A Few Things To Know About Sport Physicals

Many parents choose to have a sports physical conducted on their children during the summer. This makes sure they are ready for another activity filled sports season while last minute, mad rushes to the physician are avoided. Although most parents know that they need to get a sports physical conducted on your child, in order for him/her to participate in athletics, there are still a few unanswered questions.

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The 3-Ingredient Breakfast This Harvard Physician Eats Every Single Day

When it comes to healthy breakfasts, creativity takes a back seat when your only options are fruit, eggs, and the occasional—whole grain, mind you!—slice of toast. (Sound familiar? You might want to steal these healthy breakfast ideas.) But rest assured that you’re on the right track; a plate full of refined carbs in the a.m. is sure to take a toll on your waistline.

In fact, the typical American breakfast makes Harvard physician Monique Tello “want to cry,” she wrote in a recent Harvard Health blog post. “A bowl of cereal, or a bagel, or a piece of toast, or a muffin are all no different than a dessert.”

Why? All of those processed carbs and sugars can cause your blood sugar and insulin levels to quickly spike and crash, leading to cravings later on in the day. And any extra sugar found in your system will eventually get stored as fat, Tello says.

So, what’s a well-intentioned breakfast eater to do? Toss out your carb-heavy breakfast and opt for Tello’s go-to meal, instead: a simple mix of berries, protein-rich yogurt, and a nuts, seeds, and rolled oats combo. She swears it’s the healthiest quick fix for those with a busy morning schedule.

“I’m a working mom. I take the train into work. I need something quick, easy, and transportable,” she wrote. “Plus, it needs to be budget-friendly, and must hold me over for a number of hours. So, I put together a quick, easy fruit/yogurt/grain/nut bowl every single day.”

Thanks to the fiber and natural sugars found in fruit, healthy fats in nuts, and protein in the yogurt, you’ll feel full and satisfied for much longer. That also means you won’t find yourself reaching for a fat or sugar-loaded snack midway through the day. But if you do find your tummy rumbling before lunch, keep a stash of these guilt-free snacks to munch on.

Looking to slim down while you eat up? This one breakfast will keep you burning calories all day long.

[Source: Business Insider]

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15 Classic Thanksgiving Foods, Ranked from Best to Worst for Your Weight

Cooked spinach: 41 calories per 1 cup

The pros: A generous portion keeps your appetite under control for far fewer calories and more vitamins than, say, a biscuit. Each cup offers 5 grams of satiating protein. Need more reasons to eat more spinach right now? Your body absorbs higher levels of protein, vitamins A and E, fiber, calcium, iron, zinc, and valuable carotenoids such as beta-carotene (important for eye health) when you eat spinach cooked rather than raw. The cons: The spinach could be loaded with hidden calories, depending on how it’s prepared. A quarter cup of crumbled feta, for example, can add upwards of 100 calories. Stick to a balsamic vinegar topping, for only 14 calories per tablespoon. (Looking for a stress-free Thanksgiving? Get our FREE guide for an unforgettable Thanksgiving. You’ll get easy recipes, kid-friendly crafts and games, inspiring traditions, and more ideas for the best holiday yet.)

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8 Signs You’re Already at a Healthy Weight

The definition of “healthy weight” is squishy

Nearly 40 percent of American adults are obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, so it’s no surprise that so many of us are trying to slim down. We’re all wondering what our doctors really want us to know about losing weight. The thing is, even if you’re not exactly where you’d like to be weight-wise, that doesn’t actually mean you need to lose weight.

“With so much emphasis on weight loss these days, people are often trained to believe that no matter what their weight is, it isn’t good enough,” says Lori Zanini, RD, CDE. “This is unfortunate and causes unnecessary stress on individuals who may be perfectly healthy just the way they are.” There’s no one-size-fits-all formula to indicate how much you should weigh, and “healthy” can look different for each of us, and it can also evolve as we age, Zanini says. “It may not look like what you see in the movies or even in pictures of yourself from 10 years ago.”

So if the scale and social cues are unreliable, how can you tell when your body is happy—and healthy—right where it is? Consider if you can relate to these eight telltale signs.

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If You’re a Vegetarian, You Could Be at Risk for These Mental Health Conditions

There are myriad health benefits that come with making the decision to switch to a vegetarian diet, but there can be some complications too.

Health experts already warn that a vegetarian diet can lead to possible nutrient deficiencies, but a new study adds another concern—the potential impact of a no-meat diet on your mental health. Based on continuing research, experts are warning that a vegetarian diet may be associated with panic attacks, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, Women’s Health reports.

Research into the possible mental health risks associated with vegetarianism began last year, when an Australian study discovered that participating vegetarians demonstrated a less optimistic view of the world around them as opposed to meat-eaters. According to Women’s Health, the study also reports that vegetarians are 18 percent more likely to experience depression, and 28 percent more likely to contend with panic attacks and anxiety. The findings from a previous German study show that vegetarians are 15 percent more likely to experience depressive conditions and twice as likely to experience anxiety disorders. (Here are more everyday habits that could up your risk for depression.)

Health experts have yet to pinpoint the exact science behind the link. “We don’t know if a vegetarian diet causes depression and anxiety, or if people who are predisposed to those mental conditions gravitate toward vegetarianism,” Boston psychiatrist Emily Deans, MD, told Women’s Health.

Experts believe it’s likely that people with mental illness are more likely to keep a closer eye on their plate, and in turn this causes the heightening of their symptoms. Regardless of the limited understanding of mental illness and vegetarianism, doctors agree that what you eat will impact your mental health, for better or for worse. No matter what you eat, you should know how to recognize these warning signs of an emotional breakdown.

Dr. Deans warns that many of the nutrients our brain needs are often found in meat and animal proteins. When our brain is lacking in these vitamins, the levels of glutamate in our bodies is lower, which causes an increase in feelings of depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. When our brains don’t have enough zinc or iron, both of which we find in meat, then it’s expected that one can experience mood swings. Dr. Deans recalls that in the past she’s treated patients who believe they’ve had a panic attack but are really just experiencing iron deficiency. (These are the signs of a panic attack.)

These feelings can compound themselves even worse in vegetarians who are unsure what to eat and instead reach for white bread, rice, pasta, and cereal. Experts call this the “carb-itarian diet” and warn that the “resulting seesaw of blood sugar and hormone levels may lead to even more irritability, depression, and anxiety.” Check out the iron-rich foods all vegetarians should eat.

Some vegetarians will never experience adverse mental health affects as result of going meatless, but doctors still say it’s a good idea to seek out a professional medical opinion when making a drastic change to your diet. You should also consider keeping track of your food and moods as you begin a new diet, which will enable you to monitor how you’re feeling based on what you’re eating.

If you’re thinking of going meatless, here are some vegetarian dishes that will help you get the nutrients you need.

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‘Tis the Season — When Americans Will Weigh the Most All Year

Filled with homemade cookies, bubbly-filled parties, and creamy comfort food favorites, the holiday season can turn into a diet disaster after just the tiniest lapse of self-control. Here are classic Thanksgiving foods, ranked from best to worst for your weight. But when food is the centerpiece of a season of celebrating, is it worth stressing over the weight gain? You might not pack on as much as you fear.

In early fall, Americans lose more weight than the rest of the year. But in November, that weight starts creeping back up. During Thanksgiving, the national average weight goes up about 0.2 percent, according to a study in The New England Journal of Medicine. Then from the ten days before Christmas to the ten after, that weight increases by another 0.4 percent, peaking around New Year’s Day. By the end of the winter holiday season, Americans are about 1.3 pounds heavier than their thinnest point in the year. Here are more surprising causes of weight gain.

Unlike past studies that rely on self-reported data, this study used weigh-ins from participants’ wireless scales to keep track of day-to-day weight changes in 2,924 volunteers from the United States, Germany, and Japan. Volunteers who are invested in their expensive scales “may be wealthier, better educated, and more motivated toward weight loss than average,” the authors wrote. That means the typical American might actually gain more weight than this study suggests, study author Brian Wansink of the Cornell University Food and Brand Lab told the Los Angeles Times.

About half the holiday weight gain goes away by summer, but the rest sticks around through swimsuit season. “Of course, the less one gains, the less one then has to worry about trying to lose it,” the study authors wrote.

Holiday weight gain isn’t unique to the United States though. The national weights go up even more in Germany and Japan—0.6 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively—than in the United States, the study found.

Internationally, other holidays pose threat to waistlines too. Thanksgiving is a day to feast in the United States, but Germans gain 0.2 percent around Easter, while Japan sees its national weight goes up by 0.3 percent during Golden Week. “Different countries celebrate different holidays, but many such celebration periods have one thing in common: an increased intake of favorite foods,” the study authors wrote.

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10 Kinds of Diet Food Your Grandmother Probably Ate—and You Should Too

Drink seltzer water

Attention Millenials: Sparkling water was a thing long before you discovered La Croix. Grandmothers know it as seltzer water or mineral water, and they understood its power to add interest and flavor without adding pounds. This is a diet “trick” we should all steal from older generations, says Jill Weisenberger, MS, a registered dietitian and author of The Overworked Person’s Guide to Better Nutrition, adding that sparkling water is a good alternative to sugar-sweetened beverages, helping you stay hydrated and satiated between meals. “At parties, alternate alcoholic beverages with seltzer water,” she says. “To make it more ‘fun,’ ask for a twist of lime, but always start with water and end with water.” Hint: Not only will this help you slash empty calories from booze, but it is also one trick to avoid binge drinking.

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