The Biggest Loser’s host Allison Sweeny is definitely this year’s biggest gainer. The Days of Our Lives starlet is looking more radiant than ever since she’s expecting her second child this January.

She’s admitted her desire to get the pregnancy over and done with and who can blame her. Pregnancy is sometimes a tedious and painful process. Allison said that she’s been experiencing hormonally charged anger along with changes in her body. On the bright side, she’s said that she finds hilarious her recent craving: pickle juice combined with hot chocolate.

I’ve followed Allison Sweeny’s acting career on Days of Our Lives for years. I’ve seen the changes in her body throughout her mid-twenties and early-thirties and after her first pregnancy. Pregnancy is not an easy experience and affects every woman differently. Women want to give birth to a healthy baby so it’s essential they take care of their own health too. The development of the baby in the womb depends to a large extent on the diet of the mother. The expectant mother should ensure her diet satisfies the nutritional requirements of the baby.

Here are some nutrition tips to have a healthier pregnancy:

• You should try to consume as much vegetables and fruits as possible.
• Also consider sprouted pulses, all dark green veggies, peanuts and sesame because they contain high proportions of iron.
• You should also consider taking about two milligrams of sodium fluoride every day because it’s said to strengthen the teeth of the baby. You can also consume
• 
  fluorine in the form of salt, milk, carrots, apricots, beets, potatoes, spinach, cabbages, tomatoes, dates, eggs, meat and salt water fishes.
• Dark green veggies and seafood are great to consume because they contain iodine. The iodine helps prevent the essential nutrients present in the body of being expulsed through the urine.
• It’s recommended that expectant mothers take a folic acid supplement. Folic acid is included in any good quality brand of prenatal vitamins. Many women suffer folic acid deficiency, which can cause discomfort during pregnancy.
• You should consume unprocessed bread, cereals and grains to ensure that you get sufficient B-vitamins and dietary fiber to keep you regular.
• You should consume milk and dairy products to provide you with the calcium needed to build the baby’s bones and teeth. Dairy products are also said to contain protein and riboflavin. You can also try low-fat or skimmed milk, yoghurt, or cheese in case you’re scared to gain weight.
• Also eat lean meat, poultry, fish and eggs to provide you with protein, iron and vitamin B12 for a healthy blood supply and essential fatty acids (found in fish).

Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs health is under speculation after he canceled his annual Macworld speech. His scary skinny appearance left the audience worried when he hosted the launch of the new iPhone last summer. No-one really knows what’s happening with Steve’s health but fears are growing that his illness is worsening. Steve underwent surgery in 2004 to treat pancreatic cancer and since then he’s believed to have suffered complications, hence the gaunt appearance. It seems like a very unstable time in the Apple Empire. Steve Jobs resuscitated the company with his revolutionary ideas and products that have added up to $20 billion dollars to Apple’s market capitalization. What will Apple look like without Steve Jobs? Steve, a visionary, multi-millionaire, father and husband would have never imagined he would fall ill.

A cure for pancreatic cancer has not been found. It’s one of the most aggressive types of cancers and research says that 80% of all the people diagnosed die within one year. The American Cancer Society says that pancreatic cancer is now the fourth leading cause of cancer death among men and the fifth among women in the US. Research also shows that there’s a strong link between the bad foods we consume and pancreatic cancer development.

Here are some eating tips for pancreatic cancer patients:

• Consume fish and green tea on a regular basis. They’re said to fight against carcinogens.
• Consume fewer amounts of processed meats, like hot dogs and sausages. Research concluded that there’s a 67% increase in the risk of developing pancreatic cancer over those who do consume these types of foods. While it also said that eating pork and red meat increased the risk of pancreatic cancer by 50%. It’s the ingredients in meat, the use of sodium nitrates, which can lead to cancer. Sodium nitrates are said to increase the development of nitrosamines in the body that promote the growth of cancer cells, especially in the pancreas.
• Patients need easy to digest foods. It’s recommended that patients consume vegetabale soups, well-cooked pasta, rice, cream of wheat, cream of rice, oatmeal, Jell-O, and even frozen yogurt.
• Another food that is great for digestion is baby food. The deserts and cereals are gentle on the stomach.
• Avoid citrus fruits and juices like oranges and grapefruit. The increased stomach acid will cause nausea, heartburn, and acid indigestion. Also try to avoid tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, green peppers, cauliflower, broccoli, peas, which are also said to cause indigestion.
• Eat a low fat diet, however sometimes they say is good to consume oil or butter because is can help patients swallow more easily. This lubrication also aids your digestion.
• Avoid seeds and nuts because they can cause stomach discomfort.
• Also avoid fast foods, like hamburgers and fries, pizza, and other deep fried foods.

It’s better to follow a very soft diet in texture and keep away from processed foods. Please note that you should consult with your doctor about your diet before following these tips.

Tonight is the elimination night on the Biggest Loser. Only two will survive and in two weeks we find out who wins the competition. The show will open with a recap of Renee’s emotional elimination last week. The winner of today’s competition will receive the “The Biggest Loser Meal Plan” delivered to them daily everyday until the show is over.

This meal plan will clearly give one of the contestants a greater chance to lose more weight. The competition has been hard and the contestants many times act frustrated and emotional when they can’t reach their goals. They sometimes get yelled at or get into fights with the show’s personal trainers, or start ranting about their cravings for fast food. Their scenes are funny to watch and at the same time quite heartbreaking. The meal plan will be revealed tonight and viewers will have their pens and papers ready in front of the TV.

If you’re overweight or want to shed some pounds you can create your own Biggest Loser Meal Plan experience. Just make sure you follow these tips to make the Biggest Loser Meal Plan work for you:

Follow the Biggest Loser six meals a day plan- Research shows that people who eat infrequently (only three times a day) may be training their bodies to get by on less energy and burn less fat during the day. Instead, researchers advise to eat frequently and about every three hours to accelerate your metabolism and maintain steady energy levels throughout the day. Folks, you might have to start carrying your tupperware everywhere you go.

Combine protein with low-carbs- Research also shows that our bodies work better with a balance of carbohydrates and protein. Eating protein is essential for building healthy muscles and maintaining a strong immune system, it also stabilizes insulin levels, which give you substantial amount of energy throughout the day.

Go small on the portions- Employ a common sense approach, such as using the palm of your hand or a small cup to measure your food intake. If you eat big portions, there’s no point of eating six meals a day.

Exchange some ingredients- If the Biggest Loser Meal Plan has an ingredient you don’t like it’s a good idea to swap it for something you fancy and of similar caloric value.

Tupperware, Tupperware- Get plastic containers to store your food and take it wherever you go. This will come in handy when you start developing cravings, and you won’t have to worry because you have snacks waiting for you.

The United Health Foundation ranked the unhealthiest states in America this week. It was not a surprise that Tennesse was the state with the highest records of obesity, followed by Louisiana, Mississippi and South Carolina. Tennesse tops the list for a fifth consecutive year.

Meanwhile, Vermont ranked the healthiest state in America. So, what is Vermont doing right? Research shows they’re eating healthy, exercising more and smoking less.The studies of the United Health Foundation were based on factors including smoking, obesity, high school graduation rates and the environment. The unhealthiest states had a high record of smoking, drinking alcohol, lack of exercise and fast food consumption. The Tennessean newspaper interviewed the chief medical officer, Veronica Gunn of the Department of Health in Tennesse about the conclusion of the studies, she said that her department’s efforts to promote a healthy lifestyle are having a positive impact on Tennesseans. She also said that improving the state’s health status takes time. The question is, how long is one willing to wait?

If you live in one of these states and you feel unhealthy, you have the power to change your lifestyle. Maybe your state wasn’t voted as unhealthy, but you want to improve your eating habits and abandon a sedentary lifestyle? If so, that’s great news! Here are some tips to get you healthy:

1. Eating Healthy

• Research shows that many illnesses like diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure and cholesterol can be prevented or controlled by eating right.
• Make sure you’re getting the right nutrients such as calcium and iron in your weekly diet.
• Try to eat dark-green leafy and deep-yellow vegetables.
• Include citrus fruits or juices in your weekly diet. Melons and berries are also rich in antioxidants.
• Eat twice a week any kind of beans such as, dry beans, red beans, navy beans, soybeans, lentils, or chickpeas.
• Eat whole grains, such as wheat, rice, oats, corn, and barley. Also eat whole grain breads and cereals.
• Eat foods low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol, especially fish, poultry, nuts and low-fat dairy products.
• Alcohol has a lot of calories and research has found that drinking in excess is linked to stress, heart disease and cancer. Avoid alcohol if possible.
• Smoking is also linked to the development of heart disease and cancer. It should be avoided.

2. Exercise and Fitness

• Research shows that regular exercise can help prevent diseases such as: heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, osteoporosis, and mental disorders.
• Research also shows that a total of 30 minutes of constant physical activity like power walking, swimming or jogging most days of the week is beneficial to lose or mantain a healthy weight. It also helps avoid illnesses.
• If you don’t have 30 minutes a day for some type of exercise, try doing it at least 3 times a week.
• Remember to choose a physical activity that fits into your daily life like walking, gardening, or even washing your car or house windows. If you have more time, try dancing or swimming.
• If you need motivation for exercising, ask a friend to join you or try group fitness classes.

The month of November is to celebrate all things fabulous that happened throughout the year. Thanksgiving is one of them, as well as the Christmas work parties. In this festive season, turkey becomes the symbol of celebration, family and friend gatherings. Many people I know don’t like the taste of turkey and in some reunions it’s replaced by pork. How sad! People are not aware of the wonderful nutritional value of turkey meat and it should be eaten all year round! You can enjoy the popularity of turkey in easy to prepare varieties, like breast pieces, tenderloins, cutlets and ground turkey. You don’t need to cook the whole turkey in the oven, leave it for a fancy occasion or a season celebration. Try to fit turkey into your diet and you’ll see the health benefits.
Health Benefits of Turkey:

• Turkey is a good source of protein. For example, a four ounce serving provides 66.1% of the daily value for protein.
• Turkey has an 11.9% of the daily value for saturated fat, around half the amount of saturated fat found in red meat.
• Turkey has a good source of the mineral selenium which is said to help prevent cancer.
• Just four ounces of turkey provide 47.1% of the daily value for selenium.
• Turkey is a good source of another cancer-fight nutrient- vitamin B and niacin.
• A 5-ounce serving of turkey provides almost half of the recommended daily intake of folic acid, and is a good source of zinc and potassium. These nutrients are said to keep blood cholesterol down, and protect against cardiovascular disease
• The vitamins and minerals in turkey aid the nervous and immune system.
• Some people may find it harder than others to consume turkey meat. The usual comments that are always floating around about this meat are for example: “it has no flavor”; “it’s dry”; “it’s so hideous to prepare”; or “I only find it tasty when the whole turkey is cooked in the oven”.
• There are many silly reasons to not prepare this meat, but give it a go! It has great nutritional value and when prepared well, it’s delicious!

 A turkey apple sandwich for breakfast, lunch or afternoon tea. (Serves 2)

• 2 tsps.of  mayonaise dressing
• 2 tsps. of dijon mustard
• 4 slices of wholegrain bread 
• 6 slices of premium shaved smoked turkey breast
• 2 cheddar cheese slices
• 6 thin apple slices
• Put them all together, and serve with potato wedges or salad

I discovered the gluten free equivalent of cous cous last week at the supermarket. What is it? Quinoa.

Quinoa (pronounced ‘keen-wa’) is a South American whole grain about the same size, shape and color of cous cous. Quinoa has high protein content of 15% which is higher than meat. It’s also a good source of calcium, magnesium, iron and has a low glycaemic index (GI). It’s also gluten free and high in fiber (good for the bowel digestive system). It’s native to the upper Andes of Bolivia and Peru and has been cultivated by the Incas dating back to 6000 years. It was the sacred food of the Incas and they labeled it ‘mother of all grains’. To our luck we don’t have to go all the way to South America to eat quinoa dishes. Quinoa is now been cultivated and available in the States.

Here are some essential tips to enjoy quinoa in your daily life:

• You can use quinoa in soups, salads, stews, desserts, quiches and even as a breakfast substitute for oats.
• You can use quinoa as a substitute for grains like cous cous.
• Quinoa will approximately triple in size when you cook it, this way more quinoa for the family to enjoy.
• Toast the dry quinoa in a dry frying pan on low heat for about 5 minutes while stirring to get a nuttier taste.
• Unlike other grains, quinoa is easy to digest.
• Quinoa also provides starch, sugars, minerals, and vitamins.
• A whole-grain dish of quinoa takes just 15 minutes and 25 if you add some protein meat.

Here is a traditional quinoa recipe:

INCA QUINOA PILAF

1/2 cup of diced carrot
1/2 cup of diced Spanish onion
1/4 cup of diced celery
1/4 cup of diced green pepper
5 cups of cooked quinoa
1 cup of sliced almonds
1/4 cup of diced sweet red pepper
1/4 tsp oregano
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
 Salt to taste Directions:

Stir fry the vegetables in olive oil until crisp. Add the oregano and cooked hot quinoa. Add salt to taste. Toast almonds in heavy skillet until lightly golden. Add almonds and mix and serve hot.

There are many ways to pack in healthy and natural foods into this Thanksgiving season. A sweet potato can be the answer. The sweet potato is a tuberous root vegetable belonging to the family of plants of the morning glory, and native to Central America. Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of vitamin A, potassium, vitamin C, B6, riboflavin, copper, pantothetic acid and folic acid.

The sweet potato is high in dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars and complex carbohydrates. You can add more nutrition value to your Thanksgiving dinner by adding a sweet potato recipe or have as side dish. Yum! They can even be used for dessert. The sweet potato is popular even in the famous sugarbusters diet as they’re a great substitute for other foods high in sugar and carbohydrates such as rice, pasta and corn. It’s also good in beta-carotene.

Add some sweetness with a dessert this Thanksgiving: Sweet Potato Pudding:

Recipe:

• 1 (29 ounce) can sweet potatoes
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 220 g packed brown sugar
• 250 ml milk
• 55 g melted butter
• 15 ml lemon juice
• 0.4 g ground ginger
• 0.5 g ground cloves
• 1 g ground cinnamon
• 2 g salt

Directions:

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 1 1/2 quart baking dish.

2. Combine sweet potatoes and eggs in a medium bowl. Beat in the brown sugar, milk, butter, lemon juice, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, salt. Pour into prepared dish.

3. Bake in preheated oven until hot and golden brown on top, about 30 minutes.

As a frequent flyer, I always arrive back home with some sort of illness. Whether it’s a mild cold, a tummy ache or a bad throat, you are sure to come back with slight plane or jet lag discomfort. Sometimes things can get a bit tougher, like severe colds, migraines, food poisoning or heart condition problems.

Actress Winona Ryder was briefly hospitalized after falling ill on a flight to London’s Heathrow Airport last Wednesday. Regardless of Winona Ryder’s illness was there before or after she got on the plane, anyone can be subject to various type of diseases. People in planes are sneezing, coughing, wiping their noses and touching things in the same spots as you. These human fumes are circulated and suppressed in the plane.  

Tips to prevent catching germs when you’re up in the air:

• Ask your doctor about ingesting some form of vitamin C and other antioxidants, Zinc lozenges or Selenium tablets. You can even try protecting the immune system with herbal Echinacea.
• Drink lots of water, herbal teas and juice. Turn down the less dehydrating coffee, soda/fizzy drinks and alcohol. Cabin air dries out crucial protective sinuses leaving travelers more vulnerable to microbial infection. Steam from hot beverages will help keep mucous membranes moist. Try to consume the more liquids you can handle. Tip: Be sure to get an aisle seat.
• Get a flu shot, or opt for nasal sprays and other new anti-virals in the market.
• Try not to fly during high flu seasons or when the news is reporting an outbreak, especially to the most popular travel destinations.
• Feel confident in wearing a face filter mask. This would work if people had the nerve to wear them up in the air.
• Surgical gloves might be less obvious than a facial mask. It will keep you from touching things and wiping your face.
• Try not to touch anything with your hands. Avoid shaking hands with new friends. Avoid opening the overhead compartment or toilet handles with your bare hands - use your sleeve or a bandana/hanky. If you do have to touch something remember to wash your hands thoroughly before touching your face or eating.
• If you cannot wash your hands, carry and use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
• Use a travel sized container of a germ killing mouthwash..
• Use germ wipes to clean surfaces like arm rests, tray tables, seat belt buckles, vent controls and other direct contact surfaces.
• Try not to talk to too many passengers in general. People can be contagious with something and not even show signs of illness.
• Insist in moving your seat if passengers are sneezing, coughing or exhibiting obvious signs of flu or cold illness.

The recent findings on the side effects of endometriosis are good to know.  Doctors in the UK have found women with endometriosis are at increased risk of also having irritable bowel syndrome or pelvic inflammatory disease.

Endometriosis is a painful condition that affects women during their reproductive years. It’s caused by the growth of the tissue lining the uterus in other parts of the abdomen, outside of the uterus, such as the ovaries.

The researchers identified the relationship between endometriosis and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). They in identified 5,540 women aged 15 to 55 years who were diagnosed with endometriosis and (IBS) and (PID).

Women with endometriosis were at a significantly greater risk of having pelvic inflammatory disease before and after the date of the endometriosis diagnosis. While, a diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome was more likely before and after a diagnosis of endometriosis than among condition controls.

Sometimes, endometriosis symptoms are not visible. Women who have this problem might not realize until the late stages of growth. In the early stages women believe that it is normal bodily changes that occur during menstrual cycles. The symptoms are pain during the menstrual cycle, which will steadily become worse over the next months, lower back pain, fatigue, constipation and diaorrhea, irregular and heavy menstrual cycles, pain during intercourse, chronic pelvic pain during the month. Some women are detected endometriosis only when they are experiencing other health problems such as, ectopic pregnancy, ovarian cysts, ovarian cancer, colon cancer, pelvic inflammatory disease, irritable bowel syndrome, fibroid tumors, and appendicitis.

There are millions of women today who experience endometriosis without knowing until the late stages in the disease. It’s important to ask your health practitioner to examine you on any pain and discomfort you experience during your menstrual cycle.

Be concerned for your wellbeing if you do not consume pumpkin. Take advantage of the Halloween fiesta and ‘pumpkin’ yourself up.  Why? The most important fact about pumpkins is that they’re a low-fat, it’s a low-sodium vegetable and an ancient health power food.

There’s more to carving up pumpkins this halloween for your party or children. The Halloween jack-o’-lantern carving signature is a practice since the 1830’s.

Try pumpkins in all its varieties for example, pumpkin soup, pumpkin salad, pumpkim gnocci, pumpkin risotto, pumpkin cous- cous among other many great recipes. Remember, one cup of cooked pumpkin has 564 mg of potassium, 2650 IU of vitamin A and ONLY 75 calories.

It’s orange color symbolizes it contains the beta carotene, a powerful antioxidant. Adding beta carotene to your diet could reduce your risk of developing certain types of cancer such as prostate and bowel cancer and protects you against heart disease.

Pumpkin is the ‘Halloween decoration signature’, as well as a tasty ingredient in pies, muffins, cakes and even Starbucks lattes.

The pumpkin flesh is mild and sweet with small pumpkins able to be refrigerated uncut for up to three months. Pumpkins are a great source of vitamins and minerals  as well as other antioxidants such as potassium, calcium, fibre, and iron. So this year don’t throw the Halloween jack-o’-lantern away, get into your dinner table.