FitSugar

Diet Tip: Eat Fruit Instead of Drinking It

FitSugar — Wed, 14 May 2008 16:00:00 PDT

If you're trying to lose weight, when choosing between fruit and fruit juice, stick with fruit. The whole fruit not only offers more fiber than fruit juice, it contains fewer calories as well. Eating fiber not only prevents certain types of cancers and keeps you regular, but it also helps fill you up so you're less likely to eat as many calories. I'm not saying you should give up juice entirely, but if you have a choice it's best to choose the original source. If sweet beverages are your weakness, fruit juice is definitely a better option than soda for its nutritional benefits, but it still contains just about as many calories (8.1 ounces of Coca-Cola contains 97 calories). So if you're watching your calorie intake, you may want to limit yourself to one eight-ounce glass a day, and opt for water or herbal teas for the rest of the day.

To emphasize my point I have made a handy little chart comparing an orange to a serving of orange juice. To see it, just

	Calories	Total Fat	Sat Fat	Chol.	Sodium	Carbs	Fiber	Sugars	Protein	Calcium	Potassium
One orange	62	.2g	0g	0mg	0mg	15.4g	3.1g	12.2g	1.26g	52.4mg	237.1mg
8 oz. orange juice	112	.5g	.1g	0mg	2mg	25.8g	.5g	20.8g	1.7g	27.3mg	496.3mg

Source

Two Simple Tips to Save Hundreds of Calories on One Cocktail

Michele Foley — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 16:05:16 PST

There's nothing wrong with the occasional cocktail, but if you're watching your waistline, the wrong drink order can be detrimental to maintaining a healthy weight. Avoid making happy hour a sugar and fat festival with these two easy tips - in the end, you'll have saved yourself almost 300 calories!

Start with the right alcohol: When it comes to saving calories, stick to basic alcohol (vodka, gin, tequila, or whiskey) and avoid liqueurs since flavored spirits like Kahlua, Baileys, or Amaretto are made using additional ingredients like fruit, cream, and sugar. For comparison, a 1.5-ounce pour of vodka contains 100 calories and zero grams of sugar, compared to 147 calories and nine grams of sugar in the same amount of Baileys. When asked by the bartender, always choose a cosmopolitan over a mudslide! To save even more calories, have your cocktail made with sake, shochu, or soju; on average, these spirits run about 60 calories per 1.5-ounce pour.
Mixers matter: Always go easy on the mixers. Order your spirit of choice neat or on the rocks, or opt for a zero-calorie mixer like soda water. If a cocktail without fruit juice seems a bit too much for you, ask the bartender to add just a splash. Most importantly, avoid premade mixes since they are dripping in corn syrup and additives. When made right (aka without a mix), classic cocktails like mojitos and margaritas contain under 200 calories!

A Doctor Dishes: Which "Superfoods" Are Worth the Cost?

LearnVest — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 00:15:00 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart LearnVest story here on Savvy!

Most people you speak to these days are trying to stretch every dollar as far as possible - even the ones they spend buying apples and oranges.

Food prices are expected to increase yet again this year, and food manufacturers are making portions smaller without reducing prices. Not surprisingly, a recent Rasmussen poll found that 93 percent of adults report paying more for groceries now than they did a year ago.

So how can we supercharge our grocery dollars and get them to do overtime for us?

Yes, some foods are obviously a better nutritional deal than others (think apples vs. potato chips), but there’s another class of foods that blows the rest of the field away in terms of nutrients and health-protecting qualities: superfoods.

Superfoods can help prevent diabetes and heart disease, repair damage to your body’s cells, and more. But before you go piling them into your cart, know that some superfoods are better nutritional bargains than others. As a doctor and a mom, I’ve sleuthed out which ones are worth the extra cost in terms of their long-term health benefits. Below is the scoop on which ones may help you age better, ward off cancer, and more.

What to Know Before Buying Superfoods

Before we dive into what to buy, there are a few important things to remember about consuming these foods:

Eating foods fresh and in their natural state, especially fruits and vegetables (rather than in pill or powder supplement form), usually allows us to absorb the greatest amount of their nutrients. The way a superfood is processed or cooked can significantly lower its antioxidant content.
If the superfood can’t be eaten fresh, look for easy and appetizing recipes containing it. No matter how “super” a superfood may be, if you don’t know how to cook it, you’ll probably let it go to waste.

Are Superfoods "Good Buys" If I’m Shopping on a Budget?

Read on to find out.

Easy Ways to Cut Back on Sugar

FitSugar — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 16:56:42 PST

Carbs and fats tend to take the blame for weight gain, but excessive sugar intake can be part of the problem, too. If you're looking to improve your diet or shrink your waistline, try tracking your sugar consumption. Is it something you crave regularly? Part of every meal? Assess where sugar stands in your diet and make the following swaps to minimize your intake.

Go Greek: Standard yogurts - especially the fruit-flavored variety - tend to be high in sugar. Pick plain Greek yogurt instead to amp up your protein consumption and avoid excess sugars. Compare the nutritional content of different Greek yogurt brands and add fresh fruit if you prefer a sweeter taste.
Nix the cans: Thanks to thick, sweet syrups, canned fruits contain a higher level of sugar than fresh or frozen versions. Avoid canned fruits whenever possible, but if that's your only choice, be sure to drain the can and rinse the fruit to remove as much sugar as possible.
Be picky about grains: Whole-grain cereals and granola can be high in added sugars. Make sure to read the nutritional information and also look into sugar-free cereal options, or try to make your own fruit and nut bars when you need a carb fix. Just looking for something to add crunch to your meal? Try raw, unsalted nuts or homemade trail mix.

Keep reading for more ways to reduce your sugar intake.

8 Small Ways to Lose Big Pounds in 2012

Prevention — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 04:06:22 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Prevention here on FitSugar!

Quadruple your weight loss by making one easy tweak to your routine per week
By Alyssa Shaffer

If your goal is to lose weight and exercise more, forget the deprivation diet and marathon workouts. New research shows that taking baby steps - not giant leaps -is the best way to get lasting results. A study published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine found that participants who made one small, potentially permanent change in their food choices and/or physical activity each week (such as drinking one fewer can of soda or walking five more minutes each day) lost more than twice as much belly fat, two and half more inches off their waistlines, and about four times more weight during a four-month program, compared with those who followed traditional calorie-restriction and physical-activity guidelines.

"When you focus on just a couple of small changes at a time, you begin to ingrain some healthy habits that last for a lifetime, rather than trying an all-or-nothing approach that more often than not fails because it's too hard to follow," says Lesley Lutes, PhD, an assistant professor in the department of psychology at East Carolina University. We've uncovered these simple steps (with proven results) to help you move more, eat less, and look and feel better than ever. Add just one or two a week to your regular routine and you can lose nearly three inches off your waistline and be about 10 pounds lighter come in a few months. Even better: Once these healthy habits become second nature, they'll benefit you for a lifetime.

1. Pick Up a Pen After Every Meal
Mindlessly munching on a bag of chips could result in easily polishing off the whole thing; write down how much you've eaten and you're more likely to practice portion control. Keeping a food log helps control extra calories in two ways: the combination of plain old reality check (I just ate 30 minutes ago!) and awareness that what you're putting in your mouth will soon be recorded for posterity. In a recent study, people who kept a food journal lost twice as much weight as those who didn't. When they combined it with a moderate diet and exercise plan, they lost an average of 13 pounds in 6 months. Journaling also gives you insight on your eating habits, says Lutes. Do you skip meals? Eat the same during the week as on the weekend? Binge when you're feeling stressed? "Knowing your routine helps you figure out what changes are right for you," she adds.

Avoid these 14 "health food" diet disasters.

2. Limit High-Fat Foods to One Per Week
Tag the high-fat/high-calorie foods that are typically your favorites (our top five: cookies, candy, ice cream, potato chips, and fries) and gradually downshift. "If you're eating six of these foods a week, try to go down to five," says Lutes. Each week, drop another until you're at no more than one or two; at the same time, add in a good-for-you choice like baby carrots, sautéed broccoli, oranges, and other fresh fruits and veggies.

Keep reading for more simple tip to help you lose big.

How to Get More Out of Your Breakfast

Jenny Sugar — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 18:29:30 PST

Your first meal of the day jump-starts your metabolism, gives your body fuel to move, and energizes your brain. That's why breakfast is considered the most important meal of the day. For under 400 calories, you can choose some pretty healthy options such as yogurt with fruit, oatmeal, or an omelet. To make your meal even healthier, check out these tips.

Add milk to your yogurt and granola. Pour on half a cup of skim milk and you'll add 4.4 grams of protein, 158 mg of calcium, and 210 mg of potassium, all for just an extra 45 calories. Not only that, but it makes your bowl much creamier.
Eat whole eggs rather than egg whites. Egg whites might be lower in calories, cholesterol, and saturated fat and contain most of the protein, but the yolk contains all the vitamins like B12, vitamin D, and iron. If you eat two large eggs, it's about 142 calories, and three egg whites is 51, but remember those 90 calories are packed full of vitamins and minerals. If you're not worried about your cholesterol, enjoy whole eggs for breakfast.
Add greens to your smoothie. A banana, some berries, and a handful of almonds are ingredients for a super healthy smoothie, but you can up the nutritional ante by adding a cup of spinach or a kale leaf to the blender. Low-calorie greens add fiber, iron, calcium, and protein, and when they're ground up with fruit and yogurt, your taste buds will never even know they're there. If you don't believe me, try this Peachy Keen smoothie featuring spinach.

Continue reading for more healthy breakfast tips.

6 Little Instant Health Boosts

Prevention — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 14:42:05 PDT

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Prevention here on FitSugar!

Minor moves that offer major benefits for your mind and body
By Alyssa Shaffer, Prevention

Brush and Floss
Health boost: Cut risk of head and neck cancer by 400 Percent

Take good care of your smile and you'll have more than just white teeth to show for it. New research from Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, NY, shows that people with the chronic gum disease periodontitis have a fourfold risk of developing a type of head or neck cancer (which makes up about 5 percent of all malignancies in the United States), especially in the mouth and throat. The risk was increased even among patients who never used tobacco. Gum disease occurs when the bacteria that live in plaque infect the gums, so brush and floss regularly to prevent plaque buildup.

16 Amazingly Easy Ways to Dramatically Improve Well-being

Hide Your TV Remote
Health boost: Whittle 2 inches from your belly

When switching TV stations, put down the remote, get up, and do it manually. An Australian study found that people who did the greatest amount of light activity during otherwise sedentary behavior, such as watching TV, had 16 percent smaller waist circumferences than those who were inclined to stay put. Even the simple act of getting up and walking around for a minute or so was enough to make a difference, regardless of whether they had a regular workout schedule.

They also had lower body mass indexes and triglyceride and glucose levels, all of which are associated with a reduced risk of metabolic syndrome. More ways to break up an otherwise inactive day: Stand up every time the phone rings at your desk; take the long way back to your desk after a bathroom break; do some stretches before reading a new e-mail.

Super Secrets For a Trim Tummy

Doodle During Work Meetings
Health boost: Improve memory by 29 Percent

People who doodled while listening to a recorded message had nearly one-third better recall of the details than those who didn't draw, according to a study published in the journal Applied Cognitive Psychology. "Doodling acts as a buffer against daydreaming," explains researcher Jackie Andrade, PhD, a professor in the School of Psychology at the University of Plymouth in England. "It provides just enough distraction to stop you from drifting off, but you can still focus on what is being said."

Find more ways to boost your health after the break.

Brendan Brazier Shared His Secrets to Optimum Health, Energy, and Youth

Anna Monette Roberts — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 03:41:27 PDT

Beyond being a professional triathlon competitor, Brendan Brazier has covered his nutritional bases. Brendan's the creator of the "Thrive Diet," a nutritional plan to improve performance and recovery and has developed Vega shakes, a line of nutrient rich vegan protein shakes. He regularly tours the US to give speeches about how to have optimal health. The author of two books, Brendan will release Thrive Foods: 200 Plant-Based Recipes for Peak Health on Sept. 6. While on the road, Brendan talked to us about his favorite foods, how he stays young, and how to have abundant energy.

FitSugar: What is one food that you crave for every meal?
Brendan Brazier: I like greens – anything high in minerals and chlorophyll, like kale, spinach, broccoli, algae, and spirulina. Greens are highly alkaline-forming, which helps reduce inflammation. For an athlete, that's huge. Green are high in protein too, but a lot of people don't know that dark greens are 45 percent protein. Some algae is up to 65 percent protein.

FS: Do you have any guilty pleasures when it comes to food?
BB: I really don't. I've eaten this way for so long that my palate really does crave greens and good stuff. Once in a while I'll have some brown rice, which is not bad at all, but when you compare the nutrient density to other things like greens, it is less nutrient dense.

The Paleo Diet: Are Our Ancestors the Key to Weight Loss?

Michele Foley — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 14:57:57 PDT

The Paleo Diet, or Caveman Diet, is gaining momentum in the fitness world as a healthy way to lose weight. My trainer is all about the Paleo Diet - a meal plan based on the dietary habits of our Paleolithic, cave-dwelling ancestors. We're talking wild game, meat, and seafood, and vegetables, fruit, seeds, and nuts. What you won't find as part of the Paleo Diet are foods that developed during the agricultural and industrial eras like grains, dairy, legumes, refined sugars, and any other processed foods.

Given the Paleo Diet's low-carb leanings, it makes sense that it's gaining popularity as an effective way to lose weight. On the calorie meter, protein, vegetables, and fruit give a lot of bang for the buck, and the elimination of grains, refined sugars, and legumes can dramatically drop a person's daily calorie intake. The big question is whether or not the Paleo Diet is healthy and can be sustained for the long run.

Keep reading to find out if the Paleo Diet is a healthy solution to weight loss.

Orange Juice vs. Oranges

Heather Dale — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 12:17:00 PDT

Are you a sucker for a morning glass of orange juice? Or do you prefer to eat an orange instead? Oranges are packed with vitamin C, the little miracle vitamin that helps protect against immune system deficiencies and cardiovascular disease.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommends a daily intake of 75mg of vitamin C each day for women, and 90 mg per day for men. To get an idea of how much that actually is, a medium sized orange contains 69.7 mg of vitamin C, whereas a cup of orange juice provides 97 mg of vitamin C. But overall, which is better? Eating an orange or drinking orange juice?

Pros of Orange Juice

Orange juice can help undo the damage of an unhealthy meal on your body by counteracting the inflammatory effects. This is attributed to the fact that oranges have more than 60 flavonoid antioxidants. Eating a regular orange also provides this health benefit, but it's more likely people will drink a glass of orange juice after a meal, rather than eat an orange.

For more on how juice and oranges compare keep reading.