Healthy Skin May be Just a Coconut Away

Looking refreshed, rejuvenated, and renewed is as easy as cracking into a jar of coconut oil. It’s making a comeback in the culinary world to enhance cooking, but coconut oil is also used to enhance skin by working wonders on a host of dermis dilemmas.

 

Coconut Cream Surprise

Coconut oil is frequently used as an ingredient in expensive skin care products to aid in reducing the appearance of wrinkles and clearing up other skin ailments, so why not just go with straight coconut oil?

Not only is pure, unrefined coconut oil much cheaper than a trip to the cosmetics counter at Bloomingdale’s (you cant beat $5 per jar that will last a few months), but it is an ideal agent for skin care because it’s high level of antioxidants that penetrate into the underlying tissues.  Antioxidants are like soldiers in the war on wrinkles, strengthening the skin’s connective tissues, helping prevent sun damage, healing the skin, and protecting it from the elements. Many conventional skin care products made with refined vegetable oils, have all the antioxidants stripped from them as a result of the refining process.

The small molecular structure of coconut oil allows for easy absorption through the skin, and even hair, giving both a soft, smooth texture, and making it ideal for the relief of even the driest. But coconut oil doesn’t only have a soft side. It also has strong anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-fungal properties which can fight conditions like acne, eczema, diaper rash, psoriasis, and fungal infections.

A little goes a long way. Just a dab of the stuff is enough to cover the entire face. No surprise that it tends to be a little greasy, but it is oil, yet it absorbs fairly fast.  As far as the smell goes, it smells like coconut, in a light, refreshing, beachy kind of way.

When buying coconut oil, don’t be alarmed when it’s packaged in its solid, rather than liquid state. This is quite normal, and be sure to look for the EVCO type (extra virgin coconut oil) to ensure buying it in the purest form.  Even though coconut oil is climbing up the social ladder and gaining popularity, it’s still mainly found in health food stores and specialty groceries.

When Ketchup is the Only Veggie Your Kids Eat

I have probably mentioned this before, but my kids are super picky eaters. I’m pretty sure they get this from my husband’s side, as he is as picky as they are. I guess it makes cooking meals easier, since they only like three of four foods. And trust me, I have tried, and continually try to expand their horizons. Baby steps I guess.

I am always worrying about whether they are getting enough nutrients, especially since veggies are almost non-existent in their diet, husband included. But I recently read an article that made me feel a tiny bit better.

If you like ketchup, which is the only veggie (such that it is) that my kids eat… sigh, there’s good news waiting.

A study from Finland, published in the journal Neurology, found that those who had higher levels of lycopene (the ingredient found in ketchup) had stronger hearts than those who didn’t. Lycopene also helps reduce body inflammation and can help prevent blood clots.

Surprisingly (and luckily), lycopene is found in many of the foods we like.

For example, cooked tomato sauce has more lycopene than raw tomatoes; over 31,000 micrograms in a cup of marinara compared to just 3,165 micrograms for the raw tomato. That’s nearly 10 times more lycopene benefit, and we eat a lot of spaghetti.

But lycopene isn’t just found in tomatoes and tomato products. Fruits have it too. Fortunately, my family doesn’t have an aversion to fruits like they do with veggies.

Here’s a list of 11 Lycopene Nutritional Powerhouses (Courtesy of USDA):

  • Sauce, pasta, spaghetti/marinara, ready-to-serve (1 cup): 31,663 micrograms
  • Tomato juice, canned, with salt added (1 cup): 21,960 micrograms (Bloody Mary anyone?)
  • Soup, tomato, canned, prepared with equal volume 2% milk (1 cup): 13,047 micrograms
  • Watermelon, raw (1 cup): 6,889 micrograms
  • Tomatoes, red, ripe, raw, average (1 tomato): 3,165 micrograms
  • Papayas, raw (1 cup): 2,559 micrograms
  • Ketchup (1 tbsp.): 2,146 micrograms
  • Pizza, pepperoni, regular crust (1 slice): 2,074 micrograms
  • Grapefruit, raw, pink and red, (half grapefruit): 1,745 micrograms

I Want to Burn More Fat

Did you know that your body burns fat or carbs depending on the intensity of your activity? You burn fat even if your body is at rest. Actually, you are even burning fat right now sitting in the front of your computer. Your body is burning about one or two calories per minute (about 70 % comes from fat and about 30% comes from carbs).

When you exercise, as the intensity increases, your body starts using more and more carbohydrates for energy instead of fat. With high intensity aerobic exercise, 100 percent of the energy is coming from carbs. But here is where it gets interesting…when carbs are no longer available, your body will break down muscle and use it for energy. When carbohydrate stores are depleted, the rate at which fat is used as energy is reduced, and that’s why carbs are essential in order to metabolize fat.

The best way to lose fat is when you burn more calories than you eat on a daily basis, not because you burn fat when you are exercising.

When you eat after your workout, you rapidly replenish both the carbs and fats that you have used up during the workout. But as soon as an excess of calories (from either fats or carbohydrates) exists, your body will begin to store them as fat. So don’t go pig out after your workout or your body’s fat stores will be virtually unchanged.

This is why diet + exercise really do work the best, but your exercise regime must include cardio and WEIGHT TRAINING. When in doubt, do resistance training.

The key to fat loss is to manage your calories, so your body doesn’t store them as fat, and to boost your metabolism so that your body is continuously burning calories at a higher rate 24/7. People with muscle mass are automatically burning more calories (and fat). Every 1 pound of muscle that you build on your body will burn up to 3,000 extra calories a month which equals roughly .5 pounds of fat. I know that .5 pounds doesn’t sound like much, but that .5 pounds is burned by doing nothing but sitting around. It is a way to give you an added advantage as you continue on your weight loss path.  Bonus – more muscle makes you look healthier and slimmer!

So, the perfect combo is healthy diet, resistance training, and cardio.

For a Short Bout of Exercise – Take the Stairs

 

To take the stairs or not to take the stairs… that is the question.

I was recently on jury duty, and the courtroom that we were in was on the seventh floor, so I rode up and down the elevator many times during the day, many days in a row. What I found interesting was that many of the people were riding the elevator up or down for one just one floor.  Definitely an opportunity missed…

In a recent study, British researchers confirmed that some exercise is better than nothing.

Researchers found that for sedentary people, even a few minutes of daily stair climbing – a vigorous but easily accessible form of exercise – can improve cardiovascular health.

Previous studies have shown that accumulating short bouts of exercise can make a difference; this one shows just how short those bouts can be.

Twenty-two sedentary college-aged women walked up 199 steps – more than you’re likely to find at home, but doable in a high-rise – in 2.25 minutes, a “brisk but comfortable” pace which shot their heart rates up to 90 percent of their predicted maximum.

They progressed from one ascent per day during the first week to six ascents per day, for a total of 13.5 minutes over the course of a day, during the sixth and seventh weeks.

By the end of this modest exercise program, the women were measurably more fit: Heart rate, oxygen uptake and blood lactate levels during climbing were reduced, and their HDL (”good”) cholesterol levels had increased.  Source: Preventive Medicine, 2000; 30, 4, 277-281 via acefintess.org

My husband has been on a stair climbing kick lately, because he is so busy at work, he has no time for the gym. He works on the 10th floor of his building, and takes the stairs up and down at least once a day. Now, I’m not saying that his weight loss is 100% because of the stairs (some of it is because his awesome wife only serves healthy food), but he has lost over 30 pounds in the last year or so.

Make a new rule – three flights of stairs or less, skip the elevator and hoof it.

Dehydration – How to Tell When Your Body Needs Water

The Need To Know

People become dehydrated when the water levels in the body get out of balance.

The body’s way of saying drink more fluids can include symptoms like dry mouth, headache dry and cool skin, rapid heartbeat, lethargy, irritability, fatigue, or dizziness.

 

Dehydration can happen as a result of not drinking enough water or fluid, or losing too much body fluid due to a fever, diarrhea, vomiting, or long periods of exercise with excessive sweating.

Dehydration can be avoidable by drinking at least 1.5 liters of water each day.

Urine color can be an indication of dehydration. Dark colored urine or no urine is a sign to drink more.

Choose fluids wisely. Alcoholic and caffeinated beverages can actually lead to dehydration.

 

 

Body of Water

Dry mouth. Headache. Dizziness. While this may sound like the fine print warning label for medication side effects, these are a few of the symptoms of dehydration. Dehydration occurs when the body’s fluids get out balance, and it doesn’t have enough fluid (water) to work properly.

The body is approximately two thirds water, and losing some of this water throughout the day in our sweat, tears, and urine is pretty common. This small water loss can be easily replaced with water, beverages, and many foods in our daily diet.

But when the amount of water drops too low for normal body functions (like maintaining temperature, protecting organs and other tissues, and getting rid of wastes through urination, perspiration, and bowel movement), it can lead to dehydration.  We can become dehydrated if we are not drinking enough water or fluid, or if we lose too much body fluid due to a fever (more water evaporates when body temperature goes up), diarrhea, vomiting, or long periods of exercise with excessive sweating.

Dehydration is often described as mild, moderate, or severe, depending on how much body weight has been lost because of fluid loss.

 

Mild dehydration is more common, described by a loss of less than 1% of body weight, and it’s usually not considered dangerous. However, it can affect our mood and alertness. Mild dehydration can usually be cured by drinking fluids to replace lost salts and fluids.

 

Moderate dehydration is a loss of 2-5% of body weight and can be more serious affecting our ability to concentrate, and may lead to fatigue, dizziness, muscle soreness, and even affecting short term memory

 

Severe dehydration is more likely to occur in people who are unable to get fluids without help due to illness, or age like the elderly and infants. It’s described as a decrease of more than 5% of body weight due to fluid loss, and can be serious with symptoms like sunken eyes, shriveled and dry skin, low blood pressure, rapid heartbeat and breathing, and it requires immediate medical attention.

 

So especially as summer approaches, be on the lookout for these common signs of dehydration.

 

Thirst

Dry or sticky mouth

Headache

Lack of urine for 12 hours (or only a very small amount of dark yellow urine)

Dry, cool skin

Rapid heart beat

Lethargy

Moodiness or irritability

Fatigue

Dizziness

Eyes that look sunken into the head

 

 

Eat, Drink, and Stay Hydrated

One way to beat dehydration is to drink before feeling thirsty. Thirst can be a sign that dehydration is setting in. Drink plenty of fluids every day, and even though everyone is a little different when it comes to water requirements, 1.5 liters per day is a good rule of thumb

 

And the proof is in the pee when trying to avoid dehydration. If urine is clear, pale, or straw-colored, that’s a good sign.  If it’s darker, keep on drinking.

 

It’s important to drink more during hot weather, but other situations require more fluids too, like humid weather, high altitudes, illnesses that cause high fever, diarrhea, or vomiting, and even cold weather when the body is covered with layer upon layer of clothing. And don’t forget to hydrate during exercise and activities. For every hour of activity or exercise drink an additional liter of fluid.

 

Getting enough fluids during the day is important, but not all beverages are created equal. Water is always good go-to drink. Juice, milk and even coconut water are other options [8]. And after intense workouts or activities, sports drinks are a good choice too, not only to replace water loss, but also to replenish electrolytes and sodium But steer clear of alcoholic and caffeinated beverages (such as coffee, teas, and sodas) which tend to pull water from the body and may actually fuel dehydration.

So when fluid going out is more than fluid taken in, stop, look, and listen to the body as it sends the message to drink up.

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