We eat to live, yet our eating habits can be hazardous to our health. A typical American diet is packed with too many calories and too much fat, salt and sugar. Fruit, vegetables, whole grains and fiber are often missing in action.
Add to that a sedentary lifestyle, and you have a recipe for heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and other health problems.
Eating a balanced diet can help you get to a healthy weight. But that\’s only one step. You also need to balance how many calories you eat with how many calories your body needs.
And that\’s ...

Salad, broccoli, sweet potatoes, avocados, blueberries, kidney beans, yogurt and oatmeal. These foods are listed on numerous top ten lists as "super-foods" for health.
But wait! These foods are all major sources of carbohydrates. Aren\’t they the "evil" nutrient that\’s partly to blame for America\’s obesity problem?
Choosing the right type
The answer is yes … and no. What\’s important is to make the distinction between types of carbohydrates. All carbs are not created equal. The key is to get most of your carbs from unrefined, wholesome sources (like the ones mentioned above). Eating too many processed carbs can ...
Ever tried a pomegranate? These days, pomegranates are a fruit most everyone has heard about, but few may have actually tried.
Pomegranates are a native Middle Eastern fruit that contain crunchy seeds surrounded by juicy pulp. Not only are they loaded with vitamins, but they\’re packed with certain nutrients that may help fight diseases such as cancer, heart disease, stroke and high blood pressure.
Nutrition superstar
According to the USDA, pomegranates are a great source of vitamins C and E, folic acid and potassium. In fact, pomegranates are one of the richest sources of polyphenols, a group of strong ...
Walk into any supermarket and you will see the words "made without trans fats" on many food items. Most companies are joining the bandwagon to remove these fats from their products.
But how did they go from "healthy alternative" to health curse over the last two decades? What exactly are trans fats and why are they bad for you?
A few facts
Trans fats first hit the market in the early 1990s. Made from vegetable oils, these fats were thought to be a healthy alternative to saturated fats from lard and butter.
Trans fats are formed when liquid vegetable oils, ...
Struggling to lose weight? Don\’t exercise enough? You\’re not alone. According to the latest research, almost two out of three Americans are overweight or obese, and one half don\’t get enough exercise. And that puts them at greater risk of chronic disease.
In response, the government\’s Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee has revised its recommendations. It now places more emphasis on strategies to manage weight.
The national guidelines are generally for healthy people and are not for those on restricted or special diets. Here is a summary:
Physical activity
There is no doubt that exercise can help control weight and lower ...
Sugar can be found in everything from cookies and soda to catsup and salad dressing. In fact, the average American downs about 22 teaspoons of sugar a day. That\’s way more than the five to nine teaspoons now recommended by the American Heart Association.
If you\’re used to a daily sugar high, curbing your sweet tooth may be a challenge. Experts offer these tips:
Eat regular meals and snacks
Sugar cravings often strike when your stomach is empty. That\’s why it\’s important to try to eat at regular intervals - at least every three to four hours.
Include protein and ...
Ever heard of the "rainbow diet?" It\’s not an actual diet - it refers to choosing fruits and vegetables of every color in the rainbow.
Eating the full rainbow of foods regularly helps give your body the nutrients it needs. In addition to fiber, vitamins and minerals, naturally colored foods contain what are known as phytochemicals. These powerful nutrients are the disease-fighting substances that also give fruits and vegetables their array of colors.
Research has shown that eating a variety of these nutrients can work together to:
Strengthen your immune system
Lower your risk for certain cancers
Help ward off type 2 ...
If you’ve ever had a "charley horse," you know the sudden, intense pain and tightness caused by a muscle locked in spasm.
A muscle cramp is the contraction of a muscle that refuses to relax. Cramps can involve part or all of a muscle, or several muscles in a group. The most commonly affected muscle groups are:
Back of lower leg calf
Back of thigh (hamstrings)
Front of thigh (quadriceps)
Feet, hands, arms, abdomen and rib cage
Cramps typically occur when these muscles are overworked (known as "muscle fatigue"). Experts believe that the exertion may cause a nerve malfunction that prevents the ...
More and more children in the U.S. are becoming overweight and obese. They are eating unbalanced meals made up of high-calorie foods and they are not exercising enough. Instead of playing outdoor sports, kids are watching TV or playing computer games.
As a result, an alarming number of children are not only gaining weight, but developing weight-related health problems as young adults, including:
Heart disease
Diabetes
High cholesterol
High blood pressure
The American Heart Association (AHA) reports that 75 percent to 90 percent of heart disease cases are related to these problems that can start in childhood.
Alarming diet trends
Young people don\’t usually ...
The nutrition world has been buzzing for the last several years about antioxidants. Antioxidants are natural substances found in foods. They contain the pigments that lend color to fruits, vegetables and other foods.
But why the superhero status? Experts believe antioxidants may help prevent disease by fighting substances called "free radicals." Free radicals cause cell damage throughout the body. Antioxidants combine with, and thereby "neutralize" free radicals. In this way, antioxidants may help slow or prevent damage to cells.
Antioxidants to the rescue
Free radicals are created in your body everyday. They form during cell reactions involving oxygen, such ...
