Weight loss facts you’ve never heard –(2)

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8. Achoo! A Virus Can Cause Obesity

Adenoviruses are responsible for a host of ills, from upper respiratory tract problems to gastrointestinal troubles. The link to fat was uncovered when researchers injected chickens with the viruses and found that certain strains fattened them up.
Stem cells, known for their chameleon like abilities to transform, also turned into fat cells when infected with the viruses. The virus seems to increase the number of fat cells in the body as well as the fat content of these cells. Human studies, including comparisons of twins, suggest that obese people are indeed more likely to harbour antibodies for a particular virus, known as adenovirus-36.

9. Cookies Really Are Addictive

While food is not addictive the way cocaine or alcohol is, scientists in recent years have found some uncanny similarities. When subjects at Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia were shown the names of foods they liked, the parts of the brain that got excited were the same parts activated in drug addicts. It may have to do with dopamine, the hormone linked to motivation and pleasure. If obese people have fewer dopamine receptors, they may need more food to get that pleasurable reaction.

10. Ear Infections Can Taint Your Taste Buds

Former ear-infection patients were a little more likely to love sweets and fatty foods—perhaps because the damaged nerve causes them to have a higher threshold for sensing sweetness and fattiness. Even a small increase in calories from bad food choices adds up over time.
Childhood ear infections are as hard to avoid as the colds that tend to bring them on, but limiting passive smoke seems to drive down incidents of ear infection. If you're an overweight adult who suffered a severe ear infection as a child, it may be worth paying attention to the taste and texture of your food. Simply finding healthier substitutes, such as fruit instead of candy, or olive oil instead of butter, may help drive you toward eating better and weighing less.



11. Antioxidants Are Also Anti-Fat

Free radicals are now blamed not only for making you look old but also for making you fat. These oxidizing molecules damage the cells that tell us we're full. Free radicals emerge when we eat (something even the keenest dieter must do to survive), but they're especially prevalent when we gorge on candy bars, chips, and other carbohydrates. With every passing year, these fullness signifiers suffer wear and tear-causing the "stop eating!" signal to get weaker and appetites (and possibly our stomachs) to get bigger. The best way to fight back? Avoid the junk and load up on colorful, antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables.

12. Pick a Diet, Any Diet

As established diet books constantly reinvent themselves to sell copies and win converts, a curious phenomenon has emerged: Ornish, Atkins, and everyone in between are sounding remarkably similar. The low-fat gurus now say that certain fats are okay, while the low-carb proponents are beginning to endorse whole grains. With every new guideline and selling point, each diet acknowledges that there are really four basic rules to healthy eating (drumroll, please):

• Consume carbs in the form of whole grains and fiber.
  
• Avoid trans fats and saturated fats.
  
• Eat lean protein.
  
• Fill up on fruits and vegetables.
  

The key to all of this, of course, is moderation rather than deprivation -- eating in a way you can live with. And for some people, an important side effect of eating more plant-based foods is that it's better for the environment.
13. You Can Be Fat and Fit
A growing body of literature suggests that size doesn't matter when it comes to your health. A study published in America surveyed 5,440 American adults and found that 51 percent of the overweight and almost 32 percent of the obese had mostly normal cholesterol, blood sugar, blood pressure, and other measures of good health.
Further defying conventional wisdom, the article also reported that 23.5 percent of trim adults were, in fact, metabolically abnormal-making them more vulnerable to heart disease than their heavier counterparts.

The latest U.S. Department of Health and Human Services report corroborates what our doctors have said all along: You need about 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity five days a week for health. And you don't even have to do your exercise in one fell swoop-ten-minute stints of walking are just as effective. That means if you forgo the elevators for the stairs, get off one train or bus stop earlier, and park your car a few blocks away, chances are you'll be good for the day.
We don't have great tools to change people's weight, but we know we can change their fitness levels.

New Way to Tame Cravings?
Some of the most eagerly awaited pills in the pipeline promise to calm cravings, reduce appetite, and even boost metabolism.
For instance, vigabatrin has been studied as a treatment for drug addiction. Suspecting that it would work on weight- control patients, scientists injected the substance into obese rats. It worked: The rats lost 19 percent of their original weight after 40 days.
Another drug, tesofensine, works on three different mechanisms in the brain to regulate appetite and metabolism. In early trials, patients who used the drug lost an average of nearly 30 pounds.
So what's the catch? Side effects. The much-hyped drugs taranabant and Acomplia both failed because they caused severe mood swings and depression. Scientists will have to pay close attention to dosage and side effects if future weight-loss drugs are to clear the FDA approval process.

Ref: Reader’s Digest.com

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Weight loss facts you’ve never heard!

Genes, hormonal imbalances, and even viruses are now acknowledged to play a role in obesity. Eating less and working out more, in fact, don't have nearly as much to do with weight loss as you might assume. This is all counter to what people think they know.You can see obesity, so it's easy to say 'Well, that person must not be trying. He must be lazy.' But that's often not the case.

The latest (and often unexpected) thinking behind size and thighs, fatness and fitness.

1.It Really Is Genetic
When scientists first discovered it in certain chubby mice, they called it simply the fatso gene. Years later, when they scoured the human genome for markers that increased vulnerability to type 2 diabetes, the fatso gene (now more politely called FTO) showed up there too. Turns out, people with two copies of the gene were 40 percent more likely to have diabetes and 60 percent more likely to be obese than those without it. Those with only one copy of the gene weighed more too. Scientists now suspect that there are lots of fat genes. There could be as many as 100 of them,each adding a couple of pounds here and a pound or two there. That's a noticeable difference when it comes to how much more fat we need to burn off. As much as 16 percent of the population has two copies of the FTO gene, and half of us have one copy. So far, scientists suspect that the other possible obesity-promoting genes have a small effect compared with FTO. The good news? "A genetic predisposition isn't necessarily a life sentence,exercising regularly can offset the risk.

2. Some People Just Have More Fat Cells
And the range is enormous, with some people having twice as many fat cells as others have. Even if you've lost a few pounds (or gained some), your fat-cell count remains, holding tight to the fat already inside and forever thirsting to be filled up with more. (To add insult to injury, the fat cells of overweight and obese people hold more fat too.) New fat cells emerge during childhood but seem to stop by adolescence. Those of us destined to have a lot of these cells probably start producing them as young as age two. The cells' rate of growth may be faster, too-even if kids cut way back on calories.
So while you can't reduce your total number of fat cells, there are things you can do to keep them small. (See next point).

3. You Can Change Your Metabolism
A Scandinavian team looked into what happens at the cellular level when you gain weight.Studying sets of twins where one was fat and the other thin, and learned that fat cells in heavier twins underwent metabolic changes that make it more difficult to burn fat. Gaining as little as 11 pounds can slow metabolism and send you spiraling into a vicious cycle: As you gain more fat, it becomes harder to lose it.
How to get back on track? The more I learn on the job, the more I'm convinced we need physical activity.

4. Stress Fattens You Up
The most direct route is the food-in-mouth syndrome: Stressful circumstances (your bank account, your boss) spark cravings for carbohydrate-rich snack foods, which in turn calm stress hormones. Stress hormones also ramp up fat storage. For our prehistoric ancestors, stress meant drought or approaching tigers, and a rapid-storage process made sense; we needed the extra energy to survive food shortages or do battle. Today we take our stress sitting down—and the unused calories accumulate in our midsection.
To whittle yourself back down to size, in addition to your usual workout routine, make time for stress relief—whether it's a yoga class or quality time with family.

5. Mom's Pregnancy Sealed Your Fate
A mother's cigarettes increase the risk of low birth weight, and alcohol can damage her baby's brain. So why wouldn't unhealthy foods wreak similar havoc? A growing body of science suggests that sugary and fatty foods, consumed even before you're born, do exactly that. A Pennington study on rodents reports that overweight females have higher levels of glucose and free fatty acids floating around in the womb than normal-weight ones do. These molecules trigger the release of proteins that can upset the appetite-control and metabolic systems in the developing brain. What's true for mice is often true for humans too.

Moms-to-be, take note: You can give your kids a head start by eating well before they're born.

6. Sleep More, Lose More
With more sleep,doctors say, "people have a greater sense of fullness, and they'll spontaneously lose weight."
Why? University of Chicago researchers reported that sleep deprivation upsets our hormone balance, triggering both a decrease in leptin (which helps you feel full) and an increase of ghrelin (which triggers hunger). As a result, we think we're hungry even though we aren't—and so we eat. Indeed, sleep may be the cheapest and easiest obesity treatment there is.

7. Your Spouse's Weight Matters
Research shows that weight gain and loss can be, well, contagious. A study in the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that if one spouse is obese, the other is 37 percent more likely to become obese too. The researchers concluded that obesity seems to spread through social networks. Slimming down seems to be catching, at least within the family.Look around yourself.If you’ve got a motivated parent, you’ll be inspired to stay in shape too.

To be continued……. If you enjoyed your read, make sure you stay tuned to the concluding part.

Ref: Reader’sDigest.com

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Top ten ways to boost your fertility

About one couple in seven has problems conceiving, but there are ways to improve your chances.

Have sex at the right time

Women are most fertile at day 10-16, with day one being the first day of their period. Sperm stay alive in the female reproductive tract for up to three days, says Bill Ledger, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Sheffield, so having intercourse at least every other day during this fertile time will be enough to make a baby.

When to get help

Women's fertility drops rapidly after the age of 35. If you are in your early thirties and have been trying for a baby for a year without success, talk to your GP. If you are over 35, go after six months.

Watch your diet

Both men and women should avoid being underweight or overweight, as weight problems can affect the hormones that control fertility. The Times nutritionist Amanda Ursell says that zinc-rich foods such as red meat and wholegrain cereal may improve sperm quality.

Go easy on the booze

It may loosen your sexual inhibitions, but alcohol isn't always good news for fertility. One study suggests that five drinks a week can affect women's fertility. Although you don't need to abstain from the sauce, it's a good idea to moderate your intake.

Stub it up

Smoking harms the fertility of men and women. The damage is reversible in men, as they produce new sperm every 70 days. However, according to the British Medical Association, smoking reduces a woman's chances of conceiving by 40 per cent.

Happy Sex

Although there is only a six-day window of peak fertility in a woman's monthly cycle, it's important to have sex at other times, says Professor Ledger. Fertility problems strain relationships, so it's important to think of sex as fun, not simply a biological baby-making act.

Be romantic

Intense stress such as that caused by bereavement, divorce or redundancy, may disrupt ovulation for three or four months. However, every- day stress, such as that caused by your job, will not affect ovulation. The only way it affects fertility is by making people grumpy, and less likely to have sex. Counteract this drop in libido by planning a romantic meal, or a cosy weekend break.

Ditch the old wives' tales

Forget the myths about raising your bottom after intercourse, or not moving for 30 minutes. Sperm are chemically attracted to cervical mucus; within seconds of ejaculation they are safely on their journey. Anything that escapes doesn't contain any viable sperm.

And, unfortunately, there are no positions that guarantee conception says Professor Ledger.

Keep them cool

Sitting at a desk all day can be bad news for sperm. Heat causes sperm damage, and testes should be one or two degrees cooler than the rest of the body. Professor Ledger recommends taking a five to ten-minute walk every hour to cool off your crown jewels.

Sexual health

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), such as chlamydia, can harm fertility. If you think there is a possibility that you may have caught something, it's well worth a visit to your GP or sexual health clinic.

Ref: Times Online

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Are Grains Better Than Whole Wheat?

All about the "old-world" grains you're seeing more of on supermarket shelves. 

Once found only in health food stores, "old-world" grains like amaranth, spelt, and quinoa are now available at your local grocery. These tasty grains may be even higher in disease-fighting nutrients than the usual whole wheat, rice, and oats. Buying tips:

Pick bread with more than seven grains. Products with a greater number of grains will likely include some of these alternatives, such as millet and amaranth.

Whole grains may be higher in disease-fighting nutrients than the usual whole wheat.

Visit the rice and pasta aisle. Try boxed quinoa (pronounced keen-wa), which has a nutty taste, or Kamut pasta, which has a hearty wheat flavor. Most prepackaged alternative grains cook in 20 minutes or less and can be swapped for rice or noodles in pilafs, salads, and soups.

Try small substitutions at first. You can use flours made from these grains in many of your favorite foods, including cookies, muffins, and pancakes.

Ref: Reader’s Digest.com

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Peppermint Health Perks

This helpful herb's healthy benefits may surprise you !

Not just a breath freshener, this healthy herb can calm stomach pain, gas, and diarrhea, according to an international review study. Peppermint tea in particular helps soothe indigestion symptoms caused by a bug or irritable bowel syndrome. As suggested by Eric Yarnell, assistant professor of botanical medicine at Bastyr University near Seattle. Strong tea is best.

It is recommended steeping two peppermint tea bags in a cup of boiled water for 15 minutes, being sure to keep the brew covered so the essential oils don't evaporate. (You'll see a slight slick of oil on the surface.) Strong mints and even candy canes may help tame an upset stomach, too, as long as you don't have heartburn (peppermint doesn't stop acid backwash).

Ref: Reader's Digest.com

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10 Surprising Health Benefits of Sex

The health benefits of sex extend well beyond the bedroom. Turns out sex is good for you in ways you may never have imagined.

"When you're in the mood, it's a sure bet that the last thing on your mind is boosting your immune system or maintaining a healthy weight. Yet good sex offers those health benefits and more."

That's a surprise to many people.Of course, sex is everywhere in the media.But the idea that we are vital, sexual creatures is still looked at in some cases with disgust or in other cases a bit of embarrassment. So to really take a look at how our sexuality adds to our life and enhances our life and our health, both physical and psychological, is eye-opening for many people.

Sex does a body good in a number of ways, according to experts. The benefits aren't just anecdotal or hearsay -- each of these 10 health benefits of sex is backed by scientific scrutiny.

Among the benefits of healthy loving in a relationship:

1. Sex Relieves Stress

A big health benefit of sex is lower blood pressure and overall stress reduction.Study was carried out on 22 men & women who kept records of their sexual activity. Then the researchers subjected them to stressful situations -- such as speaking in public and doing verbal arithmetic -- and noted their blood pressure response to stress.

Those who had intercourse had better responses to stress than those who engaged in other sexual behaviors or abstained.

Another study published found that frequent intercourse was associated with lower diastolic blood pressure in cohabiting participants. Yet other research found a link between partner hugs and lower blood pressure in women.

2. Sex Boosts Immunity

Good sexual health may mean better physical health. Having sex once or twice a week has been linked with higher levels of an antibody called immunoglobulin A or IgA, which can protect you from getting colds and other infections. Scientists at Wilkes University in Wilkes, took samples of saliva, which contain IgA, from 112 college students who reported the frequency of sex they had.

Those in the "frequent" group -- once or twice a week -- had higher levels of IgA than those in the other three groups -- who reported being abstinent, having sex less than once a week, or having it very often, three or more times weekly.

3. Sex Burns Calories

Thirty minutes of sex burns 85 calories or more. It may not sound like much, but it adds up: 42 half-hour sessions will burn 3,570 calories, more than enough to lose a pound. Doubling up, you could drop that pound in 21 hour-long sessions.

Sex is a great mode of exercise. It takes work, from both a physical and psychological perspective, to do it well.

4. Sex Improves Cardiovascular Health

While some older folks may worry that the efforts expended during sex could cause a stroke, that's not so, according to researchers from England. In a study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, scientists found frequency of sex was not associated with stroke in the 914 men they followed for 20 years.

And the heart health benefits of sex don't end there. The researchers also found that having sex twice or more a week reduced the risk of fatal heart attack by half for the men, compared with those who had sex less than once a month.

5. Sex Boosts Self-Esteem

Boosting self-esteem was one of 237 reasons people have sex, collected by University of Texas researchers and published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior.

That finding indicate that those who already have self-esteem say they sometimes have sex to feel even better. One of the reasons people say they have sex is to feel good about themselves. Great sex begins with self-esteem, and it raises it. If the sex is loving, connected, and what you want, it raises it.

6. Sex Improves Intimacy

Having sex and orgasms increases levels of the hormone oxytocin, the so-called love hormone, which helps us bond and build trust. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and the University of North Carolina evaluated 59 premenopausal women before and after warm contact with their husbands and partners ending with hugs. They found that the more contact, the higher the oxytocin levels.

Oxytocin allows us to feel the urge to nurture and to bond.

Higher oxytocin has also been linked with a feeling of generosity. So if you're feeling suddenly more generous toward your partner than usual, credit the love hormone.

7. Sex Reduces Pain

As the hormone oxytocin surges, endorphins increase, and pain declines. So if your headache, arthritis pain, or PMS symptoms seem to improve after sex, you can thank those higher oxytocin levels.

In a study published in the Bulletin of Experimental Biology and Medicine, 48 volunteers who inhaled oxytocin vapor and then had their fingers pricked lowered their pain threshold by more than half.

8. Sex Reduces Prostate Cancer Risk

Frequent ejaculations, especially in 20-something men, may reduce the risk of prostate cancer later in life, Australian researchers reported in the British Journal of Urology International. When they followed men diagnosed with prostate cancer and those without, they found no association of prostate cancer with the number of sexual partners as the men reached their 30s, 40s, and 50s.

But they found men who had five or more ejaculations weekly while in their 20s reduced their risk of getting prostate cancer later by a third.

Another study, reported found that frequent ejaculations, 21 or more a month, were linked to lower prostate cancer risk in older men, as well, compared with less frequent ejaculations of four to seven monthly.

9. Sex Strengthens Pelvic Floor Muscles

For women, doing a few pelvic floor muscle exercises known as Kegels during sex offers a couple of benefits. You will enjoy more pleasure, and you'll also strengthen the area and help to minimize the risk of incontinence later in life.

To do a basic Kegel exercise, tighten the muscles of your pelvic floor, as if you're trying to stop the flow of urine. Count to three, then release.

10. Sex Helps You Sleep Better

The oxytocin released during orgasm also promotes sleep, according to research.

And getting enough sleep has been linked with a host of other good things, such as maintaining a healthy weight and blood pressure. Something to think about, especially if you've been wondering why your guy can be active one minute and snoring the next.

Ref: WebMD.com

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8 Ways to Control Your Blood Sugar

To prevent diabetes, start here.

Exercise like it's a prescription. That means at least 20 to 30 minutes every day. It takes a only a few days of missed workouts and poor eating to worsen a person's insulin resistance. To make sure you stick with it, choose the exercise that you enjoy the most.

Sprinkle cinnamon on everything you can stand. Studies show it can improve insulin sensitivity. This means your body needs less of the hormone insulin to keep your blood-sugar levels in check. "The cheap supermarket stuff works just as well as expensive supplement versions.

If you already have high blood glucose, take alpha lipoic acid. This supplement is unexcelled as a blood-sugar nutrient and is a prescription item in Europe.

Skip the sugary sports drinks. University of Massachusetts scientists recently discovered that exercising improved insulin sensitivity by 40 percent when a 500-calorie deficit was created, but produced no improvement when the burned energy was immediately replaced with mostly carbohydrate

Invest in a glucose monitor. It'll allow you to find out how specific meals, foods and beverages affect your blood sugar. Simply prick your finger 2 hours after a meal. The number shouldn't be above 139 mg/dl, and it shouldn't be below 100 or your fasting number—whichever is lower. If you fall out of that range, you need an oral glucose-tolerance test.

Snack on pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds. A small handful won't impact blood sugar, and they're rich in magnesium, a mineral that fights insulin resistance, according to a 2006 study from Tufts University researchers.

Eat every 2 to 3 hours. Eating this often helps prevent drops in blood sugar, which can lead to sugar binges.

Check your meds. If you're taking a thiazide diuretic for hypertension, ask your doctor about switching to an ACE inhibitor. A 2006 Hypertension review of 59 drug trials found a "strong relationship" between low potassium levels caused by diuretics and increased blood glucose.

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Ref: Men’sHEalth.com

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