Over 65% of America’s are overweight or obese, 30% considered to be morbidly obese. In other words, their obesity is so severe, they are in danger of dying as a result of it.

It is clear that we as a nation have to start getting more fit. The most successful weight loss strategies are based on the three-pronged approach of

Behavioral Modification, What You Eat, and How Active You Are

You need to look at why you eat, what you eat, and how you expend your daily intake of calories.

Metabolism and genetics can’t be changes that easily, but if you take the three-pronged approach, you can lose weight and keep it under control effectively.

I just found a great new special report you can downloa.

It’s called Lifestyle Changes For Weight Loss: What You Need To Know and it is free from Johns Hopkins Health Alerts website.

It deals with all three approaches, gives clear guidelines, on each, and has a lot of further free resources.

You can pick up your copy at:

http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/ppc/nutrition/nutritionr_reg.landing.html

 What is Cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a soft, waxy substance present in cells throughout the body. Deposits of cholesterol within the walls of arteries can lead to the formation of plaques. Cholesterol is produced naturally in the body, and is also found in the foods you eat.

As you probably already know, a high level of blood cholesterol is considered to be a leading risk factor for heart disease and heart attack.

In fact, an estimated 65 million Americans should reduce their cholesterol.

Fully 35 million of them should be taking cholesterol-lowering medications.

Of the 15 million Americans taking statin drugs like Zocor or Lipitor to lower cholesterol, most of them are actually taking doses too small to help them meet their optimal cholesterol levels.

Surviving dangerously high cholesterol is largely a matter of information and education. you need to get proactive about your heart health now, for a healthier future.

For a Free Special Report from John Hopkins: 7 Keys to Reduce Cholesterol, please visit:

http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/special_reports/cholesterol/cholesterol_reg_landing.html

Yoga is not he highest calorie burning activity you can engage in, but it has many benefits, such as adding to your strength and flexibility.

 Even more important, it gets you out of the house to attend classes, and is invaluable ‘me’ time to focus on your goals and self-improvement.

 It strengthens the link between mind and body, and helps make you more mindful of what you eat.

 It also gives you energy, and improves the immune and digestive systems. It also improves circulation.

 Certain postures (asanas) can have particular healing effects upon the body.

 In order to get started, why not visit:

http://www.yogajournal.com

and also try a local class, or Namaste Yoga, All Star Worksouts, and Guru2Go, three programs with yoga workouts available on CableTV on the Fit TV Channel.

 Namaste Yoga http://fittv.discovery.com/tv-schedules/series.html?paid=56.14605.111858.28974.2

Guru2Go

http://fittv.discovery.com/tv-schedules/series.html?paid=56.14653.110076.27984.7

 All Star Workouts

http://fittv.discovery.com/tv-schedules/series.html?paid=56.14229.116392.30264.10 

Detox: Cleansing the Body Inside Out

There are many techniques used in whole body cleansing such as:

Fasting. Water or juice fasting is applied for a period of time to lessen toxic loads in the body, causing the body to heal itself and nourish inside out.

Parasite cleaning. Pills or tinctures made out of bitter herbs are consumed to build an unreceptive environment for the parasites inside the body.

Contrast Shower. The contrast among hot and cold water enhances circulation, which helps to detox the skin also (which is the largest organ of the body), and is thought to help develop a stronger immune system. This also helps by bringing oxygen, nutrients and immune cells towards damaged and stressed tissue, and flushes metabolic waste and other toxins.

Other methods of detox. Sauna, yoga, exercise, raw food dieting and dry skin brushing also enhance the body’s natural cleansing process, both inside and out. Yoga in particular cleanses the lymphatic system, which helps regulate our immune system and ward off infection (think of how your glands in your neck swell if you are very ill. There is up to four times more lymph in our system than blood, so lymph too can benefit from detox).

Other Detoxifying aids:

There are a number of safe products that helps in the cleansing process. Examples include cleansing supplement packages (with easy-to-follow instructions), detox foot patches, and commercially prepared detox teas.  Epsom salts, high-class multivitamins for daily intake, and antioxidants like Q10 and E are also said to beneficial, though lately the research findings on antioxidants has proved less than conclusive.  Many of these products can be found at health food stores, or online.  As a general rule, though, beware of paying exorbitant prices. There are many free detox diet guidelines available online if you wish to try it at home.

Before and after side effects of detox:

As the procedures differ for detox, so do the benefits.

During the detox, you’ll most likely feel a range of side effects during the first few days such as headaches, feeling weak, sore muscles, cranky moods and an inablity to sleep soundly.

There are also a number of positive side effects of deto days after the cleansing process. You will feel energetic, with your mental clarity improved. You should find that you skin is clearer, you will notice an improvement in your sleep, and you will most like gain a positive attitude, feeling up for a fresh start.

Detoxification is safe and beneficial for our health. It is suggested that each one should have at least one short detoxification program yearly.

However, children, nursing mothers, and patients with cancer, chronic degenerative illnesses, or tuberculosis should consult their physician first for approval and supervision, or find someone who is familiar with detox to guide them through the process. If you decide to detox in these circumstances, find a nutritional therapist who is familiar with detox diets.

How to find a detox program that’s right for you:

You can look online to find forums, recipes, and free resources. Consult with your friends, especially in the health care field. Check with your insurance company coverage to see if it covers complementary therapies. At the very least, you should consult with a nutritionist, and see if they are familiar with detox.

Your nutritionist will make you keep a food diary to see where you can improve your nutrition to stay fit and healthy. They can also consult with you about any detox diets you have found online or in books which you might want to try, to help you make the most of your detox without recorting to extremes which could harm your body instead of offering effective detox.

Since Patrick Swayze was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, a lot of people have become concerned with what they can do to fight pancreatic cancer.

The bad news is it tends to be symptomless until a very late stage.

The good news is that not smoking and maintaining a healthy weight and not drinking excessive alcohol can go a long way toward preventing cancer of the pancreas.

For more information from Johns Hopkins about pancreatic cancer, the #4 cancer killer in the USA, please visit:

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/3/prweb752394.htm

Detox: Cleansing the Body Inside Out

Detoxification has become popular in recent years as part of an overall health, beauty and weight loss regimen. There are numerous types of detox available, and range in price from the cheap, do-it-yourself variety, to expensive spa detox treatments and programs.

If you are feeling run down or in need of an inner cleanse, detox may be right for you.

Even though you are ‘healthy,’ this does not mean that you don’t need to detox. Our body should detox for us effectively on a continual basis. Our kidneys and liver are constantly working by cleaning out all the pollutants (smoke, caffeine, chemical-based products, and so on) in our body. The theory behind detox is that we help cleanse the whole body, in a focused way, in order to help purge ourselves of any impurities which our bodies may still be retaining, particularly in the kidneys and liver. Detox strengthen our organs back to optimal function.

Basically, this is done through fasting, in other words, resting the organs and stimulating the liver by pushing out the toxins from the body. Nourishing the body with healthy nutrients from all-natural sources, not processed foods which have become such a part of the modern diet, is also done to maintain optimum health.

Fasting and special purification diets have been practiced for centuries around the world by different cultures, usually as part of a religious observance. The ‘body is a temple’ would be the best way to sum up this philosophy. You are what you eat is a more modern way of thinking about it. Whichever view you choose as most useful for you, detox may become an integral part of your overall health care.

Although a lot of people want whole body detoxification, some wants to have a detox on a particular organ only, such as the kidney, liver or colon. During kidney cleansing, herbal supplements and juices are used to dissolve and wash out kidney stones. For the liver, particular foods are consumed to detox it, causing the gall bladder and liver to remove fatty deposits and toxins out of the body. Colon cleansing on the other hand, gently flushes the colon with water, providing a pathway for the release of toxins.

It terms of the dangers of detox, you should always be wary of anything hat seems too extreme, or needs to be done too often. With regard to colonics, there are definite risks involved with both the treatment, and either you or another person administering the detox treatment. Generally speaking, detox through the use of colonics is not recommended.

See Detox: An Introduction Part 2