Santa Goes Low Carb!

North Pole- The word is out! Due to an "unpublished dilemma" last Christmas Eve Santa has gone Low Carb!

Sources reveal that Santa was stuck in a chimney somewhere in California for over an hour last Christmas Eve - how embarrassing! The incident certainly wreaked havoc with his jolly schedule for the most important night of the year. In the aftermath, it caused Santa to really stop and think.

After careful consideration - Santa and Mrs. Claus decided they could not risk a repeat of the incident, but more importantly the risk factors associated with Santa's health - oh my! Right after the holidays, Santa visited his primary care physician for a complete physical. A "new lifestyle" was decided upon - It's the "Low Carb Lifestyle" for Santa!

Santa has Changed His Mind - Changed His Heart - and is Losing Weight for Life! Will this make Santa "less jolly"? Absolutely not! Fat is not what makes Santa jolly! His weight goals are not to be a skinny "Twiggy Santa" but rather a "healthy weight Santa" with less inches (for some VERY obvious reasons). The keyword here though for Santa is: HEALTH!

Our sources tell us that Santa has more energy than ever, his creativity and staying power seem to be at an all time high! He has hired more elves this season just to keep up with him! The jolly fellow is even less stressed this season.

The absence of stress seems to be relative to the fact that his chances of losing his jolly lifestyle to diabetes, heart disease and obesity have been considerably reduced by his new choice of a healthy eating lifestyle! Santa has serious work to do and HEALTH has become his priority!

In fact, our elf resource reported that we are going to see a big shift in "stocking stuffers" this Christmas. Huge orders are being received and warehoused at the North Pole for "sugar free" candies and low carb treats! Santa's sleigh is going to look like a "sugar free zone" this year!

With Christmas quickly approaching, as Santa's inches have dropped away, the "sewing elves" are working round the clock in altering Santa's RED wardrobe!

So this Christmas watch for an even "more jolly" Santa and just a "little less" of him but a much healthier and happier Santa 'cause he's gone Low Carb!

And..."Laying his finger aside of his nose and giving a nod, up the chimney he [easily] rose!

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle, And away they all flew like the down of a thistle. But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,"HAPPY [LOW CARB] CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD-NIGHT!"



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Health is Not What You Think

What is health?

Everyone wants this thing called health, and yet most people have never thought about what their “target of health” actually looks like. If you and your family were healthy, what would it be like?

It is like this: Imagine you are shooting a bow and arrow at a definite target and you have no idea what the target is. What do you think the chances are that you will hit the target? Not very good. Knowing what the target is dramatically increases the chances of you hitting the target. Everyone usually has some definition of health but that is kind of like saying the target is round. A definition doesn’t help much.

What would you feel like, what would your kids do, and what would life look like? Get a clear target of what you being healthy would actually be like. Instead of just shooting for some ambiguous non-defined target, figure out your target. How much energy will you have, what will happen to your symptoms and disease, and how else will you be free? Simply knowing your target dramatically increases the odds of you hitting it.

When you actually know what your target is, how do you get it?

Nature works mostly on the principle of thing and no thing. Light is the thing and darkness is the absence of light. Sound is the thing and silence is the absence of sound. Health is the thing, and symptoms and disease are the absence of health. But some time back they got mixed up. Somehow symptoms and disease became the thing, and once you treated away the symptoms and disease, you would be left with health. And yet most people know that health is more than the absence of symptoms and disease. So what does this mean? It means you have to do something other than treat symptoms and disease to be healthy.

Let me show you why. If there are shadows or darkness in a room, the only way to get light in the room is by turning on the light. No matter how many ways you can measure and quantify shadows, you cannot sweep them under a rug, cut them out of the room, or invent some chemical to get rid of the shadow. The only thing you can do is turn on the light.

Health is the thing. And no matter how many ways you can measure and quantify symptoms and disease, the only way to be healthy is to add to your health.

So what adds health into your life? I have boiled it down to 7 simple things.

Listening to your inner knowing – that gut feeling, instinctual response type knowing everyone has – listen to it.
Rest – and not just sleeping, actually resting, which can be sleep.
Breathing Fresh Air – breathe in fresh air deeply and fully every day.
Food and Water – everyone is different, make sure whatever you choose to eat or drink is fresh and pure. No one diet is right for every one.
Sunlight – get healthy amounts of it.
Activity – both physical and mental activity. The best form of activity is the one you will actually do. It doesn’t have to be the same thing every day.
Consciousness – being conscious or aware as you are doing all of the above and living your life.
And the greatest part about all of this is that 1+1+1 = 9. It is not linear. Each thing you do and every time you do it exponentially adds to the others, adds to your health.

Get your target and add to your health. Simple.




The Freedom to do everything you love is what Dr. Jamie wants to help give you. He is also giving you dozens of valuable free gifts to “ethically bribe” you into helping him make his new book, “The Creator’s Manual for Your Body” a #1 best seller. This extraordinary life creating book is a complete and extremely simple guide to gaining your freedom from the limitations and constraints shackled to you by your body. For details go to: <a href="http://www.TheCreatorsManual.com/free" target=new>http://www.TheCreatorsManual.com/free</a>. Published at: <a href='http://www.freecontentarticles.com'>http://www.freecontentarticles.com</a>

A 30% Chance That Statistics Never Lie

Have you ever noticed how much our world runs on statistics? That's because statistics never lie. Here are a few very alarming statistics.

Almost half of the world's population earns a below-average income.

This totally shocked me. I was under the impression that almost half of the world's population earns an above-average income. But then I discovered it is the reverse. I phoned my Uncle Gyula.

"Almost half the world's population earns a below-average income."

Uncle Gyula was dumbfounded, "So?"

"Well, I want to make sure that nobody has a below-average income."

At a loss for words, my Uncle advised, "It won't happen until everybody has an above-average IQ." That made sense. "Right now," Uncle Gyula continued, "Almost half the world has a below-average IQ, and statistics never lie." I was floored. I did not realize we had such an IQ scarcity on our hands. But I was sure it is in some way related to another shocking statistic:

If current trends continue, by 2017 every child born will be illiterate.

I, myself, had recently sired two illiterate children. As discouraging as this was, I was determined that they should live a normal life and overcome this menacing handicap. Discovering the link between below-average IQ and below-average incomes, I am now more determined than ever to overcome our children's infant illiteracy.

I asked Uncle Gyula about another shocking statistic I had read:

At least 97.3 percent of people are at risk of getting cancer.

I was particularly worried about this statistic because I did not know if I was one of the 97.3.

"I think you are," Uncle Gyula suggested. "Most people are, you know."

My uncle's comment worried me even more. It was scary enough that 97.3 percent of people are at risk of getting cancer, but it was even scarier to discover that most people fall into that 97.3 percent.

Uncle Gyula tried to calm my fears, "I have another statistic that should make you feel much better. The majority of people at risk will survive, and statistics never lie."

That WAS reassuring. But it did not ease my mind about another ominous statistic I had read:

By 2050, at current mortality rates, two out of every three people will be dead.

This was worrisome because I suspected that I might be among the two-out-of-three people.

Uncle Gyula tried to reassure me once more, "This is excellent news, because you can't get cancer when you are dead."

Sa-ay. That is good news. And Uncle Gyula was right. In fact, cancer rates in cemeteries remain at historic lows. And statistics never lie.

I recently bought a "home statistics calculator" on sale at Krispy Kreme. This will be fun. Let's say I want to find out what is the likelihood of starving to death. Let's see...I last ate about an hour and a half ago. OK, I'll just push this button...and here comes the results:

Based on your caloric intake of the previous hour, you are likely to starve to death in just 30 days." That terrified me. I am going to starve to death in just 30 days. What can I do to stave off starvation?

Wait. There's more: "Immediate intervention can avert statistical starvation. Go directly to Krispy Kreme. Eat a dozen donuts every day, and you will reduce the risk of starvation by at least 69.3 percent.

This seems like great advice. Hmm, I wonder what Uncle Gyula would say about this.

"Actually, if you eat a dozen donuts every day, you decrease your chances of starving within 30 days to almost zero. And, due to increased risk of a heart attack, your new projected lifespan is...37 years old."

"But I'm already 41," I protested.

Uncle Gyula pondered the statistics. "It seems to me that starvation is your best bet, after all. And statistics never lie."




David Leonhardt publishes The Happy Guy humor column:<a href="http://www.thehappyguy.com/positive-thinking-free-ezine.html" target=new>http://www.thehappyguy.com/positive-thinking-free-ezine.html</a> Read more articles on humor:<a href="http://www.thehappyguy.com/humor-articles.html" target=new>http://www.thehappyguy.com/humor-articles.html</a>Or on personal growth and self-actualization<a href="http://www.thehappyguy.com/self-actualization-articles.html" target=new>http://www.thehappyguy.com/self-actualization-articles.html</a>Get your liquid vitamins:<a href="http://www.vitamin-supplements-store.net" target=new>http://www.vitamin-supplements-store.net</a><a href="mailto:Info@thehappyguy.com">Info@thehappyguy.com</a> Published at: <a href='http://www.freecontentarticles.com'>http://www.freecontentarticles.com</a>

Healthy Eating On A Low Budget

Healthy Eating On A Low Budget

People often say that healthy eating is expensive if you're on a low income. In fact, healthy eating is very affordable, for the simple reason that the most nutritionally lacking foods have usually undergone the most processing. You have to pay for the processing and for the elaborate and unnecessary packaging that often goes with it.

 On the other hand, the healthiest foods tend to be in their natural state: fresh fruit and vegetables, raw salads, beans, lentils, nuts, sunflower seeds, oats, brown rice, olive oil, natural yoghurt and fish. They are all cheap, but you do have to know how to prepare and cook them. Sadly, fewer and fewer people these days are brought up knowing how to cook. Hopefully this article will not only help inspire you to eat healthier foods but also give you some tips for preparing simple, healthy meals.

The principles of healthy eating 

If you make sure that at least 90 per cent of your daily food intake consists of the ingredients listed above, you will have a good chance of not developing the diseases that plague most people in later life and destroy the quality of their life. The remaining 10 per cent of your diet can consist of anything you like, so there is plenty of scope to have treats every day.

Foods to beware of 

The more fat, sugar and white flour a food contains, the more unhealthy it becomes. Some examples are sausages, burgers, deep-fried food, crispy coatings on fried food, ice cream, sweets, candy, chocolate, doughnuts, croissants, cakes, cookies, biscuits, white bread, crispy snacks in packets, packet soups and packet dessert mixes. You don't need to stop eating these foods completely, but everybody needs to control them so that they form no more than 10 per cent of your daily diet (measured in calories).

Cooking methods are important 

Steaming, or stir-frying or braising vegetables with a tablespoon of olive oil is a good way of preserving nutrients, but boiling causes heavy vitamin losses if the water is thrown away. Deep-frying is not recommended. Deep-fried food absorbs excessive quantities of oil or fat.

More tips

 Artificial food additives are usually not tested by independent laboratories and very little is known about their effects in combination. Singly they have caused health problems in many people, particularly children.

It is advisable to keep alcohol consumption down to no more than two glasses a week on average.

Try to keep all salt consumption down, and use low sodium salt products instead of ordinary salt. By increasing water retention in the body, salt can raise your blood pressure.

Since grains are very small, they can absorb more pesticide than other foods. So if you are limited in what organic produce you can afford, put wholewheat bread, rice and porridge at the top of the list.


Saving money

Following a few simple rules can save you cash on food, while doing the most for your health.

Buy foods in their natural state (e.g. fresh potatoes instead of ready-made potato products). Don't buy ready meals, pizzas, pies etc, or else save them for special occasions.

Save meat (if you eat it) for occasional use. Cheap meat is usually full of hidden fat. Fish and chicken are better value. Beans, lentils, dried peas and chick peas (garbanzo beans) are cheap vegetable sources of protein and if you eat them with rice and a few nuts or ground up sunflower seeds they are as good as animal protein.

Shop around. Fresh fruit and vegetables are cheaper from market stalls and greengrocers. Pulses (legumes), oats and brown rice may be cheaper from a wholefood store, while eggs, cheese, butter and wholewheat bread are generally cheaper in large supermarkets.

Don't waste food. Fish bones, vegetable peelings and chicken carcasses can be boiled to make fabulous tasty broths and soups.

Learning to cook will save you the most money. Making your own pies may be hard if you're short of time, but with a bit of organizing it isn't hard to put a healthy meal together in 30 minutes. If you can find some of his videos on YouTube, Jamie Oliver shows you how. There are also some quick and simple suggestions below.

Breakfast

Winter: Make porridge by boiling oatflakes with water or milk and a handful of sunflower seeds or chopped almonds (the protein in these will help to keep you going until lunchtime). Add a teaspoon of chopped dates to sweeten, or a little sugar.

Summer: Stewed apples and raisins or home-made granola with natural yoghurt, or cornflakes and fresh grapefruit. 

Lunch

Canned sardines, cold chicken or smoked mackerel, with green salad leaves, fresh tomatoes, chopped celery, grated raw carrot and wholewheat bread or baked potato or potato salad.

Lentil and onion soup with wholewheat bread.

Dinner

Grilled fish with mashed parsnips and braised vegetables;

Chunky vegetable soup of dried peas, potatoes, leeks and carrots, with mashed potatoes;

Pasta with lentil, tomato and mushroom sauce.

Desserts

Fresh fruit made into fruit salad or fruit jelly with gelatine and fresh orange juice, served with natural yoghurt.

Brown rice flakes made into rice pudding. Sweeten with chopped dates.

Home-made oat flapjacks with raisins and dates.

Snacks

Fruit. Bananas and oatcakes. Rye crackers, oatcakes or wholewheat toast with tahini (creamed sesame seeds) and a little sugar-free fruit spread. Fresh almonds or brazil nuts. A piece of fresh coconut. Home-made flapjacks. Preservative-free dried fruit. If you really crave chocolate, have a cup of home-made cocoa instead—or a wholewheat biscuit coated with plain chocolate.

Drinks

Instead of ordinary tea and coffee, try mint tea. It is cheap to buy and easy to grow in a garden or pot.

Also:

Rose hip tea or fennel tea

Chicory coffee (found in health food stores)

Home-made vegetable broth or miso (Japanese stock paste with meaty flavour—from health food stores or oriental stores) dissolved in hot water.

Pure fruit juice mixed with fizzy mineral water is as cheap as canned sodas.

Author :
Linda Lazarides is a natural health expert, naturopathic nutritionist, and author of eight books on health and nutrition.  Visit her website
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