How to Navigate through your Supermarkets for healthy food.

Commerical Supermarkets are designed and laid out to get consumers to buy things they may not have opted for when planning their food shopping trip. It's helpful to know where the dangers lie and where you you can find the healthiest food.

Here are some healthful strategies:
1. Beware of foods placed at eye level. Foods are strategically placed to promote consumers to purchase. "Research - lots of it- shows that what you see is what you buy", states professor Marion Nestle of University of New York. Beware of these eye level foods.

2. Skip End of Aisle Displays. Most of the time these displays are promoting junk food.

3. Beware of the Bakery and the bulk items in Corrals (chocolate covered nuts, candy, etc). Bakery items are intended to enhance our senses but be sure to read the labels. Often bakery goods are loaded with fat and sugar.

4. Start with the Perimeter. The freshest fruits and vegetables and the least processed foods with be around the perimeter of your market. Start at the perimeter and enter the aisles only for specific items on your food list.

Serving Sizes: What do they look like?

We are told to read the labels on our packages and encouraged to stick to single servings but what does a serving size look like and how does it differ from a portion?

According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute a portion refers to the amount of food you choose to eat. A Serving is used to describe the recommended amount of food you should eat at a given meal.

To give you a clearer picture here are some visual examples of what a serving really looks like:

One Serving: Visual Example:
1 Baked Potato; fist
1 Cup Salad Greens; baseball
1/2 Cup cooked rice of pasta; 1/2 baseball
1 1/2 ounces of cheese; 4 stacked dice
1 Cup cereal flakes; fist
1 Pancake; compact disk
1 Teaspoon margarine; 1 dice
3 Ounces of Meat; deck of cards
2 Tablespoons peanut butter; table tennis ball

Next time you are out eating and wondering how many servings you are consuming picture the visual example. Remember, healthy eating is all about moderation.

Garlic: It's a superstar for our health!

Many of us avoid eating garlic when we are with friends and for good reason, but did you know that garlic is one of the most valuable fooods on earth? Here are just some of the the many benefits of Garlic:

1. Lowers Blood pressure.
2. Lowers serum cholesterol levels and aids in digestion.
3. Useful in treating many illnesses and diseases including cancer. It is a ptent immune system protector and natural antibiotic.
4. Effective against fungal infections (such as athlete's foot, systemic candidiasis and yeast infections.
5. Good for the the heart and colon.

These are just a few of the many benefits. Garlic can be consumed in many ways. Cloves can be baked or roasted. Raw garlic can be added to many foods such as guacamole, or salsa. Garlic can be added to olive or canola oil for cooking or used for sauteing. If you don't like the smell or taste you can purchase odorless garlic capsules (Kyolic is one brand). So next time your cooking or eating out...don't forget the Garlic!! It's a superstar for our health!

Why Sleep is important to your Wellness.

Like many of us sleep seems to be the first thing we give up when we are under time constraints of getting things done for our family, jobs and ourselves. What many of us don't realize is that sleep is essential for our health & wellness. Sleep is essential to our survival and much more. Studies show that rats deprived of sleep die within two to three weeks, a time frame similar to death due to starvation.

Most adults need between 8 and 9 hours of sleep each night. Lack of adequate sleep can have serious consequences. Some of these include:

Decreases in:
Performance
Concentration
Reaction Times
Learning

Increases in:
Memory Lapses
Accidents & Injuries
Behavior Problems
Mood Problems

How can we get more sleep?
1. Exercise regularly. Many sleep experts say exercising 5-6 hours before you go to bed can actually help you sleep.
2. Set a regular bedtime. Going to bed at the same time each night and waking up at the same time every day can also help establish sleep patterns.
3.Relax your mind. Avoid violence or scary movies or tv shows at night before you go to bed.
4. Avoid Caffeine & other stimulants (such as alcohol and nicotine) before you go to sleep.
5. Create the right sleep environment. Studies show that people sleep best in a dark room that is slightly on the cool side. Close your blinds or curtains and turn down the thermostat in your room.

Exercise can increase your happiness

People that exercise, whether that's an aerobic class, walking, a sport, yoga or pilates, feel healthier and better about themselves and enjoy life more. Research has proven that exercising 3 times a week for 30 minutes can be just as powerful as taking psychiatric drugs. Exercise vastly improves our mental health.

Research finds that exercise and physical activity has the following benifits:
- Increases confidence
- Improves self image
- Directly increases happiness
- Increases overall energy levels

What's the best exericise to do? Trick question. It's the one you enjoy and want to do. If you are a beginner exerciser remember to start slowly and listen to your body. Increase the time you exercise gradually (i.e. start with 5 or 10 minutes and gradually work your way up to 30 minutes).

Eat foods rich in L-carnitine!

L-Carnitine is an amino acid manufactured in your liver. It helps facilitate fat metabolism, increase energy in muscle cells and promotes fat loss. It also can help increase circulation in the brain and prevents fat oxidation in the brain. This is important in preventing Alzheimer's and Parkinson's dieases. What foods are rich in L-carnitine?
Fish
Poultry
Wheat
Avocado
fermented soybeans

Vegetarians are more likely to be deficient than nonvegetarians because it is not found in Vegetable protein.

Vary Your Exercise for Fun and Safety

Many times we pick an exercise we enjoy and we continue to do that exercise week after week. Two problems can result when we don't vary our exercise. First, by performing only one time of exercise we are more prone to muscular injury and over use snydrome. Second, we can eventually get bored and stop exercising all together.

Follow these simple exercise tips for fun and safety:

1. Pick at least two to three exercise activities you enjoy doing and vary them each week to keep it fun and fresh.

Here are some ideas:

Walking

Aquatics

Weight training

Circuit Classes

Outdoor sports and exercise classes

Biking

Dancing

Running/Jogging

Swimming

Tennis

Surfing

Gardening

Fitness Classes

Rock Climbing

Pilates/Yoga- Breathing Exercises

Rollar Skating

Skate Boarding

Skiing

2. Make sure you are using different muscles weekly. If you are varying your exercise this will happen naturally. Make sure you focus on core training at least 1 to 2 times a week. Over use syndrome happens when you perform the same activity everyday, every week, every month.

3. Listen to your body. If you have not been active for a while, start out slowly. Check with your doctor if are on medications or recovering from a injury. Find out if any exercises are contraindicated. If you overdo it you will be more likely to give up in the early days because of aches and pains.

4. Most of all have Fun and Be Safe!!