Weight loss is not always an easy process andwith winter fast approaching, skies getting darker and chilly winds on the horizon,it'sno wonder that manypeopleare choosing to wrap up warm and put their feet up at home, simultaneously avoiding the gym and their diet completely.

So what can you do to avoid low motivation during these wintry months?

According to research, if you cant be bothered to go to the gym, eating one particular type of superfood could help get you motivated. What is it?

A new studyby experts in New Zealandstatedeating a specific type of food supplement - made from blackcurrants - could help get you off the sofa and intoLycra.

The research found thatincorporatingblackcurrant into a slimmer's diet will make it easierto exercise for longer without getting tired.

The studys lead author Dr. Suzanne Hurst said: Identifying foods or dietary supplements that specifically support the desire to exercise daily will enable an individual to adhere to an exercise programme and maintain an active and healthy lifestyle.

She found that drinking blackcurrant juice one hour before exercise supports positive affective responses during a low impact walking exercise in healthy sedentary adults.

READ MORE: Im A Celebrity star ditched one food from diet to shed 2st

In the study conducted by Dr. Hurst, a group of male and female adults aged between 20 and 59 - were given either blackcurrant juice or a placebo an hour before they were asked to walk on a treadmill.

The study found that the average time walked by those whod consumed the blackcurrant juicewas 11 minutes longer than those who hadnt.

While only 10percentof those whod had the placebo walked a distance greater than 10km - compared with 30 percent of participants in the blackcurrant group.

The treadmill walkers whod had blackcurrants also reported lower exertion scores - and higher overall mood scores - than those whod had the placebo.

The study also found that consumption of thesuperfoodalso resulted in a dramatic 90 percent reduction in the build of enzymes linked to the onset of depression - helping you to feel better about going to the gym, too.

Test subjects underwent a blood test both before and after the experiment, its here they noted a huge decrease in something called monoamine oxidase-B, or MAO-B, activity - something they believe could help fight neurological diseases like dementia.

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Dr. Hurst, of the New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research, says: We found that plasma collectedonehour after blackcurrant consumption showed a dramatic acute decline - 90percent- in platelet MAO-B activity, which was still detectable in participants plasma once they had stopped exercise.

The pharmacological inhibition of brain MAO-B activity has been used to treat those diagnosed with neurological diseases and depression, potentially through their neuroprotective properties in reducing the metabolism of monoamines.

The findings were reported in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition.

Nicki Bundock, of Surrey-based firm CurraNZ, the UKs leading supplier of New Zealand blackcurrants supplements explained: "Regular exercise is one of the best ways to reduce your chances of health problems like heart disease or type 2 diabetes.

But if youre not an active person, starting an exercise plan and actually sticking with it can be incredibly difficult.

Studies have shown more than half of us drop-out of exercise plans after just six months, reverting to inactive lifestyles.

And its therefore vital we find ways to make exercise more tolerable and enjoyable.

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Weight loss: Superfood revealed that can help slimmers head to the gym - Express

What if you stopped obeying a list of rules about what and how much you eat? Intuitive eating aims to help people do just that, working to heal their relationship with food after a lifetime of off- and on-again dieting.

There are 10 different principles that characterize this practice, which was defined by registered dietitian nutritionists Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch in 1995. The basic idea is that it is possible to let go of the belief system that dieting is beneficial and necessary for a healthy lifestyle. It encourages the honoring of hunger and cravings and challenges beliefs about good and bad foods. Food is meant to become neutral for those practicing intuitive eating, explains Devrie Pettit, the RD behind Happily Fed. This can give you more freedom while making decisions about food, allowing you to eat what sounds satisfying and what makes your body feel good.

Related: Intuitive Eating Is the Anti-Diet to End All Diets

It sounds pretty great, right? The idea of never dieting again is incredible, but it could also make you feel nervous, too. Surely unconditional permission to eat doesnt apply to everyone, right? If you feel skeptical that intuitive eating is a good fit for individuals with a chronic illness like diabetes, you are definitely not alone.

Intuitive eating is for everyone.

Its a big myth that intuitive eating isnt appropriate for everyone, says Cara Harbstreet, RD, of Street Smart Nutrition. It was created by two dietitians for the very purpose of supporting health and well-being, so its a natural complement to the interventions or management plans for chronic diseases.

Removing food rules may feel risky for someone with a chronic disease. It may seem that doing so could contribute to out of control eating behaviors or worsened symptoms. While some may initially experience intensified cravings and feel they are eating more than normal, this is a pretty normal first step toward a healthier relationship with food, according to Harbstreet.

Unconditional permission to eat is often misconstrued as free and open access to eat whatever you want, whenever you want, says Harbstreet. And perhaps on the surface, yes, this is a process one must go to in order to rebound from years of dieting and restriction.

She adds that, with time, practicing intuitive eating can take on the form of learning to honor when you are hungry and when youve had enough. Youll feel OK eating a snack even though it was unplanned, allowing yourself to eat foods because they bring enjoyment, and eating during times previously seen as off limits, like right before bed.

Try the fur cure. Simply petting an animal can decrease the level of the stress hormone cortisol and boost release of the neurotransmitter serotonin, lowering blood pressure and heart rate and, possibly, elevating your mood.

Additionally, this evolving relationship with food is a chance to see it for what it really is.

When you neutralize all food, you dont see it as good or bad, and you come to realize that all food serves a purpose, says Pettit. Food can provide nutrients, energy, or just taste good. Some foods encompass all three purposes.

This means that, once you allow yourself to consider all foods, you can choose what sounds good to you, what you have available and time to prepare, and what feels good in your body.

Intuitive eating isnt just an OK choice for individuals with diabetes, it can be incredibly helpful in managing the chronic illness for the long term. As an example, the principle of Making Peace with Food is important to individuals with diabetes, says Harbstreet.

So often, foods with carbohydrates are vilified or avoided, she explains. Which creates a cycle of deprivation and intense cravings or binge eating for many people.

Related: How You Can Reverse Type 2 Diabetes, According to Experts

This is just one example. It is possible to see how other principles like, Exercise Feel the Difference, could be a good fit for someone coping with diabetes. Additionally, there is a big mindset shift that comes with adopting intuitive eating as a lifestyle, as Harbstreet points out.

Rather than use scare tactics or fear to motivate someone, IE offers support, encouragement and non-judgment to allow room for learning and mistakes, she says. Ultimately, its a more compassionate way to help people with diabetes feel empowered and confident in their ability to do whats best for them and their bodies.

Another aspect of this mindset shift is letting go of the expectation that weight loss is the goal for someone with diabetes. Pettit is quick to explain that becoming smaller isnt necessary, that it isnt possible to make accurate assumptions about how a person eats or moves based on their size or appearance. It is also true that it is completely possible to improve blood cholesterol, glucose, and blood pressure levels because of new, health-promoting behaviors without seeing the number on the scale change.

The biggest misconception is that weight loss automatically equals better health, Harbstreet adds. I find that although this may be the case for some people, its usually a temporary fix and it removes attention from the other healthful behaviors that are also important.

So, how exactly should someone with diabetes get started with intuitive eating? The first step is to find an IE coach who is also a registered dietitian to visit with about first steps. This person will help you as you face the challenges of completely changing how you think about food and health and they can keep your medical providers looped in so you dont get conflicting advice, according to Harbstreet.

Additionally, Pettit offers a few specific tips for the process. She encourages individuals in these circumstances to make sure they are including foods they love to eat and choosing meals, snacks, and exercise routines that are sustainable because they work well with your existing lifestyle. Intuitive eating embraces gentle nutrition, so it is OK to keep in mind basic principles as you build a meal. For example, pairing protein, fats and carbohydrates together is encouraged by Pettit.

Lastly, although this is a practice that is for anyone, it might not be the very first step for specific people. If you are critically ill or in recovery for an eating disorder, there may be additional healing that needs to happen on the road towards an intuitive eating lifestyle. This is why reaching out for professional support is so important as you work on embracing a less judgmental approach to food and exercise, whether youre chronically ill or trying to break free from years of cyclical dieting.

Find out what celebs are saying about diet cultureand why it can be toxic.

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Intuitive Eating: Can This Anti-Diet Work for Diabetes? - Parade

Diabetes is among the fastest-growing health conditions in the United States. Over 30 million adults have diabetes, with 1.5 million new cases each year. If you include prediabetes, which tends to lead to diabetes if untreated, over 100 million Americans are affected. Fortunately, most cases of diabetes can be treated or prevented through healthy eating, weight control and regular exercise. Since November is American Diabetes Month, this seems like a good time to raise awareness about the prevention, treatment and consequences of this serious medical condition.

Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder characterized by high blood glucose (sugar) caused by a lack of insulin production or impaired insulin action. The lack of insulin production can be caused by an autoimmune disorder that damages the pancreas. This typically occurs during childhood, as in type 1 or juvenile diabetes, but it can occur in adults, a condition called latent autoimmune diabetes of adulthood (LADA). For both types, injected insulin is required to control blood glucose.

More commonly, diabetes is caused by the bodys cells not responding to the insulin that is produced, a condition called insulin resistance. This is called type 2 diabetes and is typically caused by some combination of obesity, particularly excess abdominal fat, and physical inactivity.

Diabetes can be diagnosed based on a fasting blood glucose test, taken 812 hours after a meal, usually in the morning. Another test is an oral glucose tolerance test in which blood glucose is measured for two hours after drinking a special beverage containing glucose. This measures the bodys response to glucose. The hemoglobin A1C test is a long-term measure of blood glucose control. This is important because the higher the hemoglobin A1C level, the greater the risk of diabetes complications.

For most diabetics, the main treatment goal is to control blood glucose level to prevent serious complications including nerve damage, blindness, infection and amputation, heart attack, and stroke. This is typically accomplished through a combination of diet, exercise and medications, with varying degrees of success. But curing diabetes is rare, so most patients require continued treatment.

Exercise is important for blood glucose control because exercise causes an increase in the uptake of glucose into cells and can improve glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity. In addition, exercise has the added benefits of promoting weight loss and improving strength and fitness. Both aerobic and strength training are recommended, with a minimum goal of 30 minutes per day, every day.

Meal planning involves selecting healthy foods to help maintain consistent blood glucose levels while meeting energy needs for exercise and other activities. The dietary recommendations for preventing and treating diabetes are almost identical to the general recommendations for good health: Emphasize whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, and low-fat meat and dairy, and reduce unhealthy fats, added sugars and salt.

The diet should also promote weight loss and weight maintenance, especially for overweight patients. The glycemic index (GI), a measure of how much a food raises blood glucose, can be helpful in dietary planning, but it is not the only meal planning tool that should be used.

Proper diet, blood glucose testing, medication use and regular exercise can improve blood glucose control, reduce the risk of other health problems and improve quality of life in diabetics. In those with prediabetes these efforts can delay the progression to diabetes and may even result in a return to normal blood glucose. In fact, diet and exercise have been shown to be more effective than medications in preventing diabetes. Plus, these lifestyle changes lead to weight loss and improved fitness, benefits that no medication can match.

Brian Parr, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Department of Exercise and Sports Science at USC Aiken where he teaches courses in exercise physiology, nutrition and health behavior. You can learn more about this and other health and fitness topics at http://drparrsays.com or on Twitter @drparrsays.

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HEALTH AND FITNESS: What you need to know about diabetes - Aiken Standard

The latest lifestyle, fashion and travel trends

The London fitness scene is booming, new studios open each month, challenges and transformation programmes encourage us to train every day to see results fast.

Our appetite for exercise has never been so big, turbo charged by the #fitfluencers we see on Instagram, of course. But are you eating enough and at the right times to sustain your training?

We consulted two top registered dietitians sports and eating disorder specialist Renee Mcgregorand consultant dietitianSophie Medlin on how to nourish yourself properly while exercising.

Should you train fasted? How much protein is too much? How soon after a workout should you eat? Here, they answer your burning questions...

This is one of the most debated topics in the fitness world.

It depends on your workout, but...

Renee Mcgregor: In general Im not a big fan of fasted training. You should definitely not consider it for a morning workout that is high-intensitysuch as intervals, HIIT, boxing basically any session where you are working above 8/10. This is because the levels of cortisol, our stress hormone, are highest in the morning, if you then add further stress to the system by training at a high intensity without any fuel, you can cause cortisol to become chronically high which in turn can block the hypothalamus and pituitary gland, impacting the production of sex hormones oestrogen and testosterone, important for a number of functions in the body.

It has been shown repeatedly in scientific studies that it is very difficult to hit and maintain these intense efforts with no fuel, specifically carbohydrate.

If you are someone who insists on this type of training, it is important that it is at low intensity, that is an effort of 6/10 or below and that the session is no more than 60 minutes and nomore than twice a week.

Sophie Medlin: Fasted exercise in the morning can work well for some people to achieve fat loss. Taking advantage of your overnight fast means that youll be tapping into stored energy in muscles or from fat stores to fuel your work out. For average people, the beneficial effect is likely to be minimal but if you feel good when you exercise in the morning and this works for your routine, then you can make the most of this. For some people, fasted exercise means that they feel lethargic and exercise becomes a huge chore and a burden which may reduce exercise performance and therefore reduce its effectiveness. If you have a workout that makes you feel bad and causes you additional stress and discomfort, you will negate the effects of the fast anyway so it is always best to exercise when it fits in with your routine and you feel most energetic.

To train fasted or not

Renee Mcgregor: Ideally you want to get easily digestible forms of carbohydrate, so good options include banana and fruit yoghurt, oatcakes with mashed banana, fruit loaf or crumpets. This provides the body with carbohydrate effectively and efficiently ensuring there is enough energy going to the working muscles.

Sophie Medlin: Depending on when you last had a meal, you might benefit from a snack before your workout. Some people find that eating too close to a workout causes discomfort or cramps. Most people will find that leaving a gap of 60-90 minutes between eating and training works best. If you need to snack a bit closer to your workout, a snack that wont sit in your stomach for too long with some fast releasing carbohydrates usually works well. A banana or a smoothie are good options, a yoghurt or a glass of milk would also work.

Renee Mcgregor: Ideally you want to eat as quickly as you can. If you have done an intense workout and your next meal is over 2 hours away or you are training again within a 12 hour window, you want to take on something within 30 minutes.

One of the best options is flavoured milk as this provides easily digestible in the form of lactose and glucose as well as protein to help start repairing the body. If you are going to eat within the hour, then your next meal is the ideal recovery. Aim for a good mix of carbohydrate and protein eggs on toast; granola and Greek yoghurt, bagel with peanut butter and banana, chicken pasta salad or baked potato with tuna are all great options.

Sophie Medlin: After a workout, most people will want to focus on protein to make sure there is enough of the right amino acids available to build and repair their muscles. We also benefit from having some carbohydrate at this point to aid recovery. If youre not due to have a balanced meal with a protein source within an hour of your workout, the best thing for muscle growth and repair is the balance of amino acids and carbohydrate from dairy. A yoghurt with some fruit or half a pint of skimmed milk is ideal. Chocolate milk is also well regarded by professional sports coaches as a workout recovery drink. If youre following a vegan diet or dont tolerate dairy well, a plant-based protein shake or soya milk would work well. Other plant-based milks are not ideal sources of protein and dont contain all the necessary amino acids.

Why it's time to start incorporating a SkiErg into your gym sessions

Protein is essential for repairing muscles post-workout but it can be confusing to know exactly how much of it your body requires.

According to the British Nutrition Foundation, the protein requirements of a normal adult is 0.75g per kilo of bodyweight per day. For strength and endurance athletes, this increases to around 1.2-1.7g/Kg BW. So if you are working out regularly, your protein requirements may be slightly higher than the average person in order to help repair muscles after exercise. However, it stresses, "most people in the UK consume more than the recommended amount of protein, so increasing your protein intake is generally unnecessary." Check out its table showing the protein content of popular foods here.

Renee Mcgregor: Protein shakes can be useful as a convenient form of nutrition if you are unable to take on recovery in a real form. However not all protein shakes are useful. Always try to find a shake that contains carbs and protein or make your whey shake with cow's milk.

The key is ensuring carbohydrate availability around your training schedule this is instrumental in ensuring hormonal regulation and yet it is often the nutrient most avoided.

Sophie Medlin: Protein shakes can be a convenient way to recover from and fuel a workout, the problem ;is they are a highly-processed food which is something that most people will want to cut down on.

People who are working out 5-6 times per week or who are competing and focusing on performance will [require more protein], which can be slightly harder to achieve without focusing on having protein at every meal and two high protein snacks per day this is where convenience foods like protein shakes and protein bars can be useful.

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Exactly what and when to eat before and after a workout, according to a dietitian - Evening Standard

Weight gain makes a lot of people lose out on their confidence and face rejection, which can be very hard to deal with. For a homemaker, Bhavani, the struggle was all too real. However, she decided to take it in her stride and lose weight for good.To know how she did it, read her story here:Name: Bhavani RaghukandanOccupation: Homemaker

Age: 31 yearsCity: Trivandrum

Highest weight recorded: 104.5 kilos

Weight lost: 32 kilos

Duration it took me to lose weight: 9 months. I started in June 2018 and reached my goal weight of 72 kilos by the end of January 2019.

The turning point: It had been bothering me for quite some time that my BMI was too high. I lost a few kilos of my post-pregnancy weight after stopping breastfeeding but still couldnt reach the healthy BMI range. I had tried many diets but none of them seemed to work. One day I came across a book about the paleo diet. When I read it, I thought, one more diet, why not try it and see. The first weekend of starting the paleo diet along with the gym, I saw that I had lost 1.4 kilos solid. It became the lifeboat I had been struggling to lay my hands on.My breakfast: 30 almonds or a cup of milk along with two boiled eggs. Some days I eat a cheese omelet with 2 eggs.

My lunch: I usually eat one big bowl of mixed vegetable gravy or soup, topped with some nuts and butter. I make it a point to add greens in my lunch in some way or the other.

My dinner: One bowl of seasonal salad, one cup of homemade greek yogurt and a dry paneer gravy. Some days I take to the traditional route of having a bowl of sabzi and eggs.

I love eating dairy products. That being one of the major staples of this diet, I dont feel the craving to cheat, since Im a lot happier with my meals than before.

My workout: I work out in the gym for 1.5 hours to 2 hours daily, 5 days a week. In the beginning, I was only doing functional training and 40 minutes of cardio every day. Once my weight reached down to 75 kilos, my trainer switched my regime to include weight training and targeting specific muscle groups with 20 minutes of cardio every day. I also like to do a bit of yoga for flexibility and some basic breathing exercises, in the morning.

Low-calorie recipes I swear by: More than the calories, my diet completely went for an overhaul. I gave up the intake of any form of sugar and deep-fried items. Anything prepared in maida is a strict no-no.

How do I stay motivated? I have a photo of the before me on my phone. Whenever I feel low, I just look at that. Thats enough to get me to stop lazing around and head to the gym. Plus, after one year of training in the gym, I also participated in a competitions held there and to my surprise, I won a year's worth of membership! I laminated that certificate and have kept that in the room. That pushes me to go workout harder even on my lowest day.How do you ensure you dont lose focus? For so many years, all that my parents and I wanted was for me to lose weight. Standing on a weighing machine and checking my weight was the most nightmarish thing anyone could ask me to do back then. Once I started seeing weight loss in the same machine, I didn't want to stop now. Working out has become such a part of my daily routine now and missing even one day immediately puts my day off.

I have this practice of checking my weight first thing Monday morning every week. The weight I see on the scale now is enough to make me focus throughout the entire week.Whats the most difficult part of being overweight? Before this, life was difficult. Not being able to do even small physical activities easily like climbing up the stairs without feeling the need to stop in between and take a breath or getting up from the floor without support was daunting. I didnt even feel like walking down the street to buy something. Plus, I had to choose the clothes that fit my size rather than from the clothes I actually liked.

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Weight loss: Paleo diet made this mom lose 32 kilos in 9 months! Here's how - Times of India

BELLVILLE Jodie Snavely can light up a room with her lively personality and beaming smile.

Because the Bellville residents zest for life is so apparent, it would be easy to assume that her life is all rainbows and unicorns. But daily she deals with the struggles of living with type 1 diabetes a condition that, if not properly managed, can cause serious health complications.

November is Diabetes Awareness Month. World Diabetes Day is celebrated on Nov. 14 to raise awareness on both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes is caused by an autoimmune reaction that destroys cells in the pancreas that make insulin. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, without insulin, blood sugar cant get into cells, causing buildup in the bloodstream. High blood sugar can cause serious health problems, such as heart disease, vision loss and kidney disease.

With type 2 diabetes, cells dont respond normally to insulin (insulin resistance),and the body cant keep blood sugar at normal levels.

Snavely, 52, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when she was 18.

Prior to her diagnosis she experienced such symptoms as excessive thirst and urination, mood swings and hair loss, she said.

But it was a ruptured ovarian cyst that led her to discovering she had type 1 diabetes. Her blood test results confirmed the diagnosis.

Mentally, I had no idea what I was in for. No idea, she recalled. I had no idea what diabetes was. I didnt know what was going to happen in my life.

Her doctor encouraged her to maintain a healthy diet, exercise, and to regularly check her blood sugar.

Then I went off to college and was like, Im not checking my blood sugar, she said. She saw it as a hassle.

After she graduated, however, checking her blood sugar was no longer optional in her mind.

My doctor told me to either straighten up or youre going to die from this, so it was that that made me step back and understand what can happen from diabetes if you dont check your sugar, she said.

Jodie poses with her husband, Bret.

From then on she took it upon herself to check her blood sugar not just once, but 10 times daily.

They recommend anywhere from 1-3 times daily to see where youre at, but I took it so seriously when that doctor said, You need to shape up. I was like, I dont want to die from diabetes, I want to live to be a very healthy person, and so Im now going to do everything I possibly can to keep healthy, she said.

Keeping track of her blood sugar levels helps give her peace of mind, she said.

I feel better knowing what my blood sugars are and keeping that in perfect control, she said. Is it always in control? No, because diabetes sometimes has a mind of its own. Emotions can take over, stress can take over, if I dont have time to eat, if I get sick Life gets in the way and you just have to do the best you can do to keep healthy.

One of the ways she keeps healthy is with regular physical activity. Her go-to exercise is running, which she started doing at 30 years old.

Running outside in the winter can be a great form of exercise -- just make sure you take necessary precautions before lacing up your running shoes.

She typically runs 4-9 miles two or three times a week in the winter and five times a week in the spring, summer and fall. She also enjoys taking part in races and has completed eight half-marathons, three Tough Mudders, numerous 5K and 10K races, and one 24-hour relay race.

She set a personal record at her most recent half marathon in October with a time of two hours and eight minutes.

Im very competitive, so I was super excited that I got a PR, she said.

Snavely takes extra care when training and preparing for races.

I have to consider how diabetes will affect me for two hours while Im running, so I have to think about where my blood sugars are at, what to eat before the race, how to fuel throughout the race and what to do afterwards, she said.

The extra effort may seem like a burden to some, but Snavely said its just a normal part of her routine.

I accept it and go with the flow, she said.

She also says a prayer during her races that God would watch over her.

On top of exercise, Snavely prioritizes a healthy diet. She sticks to foods like fruits, veggies, nuts, fish and poultry, and doesnt eat out much.

She also keeps in regular contact with her endocrinologist, Dr. Cynthia Dorsey of OhioHealth.

Im so thankful for her and her staff that keep me healthy, Snavely said. I see her every four months religiously.

In the 34 years that Snavely has been diagnosed with diabetes, she hasn't suffered any complications from the disease, she said.

For over 20 years shes worn an insulin pump, which is meant to mimic the functions of a pancreas.

I call it my pancreas on the outside of my body, she said with a laugh. Its a little machine that has a tube that goes into my body and I move that around every four days and it delivers insulin like your pancreas would, she explained.

She also has glucose tablets handy in case her blood sugar were to drop.

When it comes to managing diabetes, she said, You have to take it by the horns and take control of it. Is it easy? No, its not easy. Its a 24/7 disease that I have to manage.

But shes thankful for the support shes received along the way from family, friends and her physicians.

Keeping a positive frame of mind is all she knows.

Jodie smiles with her parents, Malena and Ron Puster.

I had two choices when I was diagnosed: I could become depressed and say, Forget it, Im not going to deal with diabetes,' or I was going to take it by the horns and do the best I could do, she said.

She credits her parents for helping her look on the bright side and to push past obstacles standing in her way.

She hopes to be like her grandmother who lived to be 99.

She was not diabetic, but I want to be like my grandma and live a long, healthy life, she said.

Diabetes is not going to take me down.

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How this Bellville woman is living her best life with type 1 diabetes - Richland Source

Published November 15, 2019, 1:24 AM

By Analou De Vera

Health advocates on Thursday encouraged the public, especially the young people, to engage more on physical activities as it is one of the keys to prevent diabetes.

During a press conference for the observance of World Diabetes Day 2019 in Quezon City, the advocates underscored that children nowadays are more glued to gadgets instead of participating in physical activities.

Now with the use of gadgets, we can see children, upon entering in a restaurant or wherever, they look at their gadgets, there are no physical activities. During our timegames like tumbang preso, takbuhan,these are now being forgotten. We must advocate for their return, said Diabetes Philippines President Dr. Grace Delos Santos.

Delos Santos said that a balanced diet and an active lifestyle are two important aspects for ones health, especially for children whose family has a history of diabetes.

Starting a good lifestyle among children is really important because as we know diabetes is a heritable disease, she said.

Meanwhile, good parenting also plays a big role in the prevention of diabetes, said Dr. Theresa Faller, president of American Association of Clinical EndocrinologistsPhilippine Chapter.

Nowadays people are so busy We want to discipline our children by making them quiet so you provide them with these gadgets and not actually encouraging them to go out, said Faller.

We have to encourage our children to engage in sports. Its not only just playing patintero and all that. Sports environment should be a very important advocacy for our children, she added.

Doing exercise for at least 30 minutes will help in maintaining a good and healthy body, said Dr. Jeremy Robles, president of Philippine Society of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism.

The recommendation of the American Diabetes Association was that we spent 30 minutes of exercise every other day. Look at it in a bigger picture. All of us have a potential to go into this problem because of our lifestyle so we have to change our lifestyle, said Robles.

Diabetes does not choose if you are rich or poor; if you are young and old, he added.

Meanwhile, General Manager of Novo Nordisk Philippines Serdar Kizilcik has emphasized the importance of early screening.

It is likely that diabetes affects you or someone close to you. Being aware of this is part of the shared responsibility between doctors and patients to screen for diabetes and work towards early control of the disease to avoid complications such as blindness and renal failure, he said.

Importance of urban planning

Danish Ambassador to the Philippines Grete Sillasen, meanwhile, said that programs for urban development should involve how to get their citizens active.

If you give people the infrastructure for having a better life, they will actively use it. If you put up a park, people will come and exercise, said Sillasen.

What we have done in Copenhagen, which is a great success, is we have bike lanes everywhere and we have secured pavements everywhere. Today, 62 percent of the people in Copenhagen go to their work or study place by bike, the ambassador noted.

Sillasen said that exercise is even much better if its part of ones daily routine.

Continued here:
Balanced diet, active lifestyle pushed to curb the onset of diabetes - Manila Bulletin

After a super-fast DNA test developed by scientists at Imperial College, Helen Rumbelow trialled their new gadget it lets people choose food to suit their genes

The Times,November 12 2019, 12:01am

Will it be my grandmothers cancer, or the family weakness for Alzheimers that will get me in the end? Our genes contain instructions for our death as well as our life, but they have always played dumb. Until now.

Now I can wear a wristband with my genetic vulnerability for fatal diseases coded into it. Which is by turns futuristic and kind of terrifying. For me, its like shaking hands with my heart attack scheduled for 2050: Nice to get to know you at last!

Weird, but I soon get used to it when I take the wristband shopping. Its the opposite experience to taking a toddler, endlessly pestering for sweeties, to the supermarket. When I aim the tiny scanner of the DNA Nudge wristband

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DNA Nudge app review: can this wristband tell you the best diet for your genes? - The Times

Diet plays an essential role in lowering blood pressure and a growing body of evidence recommends certain foods for their blood pressure-lowering properties.

One study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, makes a strong case for supplementing a diet low in saturated fats with walnuts to help lower blood pressure.

In a randomised, controlled trial, researchers examined the effects of replacing some of the saturated fats in participants' diets with walnuts.

Saturated fat is the kind of fat found in butter, lard, ghee, fatty meats and cheese. Eating a diet high in saturated fat is associated with raised levels of non-HDL (bad) cholesterol, a waxy substance found in your blood that is tied to cardiovascular complications, explains the British Heart Foundation.

They found that when participants ate whole walnuts daily in combination with lower overall amounts of saturated fat, they had lower central blood pressure.

READ MORE:High blood pressure: The surprising food that could lower your reading

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High blood pressure: Include this snack in your diet to lower your reading - Express

The advice for weight control used to be simple: eat less and exercise more. But emerging research suggests that not all calories are created equal. That bowl of frosted cereal for breakfast has a completely different impact on your body than an equivalent serving of oatmeal with fresh berries. Here are some of the foods that seem to contribute most to widespread obesity, and those with the most promise to help us slim down.

THE OFFENDERS

The sugar trap

Naturally occurring sugars in fruit, vegetables and dairy products give us necessary energy. But the added sweet stuff in our diets not only racks up empty calories, it numbs our cells to insulin, making the heart work harder to pump it out and bring blood sugar down to a normal range. Sugar that is not consumed by the body is also more likely than other calories to be stored as fat. Worse, perhaps, is that sugar releases feel-good opioids and dopamine in the brain and that high is habit-forming. According to researchers at the University of Tennessee, the increase in adults living with obesity is linked to the long-lasting effects of the high-sugar diets among children in the 1970s and 1980s.

Convenient caloriesThat a frozen pizza contributes more to obesity than a salad is no big surprise. But according to a recent report in Cell Metabolism, the first randomized, controlled trial of its kind, the problem is not simply bottom-line caloric intake or levels of macronutrients such as fats.

Over a period of one month, 20 healthy adult volunteers were admitted to the National Health Institutes Clinical Center in Maryland. For two weeks, they were given ultra-processed meals, bagels with cream cheese and turkey bacon, for example, or frozen dinners. For the other two weeks, they were fed unprocessed foods such as oatmeal with fruit and diners such as roast chicken with rice and peas. Both diets contained the same number of calories and the same amount of fat, fibre and carbohydrates. The key difference between the two menus: ingredients predominantly found in industrial food manufacturing, such as hydrogenated oils, high-fructose corn syrup, flavoring agents, and emulsifiers.

The results were stark: Those on the ultra-processed diets ate faster, and about 500 calories more per day, than those on unprocessed diets. In fact, those on the unprocessed diets lost weight. Why processed foods led to these differences remains to be studied, but the scientists conclusion heavily processed foods cause overeating and weight gain in and of themselves.

Those on the ultra-processed diets ate faster, and about 500 calories more per day, than those on unprocessed diets

Potato chip pile-onClearly, chips arent a health food. Theyre loaded with salt and fried in oil, and people mindlessly crunch through large portions. How bad are they? Harvard University scientists say they are thebiggest culprit behind the pound-a-year weight creep.

By analyzing data collected over 20 years from more than 120,000 men and women in the U.S. who were not obese and were free of chronic diseases, researchers identified a number of specific foods linked to weight gain. Potato chips were the biggest offender: a daily one-ounce serving about 15 chips and 160 calories led to a 1.69-pound increase over four years.

As for healthier veggie sticks and straws? Theyre like a wolf in sheeps clothing, says Anna Taylor, a registered dietitian at the Cleveland Clinic. (They) lack fibre and protein, and are practically devoid of nutrients.

Grab-and-go smoothiesUnless you make them yourself, smoothies often come with hidden sugar and calories mainly from juice. But the fact that these drinks can pack as much sugar as a few bags of candy is only part of the reason they contribute to obesity. Nutrition and behaviour scientists at theUniversity of Bristol have found thatfruit smoothies and other energy-containing drinks are also less satiating than whole foods. We can gulp down anywhere from 300 to 700 calories of a spinach-and-berry-filled drink that wont keep us feeling as full as a whole-food option such as fruit slices with nut butter.

Refined grainsMany people think of carbs as the enemy when it comes to weight loss. But its important to focus on the right target: white rice, white bread, white pasta and all-purpose flour all of which lack the fibre and key nutrients of their whole-grain counterparts and carry a high glycemic index. The glycemic index is a scale that ranks carb-loaded foods by how much they raise blood sugar. Spanish nutrition researchers reviewed abody of research on diet and obesityand found that people who regularly consume refined grains, as well as other foods with a high glycemic index, have more difficulty managing their weight.

THE HEROES

Nuts to that

Not all fats are a four-letter word. Anew study published in the online journalBMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Healthfound that eating a handful of nuts on a regular basis may help prevent excessive weight gain and lower the risk of obesity. Thats because most of the fat in nuts are good for us: monounsaturated fat, as well as omega-6 and omega-3 polyunsaturated fat, are essential to protect our organs, help us absorb nutrients and produce important hormones.

Researchers also say that the fat, protein and fibre combination in nuts takes longer to digest than foods with just carbohydrates and protein, keeping us feeling full longer. They found that a consistent intake of at least a half-ounce of nuts a day was associated with a 23 per cent lower risk of putting on 10 or more pounds over a four-year period. An added bonus, when nuts became a regular part of participants diets, their unhealthy food consumption decreased.

Beans and lentils

The biggest obstacle to lasting weight loss is also the most obvious: hunger. Eating protein at every meal can help, says Alexandra Johnstone, a specialist in obesity and metabolic health at the Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health at the University of Aberdeen. Plant-based proteins, such as beans and lentils, can also have a positive impact on the trillions of bacteria and microorganisms that live in our digestive tract, according to astudy presented this October at the United European Gastroenterology Week in Barcelona. A healthy gut is foundational, responsible for better food absorption and overall system regulation.

Fermenting is your friend

Naturally fermented foods are also getting a lot of attention from health experts because of their role in strengthening our gut microbiome. Researchers have linked the loss of healthy bacteria and microorganisms to all sorts of health conditions, including obesity. Foods like kombucha tea, kefir, kimchi and sauerkraut are preserved using a traditional process that boosts food shelf life and nutritional value, and provide a dose of healthy probiotics, the microorganisms essential to healthy digestion.

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What to eat (and avoid) if you're trying lose weight - National Post