Herbal Supplements for Good Health and Fitness-IX

TULSI:

STAR POWER:

Tulsi comes in three varieties, but the Shyam tulsi is most nutritive. It is useful in all upper respiratory disorders from sinusitis, cough, cold, asthma and allergy to pneumonia. This is because it is drying, is a powerful antiseptic and anti-malarial agent and also clears the channels (srotas) to facilitate the movement of bio fluids. Tulsi contains Vitamin A,Vitamin C, Calcium, Zinc and Iron. It is an excellent adaptogen, which means it helps the body to adapt to tissue stress. When tissues are stressed, they break down or repair slowly, which results in aging.

PRACTICAL CONSUMPTION:

Boil water with seven Tulsi leaves till the water turns dark, add a pinch of cinnamon powder and drink it early in the morning on an empty stomach.

PRECAUTIONS:

An overdose of Tulsi has a contraceptive effect

Herbal Supplements for Good Health and Fitness-VIII

Here I come with my next Superfood item

SEAWEED

STAR POWER:

The sea has a far richer diversity in plants than land. The many plants of the sea sustain the health of the sea and consequently, the health of land and all the life on it. Seaweed is a kind of algae and is a rich storehouse of nutrients and disease fighting elements. It has been used in South-East Asia for centuries. Spirulina was extensively researched as one of the foods for astronauts and that is how the benefits of the simple algae became known to in the west. In South-East Asia, many algae are eaten in the form of soups, curries etc. In Japan, they are popular as Nori. People who live in coastal areas have a very low incidence of thyroid disorders. This is because their food is rich in sea minerals.

PRACTICAL CONSUMPTION:

Spirulina is a popular form of algae, easily available as tablets and capsules. Many South-East Asian foods consist of seaweed wraps with rice.

PRECAUTIONS:

Some people may find the odour of seaweed too strong, so start with tablets and capsules and then go on to the fresh form. Most stores in Singapore and Hong Kong have seaweed-base foods and snacks. With tablets, stick to the prescribed dose.

Herbal Supplements for good health and fitness-VII

Hello friends,
We can certainly get benefits by using Figs and Raisins

STAR POWER:

Figs are one of the most alkaline foods on earth. Our bodies have a certain a acid-alkali balance that is skewed towards the alkali and contributes to our state of health. When we eat indiscriminately, the breakdown of so much food makes the body environment so much acidic which makes it a fertile medium for becteria, viruses and Candida (a yeast like fungus) that multiply and cause disorders. Even cancers grow in acidic environment. Figs are both alkaline and rich in several minerals and micro-nutrients. They also contain non-fattening natural sugar helping in weight control. The special fibre in figs (pectin) improves bowel movements and works against cholesterol build up. Raisins are dried grapes used as natural sugar. They rise the hemoglobin level and should be eaten by growing children.

PRACTICAL CONSUMPTION:

Pre-soaked figs can eaten be first thing in the morning. Figs and raisins can be added to juices and salads along with hazel nuts, pine nuts and walnuts.

PRECAUTIONS:

To get the best nutritional benefit, do not combine figs with dairy products and heavy cereals.

Herbal Supplements for good health and fitness-VI

The next food item helpful in maintaining good health and nutrition is HERBAL TEA

STAR POWER:

Herbal teas are actually called infusions and are most popular way of consuming aromatic herbs and flowers. Herb teas or infusions can have a mix of healing ingredients like Jasmine flower (eliminates water retention), chamomile flower (sleep inducer) or digestive infusions with various spices and herbs. The entire benefit of the herb or spice is passed on to the infusion. Benefit range from eliminating water retention, inducing sleep, removing gas, calming the stomach, controlling loose motions, providing antioxidants, to fight cancer and more.

Practical consumption:

For cough and cold, boil tulsi, ginger and two whole black peppercorns, sweeten with honey and drink. As a pick-me up, boil a few leaves of green tea with a pinch of ground cinnamon, ginger and cardamom till the color is golden.

Precautions:

Too much tea leads to intestinal dryness

Herbal Supplements for good health and fitness-V

I am back with the next herbal supplement towards good health and fitness:
ALFA-ALFA HERBS AND SEEDS

STAR POWER:

This plant has roots that go underground upto 30 feet in search of nutrients, which means that alfa-alfa is very rich in special nutrients and minerals. In fact, the Arabs refer to it, as 'the father of herbs'. It is rich in vitamin A, C and K and minerals like selenium, copper and enzymes. It is best for anaemia, increasing lactation, bleeding and clotting disorders, menopausal and menstrual problems and liver related problems.

PRACTICAL CONSUMPTION:

Sprout one teaspoon of alfa-alfa seeds overnight in a moist cloth. Make tea out of the sprouts the next day or simply add to a salad.

PRECAUTIONS:

If anybody has autoimmune disorders, it should be taken under medical supervision.

Herbal supplements for good health and fitness-IV

The next item in the superfoods family of healthy diet plan is 'Honey'

STARPOWER:

Honey is made by worker bees from the nectar of flowers. It contain small quantities of antigens that are contained in flowers and pollens, and pushes the body to create antibodies or protective cells to build immunity. Being a pre-digested sugar, it is easily absorbed by the weak and frail.
Honey is not fattening despite its being sweet because of its invert sugar (a mixture of equal parts of glucose and fructose resulting from the hydrolysis of sucrose), which is why weight loss practitioners advice you to have it with lemon and hot water. Though, if you have honey with milk and almonds it will be fattening.

Honey is also a very good anti-bacterial agent helping in maintaining good health and fitness. It kills even the most potent bacteria by sucking out their water. It is also an excellent moisture retainer and often used for skin treatment. It is rich in enzymes that comes from the worker bees. Plus,it is a source of pre-digested sugar.

PRACTICAL CONSUMPTION:

Add honey to herbal tea to sweeten it since it doesn't lead to weight gain. Or add it to a glass of warm water and lemon to help in weight loss. Otherwise, you can eat it on toast or add it to oat porridge with a dash of cinnamon to make a nutritious breakfast dish for thin or normal weight
children.If you mix a teaspoon of honey with two teaspoon of powdered black pepper, a fewdrops og ginger juice and tulsi, you will get one of the most effective cough medication ever.

PRECAUTIONS:

Do not give natural honey to toddlers under two years old as their immune system may not respond to it well.

Superfoods for good health and fitness-III

Fruit and Vegetable juices are essential consituent of a healthy diet plan. They are blessed with three factors leading to good health and fitness.

(a) They are rich in antioxidants.

(b) They are full of live enzymes.

(c) They contain heat-labile vitamins (that is, the vitamins that are usually
lost while cooking).

Antioxidants are exceptionally important because they destroy the free radicals that are continuously created in our body due to toxins from fertilizers, pollution and so on. Free radicals lead to inflammation in the heart, arthritis, mutations resulting in cancers and other terrible diseases. The role of antioxidants was first discovered by the naturopaths, but laboratory confirmations using advanced scientific tools are relatively recent.

Fruit and Vegetable juices are also rich in live enzymes. Enzymes are a component of food with the power to transform. They transform plant energy to an energy form that we can utilize. This power also resides in our livers, but we tend to overload the liver to such an extent that the body is unable to handle food. All problems of fatigue, dark circles under the eyes and lack of facial glow result from under-metabolic food.

When we cook vegetables, all enzymes are lost due to the heat. So, when we drink vegetable juices, we also get enzymes. Enzymes are present in raw salads, raw vegetables and fruit.
The third important aspect of fruit and vegetable juices is that they are a storehouse of vitamins like B complex and C that are otherwise destroyed in cooking. Many disorders due to indiscriminate eating are miraculously cured by naturopathy techniques and fruit & vegetable juice therapy.

PRACTICAL CONSUMPTION

Make different juices every day. Try a juice of carrot and fennel, add some ginger or garlic according to taste to add to the nutritional benefits.

PRECAUTIONS

If you are used to a very unhealthy diet or refined or processed foods, begin with small quantities because sudden detoxification may overwhelm the system. Pregnant women and people with compromised immunity should also avoid vegetable juices. In this way you will be able to transform nature's life forces to human vitality.

Superfoods for good Health and Fitness -II

I am here with my next post in which I will discuss about the medicinal value of flowers:

STARPOWER:
Rather like homeopathy, flower therapy does not attack a disease head on. Instead, it activates cellular intelligence to fight imbalances within its immediate environment. Flower therapy is used in food, aroma oils and skin applications. Jasmine flower have a relaxing effect on the nervous system. Jasmine tea is the flower in a tea form(called an influsion). Rose petals are a great luxative and used in many medicines. Rose is also drunk in a sherbat form as it cools and relaxes the body.

Practical consumption:

Substitute late night beverages with flower infusions. They are great for relaxation. And have rose sherbet in summer.

Precautions:

Some people may be allergic to some flower components, so be careful if you have a family history of asthma

Superfoods for good health and fitness-I

In my earlier post, I talked about value of Superfoods in our life. In will present some of the vital foods that have a great medicinal value and possess the capacity to affect our body positively in number of ways.

FLAXSEEDS:

STAR POWER: Flaxseeds have rather humble origins, so the way they are venerated today by people interested in their health could be the subject of the rags to riches story in some tabloid.
They are an ordinary dull brown color and so inexpensive that they are fed to livestock for their health. The star qualities of flexseeds came to light when it was discovered that they are an excellent vegetarian source of omega-3 fatty acids (normally found in oily fish). Omega-3 fatty acids are one of the key recommendations for a heart healthy diet.

Flexseeds also have a balancing and therapeutic effect on the ovaries. They can be used as a food component to treat polycystic ovaries and insulin disorders.

Practical Consumption:

Roast flaxseeds and add to salads. They make them yummy and crunchy. Or make a fine powder and add it to vegetable juices

Precautions:

Do not consume in excess. Normal consumption is up to two teaspoons a day.

Medicinal Value of Food

All foods offer us benefits other than simple energy, but some foods have great healing power than others. To put it simple, if we don’t eat, we can not live. But aside from serving that most basic need- that of keeping us alive and our taste buds happy-the best foods keep us healthy, happy and whole. These are super foods, a cross between food and medicine.

Ayurveda, one of the world’s oldest and still more practical health treatises, had always connected food with medicine. But over the years, we lost that connection and forgot about the healing power of the food.

However, we have regained that knowledge to an extent now, but we tend to focus only on the energy component of the food-its caloric count. That’s not the only attribute of food however. Food gives us the vitality to function; builds our bodies; protects us from the environment by creating a layer of fat; affects our moods; fights diseases at a cellular and metabolic level; improves body rejuvenation and so delays ageing; and cures diseases.

All foods have a medicinal value, but certain plants that may not ordinarily be part of our daily diets have an immense capacity to affect us positively in various ways. I will discuss about some superfoods in my future posts.

Treating Your Acne Problem Yourself

Acne is a diseased condition of the skin that involves the hair and oil glands. It is characterized by pimples, black or white heads, reddishness and cysts. Face acne can damage your appearance to a great extent and body acne can irritate you by making you very uncomfortable affecting your health.

Actually the care for acne should start off much before the acne actually appears. This is more about being proactive than reactive. Acne skin care is about being aware of preventive measures. The crux is, following daily skin care routines with dedication and discipline.

If you have acne, never try to touch them or squeeze them; it can lead to long lasting scars. The treatment of acne requires gentle cleansing and cleaning of the affected area. First of all, make a start with the most basic thing - cleanliness. So morning showers are the most basic way of keeping the skin clean. If you are living in a hot and humid place, a night shower becomes a must. A shower is advisable after every activity that causes high levels of sweat to develop. It is a very efficient acne skin care technique.

Nonetheless, acne skin care is not about just showers. Acne skin care is also about wearing clean clothes and sleeping on clean pillows. Wearing too tight clothes can cause sweat to accumulate fast, so wearing of soft and comfortable cotton clothes are recommended. You should also use a mild, soap-free and water-soluble, cleanser for keeping your face, neck and arms clean. Cleansing is the most central part of any acne skin care routine. The easiest way of removing dirt, grease and pollutants from your skin is use of cleaners. They reduce the probability of acne occurrence. It is also recommended to remove your make up using a make up remover before you go to bed.

There are number of skin care creams and lotions available in the market, but most of them are actually cleansers. However, if the above mentioned measures do not give you the desired results, it is better to contact a dermatologist.

An ideal way to lose weight

Many of you will identify with this. You are about 5-7 kg overweight and want to get your weight down to the recommended level. So you sign on at the gym and are regular during the first few weeks. But when you weight yourself day after day, the needle refuses to budge. You get disheartened and stop. ‘The gym doesn’t work for me,’ you recon, and hang up your gym shoes.

Giving up on the gym a few weeks into the effort is the worst thing you can do because if you are regular, it is entirely possible that you may not be losing weight, but you are losing fat.

How is that?

What happens is that when you are slightly overweight and your workout is a combination of cardio vascular exercise like walking/ running and weight training, you lose fat. But your muscle mass has increased at the same time, your weight remains static.

One pound of muscle looks denser than one pound of fat. Fat is a flab, it is loose, all over the place. Muscles are denser, more compact. So, you weight won’t change, at least in the beginning. Because the fat loss is compensated by muscle gain, there will be signs to indicate that you are on the right track. After some time you will notice that your clothes are getting looser, your stomach and arms feel taut, and your strength is up.

But this does not mean that you start doing weights with a vengeance to build muscle in the hope that it will make you look super toned and sculpted. Yes, you can weight train, you will build muscle. But you can only lose the excess fat in your body through cardio-vascular exercise. You can not achieve fat lose without cardio. Ideally, you should do a combination of cardio and weights. Cardio to lose fat and weights to tone your body.

The good news is that unlike fat, muscle burn a lot of calories. So the more muscle mass you have, the easier it is to burn fat and your efforts at gym will sooner or later translate into weight loss too.

Living a Healthy and Fit life

It is quite hard to live a healthy and fit life, but it is not impossible at all. You can manage to live a lifetime healthy life through discipline and commitment. All you need is to change your habits and finally get rid of those habits that affect your health. I am providing some tips that I feel are important in the road towards lifetime health and fitness. You will find that your journey towards a healthy and fit life require nothing else than determination and will power.

Honest and serious commitment

If you really want to change your life and get rid of habits that you have for so long been doing, you need to be really honest and commit on it to ensure that you will see the plan through. There are a lot of people who start eating healthy and living healthy who will fall back to their old ways after some time. Don’t be like those people. Starting and stopping will only serve to puncture your spirits and make you believe that you can never follow a health and fitness plan. Start when you feel that you really want it bad enough and you can really do it. Will power can be really amazing. It can make miracles.

Effective Support System

Changing old habits is hard but when done with people who live and support you, the task can be easier and more manageable. This is the main reason that diets and programs for quitting smoking and weight control have effective support system programs. People, who share your experiences, will help encourage you to continue with the goals that you have set.

Avoiding Temptations

Without the will power to avoid temptations, your plan to change will constantly be derailed. It is very important to remain in control of yourself and stick to your goal. But this however is not something that is easy to do. There will be lots of instances when you will be truly tested and most people will fail the test. They will go back to their old habits once, and then twice and then thrice until they completely forgo with their plans for a life of health and fitness. To avoid this, you should stay clear of the temptations.

Enforcing Reminders

Those people who are regularly reminded of how they should proceed have better chances of making it through the program than those who are just doing it alone. This works in the same way as the support system but even better because in this instance, you have somebody who really point out to you what you should be doing. Sometimes, we go back to our old ways not because we want to but because it is something that your bodies are already so used to. So if you want to really change your ways and live a life of health and fitness, have somebody you trust and respect with you all the time.

Trinity of Health

There are a few factors on which the foundations of good health are built and if even one element is missing, true health becomes elusive. For instance, we know a well balanced diet is a pre requisite for good health. Yet, people who are particular about exercise and food suffer from heart problems. Why does this happen?

The answer lies in the fact that the body must be seen as a complete unit. When the heart has problems, it isn’t that the heart is ill. The whole person is ill. The illness is just manifestation in the heart.

Good health rests on three factors:
- Correct nutrition
- Exercise
- Emotional well being
When one element is missing, good health will elude us. So, we find the people who meditate may suffer from health problems because they eat immoderately or don’t exercise.

Correct nutrition is about eating in moderation. You can break the rules, but only occasionally. You must learn to recognize the compatibility of various foods with your body, and eat a variety of foods in terms of types and colors.

Exercise is also about individual body requirements. It is important to find your own balance in exercise. Then there is spiritual balance or emotional well being. Some people confuse spirituality with religion and so miss an important aspect of their lives. Stress management is the new mantra of well-being. Some people find it in yoga or meditation, others in music, chanting or welfare activities.

Food and Personality- Relationship

Eating healthy foods is good for your personality. Your personality affects your relationship with food, your eating behavior and your dieting behavior. This is probably something we may all have experienced at a subconscious level. The persons with good personality like to eat healthy foods. We should learn how to eat healthy and nutritional food.

In my personal experience, it is interesting to note the patterns that emerge with regard to eating behavior. People with type ‘A’ personalities tend to be ambitious, hardworking and less tolerant of their own or other’s mistakes. They plan a healthy diet that work as metabolism booster. They are acutely conscious of body image and will not allow their weight to spiral out of control. However, such people tend to be very fond of food, and will also overeat on occasion. This type of personality has a fondness for spicy and crispy food, perhaps non-vegetarian dishes. They may dislike sweet or mushy foods. Such people are also active and may enjoy exercise.

The slight problem is they are given to flashes of anger and may indulge in binge eating. Such people can follow a simple plan with a drive that is unique to them. They are also at the highest risks of following fad diets.

Then there is the creative personality. Such people crave variety. They crave new menu plans-even if the suggested plan is very difficult, they do it, but only once. Such people tend to enjoy travelling and trying healthy food dishes. They love small portions, and are fond of sweets. They also try numerous diet plans and consultants as they are always looking for change. The good news is that if they follow the plans that increase metabolism, their bodies respond quickly.

The third type of people I see are very calm and patient. Such people lose weight slowly, but do not get worried or angry. They are not big eaters but are fond of rich foods and feel deprived if they do not get to eat their favorite foods every now and then.

They are most vulnerable to temptation and the sight of good food spells doom for their diets. They tend to be emotional and also tend to eat when they are upset. Such people also tend to think that being healthy is more important than being a particular size.

Some Tips to Boost Your Metabolism

Metabolism is the rate by which the body produces and consumes energy and calories to support life. There are a lot of people who would give a lot to increase their metabolism. Having a high level of metabolism enables one to maintain burn fat and lose weight fast with the least amount of activity.

There are several factors that affect the metabolism of a person, such as the amount of muscle tissue, the frequency of the meals one consumes, genetics, stress levels, personal diet and activity levels. Metabolism slows done due to the following: loss of muscle because of not enough physical activity, the tendency of the body to cannibalize its own tissue because there is not enough food energy to sustain it, and the decrease of physical activity that comes naturally with old age.

Here are several ways to fire up one's metabolism:

1. Build up on lean, mean body mass. It is only natural that metabolism decreases along with age, but it is possible to counter the effects. The amount of muscle a person has is a very strong determinant in the ability to burn calories and shed fat. So it goes without saying that exercise is essential. Build strength and resistance by working out at least twice a week, preferably with weights. Do easy exercises in between workouts. Simple tasks such as walking the dog and using the stairs in place of the elevator can already take off calories. The key is to match the amount of eating to the amount of activity one has.

2. Eat breakfast. A lot of people are ignoring the fact that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Surprisingly, the ones who eat breakfast are thinner than the ones who do not. Metabolism can slow down considerably if breakfast is taken during mid-morning or if one waits until the afternoon to eat.

3. Avoid sugar. Sugar enables the body to store fat. It is recommended that a person consumes food that helps sustain an even level of blood-sugar. Additionally, progressive exercise 2-3 times a week should be in order to stabilize blood sugar.

4. Eat spicy foods. Hot cuisine with peppers can increase metabolism.

5. Sleep more. According to research, it is riskier for people who do not get enough sleep to gain weight. Also, muscles are regenerated during the last couple of hours of slumber.

6. Increase water intake. Water flushes out toxins that are produced whenever the body burns fat. Majority of bodily functions involves water, and lack of water causes the body system's operations to decrease its speed, and produces unneeded stress as a result.

7. Eat smaller meals. It is advisable to consume 4 to 6 small meals that are timed 2 to 3 hours apart.

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

9. Plan meals in detail. Always prepare the right amount of food to be consumed at the designated intervals. Do not commit the mistake of eating meals in sporadic patterns.

9. Ditch the stress! Stress, be it physical or emotional, triggers the release of a steroid called cortisol, which decreases metabolism. Also, people tend to eat excessively when stressed.

10. Guzzle up on green tea. It can be used as a substitute for coffee. Tea has the ability to stimulate metabolism, and unlike coffee, it has no undesirable side effects when too much is consumed.

11. Include more energy foods in the diet, such as fruits and vegetables, beans and whole grains.

Achieving the desired body weight is never impossible if one has the determination and patience needed to stabilize the metabolism level, which plays an important role in weight loss. A person needs to realize that eating right and working out is not just a passing fancy, but a way of life.

The gender riddle in weight loss

The fat cells of women are very different than men’s. This can be seen very clearly in the way women and men lose weight when following unisex food regulation and exercise plans. But it’s interesting to see how exactly they differ when it comes to common foods and exercises that people hoping to lose weight usually resort to. Let’s see following examples:

Eating less

When people first begin to notice that they are slightly overweight, they begin to eat less, or at least try and consume fewer calories. The effects on men and women are as follows:
Men: They tend to lose muscle which shows on the scale as weight loss. There is muscle and water loss together with a little of fat loss.
Women: The same diet plan makes women feel starved, which leads to a better control over fat metabolism. This is not good as it sounds. It means that the fat cells become more efficient at storing fat, which means that beyond water loss, a woman will not lose much weight per week on this diet.

Exercise

Men: Men typically burn more carbohydrates and fat during high intensity exercise.
Women: They burn more fat when they do low intensity, long duration exercise.

Fad Diets

Men: They can knock of weight on high protein diets because they have a higher protein metabolizing capacity than women.
Women: They tend to lose weight better when on high fibre diets, because fibre is an excellent fat binder and help flush out fat better.

Eating fatty food

Unfortunately, eating fatty food affects women more since their fat cells are eager to store fat. This is because women are prone to hormonal imbalance, primarily because of the cyclical hormonal flux during menstruation, and also because of effects of pregnancy and menopause. If a woman takes additional hormones during pregnancy that only add to the imbalances. This entire means that a woman’s fat cells react to hormones within the body all the time.

This is why women who want to lose weight must realize that their hormonal status plays an important role in their effort to lose weight. In fact, many weight loss clinics today ensure that women detoxify and purge their liver of accumulated hormones residues before they attempt to lose weight. This makes it easier for them to burn fat.

To summarize, the best way to tame the female fat cell is to decrease the consumption of fatty foods in the estrogenic phase of the menstruation cycle, eat more fibre, eat small frequent meals that are primarily unrefined, control water retention, do low intensity long duration exercises and detoxify the liver.

EFFECTIVE WAYS TO STAY HEALTHY

There are many tips and ways to stay healthy. Health and fitness are topics that are in everybody’s mouths. From the television, to magazine advertisements there are several reminders to tell us how to stay healthy. However, here are some easier tips to constantly remind us how to stay healthy. Though it would not completely answer and deliver to all the health issues we may have, we could apply this as a paradigm of simple measures.

Regularize your Sleep

Our body heals and repairs itself and does its regulatory job while sleeping. So give it the rest it deserves to keep you chugging along well the next day. A lifetime of bad sleeping habits will no doubt take a toll and this is one easy way to avoid getting sick.

Eat Wisely

Don’t eat just for your tastes rather have nutritious diet, cut down on red meat, caffeine, sugar and salt. Eat small if your favorite dish is something that your doctor asked you to avoid, there is no sense in skipping it altogether and then binging on the dish when you can’t take the abstinence anymore. Take moderate steps towards the goal. Gradually decrease its intake. That way, you will be able to still enjoy the food and not increase your craving for it.

Exercise, and Stay active

Stay active and schedule an exercise in your daily routine. You can schedule it every morning when you wake up in the morning or do it at night after work. Whichever schedule you want to, make sure that you keep it to 30 minutes long to an hour. Exercise will also strengthen your bones and your body, promote better breathing and cellular activity, clear the brain and of course keep those extra calories out of the body. Even a brisk walk is considered quite healthy so if you can manage a regular exercise regimen comprised of sustained activity for 30 minutes a day.

Observe Discipline

This is one of the few things that will make or break your plans to finally live a healthy lifestyle. In order to really stick to the plan, you need to develop self-discipline especially when it involves things that you really want to do or things that you are used to doing. Temptations along the way will be many and you need to be prepared to face all that.

Obtaining health and fitness through proper diet and nutrition

More and more people are now going back to basics—in terms of food and health practices—because they would want to achieve prime health and fitness. With the fast-paced, technologically-driven world people are now living, who would not want to veer away from certain medical conditions and illnesses.

Experts say that because of the busy courses of people’s lives, many of them tend to forget some of the vital fragments in maintaining a healthy lifestyle, which is diet and nutrition.

Identifying the thin line

Although the terms “diet” and “nutrition” have different definitions, they are greatly connected to each other. When defined, “diet” refers to the food and liquid intake of a person while “nutrition” pertains to the science of dealing with food and nourishment. Sometimes, many people get confused with the meanings of the two because they automatically assume that less—through diet—will not affect their health's overall condition.

Experts say that more than the issues of food and liquid intake and the science of food and nourishment, diet and nutrition can revolve around nutritional information on various dietary supplements and the benefits vitamins and minerals to a person’s body. By making yourself familiar with latest diet and nutrition topics, trends, and tips can lead you to the renewal of your health and well being commitment inside your home.

You must remember that it’s never too late to redirect your eating habits, but before you take that drastic change, learn what the common diet and nutrition mistakes are so you can avoid them. Here are some realizations that can help you get by:

1. Don’t make careless assumption that the food choices you have are better than they actually are. Many experts believe that people who are very particular about diet and nutrition have larger tendencies of thinking and believing that their food choices are healthier than they really are. It is always advisable to eat whole, fresh, and unprocessed foods whenever possible to stay health and fit.

2. Don’t confuse yourself over carbohydrates. In some people that low carbohydrates diets are effective. But there are also those that say that there are excellent carbs that make people eat less. If you are confused, assess yourself first before cutting down on carbs totally. A consultation with a licensed dietician can help you determine how much carbohydrates does your body need and can also help you come up with a diet pattern will be good for you and can have long term effects.

3. Don’t think you’re eating too much when you’re actually not. Doctors say that one of the most common mistakes people make is that they overestimate and underestimate the amount of food their body needs. People are advised to monitor the portion sizes of your food to ensure that they are getting the key nutrients that their body needs.

4. Know when to eat and when not to eat. Experts believe that overeating and under eating may put an individual's health at risk because it disrupts blood sugar and insulin levels. Knowing when to eat and when not can ensure that the person will get the nutrition the body type needs. Always make sure that you eat something every three hours and don’t starve before eating the next meal.

5. Don’t neglect the importance of regular exercise. There is now denying the wonderful benefits that regular exercise can do to people especially to those who want to achieve optimum health and fitness. To ensure that you stay healthy despite being on a diet, make exercise a regular part of your life can definitely contribute to your overall