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A Quick Look at Some of Today’s Most Effective Diets

The idiot-proof diet is all about calorie shifting. That is, in this diet, you shift your food intake throughout the day instead of eating just 3 meals a day. The diet is popular because it’s actually very easy to follow and there are hardly any restrictions when it comes to the types of food you can eat.

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The Idiot-Proof Diet

The idiot-proof diet is all about calorie shifting. That is, in this diet, you shift your food intake throughout the day instead of eating just 3 meals a day. The diet is popular because it’s actually very easy to follow and there are hardly any restrictions when it comes to the types of food you can eat.

The ‘calorie shifting’ model takes place because you eat every two and half hours. The theory is that because your body is consuming calories (energy) constantly throughout the day, it’s always in ‘burning calories’ mode instead of the ‘saving calories’ mode.

When you sign up for the diet, you get access to a diet handbook, an 11-day diet-plan and a diet calculator. You get to pick what foods you like to eat so don’t think that you’ll be tarving in this diet!

NutriSystem

The NutriSystem way of dieting is all about proper meal planning. People love this diet because it takes away the burden of trying to figure out what to eat during their dieting phase. You see, a lot of people actually get confused as to what they can eat when they want to lose weight. That’s not really surprising because there’s so much information out there and for every yay sayer, there is a nay sayer so it’s really tough to know what to eat.

However, with NurtiSystem, they do all the meal planning and portion controlling for you. You just need to sign up to any of their diet programs (e.g., Women’s Program, Men’s Program, Vegetarian Program, etc.) and order a multi-day (usually for 28 days) diet program.

After you choose your diet program, a menu is presented to you and you simply choose what you want to eat. The meals are then delivered to your doorstep at various intervals during your diet program.

The South Beach Diet

The South Beach Diet is popular because the name alone conjures bikini-clad bodies! Add to that the fact that it was founded by a cardiologist, Dr. Arthur Agatston, then you have a sort of ‘doctor recommended, doctor approved’ seal on the diet as well.

At first glance, the South Beach Diet looks a lot like the Atkins Diet in the sense that it restricts carbohydrates during the initial phase of the program (there are 3 phases). The first phase (14 days) encourages ‘normal eating’ in the sense that you can pretty much eat whatever you want but you must NOT eat bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, or baked goods. Fruit is also not allowed. No sugar. No alcohol.

The second phase allows you to SLOWLY introduce these items back into your diet but at lesser levels that you consumed them before of course. The third phase is more about general maintenance.

Weight Watchers

Probably one of the longest running diet programs out there is Weight Watchers. It believes in the overall approach where food, exercise, behavior and support are addressed.

Weight Watchers is known for advocating a point system for foods. Using this system, one calculates the calorie intake of the foods he or she eats. The number of points you can have in a day varies depending on your weight. The beauty of the program is that there are no gut-wrenching food restrictions so you never feel deprived of anything. However, the point system teaches you how to balance your meals so that even if you indulge on one food item, you don’t go overboard and consume too much in a day.

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How to manage Bland Diet

What is a bland diet? It is a diet specially set to treat certain gastrointestinal or stomach problems such as heartburns, ulcers and gas.

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An answer to a question, what is a bland diet, is that it is a simple treatment for people suffering from any one or more gastrointestinal disorders such as chronic gastritis, ulcer, esophagitis and dyspepsia.

Bland diet is a dietary regimen for people suffering from stomach disorders. Hence, it is quite understood that ingredients of a bland diet are soft food items, which are easy to digest with a capacity to keep the acidity to low levels. Questions about diet may be asked to your physicians and he/she can suggest the diet or recommend a dietician to do it.

Diet medical questions may include the queries about the food stuffs to eat and food stuffs to avoid during the time while a person experien ces any gastrointestinal disorders. However, before a dietician could decide the bland diet for a person, he/she needs to seek answers to several medical questions related to the person such as any food allergies or irritations associated with any food items and emotions medical questions of people.

Bland Diet:

The diet prescribed as a bland diet will include food items that are easy to digest and low in fiber and acid contents. Even giving up alcohol and smoking is advised while patient is on bland diet. Also a patient is advised to have 4 to 6 light meals after regular interval to avoid heavy and large meals.

Chewing food properly and eating slowly helps in the digestion of the food. Adequate sleep, avoiding smoking and controlling anxiety are supportive treatments for the standard treatment of the problem.

Allowed Food Items:

• Dairy Products
Milk, cheese, yogurt with low-fats and other dairy products are easily digested and hence, can be included as a part of bland diet. However, there is no restriction on ice-creams and one may consume even ice creams during bland diet, but it should not have any product such as nuts that are not allowed in bland diet.

• Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
Fresh vegetables and fruits are allowed to a bland dieter. However, while carrot, squash, green peas are good to eat in a bland diet, broccoli, onions and green peeper should be avoided as it forms gas. In fruits, oranges, grapefruits, and bananas are allowed.

• Proteins
Protein requirement of the body, while on a bland diet should be met with soy products and meat. Fried chicken and greasy hamburgers are not allowed to be consumed, while grilled and baked chicken is allowed.
Low-fat peanut butter and eggs are also efficient to meet the body’s protein requirement in a bland diet.

• Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are contained in whole grain breads, pasta, oatmeal, corn flakes, white rice and sweet potatoes. All these food items are allowed.

Bland diet is designed for treating certain medical circumstances such as gastrointestinal problems. Hence, to answer what is a bland diet, we can say that this is a diet that aims at improving the digestion with the help of a timed-routine diet and soft to digest food items. Once the problem is controlled patients can return to their normal diet.

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What to Know About Weight Loss Products

There are a lot of weight loss products that offer that fast weight loss results, however, are these really guaranteed? Could these products live up to their assurance of a fit body? In US, there is an estimated 50 million people who try to lose weigh, unfortunately, only 5 per cent are successful. One thing’s for sure, beware of fraudulent claims and extreme high cost because there is no magic to losing weight.Samples of weight loss products in the market nowadays:· Diet Patch – this was already removed since 1990’s by FDA since they were proven ineffective.· Magnetic Diet Pills – allegedly flushes out fat, but not.· Guar Gum – causes internal obstruction.· Electrical Muscle Stimulators – no proven effect.· Eyeglasses that Suppress Appetite – These claims that the projected image on the retina decreases appetite. No proven fact.· Weight loss earrings – through acupuncture, suppresses appetite.There are also examples of weight loss products:Diet drinks that are mixed with beverages or food are used as meal substitutes. A downside of this is that once a person stopped taking the drinks, they would eventually regain the lost weight after a short period of time due to feeling of emptiness in the stomach. Another is diet supplements and medicines that also don’t work long-term. Over-the-counter pills that compose of phenylpropanolamine hydrochloride may raise blood pressure and palpitation. Ephedra on the other hand can cause serious side effects such as heart problems, seizure, stroke, and even death. E.g.:§ Herbalife Nutritional Program – good as two meals, dieters may rely on shakes and follow artificial dieting methods and just don’t want food to work into their lives.§ Mega-Thin 100 Formula – Its formula contains an anti-fat weapon, however, diet is not emphasized that’s why it’s concluded that it has an appetite suppressant.§ Nestlé’s Sweet Success – recommended to take three times a day and it does not promote healthy eating habits. Weight loss is difficult to maintain once intake is stopped.§ Ultra Slim Fast – this plan requires regular exercise but does not teach good eating habits.§ Diet pills with Ephedra and PPA – many of these have enclosed diet plans. Slimming can come from the diet plan and not the pill intake and there are risks of adverse side effects.§ Chitosan products – contains fibers which were taken from shellfish that may cause diarrhea, bloatedness, and gas. This will only work if a low fat diet is practiced.§ Chromium Supplements –claim that products will lower blood sugar, body fat and cholesterol but causes anemia and even memory loss. Studies show only minimal or no beneficial effect at all. § Green Tea Extract Products – known as strong anti-oxidants that help lower cholesterol and triglycerides, and promote weight loss, however, the caffeine content could cause insomnia and restlessness.§ Algae Tablets – Spirulina contains significant nutrients that can be an acceptable food when used as part of a varied diet but are very expensive.§ St. John’s Wort Supplement – Claims that it will suppress appetite and promote weight loss but it could lead to gastrointestinal discomfort, tiredness, sleeplessness, and arouse allergic reactions.§ Glucomannan Products – claim that two capsules before each meal decrease food absorption. Known as food thickeners but not yet proven safe or effective. Weight loss will only happen if good diet plan is followed.Even if you plan on using over-the-counter weight supplements or even participate in a weight loss activity, the verdict is that you still have to eat fewer calories than you burn to lose weight. When choosing a weight loss product or program, collect as much information as possible.

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