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Dark Chocolate Lowers Blood Pressure

FitSugar — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 10:30:00 PDT

I don't know about you, but I really do love chocolate and rarely need an excuse to indulge. Since there is new research suggesting that dark chocolate (my favorite) helps lower blood pressure I might not need to rationalize my small indulgences any longer.

German scientists found that eating a tiny square of dark chocolate every night before bed, lowered blood pressure. I just want to reiterate, that it is a "tiny square" of dark chocolate, not an entire bar of chocolate. Participants in the study ate one square -- 6.3 grams and 30 calories -- of a Ritter Sport Halbbitter, which is 50 percent cacao, every day for 18 weeks. The cool thing about this new study is that participants ate regular, ol' dark chocolate not some fancy pants, scientifically distilled, flavonoid enhanced cocoa.

It is thought that chocolate lowers blood pressure when cocoa flavanols spur the release of nitric oxide, which dilates blood vessels and increases blood flow. I think it is super cool that my chocolate fix is helping to keep my blood pressure regulated. I think it is important to mention, when dealing with high blood pressure, chocolate may help but it is not the only answer. It is just one element folks can use to manage hypertension.

Source

6 Smells That Boost Your Health In Surprising Ways

Prevention — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 04:11:50 PST

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

Certain scents can help memory, mood, energy, and libido
By: Sarah Mahoney, Prevention

Did you know that the human sense of smell can identify thousands of aromas and is 10,000 times more precise than our sense of taste?

We have millions of smell receptors in our noses. When they detect a scent, they shoot the information to the olfactory bulb - a pea-size cluster in the brain, which sorts the signals and relays them to the limbic system. This primitive part of the brain governs many memories and emotions; some of our most basic behaviors - feeding, fighting, or fleeing; as well as sexual arousal, pleasure, and maybe even addiction. Because of their close proximity, the neurological controls for these behaviors often become entangled. That's why, for instance, during the early stages of attraction, dinner is often a prelude to sex.

It also explains how odor can help
lower stress levels, improve mental and physical performance, ease pain, end insomnia, and even help us lose weight, research shows. Here’s how to use your sense of smell to your advantage.

To Resist a Snack Attack
Sniff: Green Apple or Another Favorite Scent
A fragrance you love can help manage cravings, according Alan Hirsch, MD, founder of the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago. In one study, Hirsch gave overweight people banana, green apple, and peppermint to sniff when they felt a craving; they lost more weight than non-sniffers.
Try this: Keep a bottle of a favorite scent handy throughout the day and try sniffing instead of snacking.

To Calm Down
Sniff: Orange or Lavender
In an Austrian study, researchers wafted the smell of oranges before some participants and lavender before others. The two groups felt less anxious, more positive, and calmer, compared with participants who were exposed to no fragrance at all.
Try this: Add a few drops of either oil to a room diffuser and use in your office on stressful days.

Learn more soothing scents after the break.

Weight Loss Tips: 10 Ways to Increase Your Metabolism

Shape — Thu, 26 May 2011 04:10:35 PDT

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar.

Weight Loss Tip #1: Maximize Your Muscle - Muscles are fat-burning furnaces, so be sure to do enough resistance training to build and maintain them (these fast workouts tone your whole body in 30 minutes), and follow your workout with a healthy meal or snack that contains protein, carbohydrates and fat. Building new muscle raises your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) so you'll burn more calories every day.

Weight Loss Tip #2: Don't Forget Cardio - Cardio improves definition and burns the fat that covers your muscles, especially belly fat. Combining regular aerobic exercise with strength training will give you the slimming effect you've been going for. After all, toning without cardio is like building a house on a weak foundation. Blast calories with these 20-minute cardio workouts from celebrity trainer Jackie Warner.

Weight Loss Tip #3: Never Skip Meals - Eat six small meals a day to avoid blood-sugar spikes and minimize urges to binge. Try to schedule meals at the same time each day. If you feed yourself well throughout the day, you'll learn to understand when your body truly needs food. You can't starve yourself and expect to make good choices at the next meal. Need a few healthy lunch ideas? Check out these top food swaps from a nutritionist.

See the rest of the tips after the break!

Could Birth Control Pills Be Hurting Your Sex Drive?

FitSugar — Fri, 07 May 2010 03:00:30 PDT

Attention users of the pill: according to a new study, women who use hormonal contraceptives are at a higher risk for sexual problems. The German study, published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, evaluated over 1,000 women using various birth control methods; the pill, the ring, and condoms were most popular. Most of the women involved in the study were in a stable, monogamous relationship for at least six months. Researchers found that nearly 33 percent of the women were at risk for female sexual dysfunction, including lack of orgasm, desire, satisfaction, arousal and lubrication.

Women using nonhormonal contraceptives experienced the least dysfunction. Women using non-oral hormonal contraceptives - like the ring- were at highest risk, followed closely by those using oral hormonal contraceptives. Researchers can't explain the exact connection between hormonal contraception and dysfunction, but cite one possibility: oral contraceptives have been found to reduce circulating levels of androgens, perhaps leading to low circulating levels of testosterone, the hormone needed to trigger desire.

How do you feel about this study? Do the findings mirror your experiences with birth control?

That Chocolate Bunny Could Lower Your Blood Pressure

FitSugar — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 10:00:25 PDT

Don't be shy about nibbling at the ears of a chocolate bunny this Easter, because researchers have just given us another reason to eat this sweet treat. (Don't you love it when that happens?) Based on a study of 20,000 patients ages 35 to 65, scientists found that those who consumed more chocolate had a lower risk of heart attack and stroke, leading to the conclusion that a small amount of chocolate daily could help control your blood pressure.

We've already heard that dark chocolate has a similar effect, while also reducing stress and boosting the immune system. This study included milk, white, and dark chocolate - though researchers still say dark chocolate probably has the most health benefits. For further details of the study,

It's not entirely clear how the researchers were able to determine that it was chocolate that made the difference; Brian Buijsse of the German Institute of Human Nutrition says that more studies are needed. However, he adds, "a future recommendation could be that if people eat a small amount of chocolate, they can replace it for something else, maybe leaving out a snack or another sweet."

What is a small amount? Based on the study, the benefits were highest when people ate about a quarter of an ounce of chocolate daily - basically, a bite of a chocolate bar. So nibble those bunny ears, but don't eat the whole bunny.

Source: Flickr User SpecialKolin

The Creator Of The Modern Fridge Turns 165

partysugar — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 01:31:19 PDT

Let's all give a celebratory happy birthday to Carl Paul Gottfried Linde! Although you may not know who this German engineer was, your daily life is indeed affected by him. Born in 1842, Linde developed a process to liquefy gases that lead to the creation of the modern refrigerator. After his research and proposal for the technology of refrigeration was published in a Bavarian Industry & Trade Journal, he was approached by Europe's top breweries that were investigating ways of maintaining beer's temperature for longer periods of time. In 1873, the first fridge was installed and declared a huge success. Linde continued his studies and variations on his ideas are still practiced today. So when you open your fridge today remember Linde, without him who knows how beer - or anything else - would have been kept cold!