Lose weight by surfing the Internet

Lose weight by surfing the Internet

Technology has made life simpler for not just a handful of people but everyone. With a click of a mouse you can do innumerable things. There is inexhaustible information made available to people on the internet. Apart from being a revolution in technology, computers have been able to revolutionise the health of people too.

Kristina, a school student who has just hit her teens says, “I’m glued to the internet to find out how much calories or proteins or carbohydrates ration is good for my age. I lost 2 kgs in a month by restricting myself to a diet which was prescribed for people with my body weight and height on a health portal. It was great because I could also calculate the amount of calories I was consuming every day.”

On raising doubts about the authenticity and credibility about such portals, Praneta quickly adds, “These forums are usually interactive and various dieticians and nutritionists come forth and advice many who are a part of the forum. This automatically eliminates any fear of believing someone unknown located in some other part of the world.”

Like Kristina, there are plenty of people who invest faith in weight management websites. But is it safe to do so? Let’s find out –

There is no second guess to affirm the fact that weight loss programs do reveal many secrets and tips and techniques through which people can lose weight. But as far as the safety, reliability, scientific information and effectiveness of the same is concerned, beliefs and results are bound to vary from person to person.

According to a research study, the internet is fast becoming a place where people spend hours all together to keep weight off them.

The study was done on 1,600 obese participants. 350 out of the total number lost an average 8 kgs during initial six months they surfed a weight management website. In fact, those who logged in at the website – once a month for a period of two-and-a half-year – more frequently than others kept off most weight. The participants actively used the interactive website tool to get feedbacks from dieticians and nutritionists, joined online chatrooms, submitted food diaries and tracked their progress.

Quite interestingly, the nomenclature of the weight management websites is such that it virtually becomes a platform for personal counselling and group meetings.

Kabir, a graphic designer working in an MNC, who lost 10 kgs by keeping a track on his food habits and exercise regime with the help of health centred portals, says “Such weight management websites are a great forum because one can speak the heart out. No one bothers how fat or skinny you are. I started feeling better about myself. It was like a psychological boost.”

Clinical Psychologist, Dr Lyn adds, “Surfing the internet / web to lose weight has two sides to it. On a positive side it gives a platform to people where they can share experiences and stories and find social support. Interaction, guidance and motivation help them to come to terms with their individuality and gives them a sense of being. On the flip side they might feel distressed because they would be aiming to reach a certain and ideal body type. So, this creates a paradoxical situation.”

Why Women Live Longer Than Men

Why Women Live Longer Than Men

It may be time to declare the winner of the gender wars. After all, he (or in this case, she) who survives longest must be the winner, right? So, then, it’s done. Ladies, take a bow. If some new research is to be believed, women, scientifically, live longer than men. Sorry boys. The game’s over.

According to a report published in the Scientific American, women usually tend to outlive their male counterparts. Authored by Dr. Thomas Kirkwood, Director of the Institute for Ageing and Health at Newcastle University in England and the author of Time of Our Lives: The Science of Human Aging, the report establishes why biologically women tend to live longer. “The average man may run a 100-meter race faster than the average woman and lift heavier weights. But nowadays women outlive men by about five to six years. By age 85 there are roughly six women to every four men. At age 100 the ratio is more than two to one. And by age 122—the current world record for human longevity—the score stands at one-nil in favour of women,” says he in the report.

The research is not just based on a study or survey of humans. By studying it in a wider biological perspective, Dr, Kirkwood found that even in other animals, the females outlived the males. His theory, somewhat controversial in its claims, is that men are in some ways more “disposable” than women. He says, “In humans, as in most animal species, the state of the female body is very important for the success of reproduction. The fetus needs to grow inside the mother’s womb, and the infant needs to suckle at her breast. So, if the female animal’s body is too much weakened by damage, there is a real threat to her chances of making healthy offspring. The man’s reproductive role, on the other hand, is less directly dependent on his continued good health.”

He claims to have found evidence from studies in rodents that cells in a female body repair their damage better than in the body of a male, and that surgical removal of the ovaries eliminates this difference. As many dog and cat owners can attest, neutered male animals often live longer than their intact counterparts.

5 Sex Moves Men Love

5 Sex Moves Men Love

Sex is all about making the moves that your partner will love! And believe us ladies, that there are some special moves that can completely mesmerise your man in the sack! Here are a few tips for all those nervous women who want to know about the 5 sex moves that men love the most.

Dress to kill

Drive him crazy in bed with this move. Dress yourself up in the best lingerie or a lose t-shirt you have and let him watch as you seduce him. Men are more prone to visual stimulation than women and can respond really fast when it comes to seduction. You must know the technique and the art of seduction. Excite him with teasers, touch yourself and, if possible, climax in front of your partner once. In other words, give more time to arousal in the love making session. This creates intensity and makes men more eager to please you in return! This tact leaves more scope for the man to fantasise about you even when you are not with him. Remember to keep the tempo initially slow and make the actions look meaningful and directive. Take it faster in the end indicating that you are ready to be taken. This will definitely make men go crazy in bed.

Man on top

The next best sex move is the art of making the man feel powerful while you still have control over the situation. Make more eye contact, steal glances, stroke him and fondle him while he reciprocates. Remember to direct him to your pleasure spots while having sex to highlight the climax. Be more expressive and use lubricants if required. Make him spring to life with the use of hands. Men get a boost in their sexual energy when you stroke their penis. Women also get aroused while doing this.

Control the situation

Control is extremely important. Understand your man’s gestures and arouse him to the point where he would want to ejaculate yet there is still some time left for it. Heighten the foreplay when he is in this zone. This will give him the ultimate pleasure. Indulge in oral sex and occasional massages to keep the phallus from flagging mid-way. Be gentle and do not prolong this unnecessarily.

Women on top

Go on top! Men love it when women take control of the situation in bed. Caress your breasts while you are on top and intensify your moves. These actions give men a lot of visual stimulation and leave them raring to go for the rest of the night.

Climax

The last trick is to stroke your G-spot. The harder you come, the crazier it gets for your man. Most women discover their G-spots while they are on top and move in the elliptical (oval-shaped) pattern. This adds a lot of drama in the act.

Go ahead! Let nights get crazier with these top 5 sex moves that men love. 

Women’s Supplements for Sexual Health

By definition sexual health refers to sexual function, reproduction, desire, ability and enjoyment and their relevance to and effect on one’s overall life. A woman’s sexual health is an integral part of her life. Healthy sexual relationships will promote feelings and experiences which will help a woman in developing and maintaining social and interactive skills. It will also contribute towards a healthy heart and circulation. Dietary supplements specially formulated for women will help her to overcome specific health needs of a woman and at the same time help to improve her general health.

There are many factors which can affect a woman’s sexual health, and they could be physical, psychological or emotional. If health conditions affect any of these areas of a woman’s life, it is bound to impact her sexual health, which in turn could create problems in relationships and she might end up with a serious blow to her self-image.

A huge amount of research in the area of women’s sexual health has resulted in recognising many natural ingredients for their benefits in a woman’s sexual health and related problems. However, it has to be remembered that the body needs more than a few individual ingredients. For optimum benefit, a wide synergistic range of nutrients, which targets the health of all the major organs (including the sexual organs) and systems of the body is necessary. Some of the important ingredients which can be found in women’s sexual health supplements are:

Tribulus

This raises progesterone levels and is an excellent tonic for the heart and circulatory system. It can help dilate arteries, thereby enhancing sexual sensitivity, increased stamina and improved satisfaction.

Chaste Tree Berry

It balances oestrogen levels and helps in overcoming menopause and PMS symptoms such as headaches, cramps, bloating and breast tenderness.

Damiana and Sarsaparilla

They are excellent for increasing sexual desire and energy. Also good for the nervous system. Sarsaparilla contains ‘building block’ chemicals, which stimulates the synthesis of sex hormones.

Dong Quai

This helps to combat premenstrual syndrome, cramps and weakness during periods, irregularity, retarded flow and some symptoms of menopause. It also increases oxygen supply to the capillaries, thereby acting as a blood purifier.

Black Cohosh

Has active ingredients such as isoflavones and aromatic acids which are known to help alleviate menopausal and post- menopausal symptoms.

Wild Yam Extract

This is often used as a natural alternative for oestrogen replacement therapy. Also known to help in vaginal dryness, which is common after menopause, pre – menstrual syndrome and osteoporosis.

Ginkgo Biloba Extract

Improves blood circulation, which has a positive effect on a woman’s sexual function and desire.

Having mentioned all these natural ingredients which are known to act as a supplement for women’s sexual health, it is necessary to inform the reader that these have not been evaluated by any official health regulatory body, and they do not represent a claim for the prevention or cure of disease. Please consult your physician for any matter regarding your health and well-being.

Top Ten Secrets to Successful Weight Control

Weight control and weight management are really two sides of the same coin. In reality, the habits that help you drop pounds are the same ones that will help you maintain it. After all, losing weight isn’t really considered a success unless you manage to keep it off.

Dietitian Susan Bowerman shares her secrets to successful weight loss

The top 10 strategies of successful ‘losers’:

1. They get to know themselves really well

   One key to success is learning how to manage your own high risk situations - such as eating when you’re stressed or cleaning your plate out of habit rather than hunger. Successful losers are adaptable and plan ahead - they know what situations might get them into trouble and have a backup plan for dealing with them.

2. They get a lot of exercise

   On average, the National Weight Control Registry enrolees’ burn about 2000 calories per week through exercise. That’s a lot they get about 60-90 minutes of moderate to high intensity exercise daily. The most popular exercise is walking, and they average 8-10 km a day.

3. They set goals and monitor their behaviour

   Setting goals ones you measure, like how many minutes you walk, how many calories you take in, or how many sit-ups you do are helpful because you can track whether or not you meet these goals. Successful losers keep track of how much exercise they get, and they keep food journals sometimes using a food log to plan meals ahead of time. These self-monitoring strategies are critical and provide much needed feedback on behaviour changes

4. They have regular meal patterns and frequency

   Many people get in trouble with their weight because their eating patterns are so disorganised. Successful losers report that eating at regular intervals and snacking only when they hungry are keys to success. Skipping meals usually backfires, and having routine meal times means that you don’t go long stretches without food which often leads to excessive snacking or larger meals later on.

5. They eat a low fat , nutrient -dense diet

   No surprises here, but a high quality diet one with plenty of protein, fruits, vegetables and whole grains is what keeps people satisfied. The fruits, veggies and whole grains are bulky and filling, and their calorie cost is relatively low. Adequate protein is key, since protein is highly satisfying and will help keep snacking at bay between meals.

6. They practice portion control

   By learning what size portion you need to eat to feel ‘not hungry any more’ rather than feeling ‘stuffed’ you can help trim your intake significantly. Portion control strategies include using smaller plates, serving your food in the kitchen (rather than having serving dishes at the table), and using meal replacements such as protein shakes or bars.

7. They practice stress management

   By learning what size portion you need to eat to feel ‘not hungry any more’ rather than feeling ‘stuffed’ you can help trim your intake significantly. Portion control strategies include using smaller plates, serving your food in the kitchen (rather than having serving dishes at the table), and using meal replacements such as protein shakes or bars.

8. They have an attitude adjustment

   Many people who have successfully controlled their weight say that they had to change their thinking about dieting and weight control. Some felt it was ‘in their genes’ to be fat, or that they couldn’t lose because they’d never been successful in the past. Eventually, they faced the problem head on recognising that success would come through a series of small steps and a lifelong commitment to a healthy lifestyle.

9. They adopt a plan and stick to it

   Once you have an established routine of how you generally eat and how frequently you exercise, learn to stick with this routine day in, day out. People who have controlled their weight and are successful maintaining it do this – even when on holiday or eating out. You may eat out less often, because you prefer having more control over what you eat by preparing meals at home.

10. They have learned to control their environment

    Successful losers learn how to control situations that are likely to get them into trouble. The foods that are available in the refrigerator or cupboard at home, in restaurants, at the workplace or in the grocery store are all environments that can be controlled. To gain control over the food environment, keep ‘safe’ foods in the house, choose restaurants where you know you can get foods that you want, bring appropriate foods to work and prepare a shopping list before you go to the supermarket.

Fruit, Vegetables and Ways to Get 5-7 Servings a Day

Do you eat 5-7 servings of fruit and vegetables every single day? It’s hard enough to get one or two servings each day, let alone seven! So what are some ways to do it? And importantly, why do we need to eat that much?

Fruits and vegetables are hugely important for staying healthy and they are a great source of essential nutrients the body needs. They naturally contain fibre, antioxidants, fructose (naturally occurring fruit sugar) and various vitamins, minerals and trace elements. They also tend to be low in fat.

What about the sugar in fruit?

Fruit naturally contains sugar, called fructose, but this shouldn’t be a reason not to eat it. Fruit contains many other great nutrients and the benefit of these out weighs the sugar quantity you’ll get from eating a piece of fruit. But do watch your intake, try to make up your daily requirement with 2-3 servings of fruit and 4-5 of vegetables.

So what are some good ways to hit the ‘magic number’ of fruit and vegetable each day?

1. Add fruit to shakes and smoothies for a tasty drink
2. At breakfast, add sliced fruit on your cereal or oats, or sliced tomato or avocado on your toast
3. Fruit and veg are healthy snacks – snack on a piece of fruit or sliced vegetables sticks such as carrots/celery/peppers (add hummus or salsa for a bit of interest)
4. Keep the fruit bowl full, you’re more likely to reach for a snack that is readily available in your home or in your bag
5. Dinner is a good way to increase your vegetable intake. It’s easy to throw extra vegetables into a stir-fry or eat them as a side
6. Variety in cooking is needed to alleviate boredom. Try something new each day: stir-fry, roast, boil, poach, steam or bake
7. Although fresh is best, frozen and canned fruit and veg count too. If you choose canned fruit, go for ones without a sugary syrup and that are low in salt and sugar
8. One glass of unsweetened 100% fruit juice counts as one of your servings
9. Grow your own. It always seems to taste better when you’ve put the hard work in yourself!
10. Buy what’s in season – it tastes better and is usually cheaper

So head down to your local farmers’ market, fruit and veg store or supermarket and stock up on healthy, tasty and nutritious fruits and vegetables.

How To Beat Emotional Eating

Are you feeding you stomach, or feeding your feelings? Often the answer is both. We need to eat to fuel the body, but sometimes we eat to satisfy our feelings. It could be particular foods because we’re happy, sad or even bored, but when we eat for reasons other than physical hunger, it’s emotional eating.

Eating when we’re not really hungry is a sure way to add unnecessary calories (and kilos!) that can quickly ruin your weight management programme.

So how do you beat emotion eating? Know the difference and then manage it.

Knowing the difference:

1. Emotional eating appears suddenly, physical hunger comes on gradually.
2. Even if you’re full, you’re more likely to keep eating if it’s to satisfy a feeling.
3. If your stomach is growling for food, you’ll eat almost anything to fill the gap. If you crave a particular food such as ice cream, chocolate or potato crisps, you’re probably eating to feed a feeling.
4. Emotional eating feels like it you need to eat the food you crave instantly, whereas if it’s physical hunger, it can wait.
5. You may feel guilty after emotional eating, but if you’re physically hungry you won’t.

Managing emotional eating:

1. See if you can recognise what feelings cause you to want to eat emotionally.
2. Take your mind off the craving by doing something else – try going for a walk, do some housework or talk to a friend.
3. Find a comfort food that’s a healthy alternative, so when the feeling comes you’ve got an option that isn’t junk food.
4. If you’re on a diet, elimination of all unhealthy foods can do more harm than good. For example, if you can’t live without chocolate, don’t deny yourself completely. Have a small portion, and then put it away. It’s about moderation, not elimination.
5. Sometimes it’s just a taste you need. So try eating only a few bites. You’re likely to remember the satisfying experience, rather than the guilty feeling after you’ve finished the whole pack!

If you recognise that you’re eating for an emotion, remember that whatever your food choice, learn how to control it and use moderation.

Foods To Boost Your Mood

“You are what you eat”. You often associate this saying with body weight, but did you know the food you eat also affects your mood?

Each day we are bombarded with the stresses of life; coming from work, people, even family! Stress impacts our mood, and it’s when we feel pulled in different directions; we often reach for unhealthy, convenience foods.

One of the best ways of coping with stress and boosting mood is to keep your energy levels balanced and mind positive. This is when eating a healthy diet helps.

How?

A good way is to eat foods that the body absorbs slowly as this helps to keep your blood sugar level balanced and can also help your mood stay balanced.

Slow-digesting foods include whole-grain products like mueslis, porridge, brown rice, hummus and lentils. Try to combine eating complex carbohydrates (whole-grain foods) with lean protein.

What to avoid:

Foods such as white breads, sugars and those that are high fat and high salt are absorbed quickly and cause blood sugar levels to spike within the hour you eat them. This is quickly followed by a sudden crash in energy.

After an energy crash, you start to feel tired, get hungry again and end up reaching for a convenient snack like a chocolate bar or biscuits and as a result, push yourself toward another blood sugar crash.

And the good news:

You’ll find by eating healthy and balanced meals, you not only help to keep your mood in check, but it does wonders for managing your weight. Bonus!

Hydration and Exercise

Around 60-70% of the human body is composed of water, so it’s fair to say that water is vital for survival. It functions to keep our body temperature regulated, allows us to breathe, is essential in digestion and excretion, assists body movement, just to name a few!

Drinking 8-10 glasses of water each day is recommended, but during exercise or when in hot environments, we need to drink more, because we sweat more.

Did you know… Studies have shown as little as one percent dehydration can cause major changes in body temperature, while two percent dehydration will drop your performance levels significantly! So to operate efficiently it's crucial to keep your fluid levels up.

But is water enough? Or do you need a sports drink to stay properly hydrated? Sports drinks will keep you well hydrated and give you energy if you’re participating in high intensity exercise for more than an hour. However, if you’re not exercising to this level, plain water will do just fine.

What defines a sports drink? Sports drinks (sometimes called electrolyte or isotonic drinks) are developed to contain the right level of carbohydrates (5-8 g/litre) and electrolytes (such as sodium and potassium) to keep you well hydrated; replacing what is lost from the body during exercise.

Other drinks that contain high amounts of carbohydrates (such as Lucozade and Red Bull and soft drinks) stop water being absorbed quickly and therefore can delay hydration, so are not suitable before exercise.

So if you’re doing a high intensity workout, choose a sports drink. But, if you’re not working out to this intensity and drink them as part of your everyday routine you may end up putting on weight because of the extra carbohydrate content.

If you don’t like the taste of plain water, add a slice of lemon, orange or a sprig of mint to give your water some flavour without adding the calories you’d get by using cordial.

Hydration tips for exercise

1. Make sure you’re well hydrated before you exercise - start drinking approximately two hours before
2. Keep your fluids topped up during exercise
3. Always remember to re-hydrate after exercise - it’s essential for recovery. Try to drink one to two glasses per hour until your urine is pale again

Eat Right, Sleep Tight

Getting a good night’s sleep should be one of the easiest and most natural things to do. But busy lives and hectic schedules make us less likely to eat properly, and bad food habits can prevent us from getting good quality sleep.

Professor Luigi Gratton shares his tips on good nutrition for a good night’s sleep.

When we’re busy, we tend to eat less than we should during the day, and then much more than we need in the evening. This is exactly the opposite of what we should be doing,” says Herbalife’s Luigi Gratton, M.P.H., and Vice President of Nutrition Education.

Gratton suggests being aware of how certain foods can affect our sleep pattern. Protein-heavy foods stimulate the production of chemicals in the brain that keep us alert, and large meals eaten just before bed can lead to indigestion and heartburn - a perfect pairing to keep you up at night.

Low-fat, high carbohydrate meals are digested more quickly, and stimulate the production of different brain chemicals - ones that help aid relaxation and facilitate sleep. So it’s best to opt for a high protein breakfast and lunch to keep you alert and clear-headed all day, and save the carbohydrates for dinner.

If you’re like most people, caffeine is a stimulant, so a cup of coffee before you hit the sack is probably unwise. Both caffeine and alcohol can disrupt normal sleep patterns; you might be able to fall asleep, but not for long. This makes it hard to reach the deepest and most restful stage of sleep. So even with a full eight hours, you still feel sluggish in the morning. Chances are you’ll also be roused from sleep by a full bladder, since both caffeine and alcohol act as diuretics.

Whether to snack or not before you go to bed depends on your usual patterns. If your evening meal is small and light (and early), then a light snack is fine if you feel it helps you sleep and you can afford the extra calories. Calcium-rich foods like milk and yoghurt are good choices, since calcium helps muscles to relax.

Good nutrition for a good night’s zzzz’s:

• Have a lighter dinner, focused on salad, vegetables, fruits, wholegrains and beans
• A bowl of lentil soup with a salad and some fruit for dessert
• If you know that caffeine keeps you awake, avoid caffeine-containing beverages for 6-8 hours before going to bed
• Keep your alcohol intake moderate to avoid sleep disruption
• Drink most of your fluids during the day, and cut back after dinner. If you need to take medications at bedtime, use only a small amount of water
• If you like to have a bedtime snack, include foods that are high in calcium to induce muscle relaxation
• A cup of warm milk is an age-old remedy for sleeplessness, and for good reason

Women drawn to men's indifference

A woman is more attracted to a man when she is uncertain about how much he likes her, says a new study.

On the one hand, a lot of psychological research has found that person A usually likes person B about as much as they think person B likes them.

"If we want to know how much Sarah likes Bob, a good predictor is how much she thinks Bob likes her," said the authors of the paper, Erin R. Whitchurch and Timothy D. Wilson of the University of Virginia and Daniel T. Gilbert of Harvard University.

"But what if Sarah is not sure how much Bob likes her?" This might lead Sarah to spend a lot of time thinking about Bob, wondering how he feels, and she might find him more attractive the more she dwells on him.

Forty-seven female undergraduates at the University of Virginia participated in the study. Each student, who believed that the experiment was designed to study whether Facebook could work as an online dating site, was told that male students from two other universities had viewed her profile and those of 15 to 20 other females. Then the women were shown four men's Facebook profiles that they thought were real, but were actually fictitious. Some of the women were told they'd seen the four men who liked them the most; others were told these were four men who rated them about average. A third group were told the men could be either the ones who liked them most or the ones who liked them about average—so those women didn't know about the level of the men's interest in them.

As other research has found, women who believed the men liked them a lot were more attracted to the men than women who thought the men liked them only an average amount. However, the women who found the men most attractive were the ones who weren't sure whether those men were into them or not.

"Numerous popular books advise people not to display their affections too openly to a potential romantic partner and to instead appear choosy and selective," the authors write.

Women in this study made their decisions based on very little information on the men—but in a situation not unlike meeting someone on an internet dating site, which is common these days. "When people first meet, it may be that popular dating advice is correct: Keeping people in the dark about how much we like them will increase how much they think about us and will pique their interest."