Scrumptious Mediterranean diet studied proves that what you eat matters big time Sun-ripened strawberries on oatmeal; a handful of walnuts to get through that 4 o’clock slump; grilled salmon, roasted veggies and a salad drizzled with olive oil for dinner: At last, we’ve got solid proof that scrumptious foods like these can slash your risk for stroke and other cardiovascular disasters by a whopping 30 percent. It’s thanks to a headline-grabbing study from Spain that overhauled the diets of 7,447 people (even though the researchers made a big flub when they conducted the study; more on that in a minute!). Two-thirds of the study’s participants conscientiously followed heart-healthy Mediterranean diet plans — plenty of produce, dried beans and fish, with an extra dose of good fats from olive oil or nuts. The rest of the participants were supposed to eat a low-fat diet (with no olive oil or nuts), but the researchers left them on their own. So guess what happened? These folks weren’t able to learn the low-fat regimen and their diets were a disaster. They ate more bad fats, munched heart-threats like refined grains (white bread, white rice, white pasta) and drank sugary sodas. So in reality — and contrary to what many TV shows and newspapers reported — the study doesn’t prove Mediterranean diets are healthier than a low-fat diet, BECAUSE NOBODY ATE LOW FAT! What it does show is that Mediterranean eating styles (or in this case, “SSD” for “standard Spanish diet”) trump the typical fat-, sugar- and chemical-laden North American diet (called “SAD” for “standard American diet”) when it comes to stroke and heartattack prevention! We’re fans of this study for another reason, too. It proved that what you eat matters big time, even for people with optimal medical and medication management! The scientists recruited men and women in their 50s through their 80s with diabetes or at least three risk factors for heart disease, such as obesity, high blood pressure, high LDL “lousy” cholesterol levels or a family history of early heart disease. And those folks saw big benefits from eating the SSD diets — even if they were already taking medication for high cholesterol or high blood pressure. (Another 30,000-plus person study reinforces this finding: It reported that people taking heart-protecting medications who adopted a healthy diet slashed their risk for stroke, heart attack and heart-related deaths by as much as 35 percent.) Heart-health experts are hailing the news as a way of eating healthfully that lets you actually enjoy life, and we agree! Both of us enjoy eating this way, and it’s the foundation of the meal plans you’ll find (with plenty of recipes) in “YOU: On a Diet.” It’s also the highly successful diet of the Lifestyle 180 program, developed by Dr. Mike for the Cleveland Clinic’s Wellness Institute. Put it on your plate today with these four easy steps: Ban the five food felons. Skip all added sugars and all added syrups, any grain that isn’t 100 percent whole, most saturated fat and all trans fats. Those bad fats clog artery walls with plaque and fuel bodywide inflammation, while added sugars, syrups and refined grains make your blood sugar spike, crusting hemoglobin proteins in red blood cells with sugar molecules. That damages artery walls, spurring plaque buildup. Say “yes” to good fats. Aim for three servings of omega-3-rich fish every week, and take 900 mg of DHA omega-3 from algal oil daily. Also, olive and canola oils, chia and flax seeds, avocados and walnuts are loaded with good fats. Get beany. Opt for no-sodium canned beans for convenience, then toss them into soups, stews, casseroles and chili, or drizzle with olive oil and herbs for a side dish. Gassy? That’s what Bean-O is for. Get your carbs from veggies, fruits, whole grains and low-fat dairy. Shop for dessert in the produce department (mango and banana salad, anyone?). Look for fast-cooking whole grains like barley, whole-wheat couscous and quinoa. And reserve half of your plate for veggies at lunch and dinner. Your brain and your heart will love you for it.
rus outbreaks. Offering an irritable, sick child a sweetened cup of lemon balm tea will quiet them down and ease them into sleep. For infants, adding a couple of cups of lemon balm tea to a bath will calm and soothe them. In the last month of pregnancy a tea of lemon balm also comes in handy. It settles heartburn and calms the restless anticipation of labour. Many people like to use chamomile tea during this time. But I like the lightness lemon balm brings to the mind. It offers hopefulness to heart, a sense of optimism that I find chamomile lacks. For this reason, it is also favored in formulas designed to ease depression, particularly when it associated with anxiety. I really like offering lemon balm to someone who has been living on caffeine and adrenaline for months on end. It is perfect for taking them off the edge and re-establishing a sense of calm coping. Mostly I offer lemon balm as a tea. But with the plants from the garden I make a fresh tincture. This is medicine made without drying the plants first. I find a fresh plant tincture of lemon balm carries the strongest and calmest medicine. Unfortunately by this time of year, I have used up all my fresh plant tincture and need to rely on dried herbs. Hence my plan to enlarge the garden with lemon balm. I am taking Charlemagne’s advice. Herbs for Life is written by Abrah Arneson, a local clinical herbalist. It is intended for information purposes only. Readers with a specific medical problem should consult a doctor. For more information, visit www.abraherbalist.ca. Arneson can be reached at abrah@shaw.ca.
Fitness programs don’t work alone — think about why success has a lot to do with the people around you Every day I hear from dozens of er) our so-called willpower fizzles people that are struggling to lose quickly. weight and get in shape; I’m sure If your willpower fails your that doesn’t surprise you. body is likely resisting change beBut what does surcause your attempt was prise me is how many too drastic. of them have “been We are sure if we going to the gym for just find extra time in years” or figure trying the few next weeks to to do it on their own get going and make a will save them money. habit we’ll keep going, If you’ve been going but then our hectic to the gym for years; lifestyle makes us miss or figure that trying it that first workout and on your own this time then another, and anwill somehow be differother and the months ent than the last time drift by. I hate to be the one to In the end it’s only tell you but you’re lost us that makes weight on a merry-go-round. loss so difficult. CABEL Truth is there’s not It’s not the diet’s MCELDERRY much in life that we fault, or the fitness procan conquer alone. gram’s fault, or even a Pretty much every lack of motivation. achievement, every It’s us and our hufeat is a result of a team effort. man behaviour, we refuse to acIf that seems absurd to you what knowledge that we need coaches, seems even more absurd to me is friends, and mentors to succeed. that we wander through life often If you’ve ever met someone refailing to acknowledge our need ally famous or successful you’ve for the support of one another. seen exactly what I mean, and That’s human nature. I’m sure maybe didn’t even realize it. Ulthis will make perfect sense; we’re tra successful people or celebriwired for instant gratification. ties are always surrounded by a As people we pretty much al- “team.” ways expect there is an answer, The top Hollywood celebrities an answer that will yield fast, im- have agents, publicists, design mediate and lasting change when consultants, financial consultants it comes to weight loss. and so on. This is why weight loss so often Elite business professionals fails. are the same and if you ask them We make drastic changes to our they will tell you their success has lifestyle and with no one there a lot to do with the people around holding us rigidly accountable (or them. advising us to take it a little slowWhen it comes to weight loss or
fitness/fx
achieving a fitness goal acknowledge this important aspect of human behaviour, you can’t do it alone. Find a personal trainer. If a personal trainer is too expensive consider a boot camp, yoga class, Pilates class, spin class or some other regularly occurring activity. Watch for instructors that take an interest in their participants, ideally one that calls you on the days you miss. If classes are still too expensive join a gym, but only with a friend. Set appointments, dates and times to meet to workout. Create incentives and hold each other accountable. Heck, organize an office fitness challenge get more people involved. If this still doesn’t cut it check out websites like www.sparkpeople.com and join an online community. Don’t try to go it alone, realize that great things in life require collaboration, accountability and most importantly support and affirmation. When these things are present so are better, faster and easier results. You can do it; you just can’t do it alone. Cabel McElderry is a local personal trainer and nutrition coach. For more information on fitness and nutrition, visit the Fitness F/X website at www.fitnessfx.com.
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Mehmet Oz, M.D. is host of “The Dr. Oz Show,” and Mike Roizen, M.D. is Chief Wellness Officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic. To live your healthiest, visit sharecare.com.
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As the day lengthens and the etc.) I think of lemon balm. snow slowly disappears, I am In traditional herbal medicine, planning the garden. I think I’ll hyper conditions are associated create a new bed specifically for with excess heat and tension in plants that cross from the body and mind. culinary to medicinal Lemon balm cools hot with ease. conditions, including I am particularly hot guts and hot heads. interested in growing Like many mint fama large patch of lemon ily plants, lemon balm balm (melissa officinacalms upset stomachs lis) in the new garden. and improves over all Lemon balm is part digestion while quietof the mint family. ing the mind. Although most mints Using a lemon balm like to grow on the vertincture combined tical axis, lemon balm with another mint famis a humble plant: not ily plant, bugleweed exactly a creeper, but (Lycopus virginicus) I low growing like a very have effectively quietABRAH small bush. ed down the symptoms ARNESON It has a scent sweet of a hyperthyroid. with lemon undertones, herbs for life These two herbs efand leaves scalloped fectively manage the edges. sleeplessness, anxiety, The season here is not long heart palpations and sweating enough for it to flower but if it did caused by an over active thyroid. flower, they are quiet and not bold Unfortunately they are strictly like the bee balm (Mondara spp.). used to manage the symptoms and Balm, as fondly called by Eu- it takes more effort and variety of ropeans, has thrived in herb gar- approaches to resolve the underdens for a very long time. Charle- lying issues causing the hyperthymagne in the 800’s, called The Fa- roid. ther of Europe, ordered that balm Many use lemon balm effectivebe grown in every medicinal herb ly for insomnia. I am hesitant to garden through his empire. suggest it as remedy for insomnia In this way, he guaranteed his though. people a continuous supply of Not because of the herb, it is balm’s soothing medicine. Later calming. It is my experience that European herbalist John Gerard insomnia has many causes. (late 1500s) suggested using balm It is more a symptom than a to “comforteth the hart and driv- condition. Simply recommending eth away all sadness.” lemon balm for insomnia withLemon balm’s medicine is also out understanding the underlyloved in the Middle East. ing cause of sleeplessness, may be Arab herbalist, Avicenna in the setting lovely lemon balm up for 11th century wrote, “Balm causeth failure. the mind and heart to become But after a long stressful day, merry.” lemon balm is a perfect tea to unToday balm is favored as a gen- wind and relax before bed. tle but effect nerve tonic. Lemon balm is great medicine But when I hear the word hyper for children. It has an anti-viral attached to any condition (hyper- action and has a long history of tension, hyperthyroid, hyper-acid- being used as compresses to calm ity, hyperactive, hypersensitive, chickenpox and other herpes vi-
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After the snow... gardens
30th Ave
B2 RED DEER ADVOCATE Thursday, March 28, 2013