Paul Zane Pilzer, a world-renowned economist, says the problem with obesity is an economic problem. Instead of marketing to new customers, it is less expensive for food companies to sell more products to existing customers. (He says it will cost an average $100 to market to a new customer who may or may not like the product after trying it.) He uses an example to illustrate his point. If you have never tasted a banana and after trying the banana, you may want to have another one because of it... Read Full Story

I have not post on my blog for quite a while now. After researching on the different weight loss tips and diets (Mediterranean, Zone Diet, etc), I’ve realized that it all comes down to the basic rules of healthy eating and lifestyle. All those new diets, new gimmicks are just ways to keep us interested and buy more stuff. When did the food industry become like this? With so many choices that we don’t know how to eat anymore. I’ve realized that I shop at the local farm market... Read Full Story

Acidic body encourages the overgrowth of yeasts and fungi which interferes with digestion and absorption. Nutrient deficiencies may lead to weight gain. In addition, yeasts and fungi produce toxins in the colon that may enter the blood stream. The liver have to work extra hard to get rid of the toxins in the body and compromises its ability to metabolize fat and sugar. The liver also produces large amounts of bad cholesterol to bind to toxins. Fat protects our body from environmental toxins, ... Read Full Story

Emotional eating is eating when you are not physically hungry. It is not a physical need to eat but rather an emotional need. Emotion is the one of the major reasons why people overeat. When some people feel sad, empty, stressed or lonely, they eat food as a way to comfort themselves and for emotional support. But eating rarely solves the problems that gave rise to the negative emotion in the first place. What’s worse, people usually feel worse about themselves after eating too much or eating... Read Full Story

The Four-Week Eating Plan There are three very simple rules for the Flat Belly Diet eating plan. The first rule: Eat 400 calories per meal and four meals per day (for a total of 1,600 calories per day). Second rule: Eat every four hours. So you will be eating a meal every four hours. Third rule: Include a monounsaturated fatty acid with every meal (some MUFA ideas include: almonds, walnuts, pecans, peanuts, cashew, etc). Five categories of MUFAs: 1. Read Full Story

Stress & Cortisol on Belly Fat When we are under stress, our adrenal gland secretes a hormone called cortisol to increase blood pressure and blood sugar to get ready to fight or flight. Cortisol stimulates the appetite for sugar and fat, signals the body to store fat around the organs in preparation for famine. There are many ways to reduce stress. Getting at least seven hours of sleep every night, meditation, staying positive and doing exercise can all help to reduce the level of cortis... Read Full Story

A research study published in the scientific journal Diabetes Care has shown that monounsaturated fat (found in olive oil, nuts, avocados) can help reduce the accumulation of visceral belly fat. The researchers divided subjects into three groups that were put on diets high in saturated fat, high in carbohydrates or high in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA). MUFA has shown promising effect on reducing belly fat and is in the center of the Flat Belly Diet. The Flat Belly Diet is consists of t... Read Full Story

Fat distributed centrally is strongly associated with risk of diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and breast cancer in women. Beer belly or an apple body shape is an indication of excess body fat in the upper body. This type of body shape is more common in men. Women generally have more fat around the hip and thigh area by design. The fat in the lower body (pear shaped) carries a much lower health risk than in the upper body (apple shaped). The waist to hip ratio is used to assess f... Read Full Story

Being overweight or underweight both have their health risks. We know that being overweight is not only “unfashionable” but it is associated with higher risks of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer, etc. On the other hand, being underweight puts a person at higher risks of infection because the immune system is weakened. Underweight is also associated with lower energy, osteoporosis, absence of menstruation in female, hair loss and anemia. So how much should you weigh?... Read Full Story

There are many different types of diets for weight loss out there. The low-carb diet, the low-fat diet, the high-protein diet, etc. In reality, the body needs a variety of nutrients from all the different food groups to perform its functions properly and efficiently. The key to weight loss is not cutting down on one food group or another, it is choosing a variety of food from all food groups but in moderation. There are four major food groups: 1) Grain products, 2) Vegetables & fruit, 3)... Read Full Story