Nutrition Info 101: What are the benefits of caffeine?

Over the years caffeine has been both demonized and glorified. Studies yielded various outcomes and gave the media fuel for reporting both sides of the story. Caffeine was bad for your heart (if your had heart disease and drank 10 cups a day.) Caffeine was good for your metabolism (again, one study claimed only if your drank it to excess.) So what's the truth about caffeine? Does drinking caffeine have benefits? Read more.

Free ice cream! July 19th is National Ice Cream Day

The weather is blazing hot and everyone's looking for ways to cool off. Ice cream tastes so very creamy and sweet, but it's the ice part of the equation we really seek this time of year. National Ice Cream Day is the third Sunday of July. It's time to take a break from our diets and indulge in a cool treat.

While many view ice cream as a diet no no, one cup averages 268 calories, 14.3 grams of fat, 32.5 grams of carbohydrates, and 4.7 grams of protein. Ice cream is also rich in vitamin A, calcium, phosphorus, and riboflavin. If you don't over indulge, ice cream can be part of a healthy diet.

Until July 19th, Starbucks is giving away free ice cream...

Read more and watch the videos.

Nutrition advice shouldn't be one size fits all

We're unique individuals with diverse health, weight and fitness issues. Nutrition needs vary and a "one size doesn't fit all" approach dosen't work. Just because “expert A” swears by low carb, “expert B” extols low fat, and “expert C” insists you must eat your fruits and vegetables at every meal, does not make their advice right for you.

Standard “healthy diet” advice can be downright harmful if you have a disease or condition for which it is counter intuitive. Examples are colitis, Crohn’s disease, celiacs, and irritable bowel syndrome, which are conditions in which dietary practices considered healthy, or foods and beverages other people eat and don’t give a second thought to, can cause painful and damaging symptoms.

Okay, let’s look at some standard nutrition and diet advice and why “one size fits all” recommendations like these may be detrimental for some. Read more and watch the videos.

Top five websites for buying budget friendly gourmet food

Go gourmet and make any occasion exquisite.

Eating is a natural pleasure. All healthy people enjoy good food and we should. Food isn't just fuel for the body, nor was it designed to be something to avoid or fear. Our taste buds don't just make food pleasurable, they signal our brains that a food will meet our nutritional needs. And taste points us to the right foods to nourish and sustain us physically and psychologically. Food is a natural mood elevator as well as a means to keep our bodies healthy and energetic.

Summer is filled with opportunities to enjoy fresh, whole, healthy foods. The internet has many excellent websites that cater to our desires for delicious gourmet treats. Even decadent foods like chocolate, cheeses, and wines have their place in a healthy diet. Dark chocolates, with at least 45 percent cocoa, are rich in antioxidants. Wines also supply health promoting antioxidants and moderate drinking lowers the risk of heart disease. Cheese is rich in calcium and adds zest to other dishes, as well as being a delightful stand alone treat.

Shopping online is a time saving convenience that offers a world of products not available in even the biggest grocery warehouses. For treats out of the ordinary, try these top online gourmet food websites: Read more, get the links, and watch the videos.

Summer treats, eat gourmet smoked ham and lose weight

Summer is the perfect time for sandwiches. It's easy to make these no cook meals gourmet. Premium meats are a must for delicious sandwiches the whole family will enjoy. Your grocery store's deli department has decadent, yet healthy, options like lean roast beef and turkey.

To take your sandwiches to the next level, try a delicious ham from iGourmet.com. A top seller with grand appeal and versatility is their Le Cochon d'Or Smoked Ham. Available in Black Forest and honey varieties, these gourmet hams are a sandwich lovers dream. They also go well with eggs, salads, cheeses, and stand alone as a ham steak.

Fine ham is not just for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. And lean hams are extremely diet friendly. Simply by switching out a lean 4 ounce sirloin steak at 200 calories for a 4 ounce ham steak at 100 calories, you save 100 calories. Read more and watch the videos.

Summer treats, POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate juice review

Make POM Wonderful your super hero.

Summer's heating up, it's time for cold beverages, and juice in a natural choice. POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate juice has health benefits unique to the pomegranate fruit. Clinical studies have proven 8 ounces of POM Wonderful pomegranate juice, drank once a day, improved heart, prostate, and erectile health. The only brand of pomegranate juice proven 100% pure, POM Wonderful is a delicious way to cool off this summer and toast to your health.

Diet friendly at 160 calories per serving, this Superfruit drink contains no added sugars. POM Wonderful is naturally sweet because its goodness comes from 100% pure pomegranate juice grown by the POM Wonderful company. Tightly controlled quality makes this outstanding product stand out in the crowd of fruit juices. Backed by 25 million dollars in medical research, POM Wonderful is a health promoting treat you can believe in. Read more.

Demon fat found to make foods more nutritious

Low carbohydrate advocates have long preached the value of fats in our diets. While certain hard core anti-fat experts like Dr. Dean Ornish cry foul, it appears recent studies prove that health promoting vitamins, anti-oxidants, and other compounds found in fruits and vegetables are fat-soluble. This means we need some fat to be consumed with these foods for the body to properly absorb these nutrients.

Studies by Steven Clinton, of the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, found that choosing a fat free salad dressing, or skipping fatty toppings like cheddar cheese, avocado slices, or olives, means you get a lot less nutrients out of salads and side dishes.

Simplified, this means you can take low fat and fat free eating habits too far. If the nutrients don't get into your system, then you don't reap their benefits. Dr. Clinton's "salsa study" fed test subjects a meal of fat free salsa and bread. Later, a similar meal with avocado was fed. The avocado meal raised fat consumption to an extra 37 percent of calories. But the good news was that the blood levels of the test subjects showed they absorbed about 4 times more lycopene and 2.5 times more beta carotene. This is just one example of scientific research reinforcing fats as part of a healthy diet. The key is moderation. You don't need to down a stick of butter with your spinach. Read more.

Hot dog! You think you pigged out this 4th of July

Chicago style hot dog.

Competitive speed eaters are a rare breed. They train to overeat. While Americans as a whole tend to overeat from time to time for various reasons, then tend to feel guilty afterwards, these overeaters do it for the thrill of competition.

Yesterday, Joey Chestnut won the Nathan's hot dog eating contest by eating a record 68 hot dogs. Eating, or should we say gobbling, two hot dogs at a time, Chestnut crammed the bunless hot dogs into his mouth and barely bothered to chew. He gulped, forcing dogs down his throat in record time. Then he dipped the buns in water after the hot dogs were gone, and swallowed the wet bread. Not appetizing, yet totally fascinating to watch.

Read more and watch the videos.

Fourth of July recipes you can enjoy all Summer

As we celebrate July 4th, few of us will stick to our diets. That's good news. Studies show sticking to any diet too long leads to boredom and failure. Sticking to one style of dieting, such as low carb, low fat or low calorie, leads to a slowed metabolism and weight plateaus. This means it's actually a good idea to take a break and enjoy a cheat day every now and then.

Just get right back up on your diet horse after your day of decadence. And lose the guilt. By cheating now and then, as long as it's not an all out binge, you're actually doing yourself a favor.

Click here to read more, enjoy the recipes and check out the videos.

Food manufacturers play tricks on consumers and dieters

One of the biggest mistakes dieters make is trusting food manufacturers, not reading labels, and not researching nutrition information on unlabeled food items like meats. This can lead to consuming hundreds of extra calories a day. Not only can this stall your diet it can lead to unwanted weight gain. You may think you're eating healthy, yet end up packing on extra pounds.

Food manufacturers play tricks on consumers by commonly marketing products like sodas, candy, and snack foods like chips and cookies, in packages that appear to be single servings. But most are actually two or more servings per package. Few people who eat high calorie, refined snack foods bother to read the nutrition labels. This is one reason so many people are overweight. Simple oversight on how much you're really putting in your mouth is a crime against your waist.

We assume we're sticking to our diet when we shop the frozen foods section and buy prepackaged diet foods. They're portion controlled for us and low in fat and calories. Well, maybe not.

On example is Michelina brand Lean Gourmet Snackers Baked Pepperoni Pizza. The package is the same size as the other diet entrees. Read more and and watch the videos.

My Latest Article For Healthy New Age on Power 90, Power 90X, and Power 90X Plus

When I'm not posting here or writing my column for The Examiner, I have a regular gig with HeartCore Corporation. Here's one of my latest articles at Healthy New Age: "What is the Difference Between Tony Horton’s Power 90, P90X, and P90X (Plus) Extreme?" By Carol Bardelli

Feel free to click on the link and check it out.

For information on my Power 90X results and P90X workout reviews check out the sidebar.

Enjoy the Power 90X videos below.

Delicious foods and recipes with surprising health benefits - part 2

Fresh plants have medicinal properties.

Eating certain foods to treat and prevent health issues is an ancient practice going back to the birth of the Egyptian civilization and Old Testament biblical times.

Chinese medicine has long believed in and practiced the balancing of Yin and Yang through eating certain foods. Imbalances in our diets can cause illnesses and energy blockages that affect mood as well as physical health. Chinese food theraphy is commonplace even today in the chinese culture.

Read more, get the recipes, and watch the videos.

Delicious foods and recipes with surprising health benefits

Guacamole with onions, tomatoes, and avocados are healthy.

Many foods we take for granted have health benefits we overlook. Often food really is the best medicine. We know from reliable research that you really can eat yourself thin, if you eat the right foods and use a dieting model like Cheat Your Way Thin by Joel Marion.

Below are a few common vegetables most of us love, and a few of their health benefits:

Read more, get the recipes, and watch the videos.

Lack of basic nutrition knowledge contributes to overweight and obesity

Too much high calorie foods add up to too much body fat.

As we grow fatter as a nation, we seek answers as to why our waistlines continue to grow. We know we eat too much and move to little, but still seek an elusive and easy way out of our predicament beyond the old answer of diet and exercise.

Reading through the blog-o-sphere of diet and nutrition blogs, readers will find differing opinions on why people become overweight or obese. Recent blog entries included Kevin Dill of 'Low Carb HIT' asking “WHY DO WE GET FAT??”

The author of 'The Last Atkins Dieter' blog stated “People know what the right foods to eat are, and when they're ready, they'll make the right choices.” See below why this isn't always true.

'Diet Blog' commented on a UK Times piece – “Besides, there is the embarrassing fact that those who eat and drink junk do so for cheap comfort and because they are either too poor or too ignorant (or both) to prepare healthy food.” The author of 'Diet Blog' said, “To say that fat folks are too stupid is one heck of a judgment call.“ Again this viewpoint doesn't always hold up.

And Jimmy Moore of 'Livin' La Vida Low Carb' wrote an entry entitled, “Why Do People Have An 'I Don't Care' Attitude About Their Need For Weight Loss?”

People get fat for a miriad of reasons including emotional difficulties, using food as a coping mechanism, eating for entertainment, and simply not understanding what constitutes a portion size. (Hint: NOT the heaping mounds of food brought to you on a platter at Applebee’s or the Super Size Value meal at McDonald’s.)

Click here to read more and see video demonstrations below.

Save on your grocery bill with a vegetable garden and free recipes

In our current weak economy people are turning to creative ways to save money. One of the most flexible parts of most household budgets is the cost of food. Two ways to lower our food bills are to eat out less, and grow our own vegetables.

Gardening is fun, easy and more popular than ever. It's mid June and not too late to get started planting a garden of your own. Planting season, depending on where you live, runs from early April to late October. Children love to participate and learning to grow their own food can be an educational opportunity. You can also use this opportunity to teach your child basic cooking skills and enjoy family time in the kitchen. Teaching your children that vegetables are nutitious and tasty will help everyone in the family control their waistlines.

Read more, get the recipes, see the videos.

Low carb vegetarian diet has health and weight loss benefits

Vegetables are versatile, nutritious, and plantiful this time of year.

A recent study revealed that overweight people who ate a low calorie vegetarian diet, that was also low in carbohydrates, for a mere month lost weight. This test diet was chiefly plant based. Proteins eaten were also made up of plant based foods like beans and legumes.

Not only did subjects lose weight, they experienced improvements in blood cholesterol levels and lowered other heart disease risk factors like blood prssure. The report was published in the June 8th 2009 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

Read more, get the recipes, annd watch the videos.

Is modern life making us fat?

Simply, the answer is yes. Modern conveniences contribute to overweight and obesity. You've heard it before, our modern lifestyle with all its gadgets and time savers like electric toothbrushes and can openers, washers and dryers, remote controls, drive-thru banks, dry cleaners, fast food chains, and in Las Vegas drive-thru wedding chapels, contribute to our weight problems. We move considerably less than our parents and grandparents did.

Here's an eye opening example. A modern housewife performs mundane chores regularly, one being her daily chore of making homemade dinners to keep her family healthy. She avoids fast foods and prepackaged processed foods.

Read more and watch the videos.

All American Sunday dinner menu and recipes

Independence Day is only a month away, summer is upon us, and it's time to relax. Homemade dinners are an opportunity to enjoy family and friends, as well as save money.

Below are a few recipes to get you started. A smart tip for money saving home cooking is to keep a well stocked pantry. When you keep the most used spices, condiments, and staples on hand, your weekly grocery list can concentrate on perishables like meat, fresh fruits and vegetables, dairy, and restocking basics.

Share a home cooked meal with those you love. Consider eating your home cooked dinner outdoors. Try a new twist on an old tradition of conducting your Sunday family dining inside by setting a casual table on your patio or deck. You'll be glad you did.

Click here for the recipes and videos.

Summer recipes for light and healthy meals

Summer is upon us, the weather's heating up, and we don't want to slave over a hot stove any longer than necessary. Here are a few healthy and light recipes to kick off your summer dining. Minimal heat required. And be sure to check out the cooking videos below.

Classic and Elegant Shrimp Cocktail

Read more and see the videos.

To lose weight don't skip breakfast

It's been said breakfast is the most important meal of the day. People who eat breakfast weigh less, while those who skip this "breaking fast" meal typically weigh more. Studies have shown that eating breakfast is associated with improved strength and endurance in the late morning, along with a better attitude toward school or work.

Studies show that your brain requires an adequate supply of readily available glucose (sugar converted from carbohydrates) to function well. Eating breakfast replenishes blood glucose levels, a vital factor in performance as the brain cannot store reserves of glucose.

Breakfast also jump starts your metabolism, important for weight control. Below are some breakfast recipes to jump start your day. Always be sure to balance your meals with adequate protein, a small serving of a whole grain carb or fruit, and a small amount of healthy fat.

To read more and see the videos click here.

Do you have eating competence?

Many people have never heard the term ‘eating competence’ before. If you Google 'eating competence' over 17,000 results come back. Although they can’t all be relevant here’s two that are:

"Enjoying the eating process without focus on dietary restrictions may be key to managing weight and staying healthy, according to researchers."

"Eating Competence and the Adolescent: The Investment Pays Off"

So what is eating competence and how does it apply to average Joes and Janes?

Read more and watch the video.

Why diets alone fail and what you can do about it

We all know dieting alone often fails. Even combined with exercise, we don't always achieve our desired results. So what's the missing link so many people overlook? It's almost too simple and easy to achieve. Why not use this "secret" approach to get the body you want. It's free and easier than you think. Read more.

Jerry Bardelli Mosaic Tile & Marble Designs

Coyote Mosaic - a work in progress.

Samples of (my husband) Jerry Bardelli's Mosaic Designs and Tile / Marble / Granite work.
Click on any photo to view enlarged version.

We ship anywhere. For information on purchasing your own custom design (self installation instructions included or ask your contractor to install) contact:

Jerry Bardelli
jerrybardelli@gmail.com
775-835-9284
http://www.jbp-enterprises.com

Salad days are here, delicious Springtime recipes

Springtime is here and swim suit season is not far behind. Vegetable dishes, particularly salads, are popular with most dieters. And they're packed with nutrition. Just remember to go easy on the salad dressings and high calorie toppings like full fat cheeses. Here's a few of my family's favorite recipes. Enjoy!

Get the recipes and watch the videos.

Your Power 90X Questions Answered

My Tony Horton biography, Tony Horton One On One Exclusive Interview, and Beachbody reviews at Healthy New Age have been garnering many questions from readers. HeartCore Corporation has assigned me the job of answering all questions. So if you're a P90X user, or you're interested in finding out more about the hottest fitness and fat loss system today, head on over and ask what you want to know.

Weighted Warrior - Tony Horton's New Shoulder Blaster



The Making of Power 90X Chapter One



For more of The Making of Power 90X click here.

Why the obesity and diabetes epidemics won’t resolve overnight

The twin epidemics of obesity and diabetes go hand in hand, and for many reasons, may never be resolved. Not to sound a negative tone, but various factors are at play in these health issues. They are intertwined in ways that make them more dangerous and hard to overcome as a society.

I had a dream the other night that I was out running a flood. I reached high ground, looked back and saw people drowning just above a set of steps I just ascended that could easily save them. If they just put their feet down they could find the steps the desperately needed. I told them, “The steps are right there. Just put your feet down and save yourself.” Only one did, (oddly enough, a young, naked Merle Haggard. Unfortunately, I woke up).

I interpreted the dream on many levels, but it could easily represent the tide of obesity overtaking us and our seeming inability to implement the simple steps that could save us from suffering from overweight, obesity, and diabetes, and the other devastating diseases that accompany them.

I’ve observed the following among family, friends, acquaintances, and former nutrition clients:

Read more and watch the video.

Childhood obesity prevention, parental guidance only goes so far

A few recent articles and blog entries I came across took parents to task for the childhood obesity epidemic. I agree parents have a responsibility to teach wise food choices and provide optimal nutrition at home. I personally don’t allow sodas, fruit juice, baked goods and other junk or snack foods in our house regularly. These are cosidered treats to enjoy occasionally. But it was obvious several of the people taking parents to task had no experience raising children. Talk about clueless.

Educating a child to discern between healthy foods and unhealthy foods only goes so far. Most children over the age of six are away from home the better part of the day. My nine year old catches the bus at 8:10 am and returns home at 4:10 pm. He eats two meals, a snack andlunch, in the school cafeteria every day. Kids are faced with making their own food choices and school cafeterias are as bad as grocery stores. It’s easy to eat a sub-standard diet.

Read more and watch the videos.

Let's get physical to reduce stress

Get physical with someone you love.

Study after study reinforces the value of regular exercise. Exercise has value above and beyond aiding in weight loss and weight maintenance. Themajority of people view exercise as a necessary evil to reach their weight goals. It's the few who view physical activity as pleasurable or make a sport(rock climbing, skiing, hiking, horseback riding, bodybuilding) an integral and enjoyable part of their lifestyle.

It's a sad fact of our modern society that physical activity is viewed as undesirable, relegated to the status of an inconvenience. We rely on cars, appliances, remote controls, drive-thru windows, elevators and escalators, to avoid moving our bodies any more than we have to. Yet all these conveniences can add up to physical de-conditioning, laziness, lowered metabolism, less calories burned, weight gain, and illnesses.

Read more and view the videos.

Don't believe everything scientific studies say

All scientific studies are not created equal. Assuming all scientific research is reliable is the same as playing with fire. You're bound to get burned. When I took journalism courses back in college the one premise that always stuck with me was “Consider the Source”. This serves one well whether watching news or advertising, or reading articles, non-fiction books, weblogs, or science journals. You can’t put a lot of stock in study results stating ‘milk aids in a slimmer waist’ if it was funded by the dairy industry or the results are taken out of context.

A recently published study stated children who drink more than three servings of milk a day are prone to overweight. The study participants included more than 12,000 children nationwide and found that the more milk they drank, the more weight they gained. Those consuming more than three servings each day were about 35 percent more likely to become overweight than those who drank one or two.

This undermines a heavily advertised dairy industry claim that milk helps people lose weight. The scientific study the dairy advertisers relied on to pitch their “Milk aids in weight loss” campaign stated CALCIUM supported weight loss, not milk. Making an assumption (without a solidly designed study to back it up) that because milk has calcium it will also support weight loss is unreliable stupidity. Always consider the source (along with their funding and affiliations) before swallowing what the scientific community and the media are spoon feeding you.

Jimmy Moore illustrated this beautifully in a blog. Read more and watch the video.

Delicious recipes for a lean body

You're following a healthy diet, but boredom rears its ugly head. Whether going low calorie or low carb, try these recipes. Maybe you're eating low calorie and miss sausage and eggs. Or you're eating low carb and may be sick of plain scrambled eggs and bacon. Here are a few of my favorite recipes from my cookbook The Protein Edge, available soon in PDF format (and originally published in comb bound paperback format) through my website. Enjoy.

Did you know, low calorie and low carbohydrate diets are both viable methods for weight loss. But low carb diets have been shown to be more effective in the overall amount of weight lost. And it is a myth that people who lose weight on low carb diets only lose water weight and gain it all back. My friend and fellow Examiner, Jimmy Moore, lost 200 pounds on a low carb diet.

Read more, get the recipes, watch the videos.