TOP 10 NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS

A Healthy New Year!

This is my first series for the year. At first I thought it was ridiculous to hit the streets of Abuja just to find out people’s health resolutions for 2011. Very disheartening, majority of the people I encountered didn’t have any health resolutions for the year but a good number of persons were able to think of something on the spot.

Many people make New Year resolutions in order to better their lives. Do they keep those resolutions? That will be a story that can only be concluded in the next 12 months.

 Now the top 10 resolutions

#1

LOSE WEIGHT

I found this to be an extremely popular New Year resolution. After consuming a feast during the Christmas holidays, its time to get into shape. Some people wish to lose a few pounds, while for some; it’s another fresh year to battle excess weight which they were not able to defeat last year.

Next

Chocolate! To eat or not

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The more forbidden, the more it is craved. Many have fallen under the spell of chocolate and it is a reason for their struggle with weight gain and obesity. Some may justify their craving for chocolate with the argument that chocolate is considered healthy and has many great health benefits as it diminishes pain and reduce blood pressure. Just like everything, eating too much chocolate can cause weight gain. With no specific study to prove the reasons for these forbidden desires, here are some reasons that may explain why you crave chocolate. 

It is delicious! Chocolate satisfy the sweet tooth in an instant. Its rich and creamy texture allows the eater to savor every moment of eating it, and, if something tastes good, people are prone to want more of it. 

It feels good! Chocolate has been shown to stimulate serotonin- the happy hormone and other hormones whose reactions creates feelings that are similar to feelings of love. During PMS, chocolate helps women ward-off bad moods. 

It is an exclusive bite! As far back as the Aztec society, chocolate was regarded as a “food of the gods”. Only those born into nobility, priests and warriors were allowed to partake of this tasty treat. This exclusiveness of chocolate caused those who were forbidden to have it to crave it. Ordinary people wanted the luxury of indulging in a piece of chocolate as a way to feel special and pampered. These feelings of indulgence and desire are still associated with chocolate today.

However, the responsibility of choosing a healthy lifestyle still lies in your hands no matter how well the above reasons apply to you. Knowing what triggers the urge can help control the craving, or at least reduce them to a manageable level.

TIPS TO BOOST YOUR FIBER INTAKE.

 

This post is sequel to the post what are you eating. Having listed some of the benefits you will get when you add fiber to your diet, here are some tips to boost your fiber intake.

• Eat whole fruits and dried fruits with skins (apples, pears, orange with roughage etc.) instead of juice or canned fruits that have been pealed and have less fiber.

• Increase your consumption of vegetables of all types, including plenty of raw vegetable salads and vegetable cuts.

• Eat whole wheat bread (with visible grain particles) instead of white bread.

• Choose high fiber carbohydrates like corn, Lima beans and peas. Eat high fiber cereals often.

• Eat legumes several times a week

• Eat the edible skins and seeds of vegetables. For example, the seeds of a cucumber, the skin of a baked potato.

• Think nuts and seeds if you can afford the calories and fat content.

• Eat brown rice instead of white rice (over processed)

• If you eat crackers, look for the fiber rich ones.

• Popcorn is a terrific high fiber, low fat snack. Add popcorn to your to your snack list.

Remember to increase your fluids when you add fiber to your diet, start slow to avoid intestinal discomfort. Lose weight by adding fiber to your diet, you will feel full longer and be less tempted to snack between meals. When you do snack, take fruits, vegetable cuts or nuts.

Add your own tip!

WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN EATING?

If you are asked what you ate in your last meal what would you say? I asked some friends over lunch, here are the answers I got; pasta, rice and muffin with cocoa drink. I imagined a world where everyone will probably answer this question based on the nutrient content of the foods and being very aware of the health gain or loss from the foods. What I consider appropriate is getting answers like protein, carbohydrates, trans fat, fiber etc. and with the respondent being fully aware of could be happening in their bodies as a result of what they ate. Did I just mention fiber?

Fiber is a Cinderella story in nutrition. About 30 years ago, fiber was ‘roughage’- a non essential part of the diet, an indigestible residue of carbohydrate. It was known that fiber aided elimination and relieved constipation. Scientists and people who worried about their bowels cared about fiber, but most people paid little attention to it.

Times have changed. Now fiber has been elevated in stature to one of the most important nutrients in the promotion of health and the prevention and treatment of diseases. Increasing fiber content in our diet is very beneficial , here are some of the benefits.

Aiding elimination. Emptying your bowel everyday is one of the first steps to a healthy life. What would you say?

In the digestive tract, insoluble fiber contributes bulk and absorbs water, making us feel full. This bulking action also has a laxative effect and aids elimination.

Weight Control- Most fiber you eat stay in the digestive tract and do not provide calories. Many low calory fruits and vegetables are rich in fiber and make us feel fuller than calorie dense foods.

Diabetic Control- Soluble fiber in the diet has been shown to reduce insulin requirements, thus, improving control of blood sugar. Simultaneously, it decreases serum cholesterol and blood pressure.

Lowering Blood Cholesterol Levels- Soluble fibers (pectin, gums,beans, locust beans, oat bran etc) are very effective in lowering blood cholesterol levels whose effect when high or in excess is deadly. Adding fiber to your diet is a sure way to prevent cardiovascular disease.

Preventing Colon Cancer- Insoluble fiber (e.g. of source include whole grain, vegetables such as green beans, dark green vegetables, whole wheat, fruit skins and root vegetable skins, seeds and nuts) adds bulk to the contents of the intestine and this speeds up the transit time of meal’s remnants through the small and large intestines. This decrease the time that cells in the colon’s lining are exposed to toxins, including carcinogens that could be present, thus reducing the chances of colon cancer.

Having discussed a bit on fiber, it is time to as the question again hoping that you will give an answer. What have you been eating, how much of fiber do you eat?

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