Archive for July, 2009

Many external causes determined by our lifestyle and the environment we expose ourselves to can be the culprit of damage to our skin.  Making unhealthy choices can prematurely age and damage our skin, making us look older, way before our time.  Merely knowing what you may be doing or exposing yourself to to cause this damage is an important part of the anti-aging fight.  Here are 9 culprits to be aware of (and in some instances change) to wage war against the enemy:

1. Cigarette smoking:  direct, as well as, second hand smoke is damaging and aging to the skin.  It dries out, ages, and wrinkles the skin 200 times faster than it does a non-smoker.  It compares very closely to sun damage in its severity.  One reason is that is depletes the body of Vitamin C, which is a key ingredient for keeping skin plump and moist.  Hence, millions of Vitamin C face and skin creams on the market today!  They may help, but if you continue to smoke, the good will never outweigh the bad.  Not to mention the toxins and free radicals that you are inhaling, while damaging your arteries and blood vessels–You must quit smoking!
2.  Sun exposure:  sun exposure is very aging and damaging to the skin.  Burning the skin causes changes in its ability to protect you and supply the body with nutrients needed for daily function.  Too much sun also changes the skin’s appearance; freckles turn to brown sunspots, and the skin takes on a dry, leathery look, with wrinkles and sagging increasing.  Soon, the risk of skin cancer is significantly increased, and bigger problems could be on the horizon.  Luckily, there are great sunscreens on the market that can protect you.  Look for ones that guard against UVA and UVB rays and an SPF of 15 or higher.  Make sure you use it year-round, even on cloudy days.  Clouds do not block ultraviolet ray exposure.
3.  Lack of exercise:  regular exercise, at any age, keeps muscles toned and blood flowing.  It also requires that you consume more water, (exercise hopefully makes you thirsty) and more water cleanses and hydrates the cells, potentially keeping them from drying out as fast.  Regular exercise also stirs up healthy endorphins and maintains a healthy body weight.  Feeling good and looking good shows on your face!
4.  Temperature exposure:  cold winds, low temperature, and overly heated rooms all contribute to the aging process by making the skin dry.  A good moisturizer and a humidifier can reduce the damage significantly.
5. Alcohol use:  alcohol use damages and promotes premature aging by dilating small blood vessels in the skin and increasing blood flow near the skin’s surface.  Alcohol also dehydrates the cells.  After prolonged use, these blood vessels can become permanently damaged, creating a flushed appearance and giving a spider vein look to the skin’s surface.  Many alcoholics have rosy cheeks, or at least get them when drinking.
6. Stress:  stress causes hormone responses and many of them have a negative effect on the skin.  Adrenalin and epinephrine are two such hormones.  They cause the body to ramp up, creating a fight-or-flight response, and if these are overused can cause free radical development, which triggers damage to cells, which can trigger the body to age faster.   Prolonged stress also causes anxiety and depression, these leading to sadness and sometimes illness.  Frown lines and wrinkles from a sad, depressed face are no joke!  Have you noticed how our Presidents age right before our eyes while in office—stress got them.  We can fight stress by exercising, meditation, and by using relaxation techniques.  We can also eliminate the cause of the stress to begin with, if possible.
7. Lack of Sleep:  the lack of sleep adds to stress, depression, and the loss of interest in daily activities.  This is usually because you are too tired to do anything.  Dark circles and sagging skin under the eyes are some of the physical signs you are sleep deprived.  Resolve to get 8-9 hours of sleep each night, avoid caffeine after your morning cup, and keep a regular sleep routine.  You’ll feel better and have the energy you need to maintain a healthier lifestyle.
8. Age:  Nothing you can change about this one!  Just hope as you age, you have followed the previous suggestions and you look like you have beaten the clock!
9. Pollutants:  The air we breathe is increasingly getting dirtier and more harmful.  All the pollutants, exhaust, smoke, etc in the air doesn’t make for a healthy environment.  There isn’t much we can do personally, since we aren’t going to walk around with a mask over our nose and mouth; but we do need to be aware of the harm it causes.  Busier cities and more traffic cause exposure to more air pollutants, which in turn, cause you to inhale more damaging toxins, causing more free radical movement and development in the body.  Less trees around to clean the air leaves smog.  Little house on the prairie isn’t an option, right?  So, not much you can do, except move! 

Chronological aging is inevitable, but being aware of the culprits of premature aging is the key to winning the war.  Take care to surround yourself with an anti-aging environment, and practice an anti-aging lifestyle.  You’ll be so thankful you did!

Julie Riggs MED RD LD

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High Fiber Breakfast

Breakfast can be a low-fiber, high-fat nightmare of a mealtime if you don’t make a conscious effort to add healthy foods. You don’t have to forgo eggs, cheese, bacon or sausage, but you do need to get creative and colorful to balance out the fat and calories. I’m talking about adding bright, fresh fruits, crunchy nuts and fiberous cereals to your normal regime. Watching portion size is key when eating typical breakfast foods like omelettes, biscuits and gravy, etc. These foods aren’t bad, but they can be if you lack variety and consume too much at once. Just scale way back, don’t eliminate completely. You have to make sure you add fruits and fiber to your breakfast (they are kind of one in the same). This will not only add vitamins and minerals, and phytochemicals (cancer fighters), but it will also help to fill you up, so you don’t overeat the high-fat stuff. Try adding blackberries, raspberries, cantaloupe, strawberries, blueberries, and grapes to low-fat plain yogurt. Make it crunchy by adding granola, wheat germ, or walnuts to the mix. If this is part of mealtime, you won’t have room for a big fat cheesy omelette or greasy strips of bacon. You will also have a gorgeous parfait with all the colors of the rainbow that stimulates all your taste buds! What more could you want? The fruit has tons of fiber, powerful antioxidants to fight cancer, and tastes sweet for your sweet tooth, yet not adding to the high cholesterol or spare tire you may be battling. The granola, wheat germ and nuts contribute by adding fiber and “good” fat for the heart and cellular health. So, in conclusion, you don’t have to give up your normal breakfast, just add to it for continued health and well-being. See the press release from WebMD.com I posted in The News Desk section titled, “Skip Breakfast, Get Fat”.

Julie Riggs, MED RD LD

Can you see yourself looking and feeling better?  The energy and vitality you felt as a younger person is not lost.  Simply log on to www.everythingantiaging.com to see over 5000 products that will help you regain the youthful feeling and appearance you remember.

With all the hype surrounding various diets–some only carb, some only protein, some no protein all vegetarian, low carb, no fat, etc.—all I can think is why not just balanced and healthy?  No one wants to hear there’s no quick fix, no gimmick, and no special combination of foods out there to help them.  And to eliminate protein, or not consume enough protein, is down right stupid. 

Some people think protein has too much fat, or it is hard on the liver, or the body doesn’t really need that much protein for daily maintenance, repair and growth.  They are completely wrong.

Protein is the building block of the body’s tissues and is responsible for their maintenance and repair.  It builds muscle, which keeps us strong and lean, and protects us from injury.  Protein can be very low in fat, very healthy, and very tasty.  It comes from animal sources as well as plant sources, for the vegetarians.  The body would suffer immensely without enough protein. 

Recently, I was checking out some new releases on the US Department of Health and Human Services NIH (National Institutes of Health) News website, and I discovered that key proteins are even responsible for ovulation.  This is huge for those who are having fertility problems, as well as, those who want to maybe use the info for birth control.  WOW! 

Also, recommended daily intakes surprised me too.  Pregnant women, as well as those lactating, are on the top of the list when it comes to protein need daily.  It is almost astonishing how much more protein they need when compared to men.  The overall health of the fetus and the mother is dependent on adequate protein for so many things.  Just think, she is building a human being inside her….lots of maintenance, repair and growth there!

Protein is by far the most important of the nutrients we need to make sure we consume daily.  Carbs, fat, vitamins, minerals, fiber; they are all important, but protein is number one.  Not too much, but balanced and healthy is the trick.  Check out some sample diets in other blogs I’ve written.

Julie Riggs MED RD LD

Can you see yourself looking and feeling better?  The energy and vitality you felt as a younger person is not lost.  Simply log on to www.everythingantiaging.com to see over 5000 products to help you regain the youthful feeling and appearance you remember.

Ingredients

Orange and Olive Tilapia with Broccolini

1 orange
4 tilapia fillets (about 5 ounces each), skinned
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 medium tomato, cut into 8 slices
4 fresh herb sprigs, such as sage, thyme, or parsley
8 Kalamata olives, pitted and thinly sliced lengthwise
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 small onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 pound bunch broccolini, stems trimmed

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 475*F. Place oven rack on the middle shelf. Cut four sheets of foil, each measuring 12″ x 17″. Fold each in half crosswise, then open and lay flat.

2.  Zest orange with a vegetable peeler. Then juice the orange and set aside.

3.  Place one fillet next to the crease on each sheet. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of the salt over all four fillets. Top each fillet with 2 tomato slices, an herb sprig, one quarter of the olive slices, the red pepper flakes, and two strips of zest. Fold foil and seal edges.

4.  Heat a large baking sheet in the oven for 5 minutes. Put foil packets on baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove, unwrap packets, and transfer fish fillets to plates.

5.  Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat while foil packets cook. Toss in onions and garlic and cook 5 minutes, stirring. Add broccolini, orange juice, 1/4 cup of water, and the rest of the salt. Raise heat to high; cover and cook for 4 minutes. Remove cover, toss, and cook another 4 minutes, or until just tender. Serve alongside fish.

Staff – www.everythingantiaging.com

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Miracle Reds Superfood

This nutrient-complete, herbal health food supplement consists of a base of certified organic barley greens, proven to be the most effective and least allergenic of all greens.  It then combines the powders of carrot and beet juice, cactus, watercress, red raspberry, and spirulina, just to name a few; along with non-dairy probiotic cultures to aid in digestive health.  Then, just to add more fuel to the fire, apple pectin, apple fiber, flax seed meal, etc, etc; not to mention vitamin C, iron, calcium, vitamin E, and mega doses of an antioxidant proprietary blend, including acai, green tea and acerola berry juice powder, are also added to make this one of the most radical and nutrient dense anti-aging supplements out there.  The Miracle Reds supplement has such accelerated antioxidant power, that just one small tablespoon is concentrated enough to:

• Support healthy cell activity
• Fight free radical damage
• Fight the signs of aging
• Maintain healthy cholesterol levels
• Promote cardiovascular health
• Boost energy and sustain energy

One key ingredient in the antioxidant proprietary blend is the acai.  This mega-powerful antioxidant has been given the credit for being one of the most intense, concentrated forms of an antioxidant for it’s size discovered up to now.  It is very similar to a blueberry in size, color, and taste; but in benefit, it compares to no other.  Some of the main benefits of this miracle berry are:

• Increases energy levels
• Improves digestive function
• Improves mental clarity/focus
• Helps regulate sleep patterns
• Powerful free radical fighter
• Cleanses and Detoxifies the body 
• Boosts immune system
• Enhances sexual desire and performance
• Slows the aging process
• Promotes healthier and younger-looking skin
• Helps regulates cholesterol levels
• Helps maintain healthy heart function
• Minimizes inflammation
• Improves circulation 
• Supports weight loss

The raw food craze ain’t no joke!  Fresh, ripe, organic, nutrient rich veggies–there’s nothing better for your body.  Miracle Reds is the answer to the veggie hater’s dreams.  Getting any, let alone enough, of the fruits and veggies recommended is not only a chore, but it can be torture.  This great tasting, easy to mix alternative superfood is pure, potent, highly bioavailable, and exploding with nutrients your body is craving…..why wouldn’t you quench your need?

Julie Riggs, MED RD LD

Get your Miracle Reds at www.everythingantiaging.com and see what all the buzz is about!  Or just call 800-244-4116 to place your order.  Isn’t it time you gave your body the nutrients it craves? 

Answer:

There is no scientific evidence that a Vitamin C overdose is harmful, let alone, very possible.  In 2000, the RDA set an upper intake level (UL) of 2000 mg a day, suggesting that this amount or less could be ingested without seeing side effects.  Even when side effects were seen, they were mild, and included diarrhea and GI discomfort, subsiding when the dosage was reduced or temporarily discontinued.  The body doesn’t store vitamin C, it’s a water-soluble vitamin, and it discards anything it doesn’t need. The risk-benefit ratio of a high intake of Vitamin C is very heavily weighted on the benefit side.  You should do your best to get lots of vitamin C daily; I’m not real worried anyone is going to overdose!

Julie Riggs, MED RD LD

Do you have a plan for your health?  Let us help you.  Call 1-800-244-4116