Topic: nutrition

The Hormone Diet: Lose Weight By Lowering Inflammation

The Hormone Diet: Lose Weight By Lowering Inflammation

Believe it or not, inflammation plays a role in everything from digestive disorders and allergies to arthritis and belly fat. Why? Because the fat-burning pathways in our liver and muscle cells are controlled by a group of proteins called PPARs, which influence the interaction between our insulin sensitivity, inflammation and weight. A PPAR imbalance can contribute to inflammation, obesity and insulin resistance—which is is why optimizing the power of our PPARs can be highly beneficial for weight loss or maintenance.
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Vegan For A Month: Lessons From My 30-Day Vegan Diet Challenge

Vegan For A Month: Lessons From My 30-Day Vegan Diet Challenge

I recently went vegan for a month. After reading so much lately about the benefits of a vegan diet—both for the body and the earth—I decided it was something I needed to try.  Despite the fact that I “look like a vegetarian,” I enjoy cheese, chicken and the occasional burger in my regular diet. But regardless of how my diet continues to evolve, I know now that I’m not only capable of giving up animal products but that it’s also something as easy and enjoyable as it is healthful. More »

Babies Born Addicted To Junk Food? It’s (Sort Of) A Thing

Babies Born Addicted To Junk Food? It's (Sort Of) A Thing

The old adage that pregnant women are “eating for two” is so much truer than the pre- neuroscience-obsessed eras knew. A new study of pregnant women with poor diets found mothers can actually pass on a junk food “tolerance” to unborn children, setting them up for a lifetime of being less sensitive to opioids and needing more salty/sweet/fatty food than others to get the same feel-good response. More »

The President Of Mars Chocolate Wants To Help Solve Obesity With Candy

The President Of Mars Chocolate Wants To Help Solve Obesity With Candy

Debra Sandler, the president of Mars Chocolate in North America, wants to rally the National Confectioners Association in building a strategy to fight obesity (i.e. the catastrophe to come when people start figuring out that candy is bad for you). Speaking at the NCA’s State of the Industry Conference in Miami, she was encouraging other companies to think about how their products play into obesity, and figure out how to “be part of the solution” before regulators force them to. Yes, you heard that right: She wants to help solve obesity with candy. More »

Diet And Acne: Now Scientists Say Bagels Give You Zits (Not French Fries)

Diet And Acne: Now Scientists Say Bagels Give You Zits (Not French Fries)

This just in: Diet and acne are connected (at least for today), and it’s bagels, not french fries, that are giving you zits. Apparently scientists are now convinced that foods high in empty carbs (think bread, candy, soda–anything sugary) are connected to breakouts, because of a hormonal reaction that occurs when your blood sugar spikes. Aaaaand, cue smug reactions from paleo diet fans. More »

The Overlooked Health Benefits Of Semen

The Overlooked Health Benefits Of Semen

Earlier this month, I was amazed by the complexity of semen. I mean, here’s this potential nutritional powerhouse that men are just throwing away by the tissue-load daily! Not to mention all of you spitters out there … But what angle to take? Was it weird to just randomly blog about the nutritional content of semen? Probably. I put it out of mind—until today. Because today, Greatist has a post about Semen, Superfood. And I can’t remain silent any longer. Without further ado, ladies and gentleman: The overlooked health benefits and other things you probably didn’t realize about semen. More »

Nutrition Group Wants To Limit Sugar In Soda…Not A Bad Idea

Nutrition Group Wants To Limit Sugar In Soda...Not A Bad Idea

We’ve written a lot about soda lately. From the death of a 31-year-old woman attributed to Coca-Cola to Diet Coke’s role in Type 2 diabetes, it seems like every day there’s some kind of crazy story or study about how bad soft drinks are for you. And today’s no different. A nutritional interest group, the Center for Science in the Public Interest, is now asking the federal government to set limits as to the amount of sugar that can be in soft drinks. More »

Heart Attack Grill Spokesman John Alleman Died Of A Heart Attack

Heart Attack Grill Spokesman John Alleman Died Of A Heart Attack

John Alleman, the unofficial spokesman for the Heart Attack Grill, died of a heart attack yesterday. If you’re not familiar, the Las Vegas restaurant’s whole schtick is serving horrendously unhealthy food–like the “quadruple bypass burger,” which contains nearly 10,000 calories alone–with a staff dressed up as nurses and doctors. Because who wouldn’t want to visualize a trip to the E.R. while consuming food that’s literally closing their arteries?! More »

Mountain Dew Is Making A New ‘Breakfast Drink’…That Sounds A Lot Like An Energy Drink For Kids

Mountain Dew Is Making A New 'Breakfast Drink'...That Sounds A Lot Like An Energy Drink For Kids

Because it isn’t already loaded with enough sugar and caffeine to last you 24 hours, Mountain Dew is gearing up to claim their stake in the energy drink market with “Kickstart,” a caffeine- and juice-infused beverage set to come out later this month. The company says their so-called “breakfast drink” won’t contain nearly the amount of caffeine found in controversial brands like Monster energy drink or even Red Bull, but it’s not necessarily the caffeine content that disturbs us: It’s the fact that this sounds suspiciously like a drink designed to be sold to kids. More »

The Girl Scouts Are Now Selling Vitamins…In The Form Of Cookies

The Girl Scouts Are Now Selling Vitamins...In The Form Of Cookies

Every year I’ve been an editor at Blisstree, I’ve seen a new spin on the Girl Scout cookies nutrition debate: Health bloggers like me engage in an emotional debate between our knee-jerk rage over childhood obesity and our nostalgic love of cookies (and buying things off the street from little kids). Last year, the Girl Scouts of America ignored criticisms of their contribution to childhood obesity and released a new cookie in honor of their founder’s home state (which also happens to be the one with the highest rates of childhood obesity), as well as a collaboration with Nestle to create a Girl Scouts candy bar. This year, they’re facing the issue head-on…by making “healthy” Mango Crème cookies pumped full of a synthetic vitamin formula. More »

Paleo Diet The “Worst” Way To Eat? Depends On Whom You’re Asking

Paleo Diet The "Worst" Way To Eat? Depends On Whom You're Asking

Yesterday, U.S. News & World Report released its annual best and worst diet rankings, naming the DASH diet best overall and touting the benefits of others such as the Mayo Clinic diet, Weight Watchers and the Mediterranean diet. One regimen that didn’t get much love, however? The paleo diet, a recently popular phenomenon that involves adopting the dietary habits of our pre-agricultural revolution ancestors. U.S. News‘ panel of experts not only named it worst overall diet but also ranked it low in terms of weight-loss potential, heart healthiness, easiness to follow and more. More »

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