Archive for September, 2011
2 Problems With Many Online Weight Loss Plans
There are literally hundreds if not thousands of online weight loss plans and services. As excess weight is such a common problem in the developed world, there are millions of people who are looking for answers and solutions to their weight issues. Many of these people turn to the internet to search for products to help them.
As with anything else, there are good online weight loss plans and there are bad ones. In this article, though, I want to talk about some of the common problems that you can find in many of the bad ones and some of the good ones as well. By knowing these problems you may be able to find a better program for you.
1. Generic approaches – This is also true for offline diet plans and books. There is a tendency to offer people a generic approach to weight loss, a single solution for all people. This can work in many cases and there are excellent generic weight loss plans.
However, in some cases the generic approach may fail.
The solution to that may be more personalized weight loss plans which take into account gender, age, body type, and other criteria. An example of such a program is the Customized Fat Loss plan.
2. Lack of support – This isn’t true for all diet plans but it is true for some of them. You can find online programs for which it is very hard to get support. You’re left trying to find answers in forums or have to figure things out for yourself. Say what you will about your fitness trainer at the gym but at least he’s there to give you answers when you need them.
There are online services which connect you to trainers and other professionals who do offer support.
Two examples of this are the Squires Fitness plan and the Fit Orbit service.
These problems may not apply to you. You may not need support and you can do quite well with many generic programs. What you do need to keep in mind is that it’s alright to fail to lose weight with any program. Sometimes there isn’t a good fit and there’s nothing to do about it but keep going. If you keep at it, I’m sure you’ll be able to lose weight.
Keeping Acne and other Skin Problems Away
Bad skin is not fun for anybody. Personal hygiene has nothing to do with acne problems–something that a lot of people have yet to accept. Eventually every single adult will have to deal with acne.
There is no single cause for acne, which is the reason that everybody gets it. Adult acne is not always as severe as teenage acne but it is more embarrassing so learning how to properly care for your skin is just one of things you have to do as a grown up. Get rid of acne by following these handy tips.
Your face should not have hair hanging in it.
All day long your hair follicles produce oil which makes its way into your hair and then, if you are not careful, onto your face and into your pores. Long hair or bangs are major culprits of clogged pores because the oil is so easily transferred from the scalp to your pores by your locks and bangs.
Sure having long hair is fun, but if you want to fight against acne, keep it off of your face. There are plenty of options for style and keeping your hair off of your face. Your face and skin will be so happy!
Your makeup and other cosmetic items might be oil based. Sometimes even the cleanser you use on your face will have an oily base! The reason you wash your face with cleanser is to get rid of the oil in your pores! When you are shopping check the ingredients of the beauty products and facial products that you are buying. The simplest way to avoid putting extra oil onto your skin is to eschew the liquid based cosmetics and choose powder based cosmetics instead. Stay away from cleansers that are come in solid forms and choose cleansers that foam up or are lighter lotions than oily and heavy liquids. Be careful and use your common sense!
Natural acne remedies are another option if you suffer from breakouts. You might try squeezing some toothpaste on that pimple. Put some toothpaste on your zits or pimples after they formed and then leave them alone overnight. Lock the pets out of the bedroom overnight so that they won’t try to taste the toothpaste or lick it off of your face and in the morning your zit will be a lot smaller than it was-it might even be gone! Lots of people use egg whites to clean their faces and reduce their breakouts. The best way to treat acne with egg whites is to use a q-tip to dab some of your mixture directly onto your pimples, though you could also use the egg whites to make a mask. People deal with acne for any number of reasons. The size and scope of a person’s breakouts are not important–what is important is knowing that you are not the only one who gets acne. It doesn’t matter how young or old you are, every person will have to deal with acne–some just need more help with it than others. People who deal with acne have plenty of acne fighting solutions to choose from. Your acne might only need to be spot treated with a mild cleanser you get at the supermarket. You might need the help of a doctor. Just keep exploring solutions and eventually you will cure your acne!
Weight Loss Diet Tips to Improve Heart Health
The incidence of obesity continues unabated at epidemic levels as people suffer from a wide array of degenerative diseases including heart disease which kills more people than any other affliction. The US Department of Agriculture released data showing that Americans consumed 331 more calories a day in 2006 compared to thirty years ago. Those additional calories translate to an additional 2,317 added calories each week which packs on roughly 34 more pounds of deadly body fat each year.
Excess Body Weight Directly Leads to Heart Disease
The risk of heart disease rises in direct proportion to weight gain. The results of a study in the European Heart Journal conclude that even moderate increases in weight are strongly associated with increased risk of coronary death and heart attack.
In fact, a 5% increase in body weight is enough to tip the scales toward cardiovascular disease in large part due to the metabolic response of chemical messengers released by stored fat and lipid dysfunction.
The body has an amazing capacity to heal itself and reverse the negative effects of a lifetime of poor dietary habits, as any amount of weight loss will slowly bring about disease reversal and lower the risk of suffering a cardiac event. You can incorporate the following healthy tips into your lifestyle to assist weight loss and dramatically lower your risk of heart disease.
Tip 1: Increase Dietary Calcium to Boost Weight Loss Efforts
The results of a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows that those individuals with the highest intake of calcium from dairy products experienced an average 12 pound weight loss over a 2 year period.
Study participants consumed 600 mg of calcium from dairy sources which is equivalent to a 12 ounce glass of milk.
It’s important to note that the calcium did not come from supplements which are difficult for the body to absorb. Be sure to supplement with Vitamin K which helps usher calcium out of the blood so it doesn’t become deadly heart clogging plaque.
Tip 2: Supplement with Vitamin D to Reduce Inflammation
This study also found that as weight increased, levels of Vitamin D circulating in the blood were reduced. This is because Vitamin D becomes stored in body fat, and excess fat means that more Vitamin D is locked away and unavailable to perform critical anti-inflammatory and immune system functions.
Vitamin D is a catalyst in the weight loss process as it reduces inflammation caused by excess fat and helps to inhibit the release of chemical messengers such as cortisol which keep you from losing weight. Vitamin D deficiency is implicated in the dramatic rise in coronary artery disease, as it has been shown to lower blood pressure and stabilize plaque so it doesn’t rupture.
Tip 3: Stabilize Blood Sugar Through Natural Diet
Blood sugar spikes caused by a diet high in processed carbohydrates leads to obesity and heart disease. Wild changes in blood sugar after every meal cause metabolic imbalance and high levels of triglycerides in the blood which the body must convert to fat for storage. You can get off this rollercoaster and begin to see quick weight loss results by slowly cutting refined carbs from your diet.
If your food comes in a cardboard box, can or other man made container, it shouldn’t be part of your diet. Eat plenty of vegetables, nuts, seeds and lean proteins in their natural form to keep blood sugar under control. You can reverse plaque which has been slowly developing in your arteries over the course of decades, as you watch those excess pounds disappear.
PTSD ? A Debilitating Mental Condition
PTSD (Post-traumatic stress disorder) is a debilitating mental condition. PTSD sufferers may feel like they can never return to their normal self because of an inability to move past the distressing incident that triggered the trauma. Traumatized people whether affected by PTSD or not, have a higher tendency towards using alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, and towards developing Eating Disorders, OCD, and Dissociative Disorders.
In earlier times, beginning with the Civil War, PTSD was known as “Da Costa’s syndrome.” The anxiety disorder has also been known by alternate terms such as “battle fatigue” or “shell shock” owing to its link with military service. Now, it is understood that PTSD is not just a wartime disorder but can develop in anyone who has experienced or witnessed a very traumatic event. Events of this nature include kidnapping, rape or sexual abuse, plane/car crash, medical procedures, or neglect in childhood.
C-PTSD (Complex post-traumatic disorder) arises from continued exposure to a traumatic happening or sequence of traumatic events.
In this case, the patient experiences long-lasting issues in social and emotional functioning.
Symptoms of PTSD
Provided below are some of the symptoms of PTSD that help in diagnosing the disorder. From the symptoms, it is easy to understand how much the disorder can affect a person’s health and happiness.
• Avoiding places, feelings, thoughts or activities that remind the person of the traumatic event
• Frightening thoughts
• Nightmares
• Outbursts of anger/irritability
• Hopelesness and/or severe depression
• Difficulty concentrating
• Emotional numbness
• Substance abuse
• Stomach problems, headaches, chest pain, dizziness
• Reduction in interest in life and usual activities
• Finding it difficult to fall asleep or to get back to sleep after waking up in between
• Hypervigilance
• Detachment from people
Effective Treatment- Comprehensive and Individualized
Different kinds of treatment are available for post-traumatic stress disorder namely Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), trauma focused CBT (Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy), family therapy, group therapy, attachment therapy, exposure therapy, Internal Family Systems Therapy and medication management.
Treatment for PTSD which can be quite a debilitating condition should be comprehensive- involving the client’s support system, body, mind, and spirit and should be highly individualized.
Muscle Joint Pain Symptoms, Causes and Effective Cure
Muscle pains and aches are very common and can involve more than one muscle. Muscle pain involves tendons, ligaments, fascia, the soft tissues which connect muscles, bones, and organs. Muscle pain is most frequently related to overuse, tension, or muscle injury from exercise or physically demanding work. This condition is related with the specific muscles and starts during or just after the activity. So it is obvious that a specific activity is related with specific muscle pain.
Muscle pain is also related with the conditions affecting your whole body. With the growing age our cartilage and joints wear down resulting in an occurrence of pain in muscles and joint. We cannot say that only aging is the main contributor to muscle joint pain. SLE or Systemic Lupus Erythematosus is said to be the main cause. The main cause of muscle pain in the joint is the inflammation of joints which is often referred to as arthritis and it causes swelling, tenderness, a burning sensation, pain and a collection of fluid.
The symptoms of SLE are more related with those of viral flu. Due to sudden and severe pain in muscles joints, a person really feels ill.
Due to swelling and pain, the symptoms of SLE and arthritis are similar. In some patients there is a loss of strength due to serious inflamed muscles. These patients do not suffer from severe joint pain.
In some cases people feel pain in the muscle joint before the occurrence of SLE. In severe cases an individual experiences muscle joint pain even while resting. Health practitioners advised the patients suffering from muscle pain to have the right balance of rest and exercise and the people suffering from the problem of SLE are advised to be cautious and must be aware of the activities, so that they must not put an additional burden on the weakened muscles and joints.
Muscle pain in joint can affect any part of the body like hips, shoulders and knees.
These parts of the body are more prone to this illness. Overweight also adds stress and difficulty among the patients suffering from SLE. These peoples are more likely to suffer from muscle and joint pain.
There are some problems which contribute to the muscle joint pain and make the condition more complicated. These health problems include
1. Bursitis
2. Tendonitis
3. Avascular necrosis of bone
4. Fibromyalgia
5. Muscle injury
6. Infection
7. Other forms of arthritis
To avoid further complications, early stages of muscle joint pain must be treated properly. Herbal massage oil and ayurvedic supplements are beneficial in providing relief from muscle joint pain.
Read information about Joint Pain Relief treatment. Also know about herbal Arthritis Supplement. Read about Arthritis Joint Pain Relief remedies.
4 Safe Ways to Handle Hives Allergy
If you suffer from a hives allergy reaction from time to time, it is important to start treating, managing and preventing the skin condition. There are some ways to safely handle hives, and these include identifying triggers, avoiding those triggers, taking natural remedies and seeing a doctor if the condition persists or is severe.
Hives are red and usually itchy bumps on the skin. A hives allergy reaction to a certain medication or good generally causes the skin condition. Allergic reactions trigger your body to produce chemicals that can cause your skin to become inflamed in hives. Individuals who have other allergies have a higher tendency to develop hives compared to other people. Other triggers include stress and infections. In rare situations, allergic reactions can trigger life-threatening swelling in the airways, making it difficult to breath.
1 – Identify Triggers
If you’ve had an allergic reaction in the past, now is the time to try and identify the triggers.
Keep a diary of what medications you recently took or foods/drinks you recently consumed.
2 – Avoid Triggers
Once you’ve identified the triggers, avoid them as much as possible. For instance, if you find that you break out in hives when taking hot showers, try to use cooler temperatures.
3 – Take Natural Remedies
A good way to manage hives is to take natural remedies or supplements. These are particularly effective and are notable for their zero side effects.
4 – Consult Your Doctor
If you’re experiencing a chronic/recurring or severe hives allergy reaction, see your doctor.