Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Following The Food Pyramid To Diet Success


Following The Food Pyramid To Diet Success by Kadence_Buchanan

Many people think that a diet is a hard thing to assemble. What's right for some is not right for others, but to ensure that you are getting all the nutrition, vitamins and minerals that your body needs, while still keeping your caloric intake to a minimum, following the food pyramid can be a great first step in establishing your diet. In this article, we'll discuss the layers of the food pyramid and why they are important to your health.

Vegetables - vegetables are an important part of the diet that is often neglected. Vegetables often contain vitamins and minerals that are crucial to the proper functioning of the human body. For that reason, it is recommended that for those on a 1200 calorie per day diet, 3 servings of vegetables should be consumed.

For a 1600 calorie diet, 4 servings are recommended, and for a 2000 calorie diet, 5 servings should be consumed. A serving of vegetables consists of roughly one cup of mostly any vegetable, either raw or cooked. A cup of vegetable juice will also fulfill a serving, as will 2 cups of salad greens.

Fruits - fruits are the other entity in a diet that contains most of the vitamins and minerals your body needs. For a 1200 calorie diet, take 2 servings of fruits per day. For 1600 calorie diets, have 3 servings, and for a 2000 calorie per day diet, 4 servings of fruit are recommended. A cup of chopped fruit or a cup of fruit juice can fulfill one serving of fruit.

Grains - grains represent the base of the food pyramid and consequently one of the most important parts. Servings are measured in ounces, and 4 ounces are recommended for a 1200 calorie diet. 5 ounces should be consumed by those on a 1600 calorie diet, and 6 should be eaten by those on a 2000 calorie diet. A half cup of cooked rice, pasta or cereal count as an ounce of grain, as well as one slice of bread, a small muffin, and a cup of cereal.

Dairy - dairy is near the top of the pyramid, and is measured in cups. 2 cups fulfill the dietary needs of someone on a 1200 calorie per day budget, and 3 cups are recommended for both 1600 calorie diets and 2000 calorie diets. A cup of milk or yogurt satisfy a cup of dairy, as well as 1.5 ounces of natural cheese or 2 ounces of processed cheese, such as American cheese.

Fats/oils - The top of the pyramid, fats and oils should be used as sparingly as possible in your diet. The important thing to consider with fats and oils is to ensure that your total intake of calories from this type of food represents between twenty and thirty-five percent.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kadence_Buchanan

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits of Chocolates


Nutition Facts and HealthBenefits of Chocolates
By Natalie Aranda

Regardless the type of chocolates and how chocolates are baked or cooked, the ingredients and nutrition facts are similar to all chocolate food – fat, sugar, carbohydrates, dietary fibers, proteins, and calories. Chocolates are loved by people of all ages. Chocolate is generally fattening and sugar and fat content in chocolate usually have negative effects on health. Darker chocolate is healthy than light color of chocolate but even dark chocolate contains a lot of calories because of the large content of fat and sugar.

We all love chocolate though it’s not good to eat excessive chocolate candies for kids, adults or senior citizens. A little research into the notional value of chocolate brings some revelations over which candy lovers everywhere can rejoice - chocolate can be good for us, especially those that are sugar free and low in fat. Chocolate isn’t the healthiest food of course, it is sure the healthiest and widely-loved candy.

Chocolate candy, comparing with other types of candies, does not raise the bad cholesterol (LDL) as other saturated fats do. Chocolate candy does not contain as much caffeine as you might think either. An average serving of chocolate candy has far less caffeine than a cup of coffee. It also contains antioxidants.

The antioxidants found chocolate is the same as the ones found in a glass of red wine. Red wine is considered healthy beverage in any standards. For instance, Antioxidants improve our immune system for kids and help prevent stroke, heart disease and cancer for grownups.

Women have another reason to enjoy chocolate and red wines. Antioxidants could potentially slow down the aging process and make you look younger. A chocolate gift is loved for any occasions and by any person for many reasons – the feeling of melting of the brown pieces in the mouth, the reminding of being in love, and healthy benefits of looking younger.

Kids have another reason to enjoy chocolate too. Believe me or not chocolate is a rich source of phosphorus and magnesium too. Magnesium helps to maintain muscle and nerve function, is good for strong bones, and supports a healthy immune system and more. Phosphorus is important for bone and teeth formation in children and for works with calcium to keep bones strong and healthy for us throughout our lives. Kids like chocolate gifts for their birthday, Christmas or new year celebration.

Chocolates that are popularly available in the market are usually high in calories. Online chocolate shops or online candy stores offer more convenience for finding are sugar free chocolate that are low in calories. For instance, if you try “chocolate UK” in any major search engines, you’ll quickly locate a long list of websites that offer various chocolate. Chocolate delivery is as easy as shopping for chocolate gift online nowadays.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Natalie_Aranda

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