Tax sugary drinks?

sugar Recommendations to put an extra 20 per cent tax on sugary drink to prevent people becoming obese were put forward by the BMA (British Medical Association) recently. But will anything change? Recommendations come out all the time but do they get taken up. The BMA claims that poor diets cost 70,000 premature deaths a year.

The BMA suggests an extra tax of 20 per cent on unhealthy food and drinks. A 330ml fizzy drink is likely to contain up to nine teaspoonfuls of sugar. Apparently a sugar tax on drinks in Mexico has resulted in lower consumption. The overall aim is to reduce the number of people becoming obese and getting diabetes, which are both attributed to the increase in sugar consumption, which is highest in the 11 to 18 year old group. They take 15.6 per cent of their energy from sugar, when the limit for everyone should be 5 per cent.

There should be restrictions on promoting unhealthy foods to children through advertising and fun characters. Instead they suggest that there should be marketing campaigns to promote awareness and the importance of healthy foods. Other suggestions are for school meals to include a free fruit and vegetable scheme, and for the price of fruit and vegetables to be subsidised.

How many times have you visited a hospital and found the full range of fizzy drinks, crisps, sweets and chocolate on sale in the shop? The recommendations suggest banning these sales, and having a traffic light coding on food.
Other recommendations include:
• No trans fats in food allowed.
• Compulsory reduction of salt levels in food and drink products.
• Targets to reduce calories, fat, saturated fat and added sugar levels in a range of soft drinks, confectionery, biscuits, and many other processed foods.
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Needless to say this needs international co-operation.
Dire warnings from the British Medical Association include the spectre of 30 per cent of the UK population being obese by 2030.

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Top tips to lose weight

The nation’s women are obsessed with losing weight but frequently don’t succeed.  Healthy Soul does not advocate miracle diets, but like nutritionists we believe that it’s important to change your diet and lifestyle to make them a way of life, rather than short-term.

Clare Grace, research dietician at the Queen Mary University of London reports: ‘Weight gain occurs when the number of calories eaten is greater than the number used by the body.” [i] In fact, to gain, and therefore lose 1lb in weight, you’ll need to eat – or avoid – an extra 3,500 calories.’

Top tips to lose weight:

1.    Oranges and lemons – It makes for a refreshing start to the day, but that glass of orange juice packs a calorific punch with around 110kcals for a 250ml glass [ii]. Shave 100 calories from your morning tipple by replacing orange juice with a blend of PLj Lemon Juice and water.  At less than 7kcals per glass, it also delivers 75 per cent of the RDA of vitamin C in every serving so makes good sense all round!
2.    Banish the biscuit tin – It probably comes as no surprise, but biscuits are crammed with calories – just two Hobnobs clock up 142kcals!  For a more nutritious snack, nibble on a kiwi fruit and a Satsuma, just  14kcals and 18kcals a piece.
3.    Have open sandwiches – To save on the calorie content, think Scandinavian and opt for an open sandwich, using one slice of bread rather than two, which will save you around 100kcals.  Add a side salad and fat-free dressing to make it more interesting and healthy.
4.    Season for the season – Rather than smothering steamed vegetables with lashings of butter, sprinkle them with lemon juice and fresh herbs for great flavor and low calories.
5.    Smaller glasses –Every 250ml glass of wine provides 185kcals, so opt for a small glass (89kcals for 120ml) to get the taste, but not the calories.

It’s not just about cutting calories from your daily diet though – you can also make a difference by moving more throughout the day to speed up your calorie burning potential.

 

[1][i] Source: Netdoctor (http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/womenshealth/features/dietmyths.htm)

[1][ii] Source: All calorie estimates from www.weightlossresources.co.uk

 

Growing old gracefully

middle aged coupleHere are a few tips to help you age gracefully, naturally. From Erin McCann, Nutritional Consultant for Unbeelievable Health.

1) Increase Your Antioxidants

• Eat more fruits, like berries and citrus fruit, and vegetables, like leafy greens and squashes.
• Take a quality, natural supplement containing antioxidant rich plant extracts, like Bee Prepared Immune Support Daily Defence or Max Strength.

2) Maintain a balance between Omega 3 and Omega 6 Fatty Acids

The balance between Omega 3 and Omega 6 Fatty acids is important for reducing inflammation in the body, supporting cognitive function and for maintaining cellular health. Ideally the ratio should be between 1/5 to 1/2 (Omega 3/Omega 6). When consuming the typical ‘Western Diet’ this ratio can be 1/16. This balance can be maintained by:

• Reducing processed, refined foods and take-aways in your diet.
• Eating fresh oily fish like wild salmon, mackerel, haddock and sardines 3 or more times a week.
• Cooking with coconut oil as an alternative to butter, margarine and other oils.

Try Equazen EyeQ Mind.

3) Eat balanced meals and snacks regularly

Research has found that excess insulin can speed the ageing process and create inflammation in your body. You can balance insulin and blood sugar levels by:

• Eating meals with a combination of complex carbohydrates, quality vegetarian or lean animal proteins, and antioxidant rich vegetables.
• Having quality snacks between meals, such as hummus with vegetables or oatcakes, to maintain energy and balance insulin levels.
• Reduce stimulants like coffee which can increase insulin production.

4) Exercise regularly

Exercise not only aids in weight management but it supports your body with improving energy production, immune function and bone density. Increase your exercise throughout the day by:

• Taking a brisk 20 minute walk each day.
• Opting to use the stairs or walking to destinations when you can.
• Incorporating resistance training into your regime such as yoga, pilates or weights

5) Support immune function

As you age, your immune system may not work as efficiently. A well-functioning immune system will aid your body’s natural defences against infection and chronic illness. The best ways to support immunity are:

• Get adequate sleep and rest.
• Find ways to manage stress. Stress hormones have natural immunosuppressive actions.
• Eat immune supporting nutrient rich foods containing zinc, B vitamins, vitamin C and flavonoids.
• Get out in the sun for a dose of Vitamin D.
• Take natural, plant extract immune support supplements like Bee Prepared Immune Support, which will balance and support immune function without over stimulating it.

You can buy Bee Prepared Daily Defence Immune Support here….

A nation of pill poppers

tablets on spoon‘Too many medications and not enough health,’ says Professor Clare Gerada, GP and former chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP). No-one could deny that for many people medication is a life-saver, and there are genuine reasons to take drugs for specific conditions. However, the fact that 50 per cent of British women and 43 per cent of men are taking prescription drugs is quite shocking, and it has to be asked, are they really necessary?

The NHS is spending more than £15 billion a year on doling out drugs, according to the latest Health Survey for England, and as we know it is a cash-strapped service. This doesn’t even include the amount it costs to provide contraceptives and nicotine replacement therapy to help people to give up smoking.

The average number of prescriptions per person in the UK is around 19 a year, yet some people don’t take any drugs. The most heavily-prescribed drugs are statins to lower cholesterol, followed by aspirin and other painkillers, and drugs to reduce blood pressure. When people reach 65 the chances are that they are taking three lots of medication and when they get to 75 this doubles to six.

There are reports of older people being on so much medication that they need a large carrier bag to transport the tablets. When someone gets to this point they are taking medicines to counteract the side-effects of the others, and so it goes on.

One in nine British women takes anti-depressants, and the sad thing is that while many people would benefit from counselling or therapy, it takes so long to get an appointment on the NHS, that many are not getting the help they need.
According to Professor Clare Gerada, ‘We are over-treating and over-diagnosing. I’m being asked in the consulting room to medicate great swathes of the population. We know that almost everyone over 50 is being told to go on a statin.
‘The more medicines you take, the more contact you have with health services, the less well you feel. Do the things that make you feel better – lose weight, take exercise, don’t smoke and moderate drinking.’
Read our article:  Cholesterol – are statins the only answer?  and Coping with Depression.

 

Overdosing on paracetamol

Echinacea 2Often viewed as harmless many cold and flu medicines contain paracetamol, and when taken with the tablets themselves can result in overdose. Some people don’t realise that many of the conventional products they take for colds and flu do contain paracetamol, and yet a combination of treatments can be fatal.

FACT: the maximum amount of paracetamol you should take over a 24 hour period is 4g or eight (standard) 500mg tablets.

The problem is when someone feels lousy they keep taking doses of pills or remedies, without thinking about whether or not they are taking too much. Always check the instructions on the packaging.

Apparently some people do not realise that many of the conventional products they take for colds and flu contain paracetamol. So a combination of treatments can be fatal. Recent research at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary looked at 663 patients who had liver damage caused by paracetamol. And 161 of them who had been taking it over a period of time, using both the drug itself and remedies that contain paracetamol for other ailments including colds and flu, had unintentionally overdosed.

And the result is often tragic with as many as two out of five of paracetamol overdose patients dying from the overdoses.

There are plenty of natural alternatives when you’ve got colds or flu. For instance, Echinacea has been found to be effective in treating colds and flu. A natural herb, Echinacea doesn’t contain paracetamol. Although it is necessary to consult with a doctor if you are taking medication of any kind, to be sure that it is safe to take a herbal remedy.

Supporting your immune system tips:

• Eat healthily, and include your five a day of fruit and veg, or more.
• Reduce or cut out sugar which competes with vitamin C.
• Reduce the amount of fatty food you consume.
• Avoid alcohol and give up smoking.
• Get a good night’s sleep every night.
• Relax, smile and laugh out loud at least 3 times a day.

You can buy Echinacea from our shop: go to Healthy Soul Shop/Herbal Remedies,   or you can get the new Echinacea Hot Drink to take when you start to feel the beginning of a cold.