MILK - nature's wellness drink

MILK 

Milk- milk is considered "nature's wellness drink"? The cold, creamy white beverage is full of calcium, vitamin D, phosphorous and a balance of other nutrients that have been proven to build your bones and teeth as well as promote the healthy function of your muscles and blood vessels. And in the midst of all the new vitamin waters, energy drinks, and other artificially contrived beverages, milk is a natural, healthy choice.
8 Tips for incorporating more milk into your day
1. Start your day with milk
2. Drink milk as a snack
3. Change your coffee habit
4. Take the edge off your hunger
5. Drink milk for dessert
6. Milk is an excellent post-exercise beverage
7. Have milk before bed
8. Before you drink it, lift it

source : https://www.facebook.com/Dr.ShikhasNutriHealth?ref=stream&hc_location=stream

Fast & Easy Tips for Weight Loss

Fast & Easy Tips for Weight Loss

1. Drink plenty of water throughout the day. Drinking eight glasses of water is almost like a must. And do not forget to drink water in the morning, the moment you wake up. In fact this is one of the most rapid weight loss tips that the dietitians suggest to the people.

2. Keeping a track on the watch, go for an hour walk. It need not be power walking, but definitely it should be non-stop walk and that’s for sure, in a couple of days only, you’ll start finding the difference in you.

3. Have organic foods for the breakfast like apples, bananas, plain yogurt, tomatoes, carrots, peppers, raw honey, wild smoked salmon, and so on.

4. Another tip regarding how to lose weight fast, easy and safe is that you should have your dinner about 4-5 hours before going off to sleep.

5. Eat slowly so that you can get a feeling that you have had enough food and your tummy is full. Eat slowly and fully relish the taste.

6. Soft drinks cannot benefit you in any way. They contain 150 empty calories, so if you substitute one bottle of soft drink with water each day, it will do wonders for you. It will enable you to lose about 16 lbs per year.

7. Don’t depend upon fat burning diet supplements. They wont go a long way in helping you sustain your reduced kilos.

5 Ways to Make Meditating More Effective

Do you meditate? If so, how often? I know some people who meditate daily at the same time and place without fail, and I know people who only meditate when they want to connect with their spirit guides to get an answer to a life question. Meditation is a powerful tool you can use to get clarity in your life, peace in your heart, and wisdom in your soul. It can assist you in clearing up health problems, and help you raise your vibration. I highly encourage you to learn how to meditate if you’ve never done so. If you are an accomplished meditator, you probably already have some effective methods. If you’re just starting out or want to improve your meditation experience, here are five ways to make meditating more effective.

Find a good spot

You will increase the effectiveness of your meditation if you meditate in the same location every time. It will condition your mind to immediately go to a meditative state or to move there faster. Some people like to meditate in bed, but the danger with that is that if you’re going to bed for other reasons, you may end up in a meditative state without really meaning to. So before you decided that the bed is the best place to meditate be sure that’s really in your best interest. If you want to lie down, you can try a couch or a mat on the floor.

A lot of practiced meditators like to set up a spot in a corner or some other dedicated room location. Sometimes they use pillows or a mat or a chair that can recline. You can set up your meditation location with extra goodies like candles, incense, or a CD player so you can listen to meditative music. Make your meditation location comfortable and relaxing. Then, every time you go there, your mind will automatically start going into a meditative state. If you only use that location for meditation, all the better. You can also try meditating outside or in nature. Let the ambient sounds of nature lull you into a relaxing meditative state.

Pick a good time

It’s often a good idea to meditate at the same time every day. Setting a specific time each day to meditate will help you solidify the habit. In my audio program, Raising Your Vibration, I include a morning meditation designed to get you into a loving state for the entire day, and then an evening meditation designed to put you in a state of gratitude in the evening. By forming a habit of meditating at the same time each day you can help trigger a nice deep meditative state much like the trigger you get from meditating in the same location every time.

Make sure you pick a time of day where you will not be interrupted (especially if you have young children roaming the house)  I like to do a personal meditation right before I go to sleep because I find it enhances the messages I get from my dreams. Some people like to meditate when they first wake up in the morning because they want to start their day with guidance or centeredness, plus you’re less likely to fall asleep while meditating if you’ve just woken up from a restful night’s sleep. Some people like to meditate midday as a nice pick me up, a quick mind-rest, or as a way to get insights into problems at work. Whatever time works best for you, try sticking with it for a month and you’ll be a more effective meditator.

Try a new technique

There are many meditation techniques out there. Some concentrate on breathing, some on visualization, some on getting perfectly still and quiet in your mind, and some on connecting and communicating with your spirit guides. Don’t be afraid to change up your technique every once in a while. You never know when you’ll find something that works even better than what you’ve been doing. Here are some things to try:

Stare at a candle: Light a candle, keep your eyes open, stare at the flame, and do your meditation with your eyes open.

Listen to music: Put on some relaxing new age or meditation music, or something with Holosync technology or binaural beats. See how that affects your meditative state.

Listen to a fountain: Some people find it very peaceful and calming to listen to the sound of water running.

Concentrate on your breathing: Make one of your meditation sessions simply about being aware of your breathing. Take deep breaths in through your nose and hold it for a few counts, then release your breath slowly through your mouth. Do this for 20 minutes. It will help clean your lymph system which will lead to greater health.

Automatic writing: Sit at your computer or grab a journal or some paper. Get yourself into a meditative state and start asking the universe, your guides, or your subconscious mind some questions. Write down the answers you get. You may see images, hear an inner voice, or feel a specific feeling. Write it all down.

What else would you like to try to enhance your meditation experience?

Set a specific goal

What is your goal for meditating? Do you want peace? Inner calm? Answers? Advice? Insight? Better health? A more focused mind? Mental clarity? A raising of your vibration? Before you meditate, think about what it is you want to accomplish, and select the meditation technique that will best accomplish that.

I like to use meditation to talk to my higher self and my spirit guides. Sometimes I use it to just calm down if I’m feeling emotionally charged. And during my intuitive counseling sessions, I meditate to connect with my clients’ spirit guides so I can answer important life questions. Meditation grounds me and also helps me achieve inner peace. It’s really a powerful tool!

Try a new position

During meditation you can sit, lie down, or even stand. If you are used to meditating in a certain position and you love it, that’s great. But periodically try a new position and see if you get different results. If you tend to fall asleep during meditation, try meditating while sitting in a chair with your feet flat on the floor. If your goal in meditating is to fall asleep, such as if you have insomnia, then definitely do it lying down.

One time I decided to see if I could meditate while exercising! I was walking on a treadmill, and I kept my hands firmly grasped on the rails so I wouldn’t tip over. I closed my eyes and did some meditative breathing, then imagined I was an Amazon running powerfully on a beach. What an amazing experience it was! I felt more powerful, I stayed on the treadmill much longer than I normally would have, and didn’t feel as tired when I got off the treadmill. I started doing that every time I exercised with great results. I also lost track of time, which is one of the reasons I think I stayed on the machine longer than I originally intended. If you try this, be safe!

Never meditate while driving or operating heavy machinery!

Make meditation a part of your daily life and see what results you get. If you’re brand new to meditation, try it for 30 days and check your results. I think you’re going to like it!

Source : http://www.erinpavlina.com

Diet & Weight Loss Help Guide

In our eat-and-run, massive-portion-sized culture, maintaining a healthy weight can be tough—and losing weight, even tougher. Adding to the difficulty is the abundance of fad diets and "quick-fix” plans that tempt and confuse us, and ultimately fail. If you’ve tried and failed to lose weight before, you may believe that it’s just too difficult or that diets don’t work for you. And in one sense, you may be right: traditional diets don’t work—at least not in the long term.

But there are plenty of small but powerful, changes you can make that do add up to lasting weight loss success. The key is to create a plan that provides plenty of enjoyable choices, avoid common dieting pitfalls, and learn how to develop a healthier, more satisfying relationship with food.

Easy Ways to Lose Weight

Easy Ways to Lose Weight

You know the drill when it comes to losing weight -- take in fewer calories, burn more calories. But you also know that most diets and quick weight-loss plans have about as much substance as a politician's campaign pledges. Here are more than 50 easy ways for you to finally lose the weight.

If you’re trying to drop a few pounds, don’t start off by trying to overhaul all your eating and exercise habits. You’re better off finding several simple things you can do on a daily basis—along with following the cardinal rules of eating more vegetables and less fat and getting more physical activity. Together, they should send the scale numbers in the right direction: down.

1. Indulge in fat releasing foods. They should help keep you from feeling deprived and binging on higher-calorie foods. For instance:

• Honey. Just 64 fat releasing calories in one tablespoon. Drizzle on fresh fruit.
• Eggs. Just 70 calories in one hard-boiled egg, loaded with fat releasing protein. Sprinkle with chives for an even more elegant treat.
• Part-skim ricotta cheese. Just 39 calories in one ounce of this food, packed with fat releasing calcium. Dollop over a bowl of fresh fruit for dessert.
• Dark chocolate. About 168 calories in a one-ounce square, but it’s packed with fat releasing fiber.
• Shrimp. Just 60 calories in 12 large.
• MORE: 13 fat releasing foods »

2. Treat high-calorie foods as jewels in the crown. Make a spoonful of ice cream the jewel and a bowl of fruit the crown. Cut down on the chips by pairing each bite with lots of chunky, filling fresh salsa, suggests Jeff Novick, director of nutrition at the Pritikin Longevity Center & Spa in Florida. Balance a little cheese with a lot of salad.

3. After breakfast, make water your primary drink. At breakfast, go ahead and drink orange juice. But throughout the rest of the day, focus on water instead of juice or soda. The average American consumes an extra 245 calories a day from soft drinks. That’s nearly 90,000 calories a year — or 25 pounds! And research shows that despite the calories, sugary drinks don’t trigger a sense of fullness the way that food does.

4. Carry a palm-size notebook everywhere you go for one week. Write down every single morsel that enters your lips—even water. Studies have found that people who maintain food diaries wind up eating about 15 percent less food than those who don’t.

5. Buy a pedometer, clip it to your belt, and aim for an extra 1,000 steps a day. On average, sedentary people take only 2,000 to 3,000 steps a day. Adding 2,000 steps will help you maintain your current weight and stop gaining weight; adding more than that will help you lose weight.

6. Add 10 percent to the amount of daily calories you think you’re eating, then adjust your eating habits accordingly. If you think you’re consuming 1,700 calories a day and don’t understand why you’re not losing weight, add another 170 calories to your guesstimate. Chances are, the new number is more accurate.

7. Eat five or six small meals or snacks a day instead of three large meals. A 1999 South African study found that when men ate parts of their morning meal at intervals over five hours, they consumed almost 30 percent fewer calories at lunch than when they ate a single breakfast. Other studies show that even if you eat the same number of calories distributed this way, your body releases less insulin, which keeps blood sugar steady and helps control hunger.

8. Walk for 45 minutes a day. The reason we’re suggesting 45 minutes instead of the typical 30 is that a Duke University study found that while 30 minutes of daily walking is enough to prevent weight gain in most relatively sedentary people, exercise beyond 30 minutes results in weight and fat loss. Burning an additional 300 calories a day with three miles of brisk walking (45 minutes should do it) could help you lose 30 pounds in a year without even changing how much you’re eating.

9. Find an online weight-loss buddy. A University of Vermont study found that online weight-loss buddies help you keep the weight off. The researchers followed volunteers for 18 months. Those assigned to an Internet-based weight maintenance program sustained their weight loss better than those who met face-to-face in a support group.

10. Bring the color blue into your life more often. There’s a good reason you won’t see many fast-food restaurants decorated in blue: Believe it or not, the color blue functions as an appetite suppressant. So serve up dinner on blue plates, dress in blue while you eat, and cover your table with a blue tablecloth. Conversely, avoid red, yellow, and orange in your dining areas. Studies find they encourage eating.

Weight Loss Diet Chart

Weight Loss Diet Chart

A Nutritious Diet is very important even if you are following any Weight Loss programs. A balanced diet with all the proteins and nutrients not only helps in preventing weight gain but also Helps in the prevention and cure of various diseases.

When selecting a Diet Plan, make sure you are consuming a balanced and complete diet.

Our Diet Chart may help you to get Weight Loss quickly. Start by following the simple Guidelines below

Vegetarian Diet

Morning – Breakfast

1: One cup of Tea or Coffee with a Little Milk coupled with Bread (No Butter, Jam or Sauce)

2: Fresh vegetables like Tomatoes or Fruits.

Day – Lunch

1: Two or three small Cucumbers (Kakdi), Chana, Mung or Green Salads.

2: Two small Chapatti with Green Vegetable, Sour Milk (Dahi).

3: Small bowl of Rice and Daal can be taken.

Evening – Dinner

1: Soup ( Tomato, Palak and Sweet Corn ) and Papad can be taken.

2: One small bowl of a Vegetable and two Chapatti.

Its also important that the above mentioned diets are taken at proper time, avoid eating Dinner after 9:00 pm and if you intend to sleep by 12 o’clock.

Non-Vegetarian Diet

Morning – Breakfast

1: One cup of Tea or Coffee with a little Milk added.

2: Two or Three Boiled Eggs can be taken.

Day – Lunch

1: Two or Three small bowl Non-Veg stuff with Salads.

2: Two small Chapatti and Daal with small pieces of Meat or a Fish.

Evening – Dinner

1: Any low calorie Non-Veg Soup and Papad can be taken.

2: One small bowl of a Vegetable and two Chapatti with 100gm of Chicken.

Source : http://www.carryfitness.com

Grilled foods may increase cancer risk

Grilled foods may increase cancer risk

Washington: It`s time for picnics and parties with lots of grilled goodies, but experts at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have warned that all that sizzling and flipping on the gas or charcoal grill may also be cooking up cancer-causing chemicals.

And surprisingly, those chemicals have been linked to breast, stomach, prostate, and colon cancer, according to the American Institute for Cancer Research.

But Stacy Kennedy, MPH, RD, CSO, LDN, a Dana-Farber nutritionist, said that doesn`t mean giving up those tasty summer time treats like burgers, steaks, and ribs.

"It`s really about planning ahead and making wise choices," he stated.

There are two risk factors to keep in mind. First, research has shown that high-heat grilling can convert proteins in red meat, pork, poultry, and fish into heterocyclic amines (HCAs). These chemicals have been linked to a number of cancers.

"What happens is that the high temperature can change the shape of the protein structure in the meat so it becomes irritating in the body and is considered a carcinogenic chemical," explained Kennedy.

Another cancer-causing agent, called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), is found in the smoke. PAHs form when fat and juices from meat products drip on the heat source. As the smoke rises it can stick to the surface of the meat.

"That`s where the main cancer causing compound occurs in grilling. So you want to reduce the exposure to that smoke," said Kennedy.

Here are some tips to lower the risk:

Prep the Meat

Choose lean cuts of meat, instead of high-fat varieties such as ribs and sausage.

Trim all excess fat and remove skin.

When using marinades - thinner is better. Thicker marinades have a tendency to "char," possibly increasing exposure to carcinogenic compounds.

Look for marinades that contain vinegar and/or lemon. They actually create a protective barrier around the meat.

Limit time - limit exposure

Always thaw meat first. This also reduces the cooking time.

Partially cook meat and fish in a microwave for 60 to 90 seconds on high before grilling and then discard the juices. This will lower cooking time and reduce risk of cause smoke flare-ups.

Grilling techniques

Flip burgers often - once every minute for meat burgers - to help prevent burning or charring.

Place food at least six inches from heat source.

Create a barrier to prevent juices from spilling and producing harmful smoke. Try lining the grill with aluminum foil and poking holes, and cooking on cedar planks.

Plan ahead and choose wisely

Lean meats create less dripping and less smoke.

Choose smaller cuts of meat, like kabobs, as they take less time to cook.

Try grilling your favorite vegetables. They do not contain the protein that forms harmful HCAs.

"If you`re grilling and following the proper safety tips, the risk of getting cancer from grilling food is very low," said Kennedy. 

Watch what you eat to control weight gain

Watch what you eat to control weight gain

New Delhi: Avoid hot and crispy fried snacks, sweets, carbohydrates-rich food if you want to keep a check on your weight, but don`t forget to consume some calories for your body`s well-being, say experts.

Most of us avoid having food items with lots of calories, but it is good for the body in controlled form.

“Each and every individual has his own calorie requirement, which is based on his basal metabolic rate. If a person eats more calories than what he needs, he will definitely gain weight or if he eats less calories than what he needs, he will lose weight,” Annapurna Agrawal, nutritionist at Snap Fitness India, told IANS.

“If a person`s body requires 2,000 calories and if he or she eats food with 2,500 calories, the extra 500 kcal of what you eat will be converted into fat," explained Agrawal.

Junk food is a big no for the weight conscious people as it lacks essential nutrients like vitamins, minerals and proteins, and is instead high on fat and calories.

“You need to shun all your favourite fried snacks and those curries that have a lot of fat and are cooked in fair amount of oil,” Manik Pande and Meghana Surve, nutritionists at Talwalkar`s National Nutrition Centre, said in a joint statement.

They have even warned against intake of excess carbohydrates.

“Carbohydrates actually convert into fats after they are consumed. The body stores this fat and this adds to your body weight."

Grains and sugar, which are common in a diet, contain a large amount of carbohydrates. So, be careful while you consume them.

The summer season tempts you to go for chilled sodas and juices. These may refresh you instantly, but Pande and Surve advice that go for something healthier.

“Stick to water, lime juice and fresh fruit juices. Alcohol also is an evil beverage,” they said.

Also guard yourself against too many medicines.

“Anti-depressant medicines, birth control pills, allergy medications and blood pressure medications are some of the medicines that may cause weight gain,” said Agrawal.

10 Minute Workout – Cardio Body Fix

10 Minute Workout – Cardio Body Fix

There are times when people tend to fit in a quick workout due to the fountain of energy which is rushed into the body is hugely required for the body based on its needs. There are several reasons as to why there is a need for 10 minutes workout to be included as part of daily routine.

Top three reasons for making time for a 10 minute workout:

• To lessen the feeling of being too tightened which can be relieved with 10 minute workout giving a surge of energy into the body and giving sufficient time to set focus back on properly.
• 10 minute workout is often considered to be sufficient for those who do not have much time to spend for workout or have missed out on their daily routine.
• Doing some or the other exercise even if it is for 10 minutes is much better when compared to not doing the exercise at all. 10 minutes training session is also said to be effective when compared to not going with longer training sessions.

For this shorter session of training to show positive results it is suggested to put exclusive focus on one particular area of the body or even a type of exercise routine which will add flexibility to the body. Here is the 10 minute cardio workout routine which is said to show effective results for sure when followed as given below:

Pre-Cardio 2 Minute Warm Up

• It is necessary that this warm up will loosen the body and increase heart rate to adjust to the upcoming exercises, this 120 seconds of warm up will be sufficient to ease the body for workout however this will also be needed exclusive focus when body feels all tightened up.
• March on one spot for 30 seconds at the same time the arms also have to be moved in circular motion.
• Later march by bringing knees higher and swinging the arms.
• Stand with feet shoulder wide apart and do calf rises by rising up on toes and holding so for about a second before getting back to normal position.
• It has to be followed by squats which have to be done with legs held shoulder wide, for which the body has to be made into sitting back position like it is usually done when we sit on chair which has to be held for about a second after which the body has to be got back into standing position.
• Shallow lunges, for which a step has to be taken ahead and step backward with one leg, put bags on hips with a straight back take one big step ahead, slowly lowering the back get down the knee on ground which has to be held on for about 2 seconds which has to be even repeated for other leg.
• Continuously jog in one place for about 30 seconds.

8 Minute Fat Burning Moves

Best thing about this cardio exercise is that they are much more operational also providing simple choice among huge list of exercises available which provide full body workout for the body also making it fun to work at. Below are some of the simple exercises suggested which will help in getting the heart to fat burning zone which not need any equipment, also it is suggested to make sure that each exercise will be continued for 30 seconds: 

• Jumping Jacks:

  Keep feet together and stand up with arms on sides, take a step to the side then get back to former position. Same has to be repeated to other side as well, continue this alternately till the steady pace can be used to. Now add movement of swinging the arms while taking side steps then swing back the arms on to the sides while getting the feet together.



• Power Jumping Jacks:

  Stand with feet together and arms on the side then jump with both feet onto sides when the arms are brought up on to the head which forms the shape of star. Now get into squat position which has to be held so for about two seconds and get back into starting position.



• Running:

  Running on one spot where the knees are brought up while swinging the arms back and forth in perfect rhythm.



• Sprint:

  Start sprinting at one place but has to be done at faster pace which also is powerful at the same time.



• Squats:

  Stand feet with shoulder wide distance and make sitting position as if there is an imaginary chair which has to be held on for a second then getting back onto the standing position.



• Burpees:

  It is a combination exercise of squat, vertical jump and push up for which it has to start off with squat on haunches by placing the hands on floor. Now get into push up position by slowly lowering the chest onto the ground with the help of arms now get back up immediately which will finish up with pushups. Later the feet have to be got back into their initial position.



• Side Step:

  Start with keeping the feet together and leaving arms loosely on the sides, now take a step sideways to left while leaning forward at the same time reach with the right hand across to the body diagonally on left knee then tap with right foot on left. Get back to initial position while repeating the same with other side.



• Speed Skaters:

  Same movement used in side step can be used for this instead of stepping jumping has to be done both to the side and back for which even the arms have to be used as an alternative while trying to go with sideways with each jump.

Source : http://www.myhealthtips.in

5 Fat-Burning Tips

Losing weight can sometimes be a frustrating process. You’ve probably hit someplateaus along the way and have struggled to achieve your ideal body weight. If you're in a weight-loss valley, here are some fat-burning tips to help you reach the peaks.

1. Add fiber to your diet

Troubles with irregularity can definitely contribute to weight gain, but the solution is quite simple. By simply increasing the amount of dietary fiber in your diet, you will improve the health of your stomach and digestive tract. Some research also indicates that fiber has a positive effect on your metabolism.

Fiber can be found in foods such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, healthy fats and lean proteins, but the problem with fiber is that it is often difficult to get enough. To fix this problem, replace all of your simple carbs with fibrous ones and don’t look back. For example, if you regularly consume candy, replace it with fruit instead. And if you love sugary cereal in the morning for breakfast, replace it with oatmeal instead.

2. Replace carbs with spinach

If you’re looking for another reason to replace simple carbs in your diet with complex carbs and fibrous vegetables, look no further. Simple carbs can cause spikes in insulin, a fat-storing hormone that increases your appetite as well — a double whammy. But complex carbohydrates have the opposite effect, keeping insulin levels low, and they also control your appetite, due to the fact that they are very difficult to digest.

3. Take your vitamins

Believe it or not, many vitamins play a role in fat mobilization and can help youlose weight. Vitamin C is a great example, since it is needed for the production of several amino acids that aid in the fat-burning process. In addition to this, some studies have shown that vitamin D can increase the amount of fat burned by up to 50 percent. Both A and B vitamins play a critical role in keeping stress levels in check, which is important, since if your stress levels are high, your body will automatically go into fat-storing and muscle-burning mode — something you definitely don’t want. You don’t need anything fancy — just a basic multivitamin should work fine.

4. Drink green tea

Studies show that not only is green tea very high in antioxidants, but it can also increase your metabolism and make it much easier for your body to burn additional calories.

5. Get caffeine at the right time

In addition to green tea, consuming caffeine on a daily basis can help improve your fat-loss results by increasing your metabolism. Caffeine also acts as an appetite suppressant, working to control your cravings and making it easier to lose weight. Consuming caffeine before your workouts can also help you burn additional calories, so try drinking a cup of tea or coffee about 30 minutes before you hit the gym. It will give you the extra drive and focus needed to complete your workouts at full intensity.

Taking these tips seriously and applying them into your life will definitely help your fat loss results. Good luck!

5 Foods For Fast Weight Loss

Research backs up the weight loss benefits of these
 specific foods (collage: Melanie Haiken; photos
public domain)

While there’s no such thing as the perfect diet, there are key foods that research has shown can help you lose weight. These foods work in different ways and for different reasons, but all have in common that people who eat them as part of a weight loss plan lose more weight faster than those who don’t. Here are 5 foods shown in recent studies to help the pounds come off more quickly. More foods to come as the studies come out.

1. Pistachios

These nuts are the perfect snack for the weight-conscious because they’re high in protein, fiber, and healthy fats. Don’t be fooled by the “fat” label, either; the fat in pistachios is unsaturated fat, the brain- and heart-healthy type.

Calorie counts are misleading too; not all calories are created equal.Researchers from the UCLA Center for Human Nutrition followed two groups of people on identical low-calorie diets for 12 weeks. One group ate 240 calories worth of pistachios as their afternoon snack,  the other ate 220 calories worth of pretzels. The BMI (body mass indexes) of the pistachio group showed more improvement, and their cholesterol and triglyceride levels dropped as well. While shelled pistachios are more convenient, the longer amount of time required to shell them yourself makes the snack more satisfying.

2. Mushrooms

The rich, meaty taste and texture makes them an ideal meat substitute, and cutting out at least some of the meat in your diet can be a powerful weight loss strategy. Last week a research team from the Weight Management Center at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health demonstrated this effect in a study showing that substituting mushrooms for meat in one meal a day  resulted in a significant weight loss.

Researchers followed 73 participants, primarily 40-something women, for a full year in a randomized  trial and found that the mushroom group was consuming 173 fewer calories and 4.5 grams less fat a day, leading them to lose an average of 7 pounds each. Let’s note that this study was funded by the mushroom council; many weight loss food studies are, in fact, funded by groups representing producers and marketers of that food.

3. Yogurt

This one’s not news, but the research continues to come in. One of the most impressive studies on nutrition and weight loss, conducted by Darius Mozzafarian of Harvard and published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found yogurt to be a surprisingly important factor distinguishing people who maintain their weight as they age and those who gain relentlessly over time.

Using data from the enormous Nurses Health Study, Mozzafarian and his team analyzed the eating habits of more than 120,000 people to find commonalities between those who gained weight as they aged, and those who maintained their youthful silhouettes. Of all the foods linked with weight loss, yogurt ranked the highest. (Potato chips and potatoes themselves came in the highest for weight gain.) Scientists don’t know yet why yogurt seems so consistently linked with thinness, but are looking into the possibility that the healthy gut flora promoted by yogurt’s beneficial probiotics may play a role. (It’s also possible, though, that yogurt simply tends to be a staple of the diets of health-conscious people.)

4. Oat Bran

Oat bran is a key element in the Dukan diet popularized by Kate Middleton, Jennifer Lopez and others over the past year. In the UK and Europe, where this diet is a high-profile fad, people carry oat bran around with them to comply with the diet’s very specific requirement of 3 tablespoons a day. The Dukan Diet has even branded its own oat bran and oat bran bars. Oat bran has been easy for continental dieters to adopt because oat bran bars have been in the purses of dieting French women for decades. (I remember trying the dry zweiback-like bran bars for sale in the diet sections of French pharmacies in the early 1990s and wondering how people could stand them.)

So what’s all the fuss, and does oat bran work as promised? In general, yes, but mainly due to benefits that you can replicate with other foods. Oat bran is very high in fiber, so it makes you feel full and aids in speedy elimination. Oat bran, like oats themselves, also absorbs fats, which is why it’s recommended by doctors to lower cholesterol. While you’re welcome to try oat bran bars and see if you like them, you can get much the same benefit by following my previous advice and eating a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast every day.

5. Olive Oil

How can a fat help you eat less fat? Because olive oil is monounsaturated, making it a healthy part of the endlessly recommended Mediterranean diet. But more specifically because according to research at the University of Irvine,  the oleic acid in olive oil is transformed in the small intestine into a compound called OEA (full name oleoylethanolamide) that relieves hunger and suppresses appetite by sending signals to your brain telling it you’re full.

Dress all those healthy salads you’re eating as part of your weight-loss plan with olive oil, and you’ll be doubling the benefit of all those antioxidant-rich veggies. A full analysis of all of the health-boosting benefits of olive oil is available from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition here.

Do you have more weight loss-friendly foods to add to this list? Please add them in a comment!