Most Important Meal of the Day

Breakfast has long been known as “the most important meal of the day”, but many people go the morning without it. Reasons for skipping breakfast include, not having enough time or replacing it with coffee, but this practice could be helping you put on weight.

By skipping breakfast you essentially starve yourself because your last meal was likely to be over fifteen hours ago. Not eating for extended periods of time can result in starvation eating and consuming excessive calories in the afternoon and night, when the body is less likely to use energy. Also, by not eating for extended periods of time your body does not produce enzymes that metabolize fat that essentially helps you lose weight.

Research has shown that any form of breakfast, including sugar rich cereals is better than skipping breakfast, so therefore eating a nutritious breakfast can do wonders for your health. It is better to eat low density high fiber meals such as fruits, nuts, oatmeal and low fat yogurt that allow you to eat more without excessive fat and calories. High energy density foods such as bagels are examples of what not to eat, because they are high in fat and calories, relative to size. Good examples of breakfast meals are mixing bananas or granola with low fat yogurt, or eating oatmeal with low fat milk and mixed with fruit.

How sleep is part of good health

Both the quantity and quality of sleep are significant factors related to your health. Not enough sleep or sleep that is continuously interrupted will deprive your body of stages 3 and 4 sleep, which is considered to be deep sleep. The amount of the stage 3 and 4 sleep you get overnight can determine how well you function the following day because it affects your performance, mood and health.

A bad night’s sleep can make it hard to focus at work or school, with studies showings people are more likely to make a bad decision or take greater risks. Insufficient sleep can significantly affect a person’s mood, making them more irritable and possibly depressed. Sleep is a vital part of good health and a lack of it can result in greater risks of heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes. Deep sleep triggers chemical reactions that produce valuable hormones which fuels growth in children and helps repair cells and tissue in both adults and children. Sleep also produces other hormones that help fight infections and help recover from illnesses which are why people are advised to rest when they are sick.

Sleep disorder can have serious health effects. If you are suffering from a sleep disorder consult your physician or a medical professional.

Florida's Health Rankings

In 2009 Florida ranked 36^th in the national health rankings. A company called America’s Health Rankings analyzes data from the CDC and publishes an annual report about various health factors in the all 50 states. The report looks at a range of factors from high school graduation (as a percent of incoming 9^th graders) to the amount of deaths from common diseases like obesity and heart disease.

Some of Florida’s health disparities include the prevalence of obesity and diabetes in African-American and Hispanic populations compared to Non-Hispanic White populations. Another health disparity is the mortality rate between Hispanic (586 deaths/100,000) and African-American (945.4 deaths/100,000) populations. Florida’s strengths compared to the rest of the nation include low percentages of obesity, high immunizations and low death rates from cancer and cardiovascular diseases. The challenges Florida faced in 2009 are high incidences of infectious diseases, the percentage of uninsured individuals and rate of violent crimes. The report also noted significant changes that occurred over the last decade, which include an increased number of poor mental health days, an increase in immunization coverage, a decrease in the number of smokers, and a decrease in the rate of death from cardiovascular diseases.

How Pets Improve your Health

A pet can potentially be more than your best friend, but a way to improving your health. Pets are natural mood enhancers that have the ability to lower stress and feelings of anxiety. When you play with your dog or watch fish in a tank, it causes your body to raises production of an important chemical called serotonin and lower the amount of cortical which is a hormone associated with stress. Studies have shown that owning pets can lower your blood pressure, cholesterol and risks of cardiac disease. Children that grow up with pets are less likely to suffer from allergies and asthma that can be caused by allergies. Studies have also shown cat owners to have a lower risk of strokes and that having a dog increases physical activity by going for walks and can prevent isolation by socializing at dog parks.

There are many ways a pet can promote health and wellness, all of which vary upon the person and their existing health condition. If you do not already own a pet and are thinking about becoming a pet owner, consult your doctor to prevent risk of illness from allergies or overexertion.

"Planned Patienthood"

Planned patienthood is a term being used by doctors today that describes a patient who takes an active role in understanding their illness and its treatments by getting informed and asking questions. To practice planned parenthood, follow these steps.

1. Come to the doctor’s office with your top concerns

If you make an effort to remember your top concerns, you are less likely to get sidetracked and forget them during the appointment. It is best to write your concerns down and prioritize them in a list.

2. Have your questions written down beforehand

Patients can be reluctant to ask their doctor questions. Write down as many questions as you can think of beforehand and at the end of the session ask the questions you feel are most relevant. Many time’s doctors seem rushed and are pushing you out the door, but you must insist on having your questions answered.

3. Understand your course of treatment

Writing down your course of treatment is the first step to understanding it. Know what the course of action involves, for example a change of diet. This will also help you to ask the right questions before you leave the doctor’s office.

4. Know the next step

Schedule follow up appointments, get prescriptions and names of specialist before you leave.

5. Get a timeline on how you should feel

Know how long medicine takes to kick in, when symptoms should disappear and what to expect. This will help you know whether to call or schedule another appointment.

Truth About Caffeine

For many people, a warm cup of coffee is essential in jump starting a cold winter morning. Caffeine isn’t limited to just a morning cup of Joe or afternoon tea, but can be found in many chocolates, ice creams, soft drinks and even medicine. A 1.5oz Hershey’s milk chocolate bar contains 9 milligrams of caffeine, Ben and Jerry’s Coffee Heath Bar Crunch 8oz tub has 84 milligrams, which is 8 milligrams more than an 8oz Red Bull and 37 milligrams more than a diet coke. So if you are a heavy coffee drinker, consuming more than three 8oz cups a day which is roughly 450 milligrams of caffeine, you should probably look at food and drug labels to see if they contain caffeine, because it could affect your sleep.

Studies on the long term effects of caffeine have been mixed and some benefits of caffeine consumption have even been highlighted. Some research on caffeine has shown consistently higher rates in cancer and heart disease, but did not take other health related factors such as smoking or exercise into account. Other studies have shown to reduce chances of diseases such as type 2 Diabetes, Parkinson’s disease and certain types of cancer. According to WebMD, caffeine is effective in treating asthma and headaches with a single dose of pain reliever such as Anacin or Excedrin contains up to 120 milligrams.

Even though the truth about caffeine is unclear, most researchers and medical professionals agree it should be consumed in moderation. A moderate coffee drinker is considered to consumes between three and ten 8oz cups a day, or roughly between 450 and 1500 milligrams of caffeine a day. If you consumed a comparable 10 cups of black tea, which has roughly 800 milligrams of caffeine you would also consume several hundred milligrams of antioxidants. How healthy your caffeine intake is could depend on what food or drink it comes in, and what other ingredients are used.

The Most Important Meal of the Day

Eating and snacking at night is technically the worst time of day to consume calories because it is when our bodies have the lowest need for energy. Studies in America have shown that people are eating more in the afternoon and at dinner than other meals. Meal sizes tend to increase throughout the day, with one study showing 42% of daily calories being consumed during or after dinner. People who consume more at breakfast and lunch tend to eat fewer calories and grams of fat than those who eat large dinners and nighttime snacks. Eating large meals at nighttime could be an indication of bad eating patterns, emotional eating after work or overly sedentary behavior. If you are overeating at night, it is important you address this problem with a health professional because it could have negative long term effects such as obesity or diabetes.
A few ways to overcome excessive nighttime eating are:

• Substitute decaffeinated tea for another nighttime snack
• Find a fun nighttime activity to overcome boredom
• Limit the amount of time watching TV or exercise whilst watching
• Make healthy snack choices such as grapes and drink water instead of soda
• Eat a balance high fiber breakfast, lunch and dinner
• Do not skip breakfast
• Eat smaller more frequent meals
• Make desert portions smaller