Alternative Therapies and Health News

Generally we assume that thin people won’t have any fat and so don’t suffer from problems caused by fat. But British researchers say that it is not a fact. They claim that thin people might suffer from various health risks posed by the internal fat surrounding vital organs. “Being thin doesn’t mean that you don’t have fat”, say the researchers. After doing research on 800 people with MRI machines since 1994 they came up with this finding.

Someone is lean doesn’t mean that they are immune to diabetes, heart diseases, or other health risks. Even normal Body Mass Index (BMI) scores are not an indication of healthy levels of fat deposits inside.

Health experts are worried that thin people falsely assume that they will be healthy because they’re not overweight and so don’t contain fat. In the research study alsmost 45 percent of the women with normal BMI scores (20 to 25) actually had excessive levels of internal fat. In case of men, it is even more - nearly 60 percent.

Research studies prove that people who keep slim through diet rather than physical exercise are having major deposits of internal fat. So experts suggest physical exercise rather than dieting as the best way to control internal fat and save yourself from the related negative effects.

The low-carb Atkins diet is found out to be the most popular and most effective diet plans. It has shown to beat even the Zone and the Ornish diet plans. Women on the Atkins plan lost more weight than those on other low fat diet plans. Atkins followers lost about 10 pounds in 12 months; those on the Zone diet lost 3.5 and those on the Ornish lost 5 pounds.

What makes weight loss easier in Atkins is that, they opt for low-cab and high-fat diet. Atkins recognizes that the main problem with the Western eating habits is that, they have more of carbohydrates and sugar which is the main cause for obesity.

Because of fewer amounts of carbohydrates in our body, all the stored fat will have to be used up to get energy. Thus this diet helps in using up the stored body fat.  In low-carb diets, our body burns more calories than in a normal diet. And moreover, fat helps people feel fuller and hence helps losing weight easier. Protein also makes people feel less hungry. Thus low-carb diet reduces overeating problems. Another reason for Atkins being more effective is that women replaced water with soft drinks.

Apart from weight loss, there were other benefits shown in people who adopted Atkins diet. They had higher levels of HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) and lower blood pressure than those on other diets. According to Harvard researchers, low-carb high-fat diet is more heart-healthy.

“Drink eight eight-ounce glasses of water everyday” – it is the advice of every doctor for better health.

We lose water from our body due to many reasons. Radiant, or forced-air heating during winter and low-humidity air conditioning during summer, causes dehydration. Just 1 to 2 percent of water loss can cause dehydration.

Two cups of water through breathing, two cups through perspiration and six cups through urination and other elimination processes – all these add up to minimum ten cups of water loss a day. Taking caffeinated drinks and sweating also contribute to dehydration.

Our body gets about 3 1/2 cups of fluid from food and generates about 1/2 a cup of fluid from metabolic processes, in a day. Because we lose ten cups of water a day and get only four cups, we need to drink minimum six cups of water per day to avoid dehydration. Anyway, if you drink more than the recommended eight glasses of water it is more helpful.

Here we give you some more interesting water facts:

• You need not drink only water to get hydrated. Skim milk, unsweetened juices and other non-caffeinated drinks can also be taken.
• The weather, the activities you do and what you eat - all decide the your liquid needs.
• Drinking more water helps conserve your energy, burn fat, and fight tension and fatigue.
• Sometimes we mistake our thirst as hunger. Then you are likely to eat high-fat snacks. To avoid this drink a glass of ice-cold water when you feel hungry. Wait for few minutes to find whether your “hunger pangs” are satisfied or not.
• Drinking water can eliminate food cravings and reduce appetite.
• Increased water intake flushes out fat deposits from of your body. It also flushes other impurities from your system.
• By keeping your brain hydrated, water intake helps in better concentration.
• Drink colder beverages rather than hot because your body expends more heat energy to warm it to body temperature.
• There is an easy technique to find out whether you are dehydrated or not. Take a breath in through your nose. If you feel a slight tightness of your nasal passages, then you have to take some water. You can add some lemon juice or orange juice to give yourself some variety.

Your body needs water not just for weight loss, for many more benefits. So, drink water and stay healthy.