I’m going to warn you right now: If you have an aversion to your body’s waste, don’t read any further. However, if you’re like most people, you’re probably very interested in what your stool can tell you about your diet and your health. Who better to answer our questions and tell us a bit about our poo then Anish Sheth, a gastroenterology fellow at the Yale School of Medicine and the co-author of the best-selling book What's Your Poo Telling You? (Chronicle Books, 2007).
Research substantiates the claim that populations who consume plant-based diets have less chronic disease, such as atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), cardiovascular disease, some cancers, diabetes and obesity, says Anne VanBeber, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., associate professor and chair of the department of nutritional sciences at Texas Christian University.
In addition, total serum cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol levels are usually lower in vegetarians, who are also at lower risk for osteoporosis, kidney stones and gallstones.
Plants contain vital health-promoting compounds in the form of pigments, phytochemicals and antioxidants that reduce the onset of disease. These benefits are seen in individuals who consume carefully planned vegetarian meals on a consistent basis, says VanBeber.
I'm not suggesting that everyone become a vegetarian; however, we all could certainly benefit from eating more vegetables. So here are 10 ways to increase the amount of veggies in your diet.
The stock market roller coaster, the housing crisis, the dreaded “R” word — it’s stressful out there. Where can we turn? How about high-calorie and high-fat comfort foods? Well, while food can offer comfort during economic and emotional uncertainty, most experts recommend controlling your internal environment despite the fact that external factors remain unstable. During stressful times, it's important to feel that you have some level of control over your life. Therefore, when your external environment is unbalanced, being able to look inward and feel good about your nutrition and health is critical. Knowing that, we thought it would be helpful to reach out to a few foodies and chefs to find several tasty, low-calorie recipes.
I was passing the meat counter in the supermarket the other day, and the butcher was telling one of the customers, with pride, that the market had just started selling chickens that were free-range and had not been given any hormones. Well, that sounded great. Having confidence in the foods we’re about to consume is important. But what do free-range, hormone-free and all those other terms really mean when it comes to meat and poultry? Here’s a guide, as the first of a two-part series.
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