Benefits Of The Atkins Diet

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The Atkins diet is the focus of the following comments from the American Heart Association:

“The Atkins diet puts forward the controversial belief that low fat is not the only way to proceed for a healthier lifestyle and weight control. Dr. Atkins blames carbohydrates (grains, pastas, fruits, potatoes) for weight gain. He believes that if you reduce your carbohydrate intake, you will then lose weight. Too many carbohydrates in your daily diet encourages your body to retain fat.”

When the body absorbs simple carbohydrates quickly, it causes a response of insulin which speeds the conversion of calories into fat. The Atkins plan focuses on the consumption of nutrient-dense, unprocessed foods and vita-nutrient supplementation. The plan also restricts processed and refined carbohydrates (which make up to approximately 50 per cent of people’s diets). It also encourages you to eliminate sugar from your diet as it contributes to a slower metabolism.

The Atkins diet is designed as a program on which you can keep a healthy weight for a lifetime and is highly suitable (but not restricted) to those who prefer to eat animal protein. The diet offers people who have failed on low-fat diets a healthy, effective and safe alternative. Instead of carbohydrates and sugar, dieters are allowed plenty of fat and protein.

Four phases are included on the Atkins diet, they are; 1) Induction, 2) Ongoing Weight Loss, 3) Pre-Maintenance and 4) Lifetime Maintenance.

During Phase 1 (Induction), you are supposed to restrict carbohydrate consumption to 20 grams each day, obtaining your carbohydrate primarily from salad and other non-starchy vegetables.

In Phase 2 (Ongoing Weight Loss), you then increase carbohydrate in the form of nutrient-dense and fibre-rich foods by 20 grams daily in the first week and then 30 grams daily in the next week until you gradually begin to lose weight. Then you subtract 5 grams of carbohydrate from your daily intake so that you continue on your goal of sustained weight loss.

In Phase 3, known as ‘Pre-Maintenance’, you make the transition from weight loss to weight maintenance through increasing the daily carbohydrate intake in 10 gram increments every week.

In the last phase of the Atkins plan (Lifetime Maintenance), you can select from a wide variety of food whilst controlling carbohydrate intake to ensure positive weight maintenance.

Mixed views exist on the Atkins diet, especially amongst health experts and dieticians. Many experts tend to be critical of low-carb diets but have not totally discounted the Atkins diet as an effective method of losing weight. Although they do assert that it’s too early to adopt a low-carb diet, health experts do accept that it’s worth trying. The main criticism of the Atkins diet is that it entails frequent meat consumption.

However, followers argue that the program can indeed be tailored to different preferences and metabolisms. After the first phase (known as the ‘Induction phase’) the Atkins diet plan may be modified. Despite the immense popularity of the diet, the Atkins diet plan continues to leave many people sceptical. Another criticism of the diet is that a person will be unlikely to keep the weight off over the long term. However, this claim can just as easily be applied to many low-fat or low-calorie weight loss plans, on which dieters are likely to feel hungrier.

 

John Rifkind is a contributing editor at FitnessHealthArticles.com. This article may be reproduced provided that its complete content, links and author byline are kept intact and unchanged. No additional links permitted. Hyperlinks and/or URLs must remain both human clickable and search engine spiderable.

Facts On Fast Food Nutrition

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Fast food is a convenient and fun way of eating. But can it be healthy eating?

Are too many ‘Happy Meals’ one of the reasons more kids today are overweight?

The increase in families substituting a family meal with a trip to McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, etc. is very likely one of the causes for the increase in overweight kids, but it’s not the only cause. Other factors also play a role, including an increased time watching TV and playing video games and a decreased time in physical activity as well as unhealthy food choices.

The choice you make when eating fast food can also determine how healthy or ‘unhealthy’ it will be.

How can you make fast food healthier?

One of the easiest ways to make fast food healthier is to be careful of your portion sizes and understand how many calories and how much fat you add to a meal when you ‘super-size’ your order. It might seem like better ‘value’ to go with the special or large meal sizes, but you must also think about what the extra calories will cost you later as your child tries to burn them off in order to lose weight.

Healthier Eating Choices

Further to choosing smaller portion sizes, checking the menus at your favorite fast food restaurants will likely help you to find other low calorie, low fat alternatives to traditional fast foods which are really healthy. This could include a salad, baked potato, or grilled chicken salad.

With other sorts of fast food, such as pizza, choose a thin crust cheese pizza and try to avoid adding lots of cheese or extra meat toppings.

It can also help your child to be healthier if you avoid ‘fast food’ at more traditional restaurants that you visit. It unfortunately seems like almost every restaurant, whether Italian, Chinese, Mexican, etc. has a kids’ menu with high fat and high calorie foods, like chicken nuggets, french fries, etc.

Instead of always relying on the kid’s menu, why not consider getting a half order or child plate of a more traditional and healthier item at the same restaurant?

 

John Rifkind is a contributing editor at FitnessHealthArticles.com. This article may be reproduced provided that its complete content, links and author byline are kept intact and unchanged. No additional links permitted. Hyperlinks and/or URLs must remain both human clickable and search engine spiderable.

Benefits of Laser Therapy for Quitting Smoking

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Any type of therapy that you pursue for the purpose of quitting smoking can prove to be well worth the time and money spent as it will definitely constitute a forward step towards putting down the cigarette habit. If you went through four or five previous different programs until you found the one that did work, you will find that all of them still would have been worth the effort.

Indeed, many people have made use of the Laser Quit Smoking Therapy in order to assist them in their goal towards quitting smoking. This therapy bases itself around the principles of acupuncture which is an Old Chinese therapy which centers itself around the mental and emotional characteristics related to addiction.

There are many programs and products that you will find on websites on the Internet. These are all supportive for those who might like to use quit smoking aids but the Laser Quit Smoking Therapy is known as one therapy that is pain free, can be carried out in one session, and can have some immediate positive effects on a person.

Many would agree that everybody reacts to therapies differently, however, many people have stated that this therapy seems to give them with the will power to walk away from smoking feeling completely clear and free.

You might have already heard about people who actually do not smoke anymore, but might still want an occasional cigarette.The Laser Quit Smoking Therapy will help you to not live with those left over feelings by obliterating these occasional cravings that you might have even after you have stopped smoking for a long period of time. When you quit smoking, you should actually feel as though you have quit.

This kind of therapy doesn’t have any CDs or audio equipment that you need to buy and install. You also won’t be required to purchase any kinds of patches or pills. When you have a session with the doctor who will be carrying out the therapy, you will walk out feeling a whole different way. Nonetheless, you will still very much need to work hard when it comes to maintaining self-control and not accept to pick up a cigarette, but the treatment will very easily help you to get over some of the first enormous tasks which you will need to uphold.

You can quit smoking today, but if you don’t feel like you have the sufficient will power to get yourself started, then you should try to visit the Internet and research the Laser Quit Smoking Therapy. Knowledge is power and this therapy will very much give you the power to quit smoking for once and for all.

The health benefits related to this specific therapy will be worth the time and money that you choose to spend. Indeed, the added costs will quickly pay for themselves in no time once you stop purchasing your already high-priced cigarettes that are only harming your health.

 

Georgia Kearne is a contributing editor at FitnessHealthArticles.com. This article may be reproduced provided that its complete content, links and author byline are kept intact and unchanged. No additional links permitted. Hyperlinks and/or URLs must remain both human clickable and search engine spiderable.