to stay away from foods that have high fat saturation and sodium.

Be aware of what you eat - be aware when you are eating and control yourself to stop when you are already full.

Don't starve yourself to justify eating more at dinner - this is more tempting to overindulge later in the day

Concentrate on portion control and planning - Do not put in more than you can consume. Choose only those that you love to eat. Eat slowly and enjoy the food.

Get Up from the table when you're done to avoid nibbling.


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Do You Have Diabetes?

Diabetes have become one of the most common diseases of modern times. The estimated number or people with diabetes worldwide today is 246 million!

Here are some common symptoms of diabetes:

You're always thirsty and hungry - excessive thirst and urination is a sign of diabetes. You may also be hungry even after a meal.

Vision Problems - blurred vision is a sign of diabetes. It can also contribute to cataracts and glaucoma.

Feel Tired and Moody - the endocrine system has trouble burning glucose this affects our stress levels. Increased fatigue, obesity, high blood pressure. This eventually causes irritability, mood swings, or depression.

Slow healing wounds - people with diabetes may take a longer time for even a simple wound to get better. This is because the blood supply isn't as good and immune cells do not function properly.


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Reduce Stress - Time Management

Most of us feel overwhelmed by our seemingly endless to-do lists and our hectic schedules. We sometimes feel 24 hours isn't enough for us to finish all our tasks and duties.

Time management is difficult to accomplish but it's do-able.

Here are some tips on how to manage your time:

Plan each day . Create a schedule. Write a To-Do List and Organise it according to urgency and importance.

Determine your priorities.

Delegate tasks. See the things that you can easily delegate to a housemate, colleague.

10 Minute Rule - Work on dreaded tasks for 10 minutes each day. Once a task is started, you may be able to finish it.

Evaluate how you spend your time. Create a diary, look for patterns on how you spend your time. See what's eating too much of your time and analyze whether you can minimize it.

How Emotion Affects Our Health

Most of us know that only physical activities, genes and lifestyle affects our health. What many people still don't know is that our emotional experiences also affect our health.

One research called the ACE Study was conducted to find the link between emotions and adult health. Researchers found out that this study “…documents the conversion of traumatic emotional experiences in childhood into organic disease later in life.”

According to Marcelle Pick, OB/GYN NP, "The truth is that all emotional experience affects our health, whether positive or negative, and whether it occurs in the past or the present. But negative experiences appear to have more lasting health effects, perhaps because we don’t deal with them."

Stress triggers the adrenals to produce cortisol and adrenaline. High levels of cortisol have destructive effects on the body such as hypertension, high cholesterol, weight gain.

Unresolved emotional issues affect systemic inflammation and contribute to diseases such as cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer's. Emotions also affect certain organs. Type A personalities, for example, have much greater risks of heart disease.

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High Fat Diet and Memory Loss

Two new studies have been conducted that link high-fat diet with memory loss and Alzheimer's disease.

A group of researchers from Baycrest Health Center in Toronto conducted a research with humans who have Type 2 Diabetes. Results show that participants who were given high-fat diet performed 25% worse than the controlled group.

Another groupd of researchers from Medical University of South California and Arizona Statue University conducted a similar research on rats. Results show that the rats who had high-saturated fat group also performed worse than those who had eaten soybean oil.


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Risks of Drinking Alcohol Before Age 15

We are all aware that alcoholic beverages are dangerous for our health. We may have been educated already of the risks of taking in alcoholic drinks. Now a recent study has shown that drinking alcoholic beverages before age 15 even puts higher risk of developing alcohol problems.

According to Deborah Dawson, author and a staff scientist at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism said in a news release from the institute, "The key finding of this study was that people who started drinking before age 15 and to a lesser extent those who started drinking at agest 15 - 17 were more likely to become alcohol dependent as adults than people who waited until 18 or older to start drinking,"

Researchers believe that this would likely develop into frequent heavy drinking even at a very early age. They analyzed the results of a study conducted to 22,000 US drinkers of 18 years and above.

It is very, very important for parents to be involved in order to prevent early drinking to avoid developing AUD's (alcohol use disorder).



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Guide on How to Avoid Alzheimer's disease

According to Alzheimer's Association's 2008 Facts and Figures, one person develops Alzheimer's disease every 71 seconds. It is also the 6th leading cause of death in the United States. This is an alarming fact. It is important for us to know the steps on how to avoid Alzheimer's. So, read on.

Some of the physical symptoms of Alzheimer's include impaired judgment, difficulty in speaking, swallowing or walking, changes in behavior, disorientation and confusion.

To prevent Alzheimer's disease, it is important that we upgrade our lifestyles. This includes avoiding cigarette smoking, alcohol, and doing regular exercise. This will not only keep us physically fit but also mentally as well.

Eat more fruits and veggies. It is recommended by Alzheimer's Association that we eat the recommended amount of folate to lower the risk of developing the disease.

"A lifetime of intellectual curiosity and mental stimulation" may help to promote brain health, according to the Alzheimer's Association. In fact, numerous studies suggest that stimulating your brain as you age can ward off dementia and cognitive decline. Activities such as going to the movies, playing cards and visiting friends are fun yet brain stimulating.

Avoid Head Injuries. It is important to always take precautions such as seat belt or helmets while driving or riding a car or a motorcycle.

It is also important to avoid psychological distress such as worrying, insecurities and nervousness). Adults who suffer from depression have higher possibilities of developing the disease.


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