Heart Health

Dieting and Vitamin Losses

Did you know when you diet you are frequently sacrificing vitamins and minerals?

When you diet, you don’t just cut calories, you also reduce your intake of vitamins and minerals.

Standford University researchers evaluated the effects of different diets (Atkins, Zone, LEARN, and Ornish) of 300 overweight and obese women. The women reduced their daily caloric intake by 500 calories and all women reduced their overall vitamin and mineral intakes. Vitamin E was reduced the most – 65%.

Researchers were surprised to note that women following the Zone diet actually saw an increase in vitamin A, E, and K intake and no reduction in other nutrients.

When losing weight it’s important to not compromise your overall health. The best bet is a balanced weight loss plan you can stick with long term.

All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
https://lisanelsonrd.com

Tips to increase HDL cholesterol

Raising HDL cholesterol levels is not too difficult, but it may involve lifestyle changes. Here are 4 steps you can take to boost HDL levels:

1. Exercise regularly – the more, the better
2. Increase your intake of fish rich in omega 3 fatty acids
3. Lose weight and/or maintain a health weight
4. Stop smoking

Be sure to sign up for the e-course How to Lower Cholesterol in 8 Simple Steps at http://lowercholesterolwithlisa.com.

All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
http://hearthealthmadeeasy.com

White potato vs. Sweet Potato – Which is better?

Potatoes tend to get a bad rap since this vegetable is processed in so many different ways (think French fries and potato chips). However, there are some redeeming nutritional values provided by potatoes. Let’s do a little comparison.

Serving Size: 1 medium potato with skin

Calories: 128 white potato; 103 sweet potato

Fat: 0.2 g white potato; 0.2 g sweet potato

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Increase HDL Cholesterol to Reduce Cancer Risk

HDL (high density lipoprotein) cholesterol has long been referred to as the “good” cholesterol. This is due to the fact that HDL cholesterol carries cholesterol from tissues to the liver, where it is reprocessed and removed from the body.

The study

The Tufts Medical Center’s Molecular Cardiology Research Institute examined data from studies on a total of 76,265 intervention-group participants and 69,478 controls. The results of this meta-analysis of 24 randomized controlled trials found cancer risk decreased 36% for every 10 mg/dl increase in HDL cholesterol.

How does HDL decrease cancer risk

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How Flexible Are You?

Here are three simple tests to gauge your current flexibility level:

1. Lower Body Flexibility

  • Sit on a chair with your back straight.
  • Keep one foot on the floor and raise the other leg to be parallel to the floor.
  • If you can raise your leg to thigh height without shift position or raising your other foot you have a decent range of motion in your lower body.

2. Upper Body Flexibility

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