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It seems that vegetarians are screwed on multiple levels, they get called hippies by me AND they might be at an increased risk of dementia in old age. The study recently published in the journal Dementias and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders focused on a number of elderly Indonesians who live across a wide range of areas in Java. They discovered that people who ate tofu at least once a day (which is classified as high consumption) had a statistically higher chance of showing dementia.

Soy products are rich in micronutrients called phytoestrogens, which mimic the impact of the female sex hormone oestrogen.

Soy products are NOT all bad though. You need to know the differences in what you are consuming. Unfermented soy products are the problem.

Unfermented soy products like tofu and soy milk and yogurt cause the following:

- Block absorption of essential minerals like calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc. This results from a high content of phytic acid and phytates.
- Estrogenic effects from the isoflavones causing increasing estrogen levels higher than what's healthy
- Suppress thyroid function which is referred to as Goitrogenic effects and disrupt endocrine function
- Inhibit growth due to the trypsin inhibitors that it contains
- Can cause blood clots due to haemagglutinin

Some of the symptoms caused by soy include acne, canker sore, inflammation and infection of the mucous membrane lining of the eyelids and the exposed surface of the eyeball, dermatitis, diarrhea, eczema, hives, heart palpitation, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, panic attack and PMS like symptoms.

However, there are also many good reasons for eating soy products. If you have diabetes, soy products slow absorption of glucose into the bloodstream. They may also protect against damaging effects of glucose-induced oxidation, common in people with diabetes.

Soy protein is a complete protein. It is equal in quality to animal proteins, such as that found in milk and meat. Soy has been recognized as such in the new USDA food guidelines.

Studies indicate soy components may delay onset of tumor growth and decrease size of tumors present. As little as one serving of soy foods a day (ex: one cup soy milk or 1/2 cup tofu) may be enough to reduce the risk of developing cancer.

It is up to you what type of soy intake you bring into your diet. It is always important to way the options and research what you are putting into your body because in nearly all cases there will be positive and negative effects.

Labels: children healthcare, diet, nutrition, soy, tofu

Amino acids are nitrogen-containing compounds that occur naturally in the body and are essential to good health.

Eight of the 20 commonly known amino acids are needed to maintain a healthy metabolism, promote tissue repair and growth, protect nerves and synthesize the protein needed to build lean muscle. Unfortunately, your body doesn't produce the essential eight. You must obtain these through diet.

Figures, right?

So what do you need to eat to get the essential 8?

Animal foods will contain all eight essential amino acids, but most plant foods lack in one or more. Meat in general is a good source of protein, with a full mixture of all the essential amino acids. However, it can be high in fat. Try to select lean cuts such as top round and sirloin. Poultry, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds and legumes (dry beans or peas such as lentils, chickpeas and kidney beans) are also good sources of protein.

To give you an idea of the amount of protein you can find in certain foods, check out the following list:

1 cup milk…8 grams

1 ounce cheese…7 grams

1 ounce meat…7 grams

1 egg…6 grams

½ cup legumes…7 grams

2 tablespoons peanut butter…8 grams

¼ cup nuts…6 grams

½ cup cooked non-starchy vegetable…2 grams

1 serving of grain (1 slice bread, ½ bun, 1 c. dry cereal, 1 small muffin)…3 grams

And there's the lesson for the day. =o)

Labels: amino acid, diet, protein

Now that the Easter Egg hunting has commenced, I think it's only fair we talk about the candy which is now all over our houses.

Don't worry too much if your kids like the Peeps, star bursts or fruit snacks but let's face it those items are not necessarily the number one candy on kids' lists, right?

The chocolate bunnies whether hollow or solid are both high in fat and sugar. Other offenders in the candy world are jelly beans, peanut butter cups and the foil-packaged chocolate eggs. Don't believe me, well look at the facts; just one half of a solid chocolate bunny has 26 grams of fat, 460 calories and 42 grams of sugar. The recommended intake of sugar per day is only 40 grams. See the problem? While jelly beans are low in fat, they have a lot of sugar and calories. Just 13 jelly beans will put your sugar intake up at 27 grams. Just 13!

So if your kids crave chocolate and won't touch the marshmallows or fruit snacks, then try and give them a tootsie roll they are much lower in both fat and sugar. It's also filling because tootsie rolls require more chewing, it takes longer to eat them and kids think they have eaten more that way.

Of course it's all up to you. If you're like me you started throwing away some of the candy already. Braeden eats solid chocolate only, typically in the form of Hershey kisses. But he certainly has a variety of other goodies to choose from and that worries me. I want my boy to eat more, but I'd rather it be sweet corn than sweet jelly beans. =o)

SOURCE

Labels: candy, children, diet

Let me first explain, I don't think I'm overweight. I just think I could be more toned and it's something I really need to be more diligent about.

There are so many websites that claim they can help you lose weight. Diet pills, diet shakes, starving yourself...those things just aren't the way to go when you want to look more healthy and fit. Especially if you would like to maintain that look.

MyFitnessPal.com is a 100% free website that knows losing weight and staying fit is NOT easy. So they want to help you. They have a searchable food database of over 6,000 items to help you with calorie counting. And to make it even easier you can use their own calorie counter tool.

What ends up happening is you will build your own personalized diet profile by logging your snacks and meals and exercise. Plus, their free calorie counter will help you to know exactly how many calories you are burning depending on the type of exercise, your weight and how long you did the exercise. It's as easy as that!

AND they have a community forum where you can talk to other people using the same program. You can share recipes, give support, be supported and discuss nutrition with people who are in the same boat as you. So beaches and bikinis are your enemies, why don't you try out MyFitnessPal and make them your friends.

This post has been sponsored.

Labels: diet, fitness, health