A Fiber-rich Diet Can Help Cleanse the Colon

Years of eating fast food, smoking cigarettes, taking prescription drugs, and drinking alcohol can eventually take a toll on your body, especially your colon. Even if you do not usually feel that there is something wrong with your colon, it is no reason for you to think that it is okay.

The signs that should tell you that there is something wrong with your colon is not only limited to constipation, gas pains, and diarrhea. Other symptoms include chronic fatigue, low libido, anxiety, depression, acne, back pains, weight problems, and high blood pressure.

The colon is the passage way of the excesses of the food that we ingest. That is why, the colon contains a large mass of healthy bacteria for it to break down the food and contain the toxins within. However, if the toxins are too much, some of the good bacteria in the colon, such as the gut flora candida, may abnormally grow and can prove to be hazardous. That is why it is very important for an in dividual to cleanse his colon.

Moreover, unhealthy food intake and diet is very harmful and damaging. Processed foods and foods high in fat and sugar are extremely unhealthy for the colon. These foods tend to release mucus when digested, which then makes it difficult for the colon to move the wastes for elimination. And with the sluggish movement of the wastes, fragments of tend to stick on the colon walls and eventually harden.

In the long run, the accumulated wastes continually narrow the waste passage which will make the process of elimination more difficult. And on top of that, these accumulated wastes can actually weight several pounds, which means that aside from your overall body mass, several unhealthy pounds are added to your total weight.

What is worst is that not only do the accumulated wastes add unwanted weight to your body, these wastes can become the breeding ground for bacteria. Also, the inherent toxins of these wastes can penetrate through the colon walls and attack other organs and glands.

Colon hydrotherapy is a naturopathic cleansing treatment that is regaining its popularity as a preventive measure for various diseases and as a maintenance treatment for recovering patients. Generally the procedure involves the gradual pumping of sterilized water in and out the entire length of the colon through the rectum. Many people have attested to the efficacy of the treatment, yet many are still hesitant due to the somewhat invasive process.

So, if you want to have your colon cleansed but have not yet decided whether to have a colonic irrigation treatment or not, you can go on juice fast or start a good cleansing diet instead.

A good cleansing juice recipe for the stomach include the following ingredients: 1 bunch of grapes, 1 basket of strawberries, 3 apples, 4 sprigs of fresh mint, and water. Moreover, foods rich in fiber and alkaline minerals such as po tassium, sodium, magnesium, and calcium help neutralize the toxic acids that harm the body.

Thus, it is good to always include vegetable in your diet such as carrot, celery, zucchini, and beet for their fiber and mineral contents. In fact various people follow certain diet that proved to be appropriate for them. These detoxification diets include the South beach, Atkins, and cabbage diet.

However, before actually going through any detoxification treatments, it is important that you seek professional advice. People with certain medical procedures are not advised to have colonic or other detoxification treatments, including fasting.

Cabbage Soup Diet - the 2 Advantages and 3 Disadvantages Are Discussed

The Cabbage Soup Diet has been getting great testimonials from people who have undergone the diet. Some can attest that they have lost over ten pounds in just one week. Others say that it's the best diet they have done. However, others say that although the weight loss is undeniable, the after effects as well as the condition while on the diet is not worth it. The Cabbage Soup Diet is just one of the many fad diets that have hit the market in the past years. Let us consider the advantages and disadvantages of the Cabbage Soup Diet.

The 2 Advantages

1. Dramatic and speedy weight loss. The Cabbage Soup Diet promises weight loss of up to ten pounds in just one week. This can be very essential for people who have to undergo surgical operations and need to lose weight fast. The Cabbage Soup Diet is also essential for people who need to lose weight immediately for special functions such as weddings or an important first date.

2. The presence of good dietary fiber and other nutrients. Cabbage and the other ingredients have fiber in them that helps sweep away toxins and waste from the body. Cabbage, if eaten regularly and often can help with constipation and prevention of other digestive problems. Celery has the same effect as well as green pepper. Tomatoes are rich in lycopene, a helpful antioxidant known to reduce the risk of certain cancers. More importantly, Cabbage Soup is very low in saturated fat and has almost zero cholesterol. It can greatly help obese people in losing weight and can reduce the risk of heart attack and hypertension.

The 3 Disadvantages

1. The Cabbage Soup Diet can only be done in a week at most. Because of the dangerously low levels of carbohydrate and calorie content of the diet, medical experts only advise at most seven days for the diet to continue. A longer period can be very unhealthy and can result in a collapse in the dieter's health. Wor se, it can lead to sickness and other complications.

2. Effects on the dieter during the dieting period. Some people who have undergone the Cabbage Soup Diet complain of irritability, weakness and lack of concentration. This is because the person is taking very little calorie and carbohydrates that they cannot function very well. The dieter also feels hungry more often since the soup, with the lack of meat, is often not filling. However, unlike the high protein diet such as Atkins and South Beach diets, this diet is relatively low in cholesterol and fat so it can be considered healthier.

3. Blandness of the Cabbage Soup. One can only take in so much cabbage. It lacks flavor and since the heart of the diet is cabbage, it is the main course in every meal with the dieter often advised to eat as much of the soup as possible. There have been many varieties of the Cabbage Soup already. Some add spices like curry or herbs to make it tastier. Because of thi s, the diet is criticized as having high levels of sodium which can be harmful to one's health.

Top Diet Tips To Stay Fit And Healthy

Over the last decades, health and fitness has become an increasing concern for most of us. Some people crave a killer body and the attention that comes with it. Others want the perfect abs, a tighter bottom, or bulging biceps. The result of this movement has been a proliferation of gyms, health centers, spas, and personal trainers.

Ads for exercise equipment, weight loss products, and star-sponsored fitness routines dominate television, and it's hard not to think you're the only one out there who isn't working on your body. In fact, the perfect body is one part of a healthy, quality life.

Being truly healthy requires a healthy lifestyle and a proper, balanced diet. Diet for fitness provides the nutrition and energy we need to restore tired muscles and maintain a positive productive energy level. Think of the diet approaches - high-carb, low-fat, all-protein, sugar-free, all-chocolate, Scarsdale, Atkins, South Beach. There is no shortage of great- sounding fad diets out there.

If you pay attention to advertisements and special programs that focus on dieting and weight loss programs, you may not know where to turn for dependable, honest facts about nutrition and health. In fact, most fad diets don't work, and they sure don't support your health. So, what can you do to find out what's best, and most healthy, for you?

In reality, there are two basic diet approaches: high-carb diets and high-fat diets. High-carb diets focus on eating lots of carbohydrate-rich foods, and high-fat diets endorse fat-rich foods. High-carb diets use burn the glycogen in your liver and muscles. This glucose complex provides quick energy that you use in anaerobic exercises.

Fats are the richest source of calories, containing more than twice as much calorie value than either carbohydrates or proteins. When metabolizing carbohydrates, the human body burns 24 calories, yet it only takes three calories to burn the same amount of fat.

So, which one is best? Neither. Each diet approach yields results, as long as you stick to one type. You can adopt a high-carb, low-fat diet or a low-carb, high-fat diet. Just don't try both at the same time unless you want to gain weight.

But diets shouldn't be just about losing fat. A healthy balanced diet maintains a healthy weight and avoids weight gains. Successful weight loss can only be realized when the daily diet reflects lifestyle, individual food preferences, unique physical needs, and feeling satisfied with what you eat. There's really only one diet that will work for you. That's the diet that helps you stay fit, feeling healthy and satisfied with who you are. And that diet is unique to you.

When you diet for fitness, there are three things to remember: moderation, variation, and balance. Plan your meal schedule so that you don't get too full or too hungry at any time of day. This may mean three me als, five meals, or one meal. It depends your schedule and your physical needs.

Moderation means eating when you need to and eating the amount that satisfies without adding calories your body will only store as fat. Balance means selecting a healthy diversity - the basic food groups. It means getting the proper amounts of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, and fiber to keep your body functioning at its highest potential. Variation means giving yourself enough choice to keep interested in the foods you eat. Eating the same things all the time is not only boring, it's unhealthy. Having a salad one time and chicken the next will assure you get both the nutrition and the diversity you need.

The bottom line is that your important decision isn't what diet program will work. It's about what diet program will work to keep YOU fit and healthy. It doesn't mean going on a fad diet for a few weeks or months and then going back to your old habits. It means adopting a well-balanced, nutritious diet in combination with regular exercise and a healthy lifestyle and sticking to it - for life!

One last word of advice: experiment. Try new foods to keep your diet interesting and nutritious. Try new recipes to get a new take on the familiar. Who knows? You might even learn to love spinach!

Custom Online Diets

If you'd like to drop a few pounds or do a total body makeover, online diet services are a great place to turn to in your weight loss endeavors. However, there are a few things to consider before selecting a diet program.

• Selection-Everyone has a different physique, and your work-out and nutritional needs should be attuned to that. EDiets gives you many choices, such as the GI Diet Plan and the infamous Atkins.

• Fitness Program-Diet services should include versatile work-out routines and fitness ideas. The popular South Beach Diet gives you the Best Buddy Program, where you compare weight loss routines and progress with a virtual friend!

• Recipe Options-We all know that a healthy meal is just as important as rigorous fitness training. Consider a weight loss program that includes customizable recipe options.

• Meal Purchases-Sometimes a great way to shed the pounds is by following a diet plan and purchasi ng their pre-approved, pre-selected meal items. South Beach Diet & Weight Watchers both have purchasable food that tastes naughty when it's not!

It may come as a surprise that the best weight loss diet can often be found online. "How could it work?" you may ask. Many leading online diet sites utilize real-life fitness trainers, nutritionists and doctors into their programs.

These sites also make the process fun and entertaining, as you can interact in communities of like-minded individuals, all struggling to renew their bodies and self image. Choosing a plan customized to your lifestyle and metabolism can assist you in losing weight and bettering your health.

South Beach Diet, A Scam Or Does It Work?

Overview. Dr Agatston, a leading American cardiologist, initially created the SouthBeach diet for his heart patients.  While his diet was to improve his patients heart wellbeing, he discovered that a side effect of the diet was that they lost considerable amounts of weight.  He claims this isn't a low-carb or low-fat diet - instead it focuses on eating the 'right' carbs and the 'right' fats.  In fact, the South Beach Diet is based on the Glycemic index.  It begins by severely restricting carbohydrates in the first two weeks, before gradually re-introducing those with a lower on the glycemic index. In addition, it recommends swapping saturated fats for unsaturated fats.

The South Beach Diet follows the same principles of other diets based on the Glycemic Index.  SouthBeach is divided into three phases.  In Phase One, most carbohydrates are banned to give your body a complete rest from fluctuating blood sugar and insulin levels.  The theo ry is this will help to resolve insulin resistance.  During Phase One, the banned foods list includes bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, fruit, milk, sweets, cake, biscuits, ice cream, sugar and alcohol.  A few low GI vegetable such as broccoli and cabbage are allowed, but the focus is on eating lean meat, chicken, fish, eggs, low-fat cheese, some nuts and olive oil.  You follow this phase for 14 days.

In Phase Two, low GI carbs including most fruits, Granary bread, wholegrain cereals and pasta and low-fat milk are reintroduced. The idea is to stay with this phase until you've reached your target weight.  Finally, in Phase Three, you introduce an even wider variety of foods.  This phase is aimed at keeping your weight steady and the diet recommends you stay on this for life.

What we like about this plan. The South Beach Diet differs from its low-carb competitors, like Atkins, in that it restricts saturated fats, which are associated with health problems like heart disease and high cholesterol.  The plan reduces the cravings for sugars, sweets and other carbohydrates because the diet is supposed to keep blood sugar levels sustained.  Its importance on fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and heart-healthy fats is an eating plan that is full of vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids. 

Dr Agatston has great support from the medical science community.  There is a new updated book released in 2008, "South Beach Diet: Supercharged".  The book does an excellent job getting a dieter started and includes great recipes.  There is also a complete line of South Beach Diet foods that can be purchased in your grocery store from cereals to frozen meals.

What we dislike about this plan. The plan is tough for a vegetarian and a non-fish eater.  The science behind Dr. Agatston's assertions about certain foods and their ability to raise blood sugar levels or put on wei ght is inaccurate.  Alcohol is forbidden in the induction phase and limited in the long-term diet.  The book contains no exercise guidelines.  Recipes rely on a lot of NutraSweet and sugar alcohols, which many find difficult to digest.  To become a member of the website you must join for 6.00 a week.

How Healthy Is This Plan? It is a overall healthy plan after the first phase. Its encouragement of eating vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats is marvelous.  Its elimination of white sugar and refined carbohydrates is equally creditable, but not so easy to follow.  Many people have been successful losing weigh following the South Beach Diet and have been able to keep it off.  The South Beach Diet has some scientific flaws and many nutritionists would argue that its promise of losing 8-12 pounds in 14 days is a bit aggressive and is certainly water weight and some muscle, especially since exercising is not addressed.

Here Is the Bottom Line. The South Beach Diet only requires serious willpower for the first two weeks during Phase One.  Nevertheless, this phase is extremely restrictive. If you can get past the initial phase, then it will get easier.  No major food groups are eliminated, plenty of fruit and vegetables are recommended and generally the diet follows the use of the glycemic index and taking heart health into consideration.  If you can handle the restriction of carbs, this plan will be a plan for you.


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