Beat Scary Food Bills! Try These Money Saving Tips

Please welcome guest author, Mia Johnson, to Dietriffic today ~ Melanie
Many people wanting to get healthy or lose weight automatically turn to specialized diet programs to help them achieve their goals.
Unfortunately, most diet programs these days require that customers purchase specific foods, and enroll in classes or attend meetings.
Depending on the program, these classes and meals can cost anywhere from $70 – $140 per week.
But, rather than spending heaps of money to eat a lot of processed foods, you could save a considerable amount by cooking at home, and focusing on some very basic meals.
By 
stocking your kitchen with whole, healthy foods, which you can find at any grocery store, you will soon be able to notice an improvement in your health.

Here are 6 basic kitchen staples

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1. Chicken

Leg quarters are cheap and easy to work with. Season and bake them in the oven for a delicious and healthy meal.


2. Potatoes

Potatoes add substance to any meal, and are a very versatile food. You can cook them whole, or just chop and season to match the rest of your meal.

3. Vegetables

If you buy your vegetables frozen, you can save a lot of time. However, buy plain vegetables instead of seasoned blends. Seasoning them yourself will save you money, and cut down on the sodium content.

4. Ground Meats

Even when you buy a better quality ground meat, it isn’t expensive, and they serve as an excellent base for a wide variety of one-skillet meals, such as a stir-fry or spaghetti sauce.

5. Rice

Healthy, light and filling, rice is a vital staple for any kitchen. It is also very simple to cook. Just place one cup of rice and two cups of water into a saucepan, bring it to boil, cover and turn off the burner. Then, let it sit covered for about 20 minutes. You can serve it as a side dish, or mix it into a one-skillet meal.


6. Beans

Dried beans are such an easy option for adding flavor and bulk to meals. Go meat-free for an evening, or try adding some meat for extra flavor, then serve over rice.

Eating Out

Since most of us do not eat at home for every meal, it is important to find ways of staying on budget when we eat out.
One of the easiest ways of doing this, is to check the Internet before you leave home.
Make it your habit to surf for daily deals, looking for restaurant, gym and spa coupons, or special deals.
Another option is to go to the restaurant’s own website to look for coupons and nutritional data. That way you can make the best choice for your pocket and your health.
These simple foods and tricks will help you and your family on your way to healthier eating, and will cost nowhere near as much as paying a diet program to serve you processed foods every day.
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5 Ways to Improve your Lousy Posture

Many people suffer from terrible posture. Poor posture is not only bad for your musculoskeletal health, but it can really affect you socially too.

When someone is walking around with their head down and their body bent over, they are often perceived as being frail and lacking confidence.

It's hard to tell if you have a problem; you may not even be aware of your own lousy posture until you see yourself in a photograph. I strongly encourage you to evaluate your own posture using double mirrors or pictures.

Examples:

Good posture: Your back is straight, neck and shoulders are tucked back, with chest up and forward.

Poor Posture While standing: Walking with the head down and back hunched over, shoulders and neck are tilted forward.

Posture While Sitting: Leaning way too far out of the chair with the next sticking out and shoulders rolled forward. Little or no lumbar / lower back support.

Note: There are other forms of bad posture too, but these are the most common.

Here are 5 ways to improve your posture:

1. The Wall Trick
Stand up against a wall, several times per day. Make note of this position, as it will serve as a reminder of how to stand up straignt. Commit this position to memory as often as possible.

2. The Foam Pad
People who sit in chairs all day can develop poor shoulder posture in which their shoulders are rolled forward, with their neck hanging out like an ostrich. To counteract the shoulder problem, place the foam roller on the ground and lay down on it vertically. The roller should be aligned with your spine, so gravity will pull your shoulders back...and your neck too. Doing this a couple times a day can work wonders.

3. The Doorway Stretch
Stand in a doorway with your hands against the edge. Lean forward so your shoulders are being pulled back and your chest is leaning forward. You can try this exercise at different height positions by adjusting your hands in the doorway.

4. Keep the Back Strong
When you keep your back strong, it's a LOT easier to maintain good posture throughout the day. Two exercises in particular are back rows, and shoulder shrugs. Look them up and get busy!

5. Be Aware of your Posture Throughout the Day
Any time you're sitting down or walking around, be aware of whether you are slouching or standing erect. When you're sitting, take notice of whether you're upright or hunched forward. Make it a habit to catch and correct yourself, and do it often.

Tip: If you work in an office, make sure you're sitting upright. Don't use an office chair that rolls back like a rocking chair. Otherwise, you'll find your neck and shoulders creeping forward to look at the screen.

Now tuck in your chin, roll your shoulders back, and stand up straight!

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Drug Overdoses Not Only Kill People...

While we often hear about deaths as a result of drug overdose, we don't always hear about the ones who live through it and what happens to them...



A good friend of mine recently overdosed on lethal amounts of Ambien and Xanax. While we suspect this was a suicide attempt, it's not known yet whether he was completely sure that he wanted to kill himself, or if he was simply depressed enough to say "screw it" and ignore the possibility.

Thankfully, he lived. But, he is NOT well...

When most people think of a drug overdose, they think it's simply a matter of painless death, or surviving through it and bouncing right back to normal like some of the dumber celebrities or rock stars out there. Unfortunately, if you do live through a drug overdose, (or any kind of suicide attempt) there's a good chance that you will end up with terrifyingly permanent injuries instead.

Let's refer to my friend as "Jason". A couple weeks ago, Jason probably took enough Ambien and Xanax to kill a horse. He was discovered in the morning, laying on his side and drooling from the mouth. The ambulance was called, and Jason had seizures on the way to the hospital. On arrival, he became conscious...but one thing was suddenly clear: He had lost his hearing.

It was immediately discovered that another serious problem was threatening his life: Kidney Failure. His renal system stopped functioning and his body had become septic.

That night, the doctors gave him a 50% chance of survival and he was on the dialysis machine for life support. This was a scary experience for all, and it was very sad seeing his parents have to go through this.

Jason made it through the night. His hearing improved a little by the next day, and he was conscious - but still on constant dialysis.

As if this wasn't bad enough, another serious problem was realized: He had no feeling in his arm or left side.

We suspect that he may have been asleep on his left side when he took the drugs, or perhaps he suffered a stroke, but I don't know the exact details of that. His hand and his arm was so swollen that they had to perform surgery to relieve the pressure buildup. This
condition is called compartment syndrome. They had to remove a large amount of skin from his arm, and probably performed a variety of other procedures as well.

Jason is still in the hospital, and he will be, for a while. Although we can't predict what will happen, I worry that he may be permanently paralyzed or crippled. There's a good chance that he may be on dialysis machines for the rest of his life; perhaps every day. He is able to speak and hear now, but I suspect that his hearing may be
permanently damaged as well.

While doing some research, I read many horror stories about drug overdoses and suicides that didn't end lives, but ruined lives.

One in particular, was the tragedy of John Paul Getty III, who was only 24 when an alcohol and heroin overdose put him in a coma which resulted in him being speechless, paralyzed, and blind. He recently died, 30 years later, in 2011.

Back to Jason now. It's possible that if he would have known the consequences of a drug overdose or failed suicide attempt, he might have thought twice about popping the pills and taking that risk.

Prescription medication, sleeping pills, and hard drugs like cocaine and heroin, are not something people can just play around with, thinking there's no risk. Even if you put aside all the long term health risks, you could immediately suffer a stroke or a heart attack, which if not lethal, could leave you permanently blind, deaf, disfigured, crippled in a wheelchair, paralyzed, doomed to dialysis, brain damaged, comatose, or vegetable.

Yes, really...ALL of that! Is it really worth the risk?

If you know someone who recklessly abuses medication or dabbles with hard drugs, please forward this to them and maybe they'll think about it some more.

If this article helps even just one person out there, the goal is achieved.

Let's all wish the best for Jason and his family.
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Lung Cancer Preventative Measures

No one deserves lung cancer. Lung Cancer is a tragic disease that affects approximately 373,489 Americans who are living with the terrible disease. With more than 221,000 new cases diagnosed in 2011, lung cancer remains the leading cancer killer for both men and women in the United States.
November is National Lung Cancer Awareness Month and the American Lung Association has released the following preventative peasures to help you minimize the risk of Lung Cancer.

• If you are a smoker–stop smoking
  Quitting smoking is the single most important thing smokers can do to enhance the length and quality of their lives. The American Lung Association has many programs to help smokers quit for good.
• If you don’t smoke, don’t start
  Smoking causes lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and many other illnesses. When smoking is combined with another risk factor, such as radon exposure, the risk of lung cancer is even higher.
• Avoid exposure to secondhand smoke
  Make your home smoke-free. You will not only protect yourself, but your family too. Learn about your rights to a smoke-free environment at work and in public places.
• Test your home for radon
  One out of every 15 homes in the U.S. has a radon problem. You can test for radon with inexpensive, easy-to-use test kits sold at hardware stores.
• Be aware of industrial compounds
  If you are exposed to dust and fumes at work, ask your health and safety advisor about how you are being protected.
• Help fight pollution
  Contact local officials and work with others in your community to help clean up the air you and your family breathe.
• via  healthyreader.com

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Massage - A Healthy Lifestyle

A healthy body needs a regular massage, healthy eating and daily exercise. In this chapter you will learn how to achieve optimal health and fitness.
Massage
Massage is important to our well-being physically, emotionally and spiritually. It is advantageous for all of us through the various stages of life.
Massage helps the newborn physiological and emotional development of children. Babies and children of all ages who receive regular massage therapy, not just eating and sleeping much better, but also much more prone to health problems. The benefits are also a great pleasure to be massaged.
During the traumatic time of puberty, massage can bridge between the generations “between young people and adults. Touch can help stress and tension in the family and helps to stabilize the problem behavior and regulates hormone disorders.
If the massage done on the activities of sports instructors the ability of the muscle tension was significantly reduced and the performance, endurance and flexibility are increased. are sustainable for smaller sports injuries, massage therapy is very effective and is an excellent aid to recovery.
Massage reduces workplace stress and tension, relieves muscle and joint pain, insomnia banned, increased alertness and performance at work and raised morale, so we are positive and motivated.
Massage can help a woman through great physical and emotional changes during pregnancy and prepare for the birth. It offers a gentle way to feel the strain associated with pregnancy, without alleviating side effects. The parent is the experience of deep relaxation, a design of improved sleep and more energy. Back pain, mood swings, water retention, varicose veins, heavy legs, cramps, headaches and stretch marks can all be avoided.
Massage therapy in menopause, a woman physically and mentally adjusting for the big “change” in life. On an emotional level it helps to treat depression, mood swings and irrational thoughts balances and distributes the feeling of insecurity and low self-esteem. In the physical flushing headache, changes in energy prices, water retention and weight gain all of course be treated with massage, essential oils, diet and exercise.
Later in life, the massage is a wonderful way to improve the quality of life. Pain, stiffness and lack of mobility, arthritis and rheumatism can be greatly reduced accompanied. to fix the flexibility of the muscles and joints. The blood circulation is stimulated and toxins are cleaned from the system more efficient. The texture and improves skin tone, digestion and elimination are more effective and depression and anxiety are much less common.
So, through all phases of life, massage is a important role to play and have something for everyone. When combined with healthy diet and regular exercise, it promotes energy and vitality, flexibility, relaxation, peace and happiness increased.

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Role of Nutrition in Diabetes treatment

Would you like to be more active, feel healthier and have more control of your life? So tell diabetics when they feel maintain the levels of blood sugar within normal limits Indeed, regular monitoring of blood sugar is key to get the information you need to successfully configure your diabetes. Without regular measurements will not know how well they interact with diet, exercise, or medication or when to make changes.
Food is one of the main factors that directly affect blood sugar levels - and controllable. A healthy diet, however, automatically mean that it should be deprived of your favorite foods and to sacrifice for the sake of a life by tasteless food, took meals Fortunately, the answer is no. If you keep a balanced meal plan, you can almost eat that you like, at least occasionally.
Diabetes is a serious condition that can lead to serious disruption of the body. Not a simple or even permanent cure, but can definitely be controlled with lifestyle changes. These changes include a healthy diet, eating plans, and regular physical activity or exercise.
Diabetes is the result of high blood sugar (glucose) in the blood that appears after eating many different kinds of food, especially carbohydrates, but poor quality. High levels of blood sugar circulating flow throughout the body causing damage to all major organs, including eyes, heart, kidneys, blood circulation system (arteries) and your sexual organs.
The role of nutrition www.herbalcureindia.com/diabecon.htm :
You can control diabetes effectively certainly a good “diet, which should contain only minimal amounts of simple sugars and simple carbohydrates. You can now eat complex carbohydrates such as whole grain products high fiber, vegetables, beans and pulses. Also, you must change your eating habits with frequent consumption of smaller meals. This means that there will be smaller increases in blood sugar after you eat smaller meals instead of really large increases in levels of blood glucose if you have only one or two very heavy meals a day. So, should eat more of fresh vegetables and fruits while reducing the intake of white flour, reduced white rice and foods high fat. Avoid excessive intake of oil and try using olive oil instead of other types of oils. Even people who have diabetes should follow this diet as a healthy and may even prevent the onset of diabetes.
A healthy lifestyle will definitely help control your diabetes and serious complications. First, is regular exercise so you can easily walk 10-20 minutes a day to keep yourself fit and active, and burn to help your body reduce blood sugar levels in the blood you. As mentioned, you should change your lifestyle, changing your eating habits. So eat smaller portions by dividing three large meals a day to six smaller meals. Change your menu to include lesser amounts of simple carbohydrates, sugar and salt intake.
Keep control of blood sugar in your blood regularly and to avoid large increases in levels of blood glucose with the consumption of properly and keeping yourself fit, healthy and active. Consult your dietitian and doctor regularly records your sugar level.
Exercise has a big role to play in preventing diabetes, and to check just take it. The exercise will help you maintain an ideal body weight, but also won the health benefits of being fit and active in your life! Make regular exercise, in any form, preferably with a schedule and build up to 30 minutes a day 4-5 times a week. But talk to your doctor before you start! Walking, jogging, swimming and yoga are good exercises to achieve the required level of physical activity to help lower your blood sugar.
There is no permanent cure for diabetes, but you can help prevent or control it with a good diet plan, regular exercise, and medication if needed and avoiding all types of stress. Thus, a healthy diet and controlled with smaller amounts to avoid stress, take all necessary medicines and do exercise to enjoy life with diabetes!

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To Have a Healthy Lifestyle

The people who lead a healthy lifestyle to live longer and enjoy a better quality of life that people do not care about their lifestyle. The good news is that maintaining a healthy lifestyle is not difficult, just lose some bad habits and replace them with better options.
Change your diet
Poor nutrition is one of the main reasons for human health is deteriorating. Make smart food choices can have lasting effects on your health. When a man agrees to eat a healthy diet, they will reduce their chances of developing cardiovascular problems such as clogged arteries and dangerously high cholesterol levels. Another advantage of a healthy diet are the people who are easy to reduce the weight a person carries out the less stress on the joints.
This is not because someone does a healthy diet is not that they should give up foods like hamburgers, ice cream and hamburgers. Instead of eating all together, you just have to make sure that you treat food as a reward rather than the bulk of your diet.
Get off the couch and move
Exercise is an important component of a healthy lifestyle. The human body is not designed to sit in a car or time to spend behind a desk. We are designed to be postponed. They make a healthy lifestyle does not mean, you have to subject themselves to the gym and go to a rigorous training every morning. Things like a long walk before going to dinner to help you move muscles and joints. Regular exercise improves digestion and reduces the risk of some cardiovascular diseases.
Nap
It is an alarming number of people who think they can seem to live a few hours sleep. Not only the lack of sleep has a negative effect on our bodies, but it also causes a change in the study. The best way to ensure you get enough sleep is to put your body in a calendar. Go through the same pre-bedtime routine every night and try to go to bed at the same time every night, no change will help you fall asleep quickly.
Before bedtime, be sure to use an alarm clock. Once your clock, make sure it is configured so that you get up and not rushed as you feel fit for the day. Not with the race as soon as the alarm beeps means that you are relaxed and could better cope with all the stress of the day the way to throw.
Laugh
As we age, we seem to lose the ability to laugh. If you are really determined to live a healthy life, you should try to laugh everyday. If you laugh really improve your overall health. Laughter gives the immune system a jolt, he pushes the Depression, and it helps build our confidence. The reason for laughter is not important what is important to at least one or two episodes of shaking belly laugh every day for the rest of your life to enjoy.

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Vitamins, Minerals and Other Information

Are you worried about cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, or simply losing weight, you want to eat a healthy diet and focus on foods that are rich in vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients, and balanced in fats, carb, protein.
There is only one way to incorporate healthy foods into our diet and that the decision to do it! Practical information on nutrition and food security, we use it is important that this resolution.
One way to learn more about what we eat, to snoop around the supermarket. Check-out package labels to see what is produced by adding (or removing) from the food we eat. Additional information about the package and start making comparisons to determine which foods are best for you. Note on nutrition labeling and the sometimes sneaky ways that manufacturers that is hidden in foods. He knows and understands the parts of the statement, how to apply and what are some of the “technical” definitions. They are unfamiliar ingredients good or bad for health?
Since 1994, food manufacturers are required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to include the labels (or Nutrition Facts labels) on the packaging so that consumers have accurate information on the nutritional food they buy. But the labels are more than just a federal requirement - once you understand the information it contains, you can use labels as a guide to planning healthier meals and snacks.
Food labels are required in almost all foods except those that do not provide many nutrients such as coffee, alcohol and spices. Although some restaurants provide information about the food they serve is not required to have labels. FDA recommends that sellers provide nutritional information on products, meat, poultry and seafood, but is strictly voluntary.
What is a status of delivery?
On top of a Nutrition Facts label on food, you see the size and number of servings in the package. The remainder of the nutrition information on labels is based on a job.
Calories, calories from fat and percentage of daily values
This part of the food label gives calories per serving and the calories from fat. If you need to know the total number of calories you eat per day, or the number of calories from fat, this section contains this information. Do not forget that the label does not say that you are eating saturated and unsaturated fat.
On the right side of the food label, you’ll see a column that shows the percentage. These percentages are based on the percent daily value (% DV). Percent daily values tell you how what is the fat, sugar or vitamin A, a service will be compared with how much you need for the day. It will help you estimate what percentage of a nutrient requirement met by a portion of the product. One way to implement this section is a sign of the comparison shop. For example, if you’re worried about sodium, you can see from the two foods and choose foods with a lower% DV. Want to eat low fat diet? Look for foods that have a lower percentage of daily value of fat.
The% DV is based on how much or how little of key nutrients you should eat if you eat 2,000 or 2,500 calories per day. So if you eat a 2000 calorie diet, you eat less than 65 grams of fat in all foods, eat on. If you eat 12 grams of fat in a portion of their macaroni and cheese (remember that a cup), you can calculate how much fat you have left for the day. You can use the bottom of the food label in white to compare what you eat in the% DV you have the opportunity of nutrients, whether from fat, sodium or fiber. If you need more or less 2000 or 2500 calories, you have to adapt to this change.
Nutrients
Fat, sugar, sodium and carbohydrates
Sections on food label shows the name of the nutrient and the amount of nutrients that a portion of food. You may need to know this information, especially if you have high blood pressure, diabetes or eating diet that restricts certain nutrients such as sodium and carbohydrates.
Food labels also contain information on the amount of sugar and protein in food. If you have low sugar or diet that you monitor your intake of protein, it is easy to see how these nutrients are contained in a service.
Vitamins, minerals and other information
The light purple part of the label lists nutrients, vitamins and minerals in food and their percent daily values. Try to average 100% DV every day for vitamins A and C, calcium, iron and fiber. Do the opposite with fat, saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium. Try to eat less than 100% of DV.
To avoid errors when reading the nutrition labeling
Until you get used to reading food labels, just confused. Avoid these mistakes when reading labels:
A label in May saying that a food is reduced fat or reduced sodium. This means that the amount of fat and sodium, was reduced by 25% from the original product. That does not mean that a food is low in fat or sodium. For example, if you can soup originally had 1,000 mg sodium, reduced sodium product is still a high-sodium foods.
-Do not confuse the% DV for fat with the percentage of calories from fat. If the% DV 15%, that does not mean that 15% of calories from fat. Conversely, that means that you will use up to 15% of all the fat you need a day with a service (based on the meal plan of 2,000 calories per day).
-Do not make the mistake of believing that the amount of sugar on the label means that the sugar was added. For example, of course, the milk sugar called lactose. But that does not mean you should stop drinking milk, milk, because it is full of other important nutrients, including calcium.
Reading Label Lingo
In addition to requiring that packaged foods contain a Nutrition Facts label, the FDA also regulates the use of phrases and terms used in product packaging. Here is a list of common phrases that you can look at your food packaging and what it really means.
No free fat or fat - which contains less than 1 / 2 grams of fat per serving Lower or reduced-fat: contains at least 25 percent lower than the reference food. (For example, you can reduce fat cream cheese, where at least 25 percent less fat than original cream cheese.)
Low fat - containing less than 3 grams of fat per meal.
Lite - Contains 1 / 3 the calories or 1 / 2 fat serving the original version or a similar product.
No calories or calorie free - Contains less than 5 calories per.
Low calories - Contains 1 / 3 of the calories in the original version or a similar product.
Sugar free - contains less than 1 / 2 grams of sugar per hectare.
Reduced sugar - at least 25% less sugar per hectare than reference food.
Without preservatives - the product contains no preservatives (chemical or physical).
No preservatives added - contains no chemicals to preserve the product. Some of these products contain natural preservatives.
Low sodium - containing less than 140 MGS sodium in the workplace.
No salt or salt free - Contains less than 5 MGS sodium in the workplace.
High fiber - 5 g or more per serving (Foods making high fiber claims must meet the definition of low fat, or the amount of total fat should be a complement to high-fiber claim).
A good source of fiber - 2.5 grams to 4.9 grams in the workplace.
More or added fiber - Contains at least 2.5 g more per serving than reference food.
With a little practice, you know your new found knowledge about food labeling to work. Re your diet and decide what should be changed. Start by eliminating foods that do not meet your nutritional needs and wants, and replace them with more nutritional substitutes.
And while you’re at it, visit the FDA website and learn about the new labeling requirements, including those for “trans” fats. Like saturated fats, trans fatty acids, fat can raise levels of low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and increase the risk of heart disease. The “Nutrition Facts” food packaging must provide this information on January 1, 2006, but most producers will start to notice.

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