Journal your gratitudes. Those who kept gratitude journals on a weekly basis:

1. ·         exercised more regularly
2. ·         reported fewer physical symptoms
3. ·         felt better about their lives as a whole
4. ·         were more optimistic about the upcoming week
5. ·        were more likely to have made progress toward important personal goals (academic, interpersonal and health-based)

Other Gratitude Notes

1. Most people report being grateful (an average rating of nearly 6 on a 7 point scale).

2. Well-Being:  Grateful people report higher levels of:
   •  positive emotions
   • life satisfaction
   • vitality,
   • optimism
   • lower levels of depression and stress. 

 The disposition toward gratitude appears to enhance pleasant feeling states more than it diminishes unpleasant emotions.  Grateful people do not deny or ignore the negative aspects of life.  

3. Prosociality: People with a strong disposition toward gratitude have the capacity to be empathic and to take the perspective of others, as well as be more generous.

4. Spirituality:  Those who regularly attend religious services and engage in religious activities such as prayer reading religious material score are more likely to be grateful.

 5.  Materialism:  Grateful individuals:

• ·          place less importance on material goods
• ·         are less likely to judge their own and others success in terms of possessions accumulated
• ·         are less envious of  others
• ·         are more likely to share their possessions with others relative to less grateful persons.   

• Using ultrasound imaging, doctors have found that the carotid arteries in the necks of obese teens and children as young as 10 had fatty buildup like that of a typical 45-year-old and other signs they’re at risk to develop heart disease.
• That’s especially troubling since “the state of your arteries is more important than your actual age in the evolution of heart disease and stroke,”
• The researchers found that obese children who had abnormal fat buildup in their arteries also had too much LDL, or “bad cholesterol,” in their blood.
• Children with high levels of triglycerides, another type of fat, in their blood were especially prone to having arteries that looked much older than they were.
• “The combination of obesity and high triglycerides should be a red flag to the doctor that a child is at high risk of heart disease,” Raghuveer said.

View the entire article

“More children are harmed by poor nutrition than drugs, alchols, and tobacco combined”  Dr. Katz, Yale Univesity.

This research reflects that. 

Caring for our children involves attention to their nourishment, which is difficult given our society, but not impossible.

An easy solution for your family can be the addition of Juice Plus to your and your children’s diet.

• 1.  Don’t be fooled by the BIG letters on the front of the package.  It’s the itty bitty letters on the back that count. For example, “No Trans Fat” means there is under ½ gram of trans fat per serving.  That certainly isn’t “No Trans Fat” given that even 1 gram of trans fat in the diet daily increases cardiovascular disease by 20%. 

• 2.  The first ingredient is always the biggest.    This is especially relevant for many “fruit” drinks, where sugar is the first ingredient. 

• 3.  Avoid “partially hydrogenated oils” and “high fructose corn syrup” These 2 ingredients tend to be hidden in the midst of long ingredient list.  You don’t have to read every ingredient.  Simply scan the ingredients and if you see one of these, leave it on the shelf. 

• 4.  Avoid lists with long ingredient lists. Chances are that a food with a long list of ingredients is mostly chemicals rather than real food. 

• 5.  Fiber is your friend.  Choose breads, cereals, granola bars, crackers & pasta with at least 2 grams fiber per 100 calories. 

 This information is provided by nutritiondetectives.com (created by Yale’s Dr. Katz), a free, simple, 30-minute, interactive program that can be implemented in schools.  For more information, visit www.nutritiondetectives.com.

Do you eat:

• mindlessly?
• when you’re tired or bored?
• in response to stress?

If so, you are eating for reasons other than hunger, which is called emotional eating.  Take this simple quiz to find out

Frequently, I encounter people who are struggling with emotional eating.

I had recognized this problem in myself many years ago, but it wasn’t until 2004 that I decided to be healed from emotional eating.  That is when I found Dr. Wilbert and his book “Fattitudes”.

From his book (and the phone counseling that I requested), I learned several tools that I can implement at anytime I slip and struggle with emotional eating.  It is a lifelong process, but can be managed and overcome.

I have given this book to so many people.  It’s such a fabulous resource.

Learn the 4 corner stones of Empowered Eating. 

No one has requested that I give this testimony or will be compensating me.   It’s just on my heart to share this with you.

NOTE: to purchase Dr. Wilbert’s Book, Fattitudes, visit amazon.com.

http://www.youtube.com/user/OfficialJuicePlus

How are you and your family measuring up? 

Children and Adolescents (aged 6–17)

• At least 60 minutes of mostly moderate- or vigorous-intensity physical activity every day.
• Muscle-strengthening and bone-strengthening activity on at least 3 days per week.

Adults (aged 18–64)

• Adults should do 2 hours and 30 minutes a week of moderate-intensity

OR

·        75 Minutes a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity

OR

·       an equivalent combination of moderate- and vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity.

Aerobic activity should be performed in episodes of at least 10 minutes, preferably spread throughout the week.

 

Additional health benefits are provided by increasing:

·        to 5 hours (300 minutes) a week of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity

OR

·        2 hours and 30 minutes a week of vigorous-intensity physical activity, or an equivalent combination of both.

• muscle-strengthening activities that involve all major muscle groups performed on 2 or more days per week.

Older Adults (aged 65 and older)

• Older adults should follow the adult guidelines. If this is not possible due to limiting chronic conditions, older adults should be as physically active as their abilities allow. They should avoid inactivity. Older adults should do exercises that maintain or improve balance if they are at risk of falling.

In fact, some social workers will not take on cases of children with ADHD/ADD/Anxiety/Autism if parents are unwilling to remove food additives from the child’s diet.  That is just one example of how diet can greatly affect a child’s life. 

For what are food additives used? To:

• ·         change food’s color
• ·         preserve food
• ·         prevent rancidity
• ·         keep fats emulsified and foods stable  

Most of the chemicals are synthetic compounds, some with known negative health effects.  Mostly, the long term affect of consuming large amounts of additives are unknown.  

Check out this list of the top 12 to avoid.

Although eliminating these may be impossible for some people, begin to notice how you feel (or how your children act) after consuming these.  You may find more sensitivity to one more than another.

Watch this 2 minute video that aired on Fox News about why he recommends Juice Plus for those of us who do not get the recommended 7-13 servings of fruits and veggies each day, every day.

 http://www.foxnews.com/video2/video08.html?maven_referralObject=3117002&maven_referralPlaylistId=&sRevUrl=http://www.foxnews.com/health/drrosenfeld/index.html

Who is Dr. Rosefeld?

 Isadore Rosenfeld, M.D., a professor of medicine at New York Hospital Weil Cornell Medical Center, is widely recognized as one of this country’s preeminent doctors. His regular appearances on network television have garnered a devoted nationwide following of viewers seeking the latest information on health and medical issues.

With nine best-selling books to his credit (as well as a textbook for doctors), Dr. Rosenfeld is one of the leading and most effective proponents of the medical enlightenment of the American public. He is the Health Editor of Parade magazine, with 82 million readers.

Dr. Rosenfeld is a practicing physician and the Rossi Distinguished Professor of Clinical Medicine at New York Hospital Weil Cornell Medical Center.

He was president of the New York County Medical Society and was a member of The Practicing Physicians Advisory Council for the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

In addition to maintaining a private practice in Manhattan, Dr. Rosenfeld has served as a consultant to the National Institute of Health on such task forces as arteriosclerosis, sudden death and hypertension.

He is the recipient of the first award for the achievement in cardiovascular medicine and science by the New York affiliate of the American Heart Association.

 It was delicious and no one detected the difference.

I haven’t tried regular flax seed meal, but it’s worth a shot.

Enjoy!

Labelwatch.com is the first and only informational website that allows consumers to go beyond the fancy package, and actually understand what’s really inside.

You can look up your favorite foods or simply search for a particular ingredient.

My favorite part is the color coding:

• Green indicates “Beneficial Ingredients”

• Yellow indicates “OK Ingredients”

• Red indicates “Cautionary Ingredients”

The ingredient glossary was created using information supplied by many reputable sources, including: The National Institutes of Health, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Food & Drug Administration, and Foods Standards Agency UK, among many others.

Products that contain no “cautionary” ingredients (as defined by the glossary) are awarded the Labelwatch Smart Ingredients Seal, a distinguished seal of product excellence.

 Check out your label today!