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Are Cereal Bars a Healthy Breakfast Substitute?

Admin — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 08:36:55 +0000

As with most things there are two sides to this story. Most health sources believe that breakfast bars are a gimmick: an unhealthy and poor substitute for a well-balanced breakfast that should probably be taken with a diet pill and a vitamin if you want them to do any good. Others (mainly the cereal bar manufacturers…) believe that a quick, compact cereal bar stands in quite nicely for a traditional breakfast.
A recent study showed that cereal bars in general contain more fat and more sugar than a basic breakfast of cereal and milk, and because the sugar in a cereal bar doesn’t get washed away with milk like the sugar in a bowl of sugary cereal, cereal bars are considered bad for your teeth.

Let’s compare a few popular cereal bars and see whether they truly are as healthy as their manufacturers claim.

Blueberry Pop Tarts (100 grams)
Calories: 408
Protein: 4.6 grams
Fat: 13.3 grams
Sugar: 30.9 grams
Fiber: 1.1 grams

Granola Bar (100 grams)
Calories: 464
Protein: 9.8 grams
Fat: 17.6 grams
Sugar: 27.52 grams
Fiber: 3.1 grams

Kellogg’s NutriGrain Fruit Bar
Calories: 368
Protein: 4.4 grams
Fat: 7.5 grams
Fiber: 2.1 grams

Are any of these a good substitute for a bowl of healthy cereal and a ½ cup of skim milk? What about for an egg and a slice of whole grain toast?
The answer to those is clearly “no.”
But are these a good substitute for skipping breakfast altogether or having bowl after bowl of Fruity Pebbles with whole milk?
For that, the answer may actually be “yes.”
Bottom line: If you have time for a healthy breakfast, you should absolutely have one. The meal will fill you up longer than any cereal bar and will provide essential vitamins and minerals that you need to sustain normal hunger and energy levels throughout the day.
No time for breakfast? Try and grab other healthy options: an apple, a pb&j sandwich, or some rice cakes.
Can’t resist those cereal bars? Have one, but try and limit to one a day, if not one a week.

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Do Protein Shakes Help With Weight Loss?

Admin — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 08:51:03 +0000

Protein shakes are extremely popular with weight loss programs. Since the body requires up to 63 grams of protein a day, a protein shake can be a great way to get enough protein and can serve as a replacement for high calorie meals, to ensure weight loss. However, it is important to check that your protein shake offers a balance of calories from protein, carbohydrates, and dietary fiber and contains all essential vitamins and minerals.
With so many protein shakes available, it may be difficult to choose the right product. Before buying any protein shake consider some factors such as weight loss potential, safety, ingredient quality, taste, calories per serving, cost and customer feedback.
Here are some protein shakes that we’ve tried and reviewed:
    NutriMelt Fat-Flushing Nutrient Infusion Shakes – This shake dramatically interferes with the body’s process of converting calories to fat. NutriMelt contains special fat metabolizers, race trace minerals, potent enzymes, absorbent protein, essential fatty acids, and powerful antioxidants. Aside from improving blood pressure, athletic performance and improved digestive health; NutriMelt is a satisfying shake with only 155 calories, 1 gram of sugar and no saturated fat. This is a shake that can sustain hunger.
    Slim Fast High Protein – Surprisingly, Slim Fast does not curb the appetite as well as other shakes. The product’s artificial chocolate aftertaste is also a let down and does not have a smooth consistency. Slim Fast High Protein shakes contain more carbohydrates than protein; however, it may help with weight loss since it contains metabolism stimulating vitamin B-complex.
    Universal Nutritional Animal Max – This meal replacement powder contains a mix of various proteins including animal proteins which are harmful to the human body when consumed. This particular product contains ingredients such as isolate casein peptides and instantized egg white protein. Although it is beneficial to building muscle, it is associated with a risk of high cholesterol, heart disease, kidney failure and liver tribulations.
The best way to lose weight with protein shakes is to use a shake to replace only one or two meals in a day, not all three. You may also want to consider taking a diet pill like Xenical to help flush your body of unneeded fat.

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Top Three Products That Will Help You Lose Weight FAST

Admin — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 08:44:41 +0000

Here is a list of innovative weight loss products available online.
1.    Phentermine 37.5 – This all natural diet supplement has been reviewed as one of the premiere weight loss product on the market. Phentermine 37.5 is unique in that it helps improve metabolism and promotes weight loss by stimulating thermogenesis with the use of patented ingredients, and increases lean muscles. Phentermine 37.5 not only helps you see short term weight loss results, most customers report long term weight loss as well. With its unique blend of 100% natural ingredients, Phentermine 37.5 offers a healthy and safe weight loss option.
2.    SlimmerX – This is an innovative formula to help your body naturally increase metabolism. It causes your body to run more efficiently causing boosts to your metabolism. SlimmerX also works as an appetite suppressant and works to prevent certain hormones from kicking in and making weight loss difficult by slowing the metabolism down.
3.    Generic Ambien or AmbiSlim – Yes, Ambien is a sleeping pill, but sleeping well can actually help encourage weight loss. Clinical studies have found that when people have less than five hours of sleep, they have a tendency to be more overweight than those who get 7-9 hours of sleep, due to the Ghrelin and Leptin hormones. For some people, just increasing their hours of sleep will help them lose weight. Other people may want to try AmbiSlim PM for a bigger weight loss boost. This is one of the first formulas to provide fat burning while you sleep. Unlike other weight loss products, AmbiSlim does not contain stimulants. Instead, AmbiSlim contains sleeping ingredients similar to generic Ambien to ensure quality of sleep while providing long lasting fat burning throughout the evening.

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Sugar Substitutes: A Comparison

Admin — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:00:32 +0000

We all know that sugar is bad for you. But some of the sugar substitutes on the market are tasteless and don’t really work. So what can you use to replace sugar to help you cut it out of your diet so that you can lose weight?
•    Splenda – This is the obvious choice. It is one of the most popular sweeteners on the market today, and can be used in tea, coffee, and baking. Recently there have been some studies done about the safety of Splenda, and as yet there is no conclusion over its long term affects on the body.
•    Honey – This is a natural alternative to sugar. It can be used in baking, and especially for those cakes that you want to be a bit gooey when you are done baking them. Honey is also sweeter than sugar, so be aware of this and either use less than you would sugar, or add a tiny bit of baking powder to neutralize it a bit.
•    Maple syrup – This comes from the sap of the maple tree. It is only about 60% as sweet as sugar, but use a bit less when baking with maple syrup. It is very runny and so can change the state of your batter.
These are only a few ways to cut down the amount of sugar you intake. To encourage weight loss you should take a look at all elements of your diet, and cut out anything with too much sugar in. You may also want to look at some natural diet pills, such as Acai Effect, which in conjunction with lowering your sugar intake will help fast weight loss.

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Can I mix hidden valley dressing mix with low fat yogurt instead of mayo to cut back on calories?

Admin — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 00:00:56 +0000

I love ranch dressing. My favorite is mixing the hidden valley ranch packets with buttermilk and low fat mayo but it still has a ton of fat & calories. I was wondering if I can mix the packet with fat free yogurt and regular milk and a little light sour cream (or no sour cream at all) and still get a good tasting dressing. I don’t like any of the low fat bottle alteratives. Please help!

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What chocolate sugar-free cake mixes are sold in stores?

Admin — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 08:38:06 +0000

And also, what sugar-free chocolate icing is sold in stores?

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Oil Substitutes: All the Flavor, None of the Fat

Admin — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:54:44 +0000

We all know it’s true: frying things is bad for you. But oil is used in so many other recipes as well, and it is not good for you. Oil is basically fat. This means that the more you use, the more fat you are ingesting. So how can you reduce your oil intake to lose weight? There are some great products on the market today that you can use instead of oil for baking and cooking.

• Applesauce – This is a great oil substitute when it comes to baking. Try using it in muffins and cake batter. It will give a slightly sweeter taste than oil, so you may need to take out some of the sugar from the recipe to make sure that you aren’t making the cake too sweet. Which, let’s face it, is good for you too!

• Bananas – Mashed up, bananas can make an excellent oil substitute. Use them when you bake bread, or for muffin mixtures.

• Olive oil – Olive oil is the healthiest of all the oils. If possible, substitute it for other oils. Remember that it has a strong flavor and so probably shouldn’t be used for baking – unless you want your brownies with an olive flavoring.

• Cooking spray – This is a can of oil, which works like an aerosol. This means that you reduce the amount of oil you use when greasing pans. Cooking spray can be expensive, but there are some home stores that sell a refillable bottle which will allow you to do the same thing but reuse the bottle and fill it up with whichever oil your recipe calls for.

Reducing the amount of oil you ingest can have a big effect on your diet. Particularly if you are taking some of the more popular diet pills, such as Ali or Xenical, in which case you need to be particularly careful about how many grams of fat you ingest daily.

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What are some good low fat/low point recipes?

Admin — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 00:02:40 +0000

I am on Weight Watchers, and have been for almost a year. I’m looking for some new low fat/low point recipes because i’m tired of all of mine. I feed picky eaters so nothing too fancy.

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Sugar Substitutes part 1

Admin — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 08:28:37 +0000

Sorry that in some parts the video does not sync with the audio. I had a post in reference to Aspartame and I felt that I should comment. This is a multi-part video.

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Top 10 Best Foods - Nutrition by Natalie

Admin — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 15:49:51 +0000

Be My Friend - www.myspace.com Nutrition by Natalie Top Ten Best Foods Natalie counts down the top 10 best foods you could eat. In a fast food nation, eating healthy food becomes difficult to do. Yet a poor diet contributes to low energy, obesity, stress, health problems and high medical bills. If you eat better, you will feel better and this video discusses some of the foods you should avoid. Please visit Natalies website at www.nutritionbynatalie.com This video was produced by Psychetruth …