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Tuesday, March 20, 2007

High-fat diet increases breast cancer risk

From correspondents in New York
March 21, 2007 09:42am
Article from: Reuters

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A STUDY of middle-age women with a wide range of fat in their diet shows that eating a high-fat diet raises the risk of developing invasive breast cancer.
The findings, reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, stem from the National Institutes of Health-AARP Diet and Health Study, in which 188,736 postmenopausal women reported detailed information on their diet in the mid-1990s.
During an average follow-up of 4.4 years, 3501 women developed breast cancer.
Based on responses to a 124-item "food frequency" questionnaire, researchers found that women who got 40 percent of their calories from fat had about a 15 percent increased risk of developing breast cancer compared with women got 20 percent of their calories from fat.
Using a more precise 24-hour dietary recall questionnaire, "we found a 32-percent increased risk of breast cancer" among women with a high level of fats in their diet, study chief Dr. Anne C. M. Thiebaut from the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland said.
The increased risk of breast cancer associated with a high-fat diet was seen for all types of fat (saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) and seemed to be confined to women who were not using hormone replacement therapy at the start of the study.
The suggestion that hormone therapy mediates the association between dietary fat intake and risk of breast cancer should be studied further, the authors suggest.
Ms Thiebaut noted that "other studies have also found these associations; the higher the fat intake, the higher your risk for breast cancer."
Nonetheless, there is ongoing debate about the association between dietary fat and the risk of breast cancer, she said.
In a commentary on the study, two researchers from Harvard School of Public Health in Boston think that focusing on controlling body fat, rather than fat intake, would be more effective in preventing breast cancer.
The "modest associations" that have been observed between high-fat diets and increased breast cancer risk "stand in sharp contrast to the robust evidence for a strong link between (body fat) and the risk of postmenopausal breast cancer," write Drs. Stephanie Smith-Warner and Meir Stampfer.

Stanford Diet Study Tips Scale in Favor of Atkins Plan

STANFORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The case for low-carbohydrate diets is gaining weight. Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have completed the largest and longest-ever comparison of four popular diets, and the lowest-carbohydrate Atkins diet came out on top.
Of the more than 300 women in the study, those randomly assigned to follow the Atkins diet for a year not only lost more weight than the other participants, but also experienced the most benefits in terms of cholesterol and blood pressure.
“Many health professionals, including us, have either dismissed the value of very-low-carbohydrate diets for weight loss or been very skeptical of them,” said lead researcher Christopher Gardner, PhD, assistant professor of medicine at the Stanford Prevention Research Center. “But it seems to be a viable alternative for dieters.”
The results will be published in the March 7 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The 311 pre-menopausal, non-diabetic, overweight women in the study were randomly assigned to follow either the Atkins, Zone, LEARN or Ornish diet. Researchers chose the four diets to represent the full spectrum of low- to high-carbohydrate diets.
The Atkins diet, popularized by the 2001 republication of Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution, represents the lowest carbohydrate diet. The Zone diet, also low-carbohydrate, focuses on a 40:30:30 ratio of carbohydrates to protein to fat, a balance said to minimize fat storage and hunger. The LEARN (Lifestyle, Exercise, Attitudes, Relationships and Nutrition) diet follows national guidelines reflected in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s food pyramid—low in fat and high in carbohydrates. The Ornish diet, based on bestseller Eat More, Weigh Less by Dean Ornish, is very high in carbohydrates and extremely low in fat.
Study participants in all four groups attended weekly diet classes for the first eight weeks of the study and each received a book outlining the specific diet to which they were assigned. For the remaining 10 months of the study, the women’s weight and metabolism were regularly checked, and random phone calls monitored what they were eating.
One of the strengths of the $2 million study was that this setup mimicked real-world conditions, Gardner said. Women in the study had to prepare or buy all their own meals, and not everyone followed the diets exactly as the books laid out, just as in real life.
At the end of a year, the 77 women assigned to the Atkins group had lost an average of 10.4 pounds. Those assigned to LEARN lost 5.7 pounds, the Ornish followers lost 4.8 pounds and women on the Zone lost 3.5 pounds, on average. In all four groups, however, some participants lost up to 30 pounds.
After 12 months, women following the Atkins diet, relative to at least one of the other groups, had larger decreases in body mass index, triglycerides and blood pressure; their high-density lipoprotein, the good kind of cholesterol, increased more than the women on the other diets.
Gardner has several ideas for why the Atkins diet had the overall best results. The first is the simplicity of the diet. “It’s a very simple message,” he said. “Get rid of all refined carbohydrates to lose weight.” This message directly targets a major concern with the American diet right now—the increasing consumption of refined sugars in many forms, such as high-fructose corn syrup.
Beyond pinpointing this high sugar intake, the Atkins diet does the best at encouraging people to drink more water, said Gardner. And when people replace sweetened beverages with water, they don’t generally eat more food; they simply consume fewer calories over the course of the day.
The third theory Gardner offered as to why the Atkins diet was more successful is that it is not just a low-carbohydrate diet, but also a higher protein diet. “Protein is more satiating than carbohydrates or fats, which may have helped those in the Atkins group to eat less without feeling hungry,” he said.
Although the Atkins group led in terms of the average number of pounds lost, this group also gained back more weight in the second half of the study than those in the three other groups. Gardner also noted that the women in the Atkins group had lost an average of almost 13 pounds after six months, but ended the one-year period with a final overall average loss of 10 pounds.
Though critics of low-carbohydrate diets say that such diets can lead to health problems, none of the factors measured in this study was worse for the Atkins group. Gardner cautions, however, that there are potential long-term health problems that could not have been identified in a 12-month study. Also, several basic vitamins and minerals can be difficult to get in adequate amounts from a very-low-carbohydrate diet.
In the long run, Gardner hopes to use the large data set generated in this study to investigate why different diets might work better for different people. “We’re trying to see if we can learn more about the factors that predict success and failure with weight loss,” he said.
Regardless of what new insights are revealed, Gardner said the message he hopes people take from the study is the importance of eliminating from their diet, as much as possible, refined carbohydrates such as white bread and soda.
Gardner’s co-authors were Alexandre Kiazand, MD, postdoctoral scholar; Sofiya Alhassan, PhD, postdoctoral scholar; Soowon Kim, PhD, data analyst; Randall Stafford, MD, PhD, associate professor of medicine; Raymond Balise, PhD, statistical programmer; Helena Kraemer, PhD, professor of biostatistics; and Abby King, PhD, professor of health research and policy and of medicine.
The work was supported by the National Institutes of Health, and a grant from the Community Foundation of Southeastern Michigan.
Stanford University Medical Center integrates research, medical education and patient care at its three institutions — Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford Hospital & Clinics and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford. For more information, please visit the Web site of the medical center’s Office of Communication & Public Affairs at http://mednews.stanford.edu.
Contacts
Stanford University Medical CenterSusan Ipaktchian, 650-725-5375 (Print Media)susani@stanford.eduM.A. Malone, 650-723-6912 (Broadcast Media)mamalone@stanford.edu

Moms, Don't Take Your Vitamins

New research that shows women who take prenatal vitamins during pregnancy can increase the susceptibility of obesity in their children.
Atlanta, GA, March 19, 2007 --(PR.COM)-- The number of overweight children has doubled in the past 25 years. Now, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 30 percent of children are overweight or obese. Carrie Lauth (www.naturalmomstalkradio.com) and Susun Weed the author of Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year discussed the relatively new research that shows women who take prenatal vitamins during pregnancy, can increase the susceptibility of obesity in their children. “Pregnant women are exposed to hundreds of compounds in foods, prenatal vitamins and the environment that could potentially methylate susceptible genes,” pronounced Randy Jirtle, Ph.D. professor of radiation oncology and senior author of the study. “The effects of each compound could be beneficial or detrimental, depending upon the timing of exposure, the dose and the tissue exposed.” Today’s busy lifestyles and vast economic differences can have a profound effect on the foods that pregnant women choose to eat. Some women may be too busy to stop and take the time to prepare healthy meals for themselves, while others do not have the luxury of buying the best nutritional foods available, so these same women are turning to vitamin and mineral supplements as a substitute. Susan also told Carrie about a research in Australia where women who took calcium supplements doubled their risk of breaking bones. Rob Waterland, Ph.D., a research fellow in the Jirtle laboratory and lead author of the study says, "Diet, nutritional supplements and other seemingly innocuous compounds can alter the development in utero to such an extent that it changes the offspring's characteristics for life, and potentially that of future generations. Nutritional epigenetics could, for example, explain the differences between genetically identical twins, or the disparities in the incidence of stroke between the South and the North. The possibilities are endless." Are you taking supplements as a substitute for nutritious food? Pregnant women are misinformed about vitamin and mineral supplements, and rather then eating a proper diet they are using supplements as a crutch that leads them to believe that it’s okay to eat those “junk” foods. Carrie Lauth pronounces, "The bottom line is that women in their childbearing years need to focus on whole foods, not gimmicky diets or supplements. Real food is the best insurance." About Natural Moms Talk Radio: Carrie Lauth is a homeschooling mom to 4 young children. For the past 5 years she voluntarily provided her services to the community as a breastfeeding counselor and educator. Carrie led breastfeeding classes that taught how childbirth choices impact breastfeeding outcomes, how Moms could improve their family's eating habits, and helping Moms, one on one, to overcome their breastfeeding challenges. Carrie loves to discuss all aspects of natural parenting, and she is an avid reader who keeps up with current lactational science and continues to attend parenting and breastfeeding conferences regularly. For more information on Natural Moms Talk Radio, contact Carrie Lauth at 770-356-9980 or visit her website http://www.naturalmomstalkradio.com###
Contact Information
Natural Moms Talk RadioCarrie Lauth770-356-9980carrie@carrielauth.comwww.NaturalMomsTalkRadio.comAddress: 4930 N Wexford Rd Atlanta GA 30349E-mail: carrie@naturalmomstalkradio.com

Dairy-Free Website Introduces Monthly Natural Food Prize

Las Vegas, NV, March 16, 2007 --(PR.COM)-- The informational website, www.GoDairyFree.org has launched a monthly prize giveaway within their line up of new offerings. Each month one newsletter subscriber is chosen at random to receive a gift package from the sponsoring food company. All prizes are dairy-free, and many are also vegan, gluten-free, kosher certified, and/or food allergy friendly. “Our goal is to provide dairy-free, vegan, and special diet consumers with as many great food options as possible. We thought monthly prize giveaways would be a fun way to introduce some of the specialty food manufacturers,” said Alisa Fleming, the website’s founder and author of the book “Dairy Free Made Easy.” The March prize will be provided by Divvies, a producer of food allergy-friendly cupcakes, cookies, candy, and popcorn. Divvies’ product line is vegan, kosher certified, and free of dairy, eggs, tree nuts, and peanuts. Nonetheless, these Disney World approved treats will likely please all sweets cravings and partygoers, food allergy or not. The drawing for the Divvies prize will occur on March 19. If you do not enter in time, just use the coupon code DairyFree10 at www.Divvies.com to purchase any of their goodies at 10% off. Future monthly giveaways seem to be equally enticing. On tap for April is Namaste Foods (www.namastefoods.com), purveyors of gluten-free, dairy-free pasta and baking mixes. Their products are also vegan, kosher-certified, and free of several food allergens including soy, corn, and nuts. For May, NoNuttin’ Foods (www.nonuttin.com) of Canada will make a prize offering from among their selection of natural granola bars, snacks, and baking ingredients. The Go Dairy Free newsletter is sent out once per month with recipes, nutrition news, product reviews, and special offers. Visit www.GoDairyFree.org to register. Newsletter sign-up requires only a valid email address, so that the winner may be reached successfully. Go Dairy Free was created as a central resource for special diet consumers. Reader feedback, ratings, and comments are welcome throughout the website. "Dairy Free Made Easy," a limited run publication, is currently available to purchase directly from www.GoDairyFree.org, or via www.Amazon.com.###
Contact Information
Go Dairy FreeAlisa Fleming702 553-2150alisa@goadairyfree.orgwww.godairyfree.org

When Your Dog Puts on the Pounds - is a Diet Pill the Answer?

Haslemere, United Kingdom, February 24, 2007 --(PR.COM)-- Veterinarians* estimate that about 40 per cent of dogs in Europe are overweight, with about 10 per cent clinically obese. It seems Britain's increasing tendency towards being fat is spreading to man's best friend. Now there's even a drug to help dogs slim. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have recently licensed Slentrol, the first diet drug for dogs. This prescription drug will manage the obesity in dogs by reducing appetite and fat absorption to produce weight loss. Chris Jones, publisher of www.petclubuk.com, the fact packed information website that offers advice and tons of tips on how to keep your dog happy and healthy, says "The best form of medicine is the prevention of obesity rather than its treatment. Pet owners are killing their dogs with kindness; their excess weight is the result of too many snacks and treats. "The key to shifting the flab from around your hound is a light diet, backed by regular daily exercise. Treats should be given sparingly, and only as a reward for good behaviour." To help ensure that dogs live a healthy and contented life, PetClub UK recommends the latest generation of dog foods that not only provide lighter nutrition for overweight dogs but are formulated to support joint health. This is critical as dogs grow older and become more prone to being overweight. Berrimans Senior/Light Plus dog food, available to order online from www.petclubuk.com is recommended for the less active / older dog as extra care is required when your dog approaches their senior years. This product has a balance of omega 3 and omega 6 for healthy skin and glossy coat. It also contains Vetoxan which helps boosts and maintain a strong healthy immune system. PetClub UK's Chris Jones says; "Responsible feeding and regular exercise are absolute necessities if a dog's weight is to be kept at a healthy level. Much as we love our pets, and enjoy sharing our lives with them, dog owners need to understand that our friends' needs are very different to our own. "Owners of overweight dogs tend to be more concerned with the amount of food they offer than whether or not the dog is receiving a balanced diet. What is most important, however, is that your dog is given the right type of food." Visit www.petclubuk.com to join in forum discussions about overweight dogs and for a range of healthy dog foods including: Berrimans Senior/Light Plus - priced £30.86 15kg. The shop includes an innovative facility to set-up a convenient bi-weekly, weekly or monthly recurring order for frequently used products. About PetClub UK: www.petclubuk.com is a one-stop shop for pet lovers, packed with useful tools and resources in a vibrant and interactive environment. The website brings to the finger-tips of everyone who visits fact-laden animal profiles, guidance on health and dietary requirements and advisory articles on choosing the right pet and keeping it happy and healthy, as well as a section listing national and regional events for every type of pet. ###*Dr Alex German, MRCVS, from the Pet Obesity Clinic at the University of Liverpool. Note to Editors: For more PetClub UK articles about overweight dogs and nutrition, please visit the dogs information page. For further press information,
contact: Paul Joseph or Lindsay Stewart, Oakhurst Marketing. Tel: 01494 672260 or email: paul@oakhurstmarketing.com

Fitness Diet & Nutrition II Feature Package

The following feature package is a roundup of feature stories dealingwith fitness, diet and nutrition and is appropriate for special sectionsand for general use. For those receiving this copy via computer, thestories are easily identified by the initial word of the slug: "Fitness." This is the latest in a series of topical feature packages PRN will carryas part of its regular Feature News Service. Coming up in 2007 are featureson: Slug Date Travel & Leisure (Travel) March 22 Earth Day (Earth) March 27 Home & Garden III (Home) March 28 Fashion, Beauty & Bridal II, Proms (Fashion) March 29 Books & Authors II (Books) April 2 Fitness Diet & Nutrition II Feature Package
1. Seniors Enjoy Food and Life Again With Dental Implants, Regain Ability to Chew
2. A Different Kind of Sweet: Stevia Offers Healthy Alternative to Sweeteners
3. Empowerment Fitness(R) Joins with Reebok in the Fight Against Breast Cancer Offering a Free Motivational Audio for Participants in the 2007 Avon Walk for Breast Cancer 4. Fourth Annual Pilates Method Alliance(R) Pilates Day Features Legendary Teachers, Emphasizes Accessibility If you would like a copy of the complete schedule, or if you would careto comment, please call Fred Ferguson, ext. 1553, Angela Mendola-Panella,ext. 1528, or Steven Gosset, ext. 1568 at 800-832-5522. We welcomesuggestions. Copies of previous packages are available for the media.Feature packages and feature photos are also available on the PR NewswireWeb site, http://www.prnewswire.com/media. Photos that accompany releases are available via the PRN Photo Desk,888-776-6555, or via Newscom,http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/pub/search/search2?f=PRN%2fprnpub. Selectphotos are available via AP PhotoExpress, Presslink Online and AP PhotoArchive.

eDiets Branded Services Extends Reach Into Corporate Licensing

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., March 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Nutrio, theleading provider of nutrition, fitness and wellness applications andprograms for company websites, has changed its name to eDiets CorporateServices, effective immediately. The name change follows Nutrio'sacquisition in May 2006 by eDiets (http://www.ediets.com), the premier onlinediet, fitness and healthy living destination and signals a closerrelationship between divisions within the Company. The integration of Nutrio and eDiets has laid the foundation foradditional synergies and increased customer service capabilities such as:the ability to offer an eDiets branded program where appropriate, toprovide additional services such as live telephonic and chat support fromnutritionists and personal trainers, and to enhance programs with mealdelivery capabilities or video-learning tools. These new tools strengthenthe ability of eDiets Corporate Services to create interactive, client orco- branded health and diet programs for large organizations with onlineconsumers / members interested in weight loss and/or disease management.The online meal plans, fitness programs, interactive journals, nutritionaltools and educational content can be customized for the client andpersonalized for the user. eDiets' combination of nutritional expertise andonline support helps companies achieve healthy change and creates value byproviding innovative ways to improve the overall well-being of eDiets'customers, leading to greater loyalty, increased purchase frequency andincreased web traffic and session times. The new eDiets Corporate Services (http://www.edietscorporateservices.com) hasa roster of Fortune 500 clients including leaders in the food,pharmaceutical, health insurance, medical nutrition and fitness industries.These clients provide private-labeled, customized online service to overthree million of their members. In addition, eDiets Corporate Servicesworks with large healthcare organizations to distribute services tothousands of companies and their employees through their corporate wellnessinitiatives. These indirect clients of eDiets join a community of more thantwo million individuals throughout the country that have participateddirectly in one of eDiets' personalized online nutrition and fitnessprograms. According to Steve Rattner, president of eDiets, eDiets CorporateServices increases eDiets' customer base and allows the company to broadenits scope of services to help a greater number of people. "With eDietsCorporate Services, eDiets has earned the unique leadership position inboth the business-to- consumer and business-to-business diet and fitnessmarketplace," he said. "We can now give a greater number of people thepower to make decisions that will allow them to take control of their lifeand health, whether it is on their own or through their employer." About eDiets Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, FL, eDiets, Inc. (Nasdaq: DIET) is apremier online diet, fitness, and healthy living destination offeringprofessional advice, information, products and services to those seeking toimprove their health and longevity. In addition to offering more than 20personalized online nutrition and fitness programs and around-the-clockexpert and peer-based online support services, eDiets members enjoy directaccess to a wealth of professional advice, information, and motivation fromthe company's network of health industry experts in a variety of fields,including nutrition, fitness, and motivation, among others. Founded in 1996and with more than two million membership subscriptions sold to date,eDiets operates Web sites at http://www.eDiets.com, http://www.eFitness.com,http://www.eDietsExpress.com, http://www.edietscorporateservices.com andhttp://www.GleeMagazine.com, and publishes a family of industry-leading opt-inelectronic newsletters that reach millions of health-conscious consumersnationwide. Safe Harbor Statement Statements which are not historical in nature are forward-lookingstatements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks anduncertainties which could cause the actual results, performance orachievements of the Company to be materially different from those which maybe expressed or implied by such statements. These risks and uncertaintiesinclude the Company's significant investments in its technology to remaincompetitive with other online providers of healthy living and weight lossplans and the Company's inability to obtain sufficient and/or acceptableoutside financing (when and if required). Other risks and uncertaintiesinclude, among others, changes in general economic and business conditions,changes in product acceptance by consumers, a decline in the effectivenessof sales and marketing efforts, loss of market share and pressure on pricesresulting from competition, volatility in the advertising markets utilizedby the Company, the termination of contractual relationships with theCompany's brand partners which license certain brand components and otherproprietary information for the Company's subscription programs, regulatoryactions affecting the Company's marketing activities, and the outcome oflitigation pending against the Company. For additional informationregarding these and other risks and uncertainties associated witheDiets.com's business, reference is made to the Company's Annual Report onForm 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005, and other reports filedfrom time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Allforward-looking statements are current only as of the date on which suchstatements are made. The Company does not undertake any obligation topublicly update any forward-looking statements.
MEDIA CONTACT: Josh Gitelson RFBinder Partners for eDiets.com (781)455-8250 Josh.Gitelson@rfbinder.com
SOURCE eDiets

Heart Healthy Flax Seed May Also be Beneficial in Promoting a Better Mood

Heart Healthy Flax Seed May Also be Beneficial in Promoting a Better Mood

A recent scientific finding suggests that flax seeds can help with mood and depression and Greatplainsflax.com adds flax seed starter packages to its selection of golden omega flax seed products.
Littleton, CO (PRWEB) March 18, 2007 -- At the annual meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society in Budapest, Hungary Dr. Sarah M. Conklin, a postdoctoral scholar in the department of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine reported that omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, found in salmon and flax seed may affect parts of the brain related to emotion.
Conklin and her colleagues found in a study group of 55 participants that the volume of gray matter in the human brain, particularly the parts associated with mood, was proportional to the consumption of omega-3 fatty acids.
Previously, researchers had found that participants with lower blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids were more likely to be impulsive and have a negative outlook, while those with higher blood levels were more agreeable and less likely to report mild or moderate symptoms of depression.
Pound for pound flax seed contains more omega-3 fatty acids than any other natural source and contains about 3 times as much as an equivalent weight of salmon.
Numerous other new scientific findings have suggested that including flax seed in your daily diet may provide a number of other health benefits in addition to helping you start your day in a better mood. Researchers at St. Boniface's Canadian Centre for Agri-FoodResearch in Health and Medicine (CCARM) laboratory are currently investigating the possibility that flax seed may provide protective benefits for the heart. A recent scientific study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that including flaxseed in your diet could promote favorable ratios of omega fatty acids.
Omega-3 fatty acids, a type of polyunsaturated fat, have long been considered "good fats." There is growing scientific evidence that these fatty acids, in correct quantities and ratios to other fatty acids, can promote healthy heart function.
GreatPlainsFlax.com (http://www.greatplainsflax.com is one of the leading retailers of U.S. grown golden omega flax seed. Golden omega flax seed is a specific variant of flax seed touted for its golden nutty flavor and high omega-3 fatty acid content. GreatPlainsFlax, through its online website (http://www.greatplainsflax.com) sells golden omega flax seed that is over 99.9% pure and is some of the highest quality golden flax seed available on the internet.
"The word is out about this small and humble little seed. In the supermarkets you can see flax seed being added to everything from bread to cereal and even to orange juice", said John Schutt, president of GreatPlainsFlax. "We are positioning ourselves with the help of our, strategic marketing partner SlickRockWeb.com, to be readily visible on the internet and ready for the tremendous demand that we anticipate will occur for flax seed in the coming years", added John Schutt.
GreatPlainsFlax.com has recently added new pricing to its flax seed and has added convenient starter packages that include both flax seed and a flax seed grinder. Greatplainsflax continues to offer free shipping on all golden flax seed orders through their easy to use SSL secure shopping cart system. For more information on the benefits of flax seed and how to purchase our flax seed visit our website at www.greatplainsflax.com or call us at toll free at 1-866-834-7485.
About GreatPlainsFlax.comGreatPlainsFlax.com is one of the leading retailers of U.S. grown golden omega flax seed. GreatPlainsFlax through its online website (http://www.greatplainsflax.com) sells golden omega flax seed that is over 99.9% pure and is some of the highest quality golden flax seed available on the internet. For more information on the benefits of flax seed and how to purchase our flax seed visit our website at www.greatplainsflax.com or call us at toll free at 1-866-834-7485.
About SlickRockWeb.comSlickRockWeb (http://www.slickrockweb.com ) is a leading provider of affordable SEO, web development and ebusiness solutions, search engine optimization (SEO) services and ranking, web makeovers and custom designs, and online promotion web marketing strategies. SlickRockWeb brings you business one click at a time.
Contact:
John SchuttEmail: info @ greatplainsflax.comTel: 1-866-834-7485

Follow your own hunger cues to tailor diet

Follow your own hunger cues to tailor diet

Dr. Elizabeth SmootsHerald Columnist


You know the signs: Growling or rumbling in your stomach. Weakness or loss of energy. Slight headache or trouble concentrating. Irritability or crankiness.
Hunger symptoms like these will let you know when your body needs to be nourished - if you pay attention to them. They'll also let you know, based on when they go away, roughly when you've had enough to eat.
But not enough of us pay attention to these cues, diet experts say. As a result, the U.S. obesity epidemic continues to spiral out of control - two-thirds of us are now overweight. Since excess weight endangers the health of so many Americans, what can we do to get back in shape?
I recently attended a live Web cast sponsored by the American Academy of Family Physicians that proposed a different solution. The speaker, Dr. Michelle May, suggested that we let hunger tell us when and how much to eat. May is an adviser for the group's Americans in Motion fitness initiative and author of "Am I Hungry? What to Do When Diets Don't Work." Here's a summary of how to make healthier food and activity choices.
Instinctive eating
We're all born with the ability to manage our weight naturally without dieting, weighing or measuring, May said. Babies and children are the classic examples of instinctive eaters. And perhaps you know an adult who doesn't struggle with food and weight issues.
In that instinctive eater, the desire to eat is triggered by hunger, which signals when the body needs more fuel. This kind of eater will choose her food and eat until she's satisfied, then stop - even if there's food left on the plate. She then goes out and burns calories working, playing, exercising and living her daily life. Once the instinctive eater has used up her calories, she gets hungry again. She repeats the cycle several times a day, meeting her energy needs while maintaining a healthy body weight since she's eating based on hunger.
Overeating cycle
Many people who struggle with weight go through a different cycle. In this scenario, eating may be triggered by an external cue, such as time of day, food aromas or seeing other people eat. Sometimes, an emotional cue such as stress, boredom, loneliness, anger or sadness may trigger eating. In either case, the person is more likely to choose less-nutritious convenience or comfort foods than if she were eating based on hunger. She is also more likely to eat quickly, secretly or automatically - not really noticing what goes in her mouth.
Since hunger didn't tell her to start eating, what will tell her when to stop? Perhaps some external cue like an empty bag, or the physical discomfort of a very full stomach, will prompt her to quit. She may also feel lethargic and uninterested in exercise after overeating. So her body will store the excess calories as fat.
Eating without dieting
Diets are not working for most people, May said, because diets don't address why people are overeating in the first place. To make a real difference in long-term weight control, physical activity, nutrition and emotional well-being all have to be addressed.
"Weight management is about moving closer to instinctive eating again where you're in charge of your decisions," May says. How to get started? "Listen to your hunger signals so you can determine when to eat and how much food is right for you."
Contact Dr. Elizabeth Smoots, a board-certified family physician and fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians, at doctor@ practicalprevention.com. Her columns are not intended as a substitute for medical advice or treatment. Before adhering to any recommendations in this column consult your health care provider.
© 2007 Elizabeth S. Smoots.

The Diet Detective: Plan ahead so life’s stressers don’t derail your diet, exercise routine

The Diet Detective: Plan ahead so life’s stressers don’t derail your diet, exercise routine

By CHARLES STUART PLATKIN
Special to The State

During times of anxiety, people’s priorities tend to shift, and it’s not unusual for things like exercise and a healthy diet to seem less important.
We sometimes can avoid this kind of meltdown just by thinking ahead. Below are a few of the most common life changes that can bust up your diet and exercise program, as well as ways to fix the problems.
MOVING
Moving is stressful, and if you’re feeling overwhelmed, you might overeat or eat erratically. “And this is where an otherwise healthy meal plan gets derailed,” says registered dietitian D. Milton Stokes of the American Dietetic Association. If you’ve skipped a meal or two, when dinner comes around you might make up for it by breezing into the first fast-food joint you see and ordering a large size burger, fries and soda.
The fix: Before you move in, make sure the fridge is stocked with low-calorie frozen foods — they’re fast, simple and portion-controlled. Also, scout out restaurants and takeout places in the area weeks before you arrive; scour their menus for healthier options. Pick a few key dishes from each restaurant and verify their healthy preparation by calling ahead.
A NEW JOB
When you begin a new job, you need to adapt to new rules, a new boss, a new environment and new co-workers. Drastic changes can lead dieters to high-calorie foods as a source of comfort. Candy, cookies and other junk foods are quick and accessible, but they’re also full of empty calories.
Also, a new job might bring you closer to new, unhealthy food sources. Maybe there weren’t any bakeries near your previous office to tempt you, and now there’s one right on the corner. Or maybe your new boss treats everyone to bagels and muffins every Friday. You’ll have to establish new automatic behaviors to replace the ones that worked in the past.
The fix: Again, you need to scout out your new area. Gather up area takeout menus and take 15 minutes to contact a few about their healthy offerings. Highlight those and keep them in your desk drawer or locker. Don’t be shy about asking for healthful recommendations from your new co-workers — it’s a great way to break the ice.
Stokes recognizes that some new employees might fear appearing rude if they refuse office treats, especially those prepared by the boss. He suggests breaking the item in half for a smaller portion or simply taking it back to your office in a napkin for a stealthy discard.
With your new job, try to find new opportunities for physical activity. You can create new automatic habits, such as walking or biking to work, taking the stairs more and walking to see a co-worker instead of using the phone or e-mail.
LOSS (JOB, LOVED ONE, RELATIONSHIP, ETC. )
As devastating as a loss can be, it also can wreak havoc with your eating habits. For instance, if you lose a job and don’t find another one soon enough, despair and self-doubt can make the refrigerator your favorite companion.
The fix: Come up with comfort food alternatives and make sure to have them on hand (i.e., calorie bargains). A little preparation can keep both psychological triggers and biological responses to stress under control and prevent “comfort food” binges from ruining your weight-loss efforts.
And you never know, preparing low-cal comfort foods might just be a way of getting your mind off your loss. Make a big pot of healthy soup; bake some low-calorie muffins.
For a few examples of healthier comfort foods, see www.dietdetective.com/content/view/1123/158/
ILLNESS AND INJURY
Any issue that sets you back physically can create havoc with your normal activity level. If you stop your usual activities, it’s important to replace them with others. Any decline in your fitness level can, in and of itself, be detrimental to your physical and mental health. (Of course, there are always situations where rest is best.)
The fix: Even though you might have other things to discuss with your physician, it’s imperative to talk about your activity level. You also might want to seek the expert advice of a physical therapist. Explain your activity level, and make sure to get advice on how to maintain mobility during the healing process.
Charles Stuart Platkin is a nutrition and public health advocate and author of “The Diet Detective’s Count Down” (Simon & Schuster, 2007).

EAT BETTER SMARTER CHOICES

By : Sally Squires the Washington Post
Read past headlines on diet study
Put down your steak knife and stop salivating over the butter.Just because a new study finds that the Atkins diet doesn't appear to cause the heart disease once feared is no reason to celebrate by loading up on high-fat fare.
The take-home message isn't to "eat the steaks and the whipped cream, but the fish and the fiber," says Christopher Gardner, assistant professor of medicine at the Stanford Prevention Research Center and lead author of the report, which was published last week in the Journal of the American Medical Association.In case you missed the recent headlines, Gardner and his colleagues reported on a yearlong trial in overweight and obese women that compared four diets: the very low-carbohydrate Atkins approach; the Zone diet, a lower-carbohydrate regimen created by author Barry Sears; the very low-fat, mostly vegetarian plan by physician Dean Ornish; and a conventional reduced-calorie and low-fat approach developed by Kelly Brownell, director of Yale University's Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity. The $2 million study was funded by a grant from the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan and the National Institutes of Health.Women in the Atkins group had shed an average of 10 pounds by the end of the yearlong study. That's not a statistically significant difference from the six pounds lost by the conventional diet group, the five pounds for the Ornish plan and the four pounds for the Zone. As Gardner notes, all represent "just a modest amount of weight," and far less than most dieters planned to shed. (Women in the study needed to lose from 15 to 100 pounds to reach a healthy weight. Only a few in each group lost significant amounts of weight.)Also illustrated by the study is the difficulty all four groups had in sticking to their plans, although the 331 participants received much more help than most dieters get. Each attended eight weekly sessions with a registered dietitian and received phone and e-mail reminders to return for weigh-ins and blood tests. But the sweetest part is that they were paid up to $75 per session for their participation.Despite these incentives, the groups struggled. After the first two months, the Atkins group didn't eat a diet of very low carbohydrates. The Ornish group couldn't stick with the very low-fat approach. And if all the women really ate as few calories as they reported, "they would have lost a lot more weight," notes Bonnie Brehm, professor of nutrition at the University of Cincinnati School of Nursing.Why the Atkins group shed weight a little faster and managed to lose a few more pounds is likely due to the higher protein they consumed. Protein is more satiating than carbohydrates or fat. But in any case, Gardner says that the findings don't point to the Atkins diet "as the solution to the obesity epidemic."What the findings underscore are the benefits of cutting back on processed carbohydrates, the kind that are found in white bread and in popular food and beverages with added sugar, such as sweetened breakfast cereals and soft drinks. All four diet books "said the same thing about simple carbohydrates," Gardner says. It's better to get your carbohydrates from fruit, vegetables and whole grains.Just how important that can be is illustrated by a new report of nearly 35,000 Iowa women. It found that those who regularly ate bran, apples, pears, grapefruit, strawberries, chocolate and sipped a little red wine had the lowest risks of heart disease, heart attacks and death from all causes.As for the small weight loss in the Stanford study, that need not be seen as failure, experts say. The results suggest that shedding even less than 5 percent of total body weight produced significant improvements in blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar and insulin. "Even a little bit of weight loss can have some positive effects," Brehm notes.If you plan to try a low-carbohydrate diet, advises Walter Willett, professor of nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health, choose foods that reduce your risk of heart disease and diabetes. Reach for fish, beans, poultry without the skin and the leanest cuts of red meat, as well as for small amounts of nuts and healthy oil, such as olive, canola or safflower.Finally, social support can be key. One woman in the Ornish group of the Stanford study followed the program with her husband. "They made it a contest," Gardner says. "She managed to lose 40 pounds."