6 Question about Water Consumption

You can go without food for days, weeks and even months, but going without water for just one day can negatively impact your health.

The importance of  water in our daily life

We all lose water throughout the day—when we sweating, urinating, bowel movements even when we are breathing. If you live in a hot climate for example Malaysia, you lose even more. We need to replace this lost fluid to stay healthy. Water keeps every part of our body to work properly. It helps our body to flush wastes and to stay at the right temperature. It even helps to prevent kidney stones and constipation.

Replenish water after exercises

If you don't get enough water, you could become dehydrated. The more liquid in the body that is lost, the thicker the blood becomes and the harder the heart muscle must work to pump the blood through the circulatory system. When a person loses their abilities to reason and think straight because of dehydration it means they will die very soon, unless they drink water to rehydrate. Depending on the circumstances, mainly environment, a person can die within 24 to 28 hours after having no water if they are labouring under the hot dry sun with no water. This is very dangerous and can be fatal.

How much water do we need to drink every day?

A common recommendation is to drink at least 8 glasses of water every day. But some adults may need more or less, depending on how healthy they are, how much they exercise, and how hot and dry the climate is. For chronic kidney disease patient or having water retention problem please consult your doctor first.

Your choice of water?

You may sometimes need to drink more water than usual if you:

• Exercise intensely, especially in a hot climate.
• Are sick, such as with the flu, or have a health problem like a urinary tract infection.
• Are pregnant or breast-feeding.

When you are sick, you need more water

Drink only water to stay hydrated?

All liquids except alcohols help you stay hydrated. Water is usually the best choice, because it's free and with no added sugar or calories. But most healthy people can get enough fluid through the beverages they consume every day. These can include water, fruit juices, coffee, sodas, iced tea, and other drinks.

Experts say that it's not true that beverages that have caffeine—such as coffee, tea, and cola drinks—always dehydrate you. Healthy people who consume moderate amounts of caffeine don't lose more fluid than people who don't have any caffeine. A moderate amount of caffeine is about 200 to 300 milligrams a day. That's about two to four 8-ounce cups of coffee.

Good choice especially when serving cold

You also get water through food consumption. Some fruits and vegetables contain a lot of water, such as watermelon and lettuce.

How can you tell if you are drinking enough water?

The easiest way to know if you're drinking enough water is by looking at the colour of your urine. If you're drinking enough water, the colour of your urine should be clear or pale yellow. A darker yellow means you aren't drinking enough water.

Look at the colour of your urine

People who drink enough water also usually have soft bowel movements. Hard bowel movements or constipation can be signs that you aren't getting enough water.

If you have any health problems, always talk to your doctor before increasing the amount of water you drink. You may need to limit your fluids if you have certain health concerns, such as kidney problems or heart failure.

Having Too Much of Water?

It can be dangerous to drink too much water. But it's rare that anyone drinks too much water. The risk is highest for people who do endurance sports, such as running marathons.

Too much water is dangerous because it would dilute the amount of sodium in your body. This imbalance could cause serious problems, such as confusion, seizures, and coma.

Experts advise athletes who do intense activity to drink a sports drink that contains sodium, other electrolytes, and some sugar. Most people don't need sports drinks if they are exercising for less than an hour in moderate temperatures. Plain water is fine.

Good choice of drink after exercise

But experts do recommend sports drinks if you're playing sports or doing other intense physical activity for more than an hour.

What are some easy ways to get more water during the day?

• Drink a glass of water when you get up in the morning, before you have coffee or tea.
• Keep a cup or water bottle by your desk at work. Take several sips of water each hour. If you don't have a desk job, carry a container of water with you, and take sips throughout the day.
• Take a sip whenever you pass a drinking fountain.
• If you get tired of drinking plain water, add a packet of sugarless flavouring to your water. Or put a slice of lemon or lime in plain or sparkling water.

Replenish your body fluid

Is bottled water better than tap water?

No. A lot of plain bottled water is just tap water that has been purified. It's your choice how you want to drink water. If you like bubbly mineral water, drink that. If you like the idea of vitamins and electrolytes in your water, you can find several varieties of enhanced water at the store. If you don't like the taste of your tap water, or if you just want to be extra careful, you can purify tap water at home. Water filters are available in many stores.

For more health info and promotions, please follow us on Facebook- Wellness Lab

Download Wellness Lab Mobile App now for more promotions 

If you like this article, you can share this to your friends and families , together we share the health information and the taste of a healthy life!

Foods That Will Make You Stinks

You're sitting on a train that’s slightly warm, packed with passengers, and suddenly you get a whiff of "rotten egg" stench. 

Stop after stop, the crowd thins out, but that onerous odor remains. You search for the offender as subtly as you can, so you can find a seat in the opposite direction. As your head swivels, you’re hit with that stench again, so strong you could swear it was you. 

You nonchalantly dip your head down toward your underarm — wait a minute. It is you. But you didn't even work out today. And you took a shower this morning. And you’re wearing deodorant.

What you eat can directly affect how you smell, and in more ways than just your breath. Scientifically, this boils down to the way your body metabolizes the stinky sulfur compounds found in many foods like garlic, cumin, and asparagus. While smelling like garlic is not new (it is said to ward off both vampires and mosquitos), the stench of asparagus-tainted urine might not be quite as familiar and you may not have even realized that some of the foods on our list could have this effect on you.

Smell Bad

If you have a hot date, an interview, or plan to be out in public, you may want to keep these foods off the day’s menu. And if you can't, here are a few tricks to help deodorize nasty smells.

Red Meat

In 2006, researchers from the Czech Republic collected perspiration samples from meat-eating and vegetarian men. They then asked a group of women to identify the foulest odor, based on numerous factors. Overwhelmingly, the vegetarians’ body odor was found to be much more appealing than the meat-eaters’.

Deodorize: A simple way to remove potential stench is to cut out red meat all together. If a vegetarian's life is not for you, try cutting out some meat and replace it with seafood or veggie dinners.

Curry/Cumin

The taste of Tikka chicken may not be worth the lingering stench that comes with it. The aromas of spices such as curry and cumin can make a home for themselves in your pores, and stew for days at a time.

Deodorize: Even a brief brush with cumin can cause a lasting odor. Instead try cardamom, an aromatic seed of a plant from the ginger family, which permeates the body quickly and leaves a fresh aroma.

Garlic

Garlic stink oozes from your skin because allicin, within another sulfur compound called allin, is released when garlic is cut or crushed. Allicin breaks down quickly after consumption and converts to other substances, which cause bacteria to mix with sweat and results in a strong odor. 

However, it is said that if you are at dinner and both you and your date consume garlic, you’ll be less likely to notice it. (It’s up to you to take that risk.)

Deodorize: If your underarms become some serious stinkers, apply white or cider vinegar to keep you odor-free throughout the day.

Asparagus

The ripe smell of asparagus crops up in a seemingly harmless way, but tell that to the guy sharing five bathroom stalls with five other men. Asparagus makes urine stink when the sulfur compound mercaptan breaks down in the digestive system. If you're wondering why your urine doesn't smell after eating asparagus, it’s because your body doesn’t possess the enzyme to break mercaptan down.

Deodorize: If you’re afraid offending in a public restroom, try finding a tasty asparagus alternative. Bell peppers can easily be roasted or grilled much like asparagus without the after effects.

Cruciferous Vegetables (Broccoli, Cabbage, Brussels Sprouts)

Little kids across America now have a reason to snub some of these loathsome vegetables. These sulfur-rich foods pack nutrients and antioxidants that may help rid the body of toxins and carcinogenic cells, but they’re also responsible for severe smells. This stench introduces itself in the socially-crippling form of flatulence. The sulfur in these foods is responsible for the rotten-egg smell toots tend to leave behind.

Deodorize: Cruciferous vegetables are vital to our health. So, when you're in the comfort of your own home, eat those greens! You can also par-boil to remove some of the stench before you finish cooking them. In the meantime, spices like coriander, turmeric, and caraway will not only leave you smelling fresh, they’ll help control your bottom.

Onions

Onions have a daring flavor that we can't get enough of, but those around us may wish we would cut back. After onions are digested, their pungent oils absorb into the bloodstream, seep into your lungs, and come through your breath. The more onions you eat, the longer you subject yourself to their offensive odor. Until the onions leave your body, the stink won’t stop.

Deodorize: Instead of eating them raw, try sautéeing them to let the offensive oils out. Squeeze any excess oil out with a paper towel, and enjoy a significantly weaker smell.

Durian Fruit

When you get a whiff of durian fruit, it’s no shock that this leaves a stench in its path. A delicacy in Southeast Asia, durian fruit is a fleshy (yes, as in fleshy like your skin) fruit encompassed in a hard, spiky shell. Its skin causes breath to smell unfathomably revolting. The fruit is rich in carbohydrates, protein, fat, and sulfurous compounds, all of which combine to cause the horrid stink. As Anthony Bourdain said, "Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother."

King of Fruits

Coffee

This beloved morning pick-me-up will hardly make a hot date want to pick you up. Caffeine stimulates your central nervous system, invariably causing your sweat glands to activate. Coffee also is highly acidic, which instantly dries your mouth out. When saliva is lacking, bacteria grows and feeds off the sulfur compounds that create bad breath.

Deodorize: Skip the coffee in the morning and go for some decaffeinated herbal tea. Not only is it a healthier choice, but it actively keeps bad breath at bay!

For more health info and promotions, please follow us on Facebook- Wellness Lab

Download Wellness Lab Mobile App now for more promotions 

If you like this article, you can share this to your friends and families , together we share the health information and the taste of a healthy life!

What are the Health Benefits of Vitamin D?

Vitamin D, also known as the sunshine vitamin, can be produced in the body with mild sun exposure or consumed in food or supplements. Adequate vitamin D intake is important for the regulation of calcium and phosphorus absorption, maintenance of healthy bones and teeth, and is suggested to supply a protective effect against multiple diseases and conditions such as cancer, type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis.

In spite of the name, vitamin D is not actually considered a vitamin. Because the body can produce its own vitamin D, it is not necessarily an essential part of the diet and is considered a pro-hormone.

It is estimated that sensible sun exposure on bare skin for 5-10 minutes 2-3 times per week allows the body the ability to produce sufficient vitamin D. Despite this, recent studies have suggested that up to 50% of adults and children worldwide are vitamin D deficient.

This MNT Knowledge Center feature is part of a collection of articles on the health benefits of popular vitamins and minerals. It provides an in-depth look at recommended intake of vitamin D, its possible health benefits, foods high in vitamin D and any potential health risks of consuming vitamin D.

Recommended intake

Vitamin D intake can be measured in two ways: in micrograms (mcg) and International Units (IU). One microgram of vitamin D is equal to 40 IU of vitamin D.

The sunshine vitamin - vitamin D - can be produced in the body with sun exposure or consumed in food or supplements. 

0-50 years: 5 micrograms or 200 IU per day
51-70 years: 10 micrograms of 400 IU per day
71+: 600 IU per day. 

Although the body has the ability to make vitamin D, there are many reasons deficiency occurs. Darker skin pigments and sunscreen use can significantly decrease the body's ability to absorb the UVB rays required to produce vitamin D.

A sunscreen with SPF 30 can reduce the body's ability to synthesize the vitamin by 95%. The skin also has to be directly exposed to the sunlight, not covered by clothing, in order to start vitamin D production. Even the angle at which sunrays hit the earth can affect absorption.

Possible health benefits of consuming vitamin D

Maintain a Healthy Bones

Vitamin D plays a substantial role in the regulation of calcium and maintenance of phosphorus levels in the blood, two factors that are extremely important for maintaining healthy bones. Vitamin D deficiency in children can cause rickets, a disease characterized by a severely bow-legged appearance triggered by impaired mineralization and softening of the bones.

Rickets

In adults, vitamin D deficiency manifests as osteomalacia or osteoporosis. Osteomalacia results in poor bone density, muscular weakness and often causes small pseudo fractures of the spine, femur and humerus. Osteoporosis is the most common bone disease among post-menopausal women and older men.

Reduced Risk of Flu

Children given 1,200 IU of vitamin D per day for 4 months during the winter reduced their risk of influenza A infection by over 40%.2

Reduced Risk of Diabetes

Boost your immunity

Several observational studies have shown an inverse relationship between blood concentrations of vitamin D in the body and risk of type 2 diabetes. In type 2 diabetics, insufficient vitamin D levels may have an adverse effect on insulin secretion and glucose tolerance.3 In one particular study, infants who received 2,000 IU/day of vitamin D had an 88% lower risk of developing type 1 diabetes by the age of 32.

Healthy Infants

Children with normal blood pressure who were given 2,000 IU/day had significantly lower arterial wall stiffness after 16 weeks compared with children who were given only 400 IU/day.

Keep your children Healthy

Healthy Pregnancy

Pregnant women who are deficient in vitamin D seem to be at greater risk of developing preeclampsia and needing a cesarean section. Poor vitamin D status is also associated with gestational diabetes mellitus and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women. It is also important to note that vitamin D levels that were too high during pregnancy were associated with an increase in food allergy of the child during the first two years of life.

Cancer Prevention

Vitamin D is extremely important for regulating cell growth and for cell-to-cell communication. Some studies have suggested that calcitriol (the hormonally active form of vitamin D) can reduce cancer progression by slowing the growth and development of new blood vessels in cancerous tissue, increasing cancer cell death and by reducing cell proliferation and metastases. Vitamin D has an influence on more than 200 human genes, which can be impaired when D status is suboptimal.3

Vitamin D deficiency has also been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, hypertension, multiple sclerosis, autism, Alzheimer's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma severity and swine flu, however more reliable studies are needed before these associations can be proven.

Foods sources of vitamin D

The richest sources of vitamin D are fish oil and fatty fish - with 1 tablespoon of cod liver oil containing 1,360IU.

Sunlight, your natural source of Vitamin D

Sunlight is the most common and efficient source of vitamin D. The richest food sources of vitamin D are fish oil and fatty fish. 

• Cod liver oil, 1 tablespoon: 1,360 IU 
• Herring, fresh, raw, 4 ounces: 1,056 IU 
• Swordfish, cooked, 4 ounces: 941 IU 
• Raw maitake mushrooms, 1 cup: 786 IU 
• Salmon, sockeye, cooked, 4 ounces: 596 IU 
• Sardines, canned, 4 ounces: 336 IU 
• Fortified skim milk, 1 cup: 120 IU 
• Tuna, canned in water, drained, 3 ounces: 68 IU 
• Egg, chicken, whole large: 44 IU.

Source of Vitamin D

For more health info and promotions, please follow us on Facebook- Wellness Lab

Download Wellness Lab Mobile App now for more promotions 

If you like this article, you can share this to your friends and families , together we share the health information and the taste of a healthy life!

Don't Eat These At Night

Good health is not just about eating the right foods. It’s about eating the right foods — in the right proportions at the right time. A heavy meal at night can put a strain on your digestive system and disrupt your sleep. Plus, it may contribute to weight gain because you aren’t likely to burn that many calories while you sleep.

Skipping dinner altogether is also not a good idea. The hunger will keep you awake and encourage late-night snacking.

And remember, sleep deprivation alters the way your genetics influence your body mass index (BMI), thus leading to weight gain. Studies have also found that it tends to compromise weight loss efforts by causing your body to burn more muscle instead of fat.

Here are some of the worst possible foods that you can eat late at night.

Coffee

Caffeine can keep you tossing and turning in your bed for hours due to its temporary stimulating effect. It has also been found to alter the normal stages of sleep and compromise deep sleep. Lack of quality sleep at night can hinder cognitive functions and contribute to daytime tiredness.

If you are thinking about switching to decaffeinated coffee, be aware that most decaf coffees are not completely caffeine-free. Instead of clinging to your coffee, try an herbal tea. For example, you can enjoy a soothing cup of chamomile tea, which will also aid digestion and promote sleep.

Alcohol

Alcohol can cause a drowsy effect but it does not produce revitalizing sleep. According to a 2013 review of 27 studies on the effect of drinking on nocturnal sleep, although alcohol reduces the time it takes to fall asleep and even increases deep sleep, it tends to reduce REM (rapid eye movement) sleep that influences your memory and serves restorative functions.

A refreshing, good night’s sleep includes 6 to 7 cycles of REM sleep. With alcohol in your system, it can be reduced to just 1 or 2. Alcohol can also cause snoring as it relaxes all the body’s muscles, including the throat muscles, thus reducing your defenses against airway obstruction.

Red Meat

Eating steak or other red meat products can keep you tossing and turning in bed at night. Due to their high fat and protein content, these foods take time to digest and thus keep the body awake throughout the digestion process. They also make you feel sluggish the next morning.

Instead of relishing that thick, juicy steak, opt for lean meat and vegetables. However, avoid cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli and cabbage as they can cause abdominal gas.

Beans

Though healthy, beans should also be avoided at night. The jingle “Beans, Beans, The Musical Fruit” best describes the reason. Being high in soluble fiber, beans can cause flatulence and tummy troubles late at night.

In fact, increased abdominal gas is a common side effect of most high-fiber diets. Both soluble as well as insoluble fiber cause gas, but soluble fiber has a higher gas-producing potential because it slows the passage of food through the intestine where the gut bacteria break down carbohydrates and cause fermentation and gas.

Lentils, peas, nuts and seeds are also rich in soluble fiber. Foods that contain insoluble fiber include broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts and other cruciferous vegetables. Garlic, onions, shallots, chicory root and leeks may also contribute to gas and flatulence.

Super Cheesy Foods

Greasy toppings on your pizza are delicious but can leave you lying awake, feeling too full. Cheese is good for your health and even promotes sleep because as it contains the sleep-inducing amino acid tryptophan.

However, eating high-fat cheeses, especially at night, can make digestion terribly uncomfortable. Plus, they are loaded with calories.

You can have non-fat cottage cheese and low-fat mozzarella or ricotta cheese, but remember moderation is the key.

Fried and Fatty Foods

Constantly grazing on chips, fries, cheeseburgers and other high-calorie junk food is a strict no-no for your health, particularly at night.

They are rich in fat that takes a longer time to digest and slows down the overall digestive process, thus leaving excess acid in the stomach and wreaking havoc on the digestive tract. Those who suffer from acid reflux should definitely stay away from fried foods.

Also, avoid spicy foods that may cause physical discomfort like heartburn. Plus, they tend to give you a rush of endorphins that can make it harder to sleep.

Sodas

Sodas are not only filled with empty calories, they are also acidic in nature. Drinking soda at night can increase stomach pressure and cause stomach discomfort.

Also, the high amount of sugar in many carbonated drinks causes your energy levels to spike and disrupts your sleep. Plus, certain sugars and artificial sweeteners can give you gas and bloating. Some sodas, especially diet sodas, also contain caffeine that disrupts sleep.

Chocolates and Candy Bars

Although it contains antioxidants, eating chocolate, especially dark chocolate, at night is not a good idea. It contains stimulants like caffeine and theobromine that can keep you awake longer. The common milk chocolate, though lower in caffeine, is loaded with sugar and fats.

Avoid candy bars, pastries and other sugary treats as well. In addition to causing energy spikes, these simple-carbohydrate foods contribute to weight gain by causing a spike in your blood glucose level, most of which your body does not need, especially at night. Thus, the body stores excess glucose as fat.

Sorry to say, but high-fat and high-sugar ice creams are also a no-no. Don’t reach for that box of sugary cereal, either. You can eat a healthier cereal snack, though.

Additional Tips 

• Eat your dinner at least 2 hours before going to bed. 
• Avoid late-night snack attacks. 
• Do not eat too much fruit at night as most fruits are high in sugar. You can eat a small serving, but not more than 1 cup. 
• Manage stress and anxiety as they may disrupt your sleep cycle and encourage late-night snacking.

For more health info and promotions, please follow us on Facebook- Wellness Lab

Download Wellness Lab Mobile App now for more promotions 

If you like this article, you can share this to your friends and families , together we share the health information and the taste of a healthy life!

Strength Training for Runners

Strength training has numerous health benefits, and is particularly important for runners. It helps you avoid injury, improves your strength and endurance, and adds another dimension to what your running is doing for your physique.

Strength training can also:

• strengthen bone density
• aid in weight management
• improve mental focus
• help manage chronic pain

According to research, strength training can also have a major impact on the quality of your runs. One study showed that strength training exercises improve running economy (or efficiency) in female distance runners. This means that runners who strength train will be able to run faster over the same distance, and experience less fatigue.

The Best Strength Training Moves 

A well-rounded strength training routine — one that hits all of the major muscle groups — is best. But there are some strength training moves that are invaluable for runners.

We talked with Shane Allen, a famous Personal Trainer, who highlighted these top five strength training exercises specifically for runners:

1. Planks

Great for core strength, planks can be done without any equipment.

1. Start in a pushup position, either on your hands or forearms.
2. Tighten your entire body, especially your core and glutes.
3. Hold this position for 60 seconds.
4. Do three planks per session. If you want to make things tougher, rest your arms or hands on a Swiss ball while planking.

Game for going extreme? Do small circles on the ball rather than remaining stationary.

2. Squats

Squats are a functional move that primarily work the legs, but also engage the core. Start with body weight squats and do three sets of 10. Once that starts getting too easy, begin adding weight.

1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart.
2. Begin to lower your body as far down as possible, bending your knees and pushing your hips back.
3. As you squat, use your glutes, abs, back, and hip flexors to control how far your back arches. Keep your chest tilted up.

Remember as you squat: Don’t let your knees extend out past your toes, keep your chest up, and focus on driving through your heels as you push up to engage your posterior chain.

3. Calf Raises

Your calves can take a beating when you run. Strengthen them with calf raises. Allen suggests using a raised surface, like a box or stair, to get the greatest extension out of the move.

1. Stand on the edge of a raised surface so that your heels are just off the surface.
2. Flex your calf muscles for one second, so that your heels are raised and your toes carry all of your weight.
3. Lower slowly for five seconds. Push back up to the starting position and repeat.

4. Glute-Hamstring Bridge

The glute-hamstring bridge will help strengthen the powerful muscles of your backside.

1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet on the floor.
2. Raise your hips towards the sky while squeezing your glutes and engaging your core.
3. Slowly lower, and repeat.

5. Split Jumps

Split jumps are a dynamic move that not only engage fast-twitch muscle fibers of your lower body, but raise your heart rate as well.

1. Lunge deeply with one leg forward and the other back.
2. Explode up into a jump and switch leg positions.
3. Land in a lunge with the opposite foot forward.

Strength training can be fun and is a great way to mix up your workouts while reducing your risk of injury. Add this resistance workout to your weekly training schedule, aiming to get two to three sessions in each week. Try these moves without added weight first, adding resistance slowly as you go.

For more health info and promotions, please follow us on Facebook- Wellness Lab

Download Wellness Lab Mobile App now for more promotions 

If you like this article, you can share this to your friends and families , together we share the health information and the taste of a healthy life!

Foods Your Doctor Never Eats

Questioning the quality of the food you consume is something worth doing. But what exactly defines "good" food? We aren't just asking what tastes good or looks good, but rather what food is good down to its core, and what separates it from all the other junk? The answer seems pretty clear: fruits and vegetables are good, sweets and candies are not so good. But sometimes to know why something is truly "good," you have to be able to identify and understand what makes something "bad."

"It isn't just how you cook it, it is what you cook," says Dr. Michael Hirt, internist and board certified nutritionist at the Center for Integrative Medicine.

Processed meats

These meats contain nitrates and a lot of preservatives. A new study from the Harvard School of Public Health has revealed that eating processed meats leads to an increased risk of heart disease and type-2 diabetes. When it comes to protein, try get from sources such as vegetables, seeds and nut butters.

If you’re going to get protein from animal sources, Experts recommend yogurt, eggs (up to four eggs per week), tuna and other fish, and chicken. For non-animal sources, add more quinoa, edamame, legumes and almond milk to your diet. 

HOT DOGS 

“When you’re grilling outside, hot dogs may be the first thing that comes to mind, but they should not be the first thing to hit your plate. Not only are they high in fat, one dog also has more than a quarter of the day’s sodium. Throw this salty dog in a bun and drown it in condiments, and you’ve got yourself a diet disaster. Not to mention, research has shown a correlation between processed meats and colorectal cancer.” - Jim White, R.D., personal trainer and registered dietitian 

Margarine

According to experts at the Mayo Clinic, some margarine may actually be worse for you than butter, due to the process of hydrogenation, which creates trans fats. Experts suggest olive oil, canola oil and grape seed oil as healthier replacements for margarine when cooking.

Packaged snack cakes and cookies

Home-baked or bakery-made pastries and desserts are better choices than those from a box, which often contain a lot of added sugar. It also has about 40 different chemicals or preservatives to prevent them from turning bad.

Anything fat-free. 

No-fat items are on list of products to be wary of, because they often compensate for fat with large amounts of sugar, and are highly processed. These non-fat yogurts can contain artificial sweeteners. Eating healthy doesn't mean cutting fat out of your diet entirely, but rather focusing on “good fats,” such as olive oil, avocado and nuts.

Artificial sweeteners

Think that just because you’re not using refined sugar, you’re being healthy? Think again, says Amani Golshani. “Artificial sweeteners have actually been linked to people not losing weight,” she says, noting that drinks containing artificial sweeteners and colours are extremely unhealthy.

The same goes for foods with dyes and artificial flavours. “A lot of people are sensitive to this in a way they can’t even pinpoint,” she says, and strongly recommends cutting these artificial ingredients out of your diet.

Ketchup

“Sure it tastes good on just about everything, but what you might not realize is how quickly the sugar and calories in ketchup can accumulate. Just one measly tablespoon has up to four grams of sugar and 20 calories—which might not seem like a lot—but the average consumer will douse their food with at least four or five. Plus, it’s loaded with high fructose corn syrup, which has been shown to increase appetite and, over time, lead to health problems such as obesity and diabetes. If you really can't live without the stuff, use an all-natural version with no added sugar, chemicals or HFCS.” - Lisa Moskovitz, R.D., founder of The NY Nutrition Group.

Juice

“Juice is just a sugary beverage masked to be a healthy. Although there are some vitamins in it because of its fruit content, some varieties have just as much sugar as a soda. Plus, when you transform produce into juice, you take away its fiber—one of the major benefits of consuming whole fruits and vegetables.” - Leah Kaufman, MS, RD, CDN a New York City-based Registered Dietitian

Cheese and Fries

“When I see cheese fries on the menu, I wonder why the dish even exists. They take a perfectly nutritious potato, deep fry it and then to top it all off, they load it up with salty, greasy, processed cheese. No, thank you.” - Christine M. Palumbo, MBA, RDN, FAND, a Chicago area registered dietitian and nutrition communications consultant

For more health info and promotions, please follow us on Facebook- Wellness Lab

Download Wellness Lab Mobile App now for more promotions 

If you like this article, you can share this to your friends and families , together we share the health information and the taste of a healthy life!