People are pouring their blood, spit and tears into finding the best diet for their bodies.

April Summerford, a womens health coach in Fresno, Calif., has spent thousands of dollars over the past several years taking at-home DNA tests, reading her hormone levels and analyzing the bacteria in her gut to create the perfect diet for her particular body. She eats organic foods and avoids alcohol, because her DNA results revealed that she doesnt detox well. She learned that she has an insulin sensitivity, so she follows a low-carb diet to manage blood sugar. And after years of suffering chronic pain and issues such as leaky gut, she said her quality of life is better than ever.

Ive been able to biohack my way to feeling better through what, I think, is the future of wellness, Summerford, 34, told MarketWatch.

Americans are losing the battle of the bulge, with half of the country expected to be obese within the next 10 years, according to a recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. About 40% of adults and 19% of kids and teens are obese, which raises their risk of diabetes, heart disease and cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A 2017 review estimated that the medical cost of obesity in the U.S. is $342.2 billion a year, while the CDC puts the indirect costs of obesity-related health issues such as absenteeism, premature disability, declines in productivity and earlier death at between $3 billion and $6.4 billion a year.

One potentially promising development that could help reduce obesity is nutrigenomics, which studies how genes determine the bodys response to the nutrients in food and drinks and which generated more than $170 million in revenue in 2018, according to Global Market Insights, driven in part by direct-to-consumer genetic-testing companies including 23andMe, Ancestry and MapMyGenome. The analysis expects robust growth for nutrigenomics in the near future.

The theory is that while there is no single obesity gene (in fact, hundreds may be connected to being overweight and obese), different DNA markers, hormones and gut microbes can indicate health traits such as how well a person metabolizes food. And this knowledge can be used to help the 93.3 million adults in the U.S. who are currently obese to slim down or maintain a healthy weight.

Global market research group Mintel predicts that as tech advances make personal-health-testing kits more accessible and affordable, hyper-individualized smart diets will become one of the top three global food and beverage trends over the next 10 years.

So a decade from now, you might eat a specific lettuce variety that has been developed through smart farming to have the most iron in it, because your biometric readings show that you need more iron that day. Or youll customize your Starbucks SBUX, -0.24% order down to the grams of sugar in the drink, based on your blood sugar.

Customers already want to go to a coffee shop and get something that is completely designed to their specifications, Jenny Zegler, the associate director of food and drink market research at Mintel, told MarketWatch. And I think the expectation is only going to grow as consumers get more of this data, and as they can easily test themselves.

Many people are hungry to learn more about themselves. After all, the Apple Watch isnt only dominating the smartwatch market; these timepieces which can now take an electrocardiogram, measure your heart rate and call 911 if you fall outsold the entire Swiss watch industry last year, according to Strategy Analytics. Alphabets GOOG, +0.12% GOOGL, +0.20% Google bought Fitbit for $2.1 billionin November to boost its health-care ecosystem. And now the direct-to-consumer genetic-testing market is expected to pass $2.5 billion by 2025, with one study estimating that around 100 million people worldwide will have their DNA mapped by 2021.

So as tech CEOs including Twitters TWTR, +2.33% Jack Dorsey have helped make biohacking cool, people like health coach Summerford are using their biometrics to decode the best diets for their bodies.

Everyone knows the basic pillars of good health: You should exercise, avoid too much sugar. But its annoying when you follow broad-strokes advice and it doesnt work, said Summerford. Were all different. So what do I need?

There are plenty of brands ready to tell her for a price. Personalized lifestyle plans that use at-home DNA tests abound, including DNAFit (starting at $189), Profile Precise ($300) and Nutrigenomix ($500). Customers take a cheek swab or finger-prick blood test at home to provide the genetic sample, which is sent to the companys lab. (Those getting their gut biomes analyzed by Viome for $399 have to provide a stool sample.) GenoPalate is able to use 23andMe and Ancestry DNA samples to customize a meal plan for $69.

Even Jenny Craigs new DNA Decoder Plan ($100 for new customers) showed really promising results after tests in Boston and other markets last year, board Chairman Monty Sharma said.

We saw every single customer of ours lose weight, he said, without elaborating. Whats more, Jenny Craig customers who tried the DNA kit were staying with the program 25% longer than those who werent using the DNA option, he said.

Customers also want to take the guesswork out of whats good for them, which is where devices like the Lumen come in. The company has developed a $349 hand-held breathalyzer that measures whether your body is burning fats or carbs for fuel at the moment. It then tailors your diet recommendations in an app, depending on the metabolic gases found in your breath. Lumen has shipped more than 13,000 devices around the world since launching in 2018, and its sold out until March.

There will be a lot more of, How can you make this easy for me? said Zegler.

Nestl Japan has been testing personalized diets using artificial intelligence, social media and DNA kits under its Nestl Wellness Ambassador program. Subscribers drink nutrient-fortified teas tailored to their genetic needs, which come in the form of Nespresso-like capsules. Mintels Zegler mused that people may one day be able to 3D-print exactly which foods their blood or spit tests say their bodies need.

Granted, were still years away from hyper-customized coffee orders down to the grams of sugar and caffeine, or 3D-printing food based on that days biometrics becoming a reality. And not everyone has been thrilled by their DNA diet experience.

Diet and fitness coach Ginny Erwin, 54, spent $200 on Habit, a personalized nutrition-and-meal-delivery company in which Campbell Soup CPB, -0.77% invested $32 million in 2016. (Habit is now owned by Viome.) The process involved fasting for 10 hours, and then taking a blood sample before and after drinking a shake mixed with carbs, fats and protein; this measured how her body reacted to the ingredients in the shake.

I became ill from blood sugar overload, she said, including stomach cramps and diarrhea. (A few journalists who have test-driven the diet also complained about the shake.) And once her test results were in, she said it gave her generic health advice, and not the specific dietary recommendations she wanted. She reached out to the company several times, but never received a response, although she did get a refund once the business restructured to scrap the DNA test. The company didnt respond to MarketWatchs requests for comment.

DNA testing might give you some grains of information, but there is so much more to it than that, said Erwin, who ultimately hired a registered dietitian to get personalized nutrition coaching. It is such a bigger picture than looking at if youre lactose-sensitive or gluten-sensitive. Your genetics load your gun, and then your lifestyle pulls the trigger.

Researchers including Dr. Avigdor Arad, the director of the Mount Sinai Physiolab in New York, agree that many DNA diets promise more than they can deliver for now. A 2018 Stanford study found no significant difference in weight change when people were on a diet that matched their DNA versus one that didnt. But we also know that a one-size-fits-all approach to weight loss doesnt work, because everyones body is different. A study last year found that even identical twins process food differently.

Theres a way to biohack weight loss; researchers are still in the process of figuring it out.

Nutrigenomics is still a growing field. And using DNA or microbiomes to guide us on what to eat its a fantastic idea; its certainly where we are going in the future, Arad told MarketWatch. But I dont think we are really there yet.

Nicole Lyn Pesce is a reporter at MarketWatch.

See more here:
DNA tests may soon give you the optimum diet for your body down to the variety of lettuce - MarketWatch

Study shows benefits of walnuts include boosting gut, heart health

Reaching for a snack between mealtimes or after a workout is something we all do. And sometimes that snack is whatever is at the gas station or something packaged and tasty (but not always healthy) from the vending machine at work. But everything we eat can affect our gut health and risk for heart disease, so we can be more strategic about our snacking.

According to new research published in the Journal of Nutrition, swapping out your usual salty or sweet afternoon pick-me-up for walnuts can have some serious heart health benefits.

Researchers looked at 42 participants who were overweight or obese and were between the ages of 30 and 65. Before the study began, everyone was placed on a diet that mirrored an average American diet (where 12 percent of daily calories came from saturated fat) for two weeks. Then, participants switched to diets that were lower in saturated fat, where 7 percent of daily calories came from saturated fat, and incorporated walnuts. After munching on two handfuls of walnuts daily for six weeks in place of snacks like chips or crackers, all participants saw lower cholesterol levels and gut bacteria that improved their risk of heart disease. (Typically, one serving of walnuts is one ounce about one handful.)

Related video: These brain-boosting foods help improve your memory

This is likely because eating whole walnuts daily lowers cholesterol levels and blood pressure, study authors Penny Kris-Etherton, Ph.D., distinguished professor of nutrition, and Kristina Petersen, Ph.D., assistant research professor, both in the department of nutritional sciences at Penn State University, explained to Bicycling. And while the researchers said that this study showed correlation, not causation, previous research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association also found that adding walnuts to a persons diet can help lower blood pressure, especially when they are replacing foods high in saturated fat.

[Run faster, stronger and longer with this 360-degree training program.]

As for how gut health affects your risk of heart disease? That may be due in part to the fact that walnuts contain fiber, which can positively affect gut bacteria. Additionally, the unsaturated fats and omega-3s in walnuts can contribute to favorable gut microbiomes which may aid in lowering blood pressure, leading to a lower risk for heart disease according to Kris-Etherton and Petersen.

Overall, swapping out unhealthy snacks for a serving of walnuts or other nuts is a relatively small change that will have major health benefits and is easier than doing a radical diet or exercise overhaul, Kris-Etherton and Petersen said.

And, its not just people at risk for heart disease, the study authors explained. Nuts are recommended in many heart-healthy diets, such the Mediterranean diet.

Its a great way to encourage people who are already healthy to stay healthy, Petersen said.

In full disclosure, this one study was supported by grants from the The California Walnut Commission. However, there have been ample amounts of independent research on all the heart healthy components of nuts such as omega-3s, unsaturated fats, and fiber. Plus, adding nuts to your diet promotes healthy aging and can help prevent against risk of chronic disease, previous research published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found. So, even if you are healthy in your 20s or 30s, as you age, blood pressure and cholesterol levels increase, which is why eating a heart-healthy diet is important no matter your age or activity level, the study authors explained.

The bottom line: Snacking on nuts is something people can do now to maintain health, rather than waiting until later in life. While this study looked at walnuts specifically, the researchers pointed out that adding a variety of nuts can help a person keep up this healthy habit, as eating walnuts daily may get boring.

Its much harder to reverse disease once it comes about, Kris-Etherton said. So prevention is key.

Read more here:
Study shows benefits of walnuts include boosting gut, heart health - Alton Telegraph

LOSING weight doesn't have to involve complicated diets or extreme approaches.

According to top dietitian Susie Burrell, the key to blitzing your body fat is actually as simple as making a few easy tweaks to your meals.

3

The Sydney-based expert says by making simple swaps to your regular choices, it can save you eating hundreds or possibly thousands of calories each week.

Here, Susie, founder of popular websiteShape Me, reveals her smart food switches you can make this month to boost your weight loss...

Whether it is mayo, olive oil, tomato sauce or jam on your morning toast, we're all guilty of adding sauces, oils and spreads to food to boost the flavour.

However, you can literally be adding in hundreds of extra calories a day when you pour or spread freely.

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Speaking on Sunrise, Susie said: "Be mindful that when it comes to high fat additions, like mayonnaise and olive oil, you can really overdo the calories."

When it comes to sauces and spreads, Susie urges slimmer to stick to a 20 cent piece portion size.

Cheese falls into the chocolate and cake category - its extremely easy to keep slicing and eating.

Susie recommends keeping your cheese portions much more tightly controlled by grating or investing in a cheese shaver which will cut your cheese portions significantly.

She says doing so you'll save between 50 to 80 calories per serve of cheese.

Despite the vegan diet becoming more and more popular, many of us Brits still love to gorge on large amounts of meat - and its customary to eat everything on our plates.

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Susie recommends weighing the amount protein you are eating and not going over the required amount.

For women, the perfect size to aim for is a small hand or palm-sized portion, while for men the ideal size is roughly the size of a small hand.

Bread slices these days tend to be so large they barely fit in the toaster.

Simply reverting to an old school sandwich loaf will slash your calorie and carbohydrate significantly.

As bread tends to be a daily staple, these calories you are not having will really add up on the scales.

Your morning coffee may have the power to get you out of bed in the morning - but it could also be making it more difficult for you to lose weight.

NHS tips for weight loss success

The NHS has shared their three key tips for weight loss success:

Lots of useat and drink more than we realise and do little physical activity. The result is often weight gain.

To lose weight, we need to change our current habits. Thismeans eating less even when eating ahealthy, balanced diet and getting more active.

Fad dietsand exercise regimes that result in rapid weight loss are unlikely to work for long, because these kinds of lifestyle changes can't be maintained.

Once you stop the regime, you're likely to return to old habits and regain weight.

Source:NHS

In fact, Susie says every increase in cup size adds around 50 calories and more if you have sugar.

Simply swapping from a regular or large to a small coffee will save you plenty of calories.

Youll save even more if you ditch the add-ons, including sugar and chocolate, too.

Despite this, a recent study found acup of coffee can help the body burn calories faster.

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Scientists say it stimulates "brown fat", which burns calories to generate body heat.

Professor Michael Symonds, from the University of Nottingham, said theirs is the first study to show how coffee can affect brown fat in humans.

He said the breakthrough could help tackle the obesity crisis.

The rest is here:
The 5 food tweaks to slash hundreds of calories from your diet and boost weight loss - The Sun

First, let's get to the good news. Want to be healthier? Eat more onions, garlic, shallots, chives, and leeks. It turns out they are a great source of the type of amino acids we need to be healthy, without overwhelming our bodies with too much of a good thing. Meat, as it turns out, along with fish, eggs, and poultry, also has these types of sulfur amino acids or SAAs. But when we eat them from that source, we drown our bodies in SAAs, which can lead to all sorts of problems, from weight gain to insulin resistance, higher cholesterol, blood sugar and more. Not pretty.

Okay, but here I get way ahead of myself. The story is based on science, and the science is from a new study that tells us everything we need to know about amino acids, and perhaps more. How much protein you eat is part of the problem but where that protein comes from is the main event. The study is brand new, even if its conclusions sound familiar, and echo the science we've been learning about plant-based diets and heart disease.

We know that red meat consumption is linked to a higher risk of heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes and premature death from all causes. But the questionis why? The theories range from theeffect that meat has on your microbiome to its artery-clogging fat content,or even the chemicals added to our food before it hits the table. One thing is agreed on: People who eat diets high in meat tend to be heavier andlive shorter lives.

Now a newstudypurports to hint at the reason this is true. The authors found thateating a diet high inanimal protein increases the risk of developing a wide range of chronic diseases (again nothing new here) andthen recommended eating plant-basedprotein dietto reduce these risks. The reason is the type of amino acids in the meat, which are called sulfur amino acids, or SAAs, which in abundance appear to increase the risk of heart disease. People who eat meat are getting two and a half times the recommended amount, or the Estimated Average Requirement (EAR), of SAAs in their diet, which may be contributing to risk factors for cardiometabolic diseases.

The study is the first to investigate what affect diets high in sulfur amino acids have on overallhealth. SAAs are found in many foods, but are highest in eggs, fish, red meat and chicken. When consumed in moderate or recommended amounts, sulfur amino acidsplay a crucial rolein our bodies. They help metabolism, protect cells from damage, build proteins, regulate hormones and neurotransmitters, and help keep the liver functioning well.

But when there are too many SAAs, it can lead to heart disease, being overweight, higher levels of insulin and a shorter lifespan. The authors recommend that the best way to regulate SAAs is to get them from plant-based sources, which offer lower doses of SAAs and are linked to healthier, longer lifespan and lower risks of disease.

Eating too many foods high in sulfur amino acids can have many negative health effects. They arelinked to a higher riskofheart disease, stroke, diabetes, and non-alcohol fatty liver disease. And you're at even greater risk if you eat high levels of two particular types of sulfur amino acids,cysteineandmethionine, both of which are found in high-protein foods. They are considered the most toxic amino acids, even though thebody needs both.

The finding that low sulfur amino acid diets are typically more heavily reliant on plant-derived proteins suggests that sulfur amino acid reduction may, be partly responsible for health benefits associated with a plant-based diet and offera practical solutionfor reducing sulfur amino acid inthe diet.

Sulfur-rich foods include "allium vegetables" which include garlic, onions, leeks scallions, chives, and shallots. It also is abundant in cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, brussels sprouts and broccoli, bok choy, collard greens, radishes, and watercress as well as kale.

According to the research, animal studies suggest diets restricted in sulfur amino acids are associated with many health benefits including increased longevity and reductions in age-related diseases.

Rats fed a diet low in amino acid, and withmethionineas the sole sulfur amino acid source -- meaning closer to the type found in plant-based diets -- increased their maximum life span, and were healthier during their lifetime. This type of diet (where the SAAs come from plants) have been shown to delay aging in a number of animal and cell-based models.

Further, low SAA diets have been associated with reductions in body weight, adipose tissue (body fat)and oxidative stress (which leads to aging), higher metabolism, and positive changes in the levels of blood biomarkers, including insulin, glucose, leptin, and more. There is little dataon the health benefits of lowSAA diets in humans. The authors wrote that theirgoal was to investigate whether diets low inSAAs were associated with reducedrisk for cardiometabolic diseases.

Protein and Heart Health: A Little Protein Goes a Long Way

In general, it is recommended that adults only consume15mg of sulfur amino acids per kilogram of body weighta day. But evidence shows that mostolder adultshave diets thatexceed these recommendations.

The researchers looked at a sample size of 11,576 adults as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) over a period of six years. Researchers measured participants' diets, as well as cholesterol, insulin, andblood glucose levels, to see how they were affected by eating an abundance of SAAs.

The researchers found that the averagesubject they studied consumed 2.5 times the recommended levels of SAAs. After controlling for variables such as weight, race, and gender, they found that eating adiethigh in SAAs, especially cysteine and methionine, was associated with higher cholesterol, insulin resistance and elevatedblood glucoseall of which contributetocardiometabolic diseasessuch as heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, and liver disease.

The health risks were not solely about overall protein consumption, but the amount and proportion ofSAAseaten. Becauseanimal productscontain higher levels of SAAs, the researchers recommend that a diet of plant-based proteinsis the best way to reduce SAA consumption to healthier levels.

The authors' conclusion: Lower intake of sulfur amino acids may, in part, explain some of theobserved health benefitsof plant-based diets. Swapping animal-basedproteinsources for plant-based ones appears to be a good health move.

Nutrition is a major component of reducing overall risks ofchronic disease and premature death. Sulfur amino acids are more prevalent in meat than vegetables, so switching toplant-based protein sourceslike whole grains, beans, lentils, nuts and seeds, and eating recommended daily intakes ofsulfuramino acids, could make it less likely that you will develop heart disease or diabetes in future, the authors concluded.

See the article here:
Amino Acids May Be the Key to the Connection Between Meat and Heart Disease - The Beet

Diabetes is one of the largest, most expensive problems facing America's veterans, and the US government is staking its hopes for a solution on an unconventional treatment: the popular keto diet.

The Department of Veterans' Affairs (VA) has launched a partnership with a digital therapeutics startup Virta Health to treat diabetic veterans using the low-carb, high-fat keto diet, at no cost to the vets or the VA.

The partnership, first announced in May 2019, has enrolled 400 veterans into Virta's program, which includes personalized nutrition plans and online access to health coaches and physicians.

So far, the results have been promising, according to the company's data. A pilot program with the VA found that half of the participating veterans achieved blood sugar levels below the threshold for diabetes after three months on Virta's program. And the treatment successfully reduced medications, including insulin, by 53% across the entire group.

But some experts have raised concerns that there may be unforeseen health consequences following this kind of treatment, and that the VA's buy-in will lend legitimacy to what is still an experimental treatment.

Prior to working with the VA, Virta had been studying keto as a treatment for diabetes for over two years.

Diabetes is an inability to balance blood sugar.Reducing carbs manages the problem at the source by preventing blood sugar from rising in the first place, according to Dr. Mark Cucuzzella, a professor at West Virginia University School of Medicine, a US Air Force Reservist, and a marathon runner who has published several studies on keto and diabetes.

Hollis Johnson/INSIDER "The most impactful thing on your blood glucose is the amount of carbs in your diet. The low-carb diet is effective because it lowers the insulin load," Cucuzzella, whois not affiliated with Virta, told Insider in an interview. "Insulin is the master switch."

Medications like insulin can mitigate diabetes symptoms by managing blood sugar levels. But keto can help patients reduce medications, said Dr. Sarah Hallberg, medical director for Virta.

Eating carbohydrates causes blood sugar to rise, but eating fats does not. It means diabetic patients can get their daily calories without needing to use insulin to balance out spiking blood sugar levels.

"Standard treatment puts people on a one-way street of progression for diabetes, with temporary pharmaceutical treatment that will have to be added on to," Hallberg told Insider. "We're able to give people another lane going the other way by bringing blood sugar into non-diabetic range while reducing and eliminating medication."

That doesn't mean keto can cure diabetes.

Virta refers to its treatment as a "reversal" of diabetes. In layman's terms, this means the disease is in remission. The treatment only works as long as the low-carb diet is maintained. As soon as carbs are re-introduced, the same problems with blood sugar and insulin emerge.

A keto diet is any eating plan that pushes the body into a state of ketosis when it begins producing substances called ketones, explained Dr. Ethan Weiss, a cardiologist and founder of a ketone-detecting device. (Weiss previously served as a medical advisor for Virta.)

"Keto" typically refers to eating plans in which a majority of daily calories come from fat, along with some protein and minimal carbs.People with diabetes could cut their carb intake to as low as 30 grams a day and still be healthy.

But the key to medical keto is going beyond counting macronutrients. Instead, it's important to focus onwhole-food sources of fats, cutting carbs without completely eliminating nutrient-rich foods like veggies.

Vietnam war veterans among other guests listen to U.S. President Barack Obama at the Memorial Day observance at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, U.S., May 30, 2016. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

It's not clear what long-term health effects the keto diet might have.

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a group of medical experts who advocate a plant-based diet, sent a letter to VA officials asking them to reconsider the partnership, and keto treatment, based on evidence that a high-fat, low-carb diet could potentially increase risks of diabetes, particularly diets high in saturated fat.

Skeptics have also noted that most of the data showing keto can treat diabetes is based on studies led and funded by Virta itself. There is barely any hard data on keto's health effects beyond two years on the diet.

Hallberg acknowledged the lack of long-term evidence, but said the same problem has plagued nearly every other type of therapeutic diet (with the exception of the Mediterranean diet).

"There's needs to be a hard outcome, long-term trial looking at a variety of eating patterns, no question," she said.

But in the meantime, diabetes continues to be diagnosed in record numbers, particularly among military veterans.

"Do we have 10-20 years to wait for that?We're in the midst of an unprecedented diabetes and obesity epidemic," she said. "We have to do something now."

Read more:

Nutrition experts react to the keto diet's new ranking as one of the worst diets of 2020

There's a Mediterranean version of the keto diet that restricts red meat and trades butter for olive oil

The keto diet makes mice better at fighting the flu another clue about how the high-fat, low-carb plan changes the body

See original here:
Keto diet is being used by government to treat veterans' diabetes - Insider - INSIDER

Olivia Culpo is enjoying some R&R.

The 27-year-old took to Instagram on Monday toflaunt her toned physique while on vacation.

For the series of photos, Culpo rocked a tiny bikini from Versace paired with a matchingscrunchie, black maxi skirtand open-toe mules.

OLIVIA CULPO ADMITS SHE WAS REALLY NERVOUS LEADING UP TO 2019 SPORTS ILLUSTRATED SWIMSUIT PHOTO SHOOT

Lets go to the beach!@versace@fwrd, she captioned the post.

In November, it was announced that the model will return for her third year in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, set to hit stands this year.

Culpo opened up to Fox News back in February 2019about how she prepared forthe big photoshoots, including her really strict diet.

OLIVIA CULPO SAYS CHRISTIAN MCCAFFREY RELATIONSHIP IS GOING REALLY GREAT

No sugar. No carbs. No alcohol,she said. Basically, all protein and fiber, and the only kinds of carbs Ill have is sweet potato or greens or fruit.

Despite watching what she ate ahead of photoshoots, Culpo said she didntstrictly follow diets in her normal day-to-day life.

I really dont believe in dieting, she said.I notice that when I have a shoot coming up or when Im being really diligent about my diet, I can pretty much do it up until the day or two before, and then I start to go crazyand basically self-sabotage myself. As soon as I tell myself I cant have sweets, then I really want sweets.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Culpo who said she loved indulging in ice cream, pizza and/or alcohol also creditedher fitness routine with allowing her to splurge whenever she wanted.

I love working out, she said.I feel like if I didnt work out as much as I did, I probably wouldnt be able to get away with eating the way that I eat, so for me, it works out well.

Original post:
Olivia Culpo sizzles in tiny bikini on vacation: 'Let's go to the beach!' - Home - WSFX

The research, conducted by the bakery company, Hovis, suggests that the UK is missing out on the full benefits a high fibre diet can bring to gut and heart health, despite high-profile campaigns to urge greater consumption.

2,064 adults in the UK were asked about their fibre intake and the results show people are generally confused about fibre intake.

The research shows that the majority (89%) of UK adults say they recognise that eating fibre each day is important, with just 2% saying it doesnt matter to them. The research reveals that 79% correctly identify that fibre helps digestive health, with more than a third (38%) also recognising that it can help to maintain normal blood cholesterol levels.

However, despite high profile campaigns to get people to boost their fibre intake, just 38% of UK adults say they ensure their diet is high in fibre, regardless of the wealth of scientific evidence pointing to the health benefits that fibre brings.

Meanwhile, when asked how much fibre they consumed each day, one-in-four UK adults (24%) say they simply dont know.

The research also reveals confusion about how much fibre we need, with half of those surveyed saying they dont know how much fibre the average adult should eat each day, and just 14% correctly identifying that the daily target is 30g.

When asked to identify the food types that are best for delivering fibre, most UK adults could correctly identify those that are a good source. The best-known food type is bread, with four fifths of UK adults (81%) thinking that wholemeal bread is a good source of fibre.

Jeremy Gibson, Marketing Director at Hovis commented: There have been numerous studies that have shown the benefits of eating more fibre, yet people are still failing to eat enough of it. The rise of lower-carb diets and reduction of bread consumption are another signal that consumers could be avoiding bread and missing out on the amazing fibre benefits they bring.

At Hovis we are determined to play our part in helping reverse this trend and getting the UK into better shape, one meal at a time. We are working with a registered dietitian, Sarah Almond Bushell, and other experts, to provide information, recipes and advice to help the UK improve its diet.

Its not difficult to boost fibre intake, anyone can do it by eating more wholemeal bread, wholemeal pasta, brown rice and fruits and vegetables. Consuming enough fibre can help with digestive health, as well as maintaining normal cholesterol levels and it can taste great too.

Continue reading here:
Research shows two thirds of adults don't have a high fibre diet - Health Europa

February is American Heart Month so were shedding light on a heart disease program thats like no other in the state.

Midland Health's Lifestyle Medicine Center is the only facility in Texas to offer the Ornish Program for reversing heart disease.

As of 2016, 28.2 million U.S. adults were diagnosed with heart disease. In 2015, nearly 634,000 people died of heart disease, making it the leading cause of death.

According to the American Heart Association, approximately every 40 seconds an American will have a heart attack.

When somebody has a heart issue as I said, a heart attack, stent, angina, congestive heart failure or maybe theyve had biomass surgery.. they have to go through a rehab program. And they have a choice," said K.C. Blackketter, Professional Licensed Counselor.

"They can do traditional rehab which focuses on the exercise and changing your eating habits. Or if they can do the Ornish heart rehab program, where its more holistic."

Its the only program in the state that focuses on four root areas of your life for reversing heart disease. The first two are diet and exercise.

We work with the patients in developing an exercise program that they can maintain, not just for the few weeks that we do this but for life. We talk about diet and we focus on a whole food plant-based diet because it has been proven to be more effective in heart health than any other diet out there, said Blackketter.

Join us this Thursday for a class on Practical Aspects on Living a Plant-Based Life, as we go over how to stock the pantry, how to read a nutrition label, how to find recipes, easy tweaks when...

The third area is stress management.

Stress is toxic to our health. Kind of like sugar to a diabetic, stress is just terrible. We have stress management specialist that uses yoga techniques that focuses on breathing and relaxation and things that you can utilize regularly in your life especially at those crucial moments said Blackketter.

Last but not least, group support is the fourth pillar the program focuses on.

How can I have a safe place where I can actually be honest and vulnerable. how can identify what my emotions are and express that? And then if somebody does share their with me, how can I respond in a way thats not critical, not condemning, not negative, that encourages a connection as far as building relationships? said Blackketter.

It's a 72 hour therapy program where patients are required to come in four hours a day twice a week.

Blakketter says the best part about it is Medicare and most major insurance companies will pay for the program, because theyre realizing it's better to pay money to keep people healthy versus paying to help them when they're sick.

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Ornish therapy program works to reverse heart disease - NewsWest9.com

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Port Huron City Council members signed off on MDOT's recommendation to convert Hancock Street from four lanes to three between I-69/94 and Pine Grove Avenue.(Photo: Brian Wells/Times Herald)

Port Huron officials signed off on a road dietfor a busy section of Hancock Street off the interstate exchange.

But its unclear if or when the Michigan Department of Transportation, which has jurisdiction there, will move forward with changing the streetfrom four to three lanes.

The use of Hancock has changed since the ramp no longer comes off there, said Linda Burchell, manager of the regions MDOT transportation service center.She was referring to the cross-section between the Interstate 69 and 94 exchange north of the Blue Water Bridge and just west of Pine Grove.

The only ramp traffic thats coming off is from the bridge, exclusively, Burchell said. So, the two lanes going toward Pine Grove arent as necessitated as they were when it was all of the traffic coming off of the freeways. The center turn lane would be beneficial for both the movements to the freeway as well as the left-turn.

City Council members green-lit the recommended lane reduction, commonly called a road diet, during their Feb. 10 meeting. City Manager James Freed said on Tuesday, however, that didnt mean the decision was final, and the citys support kicks off a public input period on the idea for the state.

Currently, that area of Hancock is four lanes with two travel lanes headed east and west.

A road diet would instead reconfigure the striped lanes to include just one in each direction with a center left-hand turn lane, similarly matching Hancock west of the exchange and east of Pine Grove.

When youre coming from the bridge or 94 and youre crossing, right now you have two lanes essentially crossing the street going into one lane, Freed said last week of eastbound Hancock traffic over Pine Grove. So, everyones hitting the break and causing traffic congestion.

Burchell said the idea was intended to ease traffic.

The Michigan Department of Transportation is considering a road diet for Hancock Street between Pine Grove Avenue and the Interstate 94/69 exchange in Port Huron, reducing the number of lanes from four to three.(Photo: MDOT/City of Port Huron)

Officials said the city got a complaint about Hancock last July that was forwarded to MDOT, prompting the road diet discussion. Burchell said it was related to the confusion of the areas lane setup.

Drivers werent clear of where people were going, she told council members. With the three-lane alignment, youll know this is an eastbound lane, this a westbound lane and this is a turn lane.

Although just a tenth of a mile in length, the area is populated by a slew of fast-food restaurants, gas stations and other businesses.

Along the north side of Hancock is Christophers Flowers, where owner Michael Murphy said he wasnt sure changing the lanes would fix traffic issues at the busiest times of the day.

That light there is so short, four cars through and everyone gets backed up, he said, referring to the Pine Grove and Hancock signal. So, for me, its that traffic light thats been the biggest problem. Then, here, if they take it down to three, a lot of people are in this closest lane and go straight up the road because the schools up there. In the mornings, this lane over here is just backed right up.

Inside the neighborhood west of the exchange is Crull Elementary School and the Port Huron Schools administration building, and Murphy said things tend to be busiest before school starts.

Sometimes, I cant get in the driveway here, he said. I have to drive around another way because people are lined up.

Port Huron City Council members signed off on MDOT's recommendation to convert Hancock Street from four lanes to three between I-69/94 and Pine Grove Avenue.(Photo: Brian Wells/Times Herald)

MDOT regional spokeswoman Jocelyn Hall said there was no formal timeline for the road diet.

If the road diet moves forward that decision comes after a period of public comment she said itll be implemented by October in tandem with a signal update in that area.

And the signal affected: The one at Pine Grove and Hancock.

The signal work, in general, is modernization. So, itll change to a box span, and there may very well be some timing adjustments that are a part of it also, Hall said Tuesday. But in general, any time youve got a school that right there equals congestion around the start of the day and the end of the day. Ive never talked with a school district that was a hundred percent happy with the traffic flow outside of their building.

Those who wanted to submit questions or concerns about the road diet idea, Hall said, could contact the department through its website at http://www.michigan.gov/mdot.

She said the state was still waiting to set any potential hearing in Port Huron related to the proposed change.

Timeframe for the actual meeting will depend on availability and guidance from the city," Hall said.

Jackie Smith is the local government reporter for the Times Herald. Have questions or a story idea? Contact her at (810) 989-6270 or jssmith@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @Jackie20Smith.

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MDOT considering lane reduction on Hancock near interstate - The Times Herald

Are you a frequent gym-goer or someone who never misses on the Zumba class? Well, fitness and workout are surely energising and addictive but only if done in the right manner and with the right fuel aka nutrition. Effective nutrition is required as a daily part of your routine even when you are not working out, but close attention should also be paid to what you eat before and after your workout sessions.

During exercise, your body uses glycogen (the storage form of glucose) for energy. Once you finish off your exercise sets, muscle tissues start breaking down and also become depleted of glycogen stores. To recover muscles from wear and tear, proteins are essential while carbohydrates are required to build upon depleted glycogen stores. So, consuming foods that contain both protein and carbohydrates 20-30 minutes after the workout replenishes energy stores and work towards restoring muscle tissues. So, try to refuel as soon as you can after the workout because if you wait for about two hours, the bodys recovery gets reduced to almost 50 per cent. So, in case your gym or fitness studio is far off from where you stay, make sure to carry your post-workout meal along with your gym essentials.

The best nutrition guidelines for optimum recovery after an intense workout include:Count on carbohydratesDo not fall for any fad diet trend that requires you to cut down on carbohydrates because it is the main source of energy for your body and about 50-60% of the daily calorie intake should be derived from carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are metabolised and broken down in the form of glucose that is instantly used up for energy and extra glucose is stored as glycogen in your muscles. Easy to digest carbohydrates are your best choice after a workout.

Focus on quality proteinAn average person needs around 0.8 to 1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. Say, a person of 60 kilograms of weight would need 60 grams of protein to meet the body requirements of protein. A strength athlete may require up to 1.2 grams per kilogram of body weight. Focus on consuming high-quality protein foods such as lean meats, fish, poultry, nuts, beans, eggs, or milk.

One of the best foods for recovery is milk as it provides a good balance of protein and carbohydrates. It also contains casein and whey protein.

Hydration is the keyReplacing fluids during and after a workout is critical. Drinking water is the best solution to replace fluid losses. Apart from plain water, you may have a glass of vegetable juice containing the blend of veggies like spinach, kale, amla, beetroot or carrot. Another excellent choice is coconut water which is also an amazing remedy to restore electrolyte balance.

What to eat after a workoutAll you need to do is prepare the right combination of carbohydrates and proteins to ensure maximum nutrition after workout:

-Protein shake made with half a banana, almond milk, yogurt, and hemp seeds (excellent protein source)

-Salad with roasted chickpeas, light olive oil, and vinegar

-Sauteed or steamed vegetables with tofu

-Quinoa bowl with blackberries and pecans

-Whole-wheat bread with raw peanut butter

-Burrito with beans, brown rice, guacamole, and salsa

-Grilled chicken with sauted or steamed vegetables

-Omelet stuffed with sauted vegetables and avocado (1/4 of fruit, sliced)

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The best foods to eat for recovery after a gym session - Times of India