Science-Based Slim-Downs

The benefits of weight loss go well beyond fitting back into skinny jeans. That’s why a number of big-name researchers, hospitals, and health organizations have launched their own diets to help strengthen the fight against a number of health conditions, including heart disease, high blood pressure, and obesity. These lab-tested plans have been around for a while, DASH DietWhat It Is: Originally created as a meal plan to lower blood pressure and cholesterol, the DASH diet can help you lose weight and improve other health factors too, like your risk of diabetes or certain cancers. How It Works: You’ll cut salt intake and eat mostly whole foods, which will lower blood pressure levels and reduce risk of heart disease and even kidney stones. The most recent iteration...

Read more »

Posted in: Diet

Cut-price test that 'can dramatically boost IVF chances' will be available in 18 months

 A cut-price test that could dramatically increase the chances of having a healthy baby through IVF could be available within 18 months.Oxford University researchers say their test could ‘revolutionise’ the treatment as it is half the price of existing tests and may be just as effective.It may be cheap enough for use by the Health Service. And, unlike existing tests, it does not involve the potentially risky step of taking a sample of cells from the egg or fledgling embryo, making it safer and more ethically acceptable.Instead, it works by analysing a ‘cloud’ of cells that nurture and feed the egg. These are normally thrown away in IVF treatment but fertility doctors Dagan Wells and Elpida Fragouli believe they hold important clues to...

Read more »

Posted in: Pregnancy

My man's anxiety for our love life to be perfect is ruining it for me

I have been with my partner for three years and we have, in my view, a very good and active sex life. However, he’s become obsessed with the idea with we should have simultaneous orgasms. Now I feel that every time we’re in bed, he’s trying to get us synchronised — and the more I feel under pressure to time my orgasm to his, the harder I find it to take pleasure in what we’re doing. I’ve even faked an orgasm once to try to keep him happy. How on earth can I get him to relax?Hollywood has a lot to answer for, doesn’t it? All too often in films you see two people panting away to some tightly choreographed peak of ecstasy, as if this were the normal state of things. You never see any blockbuster heroine say to her beloved: ‘Hang...

Read more »

Posted in: sexual health

Uric Acid Symptoms - 5 Simple Tips to Ditch Your Uric Acid Symptoms of Gout

Your uric acid symptoms of gout - inflammation, swelling, redness, heat and agonising pain - are caused by uric acid crystals in your joints, tendons and surrounding tissues. The most common joints are the big toe, ankle and knee, but, almost any joint can be affected. Here, you'll discover how to ditch your uric acid symptoms by using 5 simple tips.Uric acid is produced when 'purines' breakdown in our bodies after carrying out the vital work of converting our food to energy and genes to proteins. Purines are chemical compounds that appear naturally in our body cells and in much of our foods. So any remedy for gout has to take your diet into consideration.Here are 5 simple ways to reduce your uric acid symptoms of gout, starting with your diet:-1. You must avoid foods with high levels of purines....

Read more »

Posted in: Uric Acid

The Happiness Diet: How a new weight-loss plan promises to tackle your mood as well as your waistline

We all know that a diet high in fat, sugar and processed food is bad for our waistlines.But according to a new book, it is also making us depressed.Authors of The Happiness Diet believe that what we eat can affect mood as much as it does weight.Brain food: Authors of The Happiness Diet believe that what we eat can affect our mood as muchas it does our weightDrew Ramsey, a clinical psychiatrist at Columbia University, and health writer Tyler Graham say that eating the right food is 'the foundation of good mental health'.They point out that rates of both obesity and depression have doubled in the last decade, and blame the rise on the Standard American Diet, or the SAD Diet.'Your brain is made of food, and the right foods are the foundation...

Read more »

Posted in: Diet

Stress during second and third month of pregnancy raises risk of premature birth and losing baby boys

First time stress has been shown to affect the balance between the sexesFindings based on stress caused by the 2005 Tarapaca earthquake in ChileIt is the first time stress has been shown to affect the balance between the sexes, known as the sex ratio, which normally favours an excess in the number of boys being born.Mothers-to-be who are highly stressed during the second and third month of pregnancy are more at risk of giving birth prematurely and losing boy babies, say researchers.A new study shows exposure to stress can shorten the length of pregnancy, making it more likely that babies will be born early and for boys to be miscarried.It has been described as nature's way of balancing an increased risk of premature death in young men, starting...

Read more »

Posted in: Health News,Pregnancy

Forget a warm cup of cocoa! Drinking cherry juice twice a day will give you 39minutes of extra rest

Researchers say the juice could help athletes recover from injury as well as people with insomnia or jet lagLavender pillows, warm cups of cocoa and a relaxing going-to-bed routine, are all popular ways to reach the land of nod.Now researchers have found a fruity solution for those who struggle to get to sleep or find themselves waking too early in the morning.An international team found that when healthy adults had two daily glasses of tart cherry juice, they rested an average 39 minutes longer.This broke down as around 25 minutes of extra sleep and 14 more minutes spent relaxing in bed.They also found they woke less often when in bed compared to when they drank a non-cherry fruit cocktail.The study was conducted at Northumbria University...

Read more »

Posted in: Health News,Sleep

'Smoking can make your nipples fall off': Plastic surgeon warns of gangrene following breast lift

Smoking can make your nipples fall off - this is the astonishing claim by Dr Anthony Youn, one of American's top plastic surgeons.The practitioner from Detroit, Michigan, was quick to point out this applied to patients who underwent breast lifts to perk up their chests.He said the nicotine and carbon monoxide taken in during smoking can disrupt blood flow to different parts of the body and so disrupts the healing process following surgery.The toxins can act as a 'virtual tourniquet' and effectively kill a body part by stopping blood from reaching it.Speaking to CNN Health, Dr Youn said: 'I cringe every time I see a patient for a breast lift who is a smoker.'I’m deathly afraid that despite my warnings, she will smoke before or after surgery...

Read more »

Posted in: Breasts,Health News

25 Snacks That Will Give You Energy Throughout The Day

Our energy is integrally connected to the foods we eat. The foods we choose to put in our body can either boost our energy, or drag us down. Here are great energizing foods that will support our general well-being and health. There’s 25, so I’ll get right into it!1. Apples:Everyone knows “an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” and it’s true! Apples contain lots of vitamins and minerals, and are also a rich source of flavonoids and polyphenols, both of which are powerful antioxidants. Try eating them in the morning and include in smoothies.2. Bananas:Bananas are one of the best sources of potassium, which helps maintain normal blood pressure and heart function in the body. Bananas are a convenient snack with a peel that you can throw in your...

Read more »

Posted in: Diet,Food