How to Sneak More Fiber Into Your Diet

Posted on April 8, 2013 by admin

Here’s another reason to up your intake of fruits, veggies, and whole grains: People who eat more fiber are less likely to suffer a stroke, according to a new study in the journal Stroke.

Researchers looked at eight observational studies published between 1990 and 2012. They found that each seven-gram increase in daily fiber was associated with a seven percent reduction in first-time stroke risk. The mechanism is likely related to some of the known risk factors for a stroke, like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and obesity, says study co-author Victoria Burley, PhD, senior lecturer at the School of Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Leeds in England. Not only has fiber been shown to help with high blood pressure and cholesterol, but it’s also fills you up and keeps you satiated, which may lead you to consume fewer overall calories, says Burley.

But this doesn’t mean that adding a couple of fiber-filled snack bars to your diet for a few weeks will cut your stroke risk or, if you’ve already had one, prevent you from having another. These studies analyzed long-term eating patterns and only assessed first-time stroke risk. Plus, you should opt for natural sources of the nutrient over those fiber-enriched foods you see at the grocery store since researchers aren’t 100 percent sure whether it’s the fiber or something else in the foods that slashes your odds of having a stroke, says Burley.

While it should be easy enough to fill your plate with fiber-rich foods like fruits, veggies, whole grain pastas, and brown rice, most Americans are still only getting about half of the recommended 25 grams of daily dietary fiber, says Burley. Not sure how much food will add up to 25 grams of fiber? If you aim for 3 servings of fruit and 4 servings of veggies per day, then fill in the gaps with 3-6 servings of whole grains, beans and legumes, you should be good, says Susan Bowerman, MS, RD, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at UCLA.

To prove just how simple (and delicious) it can be to get your fill, we put together three daily meal plans that each add up to your recommended 25 grams of fiber:

Day 1:

Breakfast: Gingersnap Oatmeal (9.1g)

Lunch: Black Bean Burger (8.7g)

Snack: Handful of almonds (1 oz = 3.5g)

Dinner: Whole Wheat Pasta With Walnuts, Spinach, and Mozzarella (6g)

Total Fiber: 27.3g

Day 2:

Breakfast: Huevos Rancheros (4.5g)

Lunch: Grilled Panzanella Salad (11.2g)

Snack: A medium apple with 2 tablespoons of peanut butter (6.5g)

Dinner: Chicken Spinach Pita Pizza (6.5g)

Total Fiber: 28.7g

Day 3:

Breakfast: Grilled Banana Sandwiches (6.4g)

Lunch: The Tom Boy Sandwich (7.4g)

Snack: Banana (3g)

Dinner: Stuffed Artichokes (10.4g)

Total Fiber: 27.2g

photo: iStockphoto/Thinkstock

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Should Tanning Beds Be More Heavily Regulated?

Posted on April 5, 2013 by admin

Think it’s a crime to let children use cancer-causing tanning beds? Actually, now it is—at least in the state of New Jersey. Earlier this week, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie signed a bill into law that prohibits people under 17 from tanning indoors.

Prior to the new bill, children under 14 were prohibited from tanning in state, and minors could fake bake with a guardian’s written consent. But last spring, the media exploded with coverage of notorious “Tan Mom” Patricia Krentcil, who brought her then five-year-old daughter to a Nutley, New Jersey tanning salon and was then charged with child endangerment. While her charges were dropped, the hoopla inspired Christie to toughen up the state’s indoor tanning policy. Now, 16- and 17-year-olds can only tan indoors if their parent or guardian is present every time they purchase a tanning session or package.

According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, indoor tanning can raise a person’s risk for melanoma (the deadliest type of skin cancer) by a whopping 75 percent. The risk is particularly high if you use sunlamps before the age of 35.

While we’re all for the ban on indoor tanning at any age, opponents say the Garden State’s new provisions could have serious consequences on tanning salons’ bottom lines. Moreover, they say people should have the right to decide whether they want to subject themselves—or their kids—to indoor tanning.

For the record, the now-infamous “Tan Mom” told TMZ yesterday that she supports the ban because she doesn’t think children should ever tan.

Because the federal government only regulates actual indoor tanning devices and allows local governments to decide who can use them, the same debate persists in other states, too. (You can find your state’s policy here.)

Do you think local governments should regulate indoor tanning? What kind of sunlamp legislation do you think is appropriate? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

photo: iStockphoto/Thinkstock

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The Simple Way to Move More

Posted on April 2, 2013 by admin

If your running shoes are collecting more dust bunnies than miles, you may want to change up your diet. Swapping out saturated fat for monounsaturated fat can increase your physical activity levels by up to 15 percent, according to new research published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Researchers from the University of Vermont and Duke University gave 32 young adults meals that contained an oil high in palmitic acid, a common type of saturated fat, for three weeks. After breaking for a week, the participants resumed eating the same meals for three more weeks—but this time the oil was high in oleic acid, a common type of monounsaturated fat.

Throughout the study, participants wore accelerometers around their waists to allow researchers to monitor their physical activity. When the participants followed a diet high in monounsaturated fats, they were between 12 and 15 percent more active than when they ate the saturated fat-rich meals. What’s more, participants’ resting metabolisms were faster when they replaced saturated fat with monounsaturated fat.

To see if participants’ moods were behind the revved-up sweat sessions, researchers asked some of them to answer a survey about their mental ups and downs. Researchers found that the test subjects were angrier and more hostile when they ate the meals filled with saturated fats.

“Nobody recommends the Western diet, which is full of saturated fat from meat and dairy,” says C. Lawrence Kien, MD, PhD, lead study researcher and professor at The University of Vermont College of Medicine’s division of endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism—yet it’s still the predominant diet in the U.S., he points out. “This study would suggest that a Mediterranean diet rich in monounsaturated fats could create physical and behavioral changes that are associated with leanness.”

Monounsaturated fats can also help regulate inflammation in the body, which may influence brain chemistry and account for the boosts in mood and activity, says Kein. In addition, previous research has shown that monounsaturated fats promote weight loss, increase feel-good serotonin levels, and boost lean muscle mass.

About 20 percent of your total daily calories should come from monounsaturated fats, according to The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Saturated fats, however, should account for no more than 7 percent of your day’s caloric intake.

Here, four foods packed with monounsaturated fats that may help motivate you to slip on your running shoes:

Peanuts
Peanuts actually pack more monounsaturated fats than just about any other legume, says Nutritionist Laura Cipullo, RD, owner of Laura Cipullo Whole Nutrition Services in New York City.
Try This Peanut Recipe: Curried Peanuts

Olives
Chances are you’ve heard about the health wonder that is olive oil. But don’t forget where the yummy stuff comes from. Olives are teeming with oleic acid, says Cipullo.
Try This Olive Recipe: Tuna-Olive Salad

Avocados
Avocados’ super creamy texture comes from monounsaturated fats, says nutritionist Monica Reinagel, LN, CNS.
Try This Avocado Recipe: Vegetable Fajitas

Dark Chocolate
A health food your taste buds can seriously get behind, dark chocolate (we’re talking 60 percent cocoa and up) packs good-for-you monounsaturated fats. It’s still important to practice moderation with the sweet stuff, though, says Reinagel, so you don’t take in too many calories.
Try This Dark Chocolate Recipe: Dark Chocolate and Pistachio Bark

photo: iStockphoto/Thinkstock

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4 Ways to Be More Optimistic

Posted on February 27, 2013 by admin

The grass really is greener in some places: The residents of Hoboken, NJ, are the most optimistic people in the country, according to a new survey from the dating site Chemistry.com. Here’s the full list of the top 10, compiled from a poll of more than 10 million singles nationwide:

1. Hoboken, NJ
2. Redondo Beach, CA
3. Santa Fe, NM
4. Naperville, IL
5. Boca Raton, FL
6. Newport Beach, CA
7. Mountain View, CA
8. Waukesha, WI
9. Scottsdale, AZ
10. Irvine, CA

This is great news for anyone who lives in those zip codes: “People who tend to have a bright outlook on the future have far-reaching mental and physical benefits,” says positive psychology researcher Fred B. Bryant, PhD, professor of psychology at Loyola University Chicago. Research for Yale University has found that an optimistic perspective tacks an average of 7.6 years onto our lives—that’s more bonus time than low blood pressure, low cholesterol, a healthy weight, or regular exercise will score you. Optimists also have a lower risk of heart attack and greater resistance to the common cold, Bryant says. Not to mention they lead happier lives with healthier relationships.

Now here’s the good news for everyone else: you can train yourself to make lemonade out of lemons. “If you work at it, you can change the way you think,” Bryant says.

Here, four ways to boost your optimism—and along with it, your health:

Explain Things Differently
You will go through a torturous breakup or a grad school rejection. Bad things are a part of life—but here’s a trick to make sure they don’t totally sap your positivity: Write down what happened, along with how you interpret both the cause of the event and its impact on your life. Then, make a conscious effort to explain the situation differently, focusing on non-personal, changeable causes and outcomes. For instance, if you were fired, don’t tell yourself that you’re talentless and will go broke. Instead, tell yourself that this particular job wasn’t the perfect fit for you—and that this is an opportunity to find a better one. This mindset will bring you more success, Bryant says.

Call Yourself Out When You’re Negative
When you start getting down on yourself, snapping out of it is easier said than done. Giving yourself a physical reminder every time you’re a Debby downer can be a helpful tool for changing your attitude, Bryant says. Try this: Wear a hair band around your wrist, and every time you start thinking self-destructive, pessimistic thoughts, pull it to literally give yourself a slap on the wrist. That way you’ll remember to ease up on yourself before you’ve sunken into too deep of a funk.

Eat Your Antioxidants
Optimists eat more carotenoids—the antioxidants that produce bright pigments in fruits and veggies—than people with a pessimistic outlook, according to a new study in Psychosomatic Medicine. Researchers say that healthy eating may allow them to more effectively deal with stress and manage challenges. Pack your plate with colorful produce.

Focus on What’s in Your Control
“Some people are so afraid of failing that they protect themselves by adopting a negative view that bad things will happen, whatever they do,” Bryant says. Instead of dwelling on all of the horrible things that might potentially happen to you, focus on what’s in your control and how you can direct your outcomes, Bryant says. Establish small, achievable goals that can help you get where you ultimately want to be, and practice focusing on those—instead of what could possibly go wrong.

photo: Africa Studio/Shutterstock

More from Women’s Health:
Silence Your Inner Critic
Boost Your Self-Esteem
How to Be Nicer to Yourself

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Do Less, Achieve More

Posted on February 25, 2013 by admin

If you clock in long workdays to chip away at your never-ending to-do list, you’re not alone. But the key to getting things done—without burning out—is to work fewer, more productive hours, according to a recent article in The New York Times.

“More and more of us find ourselves unable to juggle overwhelming demands and maintain a seemingly unsustainable pace,” writes Tony Schwartz, the author of Be Excellent at Anything. “Paradoxically, the best way to get more done may be to spend more time doing less.” And it turns out, “strategic renewal,” or taking smart, reinvigorating breaks—including daytime respites and vacations—from work, will make you more efficient, healthier, and happier overall. Plus, the number of hours you work isn’t a true measure of the quality of your work, or of how good an employee you are. What matters is the energy you have while you’re at work, according to Schwartz. “By managing energy more skillfully, it’s possible to get more done, in less time, most sustainably,” he writes.

To scale back your work hours and boost your productivity, Robert Pozen, senior lecturer at Harvard Business School and author of the new book Productivity: Boost Your Results, Reduce Your Hours, suggests these four strategies.

Manage your mail
Take an “OHIO”—an “only-handle-it-once” approach to your e-mails, suggests Pozen. “Discard 80 to 85 percent of them just by looking at the subject matter,” he says. “If you do that, you’ll have 15 or 20 percent that are really important, and for those, I suggest that you answer them right away.” By immediately dealing with the e-mails—and whatever issues they contain—you’ll avoid an inbox pileup and the stress of playing catch-up.

Avoid meetings
It’s no secret that meetings can be a complete time suck. Pozen suggests avoiding them when possible. If skipping out on a meeting just isn’t an option, then ask to see an agenda and any other materials in advance, he says. And if you’re running the meeting, try to keep the time to an hour or 90 minutes at the very most. (Although shorter is definitely better).

Ditch the perfectionism
Wanting to do everything perfectly is a worthy but very time-consuming goal, and sometimes it’s just completely unnecessary. Pozen recommends learning to recognize that certain projects simply don’t require perfection. By doing so, you’ll spare your precious time and energy and be able to use both later on—and on a more appropriate project.

Give yourself a break
“Most people, sometime between one o’clock and four o’clock, have a real down—their bodies get tired,” says Pozen. To fight the midday energy slump, he recommends taking a break to exercise, or carving out time for a short, 20-minute nap. (Just don’t let your boss catch you!) And conversely, if you happen to know that your most productive hours are before noon, make a to-do list every night before you head out. When you make a nightly to-do list, it means that every morning when you get to work, you can jump right in to the necessary tasks without wasting precious productivity time getting oriented and organized.

photo: iStockphoto/Thinkstock

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Do You Type More Than You Talk?

Posted on February 8, 2013 by admin

If you interact with your inbox as often as you socialize with real people, join the crowd. Most people communicate via social networks or email about as often as they speak face-to-face, according to a study conducted by the University of Michigan.

In a survey of 3,000 Generation X-ers involved in the Longitudinal Study of American Youth, the average person reported about 75 face-to-face conversations a month, compared to 74 electronic interactions on Facebook, Twitter, email, and Skype.

When you grow up with technology, using it feels natural, says study author Jon Miller, Ph.D., a researcher at the Institute for Social Research for Political Studies. “Busy people do what works, whether it’s keeping in touch with your cell phone, texting, tweeting, or emailing,” he says.

The thing is, you’re more likely to be misunderstood and perceived as unsociable–even ill tempered–when you rely on electronic communication, says communication specialist Miti Ampoma, author of The Innovative Communicator. (Just think about that coworker who returns your call with an email, or straight-out rejects your meeting requests.) Worse yet: if you let Facebook replace face time, your confidence suffers when you actually interact in the flesh, says Ampoma.

Want to keep your social skills up to snuff? Schedule regular face time. When you communicate offline you can see and read a person’s face, interpret their expressions, and better understand their moods and behaviors. “As long as personal communication remains, electronic communication is OK,” says Miller, “but the quality of your relationship can deteriorate if you rely solely on electronic communication—especially in serious relationships.” Allocate a total of two or more hours a week for human face time, and spend it with your friends, family, or partner. And put down your cell phone or iPad while you’re at it.

For more strategies on how to keep tech from ruling your personal life, follow these 7 tips for how to log more face time.

photo: Fogstock/Thinkstock

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17 Creative Ways to Move More Every Day

Posted on February 1, 2013 by admin

You want to go to the gym. You plan to go to the gym. You don’t go to the gym. But it’s OK: Short bouts of activity can be just as beneficial to your health as a full-blown sweat session, according to a new Oregon State University study.

The researchers assessed 6,000 Americans’ physical activity and health risk factors. To their surprise, people who were active throughout the day–even for just one or two minutes here and there–were nearly as healthy as the people who crammed a full day’s worth of exercise into a single session. In fact, 43 percent of the people who didn’t purposefully exercise met the physical activity guidelines of 30 minutes of daily exercise, anyway.

The bottom line: Moving more takes very little effort but adds up throughout the day. And while short bouts of activity won’t necessarily help you lose weight or keep it off, everyone can benefit from a little more movement—especially when you can’t squeeze in a proper workout. That said, there are plenty of super-simple ways to be more active without screwing up your whole schedule. Just check out these suggestions from Women’s Health Twitter followers! Then pin the ideas you promise you’ll try.

Women’s Health asked…

TELL US: How do you sneak more physical activity into your day? #FitTip

— Women’s Health Mag (@WomensHealthMag) January 29, 2013

Followers answered:

@womenshealthmag Just by waking up earlier. I may be tired but it’s so worth it!

— Heather TJ-Palmer (@HeatherTJPalmer) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag shower calf raises, belly dancing while dryin hair, crunches b4getting dressed, p-ups after, ballet stretches while cooking

— Shan (@ffwickswife) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag side leg lifts and leg circles to firm up the glutes in my spare time. I have a job where I stand all day. #sneakyglutes

— Whitney Wettstein (@whitwettstein) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag A pedometer. The guilt will make you move. Not that I have any experience of that ..;)

— A Lot More of Magic (@ALotMoreofMagic) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag drink a lot of water so you have to keep going to the bathroom! (and go to the bathroom upstairs)

— bettinatam (@bettinatam) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag I always tell my self that a day has 24hrs, and if i use just 60min for physical activity,then i will still have 23hrs

— Peter Mugisha(@peter_musharip) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag old school tip. Park as far away as I can from my destination! #getfit #everystepcounts

— Catherine Grych,RD (@SportyCatRD) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag I sit on a gym ball for a few hours each day & do some mini workouts whilst working. It’s a great energy booster too!

— Hayley (@catladyhayz) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag fidget…

— s l harrison (@shaluv7) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag do star jumps to dry my hands in the bathroom at work

— Rebecca Wallace (@Fergaroo) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag I purposely take the long way to the bathroom at school if I’m downstairs ill go upstairs!

— Fitcurvesaresexy (@missionfitgirl) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag longer dog potty walks in the city. Taking the stairs. Squats while brushing teeth. #FitTip

— Nicole (@NicMarie17) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag I am trying a standing work setup at work #FitTip twitter.com/fitbelleatl/st…

— Amelia Pavlik (@fitbelleatl) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag I take the stairs and do them by two’s if I’m home.

— Gabriella Stark (@GabbyTalkingSex) January 29, 2013

Squats during commercials! “@womenshealthmag: TELL US: How do you sneak more physical activity into your day? #FitTip”

— Whateveruwantittobe (@curligirlibabe) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag lunges in the lady’s room #FitTip

— Audra Achiu(@aachiu) January 29, 2013

@womenshealthmag #fittip dance in my home office every 30 minutes or so.Play a great song from #spotify and shake it #nooneiswatching

— Helea (@helea03) January 29, 2013

photo: ULTRA F/ Digital Vision/Thinkstock

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26 Creative Ways to Move More Every Day

Posted on February 1, 2013 by admin

Women’s Health asked…

Followers answered:

photo: ULTRA F/ Digital Vision/Thinkstock

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Couples vs. Friends with Benefits: Who Has More Sex?

Posted on January 25, 2013 by admin

You hear it from your single guy friends all the time: “Having a girlfriend totally kills your sex life!” But according to new research, your bachelor buddies are way off base.

People in traditional relationships not only have more sex than those in “friends with benefits” relationships, but they’re also more satisfied with their sex life and the person they’re shagging, says a recent study in the Journal of Sex Research.

Researchers surveyed 376 people—half in a traditional relationship, the other half in a friends with benefits scenario—about their sex lives: how much sex they had, how exclusive they were with their partners, how satisfied they were, their go-to sex acts, and more. The results: Although those who liked their flings without strings attached had more hookup buddies—an average of 6.37 lifetime partners, compared to 1.9 for the traditional group—people in relationships generally had a better time.

“Clearly there’s no right or wrong when it comes to what type of relationship you want to have,” says study author Justin Lehmiller, Ph.D., a social psychologist at Harvard University. But the results showed that those in committed relationships were happier and more satisfied, he says.

Another possible reason for the happiness boost: more commitment equals more communication. Lehmiller’s data showed that traditional couples were more open with each other when it came to discussing sex, including needs, boundaries, desires, and STI history.

Friends with benefits beat committed folks in one department, though: condom use. But that’s most likely due to sex buddies taking precautions against any unwanted complications, Lehmiller says.

photo: Jupiterimages/Pixland/Thinkstock

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Couples vs. Friends with Benefits: Who Has More Sex?

Posted on January 15, 2013 by admin

You hear it from your single guy friends all the time: “Having a girlfriend totally kills your sex life!” But according to new research, your bachelor buddies are way off base.

Friends with benefits beat committed folks in one department, though: condom use. But that’s most likely due to sex buddies taking precautions against any unwanted complications, Lehmiller says.

photo: Jupiterimages/Pixland/Thinkstock

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Tag Archives: More

How to Sneak More Fiber Into Your Diet

Should Tanning Beds Be More Heavily Regulated?

The Simple Way to Move More

4 Ways to Be More Optimistic

Do Less, Achieve More

Do You Type More Than You Talk?

17 Creative Ways to Move More Every Day

26 Creative Ways to Move More Every Day

Couples vs. Friends with Benefits: Who Has More Sex?

Couples vs. Friends with Benefits: Who Has More Sex?