Summer is here and you want to use a revealing bikini, but you would like to be firmer and skinnier. Do not worry – you can do it. The first thing you need is motivation. Use any trick that will work for you. Keep a picture of yourself in your purse and take a look every time you feel like having something unhealthy. Or pick an actress or a celebrity you admire. (Related article: Fitness secrets of French women)

Visualization

Visualize yourself looking and feeling good. Visualize your muscles lean and strong and your body healthy, your skin radiant and yourself happy. This is more important than your think, because your mind has en effect on your body and on your motivation. Michael Thurmond, the personal trainer on the TV program Extreme Makeover, recommends something similar.

Food

Now let’s talk about food. If you eliminate what Oprah Winfrey calls as the “all the white stuff,” that is, rice, potatoes, white bread, pasta, anything with white flour and sugar, you have taken the first step. This is an emergency program so elimination of these foods is very important. This is what is going to give you more energy and it will help you control cravings. If you do only this, you will see your weight going down without much effort. (Related article: Best diet)

You can eat moderate portions of whole wheat breads and whole wheat pasta, brown rice and sweet potatoes. Have 5 meals. Your regular meals plus two small snacks between meal.

Have a good breakfast. Let us discuss what Jennifer Lopez’s breakfast is. She eats an omelet with egg whites and veggies, along with one or two toasts of whole what bread. Fruit with nuts or one teaspoon of peanut butter, protein smoothie, small whole wheat toast with one teaspoon of peanut butter or hummus. You can add coffee, tea or natural fruit juice.

For dinner and lunch, make sure you have proteins, such as beans, chicken, fish or meat.

Always eat salad or raw veggies and some dance, run, walk fast, jump rope, etc. If you can do strength training, it will be great. Get a video or take a class on exercising. There is no such a thing as a miracle workout. All workouts help you burn calories and tone your body.

You will have a Overweight people make less money)

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U.S. household income losses due to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) total nearly $77 billion each year, according to a new analysis of the national large-scale survey, "Capturing America's Attention," presented at the American Psychiatric Association (APA) annual meeting. While the research was paid for ADHD drugmaker Shire Pharmaceuticals, it was conducted by some top scientists and that is why we are more likely to believe some of the findings. It is important to point that after Adderall recall in Canada, there have been similar calls in the United States, but the FDA has refused to act.

So it is not that ADHD is not a problem and that we do not need medication, it is just that some doctors are not sure if Adderall and Adderall XR are the right medications for it. "ADHD, a life-long disorder, may be one of the costliest medical conditions in the United States," said Joseph Biederman, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and Chief of Pediatric Psychopharmacology at Massachusetts General Hospital. "The same ADHD symptoms that may cause young patients to perform poorly in school or miss classes may also cause these patients, as adults, to lose a significant amount of income each year. The compelling results of this survey show that ADHD is a serious medical condition causing significant, life-long impairments. Evaluating, diagnosing and treating this condition may not only improve the quality of life, but may save adults with ADHD billions of dollars every year." (Related: Tom Cruise and his views on ADHD)

Biederman and his colleagues found that adults with ADHD have a lower educational attainment and achievement than healthy adults -- factors that not only significantly impact employment rates and income, but cause difficulties in the workplace as well. But even when the investigators accounted for educational attainment and achievement, they found the average loss of household income per adult with ADHD ranged from $8,900 to $15,400 per year,depending on the econometric model used.

Over eight million adult Americans, or 4.3 percent of working-age adults, struggle with the inattention, impulsivity and hyperactivity of ADHD. Nearly a quarter of the U.S. workforce (28 million workers ages 18 to 54) experience a mental disorder, according to a 2002 study by the University of Michigan. Employers are now starting to provide services that could be helpful to affected families including flexible work hours, family leave arrangements and childcare assistance, according to Dr. Biederman. Most employers offer employee assistance programs primarily targeted to helping employees deal with psychological issues, or work/life programs that focus on balancing work and family responsibilities.

Although many people tend to think of ADHD as a childhood problem, up to 65 percent of children with ADHD may still exhibit symptoms into adulthood, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Although there is no cure for ADHD, physicians and advocates are finding ways to help people with the condition learn to adapt to their school, home, social and work settings. ADHD usually can be successfully managed with a combination of treatments, such as medication and structured coping techniques.

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French women don’t get fat!!! On what planet do you live? As reported by the International Herald Tribune “French doctors are perplexed by the success in the United States of the book “French Women Don’t Get Fat.” They are perplexed, because French women are getting fat. The title of the book instead should be “French Women Did Not Get Fat.” (Related: French diet)

Recently, on the Oprah Show, the author of this book discussed her findings. This nice and very skinny lady, Mireille Guiliano, is the president and CEO of the champagne maker Clicquot. As one of the readers wrote on Amazon.com, the women in this economic group are skinny in all countries, not only in France. I have been to a few fancy gatherings of upper class American women and rarely saw an extra pound of fat. It could very well be the magic of plastic surgery, but in general, the richer you are, more likely that you will be health conscious and do other things like have a personal trainer or nutritionist helping you in your goal. The way of the life the author describes in her book looks more that of the upper class French ladies rather than that of the general population.

We were surprised to hear Oprah herself discussing the obesity situation in France. It seems that her producers let Oprah down. The information that she provided on the show is not completely accurate. The obesity rate in France in 2003 was reported at 11.3% and 40% of the French population is overweight. The most alarming data is that the growth rate for obesity is 17%. At this rate, in 2020, the French will be as fat as the Americans.

The author said on the Oprah Show that, “Women in France do not go to gyms.” Oprah added in agreement, “It is difficult to find a good gym in Paris.” Well, it seems that the time has come for the young French to join the gym.

Still France is among the few European countries with relatively less obese and overweight people. France has essentially the same rate as some other countries in Northern Europe. The reason they are getting fat is that they also suffer from some of the same problems that we do: lack of time to cook and to eat right, lack of physical activity and abundance of temptations everywhere. In other words, the French are eating more, engaging in less physical activity, and eating the wrong foods. Sounds familiar?

In France, contrary to the US, the government is taking the weight issue very seriously. The parliament is taking measures to correct the situation, especially among children. We must keep an eye on what they do; perhaps we can also adopt some of their secrets in the US. Oh, and I forgot that only if the lobbyists and special interest groups in Washington, hired by the food companies, will let our government do its job – that is ensure the health of American people.

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Little by little we are starting to see that some of the alternative medicines or treatments that are often looked down upon by the mainstream medical professionals actually do work. Recently, in the wake of Vioxx recall in September 2004 and then Bextra recall in April of this year, it was pointed out in a study that acupuncture may actually be effective in pain relief among arthritis patients.

Another popular alternative plastic surgery procedure based on Chinese medicine is an acupuncture facelift. For those patients who do not wish to go under a knife, this is an excellent choice. (Related article: Result of acupuncture face lift)

Now we are learning that a Chinese herb, Kudzu, may actually reduce alcohol drinking among heavy drinkers, with literally no side effects. According to a paper published in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research by Scott Lukas, David Penetar, Jeff Berko, Luke Vicens, Christopher Palmer, Gopinath Mallya, Eric Macklin, and David Lee, Kudzu treatment resulted in significant reduction in the number of beers consumed that was paralleled by an increase in the number of sips and the time to consume each beer and a decrease in the volume of each sip. These changes occurred in the absence of a significant effect on the urge to drink alcohol. There were no reported side effects of kudzu treatment.

These data suggest that an extract of this leguminous plant may be a useful adjunct in reducing alcohol intake in a naturalistic setting. Of the available medications for treating alcohol-related problems, none are universally effective, and all have side effects that may limit their use. In previous studies, extracts of kudzu containing a variety of isoflavones have been shown to reduce alcohol drinking in rats and hamsters.

It is now possible to buy Kudzu herb supplements from an online herbal products store, e.g. Vitacost, Herbal Remedies, The Vitamin Bin, Herbs MD, and Vita Springs.

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Are you obese? And are you an obese woman? Then it is very likely that you are being paid less than your colleagues simply for being obese. And if you are an obese woman, in addition to the fact that you will be paid less for just being a woman, your pay will be further lowered if you are also obese.

In a working paper "The incidence of the healthcare costs of obesity," researchers Jay Bhattacharya and Kate Bundorf of Stanford University find that the incremental healthcare costs associated with obesity are passed on to obese workers with employer-sponsored health insurance in the form of lower cash wages. Obese workers in firms without employer-sponsored insurance do not have a wage offset relative to their non-obese counterparts. Several studies have shown that obese individuals tend to be sicker and spend more on health care, raising the question of who bears the incidence of obesity-related health care costs. This was the reason the researchers decided to investigate the issue. They relied on federal data for ten years and defined obesity as a BMI of 30 or higher.

According to the researchers obese employees were paid an average of $1.20 less than their non-obese colleagues and the gap appeared to grow over time.

How to deal with obesity?

We have written extensively on this subject on LuvCube and I am including a list of articles on losing weight and having a healthier lifestyle. I will, however, repeat that dealing with obesity is generally simple, if you can be disciplined about it. There are only two things to do. One, eat less (to lose weight) and eat only as many calories as you need (to maintain your weight). Secondly, exercise regularly. More if you need to lose weight and moderate exercise to maintain your weight and stay fit.

You can follow a formal diet or just be disciplined about it on your own. The goal is to control what you are eating. Similarly, you can join a gym, hire a personal trainer, or simply exercise on your own right inside your home using a DVD or do simple exercise routines like bellydancing, jumping rope, etc.

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Source: Stanford University

Are you afraid of switching to a vegetarian diet because you are afraid that you may become weak or not get all the nutrients? Or does the idea of eating uncooked (raw) food scares you? This is a myth that stops many people to take advantage of vegetarian diets. People who adhere strictly to raw food vegetarian diets are thin but have surprisingly robust bones, researchers have found recently. There are many other benefits of a vegetarian diet and only now doctors are realizing what some Hindus and Buddhists have known for centuries.

Although nutritionists and the food industry have warned that a diet without dairy foods can lead to the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis, the team at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found the vegans they studied had many of the signs of strong bones.

"We think it's possible these people don't have increased risk of fracture but that their low bone mass is related to the fact that they are lighter because they take in fewer calories," Dr. Luigi Fontana, who led the study, said. "Raw food vegetarians believe in eating only plant-derived foods that have not been cooked, processed, or otherwise altered from their natural state," Fontana's team wrote in this week's issue of the Archives of Internal medicine.

"Because of their low calorie and low protein intake, raw food vegetarians have a low body mass index (BMI) and a low total body fat content. It is well documented that a low BMI and weight loss are strongly associated with low bone mass and increased fracture risk, while obesity protects against osteoporosis."

Fontana expected the vegans to have low vitamin D levels because they avoid all animal products including dairy. But in fact their vitamin D levels were "markedly higher" than average. Vitamin D is made by the skin when the body is exposed to sunlight and is key to keeping strong bones. It is added to milk and other foods because it is so important.

And the vegans also had low levels of C-reactive protein, an inflammatory molecule that is becoming linked with the risk of heart disease, diabetes and other chronic disease. Furthermore, they had lower levels of IGF-1, a growth factor linked to risk of prostate cancer. Fontana does not advocate a raw food diet. But he said that to lower the risk of cancer and heart disease people should eat more fruits, vegetables and whole grains.

I myself am more of a flexitarian. I rarely eat any kind of meat but do try to eat a lot of vegetarian dishes. And I try to eat as many raw dishes as I can as Fontana suggests - fruits, vegetables, fresh juices, etc. And the dishes that I do cook are sort of semi-cooked. I try to leave them on the fire for as short as possible to retain all the nutrients.

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With so many diets and other solutions out there to lose weight and get that perfect body, it is not easy to figure out which one is right for you. The more you hear about diets and weight loss programs, the more confused you get. The result is that we give up sooner than we should and fail to lose the weight. We still think the easiest way to lose weight without any formal diet is to simply eat less and exercise more.

But diets do have a role. A formal diet allows you to do what we are telling you - eat less - without getting bogged down with what foods contain what and how many calories. Consumer Reports (CR), one of the most reliable sources for consumer-friendly information, has done the research for you in a recent study. They calculated the diets’ calorie counts and nutritional composition, checked whether they conformed to U.S. dietary guidelines, and evaluated their effectiveness with a comprehensive review of clinical research. The results are shocking, or at least not what you would have expected. In other words, the most advertised diets are not alwys the most effective.

Weight Watchers received the highest overall rating. A nutritionally balanced diet, plus weekly meetings and weigh-ins for behavioral support, give this large commercial weight loss program the highest long-term adherence rate of any diet studied. This plan doesn’t exclude any food group and its point system encourages consumption of low-fat, high fiber meals.

Slim Fast, which received the second highest overall rating, is recommended for people who don’t like to cook — branded bars and drinks replace part of breakfast and lunch — and dieters need to prepare only one full meal a day. People on the Slim Fast plan lost the most weight in six months using products like 180-calorie shakes.

The Zone is high in protein and includes copious amounts of high-fiber vegetables. Many companies offer home delivery of “Zone favorable meals.” It is recommended for those who want a short-term high protein diet plan.

Ornish offers ultra low-fat, high-fiber vegetarian meals, which provide fairly large portions for the low calories.

Atkins Induction and Atkins Ongoing Weight Loss are appropriate for people who want a short-term high protein diet plan. The Atkins diet worked very well in the short term, with results at least as good as our other top-rated diets. But its nutritional deficiencies — too much fat, and too little fiber and too few fruits — depressed its overall rating and may have a negative effect on some people’s health.

Several other popular weight-loss plans — eDiets, Jenny Craig, South Beach, and Volumetrics — are all low enough in calories to produce weight loss. But CR could not rate them for this report because these diets lacked data from large, long-term, published clinical trials.

CR suggests there are four ways to a winning diet:

1. Eat high-bulk, low-calorie foods: This is a promising strategy for curbing hunger while keeping calories down. Such foods include fruits, veggies, and other water-filled foods such as soups.
2. Control blood sugar: One way is to stay away from starchy, easy-to-digest carbohydrates, such as refined flour, white rice, and potatoes, and avoid added sugar.
3. Eat plenty of high-fiber carbs, such as whole grains, fruits and veggies.
4. Measure portions and seek encouragement.

CR’s other recommendations for choosing the best diet for you include:

• Cut the easiest calories first. Eliminate the non-nutritive foods that are least important to you, such as sugared soft drinks and juices and oversized baked goods.
• Choose a safe dietary plan. If you have any medical condition check with your doctor before starting a weight-loss program. Don’t strive for rapid weight loss. Increase fiber intake gradually and drink more water to avoid digestive upsets.
• Consider personal preferences: People who like variety may tire of the limited menu of a meal-replacement diet.
• Follow the rules: The more faithfully people adhere to a diet, the more successful they will be.
• Be ready to switch: If, after three weeks, you find a diet is too difficult or unpleasant to follow, or you are not losing weight — try another.

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A low-fat diet rich in vegetables, fruits, whole grains and beans has twice the cholesterol-lowering power of a conventional low-fat diet, according to a new study from the Stanford University School of Medicine. In other words, a meal of spinach salad, egg and oatmeal-carrot cookies is healthier for your heart than stir-fried lean beef and asparagus and low-fat chocolate chip cookies—even when both meals contain the same amount of saturated fat and cholesterol.

The finding, published in Annals of Internal Medicine, comes from a meticulous comparison of two low-fat diets. One, the conventional diet, focused solely on avoiding harmful saturated fat and cholesterol. Diners ate such foods as frozen waffles and turkey bologna sandwiches. The second diet included the same proportions of fat and cholesterol, plus lots of plant-based foods in accordance with American Heart Association guidelines. Those diners ate such foods as hot grain cereals and vegetable soups.

The bottom line? Mother knows best: Do eat your veggies—and other nutrient-dense foods. It’s not enough to simply steer clear of saturated fat and cholesterol. “We would really hope that people would appreciate the new American Heart Association Guidelines,” said Christopher Gardner, PhD, assistant professor (research) of medicine at the Stanford Prevention Research Center and lead author on the National Institutes of Health-funded study, who decorates his office with splashy posters of squashes and peas. “Include more whole grains and vegetables and beans and colors—not iceberg lettuce, but red bell peppers and carrots and broccoli and red cabbage and the really colorful foods. Those are all really low in saturated fat and cholesterol, and they’re really high in other nutrients and phytochemicals that are good for you.”

A “plant-based” diet is not necessarily a vegetarian diet. It simply includes a foundation of whole grains, vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds and fruits. The 2000 AHA guidelines recommend at least five daily servings of vegetables and fruits and at least six daily servings of grains with an emphasis on whole grains. Previous studies, Gardner said, have shown plant-based diets to be effective in lowering cholesterol. But plant-based eaters also tend to consume less saturated fat and cholesterol than conventional low-fat eaters.

The Stanford study breaks new ground by comparing two patient groups eating different foods but identical amounts of total and saturated fat, protein, carbohydrate and cholesterol. So the two groups’ different levels of blood cholesterol change are attributable to the different foods—dark green salads and bean burritos, for example, versus iceberg lettuce and frozen pizza—and not differences in saturated fat and cholesterol intake.

Gardner, a 20-year vegetarian who specializes in nutrition and preventive medicine, expects a plant-based diet combined with weight loss and exercise to achieve even more impressive cholesterol-lowering results. Plus, he said, people can eat even less saturated fat and cholesterol than the study participants did.

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