All It Takes Is One Boiled Egg To Control Sugar In The Blood

People’s health in general is considerably influenced by the food they consume and their lifestyle. However, the fact that we live in a polluted environment makes it clear that we are surrounded by different chemicals and toxins all the time.

Not only these chemicals and toxins endanger our health, but they also contribute to numerous diseases.

Frequently, people take routine medical tests and examinations in order to discover imbalances or increased/reduces values of the blood sugar or blood pressure, which can significantly impact the health of the entire body. Disorders of this kind are in fact silent killers which slowly lead to changes beyond repair.

One of the most devious diseases is diabetes, as this disease impact the way the body handles the blood glucose. Most patients suffer from diabetes of the type 2, meaning that their body is not able to properly use insulin.

The number of diabetes patients is constantly and rapidly increasing and thus you should see your family doctor and check the levels of sugar in your blood. In case that the level of sugar in your blood exceeds 126 mg/dl for fasting blood test, or 200 mg/dl at any time during the day, it means you have diabetes.

Luckily, when it comes to the levels of sugar in the blood, there is a natural remedy that acts quickly and can be very beneficial. For preparation of this homemade remedy you will only need vinegar, water, and a boiled egg.

Preparation

Take an egg and boil in the afternoon. Peel it, and using a fork, pierce it a couple of times. Then, place the egg in a big bowl, and then add vinegar, leaving it like this to stand overnight.

The following morning, consume the egg combining it with a glass of warm water.

Do this every day, and your blood sugar levels will be considerably reduced.

No need to hesitate, act now and start improving your health condition and reducing the high blood sugar levels.

3 Good Reasons To Go Swimming? Heart Disease, Diabetes & Obesity

For some of us (70%, to be exact), this conversation will start off with a trip to your local YMCA to get swimming lessons. I bet you’ll want to get those lessons asaptually (new word) when you read about all the health benefits of swimming. Ladies, forget about your hair getting wet and find a protective style that will allow you to dive into the deep end without splitting your loose ends. Brothers, let go of the life jackets and come get some of this knowledge. This aerobic activity improves cardiovascular health, controls blood sugar and helps in weight loss.

Where’s Your Heart At?

According to the American Heart Association, heart disease is the number one killer of African Americans. Swimming might have an answer to this problem. Breaststrokes can help decrease your chance of having an actual stroke. When cholesterol levels are high, strokes can occur. This aerobic activity improves your cardiovascular health and lowers cholesterol levels.

It’s recommend that you swim 20 to 40 minutes at a brisk pace. You’ll want to exert yourself moderately enough to work up a nice heart rate. You can start off slowly, resting between laps. However, over time you’ll be able to work out longer, adjusting your speed and technique as you progress in the practice.

Swimming is also great because you won’t be exerting your heart too much while doing it. Unlike running and other sports, swimming places less of a demand on your heart. Your heart rate while swimming will be around 10-20 beats per second.

Diabetes

The loss of Phife Dawg at 45 and Doug Banks at 57 sent an alarm to our community, which is desperately in need of an intervention for diabetes. In addition to the many diabetes-related complications, diabetics also have a higher risk of heart disease. Swimming helps to burn calories which helps in weight loss, important for diabetes prevention and management.

Swimming helps to strengthen all the major muscles in the body which helps in lowering blood sugar. Because of the nature of diabetes and how it causes the blood sugar in the body to fluctuate, it’s recommended that you regularly swim to maintain the glucose control levels. Start off by swimming as much as possible. This can be 5-10 minute sessions, eventually working your way up to 45-60 minute sessions with 10-15 minute rest periods.

Weight Loss & Toning

Going to the pool and doing the regular lap routine is only a start. For weight loss and strengthening, you want to maximize your time in the pool by trying out the butterfly stroke, fast crawl, breaststroke, backstroke and sidestroke to burn a lot of calories. These high-impact strokes will help you lose weight and tone up in places that weren’t imaginable with your other aerobic activities. For ladies looking to lose inches around the waist, this is the perfect exercise.

I’m tired of going to pool parties in the summertime and seeing all these good looking people parlaying on the side and not in the pool. As heart disease, diabetes and obesity continue to be major life-threatening conditions in our community, we must think about new and creative ways to address these issues. Exercise isn’t only lifting weights and running. Add swimming to your list – for life.

4 Crucial Eating Tips & Exercises to Get Rid of Stomach Fat

Excess abdominal fat places you at an increased risk for major health issues, including type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Even if you're at a normal weight overall, carrying that excess fat around your weight elevates the risk, so taking measures to lose belly fat can give your health -- and your self-esteem -- a big boost. Although genetics determine where your body stores fat, and there's no way to spot reduce, there are still some things you can do to get rid of belly fat and prevent it from returning.

You must create a caloric deficit to lose fat. Each pound is equal to 3,500 calories, which means you have to burn 3,500 more calories than you consume to lose 1 pound of fat. If you place yourself in a daily deficit of 500 to 1,000 calories, you can lose 1 to 2 pounds per week. Calculate your basal metabolic rate and then factor in your activities and exercises to determine how many calories you need to consume each day to break even. From there, reduce your intake to create your desired deficit. Remember, your body will lose fat from the places it wants in the order it wants to. If your stomach was the first place you put on extra fat, it will probably be the last place you lose it from. Don't let this be disheartening, though. Just understand you may have to work a little harder for a little longer to shed the fat around your waist.

While genetics largely determine where your body stores fat, you can minimize the likelihood of gaining belly fat by avoiding foods known to trigger storage around your midsection. A 2010 study in "Nutrition Research" found that consumption of foods that are high on the glycemic index, such as those containing white sugars and flours, can cause the storage of abdominal fat. Researchers at the University of Buffalo found that alcohol consumption can also lead to belly fat accumulation. Their findings, published in the 2003 issue of the "Journal of Nutrition," revealed that wine drinkers had the least belly fat, while liquor drinkers had the most. The degree of participants' belly fat correlated with the amount of alcohol they regularly consumed.

Regular exercise will help your body burn and keep off excess belly fat. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that adults get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardiovascular exercise each week. It doesn't matter how you break it down to squeeze cardio into your schedule, as long as you do it. If you're only able to exercise in 15-minute blocks, that's fine -- just do 10 blocks throughout the week. Resistance training will increase lean muscle mass and fire up your metabolism. This makes it easier for your body to burn fat and harder to gain it. ACSM suggests that adults train with weights two to three days each week, using a variety of equipment.

The stress hormone, cortisol, has been strongly linked to abdominal fat. In a 2008 study in "Endocrinology and Metabolism," researchers found a strong correlation between the cortisol levels of overweight girls and excessive abdominal fat. Similarly, a 2011 study published in "Obesity" examined how stress affected cortisol levels and visceral fat in Hispanic girls. Participants who had high levels of school-related stress also had high levels of cortisol and abdominal fat. Proper diet, exercise and meditation are all effective ways to reduce cortisol.

7 Seemingly Innocent Symptoms That Could Be Major Health Issues

If you're like us, you tend to overreact when you notice anything new or strange going on with your body. A little ache in your arm? OMG cancer! A few extra hairs in your comb? Impending baldness!

While it's good to be on guard, not every new symptom should send you racing to your doctor's office, says Rob Danoff, DO, an osteopathic physician and director of family medicine at Philadelphia's Aria Health System.

At the same time, Danoff says some seemingly benign symptoms—stuff most of us would brush off—are worthy of close examination, especially if they stick around for more than a week or two. "I call it body talk," he says. "Your body does a good job of sending you signals or clues when something's wrong." 

But sometimes those signals are super subtle. Here are a few of those signals you don't want to ignore.

Your handwriting is shrinking.

Any changes to your handwriting could signal a developing tremor, which is an early indicator of Parkinson's disease, Danoff says. Especially if your handwriting is getting smaller and tighter, this may be a furtive sign you're struggling to hold your hand steady, he says.

Your skin feels different.

Dry and itchy skin are common issues. But if seasonal shifts—or a new soap or moisturizer—can't explain your sudden skin changes, you'll want to tell your doctor if your skin suddenly seems dryer, itchier, thicker, or scaly, says Lauralee Yalden, MD, a New Jersey-based family medicine physician. "The thickening of the skin can signify high blood pressure or kidney problems," Yalden explains. "Dry, itchy skin could be caused by an underactive thyroid, a nutritional deficiency, or even an autoimmune disorder." 

Your breath smells fruity.

"With diabetes or prediabetes, people sometimes give off this weird, almost fruity odor," Danoff says. He and other experts attribute the smell to your body's efforts to burn off the excess sugar in your blood stream. "You'd notice the smell, and so would people around you," Danoff adds. 

You suddenly have trouble calculating tips.

If math is an old foe of yours, a little confusion while figuring out the tip isn't a big deal. But if you've always been good with numbers, problems calculating a tip or managing your finances could be an early warning sign of Alzheimer's or dementia, Danoff says. "If it happens once or twice, don't worry too much about it," he says. "But if you keep staring at your bill and you can't figure out what 20 pecent is, that may be something to pay attention to."

You struggle with stairs.

Are you out of breath when you get to the top of your staircase? That's something to keep an eye on, Danoff says. Especially if you can think back a few months and you're sure you didn't have stair-climbing issues before, you'll want to notify your doctor. Being out of breath after a little stair-climbing could signal heart trouble or COPD.

You feel dizzy when you stand up.

"Standing up too quickly, overexerting yourself, or simply not eating enough can make us feel dizzy or lightheaded," Yalden says. So can dehydration or your meds. But if you have to steady yourself "on a regular basis," you could be grappling with issues like anemia, an inner ear problem, or heart trouble, she says. 

You're peeing all the time.

Bowel changes are tricky. Most of us see daily fluctuations in the color, consistency, and frequency of our poop and pee. But if you're peeing all the time—we're talking a noticeable change that keeps up for more than a week or two—that could be a sign of new-onset diabetes, an infection, prostate problems (if you're a man), or even some bowel cancers, Danoff says. When it comes to you poo, a seaweed-green hue or sulfurous-smelling diarrhea are two changes you shouldn't ignore.

Why Waking Up Early Could Help You Lose Weight

Researchers say early risers make healthier food choices than their night owl counterparts

Eating healthily and losing weight can be difficult tasks for anyone, but a new study shows that when you choose to go to bed and wake up can make a big difference.

Researchers from The Obesity Society (TOS) have found that consumers who wake up early and go to bed at a decent hour are more likely to have a balanced diet than those who stay up later. It is the first study of its kind to investigate what and when people with different internal clocks eat.

TOS spokesperson Dr. Courtney Peterson explains that early birds have an advantage over night owls when it comes to fighting obesity because they instinctively choose to eat healthier foods earlier in the day. She states that factors such as metabolism and our biological clocks play a big part in weight loss.

“Previous studies have shown that eating earlier in the day may help with weight loss and lower the risk of developing diabetes and heart disease. What this new study shows is that our biological clocks not only affect our metabolism but also what we choose to eat," she said.

Early birds vs. night owls

The study analyzed data from 2,000 randomly chosen participants and looked at how their circadian and biological clock rhythm affected what they chose to eat and at what time they were most likely to eat.

The findings suggested that early birds are more likely than night owls to eat high-energy, healthy foods throughout the day. On the other hand, night owls were found to consume less protein and more sucrose and saturated fatty acids. These differences were even more pronounced on weekends, with night owls eating more often and at more irregular times. The researchers found that night owls also tended to be less physically active and have lower quality sleep.

"Linking what and when people eat to their biological clock type provides a fresh perspective on why certain people are more likely to make unhealthy food decisions," said lead researcher Mirkka Maukonen. "This study shows that evening type people have less favorable eating habits, which may put them at a higher risk for obesity, diabetes and heart disease."

Weight loss implications

While the health implications are striking, the researchers believe that the findings could be particularly important to consumers who are seeking to lose weight. They say that health care providers could help consumers by directing them towards healthier options and specific meal times.

"Clinicians can help steer people to healthier options -- and suggest the optimal time to eat these foods -- based on what we now know about our biological clocks," said Peterson.

The Workout You Need to Do If You Sit All Day

It’s no surprise that sitting all day does some undesirable things to our bodies. Research has linked excessive sitting with an elevated risk for health conditions such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Of course that doesn’t mean you’ll get heart disease just because you have a desk job—but sitting isn’t doing your body any favors.

Sitting all day can also impact us physically. Sitting for long periods of time, especially with poor posture, makes your hip flexors tight, which causes the glutes (butt muscles) to lengthen to compensate. Over time, this compromises the ability of the gluteal muscles to activate properly, leading to a condition called gluteal amnesia, AKA dead butt syndrome. When your glutes can't do their job, other muscles in your body have to work harder, which ultimately can overwork them, leading to poor body alignment and aches. Tight hip flexors also make it harder for your pelvis to rotate properly—inhibited mobility in this area can cause compression and pain in the lower back, physical therapist Dan Giordano, D.P.T., C.S.C.S., and co-founder of Bespoke Treatments Physical Therapy in New York City, tells SELF.

If you spend most of your time sitting, there is some good news. While it is true that sitting for most of the day isn’t healthy, there are some ways you can help undo the damage, Noam Tamir, C.S.C.S., founder of TS Fitness in New York City, tells SELF. For starters, Tamir recommends standing up for at least 30 to 40 minutes a day. “A standing desk is also a good option as it will help you become more aware of your posture and engage your core muscles,” he says.

In addition, doing certain exercises when you’re off the clock can also make a huge difference, especially ones that focus on strengthening the posterior (back) part of your body—like your back, glutes, and hamstrings—while stretching the anterior (front) muscles such as your hip flexors, pelvis, and chest. This helps counteract the tightness that ensues when you're in a seated position, plus strengthens the muscles that we need for good posture (read: to be strong enough to simply sit upright and stand up straight).

We asked Tamir to put together a great workout that can help undo some of the negative effects of sitting all day. “These exercises are designed to strengthen the core, work the posterior muscles of the body, engage the legs, and help with proper pelvic and spinal alignment,” he says. “Together, these moves help to offset the imbalances associated with long periods of sitting.”

So what are you waiting for? Hop up off your butt and try this routine STAT.

Repeat the below circuit three times.

1. Dead Bug — 20 reps, alternating

“This exercise focuses on the stabilizer muscles of the core such as the transverse abdominus,” explains Tamir. “So much of posture starts with the core and this move gives you feedback from the floor” on how to use these muscles properly so your body is aligned.

• Lie on your back with your arms at shoulder level raised toward the ceiling. Bring your legs up into tabletop position (knees bent 90 degrees and stacked over your hips).
• Slowly extend your right leg out straight, while simultaneously dropping your left arm overhead. Keep both a few inches from the ground.
• Bring your arm and leg back to the starting position.
• Repeat on the other side, extending your left leg and your right arm. That's one rep. Continue alternating for 20 reps total.

2. Plank — 30 seconds

“Here you’re working the full body, especially the core muscles,” says Tamir. “It’s important to focus on having good pelvic alignment and not rounding the back," he notes. Planks can help to both strengthen the core and improve pelvic orientation.

• Get on all fours with your toes on the ground shoulder-width apart. Place your forearms flat on the floor in front of you with your elbows directly below your shoulders.
• Keep your core tight so your body is in a straight line from head to toe.
• Squeeze your thighs and butt.
• Keep your neck and spine in a comfortable, neutral position. (Tip: Try aiming your chin about six inches in front of your body.)
• Hold for 30 seconds.

3. Single-Leg Bridges — 12 reps each leg

“Single-leg bridges are great to help engage the gluteus maximus (the largest glute muscle) plus the core and hamstrings,” says Tamir. Keep these bridges slow and controlled. Focus on really using your glutes to do the movement.

• Lie flat on your back. Bend your knees and place your feet flat on the floor about a foot or so away from your butt. Rest your arms at your sides on the floor.
• Lift your right leg in the air toward the ceiling, keeping your foot flexed.
• Push through your left foot to lift your glutes, hips, and back off the ground.
• Slowly lower back down, keeping your right leg in the air.
• Repeat for 12 reps, then switch legs.

4. Kettlebell Deadlifts — 15 reps

"Deadlifts primarily work the glutes, hamstrings, core, lats, and traps,” says Tamir. Strengthening these posterior muscles helps to reverse the poor posture that tends to befall those of us who sit all day. “When performed correctly, without too much weight and keeping the back in a safe position, deadlifts are one of the most useful exercises to improve posture.”

• Stand with a kettlebell on the floor between your legs. (If you don't have a kettlebell, try one of these deadlift variations using dumbbells.)
• Keeping your back flat the entire time, hinge at your hips to push your butt back and bend slightly at the knees to pick up the kettlebell.
• Straighten your legs as you pull the kettlebell up to hip level, locking your hips out at top.
• Slowly lower the kettlebell back down to tap the floor, reversing the hip-hinge movement you used to pick up the kettlebell, then immediately repeat.
• Perform 15 reps.

5. Bent-Over Row — 15 reps each arm

“With this exercise, you’re working back and shoulder muscles including the rhomboids, traps, lats, and rear deltoids. You're even working the core because of the bent-over position,” explains Tamir. “A lot of posture flaws can be attributed to an imbalance of strength between the chest and the back, with the chest being more dominant. Rows can help balance that out.”

• Hold a dumbbell in your right hand. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Bend your knees and hinge slightly at your hips so that your torso is leaning forward.
• Keeping your body in this position, row the dumbbell up to chest level, keeping your elbow toward your side.
• In a controlled motion, lower the dumbbell back down to the starting position.
• Repeat for 15 reps, then switch arms.

6. Goblet Squats — 15 reps

“This exercise primarily works the glutes, quads, hamstrings, and core muscles,” explains Tamir. “When sitting for long periods of time, our hips tend to get tight because they are in a shortened position. Doing squats gets us to sit back in our hips, past the range of motion that we’re used to when sitting at a desk."

• Stand with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart. Holding a kettlebell with both hands at your chest (you can also use a dumbbell).
• Bend at your knees and hips to lower your butt toward the ground, as if you're sitting in a chair.
• Go as low as you can, then push through heels to stand back up. Make sure your knees don't go past your ankles.
• Repeat for 15 reps.

What Is Restless Leg Syndrome?

Restless Leg Syndrome makes your skin crawl & disrupts sleep

I've been feeling a strange itchy, tingling sensation on my right ankle lately whenever I sit for longer than a half hour. It seems no matter how much I rub it, the feeling won't go away until I get up and move. As a writer, I sit a lot and the sensation always returns as soon as I sit back down, so I am constantly wiggling my ankle for relief. It has become quite the distraction.

My mother suffers from restless leg syndrome, also know as also known as Willis-Ekbom disease, which is a neurological disorder that leaves her with an uncomfortable twitching feeling in her legs that makes her want to move them and can feel like something is crawling all over her. I was wondering if perhaps this was starting to happen to me. After all, RLS affects about 10 percent of adults and 2 percent of children.

While RLS can be really hard to diagnose, if you start having a twitchy or uncomfortable feeling in your legs, arms or other body parts, such as your torso or genitals, especially at night, and it makes you feel like you need to move, then the feeling disappears only to return as soon as you are still, you may need to seek medical attention. The feeling can be anything from a tingle to an uncomfortable pulling sensation.

While RLS can be more common in people who have arthritis, are pregnant or have diabetes or anemia, you can also suffer if you don't have these conditions.

The good news is you don't have to suffer from RLS, as it is treatable.

Always wanting to move your limbs around to get rid of the creepy-crawly feeling is annoying, but what is worse is that it can affect our sleep, which can lead to other problems such as depression.

"Central nervous system problems that have been implicated include: neurotransmitters such as glutamate and gamma-aminobutyric acid, circadian physiology, reduced central iron stores, dopaminergic systems and thalamic function," Dr. David Fox, a vascular surgeon specializing in the treatment of venous disease tells SheKnows.

He is an attending vascular surgeon at Lenox Hill Hospital and offers what he claims to be the safest, most advanced vein treatments in the tri-state area, including endovenous laser therapy and sclerotherapy. Fox says that RLS is "poorly understood," as it indicates problems with both the central and peripheral nervous systems.

While there has been an effort to try to understand how we develop RLS, Fox explains that about half of all patients have some kind of family history of the condition.

"Many patients with RLS have not been found to have it as a consequence of an identifiable genetic pattern and no specific genetic abnormalities have been identified thus far," he adds.

RLS is in fact a treatable condition and most people do well when they seek treatment. The most common medications for treatment are pramipexole and ropinirole, but iron replacements and the Relaxis Pad, a device approved by the FDA in 2014, have also been known to relieve symptoms.

RLS can start at any age, and Fox says about 45 percent of all patients experience their first symptoms before the age of 20, at which point it's considered early-onset RLS. Late onset begins after age 45.