Friday, February 12, 2010

Food and Your Emotions

Do you often find yourself hungry whenever you feel down? If your answer to this question is a big “yes,” then you're ranked among the many people labeled as emotional eaters. Although common, the compulsion to use food to compensate for adverse emotions endangers your weight loss efforts. Emotional eating makes you susceptible to overeating, especially with high risk high-calorie foods with lots of sugar and/or fat.

Food serves as one of the most common emotional pacifiers whenever people find themselves stressed out and/or beleaguered by problems. The act of eating itself is a form of distraction. It keeps them preoccupied while suppressing adverse emotions like sadness, confusion, anger, loneliness, fear, boredom, or a combination of any of them.

Even if there are people who tend to eat less when confronted by these emotions, getting emotionally distressed also leaves them vulnerable to eating compulsively. Whether done consciously or not, the peril of having your emotions entwined with food could send you reaching out for whatever food is available every time you feel bad. Regardless of what particular emotion has triggered your compulsion, you still end up with the same risks: botched weight loss efforts and becoming unhealthy.



Contributed By: Maris Modesto

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Fishy Matters That Really Matter

Rich in omega-3-fatty acids, protein, and other vital nutrients sans the high levels of saturated fat, fish is a major component of a well-balanced diet, helpful in achieving and maintaining our healthy weight. However, because it has been confirmed that fish contains mercury and other toxins prevalent in our environment, questions concerning its healthfulness has been raised. To stay on the safe side without sacrificing the health benefits of eating fish, be guided by these pointers:

King Mackerel, Shark, Tilefish, and Swordfish have been confirmed to contain the most amount of toxins, hence, we are advised to exclude them from our diets.

It's safe to consume up to 12 ounces of these fish and shellfish with low amounts of mercury: canned light tuna, salmon, shrimp, pollock, and catfish.

Since white tuna (albacore) contains more mercury than light tuna, we're advised to consume no more than six ounces of it weekly.

Following these pointers would assure our continued enjoyment of the nutritional benefits of fish. Overall, too much consumption of mercury results to severe health complications, specifically risking the brain and nervous system. Those at higher risk are pregnant women, their unborn fetuses, lactating women, and young children.


Contributed By: Maris Modesto

Monday, February 1, 2010

Why Organic Produce Is Better

The organic food trend sweeping across the globe isn't media hype alone. Learn how going organic could improve health by considering these facts:

* Organic produce tops the freshness list.

Since organically grown produce is not treated with preservatives to prolong its storage life, it's definitely fresher. And fresh fruits and veggies always taste better. However, in buying organic products, knowledge of the source is important. Usually, the farms producing them are located near the places where they're sold.

* Using organic farming methods benefits us and our environment.

Organic farming methods is considered beneficial to our environment because of the following: it decreases pollution, soil contamination and erosion, saves water, makes the soil more fertile, and decreases energy consumption. Because organic farming never uses chemical fertilizers and pesticides, we're treated to pesticide-free and more nutritious fruits and veggies.

* Eating organic meat omits the health risk of adverse side effects.

Livestock raised the organic way is neither fed with animal by-products nor given antibiotics, which could translate to negative health consequences for us. Moreover, the animals are raised in a more spacious environment instead of being cramped together, thus, promoting their overall better health. Reasonably, healthy livestock means healthier meat.


Contributed By: Maris Modesto