30 WEIGHT LOSS TIPS

1.       Take small and frequent meals throughout the day (5-6 meal patterns in a day).

2.      Do not Skip any meal.

3.      You should drink at least 10 – 12 glasses of water in a day.

4.      You must avoid sour foods like curd, Sambhar, vinegar preparations, kadi etc. in dinner.

5.      Try and choose whole grains like whole wheat and its products, oats, brown rice, barley etc.

6.      You should prefer taking whole pulses and legumes.

7.      You should avoid tinned and processed foods.

8.      You should avoid foods with high preservatives like pickles, ketchups, purees etc.

9.      Fruit juices must be avoided instead consume fresh whole fruits.

10.  Avoid munching or nibbling on unhealthy snacks in between the meals.

11.   You should restrict the consumption of fruits with high glycemic index like mango, cheeku, lichi, grapes, muskmelon, banana etc.

12.   Go for salted lassi, buttermilk and lemonade instead of diet coke and artificially sweetened drinks.

13.   Don’t eat that late night snack - Try not to eat for at least 2 hours before going to bed.

14.  Increase your fruit and vegetable intake (at least 5 servings per day) - these are packed with vitamins.

15.   Change your oil every month and try to use two kinds of oil for cooking in a day.

16.   Go for olive oil, canola oil, mustard oil, safflower oil instead of desi ghee, butter, vanaspati etc.

17.   Decrease your fat intake - try for no more than 20 grams (2 -3 tsp) per day.

18.   Exercise for 30 minutes each day - take a walk, or play a game with your kids. Just get moving.

19.   Opt for low fat options like double toned/skimmed milk, vita Paneer, low fat yogurt etc.

20.  Have lean meats like egg white, chicken, fish, sea foods etc. instead of organ meats, mutton and pork.

21.   Have a small platter of fruits and a glass of luke warm water before leaving for a party or eating out.

22.  Enrich your diet with fiber by including salads, and whole grains and bran in your diet.

23.  Use microwave and non-stick pans for cooking.

24.  Avoid having fried snacks, nuts and nankeens with alcohol.

25.  Opt for vodka or red wine over other liquors.

26.  Reduce your coffee and tea intake to 2 cups a day.

27.  Avoid having heavy combinations of protein and carbohydrates like Rajma-rice, Naan-chicken etc.

28.  Restrict yourself to just 2-3 tsp of sugar in a day.

29.  Avoid too much of sweets, ice creams and chocolates.

30.  Avoid smoking and any kind of addiction.

Health Expert-Manjula Dwivedi

Diabetes mellitus:

Diabetes mellitus is a major public health problem worldwide. It has been estimated that more than 33million people in India are affected by diabetes, perhaps the largest number of diabetics in any country in the world. This number is expected to increase to 57.2 million by 2025 as reported by king et al. (1998).

Diabetes is a chronic disease that requires changes for a lifetime. The management of diabetes includes nutrition therapy, Physical activity, Blood glucose monitoring, medication, and self management education. The dietary management of both type 1 and type 2 DM is almost identical.

Nutritional therapy and dietary modification

The goals of nutrition therapy are:

• To attain and maintain optimal metabolic outcomes, including normal glucose levels, favorable lipid profile and acceptable blood pressure levels, to reduce the risk of macro vessel and micro vessel disease.

• To prevent and treat chronic complications of DM by modifying nutrient intake and lifestyle as appropriate for the prevention and treatment of obesity, dyslipidemia,  cardiovascular disease, hypertension and nephropathy

• To improve health through healthy food choices and physical activity

• To give specific advice necessary for minority groups such as:

ü  Young people with type 1 and type 2 DM

ü  Pregnant and lactating women

ü  Older adult

ü  Individual treated with insulin

ü  Those at risk of developing DM

What you should include:

ü  Use breakfast cereals based on oats, barley and bran.

ü  Use breads with whole grains, stone-ground flour, sour dough .

ü  Reduce the amount of potatoes you eat.

ü  Enjoy all other types of fruit and vegetables.

ü  Use Basmati, Doongara rice.

ü   Enjoy whole grain pasta, whole grain noodles.

ü  Eat plenty of salad vegetables.

ü  Incorporate good fats like nuts (almonds, dates, walnut) and olive oil.

ü  It is ok to use low-fat dairy foods.
Note: these red-orange foods (Watermelon, Carrots, Cantaloupe) are in the med-high GI range so try to include them in less quantity in your diet.

ü  Incorporate these wonderful herbs to enhance the flavor of all your foods:  cinnamon, dill, fenugreek, garlic, ginseng (Panax, Korean, American) oregano, parsley, rosemary, stevia, thyme.

Research has discovered a whole range of plants with hypoglycemic action. Among them are:

·         Artichoke, banana, barley, cabbage, carrot, lettuce, nettles, oats, peas, spinach, sweet potato, and turnip.

·         Blood sugar regulators include: alanine, banaba, beta-glucan, bitter melon, chromium piccolate, guggul, gymnema, rehmannia.

·         An apple can regulate blood sugar levels. Apples contain naturally-occurring chemical compounds known as phytochemicals, polyphenols, or flavonoids, some of which have been proven to have antioxidant activity that inhibits, or scavenges, the activity of free radicals in the body. Cell damage from free radicals can be a factor in certain cancers, heart disease, strokes, and other conditions. The major antioxidant components in apples are polyphenols contained mainly in the skin known as quercetin glycoside, phloretin glycoside, chlorogenic acid, and epicatechin.

What You Should Avoid:

ü  Limit foods that have little or no fiber such as ice cream, cheese, meat, snacks like chips and pizza, and processed foods such as instant mashed potatoes or already-prepared frozen dinners. Too much white flour and refined sugar.

ü  What you don’t eat may be even more important than what you do eat. Avoid alcohol, caffeine and sugar, because they tend to worsen index levels. If you can’t avoid them, then at least cut down.

ü  Reduce Processed and Refined Foods:

ü  Avoid fried foods, white pasta, white rice, full fat dairy, white potatoes, white bread.

ü  Processed food can rob your food of nutrients and vitamins that your body needs to fight off stress and promote good health. Try to buy whole foods, unprocessed foods and try and stay away from "instant" foods, preservatives, artificial flavors, saturated fats, refined foods, hydrogenated foods.

ü  Reduce Sugar Intake: Too much sugar can rob our body of essential nutrients. Simple carbohydrates from baked goods, pastries, most crackers and cookies must be limited to a very small portion or completely removed from the diet. 

BALANCED DIET

                                       BALANCED DIET

BALANCED DIET

A diet which contains all the nutrients e.g. energy, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals etc.required by a human for the proper maintenance of health and optimum growth is termed as a 'balanced diet'.  Dals and beans have high contents of protein and a small amount of fat.  

 SOURCES

Sources of the balanced diet are from different sections. Among the milk items there are milk, yogurt and cheese. Apart from the milk items there are many other sources of balanced diet from the solid foods that are available throughout the world. Chicken, beef, pork, and many other meats are important for our bodies. Seeds and nuts are also important for the appropriate nutrition of our bodies. But the main thing is that we all have to maintain a good balance among all the things that you take. Rice is great source for balanced diet. Indian people have their staple diet based on the carbohydrate food items like rice, bread and many things else belonging to this category. So, they also need to maintain the proportion clearly, otherwise the unbalanced diet may cause many side effects which can be fatal to our bodies. Proper foods are also to be taken for the natural development of our bones. Beans and peas are also very popular in all the countries throughout the whole world and they are mainly used in making curries of different types.

If we come to talk about India, the concept of Ayurveda always deal with the ideas of balanced diet. There are many formulae which are based on the appropriate amount of vitamins, minerals, and fats taken in human bodies. Yoga and other popular exercises in this country are directly related to this concept of balanced diet. Apart from all these the appropriate amount of water intake is also vital. This keeps our body cells alive.

Balanced diet means eating the right amount of foods from all available food groups. It refers to the intake of edibles which can provide all the essential constituents necessary for growth, development and maintenance of the body. While prescribing balanced diet following points must be considered.

1. It must contain all the essential constituents in adequate amount.
2. The food should be easily digestible and should be given according to age.
3. A definite proportion between the different constituents of food should be taken, the usual ratio between carbohydrates, proteins and fats should be 4:1:1.

BALANCED DIET AND ITS BENEFITS

Nutrients for a truly balanced diet. A balanced diet should consist of the following nutrients, in this order of importance:

1. Dietary fiber - helps, improves natural digestion and absorption of nutrients
2. Phytochemicals - powerful natural anti-cancer
3. Antioxidants - to help the self-healing and anti aging by delaying the cell aging
4. Vitamins - the best are those that come naturally in fruits and vegetables
5. Minerals - like calcium, iron, magnesium, selenium, etc.. Our bodies need
6. Fatty acids - especially Omega 3, 6 and 9
7. Carbohydrates - energy source and basis for tissue formation
8. Proteins - the basis for a structured, regular transport.
9. Fat or fat - are used for forming cells, and regulate energy reserves form.

LOW CALORIE DIET

A low calorie diet is a diet that restricts calorie consumption between 900 to 1300 calories per day. This is different from the VLCD (very low calorie diet) which allows only a maximum of 800 calories per day. Individuals who attempt this diet are very overweight and suffer from obesity. Low-calorie diets and very low-calorie diets

VERY LOW CALORIE DIET

As you can see, a VLCD is different from what a person might casually call a "low-calorie diet," which would commonly consist of 1500 to 1800 calories per day. If you're interested in something less aggressive, there are plenty of diet plans that will allow for more moderate calorie restriction.

HOW THE DIET WORKS

The theory of the low calorie diet is simple. Calories you consume provide the body with fuel. By consuming fewer calories, our bodies are allowed to burn stored fat instead of calories for maintaining bodily functions.

The first thing you need to do when starting this diet is to purchase a calorie counter which can calculate the number of calories that are in the food you have eaten. There are many books and web sites available with this information.

BENEFITS

Several benefits are associated with a low calorie diet.

• Dieters normally loose 4-7 pounds (2-3 kg) per week.
• Low calorie diets help slow down the aging process
• Improved mental acuity
• Dieters learn to eat a healthy, well balanced diet.
• Some research shows that a low calorie diet increases the life span
• Helps prevent stroke, heart disease, hypertension, and high blood pressure
• Increases energy level
• Lowers cholesterol levels
• Improves blood sugar levels
• Improves sleep
• Decreases risk of Type 2 diabetes

SIDE EFFECTS

As with any diet, some side effects can occur.

• Since your stomach is accustomed to large portions, eating smaller portions is not going to satisfy your hunger.
• Fatigue, nausea, diarrhea and constipation are sometimes common side effects which tend to disappear early in the program.
• Gallstones can occur if you loose weight too rapidly.
• If your eating habits do not change, once the diet is complete, most of the weight is easily regained.

RESULTS

Long term treatment programs are encouraged to help maintain the current weight. This includes lifestyle changes and physical activity.

Losing weight can improve many areas of your life. The low calorie diet is a sensible, well balanced diet that’s been proven to work on thousands of individuals.