Tag Archive for "nutrition" - L'Arte Della Bellezza

Posts Tagged ‘nutrition’

Noteworthy Nutrition Goals For the New Year

Posted on: December 9th, 2014 by L'Arte Della Bellezza

Keep your body running well in 2015! Remember, eating the right foods will help keep you healthy, ageless, and all-around fabulous. Below, we’ve outlined some positive nutrition practices to keep in mind for the New Year.

Make Goals

Goals help measure progress. Make sure each goal is specific, attainable and timely. For example, “I will only have dessert on Saturdays.” Or, “I will prepare one new healthy recipe each week for the month of January.”

Track What You Eat

For a period of time (at least two weeks), write down everything you eat. You don’t have to do this for the rest of your life, but it’s a great habit to start and it’s an eye-opening exercise. Tracking will make you aware of each cracker you put in your mouth or that extra slice of cheese on your sandwich. Tracking will help you tweak your diet so that you can still enjoy foods you love without sabotaging your healthy eating efforts.

Eat Breakfast

Your mother was right: Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. Not only does it give you energy, but breakfast is also linked to many health benefits, including weight control and improved memory and performance.

Think Before You Eat

Why are you eating? Are you really hungry or are you eating because you’re bored? Oftentimes, our bodies confuse hunger for thirst. The next time you feel hungry before dinnertime, drink a tall glass of water, which leads us to our next point:

Drink Lots of Water

Your body is composed of about 60% water. H20 helps your body digest, absorb, circulate and transport nutrients. Water can also help control your calorie intake. Click here to read the many benefits of drinking water.

Eat Plenty of Vegetables

Vegetables are filled with nutrients, water, fiber, and very few calories. Here’s a great tip to keep in mind: fill half of your plate with vegetables. You’ll be satisfied faster, and you’ll cut down on calories without feeling deprived. Give your veggies an extra kick by adding herbs and spices, and whatever you do, avoid salt and butter.

Include Healthy, Protein Rich Foods
Protein rich foods support healthy muscles and your immune system. Want to add more protein to your juices? Toss in a handful of chia seeds, hemp seeds or spirulina. Here’s a great article on different recipes that add healthy proteins to your smoothies.

Eat More Healthy Fats
Eating fat doesn’t necessarily make you fat. Fat in our foods supplies essential fatty acids that our bodies don’t produce. Further, fats move vitamins A,D,E and K into and around the body. Focus on eating unsaturated fats found in avocado, olive oil, almonds, natural peanut butter and salmon.

Load Up On Fruits

Fruit is a tasty, satisfying way to fill up on fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants. Berries are cancer fighting, apples provide fiber, oranges and mangos offer vitamin C, bananas provide potassium and so on. Eat plenty of fruits, but remember: try to incorporate these early in the day; fruits do have lots of sugar.

Resolve to make these few nutritional changes to your diet, and see just how far you’ll go. For more tips like these, be sure to follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

References:

Ditch Your Diet: Eat Whatever You Want

Posted on: September 22nd, 2014 by L'Arte Della Bellezza

Imagine being able to eat whatever you want and still lose weight. You’re probably thinking, gotta be a catch, right? Not really.

As evidence builds that conventional weight-loss methods simply don’t work in the long term, some nutritionists and psychologists are encouraging a kind of non-diet diet, in which you eat what you want.

Non-dieting is really about a way of life. Read on for healthy eating tips sure to help you lose weight and keep it off without deprivation or meticulous calorie counting.

Make your plate visually appealing.

Presentation is important. Make sure your meals are a sensory treat in more ways than one. Think about the colors, sizes and textures. Opt for veggies in every meal; the rich greens, reds, purples and yellows in vegetables are beautiful on the plate and are veggies are high in nutrients, low in calories.

Watch your portions.

Even healthy foods have calories. Keep an eye on portion size and eat with your stomach, instead of your eyes, mouth or wallet. Use this basic guide to get a handle on proper portion size.

Keep healthy snacks within reach.

Many people are guilty of snacking around the clock (especially at work). And most of the snacks you munch on are full of fat and carbohydrates. Keep things in check by having healthy snacks within reach. Fresh fruits and veggies, (carrots sticks, cucumber slices, apples slices, bananas), yogurt and the occasional small handful of almonds are great choices.

Eat off a red plate.

Did you know? The color of your plate has a significant role in how much you eat. Scientists have found that when subjects eat off red plates, they tend to eat less than when eating from plates of any other color.

Replay those tapes in your head.

It’s simple. When you make poor food choices, you don’t feel good. It’s important to be conscious of how you feel after eating something “bad.” Most of the time, we don’t get a positive response after we eat unhealthy foods. We feel guilty, bloated and tired. Pay attention to this! Next time you’re tempted by dessert or just a “few more” fries, remember how terrible you felt later, and you’ll be less inclined to revisit that same scenario.

Avoid midnight munchies.

After dinner, teach yourself to think of the kitchen as being closed for the night, and brush your teeth — you’ll be less interested in food, if you have a clean mouth. If a craving hits, wait 10 minutes. Most of the time you’re not hungry, just bored.

Give yourself permission to eat what you want.

Part of the reason nutritionists are excited by the non-diet diet is that it supports psychological research showing that if a food is forbidden, it only becomes more tempting. The idea is that after eating cookies, cake or pie, intuitive eaters will naturally be drawn to more nutritious foods at the next meal, balancing out that extra fat and sugar. Makes sense now, doesn’t it?

If you’re trying to eat healthier, you can try to trick yourself, but there’s no shortcut to good habits. Practicing mindful eating is a sure way to keep you on track of your weight-loss goals.

Now that you’ve read our tips, tell us: will you ditch your diet?

For more tips like these, be sure to follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

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Eat Better, Live Longer

Posted on: August 21st, 2014 by L'Arte Della Bellezza

Can you eat your way to a longer life?

Luck and genetics (variables out of one’s control) play big roles in longevity. But a diet rich in fruits and vegetables – high in nutrients and low in calories – is your best bet for a long life. Get more bang per bite by incorporating these healthy foods and ingredients into your daily diet.

Avocado: Rich in omega-3 oils and unsaturated fats, avocados prevent heart disease (the largest killer in the United States) by helping lower your LDL “bad” cholesterol, while raising your HDL “good” cholesterol. Avocadoes also help your body absorb heart-healthy vitamins like beta-carotene and lycopene. And they’re also known to be a great source of vitamin E and C.

Beans: Full of fiber and protein, beans and legumes increase levels of the fatty acid butyrate, which can protect against cancer growth.

Berries: These bite-sized fruits are full of antioxidants, known to boost immunity and stave off life-threatening disease. They’ll help you age gracefully, too. According to Health.com, berries, specifically strawberries, have more anti-aging vitamin C per serving than oranges or grapefruit!

Broccoli: This powerhouse plant is jam-packed with vitamins A, C, E, and K, all of which add luminosity to the skin and help repair damaged tissue. Broccoli is also an anti-carcinogen, stimulating the body to produce its own cancer-fighting substances, and it’s proven to help prevent cataracts, heart disease, arthritis, ulcers, and viruses.

Chocolate: High blood pressure and heart disease are exceedingly rare among residents of the San Blas islands, and it’s because they eat lots of chocolate. According to this article, components in dark chocolate called polyphenols lower blood pressure and improve the flexibility of blood vessels.

Garlic: Studies have found that phytochemicals in garlic can halt the formation of carcinogenic chemicals in the body, and that women who eat more garlic have a lower risk of certain colon cancers.

Olive oil: As delicious as it is healthy, this monounsaturated “good fat” is well known for its heart-health/longevity benefits. Studies also show that olive oil may also be linked to brain health and cancer prevention.

Spinach: This leafy green contains folate, which helps repair and maintain DNA. The folate in spinach basically boosts a cell’s ability to renew itself. And get this – cooking spinach actually increases its health benefits. The superfood nourishes eyes, builds bones and is great for digestion.

Tomatoes: Although they’re often confused for vegetables, tomatoes are a fruit that contains lycopene – which gives them their bright, red pigment, and which also stimulates skin circulation and eliminates skin-aging free radicals caused by UV rays. Eating tomatoes aids in the protection against high blood pressure, high cholesterol, strokes and heart disease. Like spinach, eating tomatoes cooked, in pasta sauce, tomato soup or chutney increases the amount of carcinogen-fighting carotenoids your body is able to absorb.

So the next time you reach for a snack, ask yourself: “Will this help me live a longer, healthier life?”

For more tips like these, follow us on Twitter, and like us on Facebook.

References

Eat Your Way to Fabulous Skin

Posted on: February 27th, 2014 by L'Arte Della Bellezza

Clear and healthy skin starts from within. Eating healthy not only contributes to weight loss, it also does wonders for your complexion. So why not boost your beauty regimen with skin-enhancing nourishments?

Read on to learn about foods that come packed with the nutrients to keep skin ageless, flawless, and all-around fabulous.

Avocado: Rich in omega-3 oils and unsaturated fats, avocados are great for those prone to dry skin. Something else? They’re known to be a great source of vitamin E, which boosts the skin’s vitality and luminosity. Avocados also contain vitamin C, which reduces skin inflammation and aids in collagen production.

Beets (or Beetroot): They might stain your fingers, but the skin-clearing properties of beets are well worth the cleaning hassle. These purple roots are particularly high in vitamin A (the main ingredient in Tretinoin – the first generation, topical retinoid) as well as potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium and vitamin E, which is essential for epidermal health and healing. Beets help repair dry, red, irritated skin.

Berries: According to Health.com, berries, specifically strawberries, have more anti-aging vitamin C per serving than oranges or grapefruit! And they’re a natural anti-inflammatory!

Brown Rice: A single portion not only provides a great source of B vitamins, protein, selenium and magnesium, as well as several antioxidants, but also helps regulate your blood sugar levels by slowly releasing energy throughout the day. And it’s been reported that stable blood sugar contributes to skin health and overall appearance.

Broccoli: This powerhouse plant is jam-packed with vitamins A, C, E, and K, all which add luminosity to the skin and help repair damaged tissue. For the greatest health benefits, broccoli should be consumed raw or lightly steamed.

Chocolate: Did you know? Cocoa hydrates skin! And according to Dr. Nicholas Perricone, a dermatologist in New York City, “Dark chocolate contains high levels of flavonols, a potent type of antioxidant.” For maximum flavonol content, eat chocolate that’s at least 70 percent cacao.

Salmon: Salmon, as a cold-water fish, is filled with unsaturated fats that help heal dry skin. Salmon is also a great natural anti-inflammatory and is known to accelerate the skin’s natural healing process.

Spinach: This leafy green contains folate, which helps repair and maintain DNA. The folate in spinach basically boosts a cell’s ability to renew itself. Not only that, but the water inside this leafy green helps plump wrinkled skin. And who doesn’t love a natural filler?

Tomatoes: Although they’re often confused for vegetables, tomatoes contain lycopene -which gives them their bright, red pigment, and which also stimulates skin circulation and eliminates skin-aging free radicals caused by UV rays.

Always remember: you are what you eat. So don’t sabotage your skin! Drink plenty of water and feed your body and mind the healthy way. Your complexion will thank you for it!