It is very likely that malnutrition is the main cause of overweight.  When there is inadequate intake of all essential nutrients, fat is not readily or efficiently burned.  Fat is burned only if sufficient energy is produced.  Energy production depends upon almost every known nutrient.  The B vitamins are important for energy production.  Fat is burned at a greatly reduced rate if pantothenic acid and protein are under-supplied.  Vitamin B6 is necessary for the energy conversion of stored fat.  It is also a factor in the utilization of protein and fat.  Proteins are needed for the proper functioning of many energy-producing enzymes.  Protein itself cannot be effectively used without many other nutrients including choline and vitamin B6.  Sufficient vitamin E doubles fat utilization.  Lecithin aids the cells to burn fat; any deficiency of the nutrients necessary for lecithin production, specifically choline and inositol, results in poor fat utilization.

Liver damage is common in overweight persons.  When the liver is injured, sufficient amounts of energy-producing enzymes are unable to be synthesized.  A diet including complete proteins, the vitamins B complex, choline, B12 C,  E and lecithin aid the restoration of the liver.

Some individuals who experience an uncontrollable hunger may have damaged brain cells in the hypothalamus, the area that regulates the desire to eat.  This damage can occur from certain food, or foods or environmental substances to which the person is allergic.  Certain medications such as tranquilizers, viral infections, nutritional deficiencies, or other brain injuries can also adversely affect these cells.  Other persons may have the desire for a specific food to which they have an allergic addiction.  If they do not obtain this food, they experience typical withdrawal reactions.  In both situations, a diet high in all essential nutrients and avoidance of the offending substance can gradually result in weight reduction.

Calories and exercise are essential considerations in losing weight.  Fat is metabolically formed in the body when more food energy or calories are consumed than the body is able to use.  One pound of fatty tissue is equal to 3500 calories.  When the number of calories used during the day exceeds the amount consumed, the body oxidizes its supplies of fat to produce energy, and thereby a reduction of body weight results.  A daily decrease of 1000 calories results in approximately 2 pounds of weight loss per week.  Calories may be burned up by the basal metabolism, which includes normal body function such as breathing and digestion.  All activity, such as walking, talking, working or playing baseball, uses p additional energy and calories.  For example, one hour of average office work probably used up only 10 to 15 calories, whereas moderate housework may require 70 calories per hour more than basal metabolism requirements.  Brisk walking uses up about 110 calories per hour, driving a car uses about 40.  Strenuous exercise and hard physical labor may require more than 400 calories per hour.

Research appears to indicate that it is not entirely the amount of food eaten that adds weight buy the kind of food eaten.  Unrefined foods contain all nutrients that are necessary for efficient energy production.  Refined foods, however, not only lack most of these nutrients but tremendously increase the body’s requirement for them.

In order to lose weight safely, a person must set up a sensible long-range diet plan that includes all the essential nutrients and minerals.  Diets that lack or greatly reduce one or another of the nutrients, notably carbohydrates, can possibly be injurious to the body by inducing an abnormal metabolic state that could cause innumerable complications leading to permanent cellular damage.  Carbohydrates should be chosen from the best nutritional sources, such as whole grain products and fruits that contain essential nutrients.  Fat intake should come primarily from sources of unsaturated fatty acids and from such animal fats as butter and whole milk, which are good sources of fat-soluble vitamins.  Excess fat is hr to metabolized and can upset liver and kidney functions.  In general, losing weight is a matter of consciously curbing the amount of food eaten, regulating the types  of food eaten, and increasing daily activity.

NUTRIENTS THAT MAY BE BENEFICIAL IN TREATMENT OF OVERWEIGHT & OBESITY:

Vitamin B complex, B2, B5, B12, Choline, Folic Acid, Inositol, Pantothenic acid, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Protein, Lecithin, Unsturated fatty acids.

Information obtained from the Nutrition Almanac, Third Edition, Lavon J. Dunne

For nutritional support, please visit Natural Health Products

Remember to make sure you are not starving when you sit down at your holiday dinner party.  Eat a small snack that contains protein and drink some water prior to your party.  Also, make sure you take your time when you are consuming your delicious meal.  Eat slowly, take small bites and participate in conversation.  Limit yourself with the holiday sweets….it’s not like you can’t have any….just try not to over indulge, if possible.

Maintaining a healthy weight can be very challenging, especially during the holidays.  Learn more about healthy weight loss.

Cirrhosis of the liver is a chronic disease characterized by degeneration and hardening of liver cells.  Scarring of the liver tissue causes improper functioning and may result from alcoholism, malnutrition, viral hepatitis or chronic inflammation or obstruction of certain ducts in the liver.

Early signs of the disease include fever, indigestion, diarrhea or constipation and jaundice.  Later symptoms include edema, anemia, and bleeding disorders characterized by the presence of spider-shaped bruises.  A deficiency of the B complex and vitamins A, C, and K may also occur.

Optimal nutrition provides the key to recovery from the disease.  A high-protein diet (1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight, or approximately 75 to 100 grams of protein per day) is prescribed to promote regeneration of the liver cells.  In the case of coma, however, protein should be restricted.  A high-calorie (2400 to 3000 calories per day) and high-carbohydrate (300 to 400 grams per day) diet is needed to increase the storage of glycogen to ensure that protein is used for regeneration, and to compensate for weight losses caused by fever.  If nausea is present frequently, small meals are better tolerated than three large meals.

A common complication of cirrhosis is the failure of the liver to make vitamins available in an active form in the body.  For this reason, the diet should be high in the B complex and vitamins A (not in the form of carotene), C,D, and K.  If jaundice is present, special attention should be paid to the fat-soluble vitamins, A, D, E, and K because some kinds of jaundice interfere with the absorption of these nutrients.  If edema is present, sodium, which causes the body to retain water, should be restricted.  All alcohol should be strictly avoided.

Alcohol greatly reduces the absorption of vitamin B1 and other nutrients.  A deficiency state can result leading to liver injury despite and adequate diet.  A B1 deficiency produces confusion, memory loss, heart irregularities, and gastrointestinal problems.  Damage to the liver from long-term excessive drinking is irreversible; however, further damage can be prevented by abstaining from alcohol, eating a nutritious diet and taking vitamin and mineral supplements.

Information obtained from the Nutrition Almanac, Third Edition, Lavon J. Dunne

For nutritional support, visit Natural Health Products.

Your body is smarter than you think. It knows when you are hungry and is equipped with a survival mechanism. If you cut your calories less than 1200 a day, your metabolism will definitely slow down to conserve energy. When you slow down this calorie burning ability, your body will no longer need these calories as before you started the diet. It’s not fair, is it?

Your body also holds on to fat until you absolutely need it, and with most diets the weight you lose is typically muscle and water. You don’t want to lose muscle mass because muscle burns calories. When you lose muscle you slow down your metabolism even more.

You know the feeling….most diets usually leave you hungry, tired and craving all the foods you miss. It’s hard to stay on this diet, and most people will usually fall off the diet and go back to their old eating habits.

Let’s face it….for most of us the pounds usually creep back.

There is hope for people who want to lose weight. Think about losing inches instead. Don’t think about dieting; think about a healthier way to feel satisfied by maintaining your energy level and less stomach grumbling throughout the day.

You want a healthy inch loss system that works by preserving your lean body mass promoting your weight loss from the fat that you want to get rid of. When you maintain lean body mass, you will keep your metabolism cooking. You want to be able to control your hunger, boost your energy level and support your metabolism, and stay satisfied, not deprived!

Another critical ingredient to help with the success of inch loss is leucine – an essential amino acid that help your body preserve muscle mass while you lose weight from fat! This also helps protect you from the drop in metabolic rate that happens with most diets.

Eating healthy, exercise and incorporating a healthy inch loss program will make a healthier, happier you!

diets, inch loss, leucine, weight loss]]> http://www.vitaminaid.net/wordpress/why-most-diets-fail/feed/ 0 http://www.vitaminaid.net/wordpress/the-silent-killer/ http://www.vitaminaid.net/wordpress/the-silent-killer/#comments Sun, 10 Feb 2008 14:26:06 +0000 admin healthhigh blood pressurehypertensionmens healthmineralsnutritionoverweightstressvitaminsweight losswomens health http://www.vitaminaid.net/wordpress/?p=93

High blood pressure, hypertension, is called the “silent killer” because most people don’t know they have it until a doctor tells them. Its symptoms are so mild and they usually develop so slowly, that it creeps up without the person knowing it. The symptoms of hypertension are as follows:

• morning headaches
• ringing in the ears
• unexplained dizziness
• spontaneous nose bleeds
• depression without apparent cause
• blurred vision
• tension when there’s no cause
• flushing or redness of the face and nose
• fainting spells

People with hypertension seldom get all the symptoms and many never get any of them. In addition, they can be so mild, or start so slowly that a person becomes accustomed to them. That’s what makes hypertension an insidious disease.

No one ever dies of high blood pressure. People who have hypertension die of other illnesses or catastrophes that high blood pressure causes or makes much more severe.

Common causes of deaths are heart attack, stroke, heart failure, angina, and other problems. High blood pressure detracts from the quality of life by causing kidney failure, poor eyesight, and other problems.

Diastolic blood pressure of 100 increases the probability of an early death to twice that of someone with normal blood pressure. Put in simple terms, if you’ve got high blood pressure, your chances of an early death are double. If you have several risk-factors, for example, high cholesterol and are overweight, your risk is about five times the normal. In addition, the quality of your life as you get older is certain to deteriorate more rapidly. The golden years can easlity become the lead years.

Pitfalls of Medication

Every medication has side effects. In fact, the desired effect of blood pressure medication is only one of its effects on the body. All other effects are unwanted, or simply side effects. Mental effects range from simple headaches to periods of “blackout” during which the sufferer doesn’t know what’s going on. Physical effects range from simple dry mouth to complete sexual inadequacy for men. All these drugs control high blood pressure, and for about 11% of its victims, some medication is required. For the other 89%, there’s a more effective way to control high blood pressure: diet.

Two Types of High Blood Pressure Secondary

Secondary hypertension, as the name implies, is secondary, or a side effect of some other illness. For example, adrenal tumors cause high blood pressure; pregnancy sometimes causes it in women; some kidney disorders and other conditions also cause hypertension. Once the causative condition is corrected, the blood pressure returns to normal, for example, if the tumor is removed, the woman has her baby, or the kidney disease is cured. Secondary hypertension should be looked upon as temporary and curable. It accounts for about 10% of all high blood pressure. Only about 1% of a population will ever get secondary hypertension.

Essential Hypertension

About 90% of all high blood pressure is called essential hypertension. Its cause is related to a number of environmental factors. These factors include heredity, overweight, salt consumption, alcohol, and other dietary factors. They are all controllable. In our society, about 20% of all adults have essential hypertension. It increases in percentage as people get older. About 75% of people over age 65 have essential hypertension.

Smoking

Smoking can cause high blood pressure all by itself. It does this by two mechanisms: the toxic chemicals from the smoke tense the arteries and capillaries and interfere with metabolism. If you smoke and have high blood pressure, you’ve got to stop smoking. Smoking is a tough addition to break, but the rewards are worth it. The rewards include a longer, healthier life with a much reduced likelihood of cancer, heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, poor vision, and emphysema. If those aren’t reason enough, recognize that smoking causes more wrinkles and poor skin color. If you find that you can’t do it on your own, I urge you to join a formal program. It’s worth it!

Overweight

Being fat causes high blood pressure for two reasons. Each pound of fat requires about five miles of small blood vessels called capillaries. It follows that the heart must pump harder to push blood through these extra capillaries. Pushing harder means high blood pressure. So the first reason is that simple. Being fat increases blood pressure for a second, more complex reason. Extra fat makes some people produce more hormone insulin. Insulin is absolutely necessary for the body to use the blood sugar, glucose. It helps transport glucose into each cell of the body. Overweight people produce excess insulin because their extra fat cells require more of it than the fat cells of other people. If insulin didn’t have an effect on the kidney, this would be okay; but excess insulin causes the kidneys to raise the blood pressure. The reason why the kidney raises the blood pressure when excess insulin is present is very complex and includes other hormones. It’s another reason why people with high blood pressure should limit their use of sugar.

When overweight people have high blood pressure, both of these mechanisms are a work. Usually all they must do is lose weight, get a few other dietary factors correct, and their high blood pressure disappears completely. The dietary factors include a low sugar, high carbohydrate diet. It’s that simple.

Supplementation

Supplementation in high blood pressure accomplishes two things. It makes up for dietary shortfalls, and it can meet the exaggerated needs of the hypertensive. A person who has high blood pressure is not the same as other people. They’ve got added needs that must be met. Unlike other folks, if these needs aren’t satisfied, the blood pressure just gets worse. Then, when the blood pressure gets worse or persists for a long time, other problems develop and get worse. For example, people with high blood pressure develop heart disease, bad kidneys, poor eyesight and other problems that shorten their lives and reduce the quality.

The high blood pressure diet has possible shortfalls in some of the B vitamins and a number of minerals. That is why it is imperative to take a multivitamin daily along with the following supplements: B-Complex,Vitamin C, EPA, Calcium-Magnesium,Vitamin E with Selenium,Fiber and Alfalfa.

Also, make sure you get your cardio health supplements to maintain a strong, healthy heart.

Lifestyle

Once you’ve got your diet and dietary supplements under control, there are two new habits that you need to establish: exercise and stress control. The best way to deal with stress is to exercise. It’s therapeutic because it helps the body rid itself of all the hormones and toxic by-products from anxiety.

Information obtained from A Better Health Series, Food Supplements for High Blood Pressure, by Dr. James Scala

Take a good look at this picture. Does it look familiar? It’s very sad to see a child indulging in junk food watching television. Parents are held responsible for this behavior.

It amazes me how many children are overweight today. Is it because parents are working long hours and some are even working two jobs to try to make ends meet? Absolutely! Our lifestyles today are very complex. The stay at home Mom is not home anymore….she is working and not available to her children like our mothers were when we were growing up.

Our children are suffering today; a parent isn’t always accessible to them when they come home from school. Many children today are “latch key” kids. Which means, I can eat whatever I want and do whatever I want because no one is home to tell me otherwise. This is sad, but true.

Children who are inactive and are overeaters will face many health issues as they grow older. They are at risk for heart disease and diabetes, just to name a few.

As a parent, you need to get involved with your child to make sure they are active. Help them find an activity that they enjoy. Take time out in your day to engage in an activity together; such as cleaning their bedroom, taking the dog for a walk, bowling, start an exercise program together, etc.

Our children are literally starving today! We have let them become picky eaters and pretty much “caved in” to letting them decide what they want to eat – not good!

So what can a parent do to change these bad eating habits? First of all, get rid of all the junk food in your house and replace these items with wholesome, healthy foods; such as, cheese sticks, carrots, celery sticks with peanut butter, apples, grapes, milk, etc.

Instill in your child a desire for wholesome foods; it’s up to you to make taste pleasant. Sliced turkey makes an excellent sandwich on whole grain bread. A protein drink when on the run also fills the bill. If you instill a desire for low-fat foods in your child, when tempted with high-fat foods, such as hot dogs, they will run to the low-fat choice.

Many teenagers never eat a genuine salad. Milk is replaced by the “shake” that comes with fries; the only problem is its lack of calcium and protein from the milk it was supposed to replace. We are mislead often because we assume that the item listed as “shake” is really a milk shake. Unfortunately, it is frequently made with an artificial product and contains no milk. Often even the “shake” is replaced by some nutritionless soda drink.

Also, it might help to make an appointment to see a nutritionist to work out a healthy eating plan for your child.

Additionally, the best way to make sure of complete nutrition is to use the good side of food technology and provide sensible supplementation. It is just about impossible to make sure the children get everything in their diet.

It is vital for your child to consume supplements on a daily basis. I highly recommend a healthy meal replacement shake as a snack along with a multi-vitamin/mineral> and vitamin C as well. Our children need to take vitamins daily to build good health!

There is another most important reason for optimum nutrition; degenerative disease. We now know many of the roles of early nutrition in heart disease, cancer, stroke, diverticular disease, osteoporosis and others. There is a significant influence. Of course, studies continue in these areas because nutrition research is never finished. Currently much research is focused on finding just how much of each of the key nutrients is needed for the protective effect. We cannot wait for the “perfect number.” These nutrients are totally safe used sensibly, and they can help us avoid much distress for the future. There is just no point in taking a chance. Supplementation can’t do any harm, has the potential to do much good.

Begin today to take charge of the health of your child. It can pay off in massive dividends for the child both now and in the future.

Information obtained from A Better Health Series, Optimal Nutrition for Healthy Children, Dr. Bruce B. Miller and comments were made from Health & Wellness Haven.

WHAT ABOUT LIFESTYLE FACTORS?

Not only are our diets deficient in enough vitamins, minerals and other essential food factors to maintain good health, but lifestyle factors create a need for extra nutrients. Do any of these situations apply to you?

• Are you on a weight-loss diet or are you a light eater? It is difficult to get the US Daily Value of vitamins and minerals on a diet under 2,000 calories a day unless you supplement.
• Are you under stress? At best, stress causes fatigue; at worst, it is dangerous to health. People experiencing stress need to maintain a nutritious, well-balanced diet with special emphasis on replacing the nutrients (C, B-Complex, calcium, iron, copper and zinc) that are depleted during stress.
• Do you have food allergies? Eliminating even one rich source of vitamins and mineral can have a profound effect on a person’s total nutrition. In addition, allergies place additional stress on the body which, in turn, reduces other nutrient levels.
• Are you taking medications? Regular use of many drugs and common medications can interfere with nutrient metabolism.
• Do you frequently catch colds, the flu, or other infections? Fighting infection is stressful to the body and depletes stores of vitamins A, C, E, B-complex and many minerals.
• Do you smoke? Each cigarette causes at least 25 mg of vitamin C to be used up by the body.
• Do you exercise strenuously? Although strenuous exercise on a regular basis can be very good for the body, it demands additional nutritional requirements not normally found in the average diet.
• Are you a woman? Women have special nutritional needs which change as they grow older. Throughout life, however, calcium and iron remain two key nutrients most women are deficient in.
• Are you a teenager? Teenagers require extra nutrients, especially calcium, zinc, magnesium and vitamin C.
• Are you over 65? Seniors require extra minerals and often do not get the right balance of nutrients due to the inconvenience of food preparation and decreased appetite.
• Do you eat fast foods on a regular basis? If this is the case, you are probably getting too much salt, sugar, fat, cholesterol and calories, but not enough vitamins and minerals.

If you answered Yes to any of these questions, you probably need to supplement your diet with vitamins, minerals, protein, herbs and other important food elements.

What do the experts say……

“The human body can heal itself – if it has the materials it needs. It is not our bad habits that produce ill health; it’s what we fail to get in our diet that leads to disease.”

Dr. Forrest C. Shaklee

“The human body is a healing system beautifully designed to meet most of its problems without outside intervention.”

Linda G. Rector-Page, N.D., Ph.D

“In view of the fact that medical care costs are rampantly out-pacing inflation, prevention and more rational approaches to diseases and aging are mandatory.”

Richard Schweicker, Former Secretary of Health & Human Resources

“Now that we have begun to understand the origin and progression of the major human disorders, what, if anything, can we do about then now? Is there, in fact, enough known to launch some type of action at this time? This answer is…yes!”

Harry B. Demopoulous, M.D.

Health & Wellness Haven is here to help you. For advice on supplements, please send an email with your questions to vitaminaid.net.

Information obtained From the Field, October ’98 Issue

Achieving and maintaining normal weight is part of any health program. Obesity is a contributing factor in many life threatening diseases today, including heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and even cancer.

Scientific research has shown that weight control has for more to do with biology than psychology or willpower. Your body’s capacity to store fat is governed by complex biochemical processes. Unless a diet is designed to meet the body’s real physiological needs, it will fail.

With most diets, you lose fat and muscle. When you lose muscle, you lose your ability to burn fat, and your metabolism drops.

When you go off your diet, you can’t burn calories like you did before…so you gain the weight back faster. Repeat with the next diet and there you have it….the “yo-yo” diet!

However, in a recent clinical trial, our scientists tested a proprietary formula enhanced with leucine. Leucine is a muscle-building amino acid found in some proteins. This leucine-enhanced nutrition program was shown to help retain 100% of lean muscle mass which is essential in losing weight the healthy and successful way.

With a healthy weight loss program you want to keep the muscle you have; burn the fat you don’t need and lose the inches you don’t want.

FIND OUT MORE!