FitSugar

Analyze This: Nutrition Data Recipe Feature

FitSugar — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 08:00:00 PDT

If you have a recipe that you've followed for years, but are not quite sure how it stacks up nutritionally or calorically, then I have an answer to your query - or at least a website for you to check out. One of my favorite healthy eating sites, Nutrition Data just created a new feature for analyzing recipes. After entering your ingredients by pulling them from the website's database of food, Nutrition Data creates a very complete analysis of the recipe, from fat content to sodium content and everything in between.

I just analyzed my recipe for Potato Salad with Cornichon and Capers. While the recipe is high in vitamin C, it is also very high in sodium. Darn those salty capers and pickles! If you have the time, because looking up all the ingredients for a recipe can be a bit time consuming, this is a fun and useful tool. After analyzing my potato salad, I am going to decrease the salt and double rinse the capers and cornichons.

Eating White Rice Increases Your Risk of Diabetes, Study Says

Leta Shy — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 13:32:41 PDT

Chances are you already know to avoid those high-carb, low-nutrition white foods like white potatoes, rice, and bread. A new report from Harvard released this week further confirms that regularly eating white rice is not a good idea. The study, published in the British Medical Journal, found that each serving of white rice you eat a day increases your risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 11 percent.

The researchers reviewed data from 352,000 participants, including major studies in Asian populations, where participants ate up to four servings of white rice a day (compared to only one or two servings a week in Western countries). The results of the review found that those who ate the most rice increased their risk of developing diabetes by one and a half times, and in general each 5.5-ounce serving of white rice they ate increased their risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 11 percent.

Numerous studies have already shown that white breads, pastas, and rice lead to a spike in blood sugar levels, which is a risk factor for developing type 2 diabetes. And since white rice is rapidly digested, you'll be more apt to be hungrier sooner (and therefore overeat) if your meal includes a big bowl of the grain. The new finding isn't a reason to avoid all your favorite white foods altogether, but a reminder that regularly choosing more nutritious foods like whole grain bread and pasta or brown rice helps not only keep you full but also reduces your risk of developing chronic disease. Ready to ditch the rice? Here are five grains you should be cooking with instead.

Can Diet Soda Make You Fat?

Shape — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 04:34:20 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar. This week Shape turns to nutritional consultant Mike Roussell, PhD, for some help!

Q: I'm a Diet Coke junkie. Despite having 0 calories, could this habit be sabotaging my weight-loss efforts?

A: In a word: no. While drinking diet soda every day isn't exactly good for your health, the chances of it sabotaging your weight-loss efforts are slim. The common misconception regarding the role of diet soda and weight gain comes from a couple of studies that received a lot of media attention. One such study looked at more 6,500 participants and found that diet soda drinkers were 67 percent more likely to have diabetes and 37 percent more likely to have metabolic syndrome (a combo of symptoms that is basically where pre-diabetes meets heart disease). What's more, data from the Framingham Heart Study, the longest running heart disease study in the US, found a 56-percent increase in metabolic syndrome when people drank one or more diet sodas per day!

Find out how diet soda affects weight gain after the break!

10 Ways to Keep Your Running - and Your Motivation - Strong

Shape — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 13:34:03 PDT

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

Sign Up for a Race - Nothing gets you motivated like a deadline. Some favorite races: Skirt Chasers, in which women get a 3-minute head start before the men are let loose; New York's Fun Run and Happy Hour, which features post-race drink specials; and the Zooma Half Marathon & 10K series, which includes post-race shopping, massages, and wine. Check out active.com for races near you.
Hit the Bars - Pre-run: Grab an energy bar (we've picked the tastiest) so you have the fuel to run your best. Post-run: Toss back a beer. Research conducted at Granada University in Spain shows that a pint of beer, post-workout, rehydrates the body better than water. The carbs replace lost calories and researchers believe the sugars and salts may help the body absorb fluids more quickly.
Get Your Perfect Training Plan (Free!) - The right training plan helps you feel ready at the start and lets you finish strong. Go the distance - happily - with our 12-week, 5K training plan for beginners.
Ease Your Knees - Runners have a decreased risk of osteoarthritis, the most common type of arthritis, according to a National Health and Nutrition Examination survey. Running increases oxygen flow and flushes out toxins resulting in healthier cartilage and stronger ligaments around the knee. Already have knee pain? Find out how to nix it with these three moves.

See more tips after the break!

Why You Might Feel Lousy When You Lose Weight

Shape — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 16:37:21 PDT

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar. This week Shape turns to Cynthia Sass, a registered dietitian with master's degrees in both nutrition science and public health.

I've had a private practice for a long time, so I've coached many people on their weight-loss journeys. Sometimes they feel fantastic as the pounds drop off, as though they're on top of the world and have energy through the roof. But some people struggle with what I call weight-loss backlash, the physiological and psychological side effects of weight loss that are powerful enough to make you feel downright miserable. Here are three you may encounter (do they sound familiar?) and how to get through the rough patch.

Toxin Release
According to research published in the International Journal of Obesity, environmental pollutants trapped in fat cells are released back into the bloodstream when you lose weight. The data collected from 1,099 adults looked at blood concentrations of six pollutants as people lost weight. Compared to those who reported gaining weight over a 10-year period, those who had lost significant pounds had 50-percent higher levels of pollutants in their blood. Scientists say the release of these chemicals as body fat is lost may account for feeling ill as you shrink your shape.
Advice:
This study highlights why it's particularly important to eat a "clean" diet that boosts immunity and optimizes health as you lose weight. In my experience, low-calorie diets comprised of processed foods or ultra-low carb diets that omit antioxidant rich fruits and whole grains can add to feelings of sluggishness or symptoms like headaches and irritability. My best advice is to eat on a regular schedule to give your body consistency, which plays a major role in regulating hormones, and focus on the quality of your food by building meals made from nutrient-rich balanced portions of veggies, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins, plant-based fats, and antioxidant-rich seasonings.

See how to cope with the other negative side effects of weight loss after the break!

5 Alternatives to Google Health

Kristy Korcz — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 10:47:16 PDT

Bad news, health nuts: Google Health is being discontinued. Although we loved the free online feature that allowed you to organize, track, and share important health and fitness information in a central place, granting access to doctors, family pharmacists, or others who should be privy to your health history, Google says the program just wasn't catching on and will be discontinued next January. If you were a fan of the site, or are just looking for a place to track and store health and fitness information, check out these five alternatives to get in on now.

WebMD - Not just a place to see what that ache in your back can mean, WebMD offers up a food and fitness tracker so you can monitor your weight, calorie intakes, and even gives you recommendations on food and exercise times based on your goals.
BabyCenter - Expecting moms can get a ton of information on this site, which offers up calendars and trackers to help you through your entire pregnancy and beyond.
The Carrot - This site can help you monitor your fitness, nutrition, and medical data for a holistic view of your overall health. Plus, you can add or remove trackers to fit your lifestyle.

See the rest of the list after the break.

5 Reasons Your Diet May Be Failing You

Michele Bell — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 04:00:00 PST

Having trouble losing those five pounds you've been swearing off since the start of the new year? While you may be working tirelessly to rid yourself of that last pesky weight, you may be duping your own body into failure without even knowing it. Come check out these five reasons why you may not be meeting your weight loss goal.

Your H20 level: Are you drinking enough water? You may not be getting enough to keep your body burning the calories and fat you've been trying to get rid of. Keeping hydrated will help you to keep your metabolism going and the calories burning.
Don't forget breakfast: While you don't need to load up on flapjacks and sausage, you should eat a healthy breakfast to get your day started. If you get going without any fuel in the tank, your tummy may trick you into snacking on the wrong things or eating an over-sized lunch.
Empty calorie sips: Check the nutritional data on your coffee or sodas to make sure you're not taking down too many empty calories. An easy fix? Switch to plain old water. See point number one!

Ready to see points four and five? Just

Sneaky snacks: If you grab for a "low-fat" snack every time your stomach rumbles, you may be doing your waistline a disservice. Sometimes low-fat snacks can still be high in calories or sugar. Before you reach for that pack of "healthy" yogurt pretzels, consider an apple or one of these simple low-calorie treats.
Eating too little: Say what? Yes, it's true. Sometimes limiting yourself to too small portions can lead to too much snacking between said meal times. Also restricting yourself from eating what you are really craving can sometimes mean eating a substitute that may not be as bad for you but could be wrecking your diet plans. It is sometimes better to have a bite or two of the real deal than to splurge on a substitute instead.

Android's Absolute Fitness App Is For Absolute Fitness Freaks

GeekSugar — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 13:15:05 PST

There are plenty of fitness websites and iPhone apps to go around, but what about your Android phone? I think I've come across an app that will satisfy the fitness elite, as well as those of us who are just now getting off our butts and following through on our New Year's resolutions to get fit.

Called Absolute Fitness ($5), this app has everything you need to get (and keep) your nutrition and fitness on track - food and calorie tracker, exercise log, and charts and graphs to track your progress, sleep patterns, and water intake. Additionally, Absolute Fitness will send you alerts if it notices that you've had too much of a good thing (like salt or fat) or aren't taking in enough water to stay hydrated. You can even export the data to a spreadsheet for serious analysis by your doctor. If you're making health a priority this year, this app may be worth the dough.

With Teen Obesity, Inactivity Is Only Part of the Problem

FitSugar — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:32:46 PST

I panic every time I see another "exercise doesn't work!" story - until I read between the lines and learn once again that exercise is a good thing. On the heels of its conversation-starting cover story on the exercise "myth," Time is tackling a new study of teen obesity that claims inactivity is only partly to blame for heavier kids.

Obesity rates in teenagers have triple between 1976 and 2004, with lack of exercise the suspected culprit. But a new report published in Obesity Reviews says that physical activity levels among teens have actually stayed fairly steady. So does that mean that exercise doesn't matter? Hardly, so

Unfortunately, this latest study only looked at activity levels, not eating habits, and the participants were self-reporting on their own habits, which can lead to unreliable data. These figures merely suggest that the increase in teen obesity can't be explained away by teens' lack of exercise, according to Dr. Youfa Wang, the lead author of the study. Here's more:

So does this mean that exercise isn't important in controlling weight? As tempting as that conclusion might be, Wang and other health experts say that's not exactly what the new data show. . . . While exercise may not contribute directly to weight loss, it is critical for maintaining a healthy weight, since it helps calibrate the balance between energy taken in and energy burned off. "The data is too gross, and too general, to assume that [exercise doesn't count]," warns Dr. Janet Walberg Rankin, a professor in the department of human nutrition, foods, and exercise at Virginia Tech. "We need to have a dual approach to weight involving both activity and diet. I would hate for people to take away from this study that activity has nothing to do with weight."

Phew! Thanks, doc. I also hope that's not what people take away from this study. In fact, to me, it says the opposite. If teen obesity is going up because teens have increased their calorie intake without increasing their activity levels, then that seems to say pretty clearly that exercise does make a difference. Do you agree?

Looking to Move? Try Burlington, VT

FitSugar — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 09:00:13 PDT

After looking at the 100 largest metropolitan areas in America, Burlington, VT, came out on top as Self magazine's "fittest, healthiest, and happiest" city to live in for women. The magazine studied almost 8,000 different pieces of data in 50 categories and consulted a panel of experts to come up with its rankings. Information factored into the creation of this list includes rates of diseases, air quality, unemployment statistics, and health habits such as exercise and smoking.

The New England city boasts some of the lowest rates of cervical and ovarian cancer deaths in the country, and healthy habits prevail: women walk to work regularly and don't smoke. Where Burlington really shines is in nutrition and food - the city has six times as many food co-ops than the national average, and its farmers markets accept food stamps.

What to see how your hometown fared? Check out the entire ranking here.