Fat Loss 4 Idiots Opinion

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Using Feeding Tubes And Formulas For Proper Diet Needs

By Chris Channing

Not being able to swallow could mean that you would have to invest in feeding tube options, whether temporary or permanent. Feeding tubes take careful maintenance, but so too does the nutrition content that you feed into the patient's body. It's important to know what type of nutrition the person needs.

Doctors do not recommend obtaining a feeding tube formula that is not approved for feeding tube usage. The reason behind this is simple: formulas or food can easily be clogged within the tube if it is too thick or the wrong consistency. Feeding tubes are much smaller than what you would think, so the consistency must be more liquid than solid- yet also healthy enough to provide nutrition.

Cleaning your feeding tube is easy. All you have to do is flush the tube with a cleaning agent. Most of the time this is just clean water, since it also helps hydrate you naturally. If you believe that the feeding tube is showing signs of buildup or otherwise too dirty for water to clean, you may make use of a carbonated beverage. The carbonation will help breakdown hard buildup, but also remember to follow up the soda with water to also clean away the soda.

The ideal nutrition will be full of carbohydrates and minerals. You should also get a healthy dose of proteins so that your body can function correctly. If you are susceptible to a glycemic response, you should look for a formula that only contains a small amount of carbohydrates in the form of calories. A dietary professional will be better able to tell you what your obdy needs to maintain itself.

Formulas should have a healthy supply of fiber so that normal bowel function can be maintained. Diets without fiber can quickly result in more health problems in addition to those already being observed. Due to the nature of the feeding, those who use feeding tubes may not have normal bowel movements so this is an important aspect of feeding tube formulas to remember.

If you have been told that you must be put on a feeding tube formula, do consult a dieting professional so that you can balance out your calories. Taking in too many can cause a build up in energy, which results in weight gain. Too little can starve the body of its nutrients, which is equally unhealthy. In addition, some conditions require certain nutrients and others seek to avoid them.

In Conclusion

The feeding tube formula you pick is important for your health. See what others are buying in your area to get an idea on what is popular, what works, and what others have kept away from. Doing so can be the difference between poor and good health. - 17269

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10 Easy Tips to Explode Your Metabolism

By Thong M. Dao

Are you one of the many who need help to enhance your metabolism? Increasing your metabolism will allow you to lose weight quicker with the least amount of effort. Metabolism requires a high energy level and consumes calories.

Here is a list of items that will affect your metabolism; frequency of meals, stress levels, diet plans, activity, and the amount of muscle tissue your body has.

Below are 10 tips that will help your metabolism.

1. Increase slim body mass: Unfortunately, with age our body's metabolism diminishes, however it is possible to halt this outcome. Mass of muscle you have affects your capability to burn calories and remove unwanted fat. As you can see, exercise is extremely important.

Twice a week, you should workout with weights, which will build muscle mass. On the days you do not workout, include a personal activity, like playing with your dog in the park with a Frisbee. By adding additional activities, your body will continue to burn calories.

2. Eat breakfast. A lot of people ignore the fact that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Surprisingly, those who eat breakfast are thinner than those who do not. Metabolism will slow down considerably if you have breakfast during mid-morning or wait until the afternoon for lunch.

3. Believe it or not metabolism increases with the help of spicy foods.

4. Sleep more. According to research, people who do not get enough sleep run a greater risk of gaining weight. Also, muscles are regenerated during the last couple of hours of a slumber.

5. Enhance your intake of water. When fat is burned, water helps the body get rid of toxins. Without water the body is unable to function properly.

6. Consume smaller meals. It's important to consume 4 to 6 meals in a time frame of every 2 to 3 hours apart.

7. Never skip meals. People tend to skip meals to lose weight, which is a big mistake since it slows down metabolism.

8. Plan meals in detail. Always prepare the right amount of food to have at the given intervals. Do not make the mistake of eating sporadically.

9. Green tea. A good friend of metabolism is green tea. Green tea rejuvenates metabolism, and unlike coffee, it has no undesirable side effects.

10. Fruits, vegetable, whole grain and beans are key food sources to help with weight loss.

You can achieve weight loss with determination and time. Remember all good things come in time. Weight loss takes time. Eating correctly and proper exercise will be tough but the outcome will last a lifetime. - 17269

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Acai Juice Taste Test

By John Bardt

If you're a fan of the two hottest talk show hosts as I am, you will no doubt have heard about the acai berry. Oprah and Rachel Ray have both raved bout this new superfood, and as I tend to do, I immediately went out to try it out for myself. Well, I bought my first box of juice, tried it right then and there, and was immediately taken aback. I screwed up my face about as much as if someone had played the 'lemon instead of an orange' trick on me.

How disappointing ... I was so looking forward to trying this great new miracle detoxifier and anti-oxidant, I just couldn't understand how Oprah and Rachel Ray could have hidden the 'what is this bitter weird stuff' facial expression so well. I thought a bit harder, and perhaps we weren't quite on the same page with our juices - admittedly I chose the cheapest box on the shelf, but I had the subconcious belief that for $2.39 / 250ml I would be getting something pretty delectable.

So now that there is the possiblity that not all acai berry juice is created equally, and there could be a flavour discrepancy, I decided that what we needed was a taste test ... organized by myself, and all very official. I was convinced that there WOULE be a palatable acai juice option in my town.

The next day I headed out to find a sufficiently varied selection of acai juices available within walking distance of my house. This task took all morning, and I found there were a wide range of options, ranging from the atual real pure acai berry juice at $80 per litre which you are only supposed to have 2 tablespoons of, and which is very bitter, (I did NOT purchse this by the way, are you kidding?), to various colorfully packaged health drinks with different juices and concentrations of acai berry juice. Here's what I found:

1. Nova Acai made in Brazil. Cost: $2.39 for 250ml/8.4oz. The ingredients listed are purified water, naturally organic acai puree, organic evaporated cane juice, citric acid. Nutritionally 120 calories per container, 3.6g of fat 1.3 of which are saturated (6% of your rec. daily intake) and 39% of rec. daily intake of Vitamin C.

2. O.N.E Amazon Acai made in Brazil. Cost: $3.99 for 330ml/11oz. (Note: I think I saw this exact brand at another store for $2.99) The ingredients listed are 100% natural acai, 100% natural acerola, organic evaporated cane juice, citric acid, guarana extract, xantham gum, and lecithine de soya. Nutritionally 157 calories per container, 3g of fat 1 of which are saturated (5% of your rec. daily intake) and 167% of rec. daily intake of Vitamin C.

3. mySmoothie Superfruit Acai made in Sweden. Cost: $2.79 for 250ml/8.4oz. Contains: apple juice, crushed banana, 11% acai berry, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries. Nutritionally 150 calories per container, 2.25g of fat .03 of which are saturated (less than 1 % of your rec. daily intake) and 39% of rec. daily intake of Vitamin C.

4. Happy Planet extreme purple made in Canada. Cost: $2.99 for 325ml/11 oz. The ingredients listed are pure apple juice, banana puree, peach puree, acai berry puree, blackberry puree, orange bioflavanoids, green tea powder extract, ascorbic acid and beta carotene. Nutritionally 130 calories per container, 0g of fat .0 of which are saturated (less than 1 % of your rec. daily intake) and 150% of rec. daily intake of Vitamin C.

5. Arthur's Acai plus made in Canada. Cost $3.29 for 325ml/11oz. The ingredients listed are berry puree blend (acai, blueberry, blackberry, boysenberry, cherry) apple juice, banana puree, pear juice, lemon juice. Nutritionally 230 calories per container, 4.5g of fat, 1g of which are saturated (5 % of your rec. daily intake) and 40% of rec. daily intake of Vitamin C.

The test results were remarkable in their consistency. The testers all seemed to like 3 and dislike 2. The 2 juices that were unanimously disliked were both from Brazil (Nova Acai and O.N.E. Amazon Acai) AND appeared to contain the highest content of acai berry (although Arthur's Acai plus might also have the same content). The comments on these 2 Brazilian juices ranged from "bitter weird taste I can't swallow" to "tastes like mud" to "almost a woodsy aroma but not as pleasant" to "yucky taste and smells awful". There was nothing equivocal about these comments! Although later, a judge cut one of these juices with half orange juice and we all agreed that it was much more palatable.

Of the remaining juices it was agreed that all were tasty and palatable. Two judges thought Happy Planet extreme purple was the best in taste, aroma and texture while mySmoothie superfruit acai got the first place nod from one judge. Interestingly, Arthurs's Acai plus was ranked 2nd best by all 3 judges.

So what to make of these results? The Brazilian juices tested simply can't be drunk without being mixed with another juice and frankly, who needs saturated fat in their juice! Arthur's Acai plus has an excellent flavor but gets a thumbs down for also having saturated fat. I would have to say that Happy Planet extreme purple is the winner of this tasting session with mySmoothie superfruit acai coming in a respectable 2nd place. - 17269

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Solving Autism Symptoms Through Proper Dieting Tactics

By Chris Channing

If you or someone you know has an autistic child, you are already familiar with the lack of treatment options currently available. There are some means of relieving the symptoms, but not all treatments show help for 100% of children. One method to try is to cut out gluten and casein from the child's diet to see if it helps.

Gluten is a protein that is found in many grains. As you can probably deduce, it would be extremely difficult to cut out every source of grain in one's diet. This reason accounts for the fact that there haven't been as many studies on the subject of cutting out casein and gluten from one's diet. If you can find a trusted health food store you will be at better odds in making the diet work.

Avoiding dairy products is a bit easier. Casein is a protein that is found in dairy products and is derived from milk. Non-dairy items can be created that still act and taste like the real thing, and most grocery stores will stock such items. You can still eat cheese, drink milk, and enjoy chocolate and other confections despite cutting out casein from a diet.

So why would we want to cut out both proteins from a diet of an autistic child? The theory currently being proposed is that both proteins act as an allergen to autistic children- even when they don't show any signs of the common allergic reaction to a food or protein. Unfortunately there hasn't been enough studies on the subject, and the exact conclusion of how much a diet would help, or if it helps at all, is obscure.

The results of the hard work in setting up a proper diet have been promising for some parents. Parents who say there has been an increase in results claim their child is more responsive socially or seems to be more attention-oriented. While it may not be a cure in itself, the diet has made the life of some parents much easier as a result of implementing the plan over the course of weeks to several months.

It's only a matter of time before the link between symptom relief methods and autism are discovered and studied. Once we can study the condition, we will have a better chance at formulating a cure that can one day bring an end to the autism predicament that so many face. In the mean time, you can make use of subtle improvements such as dietary modification.

In Conclusion

You should consult a real physician or dietary official before implementing your own routine. You can easily conduct the wrong diet and accidentally cause harm to your child if you aren't careful. A medical professional will be able to better device a diet that is safe and beneficial. - 17269

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Does a High Carbohydrate Diet Make Me Bruise More Easily?

By Carolyn Cooper

If you are a person who is subject to easy bruising, and a person who is trying to be certain that you will no longer be subject, it's probably the right time to make a thorough examination of your diet. In the forefront of the major culprits that have gotten attention recently are carbohydrates, and they have been made a source of blame for almost anything under the sun. Fortunately though, carbohydrates don't deserve any of the blame attributed to them for causing you to bruise more easily, but the facts are that we should all be more educated about the foods that are high in carbohydrates.

When you get right to the crux of your situation, bruising easily more than usual is normally a strong indicator that the capillaries in your body are getting weaker, or even fragile, as we get older. If you want to try to prevent your tendency to bruise easily, you should seek out the foods and nutrients that afford you the ability to improve the strengthening or repairing of the capillaries. The areas where carbohydrates do provide help resides in the fact that they are necessary when it comes to maintaining your immune system in top working condition and being certain that our body has sufficient energy reserves to deal with the damage that can be done by bruising. Carbohydrates can help us get beyond a bruise quicker than you might otherwise.

The first thing that you need to consider is the fact that carbohydrates are not all bad for you, and as a matter of fact, they are necessary in order to keep your body functioning well. They aid your body in doing numerous things; including storing and transporting energy and helping you maintain good cell health. Similarly, you'll also find that they can play a role in stimulating your immune system, as much or more than any other food does.

What are the optimum sources of carbohydrates available for us when we are attempting to eat healthily? We should concentrate on obtaining whole grains, fruits and beans. These types of food not only give us a healthful dose of carbohydrates, we'll also determine that we'll be obtaining some excellent sources of minerals, fiber, and vitamins. Not only can we obtain some level of both vitamin C and vitamin K, you can also take action to make sure that you get carbs that are easy to digest.

Another link that carbohydrates have to bruising is that they can be linked to diabetes. One of the signs of diabetes is easy bruising, and diabetes can be caused with eating too many carbohydrates from highly processed foods like sugared sodas, fast foods, and other sources.

Spend some time and make sure that you really consider what your options are going to be when you are trying to be sure that youre eating a well balanced diet. Easy bruising can be a sign that something is wrong in your body, so pay attention and make sure that you are eating in a way which keeps you healthy. - 17269

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Grow Tall Today With Honest Advice

By Shaun Davids

If you have the desire to grow tall, be careful of falling for websites that give you false hope with their exercise programs, manuals and DVDs. These sites do not only waste your money and time, but also put you at risk of injuring yourself with slipped discs and torn tendons. Do not fall the lies given by those pharmaceutical giants that sell their height growth vitamins and supplements. These solutions do not work and should be avoided.

But does this mean that doing stretches to grow tall does not work? No. It is simply more beneficial to do them when your body has not stopped growing.

When we are babies, some of our bones are composed of cartilage. This cartilage shifts and melds and ossifies over time, forming the bones we have in adulthood. During this long process, we go from having 300 bones to only 206!

As we experience puberty, about halfway through this process, our bones' cartilage growth plate start lengthening. But, once they have completely grown, it does not matter how many grow taller exercises or stretches we do, those growth plates will not get any longer.

Nonetheless, while you're young it is good to perform exercise to grow tall since it also strengthens your bones. These exercises increase the production of growth enhancer hormones in your body, that help you to grow taller quicker. If you want to have a good posture, strong bones and a lower chance of getting osteoporosis and other bone diseases when you are older, then it is good to exercise on a regular basis.

Another way to grow tall is to get the right nutrition. With a bad diet that is low in amino acids, carbohydrates, calcium, protein and other nutrients, you risk having weaker bones and joints, which can stunt your growth and cause other ailments. As we grow old, our bodies start to leech calcium from our bones, which causes us to shrink.

That is why having a good diet and regular exercise is vital for height growth when you are young, aiding your body grow to its full potential.

If you're past adulthood and wish to grow tall, don't lose hope. There are several height enhancing alterations you can make to your wardrobe, shoes, hair, and more to make yourself look taller and slimmer.

Do not lose hope because of one bad experience you had with a grow tall scam, Try a real solution today, and see positive results soon. - 17269

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A Powerful Muscle Building Technique - Easy to Implement

By Josh Owen

Are you searching for the fastest way to build muscle size? Why would you not want to gain muscle as quickly as possible? You can finally get the body you've always wanted much faster using one powerful concept discussed in this article.

Muscle is very important to the human body because muscle helps us. Body fat is dead body mass that weighs our bodies down and makes it much tougher for our bodies to function as intended. Body fat can kill you. Muscle will make your life easier and more enjoyable. In other words, you need to build muscle mass and lose fat to live a healthy and more fulfilling life.

Okay, it's easy for me say you need more muscle mass and less body fat, but how do you accomplish this? I'm going to tell you about the most powerful muscle building concept on the face of the earth. This is the secret to building muscle:

Of course, the first thing you must do is start lifting weights. Weight lifting is required. Once you have everything you need to start lifting weights, you must start eating healthier. You need to eat lean protein sources, natural carbohydrate sources, and essnetial fats with every meal. Eat more often. You've got to eat enough food to gain weight in order to build muscle. But these things are not the powerful concept I want to tell you about. I want to discuss a plan for your weight lifting program.

The single most important factor in building muscle consistently throughout a weight lifting program is to start the program with light weights on every exercise. Then, increase the weight each and every workout. You don't have to go to failure every workout just to build muscle. The increase in load is enough to casue the proper muscle building stimulus. You will start with light weights and higer reps and increase the weight while decreasing the number of reps. Do this over the course of the weightlifting program.

This allows you to constantly provide your body with a muscle building stimulus. This means you get quick results from each and every weightlifting workout when you eat correctly and optimize your rest from each weight lifting session. You begin to see results and huge increases in muscle size.

After you use this method of increasing the weight each weight training session, you'll soon reach a point in which it's hard to increase the weight. Fight hard for a few more weeks only increasing a a small amount each workout, and then take a one week break from weight lifting. Then start over! It's that simple. That is the quickest way to gain muscle size.

In order to build muscle with this powerful concept, you have to focus on gaining weight each week. But you want this weight to be muscle and not body fat, right? You must focus on eating the proper foods. Have 6 meals each day, and make sure you're drinking enough water and eating plenty of veggies. You should always strive to gain about 1 to 2 pounds of muscle each week. I recommend 1 pound of muscle per week as any more than that will be body fat, and you don't want that. Be patient. One pound per week is 52 pounds each year! - 17269

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What is Oolong Tea Diet?

By Jared Rothe

A diet that many people have recently been buzzing about is called the oolong tea diet or wu yi tea diet. It involves drinking several glasses of tea a day which I will go into detail about below. The oolong tea or wu yi tea originates from the mountains of Wu yi in China.

The Oolong diet gets the weight loss benefits from the Polyphenol, which is a compound known to control obesity, by curbing appetite and speeding up the metabolism.

What is Oolong diet tea? It is a diet that has the antioxidants that rank between green tea and black tea, in strength and flavor, from the different processes used in its aging process. Oolong typically goes through a roasting phase, and it is a rich, darker because of the region it is grown in.

Oolong tea does not lose its flavor after the brewing process. Compared to green tea which can lose its flavor after one brew. Green tea loses its minerals and taste much quicker.

How does Oolong diet tea work?Because it contains polyphenol which helps speed your metabolism and burns calories more efficiently and anti-oxidants which help in cell regeneration and flushing toxins, such as fat from the body, it is an effective weight loss tea. The polyphenol activates an enzyme that dissolves triglycerides and the anti-oxidants help flush them from your system. Making the digestive process much easier for your body.

Your appetite will be curved when you drink oolong tea. This is the other benefit it can help with in your diet. It helps you to curb your appetite so you won't overeat. - 17269

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Are There Any Links Between My Easy Bruising and Alcohol Consumption?

By Carolyn Cooper

If you are someone who is afflicted by easy bruising, you'll find that you need to identify those factors that might make it worse, and this is when alcohol should come into the discussion. Lots of people who find that they bruise easily end up suspecting that alcohol intake might be a factor, and they would find that their suspicions were correct. When you are trying to find the culprit behind bruises that can be received from simply brushing against a counter, or that you can get without any memory of the cause at all, you may find that it is the proper time to look into your alcohol consumption.

First and foremost, try to determine how alcohol consumption affects your bruising. Next, examine what really makes up a bruise. A bruise is normally caused by breaching the capillary walls just below your skin. When the blood seeps out, it pools or clots just beneath the skin, making the glaring and vivid colors that are the visible reminders of the bruise. While thinner capillary walls are one cause of bruising, alcohol is actually not involved with this type of bruising. Rather, alcohol acts the same as a blood thinner. Much like aspirin and some forms of prescribed medicines, alcohol makes your blood become thinner, which then interferes with clotting, which then makes you bleed more effusively.

The point where your thinner blood crosses with bruising is based on the assumption that if you happen to bump yourself and cause the breakage of some of your capillaries, even if you are unaware of it, alcohol slows your body's capacity to stop the free flow of blood. When you have alcohol in your system, your body loses its ability to staunch the blood flow, and this has the tendency to make what should have been a light bruise look so much more vivid. When you are trying to keep your bruises from looking quite so dark, or so visible, you should honestly determine to reduce your alcohol intake.

If you are worried about the effects of alcohol or other blood thinners on your susceptibility to bruising, you'll discover that the answer is increasing your iron intake, which is essential for good blood production in your body. It can help you with faster blood clotting, and it will contribute towards your immune system by helping to keep it strong. Foods that are rich in iron include liver as well as dark green and leafy vegetables like broccoli and spinach (whats the old saying about if it tastes good, it cant be good for you?).

Take some time and really consider what the link between your alcohol intake and easy bruising might be for you. This may require that you merely cut back a little on the amount of alcohol that you drink, or it might mean a real change in drinking habits. - 17269

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Malibu Pilates Chair-A Closer Look

By Steve Estes

The Malibu Pilates Chair is one of the newest models of Pilates machines. Like most other pieces of exercise equipment, the MPC is being marketed chiefly to the weight loss crowd. And with good reason. While most people think about technology as a way to do less and get more done, it has also brought us things like this excellent Pilates machine. And this is a good thing because losing weight isn't just about hard work, it is also about using a particular strategy to get what you need to do done.

Compared to the Pilates Reformer, which really is the top of the pile of quality exercise equipment, the Malibu Pilates Chair is much smaller and easy to manage. You'll find it so lightweight that moving it out of the way is a snap. Like the PR it has no problem giving you a full body work out. But what it won't do is cost you an arm and a leg. At just under $350, it is very cost effective. The Reformer is more in the two to three thousand dollar range.

If you are looking for an entry point into the Pilates machine world, the Chair is a great one. As a novice, start out a little slower. Don't worry you'll soon be sweating with the best of them. And like I mentioned, it won't take up too much room.

The Malibu chair makes your workout so much easier. Not that it does the work for you, but it will make your workout more effective. The way it is designed, as you progress in its program you will begin to watch the all those pounds melt away like magic.

I still remember my fat guy days. These Pilates machines were not so readily available to the common person. I had to spend hour upon grueling hour in the health club with all the gym rats and muscle heads. If I had one of these babies I could have been able to lose 20 pounds in 30 days...no problem.

I don't want to sound all Pollyanna so let me list the things I didn't like. I prefer a longer workout (don't worry it comes with one) to the 20 minute one included on the free DVD. That's why I prefer the Body Sculpting Work Out that lasts a whole hour. It also comes with a free wall chart and custom plan for a diet. The one I tried at my local Pilates studio offered a better range of motion but the price of this one is lower. - 17269

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Acai Berry Diet

By Dana Hawkes

The Acai Berry, pronounced as ah-sigh-EE, is mostly regarded as a super food as it offers dense nutritional characteristics and health benefits that are almost too numerous to count. But what exactly are Acai berries, and what is the Acai berry diet all about?

The Acai fruit can only be found growing at the top of a special plant that can be found in South America's Amazon basin. For centuries the locals have been aware of this unique berry and its legendary benefits and properties, and it has been known for possessing healing powers beyond much of what conventional medicine is capable of.

Only recently has the remainder of the world finally wised up to the incredible power of the Acai berry and the Acai berry diet. Although you may get mixed information when reading an Acai berry diet review, the truth about the Acai berry diet information that is out there is that the people saying bad things about Acai are unwilling to believe that it is as incredible as it is in boosting the immune system, fighting the signs of aging, boosting over all health and aiding in natural, healthy weight loss.

But what every good Acai berry diet review will tell you is this: If you try it for yourself, the results will astonish you. There is no way to deny the incredible results that the Acai berry diet is capable of achieving once they actually happen to you. If there is any doubt in your mind that the Acai berry diet will produce incredible results, simply try it for yourself and then you will see for yourself what this "super food" really can do for your health and well being. - 17269

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