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For many years, Nutrisystem has been providing many thousands of people each year with the means to lose weight through a nutritionally balanced, calorie and portion controlled diet that is both time saving and convenient. Their special brand of weight loss diet program that delivers all the meals a customer requires to their home has proved both popular and highly successful. So how is it faring in 2012?

The program has gone from strength to strength in recent years. You can read about the program overall in our own Nutrisystem Reviews article published on this website. But here’s an update on what has been happening recently.

Although 2011 saw a slight drop in popularity that could be attributed to their marketing strategy change. That saw them drop the famous celebrity spokespeople Marie Osmond and Dan Mareno in favor of ordinary, “real” people who were successful customers to promote their brand. It backfired in a small way as it seems the American public responds more readily to being sold on a product by a big name celebrity over a “nobody”.

Nutrisystem Celebrity Spokesperson

So late in December 2011, the company made a big change to their marketing and promotion machine bringing on board a very big celebrity spokesperson, Janet Jackson. Its a little early to say how much of an impact this change of strategy has had on sales, but the early signs are very good.

But aside from promoting the product, what has Nutrisystem got to offer its customers by way of a better way to lose weight in 2012?

Nutrisystem Success™ 2012

The diet program has changed somewhat from last year’s setup in that there are more meal options to choose from and they have included high protein diet shakes into the menu. They have branded the new diet program Nutrisystem Success™ and there are high hopes from both the company and customers that this latest incarnation of the popular diet food delivery program will be a huge success.

The standard plans all incorporate around 30 percent fresh frozen meals which are delivered separately from the main package. They actually originate from Schwann’s who create the special meals under license and do not sell them separately or as part of their own diet frozen meal range. The Select™ plan is still available if you want a fully fresh frozen meal diet plan. The overall menu has been improved, although most of the improvements went in last year when they enlisted the services of several celebrity chefs to create new meal options and better quality choices.

Losing Weight With Nutrisystem

The bottom line for any diet is how successfully a person can lose weight using the program. You first have to remember that this program is mainly designed for use by people who don’t have time to spend working on a regular diet. That’s where they have to go buy all the ingredients at the store, then prepare and cook the meals themselves making sure they adhere to calorie counts, portion sizes and nutritional requirements.

This is a diet that does all the work for you and you just take each meal as you need it, heat it up and eat. It appeals to people who can’t or won’t cook and those who have busy lives and don’t want to spend any time in the kitchen cooking special meals for themselves and different ones for the rest of the family. As such, the customer can’t realistically expect the meals to be of the same quality as those they home cook themselves.

The meals are what they are, which are creations by a diet company who know how to make low calorie, nutritional meals that help people lose weight. They work as long as you work with the program. They work even better when you put some time and effort into your own well being by getting some exercise each day to help boost your metabolism and turbo charge the effectiveness of the diet itself.

Its all about losing weight and how much you really want to lose it! You get out of it what you put into it!

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To follow on from my last article in this mini series on How Healthy is Your Diet? which looked at why soda is so bad for you, I decided to switch sides and look at something that is good for you. In our society that seems hell bent on poisoning itself with processed foods, additive and saturated fat laden junk and all manner of other unhealthy stuff that the media does a very good job of convincing us that it is all good, a natural progression toward more health giving foods would be a good choice of moves.

There are lots of healthy foods that we can choose to eat and many of us actually do include many of these in our diets. Just not enough or not in the right way. So this article will take a look at one of them, which is that great all rounder health giving bulb that we either love or hate. That’s that smelly little bulb adored by most people in the world apart from Brits, Americans and a even few Aussies — garlic.

Oh So Healthy Garlic

Garlic, which contains both allicin and diallyl sulphides is a member of the onion family and as such possesses similar blood cleansing properties. But it is much more than just a cholesterol busting flavorsome addition to food.

In its raw state, garlic is at its most potent and all of its health giving properties are at their best. It should be used as soon as possible after peeling the papery skin from the bulb. As soon as you cook it, you destroy most of its goodness, so the best way to enjoy this power-packed little bulb is raw, chopped finely and sprinkled over cooked food just before you eat it or into salads where it adds a lot of flavor and zing!

Medicinal Garlic

So to the health-giving properties of garlic. It is antibacterial, antiviral and anti-fungal, making it a great all rounder for fighting most illnesses from the common cold (viral) and flu, to bacterial attacks inside (eg food poisoning) and outside the body (eg infected cuts) as well as fungal attacks (eg athlete’s foot).

Garlic also helps boost the immune system, further helping the body to naturally fight off disease and infection and is also an antioxidant, helping to mop up dangerous free radicals and prevent cancer cells from forming. For helping to maintain health, there are few foods to match this pungent little bulb!

As a food, it contains essential minerals and vitamins including all the B vitamins, vitamin C, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus potassium and zinc. It really is a powerful nutrient-packed addition to any diet.

Antisocial Garlic

Many people avoid garlic as they are concerned about the bad breath it gives you. Well, you can cut this drastically by taking garlic capsules, but you have to consider your own health above all else. If you are more concerned with what other people think of you, then you are not concerned enough with your own well-being and that is a situation which cannot be.

Interestingly, many smokers are quick to wrinkle their noses up at garlic eaters without realizing just how disgusting their own stale tobacco breaths smell to non-smokers! Just putting things into perspective, here.

When you eat garlic yourself, you cannot smell it on another person’s breath. So if someone wrinkles up their nose at you next time you have eaten garlic, just remind yourself that you are healthier inside than they are and to hell with what they think!

On that note, I think it best to leave you there to ponder your own social dilemmas and will return soon with another healthy foods article!

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It is widely recognized that oranges are packed with vitamin C. It’s definitely true that they’re a good source of this vitamin. But did you know that there are other fruits that contain even greater quantities? I was quite surprised myself when I found out. Now, I’m in no way suggesting that we shouldn’t eat citrus fruits. What I am wanting to make clear however is that if you feel like you’re coming down with a cold, in addition to oranges, there are some other great options that are available to you.

The USDA Nutrient Database is an excellent resource. It’s where I go when I want to get accurate information on the nutritional values of the foods I eat. In the case of raw Navel oranges, the amount of vitamin C that they contain per 100 grams is 59.1 mg. If we compare this to say a raw apple, it has more than 10 times the amount of vitamin C. So oranges are a great source of vitamin C, just not the best.

Some of the other well known fruits that have high levels of vitamin C are:

Strawberries: 58.8 mg

Papayas: 60.9 mg

Kiwi fruits: 92.7 mg

Blackcurrants: 181.0 mg

Acerola, (west indian cherry), raw: 1677.6 mg

As you can see, we do have a choice when we need a vitamin C boost. Oranges are a good choice, but they’re not the only choice!

Choosing to purchase a juicer and make a fruit juice is a great method to consume high levels of vitamin C. Just think about it for a moment. How many oranges do you think you could eat in one sitting? Whatever the number, you’re bound to be able to drink the juice of more oranges than you could eat. This is why juicing fruits and vegetables is seen as beneficial for our health.

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For a long time, Americans have always had the best choice when it comes to consumer goods and groceries. The choice and price in the States is simply wider and cheaper than in the U.K. At the same time, health enthusiasts in Britain can actually get hold of the best juicers and blenders as long as they know where to look.

Omega are a well known company in the U.S. Their juicers are regarded as some of the highest quality and best value models available. While U.K. customers might not be able to find these machines in department stores at the moment, they can be ordered online for specialist retailers.

Picking a juicer is an exciting process. There are different styles which each have their own particular features. The owner of the Juice Fiend U.K. Juicer Store recommends the Omega VRT350HD as the best juicer. This is a somewhat subjective judgement. Although this is understandable because we all have varying needs when it comes to juicing. The beauty of this particular machine is its marriage of speed, ease of use and versatility. Not to mention the fact that the juice it makes, tastes great. This particular model is a masticating juicer.

As people become more aware of the need to eat a healthy diet if they are to enjoy the best of health, it is likely that more and more of us will turn to juicing as a way to improve the quality of the nutrition consume. The way these appliances work is to give us a concentrated dose of vitamins and minerals. Eating fruits and vegetables is best. Getting whole food nutrition means we get all the goodness that fruits and vegetables have to offer. However juicing does have some unique advantages. While eating ten oranges might seem somewhat extreme to many people, drinking the juice from ten oranges, about one litre, is a lot more realistic. In fact, juicing is a great way for us to consume lots of fruit and vegetable goodness.

Picking a juicer needn’t be a difficult process. There are a few variables that you have to think about:

• how much can you afford?
• what sorts of juices would you like to make?
• is speed an issue?
• do you require a quiet juicer?

Even though it may be easier for people to find juicers to buy in the U.S, if you know where to look, you can find a great choice of the best products on sale in the United Kingdom. Don’t you owe it to yourself to invest in your own health?

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Most of us have tried or at least seen one of those chairs that have built in massagers to take care of all the tension in your back and legs. They seem like a luxury item, and thanks to quite a hefty price tag most of us won’t be able to afford them in our homes, but we can use them in places like health spas for a small price. It seems though that these massage chairs are not only a luxury item for people who can’t think of anything else to do with their money, but they can also bring about quite a few benefits for people who have gone through heart surgery, or are otherwise heart patients.

Some doctors do not recommend, and in fact can ban you from having a massage after you have gone through a heart surgery, but according to Mayo Clinic, it could actually be a good thing. They recommend light massage therapy for anyone who has gone through the surgery as it will speed up recovery and at the same time it will make the time more enjoyable. According to a study they did, getting regular massages actually significantly sped up the recovery from the surgery, and it reduced pain and anxiety that is often related to a post surgery state.

Now they didn’t really use massage chairs for the process, and we can be pretty sure that chair manufacturers will not market their products for this purpose because they want to  be careful, but when used on a light massage program, an electric massager could bring similar benefits than a therapy given by a professional. Of course you can’t expect a machine to give similar therapy as a well trained professional, but this study points towards the fact that it could be safe to use massagers to reduce pain and help the patient relax. After all, when you reduce your pain and are able to get rid of tension and anxiety, you will feel better about your recovery and it has been shown frequently that a positive mind will not only speed up recovery but it will also make it a lot more pleasant.

Many of these massage chairs are able to deliver a wide array of massage programs ranging from aggressive deep tissue massage all the way to just a comfortable lymphatic massage. There are many settings from shiatsu to vibrating to swedish massage, and should someone use a chair like this for the above mentioned purposes, they should always consult their doctor first. At the same time you should keep the massage at a comfortable level so that you will still enjoy it and be able to stimulate circulation and relax those achy and tense muscles. After all, getting comfortable is the whole purpose of these chairs. If you can’t afford to purchase one for your home, you could find a health club where you can use one. It is much cheaper than booking an appointment with a professional massage therapist, and usually you can find a free chair much easier than a massage therapist that has the time for you.

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We are bombarded every day with information about diets – exercise programs – pills that can help us loose weight – superfoods – and so on. It can be hard to be sure which route we should take to enjoy the best of health. In many cases, there is an ulterior motive behind certain recommendations that so called gurus provide. Often they are promoting a specific product. One that caught my attention recently was a health guru named David Wolfe who promotes deer placenta capsules. Would you seriously consider eating a deer placenta? Regardless of the nutrients that this may contain – some foods or even superfoods are just wrong.

Rather than having to kill animals for our nutrition, is it possible to stay healthy eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables? Despite what some people are telling you, the answer is yes! In fact, the scientific evidence now points towards a vegan diet being the best for short term well being as well as long term health.

When we take a look at what is going on in the Western world, we see that there are increasing cases of Type 2 Diabetes – and now a days childern are often being affected – where previously, this disease was known as adult onset diabetes. More and more evidence is being uncovered displaying results that whole food, plant based diets are the most effective if we want to stay clear of heart disease, diabetes and even cancer! The thing is, there is no money in this sort of diet. That’s why we’re being told to take all these supersupplements and supercapsules. We’re being encouraged to continue eating as much animal fat and processed foods as we want – “but just take these super pills, at only $49.95″ and all will be well.

The truth is that this is just flat out wrong. If you want to learn a language, is it more effective to study a little every day or spend a fortune on some audio course? I hope you said, the former. When we want something, we have to work for it – not take a pill. That’s why if we want to stay fit, healthy and full of energy – we have to think about what we are eating. If something has absolutely no nutritional benefit to our body – why would you want to eat it? Oh yeah, “it tastes good”. Drugs make you feel good, does this make you want to become a junkie? I hope not. We have to realize though that food IS a drug.

Improving your health needn’t be hard nor expensive. Eating more fresh produce and less processed crap is the way to go. Check out some juicer reviews to find out more about how these machines can help you reach your health and fitness goals. The more fruit and vegetables we consume, the fitter and healthier we’ll become. Not only that, but we are protecting ourself from disease at the same time.

A BBC news article reports that Broccoli may undo diabetes damage. Doesn’t this sound exciting? It’s not just saying that we can protect ourself from diabetes – but we can actually CURE diabetes just by improving our diet. What this means is that it’s never too late.

Reference: Find the recipe for the tasty broccoli salad above at Pinch my Salt.

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