Langley SureSlim Consultants
Weight loss and fish can be best friends. Unfortunately, fish is rarely on the dinner plates at most tables. What is served most often is found advertised on tv, whatever tastes good or is offered in fast food restaurants. Many will simply eat sweet or junk foods to feed their emotions, without considering the health implications.
Why do weight loss and fish benefit your overall health? Living overweight and subsisting on the standard North American diet is not a prescription for good health. When your diet routinely includes processed, packaged foods that contain artificial ingredients, artificial flavorings, sweeteners, heavily processed oils and fats, fried foods, red meats and chemical preservatives it’s only a matter of time before your body will be delivering you to the Doctor’s office. So many folks are not preparing meals from scratch with wholesome ingredients. Is it any wonder we are having trouble maintaining a healthy weight?
Consider weight loss and fish in your meal plans. Fish is a wonderful addition to any healthful diet due to its low saturated fat content which makes it the perfect protein substitute for fatty cuts of beef and pork.
Here are three reasons why weight loss and fish will benefit your overall health:
- Protect Your Heart: Potential or existing heart problems are a major reason your doctor wants you to lose weight. Weight loss and fish contribute to a healthy heart which goes hand in hand in providing you with a much healthier life. Oily fish such as salmon, tuna, sardines, mackeral and trout are chock full of omega 3 fatty acids. These fish should be a staple of everyone’s heart healthy diet as they will contribute to reducing or even eliminating bad cholesterol in your system. Consumption of two fish meals per week can reduce the risk of heart disease, heart attack, sudden death and stroke. Your chances of having coronary problems later in life can be reduced by almost 40 percent.
- The Protein Factor: Complete proteins are essential in any weight loss program. It’s the protein choice that’s likely to make all the difference. A 6 oz broiled porterhouse steak carries 38 grams worth of protein. It also delivers 44 grams of fat, 16 of which are saturated. That’s almost ¾ of the recommended daily allowance for saturated fat. The same amount of salmon will provide you with 34 grams of protein while delivering only 18 grams of fat with 4 of them being saturated. Fish is clearly a superior choice for overall weight loss and good health.
- Enhancer for Brain and Joints: Exercise is also part of healthy living. How can you participate in your favorite activities if you have arthritic joints or, worse, Alzheimer’s disease? A healthy brain and body are required to enjoy many activities. Weight loss and fish to the rescue. Omega 3 fatty acids, typically found in fish are a healthy, natural way to manage joint pain Omega 3 fatty acids have been proven to work against crippling disorders like inflamed joints and memory impairment, allowing you better body movement, coordination and quality of life.
Are you ready to lose weight and be healthy? The SureSlim program does not include gimmicks, bars, pills, injections or brand name packaged foods. Based on your blood work, the Sureslim program is a personalized, doctor formulated weight loss program that consists of only normal grocery store foods, including fish. If you live in the lower mainland of British Columbia, Canada then contact the Langley clinic for a free information session. Follow Langley SureSlim on Twitter
Tags: diet, Eat Fish, Health, Healthy Weight, heart health, weight loss, Weight Loss and Fish
Imagine dinner out at your favorite fine dining restaurant. The well-dressed waiter arrives at your table with the menus and while he is making you feel at home he asks if you would care to start with a beverage. You reply “yes please, we’ll have a bottle of your finest purple – the purple concord”.
While most of you have seen the headlines declaring the health benefits of red wine, those of you who don’t like red wine will be happy to know that the benefits of grape juice are similar. Those of you who do love red wine may simply enjoy a break at the cash register when buying grape juice instead of wine. Purple grape juice contains the same powerful disease-fighting antioxidants, called flavonoids, which protect heart health. The benefits of grape juice may be due to a substance called resveratrol found in the skins and seeds of grapes and especially in dark purple concord grapes.
Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that purple grape juice helped protect heart health in those affected by coronary artery disease. Two weeks of grape juice therapy increased vasodilation (relaxed the blood vessels) and decreased harmful oxidation of LDL cholesterol. Grape juice also lowered the risk of developing blood clots that can lead to heart attacks. Previous studies had all focused on red wine rather than on grape juice which led many to believe that it is the alcohol content in red wine that has these benefits. This study demonstrated that the flavonoid components are the true heroes in the benefits of grape juice.
Purple grape juice works the same way red wine does. They both stimulate nitric oxide in the lining of the arteries and this encourages blood vessel flexibility. The flavonoid antioxidants slow down oxidation of LDL cholesterol or “bad” cholesterol in the arteries resulting in clear, healthier arteries.
For all you red wine lovers, I’ve got some sad news!!! Ounce for ounce purple grape juice outweighs red wine in the benefit department.
- The antioxidants of grape juice linger in the body longer than do those of red wine and this is because the alcohol in the red wine speeds up the breakdown of the antioxidant in the blood.
- Alcohol generates free radicals, unstable molecules that cause damage to cells, which counteract the effect of the antioxidants in red wine
- Red wine is only helpful when consumed in moderation of no more than one drink a day for women and two drinks daily for men.
For all of you red wine drinkers, cheer up!!! Red wine has one advantage that grape juice does not. Alcohol has been shown to increase levels of HDL, the good cholesterol, in the blood. So continue to enjoy your daily glass of wine. Besides, it’s quite likely you won’t find Purple Concord listed on the beverage menu!
Tags: antioxidants, benefits of grape juice, coronary artery disease, flavonoids, free radicals, healthier arteries, heart health, resveratrol
In the pages of lifestyle magazines, cholesterol is often portrayed as a potential demon ruthlessly affecting the quality of your life. The rises in the cardio vascular diseases have made the people aware of the harmful effects of cholesterol. But not many people are aware of the fact that cholesterol can both be good and bad.
Good and Bad Cholesterol
Cholesterol is good?! Yes of course; this soft, waxy substance found in the lipid fats in the bloodstream and in all your body’s cells is an essential part of a healthy body; it helps in manufacturing cell membranes and in the production of some types of hormones.
So when does this apparently helpful substance actually pose a threat to your health? When the level of the cholesterol is too high in the blood —a condition known as hypercholesterolemia — it becomes a risk factor for your heart health. A high level of cholesterol in your body is the precursor for the coronary heart disease that ultimately culminates into heart attack.
Types of cholesterol
Depending on the types of lipoprotein— special carriers that help cholesterols to be transported to and from the cells—the cholesterol can be of two major types:
- Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol
- High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol
HDL
Now HDL cholesterol is regarded as the good variety, while the LDL acts as the chief villain. The HDL is good because it drives cholesterol away from the arteries and transport them back to the liver that helps it eliminate from the body. In a nutshell a high level of HDL cholesterol acts as a shield against heart attack. So be careful if you find HDL level in your blood is less than 40 mg/dL. (In case of women the amount is 50 mg/dL.
LDL
When the level of LDL cholesterol is too high in your blood, it ends in being accumulated in the walls of the arteries carrying blood to two important organs of heart and brain. The net result is clogging of those arteries by hard plaques made of cholesterol and other substances. This condition is known as atherosclerosis. When the plaque tends to block blood flow to your heart, the result is a heart attack. When the clog disrupts blood flow to the brain, a stroke is the final outcome.
Dealing with Cholesterol
- A regular cholesterol checking will ensure that you never face these consequences. So go for a cholesterol check right away and if you happen to find the level of LDL cholesterol is 160 mg/dL or above, there are enough reason to raise alarm. Make sure that LDL cholesterol level in your blood never exceeds the mark of 100 mg/dL.
- Cholesterol is produced in our own body. The additional source of cholesterol is the foods rich in both saturated fat and Trans fat. For a cholesterol free life, restrict your cholesterol intake to 300 milligrams per day.
- Shake off the sedentary lifestyle and make physical activity a compulsory part of your daily routine.
- Try to give up smoking and cut back on alcohol consumption.
Most of the people fall prey of the harmful effects of the cholesterol because of their lack of awareness. But now that you know the basic facts about cholesterol, don’t let this menace mess up your health and your life. Take necessary precautions and enjoy your life to the fullest.
Tags: cholesterol, Health, healthy, heart health, tips
