Health and Diet Articles

Archive for March, 2009

Finding Smart Alternatives to Ice Cream

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

five_barsIce cream is a comfort food for many people and can destroy the diet in a matter of seconds when you break into a the pint of ice cream that is full of chocolate chunks, nuts and pieces of your favorite candy. These comfort foods are hard to stop eating once you start and therefore can lead to nearly one thousand calories which are consumed through the process of eating ice cream.

There are smart ways that you make smart choices when it comes to desserts and ice creams, these include:

Fat Free Fudgsicles
Fat free fudgsicles are a way that you can have the chocolate that you want without breaking the bank when it comes to calories that are consumed. There are many fudge treats which can be eaten that are less than one-hundred calories and still have the taste. The low calories can be attributed to the low amounts of sugar that are found in the popsicles. There are many instances where sugar substitutes are used to reduce the calories within the treats.

Fruit Sorbets
Fruit Sorbets are a great way to have the taste of fruit and enjoy a cold treat during the summer season. This way, you are eating a sweet treat that has no calories and very little sugar. Fruit sorbets are made with fruit and ice and are some of the lowest calorie choices for ice cream substitutes.

Fruit Bars
Fruit bars have no sugar and are created from real fruit. Fruit bars are very low fat and contain as little as thirty calories per fruit bar. There are very few amounts of sugar in these types of bars and contain fruit juice and fruit as the main ingredient in the bars – that can be very tasty and a refreshing treat when it comes to trying to find a satisfying and low calorie snack.

Frozen Yogurt Ice Cream Sandwiches
Ice cream sandwiches are something that everyone craves once in a while. Although many ice cream sandwiches are chock full of calories, there are some that are made with lower amounts of sugar and even with sugar substitutes are combined with a frozen yogurt, rather than the traditional vanilla ice cream to decrease the calories which are consumed when you are craving a sweet treat. There are many brands of these ice cream sandwiches therefore it is important to read the nutritional information on the package before eating one to two of these ice cream sandwiches.

Low Calorie Brands
A good snack should be under one-hundred calories, therefore, many people are taking advantage of these snacks which are under one-hundred calories. There are popsicles, fudgsicles and even ice cream bars that can be found in the local freezer aisle that can help to determine which brands are lowest in calories, lowest in saturated fats and lowest in sugar – which can contribute to a high fat diet.

Making Exercise Fun

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

exercise3For many people, one of the most difficult parts of losing weight is the exercise requirements that are often involved. Now, some individuals choose to lose weight by simply cutting back on what they eat. They may not exercise for a number of reasons. Some common ones include, simply not enjoying exercise, they may be too out of shape or embarrassed to work out in front of other people. Many of these reasons are valid. However, it is important that when people can exercise, they should.

 

Exercising will make weight loss much easier and allow persons to “cheat” a little on the foods that they do consume. It is much easier to stay on a diet when one is able to eat some of their favorite foods or can at least eat a decent number of calories. Restrictive diets are hard to follow and generally lead to binging. Another reason that persons should add physical activity to their diet plan is that it helps to shape and tone the body. Weight loss plans that don’t require working out often leave individuals thinner but flabby (most people want to avoid this).

 

It is also much more difficult to keep the weight off because plans that only focus on what foods are eaten can cause individuals to lose muscle which makes it much more difficult to burn calories and fat in the future. While most of this information is common knowledge is common sense, the hard part is actually coming up with an exercise program and then following through. For people who don’t like to get physical this can be quite hard. The “trick” is to make working out fun. We’ll provide some tips on how to do just that in this article.  

 

Find Something That You Like: This is probably pretty obvious but it needs to be stated.  You need to find something that you like. This will keep you motivated to hang in there. It is much easier to stick with something that you enjoy. If you find that you dread working out, you are less likely to do it. 

 

Think Outside the Box: Your exercise program does not have to be relegated to simply jogging or walking. There are so many other things to do that will give you a great workout and that are also more exciting and varied. If you are a member of a fitness club, take a look at some of the different types of classes that they offer. If you are not, there are still plenty of options.  Try purchasing an exercise tape, training with a marathon group or joining an intramural sports team.

 

Change Things Up: One of the easiest ways to get into an exercise rut is to do the same things over and over. Most likely, you will get bored and quit. To avoid this, every couple of weeks or perhaps even every few days, do something different. This will help keep you excited and also will keep your muscles off balance so that you will continue to burn calories most efficiently.

 

Find A Workout Buddy: It is generally much more fun to work out with a partner. Having someone to talk to while you are exercising and who is there to provide mutual support can make the process much more fun and exciting. 

 

Weight Loss Surgeries: Gastric Bypass vs. Lap Band Surgery

Monday, March 30th, 2009

lap-band-surgeryThere comes a time when some dieters must resort to surgery in order to meet the needs of their weight loss. At this point in time we have reached the technology to be able to offer two types of surgeries to these patients; lap band surgery and gastric bypass surgery. Although both surgeries involve some sort of surgical procedure, there are side effect and risks to each surgery.

Lap band surgery is considered to be the least invasive form of the two surgeries. This type of surgery is an effective way to reduce the size of the stomach pouch by using a band which is placed around the upper portion of the stomach. The band is adjusted by using a solution which is injected into the band from a pouch that is located just under the skin in the abdomen. Adjusting the lap band is simple and can take as little as a few minutes during a visit to the bariatric surgeon that completed the procedure. There is little pain which is associated with adjusting the lap band and most often an adjustment occurs at least once per month until the “sweet spot” is found which can enable the patient to lose the most amount of weight through the entire procedure. 

Gastric bypass surgery involves actually removing the portion of the stomach and stapling the tissue to make a smaller food pouch. This will enable the dieter to lose an optimal amount of weight through the entire process and bypasses a portion of the large intestine. This invasive method comes with a higher risk factor for the patient, before and after the surgery. There are also increased risks of potential side effects that can occur through gastric bypass surgery but yet this remains the procedure of choice when it comes to weight loss surgeries in the United States. 

Gastric bypass surgery comes with some side effects that are concerning, as the lap band procedure can assist in reducing the chances of these side effects occurring. Dumping syndrome refers to a condition in which food that has yet to have been fully digested entering into the intestine. There are many effects of this, including sweats and cold chills and other symptoms which can be compared to being in shock. There is an immediate feeling of needing to go to the bathroom and cramps, as well as abdominal bloating that can occur when one experiences dumping syndrome. Dumping syndrome is rarely associated with patients that have underdone the lap band procedure.

The lap band procedure creates a weight loss tool which can be easily removed if the patient does not fare well during the treatment. The lap band surgery also allows the patient to remove the band or deflate the band in the case that further nutrition is required in the case of malnutrition or if the patient chooses to become pregnant, or is diagnosed with a condition that requires as much nutrition as possible.
 
The safer and just as effective treatment is the lap band surgery, although there can be an increased cost. It is important to determine all aspects of each procedure before making the decision of which weight loss surgery to undergo.