Healthstyle by Darya Pino

By: Darya Pino
http://summertomato.com/
When I was 18 few things were further from my mind than health. Sure I enjoyed my status as a thin, relatively fit teenager, but there was virtually no connection in my brain between what I put in my body and how long or happily I would live.

At that time I saw healthy eating as a fringe activity, for granola crunching hippies or men over 60 with beer bellies. I had no reason to worry about heart disease at my age and organic food was way more expensive, so why bother?



But that wasn’t the only reason I avoided the issue. As a self-conscious girl from Southern California, I was very concerned with my weight. People considered me thin, and I had every intention of staying that way. I knew that my obsession with my body image and constant dieting was considered “unhealthy,” but I didn’t care.

From my perspective the message from the media was clear: healthy is the opposite of thin. And when you’re young and think you’re invincible, the choice is obvious. Getting kids to worry about something in the distant future is difficult enough, but when you set it up as the antithesis of their immediate goals you make it nearly impossible.



It wasn’t until years later that I started to appreciate the value of health as an objective. I now understand that healthy is beautiful, and that thin and healthy are not mutually exclusive. Your ideal size is determined largely by genetics, but if you eat well, exercise and take care of yourself not only will your body look the way you want, you’ll also have nicer hair, a clear complexion and brighter eyes. You’ll likely have more energy and feel happier as well.

Sadly, body size is still the focus when most people talk about health. When you’re “too thin,” healthy means eating more regardless of quality. When you’re overweight, healthy means losing weight no matter how you accomplish it. But in the long term health is a reflection of your daily habits and is determined by things like the quality and diversity of your diet, how often and vigorously you exercise, exposure to environmental toxins and other factors.

While body weight can certainly be an indicator of health problems and sometimes reflect improvements, it’s important to understand that the message we send about health can backfire if these two things are inextricably linked.

How do you define health?

What's your Intention?

KFC recently started a new (sorry to be so blunt) stupid campaign. "Buy a HALF-GALLON of soda – with 800 calories from 56 spoonfuls of sugar – for $2.99 and a buck goes to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation."

How could they do such a thing? I am absolutely appalled by their hypocritical marketing.
 

"The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation defends it thus: "JDRF supports research for type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease that results when the immune system attacks the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin, therefore requiring a child or adult with the disease to depend on insulin treatment for the rest of their lives. It is a common misconception that type 1 diabetes is caused by obesity or eating too much junk food or sweets."

FAIL

Now thats what I like to call, SELFISH GIVING.

-Farah

Lace your fatty meal with this fruit to prevent yourself from getting fat

Researchers at Hebrew University and Harvard University have teamed up together in finding the benefitsof  the extract  naringenin, a compound from grapefruit.  With the use of nanotechnology, food is absorbed 11 times better than normal. This may forever change the way our metabolisms deal with fatty and sugary food.


They have isolated the molecule that creates the bitter taste in grapefruits, and have strong clinical evidence that if developed as a dietary supplement. 

"Under regular conditions the absorption of the fat- and sugar-busting molecule naringenin is quite low. You'd have to ingest a lot of grapefruits for it to work -- probably more than you'd ever want to eat.

To improve absorption capabilities, the researchers applied new tools from nanotechnology, and engineered a form of naringenin that includes an extra ring of sugar attached to the molecule. It is this extra ring that improves the absorption of naringenin and turns its bitter taste to sweet."

Read more about this study here. 

Eat for your Vitality

Healthier looking people who eat vegetables are more attractive, according to a research team from England and Scotland.


“Our study shows that not only do people use colour cues to judge how healthy other individuals are, but they are accurate when they make those judgements,” said Prof Perrett, who heads the Perception Lab. “This is important because evolution would favour individuals who choose to form alliances or mate with healthier individuals over unhealthy individuals.”



‘What we eat and not just how much we eat appears to be important for a healthy appearance. The only natural way in which we can make our skin lighter and more yellow is to eat a more healthy diet high in fruit and vegetables.’


What will you eat today?

http://pilladvised.com/2011/02/want-to-look-more-attractive-eat-carrots/

Hidden Eating Disorders in Orthodox Jewish Communities

Pressure mixed with cultural expectations has lead to a very serious Public Health issue among many young Orthodox Jewish girls. Israel has one of the highest rates of eating disorders in the world which contributes to staggerring rate of weight loss. Although this is such a prevalent problem, girls do not want to discuss this issue with friends or family members because having a 'mental health' problem is a stigma in the Jewish community.
Experts say the Orthodox community is sending mixed messages to young women. If a girl is associated with any type of irregularity then she is subject to a deffered marriage.


"Parents, matchmakers and potential mates want svelte brides, but may shun women who divulge an eating disorders because of the stigma of mental illness."

"As eating disorders have become less taboo in mainstream US culture, they remain widely ignored in Orthodox Jewish communities, as families worry the stigma of mental illness could ruin arranged marriages for the patient and even her siblings. Strict food rituals of fasting and remaining kosher can also exacerbate the problem."