Optimizing Healthy Skin: Outer Nutrition

Beauty is more than skin deep. And no matter what your age, you can look healthier and younger with good nutrition from the inside out. Research has shown that by improving what you eat and how you look and think, you can help your body look younger for a longer period of time. And while wellness begins on the inside by nourishing your cells with the proper balance of vitamins, minerals and nutrients, it’s also essential on the outside. A glowing, radiant face and silky, smooth skin are all representations of total wellness.   Skin care for men and women Whether you’re a man or woman, Skin Activator® Day Lotion and replenishing creams can help give your skin a more youthful appearance and help you reduce the visible signs of aging before they begin or after they’re underway. Thousands of people around the world have reaped the benefits of the Skin Activator® line, Herbalife’s top-selling Outer Nutrition products. They’ve used this advanced face cream to help diminish the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, and to help give their skin a more youthful appearance. Independent clinical studies of the glucosamine complex in Skin Activator® products have shown that when used regularly for 12 weeks, you’ll experience: 57% reduction in the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles 55% improvement in skin firmness 45% improvement in the appearance of skin-surface texture Remember: What you put on the outside of your body should be as nourishing as what you put inside. So don’t neglect your skin!

Escape the Fat-Free Diet Trap

Today, supermarket shelves are packed with foods that call to dieters with the words “FAT FREE.” But as conscientious weight watchers load their shopping carts with fat-free foods week after week, many discover this alarming fact: Their weight is going up!   Getting fat on fat-free Since the fat-free craze began in recent years, statistics show we’ve actually grown fatter rather than thinner. Although we’ve been taught to think of fat as the culprit in the weight-loss battle, it isn’t the only one. That’s because a food that’s fat free isn’t necessarily calorie free. Many fat-free foods are actually very high in sugar and carbohydrate calories. And these calories, when eaten in excess, convert into the one thing we’ve been taught to avoid: fat!   Lose the fat from your body, not your diet. Ironically, to burn fat and lose weight, you need a certain amount of “good fat.” That’s why Herbalife Weight-Management Programs stresses the importance of a well-balanced diet that includes enough good fats—like those found in fish and olive oil—along with Herbalife’s highly nutritious meal replacement shakes and snacks. By avoiding the fat-free craze and giving your body the complete nourishment it needs with Herbalife’s Cellular Nutrition supplements and weight-management products, you’ll steadily lose weight and feel healthier as you do it.

Epidemic of the 21st Century: Overweight, Sick Kids!

Fact: Children who watch TV while eating are twice as likely to eat "junk" food as opposed to fruits and vegetables.
 
Sadly, today's sedentary lifestyle for children is raising their risk of obesity, diabetes, osteoporosis and other disorders. Discover how you can help reverse this alarming trend…

 

Shocking health realities

Today's parents are having their children’s pediatrician tell them that their 11-year-old son has Type 2 diabetes, or that their 16-year-old daughter has osteoporosis. The out-of-control lifestyles created by adults over the past 40 years has led to a 50% increase in the diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes—the kind of obesity-related diabetes once known as "adult onset" because it wasn’t usually diagnosed until age 50 or older.

 

Making wellness a family affair

We can reverse these trends if we start making eating healthy foods and increasing physical activity important to our children. Here are guidelines for dealing with overweight children:

• Have the child examined by a medical doctor to make sure he or she won’t have issues with losing weight.
• Children can begin their day with a Multivites vitamin tablet and a Kid Shake made with nonfat or soy milk.

Stopping the epidemic

Choose to set the example by picking up an apple instead of an ice-cream bar. Stop smoking. Turn off the television or computer—and instead, shoot some hoops with your children or go for a walk. Be sure to take your dog on your walks so that you won't have a fat dog at risk for diabetes and heart disease. (Yes, they develop the same diseases as humans!)

Let's make the 21st century the century of wellness, family values and a better quality of life. Let's start today.

Knowledge and Tips for Beer & Alcohol Lovers

Beer: The next health drink?

Sometimes, beer loves us back too: Studies have suggested that, when consumed in moderation, beer has many health benefits. For instance, moderate amounts of alcohol may be good for the heart. An Emory University study involving over 2,200 elderly men and women discovered that those who consumed at least 1.5 drinks daily had up to a 50% lesser risk of suffering from heart failure. Another study conducted by Germany, France and the United Kingdom found that moderate consumption of beer or wine may have anti-inflammatory properties, which can lower the risk coronary heart disease. The French, who drink lots of red wine and have the highest per capita alcohol consumption, actually have one of the lowest rates of coronary heart disease mortality.

Beer can also be good for your brain. Using an MRI, a Boston scientist discovered that light drinkers (one to six drinks a week) to moderate drinkers (seven to 14 drinks a week) have fewer strokes than nondrinkers -- probably because of alcohol's effect in thinning the blood and preventing the formation of tiny blood clots in the brain. Note, however, that although heavy drinkers (more than 15 drinks a week) have the least amount of strokes, they also suffer the most atrophy or wasting of brain tissues.

Moderate amounts of alcohol can also help reduce stress, decrease anxiety and self-consciousness, and improve your mood. Beer in particular has plenty of nutrients, such as protein, B vitamins, phosphorus, magnesium, selenium, iron, niacin, and riboflavin.

Benjamin Franklin said it best: "Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy." For sure, men love their alcohol: The average American guy drinks about 23 gallons of beer, 15 pints of wine and 10 pints of spirits every year. All in all, each year, about 200 million barrels (that's 6.2 billion gallons) of beer are produced, and we buy about $116 billion worth of alcoholic beverages.

Beer can also be Unhealthy 

Before you go out and celebrate with a few pints, keep in mind that all of the studies above point out that beer is only healthy if you drink moderately. Some scientists even consider the health benefits of alcohol for moderate drinkers to be controversial due to the variations in the methodologies of the studies.

What all doctors and scientists agree on, however, is that the health risks of drinking larger amounts of alcohol will quickly outweigh its benefits; and to make matters worse, alcohol can impair your judgment, thus making it hard for you to stop at just a drink or two.

One of the most common harmful effects of alcohol is on the liver, the organ that removes toxins from the body. In the liver, enzymes first convert alcohol into acetaldehyde, a chemical intermediate that can cause nausea, headache, vomiting, and other bad effects of alcohol ingestion. During this step, a molecule called NADH is also produced.

Tips for Beer Lovers

Short of not drinking any alcohol (which is the medical recommendation for men who have had liver damage due to alcohol), there are many things you can do to limit the bad effects of alcohol and beer.

Set your limit and pace

Decide how many drinks you will have ahead of time and stick to it. Don't be afraid to say "no thanks." Also, remember to drink slowly: A healthy liver can process a standard drink (a 12 oz can of beer) an hour -- if you drink any faster than that, you risk overloading your body's ability to process alcohol.

This is especially important at parties and in social situations, where peer pressure to drink can override your better judgment.

Don't drink on an empty stomach

Eating a substantial meal before you go out and drink can actually help slow the absorption of alcohol. A full stomach may also help you cut down on the amount of alcohol you can drink.

Drink water or non-alcoholic beverages between drinks

Alcohol dehydrates your body, so drinking a nonalcoholic "decoy" between alcoholic drinks not only helps you cut down on alcohol consumption, it also helps keep your body hydrated.

Protect your liver

Allow your liver to recover by not drinking alcohol every day -- in fact, have as many alcohol-free days as possible between drinking.

Also, consider taking nutritional supplements that contain herbs and nutrients that help keep the liver healthy. These supplements may contain milk thistle extract, curcumin, gotu kola, schizandra berry, and other liver-friendly herbs clinically shown to help rid the liver of toxins and improve liver functions.

Take care of your body

Beer and alcohol are very important parts of society -- many of us can't imagine life without our beloved drink of choice -- but remember that drinking too much can lead to ruins.

Remember that you bear the ultimate responsibility for your health -- and if you love beer, this means understanding the health benefits and risks of alcohol, as well as drinking only in moderation. Taking care of your liver by taking liver-friendly supplements should also be a part of your daily health routine.

Healthcare and Housing: Stop Blaming and Take Control of Your Economic Status

Many Americans continue to struggle in the face of a sluggish economy and falling home prices which is taking a toll on their overall well-being. Thirty-five percent of middle class Americans said they or someone in their household has experienced a physical symptom of stress related to the economy, according to a recent report by First Command Financial Services, a financial service provider. Most common were anxiety, changes in weight, sleeplessness, low energy and irritability. "These are health conditions that we want people to be aware of," said Kathryn Power, director of the Center for Mental Health Services, a division of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Power said that at the start of the recession there was a sharp uptick in the number of calls to the Center's suicide hotline. "About 30% of the calls we get are related to economic distress," she said. "They were having emotional difficulties because of fear of their financial situation, fear they would lose their job, lose their home." "We are concerned about this from a public health approach," Power cautioned. "Even if people can't afford professional health services, they should go to community health clinics," she advised.

When Americans need it most, more are opting out of proactive health care as a result of the recession, according to the survey by First Command. Twenty-six percent of those surveyed said that they have put off doctor visits due to economic conditions -- up from 15% in 2010. First Command polled approximately 1,000 Americans aged 25 to 70 with annual household incomes of at least $50,000.  "There are short-term, mid-term and long-term implications," Power said of how the economy affects health. "If people are forgoing regular check-ups or medical appointments, there will be long-term health consequences across the board."  In fact, the poorer you are the more likely you are to have worse health. Furthermore, poverty is known to cause high teen births, high crime, obesity, depression, and higher death rates. These are just the tip of the study. People across each spectrum of economic class status are distressing with alcohol and cigarettes. This is not surprising, but alarming.

I strongly urge people to take control of their own lives and stop placing blame on political heads of state or political parties, or tort reform or lack thereof.  The truth is Americans are aging. Healthcare dollars take up over 17% of our total GDP and it is rising. Of that 17% about 40% is spent on people who are in their last 6 months of life. Over 67% of all healthcare dollars are spent on the top 10% of the users. The bottom 50% uses only about 3% of total healthcare dollars. Obesity and chronic disease account for over 70% of healthcare dollars. These reasons are why healthcare keeps rising. Include those reasons with the rapid decline in the housing sector over the past 3 to 4 years, well, just figure in this statistic:  about 60% of all jobs are housing related.  People who tried to “keep up with the Joneses,” by stretching their dollars beyond their means while greedy lenders took advantage, led to the housing market draining money out of our economy. Jobs, savings, and investments have been destroyed.  People are afraid to spend money, which leads to fewer jobs or fewer hours. This leads to not having enough to spend on even preventive healthcare. You can't blame the doctors and other healthcare providers, they are struggling too. When people put off visits, they get hurt.

            Americans can only be this pissed off for so long until we make ourselves sick - from hostility, worry and resentment. I strongly encourage eating healthy, sleep and exercise as well as you can. Try to remember what's really important (friends, family, and community connection), and take good as good care of ourselves as we can.  In my opinion, we do not need the government creating low wage jobs with tax dollars or bailing everyone out.  Businesses and the American people need to embrace the freedom capitalism allows with a less intrusive government role (which is a topic for later discussion). When this occurs, less economic stress and affordable healthcare will exist.

Prostate Cancer: The Smoking Guns of Milk Consumption

Scientist prove milk-drinking men are more susceptible to prostate cancer, but continue trying to figure out why. There are three smoking guns: the suspicion that milk increases testosterone, milk seems to increase IGF-I, and milk tends to disrupt vitamin D balance. The first explanation for why milk might be associated with higher risk of prostate cancer in men is that the more fat consumed, the more the body is likely to make testosterone. A higher fat diet promotes testosterone production, which tends to increase the risk of prostate cancer.

 IGF-I (Insulin-Like Growth Factor I) plays a role in the increase risk of prostate cancer. Its name comes from the fact of taking cancer cells, putting them in a test tube, and adding IGF-I to them, they grow and start multiplying. "Insulin-like" means it acts like insulin, moving sugar from the blood stream into the cells. Everyone has IGF-I, although the serum concentration in adults varies dramatically from one person to another. IGF-I hastens cancer cell growth in-vitro (in the test tube), which is the key factor in IGF-I role in the increase risk of prostate cancer.

  

The vitamin D phenomenon is quite interesting. When the sun hits your skin it makes vitamin D. It's made right in your skin, but it's not active yet. It's a preliminary form of vitamin D. The vitamin D goes to the liver where the first step of activation occurs and a hydroxl group (-OH) is added. Then it goes to the kidney where another one is added in the second step of activation. You now have the active form of vitamin D which goes to the digestive tract to help your body absorb calcium. That is vitamin D's function.  

Vitamin D has another function important to you--vitamin D protects the prostate. Vitamin D helps protect the maturity of prostate cells. If you have too much calcium in your diet, from milk or other source, your body stops activating all that vitamin D. The Vitamin D activation pathway is blocked.  Your body says “I don't need any more vitamin D." The problem is, the prostate loses out. The prostate was depending on that vitamin D to maintain its maturity. Now it's lost it because the body has too much calcium in the blood.

Ironically, even though you drink vitamin D-fortified milk, the increased calcium intake reduces the amount of active vitamin D in the bloodstream. This is due to the fact that vitamin D in milk is a precursor. It is not yet the active form. For example, men in a Harvard Physicians’ Health Study who consequently got prostate cancer had a higher IGF-I level and a lower vitamin D level. The more calcium they consumed, the more misfortune they were in. These are the things we learn as researchers seek to explain the effects of milk and dairy consumption.

The Research Behind Women's Low-Carb Diets and Type 2 Diabetes

    The lure of rapid weight loss through low-carbohydrate diets has been put to the long-term health effects test. Clinical researchers recently ran a prospective trial to determine weather low-carbohydrate diets used for weight loss increased or decreased the risk for type 2 diabetes in women over time. The researchers used data from the ongoing Nurses' Health Study to examine the association between a low-carbohydrate diet score (based on the percentage of energy found in carbohydrates, fat, and protein) and the risk of type-2 diabetes in more than 85,000 women over a 20-year time frame. It was recognized amongst the researchers that females who ate more carbohydrates had a higher risk of developing type-2 diabetes compared with those who ate fewer carbohydrates during the study period. The conclusion here is that the data suggest diets lower in carbohydrates and higher in fat and protein do not increase the risk of type-2 diabetes in women. The researchers published this conclusion in the February 2008 issue of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The research further concluded that, “In fact, diets rich in vegetable sources of fat and protein may modestly reduce the risk of diabetes.”

   Please keep in mind that not all carbohydrates are created equal. If you decide to reduce your carbohydrate intake to lose weight, make sure you retain the healthy “complex” carbs, such as fruits and veggies. Instead, toss out the “simple” carbs, like those found in processed foods.