Monday, October 25, 2010

The Four Most-Unhealthy Halloween Candies


The average American eats 24 pounds of candy every year. And I'm not sure if you've heard, but . . . candy is bad for you. Just to put it in perspective:

--A pack of Skittles has more sugar than two scoops of Haagen-Dazs ice cream. And there are the same number of calories in nine Twizzlers as there are in a Wendy's Double Stack Burger.

--So if you want to avoid the worst-of-the-worst this Halloween, here's a list from "Men's Health" of the four worst Halloween candies, and what you should eat instead . . .

THE WORST "FUN SIZE" CANDY BAR: BUTTERFINGER. There's no faster way to swallow 100 calories and 4 grams of fat. Go with a 3 Musketeers instead. The fun size bars have 63 calories and half the fat.

THE WORST FRUITY CANDY: AIRHEADS. They're basically sugar, artificial flavors, and partially hydrogenated oil . . . which means they have trans fat. Give out Dum Dum lollipops instead. Kind of lame compared to Airheads, but they have half the calories.

THE WORST CHEWY CANDY: CARAMELS. Each one has about 40 calories and more than one gram of fat. And you never just eat one. Instead, have a "Now And Later." They have less than half the calories and almost no fat.

THE WORST NOVELTY CANDY: REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER PUMPKINS. They're like regular Peanut Butter Cups, but bigger . . . which is why they're so amazing. But they also have almost two-thirds more calories.

--So stick with Reese's BITE SIZE Peanut Butter Cups. You can eat four, and it's still better for you than eating one Peanut Butter Pumpkin.

Six Ways To Stop Wasting Food


If you want to stop wasting food, obviously step one is eating what you put on your plate. But if you REALLY want to get serious, here are six tricks from "Country Living" on how you can make the most out of your groceries . . .

#1.) STORE COTTAGE CHEESE OR SOUR CREAM UPSIDE DOWN. It creates a vacuum that keeps bacteria from growing. Just make sure the lid's definitely on tight before you try it.

#2.) USE PAPER TOWELS TO LINE THE BOTTOM OF THE VEGETABLE DRAWER IN YOUR REFRIGERATOR. They'll absorb the extra moisture, which is what makes vegetables rot.

#3.) BEFORE YOU PUT A BLOCK OF CHEESE AWAY, SPREAD BUTTER ON THE END YOU CUT FROM. It helps seal in the moisture so you won't have to cut off a dry chunk next time.
--The only problem is, you save slices of cheese by wasting butter. And spreading butter on a block of cheese definitely won't make it any healthier.

#4.) MAKE VEGETABLES CRUNCHIER WITH A BOWL OF ICE WATER. You can make carrots, celery, or radishes crunchy again by putting them in a bowl of ice water along with a slice from a raw potato.

#5.) NEVER THROW AWAY HONEY. It doesn't go bad. So if it looks cloudy, it just means it's crystallizing. But you can turn it back into honey by running the bottle under hot water.

#6.) DON'T SEPARATE BANANAS UNTIL YOU'RE READY TO EAT THEM. They last longer if you keep them in a bunch.

Does It Embarrass Your Dog If You Put Him In A Halloween Costume?


We're less than a week away from Halloween. And with it comes the annual dilemma: Do you want to put an adorable but humiliating costume on your dog?

--The question is, of course, if dogs can feel embarrassment. Different experts have different opinions on the matter. Here's what some of them have to say.

--"The Pet Psychic" Sonya Fitzpatrick: "They feel everything. And they know when people laugh at them. I talk to thousands of animals . . . it really hurts their feelings."

--Another pet psychic, Patrice Ryan: "Pets know they're loved by their owner, and then the owner is allowing people to look at them and have a good laugh. It sends conflicting messages to the pet. So the pet is not really happy with that."

--Val Heart, animal communicator: Val isn't sure if dogs can be embarrassed or not, but, quote, "a lot has to do with the proper training to wear clothes that they've received and the responses or rewards they get when they're wearing it."

--Tamar Geller, animal behaviorist: "Dogs don't like to stand out because of their wild heritage: Wolves singled out from the pack were more susceptible to attack. They've never been taught to associate being dressed up with pleasure."

--Bonnie Beaver, a professor of veterinary medicine at Texas A&M: "If they're unhappy, [they're] probably reacting to the costumes themselves or the limited mobility they have when dressed up."

--The verdict? Four experts are against dressing up your dog . . . although only the psychics think the costumes embarrass the animal. One expert says that if you dress them up, you'd better give them a lot of treats. Now you know.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

"Me" Time

Me time can be restorative as sleep. Savoring even a few minutes of it adds fuel to your being, enhancing your energy for the rest of the day," says Carol Kauffman, Ph.D., assistant clinical professor at Harvard Medical School in Boston. "Indulging can even increase your performance at work." To savor stolen moments, remember this:

Start small. Close your eyes while listening to soothing tunes. Any activity can give you pep "if it calms and connects you to your core self," she says.

Relaxing daily is as essential as going on an annual vacation. "View each 24 hour period as a microcosm of your year, and take a break," Kauffman says.

You're worth it. "You invest time in people you love, so you should be one of them," she advises.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

What you need to know about fruit

I got this email from a listener and knew I had to share it with you. All of this info comes from Dr. Oz.

We all think eating fruit means just buying fruit, cutting it up and popping it into our mouths. It's not that easy. It's important to know how and when to eat fruit.

What's the correct way to eat fruit?

IT MEANS NOT EATING FRUIT AFTER A MEAL! FRUIT SHOULD BE EATEN ON AN EMPTY STOMACH.

Eating fruit like that plays a major role in detoxifying your system, supplying you with a great deal of energy for weight loss and other life activities.

FRUIT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FOOD.

Let's say you eat two slices of bread, then a slice of fruit. The slice of fruit is ready to go straight through the stomach into the intestines, but it's prevented from doing so.

In the meantime, the whole meal rots and ferments, and turns to acid. The minute the fruit comes into contact with the food in the stomach, and digestive juices, the entire mass of food begins to spoil.

Eat your fruit on an empty stomach, or before your meal! You've heard people complain: Every time I eat watermelon I burp, when I eat durian my stomach bloats, when I eat a banana I feel like running to the toilet, etc. This will not happen if you eat the fruit on an empty stomach. Fruit mixes with the putrefying other food and produces gas. Hence, you bloat!

There's no such thing as some fruits, like orange and lemon are acidic, because all fruit becomes alkaline in our body, according to Dr. Herbert Shelton who did research on this matter. If you have mastered the correct way of eating fruit, you have the Secret of Beauty, Longevity, Health, Energy, Happiness and normal weight.

When you need to drink fruit juice drink only fresh fruit juice, NOT the concentrated juice from the cans. Don't drink juice that has been heated. Don't eat cooked fruit; you don't get the nutrients at all. You get only the taste. Cooking destroys all of the vitamins.

Eating a whole fruit is better than drinking the juice. If you should drink the juice, drink it mouthful by mouthful slowly, because you must let it mix with your saliva before swallowing it. You can go on a 3-day fruit-fast to cleanse your body. Eat fruit and drink fruit juice for just 3 days, and you will be surprised when your friends say how radiant you look!

KIWI: Tiny but mighty, and a good source of potassium, magnesium, vitamin E and fiber. Its vitamin C content is twice that of an orange!

AN APPLE a day keeps the doctor away? Although an apple has a low vitamin C content, it has antioxidants and flavonoids which enhances the activity of vitamin C, thereby helping to lower the risk of colon cancer, heart attack and stroke.

STRAWBERRY: Protective Fruit. Strawberries have the highest total antioxidant power among major fruits and protect the body from cancer-causing, blood vessel-clogging free radicals.

EATING 2 - 4 ORANGES a day may help keep colds away, lower cholesterol, prevent and dissolve kidney stones, and reduce the risk of colon cancer.

WATERMELON: Coolest thirst quencher. Composed of 92% water, it is also packed with a giant dose of glutathione, which helps boost our immune system. Also a key source of lycopene, the cancer-fighting oxidant. Also found in watermelon: Vitamin C and Potassium.

GUAVA & PAPAYA: Top awards for vitamin C. They are the clear winners for their high vitamin C content. Guava is also rich in fiber, which helps prevent constipation. Papaya is rich in carotene, good for your eyes.

Drinking Cold water after a meal = Cancer!

Can you believe this? For those who like to drink cold water, this applies to you. It's nice to have a cold drink after a meal, however, the cold water will solidify the oily stuff that you've just consumed, which slows digestion. Once this 'sludge' reacts with the acid, it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the solid food. It will line the intestine. Very soon, this will turn into fats and lead to cancer. It is best to drink hot soup or warm water after a meal.

A serious note about heart attacks.

HEART ATTACK PROCEDURE

Women should know that not every heart attack symptom is going to be the left arm hurting. Be aware of intense pain in the jaw. You may never have the first chest pain during the course of a heart attack. Nausea and intense sweating are also common symptoms. Sixty percent of people who have a heart attack while they're asleep do not wake up. Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep. Be careful, and be aware. The more we know, the better our chance to survive.