15 Easy Ways to Make Your Drinks Diet-Friendly

Use evaporated milk

Lighten your coffee with evaporated non-fat milk instead of 2 tablespoons of French vanilla, nondairy creamer.

Calories saved: 55

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Yes, Sugary Drinks Actually Prime the Body to Store More Fat—Here’s Why

Ice-cold soda or a smooth cocktail may taste delicious, but new research may get you rethinking your beverage choice. According to findings in the open access journal, BMC Nutrition, having a sugary drink with a meal high in protein (which most are, here in the U.S.), may actually prime your body to store extra fat.

We already have many reasons to avoid soda, but this new research adds a new wrinkle: It’s not just the sugar or calories that widens your waist, but its negative impact on your body’s energy balance, which changes your food preferences and causes your body to store more fat. According to lead study author Dr. Shanon Casperson, from the USDA-Agricultural Research Service Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center, the body doesn’t burn about a third of the additional calories in sweetened drinks, reducing fat metabolism and causing the body to use less energy to metabolize the meal. This “decreased metabolism efficiency” leads to the body storing more fat.

For the study, researchers looked at 27 healthy weight adults (13 males, 14 females) with an average age of 23. Study participants were required to make two 24-hour study visits, eating two 15 percent protein meals for breakfast and lunch, following an overnight fast on one visit and following two 30 percent protein meals after an overnight fast on a subsequent visit. Their meals were made up of the same foods, including 17g of fat and 500 calories. They were given a sugar-sweetened drink with one meal and a non-sugar sweetened drink with their other meal.

Researchers found that the sugary drink slowed fat oxidation, the mechanism that kick-starts the breakdown of fat molecules. When participants drank a sugar-sweetened drink along with their 15 percent protein meal, fat oxidation decreased by an average of 7.2g. When they drank a sugar-sweetened drink along with their 30 percent protein meal, fat oxidation decreased by an average of 12.6 grams. Even though having a sugar-sweetened drink increased the amount of energy needed for metabolism, the increased expenditure did not even out the consumption of additional calories from the drink. What’s more, the combination of a sugary drink with a high-protein meal caused participants to crave savory and salty foods for four hours after eating.

“Our findings suggest that having a sugar-sweetened drink with a meal impacts both sides of the energy balance equation,” Dr. Casperson told EurekAlert! “On the intake side, the additional energy from the drink did not make people feel more sated. On the expenditure side, the additional calories were not expended and fat oxidation was reduced. The results provide further insight into the potential role of sugar-sweetened drinks—the largest single source of sugar in the American diet—in weight gain and obesity.”

Before you swear off sugary drinks forever, note two limitations of the study: It looked only at participants over a short period of time and involved only participants of a healthy weight, so there may be a different response in people who are overweight.

Still, it can’t hurt to try out some zero-calorie, all-natural drinks that could replace your favorite sugary beverage.

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11 Sneaky Ways You Can Get Everyone in Your Household to Eat Better

Do the hard work

If given the opportunity, wouldn’t you love to hire an at-home chef to whip up the most delicious and nutritionally-rich foods for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? Most people would prefer for someone else to roll up their sleeves and put in the hard work of chopping, slicing, boiling, and grilling, including your next-of-kin. That’s why Kaleigh McMordie, RD, says to trick ’em into eating smarter, lead by example, illustrating how simple it is to make something that’s good for you, while still tasting great. “Make them a healthy but flavorful meal. If it doesn’t taste like ‘rabbit food,’ they are more likely to enjoy eating healthier. Once they know healthy food can be tasty, they will be more open to eating better, and they’ll probably start to feel better too,” she suggests. She does add that when you first put together your sneaky menu, leave the tofu or kale off of it, as it might be a bit too far out of their wheelhouse. Instead, she says to “go slow with something on the grill, like a lean pork chop and grilled veggies with a baked potato.” Try these 10 tricks to make home cooked meals even healthier.

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How to Beat Your Burnout

Ever notice that you are always rushing through the day to get things done. You don't pay attention to your body and mind cues that are speaking loudly to take a break until one day your head spins and you have a complete breakdown by being burned out when you no longer can carry on. There are remedies for this kind of burnout and I recommend very simple and empowering ones in this article. Look inside to find out.

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Holding Your Hand in This Position Could Boost Your Metabolism

Your hands have lots to offer, beyond just being useful tools for everyday tasks. (Keep an eye out for these diseases your hands might predict.) In fact, they can even be good for your health in a rather strange way. Research shows that reflexology, or applying pressure to certain areas of the hand, activates huge benefits for both your body and mind.

Among the most powerful positions is the “Surya Mudra,” a yoga-inspired pose that improves your digestion and metabolism. The technique is also said to remedy low blood temperature and appetite loss.

To reap the rewards of this amazing move, simply use your thumb to hold your ring finger down, keeping your other three fingers pointing straight up. Are the pounds melting off your body yet? (You can also make your hands look younger almost instantly.)

Other hand positions have even more incredible health perks. Reflexologists say clutching your thumb with your opposite hand for about five minutes can relieve anxiety and headaches. Holding any of the other fingers can help you manage your emotions, including: fear (index finger); anger (middle finger); sadness (ring finger); and stress (pinky finger).

And how could we forget the palm? Massaging it in a circular motion while breathing deeply can prevent nausea, stress, diarrhea, and constipation. If you press both palms together in a meditative style, you can improve your concentration and blood circulation.

Your hands need a little TLC, too. Don’t miss the signs they are begging for some care.

[Source: BrightSide]

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This Is Why You Should Never Order a Soda with a Burger

A burger and soda go together like peanut butter and jelly, but you might want to reach for water with your next meaty meal. You’re probably well aware that sugary drinks aren’t good for you (especially if you’re showing these signs of eating too much sugar), but we’re not here to talk about those extra calories. Sugary drinks could affect your waistline way beyond what the nutrition label would tell you—and they’ll do even more damage if you pair them with the wrong food.

Protein-packed meals mean you’re eating foods that help build muscle, which is great! But if you pair them with a sugary drink, you could do more harm than good.

Researchers had 27 adults eat four meals: Two had 15 percent protein—one with a sugar-sweetened beverage and the other with a sugar-free drink; the other two were 30 percent protein with the same drink pairings.

Drinking a sugary beverage with a meal led to lower fat oxidation, the process that starts breaking down fat in the body, according to the study in the journal BMC Nutrition. And the higher-protein meal had an even bigger decrease than the one with less protein. Basically, drinking a sugary beverage with a protein-heavy meal means you’ll burn less fat, unlike these foods that help you burn fat.

Participants actually did burn more calories after drinking the sugary drink than the one without sugar. But that metabolism boost wasn’t big enough to negate the calories in the drink. (Try these ways to boost your metabolism instead.)

In fact, a sugary drink could mean more calories even after your cup is empty. The extra calories didn’t do anything to help participants’ hunger—in fact, they led to bigger cravings later on. Getting plenty of protein without the extra sugar cut down on cravings for salty, savory foods. But when the high-protein meal came with a sugary beverage, the appetite for those foods came back.

“Our findings suggest that having a sugar-sweetened drink with a meal impacts both sides of the energy balance equation,” says lead study author Shanon Casperson, PhD, research biologist with USDA, in a statement. “On the intake side, the additional energy from the drink did not make people feel more sated. On the expenditure side, the additional calories were not expended and fat oxidation was reduced.”

So even though protein is good for you, pairing it with sugar could let those benefits slip away. If you’re starting a day with protein-heavy eggs, don’t make the healthy breakfast mistake of drinking sugary juice; stick with coffee instead. Find out how many cups of coffee will help you live longer (it’s more than you think!).

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Body Basics

The human body is the beginning and the end, without a healthy, fit body our lives are reduced to series of medical woes. It is also what we tend to take most for granted and neglecting. But taking care of marvelously engineered body is a priority and not an option.

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