HEALTH BENEFITS OF DARK CHOCOLATES

     HEALTH BENEFITS OF DARK CHOCOLATES

                

  

1. ·      Dark chocolates are rich in antioxidants. These include polyphenols ,       flavanols , catechins.
2. ·      They improve the blood flow in body & lower the blood pressure.
3. ·      They increase the HDL and lower the LDL in the body.
4. ·      Lowers the risk of CVD.
5. ·      Dark chocolates protect skin against sun & improve brain function.
6. ·      Dark chocolates can reduce the stress of the person.
7. ·      Dark chocolates improve the mood of the person as it brings the good feeling & pleasure.
8. ·      Dark chocolates are good for woman during menstruation.

-Contributions by Shreya Singhal, Nutritionist @Livenutrifit

Buckwheat flour vs Wheat flour

Fat Burners myths and facts

Many Fat burners are touted in the market and people waste so much money trying to get thin by using them.

I have been a victim of this bogus marketing myself so I decided to write this.

Being a doctor I researched many scientific papers articles before I wrote this.

Now to tell you the truth about fat burning:

Fat burns as the last fuel in our body. To use stored fat, as energy first thing is to cut the fat from your diet, many latest papers in journals have published that low fat diet is better than low carb diet.

Then about good fat and the bad fat: what is good fat? Any fatty acids rich in Omega 3,6,9 are good fatty acids example in Nuts, Avocados, Fish, Seeds, Extra virgin Olive Oil, and cold pressed oils.

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Bad fats are present in most fried foods, burgers, donuts, and condensed fatty sweets etc

Women accumulate fat mainly in subcutaneous tissues up to menopause and then it starts attacking arteries and in and around organs.

Men accumulate fat in Liver and around organs and arteries starting at a very young age.

Can you burn the fat in the arteries NO, can you utilize the fat from around the organs YES

Burn fat naturally with following ways:

• ·      EXERCISE PLEASE: 150 minutes per week is a good start and good enough for longevity.

• ·      Peppers, celery are thermogenic foods, after eating your body temperature goes up a little bit.

• ·      Vitamin C: According to a study people with more vitamin C oxidize 30% more fat during exercise than people deficient in vitamin C. Sources of Vitamin C are citrus fruits, green vegetables and supplements of Vitamin C.

• ·      Lean protein: also causes thermogenesis and increases satiety.

• ·      Catechines like green tea and coffee may also increase fat breakdown  (lipolysis).

• ·      Dietary calcium helps body get rid of excess fat in stool.

• ·      Carnitine an amino acid present in milk, cheese, chicken fish, helps in oxidizing fatty acids for energy.

• ·      Garcinia cambogia is not showing much promising results, you still have to use will power to suppress appetite and have low fat and low carbs.... only time will tell us how this supplement will be very useful in weight loss.

·      There are some supplements on which studies are underway I will keep you posted on the ones that really work.

#VagalNerveStimulation for #WeightLoss and #Depression

Where is Vagus nerve located? : It’s the 10^thcranial nerve, longest in course, from head to the stomach.

In the stomach it stimulates smooth muscle contraction and glandular secretions in these organs. For example, in the stomach, the Vagus nerve increases the rate of gastric emptying, and stimulates acid production.

Stimulation of this nerve can be done in many ways:

Surgical /Endoscopic and Yoga

My favorite is Yoga and Pranayama, Chakra balancing causing vibrations through the nerve’s entire course.

I have researched in books and Internet about this due to personal interest and practiced this and then decided to share with people.

Chakra balancing can be learnt via a Healer is the best way or some can be learnt by seeing YouTube videos.

Same goes for Pranayama

One can also search Internet for Vagal Nerve stimulation by Yoga.

I have just started telling my patients how to easily us this technique to suppress appetite. It’s safe and can be done at home or office and no pills, no procedures.

Good luck.

‪#‎UricAcid‬, ‪#‎Diabetes‬ and ‪#‎Obesity‬...the related cousins

URIC ACID: This one test is very important while treating patients for Metabolic diseases. There is almost always an increased Uric acid if you are overweight.

FOOD DOES NOT CONTAIN URIC ACID. ITS CONVERTED IN THE BODY BY SUCROSE/FRUCTOSE

What does Fructose/Sucrose do? 

It casues increase in Uric Acid by high Nucleotide turnover and oxidative stress in other words fat accumulation. This leads to increase incidence of Metabolic diseases and Diabetes.

Not many people know about stopping all sugars is the first step to lower Uric Acid

(sucrose the table sugar and fructose present as corn syrup in varitey of boxed and packed items and cold drinks).

Whereas there is lot of confusion what to eat and what no to eat,  I have compiled an easy list especially for my Indian patients.

To Eat/Drink: 

Slow release whole carbs like oats, whole wheat, brown rice

Fruits low in sugar like apples and pears

Vegetables

Yogurt

Milk

Not to Eat/Drink

Sugar: table sugar

Fructose( cold drinks, fruit juices, corn syrup, too much honey)

Organ meats like Liver 

Shrimp and Lobster

Alcohol

To Eat less

Lentils

Spinach

Lean meats like chicken/turkey

Interesting Fact: You can still drink a glass of Red Wine.

How fat is your liver?

Fatty Liver:
Its one of the most commonly seen problems in Asian population.

Diagnosis?
Fatty Liver can be diagosed via ultrasound of the abdomen, usually its an incidental finding. No many people will go looking for it.

How does it happen? 
Liver is a regenerative organ, it is the place in our body where most metabolic processes take place, so if we eat fat laden food or food very rich in carbohyrates and fat or even alcohol, the liver is not able to process the excess and starts storing fat molecules. Some drugs and chemicals can also cause it. So best is to speak to your health care provider for the monitroing the drug levels.There are grades of fatty liver. Grade 0-3, zero being no fatty liver and 3 being high fatty liver.

Do you have to be alcoholic to have it or even other people can have it?
People who consume no alochol can also have it. Its called NAFLD/NASH(Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/Non Alcoholic SteatoHepatitis).
If you are consuming excess calories or consuming more carbohydrates and fat or have pre-diabetes or diabetes. The liver is inflamed and also can lead to cirrhosis and eventually Liver failure.
But if you drink alcohol it can worsen the NAFLD.

Can you prevent it/reverse it?
Prevention of fatty liver can happen if you watch your alcohol intake, food intake, type of food (processed or natural) and make some form of exercise as a part of your daily regime.
Reversal is not possible if the grade of fatty liver is more than 3 but you can still halt progress into cirrhosis.

Interesting fact: Starvation can lead to fatty liver too.

10 essentials for a weight loss journey

Lot of people start starving to lose weight and get nutritionally deficient, result is hair loss, bad skin, low memory, low energy, irritable mood.

1. ·      Adequate water intake
2. ·      Whole grain for sustained energy and fullness
3. ·      Get a good multivitamin
4. ·      Enough proteins to keep the immune system healthy
5. ·      Get your raw vegetables and salads/low sugar fruit at least twice a day.
6. ·      Get some exercise; don’t go running marathons if you are on low calorie diet, take a walk.
7. ·      Have good fats (nuts in limited quantities), they keep you full.
8. ·      Avoid simple sugars as cheats; cheat on whole grain if you have to.
9. ·      Don’t eat late night.
10. ·      Avoid alcohol as much as possible.