Best Antioxidant Rich Foods

  For years research has been uncovering the many benefits of antioxidants. Antioxidants help to combat heart disease, cancer, reduce blood pressure and slow the effects of aging. These small molecules fight harmful free radicals within the body that can damage and kill cells, which cause disease. Although antioxidants can be synthesized within the body, in most cases they must be consumed through your diet. By consuming a combination of whole foods and disease fighting antioxidants you can stave off disease and maintain a healthy optimal functioning body. Read more...

Strengthen Your Core With Stability Ball Exercises

Exercise balls have been around for a long time. You may have seen them at the gym, or you may even have one at your house. Fitness balls have been used by physical therapists and personal trainers alike. The reason this exercise equipment is used so frequently and by so many is because it’s relatively inexpensive and easily accessible, but also because it has such great benefits for the body. Exercise balls focus on strengthening the torso/core to improve complete body function and reduce the risk of injury. Because it is an unstable environment it challenges your muscles, by contracting, to keep yourself from falling off. Additionally, it keeps your spine in proper alignment while balancing upon the ball. Read more...

Relieve Your Stress With Mind Body Exercises

Although most people feel they don’t have time to exercise, or don’t think they need to exercise, what they don’t realize is that exercise is an essential part of a healthy life style. Exercise is key to controlling weight management, protecting against various diseases and stress management. Exercise is a great stress reducer because the body releases endorphins, which are, feel good hormones. When released into the body endorphins increase energy, improve mood and make you feel better, all three of which help to eliminate stress. By choosing an exercise that you enjoy you can further reduce your stress. If you’re nervous, afraid or scared of looking stupid then you can actually worsen your stress rather than diminish it.  Read more...

Stop a Weight Loss Plateau from Occurring

For anyone who has tried to lose weight they know what it’s like to hit a plateau. A plateau is when you continue to exercise and diet at the same rate but the weight stops declining. It’s a horrible feeling to know that you worked so hard, watched your food intake, and not to see the results on the scale. In most cases a plateau can be waited out and results will resume post haste. However, for many dieters a plateau can be discouraging. Read more...

Inflammation, The Body's First Line of Defense

Have you ever experienced red, painful, swelling in a body part? This reaction in the body is called inflammation. Inflammation is a normal response by the body to start the healing process. Inflammation can occur for many reasons and be classified as chronic or acute. Although the body regulates inflammation automatically, chronic inflammation can lead to a host of additional diseases. Therefore inflammation should be closely monitored to make sure it doesn’t persist longer than necessary. Read more...

The Best Anti-Inflammatory Foods for Your Health

Inflammation is the body’s protective response to irritation, injury, or infection. However, chronic inflammation can be aggravated by excess weight and the food that we eat. Fat tissue secretes chemicals and hormones, which cause and increase inflammation. Foods that increase blood sugar also increase inflammation. This includes processed sugar, high glycemic starches, refined white flours and saturated fats. Therefore when looking to decrease inflammation an anti-inflammatory diet is essential. Avoid junk food, high fats, fast food, and sugars. A diet high in vegetables, low in carbohydrates and saturated/trans fats promotes anti-inflammatory properties.  Here is a list of anti-inflammatory foods to add to your diet. Read more...

Home Hair Care Remedies That Won't Break The Bank

Hair care is a huge market in today society. Salons, stylists and hairdressers make a bundle off of keeping your hair looking fabulous. However, it’s not without a price. Breathe a little bit easer because now there is a way to get salon-looking hair in the comfort of your own home very inexpensively. More often than not items in our own homes can double as hair care remedies such as olive oil, white vinegar and avocados. By using these products you can give your hair the essential nutrients it needs, add volume, boost shine and preserve your natural hair color. Now who doesn’t want that? Read more...

Smoothie Ingredients To Build Muscle & Boost Weight Loss

 

Smoothies are a great way to start your day or even as a snack through at your day.  Additionally, smoothies can be used as a meal replacement for busy people who are on the go.  The great thing about smoothies is that they are loaded with nutritious ingredients that boost brainpower, increase your energy levels, build muscle, burn fat, promote weight loss and help your heart. However, when purchasing pre-made smoothies you don’t know all of the ingredients, added sugars, or extra calorie content to boost your nutritional value and get a great smoothie flavor. The best way to maintain the integrity of your smoothie is to make it yourself. Choose from this list of healthy smoothie ingredients.  Read more...

Get Better Sleep Today

 

Sleeping is a necessary part of life that allows our brains and body to rest and rejuvenate, to keep us functioning at an optimal performance level. When adequate sleep is not achieved then our brain function and body capabilities diminish causing symptoms of fatigue, memory loss, difficulty concentrating, mood swings, and weight gain. So why is sleep so important? During sleep our body is physically repairing and rebuilding cellular damage caused from the previous day. As the body renews, hormones and growth are also regulated. Minimal or inconsistent sleep throws off the bodies entire system this happens all too much causing many people to have trouble sleeping or be sleep deprived on a regular basis. Read more...

Is Your Diet Right For You

The word diet is presumed to mean a specific food constriction to lose weight. However the real meaning of diet in nutritional terms means the sum of food consumed. The meaning of the word diet has been warped over the years giving a misconception. People have been dieting, in the sense of constricting to certain food guidelines, to lose weight for decades. However, specific diets started popping up and have become the new trend in weight loss. Over the last decade we have seen the rise of the Atkins diet, South beach diet, cabbage soup diet, cookie diet, and grapefruit diet and macrobiotic diet as well as companies such as Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, Nutrisystem, and LA weight loss promoting their diet programs. Although it is possible to lose weight with any of these diets (by restricting calories) in actuality all of these diets are bunk. Read more...

Avoid The Most Common Diet Mistakes That Dieters Make

Hundreds of people start and stop diets every year for many reasons. People choose to start diets because they want to lose weight. However, people don’t anticipate how hard it will be. Losing weight takes dedication and motivation. However if you aren’t prepared for the challenge then you may ultimately quit before you reach your goal. Before deciding if a diet is right for you its best to learn about the diet and nutritional factors. By being knowledgeable you can avoid making common diet mistakes just like these. Here are your top 10 diet mistakes that you should avoid when starting a diet. Read more...

The Best Diet Tips

Whether you have dieted in the past, you are on a diet now or you are going to start a diet there are dieting tips that should be followed to get the best results you can from your diet. Every diet is not for everyone so following these diet tips may be the key to successfully completing your diet with the outcome that you wanted. By keeping these diet tips close to your vest you can avoid the common diet mistakes that most dieters normally make. Read more...

Daily Lifestyle Tips To Reduce Wrinkles

As we get older, our appearance is just one of the many things that we have to worry about declining. Fine lines and wrinkles are part of the first signs of aging skin. Anti-aging and wrinkles reducers consist of eating proper nutrition, drinking enough water, reducing stress, cleaning and moisturizing the skin and getting enough sleep. However, even if you live healthy and follow these guidelines the natural aging process causes a decline in collagen, which increases the likelihood of wrinkles. So in addition to following a healthy lifestyle includes some of these more surprising tips in your daily life to reduce wrinkles from creeping up on you. Read more...

Breakfast- The Most Important Meal of The Day

You have heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. But if this is true then why do most people skip breakfast? There are many reasons why people choose to skip breakfast, some think by skipping breakfast it will help to lose weight, others just feel they don’t have time for breakfast. However, these are part of an incorrect thinking because breakfast is in fact the most important meal of the day. By eating a healthy, nutritious breakfast you can maintain a healthy weight while refueling your mind and body for the rest of your day. Read more...

Foods to Reduce & Eliminate Stress

Stress is all around us, at work, at home and on our minds. Stress affects everyone differently, however stress weakens the bodies immune system and depletes the body of essential nutrients. For some stress causes uncontrollable eating. Others go without eating altogether. Neither option is good for the body especially under stressful circumstances. Knowing the best stress reducing foods can help to relax the body and combat stress. Read more...

How to Achieve Better Health

Now that we are in the 21st century, more people focus has shifted to improving their health. Health is important because ones health determines, how long you will live and what type of quality your life will have. Health is determined by diet, physical fitness, happiness, stress levels, choices and genetics. Genetics is the only part of health that cannot be changed. The rest of the factors determine what type of health one will have. However, no matter what ones present health is, there is always a way you can improve upon it. Poor health is a result of ones lifestyle, it occurs overtime. It takes years of eating unhealthy food breathing in unclean air, not exercising, stressful situations and unhappiness to acquire poor health. But you can get better health by changing these bad aspects of your life. Even the smallest step in the right direction can improve your health significantly. It’s your life; this is how you will achieve better health. Read more...

Foods to Reduce Inflammation

Pain, stiffness, and swelling are just a few signs of inflammation. Inflammation can be caused by many things an injury, fall, allergies or even acne. Inflammation can also occur due to the presence of a disease such as hay fever, atherosclerosis, arthritis, diabetes, heart disease, irritable bowel syndrome, Alzheimer’s, acid reflux, Parkinson’s, stroke, asthma, cancer and infections. When inflammation occurs there are many ways to combat it, medication, rest, exercise and in extreme cases surgery. However, for many who seek natural or holistic medicine looking into an anti inflammatory diet may be just as effective as the alternative treatments. Here is a list of foods that should be included in ones diet to reduce the symptoms of inflammation. Read more..

Basic Care For Healthy Teeth

Keeping your teeth healthy can be as simple as following a few simple tips. However, even the easiest tips can go by the way side every once and a while causing bacteria and acid in the mouth to run rampant and cause cavities. The best way to keep your teeth healthy is by following the basic principles of brushing and flossing. Most people weren’t taught proper techniques on how to care for their teeth. By lacking this basic knowledge you can be doing a disservice to the health of your teeth. Follow these basic guidelines to proper care for your teeth and you will be smiling wider from this day forward. Read more...

Protect Your Skin From Damage

Our skin is the largest organ of the body, covering the entire body head to toe. Its primary reason for existence is to protect the body. Therefore, it is our job to protect our skin. This way you maintain a good barrier between your environment and the inside of your body. Plus by protecting your skin, you keep it looking and feeling healthy, because no one likes the look of premature aging. Read more...

Do You Have Allergies?

Right around springtime, when the flowers start to bloom and the bees start to buzz, people with allergies start to sneeze, their eyes start to itch and water. If you are one of these people you know exactly what I’m talking about. Allergies cause a reaction within the body creating symptoms of coughing, burning, itchy eyes, headache, hives, runny nose, skin rashes, cramps, vomiting, and diarrhea. Everyone experiences a different intensity and combination of symptoms. Allergies are very common among humans.  Read more...

What To Eat For Breakfast?

 

We all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, however grabbing a doughnut and coffee is worse than skipping breakfast altogether. Many breakfast foods are high in sugar, carb-filled, or too fatty. These foods such as doughnuts, pastries, cereals, pancakes and coffee can give you an instant boost in energy, but once the body breaks down the food and the energy is quickly used up you feel hungry again. Once the energy is used up from these foods you will become sluggish and groggy. This normally occurs long before lunchtime causing one to seek out quick and easy alternatives that are usually not healthy. If you can’t find a snack you are apt to over indulge at lunchtime. Read more...

What Causes Frizzy Hair

Frizzy hair is one of the main problems that women deal with on a daily basis. Reducing frizz can be a difficult task however before you can reduce it you need to understand why your hair is frizzy in the first place, because you may be causing your own hair to frizz.  Frizzy hair is caused when the moisture and natural oils in hair is removed. This leaves hair strands coarse and dry making it easier for hair to look frizzy. Many things can cause frizzy hair. You can genetically be born with coarse hair, which lacks protein. Although, it is more likely that it is something you are doing to your hair that is causing it to be frizzy. Read more...

Ways to Reduce Frizzy Hair

Frizzy hair is one of women’s worst nightmares. Caused when water and natural oils are stripped from the hair follicles making it dry and frizzy. Reducing frizz can be as simple as eliminating certain products that you normally use or adding products to your hair care regimen to replace the hairs natural oil. Either way you need to understand the do's and don’ts to ultimately overcome frizzy hair. Read more...

Lose Weight By Learning How To Run

   Running is an exercise that you usually love or hate.  Especially if you are overweight, running is not a welcomed part of ones exercise routine. However, running is one exercise that can get you into shape really quickly by burning a ton of calories and working almost every muscle in the body. Though, if you’re not a runner, beginning a running regiment is not an easy task. Read more...

Home Hair Care To Reduce Frizzy Hair

Frizzy hair is one of the most common problems that women have to deal with for their hair. Unfortunately, for some women it’s caused by weather or genetics. In most cases frizzy hair is due to over heating or the use of too much product, which dries out the hair causing it to become brittle and easily breakable. Many women get to the point where their hair is so dry and frizzy they feel it’s impossible to restore the health and beauty of their hair, where as others choose to go to a salon and spend a ton of money to hair their beauty restored. Well neither way is the answer. Eliminating frizz and restoring beauty to your hair can be done in the comfort of your own home and for relatively cheaper prices than a salon would charge you. Plus they are all natural so you know the ingredients that you’re putting on your hair. Store bought or salon products for frizz contain chemical ingredients that don’t work very well and can leave your hair worse off than it already was. So the next time you notice a frizz decide to do something about it before you leave your home. Read more...

Quick Ways To Add Volume & Shine Back Into Your Hair

Everyday we see men and women in advertisements with perfect, beautiful, shiny, voluminous hair. So is it so bad to want our hair to look just like that? Unlike these models, singers, and movie stars we don’t have a team of stylists working on our hair day in and day out to make it look beautiful. But that is just it; you don’t need to be rich and famous to have shiny, voluminous, gorgeous looking hair. Adding sheen to you hair doesn’t have to be difficult. All you need are a few beauty secrets to add life back into your tresses. Follow these tools to invigorate your locks, to look like you just stepped out of a photo shoot. Read more...

Natural Homemade Fruit Skin Care

Our skin is the largest organ on our body. It protects us from toxins, chemicals and poisons on a daily basis. Therefore proper skin care is essential to maintaining healthy, soft, beautiful looking skin. Skin care products today contain chemicals and preservatives that can irritate the skin. However home skin care remedies are simple, inexpensive and use all natural ingredients, because you should never put something on your skin that you couldn’t put in your mouth. Read more...

Eat These Hot Foods at the First Sign of a Cold

At the first sign of a cold, the first food most people turn to is chicken soup. That’s because when you were young and got sick your mom or grandmother would take care of you and serve you chicken soup to make you feel better. For centuries folk medicine has passed down this comfort food as a remedy for the common cold.  Chicken soup is just one of many hot foods that can ease your symptoms of a cold. Both hot temperature foods and hot flavored foods make up a list of foods you should eat when coming down with a cold.  These foods will not only comfort you and ease your symptoms but also shortens the length of time that your cold lasts. Some of these foods can also be eaten to prevent the onset of future colds or immune deficiencies. Read more...

Top 5 Gym Equipment For A Fat Burning Workout

In 2009, the Centers for Disease Control found that 63% of Americans were either overweight or obese. This number although egregious is not astonishing.  Too many American’s consume fast food and don’t exercise. But I wouldn’t be surprised if the number of people who tried to start an exercise program and failed to continue was almost the same percentage. Thousands of people try to lose weight every year but quit before they get their feet wet. Losing weight is hard. It takes determination and motivation and the temptation to quit, stop or cheat is too strong for many. Unfortunately there is no quick fix for losing weight, no secret diet pill, or way to burn off all your fat, just you working out and eating healthy. But if you choose the right exercise you can lose weight and burn fat faster. Cardiovascular exercise increases your heart rate and burns calories faster than weight training, resistance workouts and endurance exercises. Here is your top fat burning exercises to lose weight and get into shape. Read more...

How Exercise Benefits Your Beauty

In a world obsessed by beauty, we’ve spent billions of dollars a year on products to enhance our skin, hair and nails. However, what we don’t realize when we buy and use these beauty products is that there are easier and more natural ways to enhance ones beauty. By eating healthy, living a healthy lifestyle, and exercising you can preserve your beauty from the inside out.

            When most people think of reasons to exercise it doesn’t include a clear complexion, blemish free skin, less wrinkles and strong, healthy hair. However that’s exactly what exercise can do for your beauty. Exercise benefits beauty by rewarding you with healthier skin and hair.  Exercise reduces wrinkles, restores color and glow to dull skin, decreases acne, and revives weak and brittle hair. So next time you need a motivation to exercise think about your beauty. Going for a walk, doing yoga or working up a sweat around the house can all enhance your beauty. Read more...

Why You Should Use A Personal Trainer To Lose Weight

Do you want to lose weight? Want to join a gym? Well here’s an option for you- consider hiring a personal trainer. Many people are intimidated by personal trainers because they are in great shape, know all about exercising and have great strength and form. For those who are just beginning to exercise or have never been to a gym, they don’t want to look stupid in front of these knowledgeable, experienced and buff people. However, personal trainers could be the best thing for you. Personal trainers know what exercises are best for losing weight, building muscle, increasing flexibility and endurance, they know how many repetitions and sets should be done for each exercise and they know just how hard to push a person to really get them to work hard. Read more...

Natural Allergy Home Remedies To Reduce Your Symptoms

Allergies can occur all year round at the drop of a dime with no warning. Most people know they have allergies because they occur early on in life and there is no cure for allergies. An allergic reaction is an abnormal immune system response to specific stimuli such as dust, smoke, pollen, chemicals, pet dander, oils, cosmetics or food. When your immune system recognizes the presence of an allergen it responds by producing antibodies to protect the body. A chain reaction is then produced causing histamines to be released into the body. Histamines cause a variety of observable symptoms in the body such as coughing, burning, itchy or watery eyes, headache, hives, runny nose, skin rashes, cramps, vomiting and diarrhea. Unfortunately, it is not understood why some people have allergies and some don’t. Read more...

Risk Factors That Could Be Causing Your Acne

          Don’t you hate it when you wake up in the morning and look in the mirror to find a red pimple has appeared over night? It's annoying because by popping the pimple you can spread bacteria creating more pimples or reddened inflamed skin, but by leaving it along you have a noticeable embarrassment on your face.  Acne is one of the most common skin problems that affect people of all ages, races and gender. Acne is not partial to any one person and can appear without notice. Read more...

How Often Should You Wash Your Hair

In Western culture bathing and washing our hair is a natural custom. 
For some people it is a daily procedure for which they feel is necessary. Washing ones hair is required to remove dirt, oil, excess sebum and chemicals from the environment or from hair products. Washing your hair is a general practice in which most people learn from their parents, or hair care specialists (hairdresser, stylist). Where it differs is how often one should wash their hair. Read more...

A Daily Acne Routine For A Clear Complexion

It’s pretty devastating when you wake up in the morning, look in the mirror and notice a pimple has sprouted on your face overnight. Acne is the number one skin problem that people are faced with ion a day-to-day basis.  According to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) about 40 million Americans experience acne at some point throughout their life. Acne isn’t fickle; it doesn’t discriminate between gender, race or age of the people that it affects. Even though it affects many different people, the best treatment for acne is the same for all. Due to the frequent occurrence of acne dermatologists have been able to develop an acne protocol, which eliminates blemishes, and restores beautiful, glowing skin. Acne treatment requires patience and persistence to restore your clear complexion. It takes six to eight weeks to start to see improvement in your skin when using acne treatment and six months to see a clear complexion.  Follow this dermatologist recommended routine for blemish free skin. Read more...

When To Use A Detox Tea

The human body was created with its own excretory system to cleanse and remove toxins, chemicals and metabolic waste. The liver, lungs, kidney, and blood remove all toxins, that are unusable, that harm the body or are not necessary for the body to function. Over thousands of years, humans have not only become civilized, but we have developed culturally and technologically. With new inventions comes new exposure to environmental pollutants. With change in lifestyle comes a change in diet and the food we eat. When the body is bombarded with toxins, chemicals and pollutants the excretory organs become overworked trying to remove them. The longer that these toxins remain in the body the more likely they can be reabsorbed. When toxins accumulate in the body they can cause symptoms of declining health. Therefore using a detox tea can stimulate and increase liver, kidney, and lung function to restore health and remove metabolic waste. Read more...

Quit Smoking To Stop Signs Premature Aging

            As we age our bodies cells begin to deteriorate which causes signs and symptoms of old age such as wrinkles, sagging skin, age spots, discoloration, etc. It is these signs that cause a change in our appearance. Although there have been advancements in the average life expectancy, there is still a fascination with looking young and beautiful. This includes having firm, toned, and even skin.  There’s no wonder why the market for anti-aging has skyrocketed. However, with the interest in living longer there is also even more interest in living healthier.  Therefore many new anti-aging methods involve changing ones lifestyle, avoiding bad habits or adding essential nutrients to ones diet. Read more...

Ear Candling- The Alternative To Removing EarWax

The ears are an important part of ones senses allowing us to hear noises, sounds and vibrations. Because the internal workings of the ear are so delicate they are protected by earwax. Earwax, also known as cerumen is yellowish brown waxy substance that is secreted into the ear canal. It protects the ear canal by trapping bacteria, fungi, insects and water before it can get into the internal ear. Although, war wax was originally intended to assist the ear in cleaning and protection if too much earwax is present it can be harmful. Excess earwax can cause impaction or blockage in the ear. This can lead to soreness, pain, difficulty hearing, ringing or tinnitus, dizziness, and ultimately deafness. Removing earwax can be a simple and painless procedure done on a regular basis to avoid the excess build up of earwax. Read more...

16 Reasons to Lose Weight

Most people want to lose weight because of the obvious reasons; they want to look better, be more attractive and they don’t want to be fat because being fat carries a stigma in our society of being lazy and unattractive. Wherever you look skinny people are idolized in magazines, on TV and on the Internet as being popular, attractive and successful. Everyone wants these qualities because it boosts self-esteem, which is something that people who are overweight battle with on a daily basis. From a very young age right up until adulthood, being overweight comes with a self-consciousness. The 21st century has brought about a health craze, now more than ever people are trying to lose weight. With TV shows like the “Biggest Loser” and “Dance You’re A** Off” we are promoting not only losing weight but becoming healthier. There are so many reasons to want to lose weight however the healthier reasons should be closer to the top of the list rather than the aesthetic ones. Use these reasons to motivate you to lose excess weight. Read more...