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If your little ones turn their noses up at broccoli and flee in horror at the mention of spinach you have to get creative when it comes to making sure they eat healthily. You may be surprised by some of the strategies that work – you’re not limited to sneaking vegetables into pasta sauce and blending. Getting kids involved in gardening, letting them eat raw vegetables like carrots with dip for a snack and adding sauces to broccoli and spinach can make all the difference. (more…)

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Judith Wills writes in her book that ‘not until you cleanse and lighten your body through diet can you feel truly energised.’ She suggests that a three day detox diet will not only give you a taste of natural food again, it will also reduce your cravings for salty and sweet food – and set the tone for a nutritional high energy diet from there. Expect to lose a little weight but to gain a whole lot of energy. (more…)

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In her book, The Plant Programme, Professor Jane Plant explains that a dairy-free diet is beneficial to one’s health. She recommends that besides eliminating all dairy, one should also cut down on the amount of meat one eats – so that it only consists of ten per cent of your daily intake. If you are going to eat meat, it should be thoroughly cooked organic meat. Protein should preferably come from pulses, cereals and soya based food. Read on for more Plant Programme principles. (more…)

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Many of us take up some form of exercise for various reasons, whether to get healthier or to stay fit. The majority of us, however, start exercising because we want to shed a few pounds. We picture ourselves in that perfect bikini and push ourselves to the limit, but what if your exercise routine is not helping you lose weight? If you have been working out for a while, but cannot see any results, then you may be doing something wrong. Here are a few factors which may be limiting your weight loss. (more…)

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It’s said that Kate Middleton followed the ‘new Atkins diet’ to fit into her wedding dress and that singer Jennifer Lopez and supermodel Gisele Bündchen both committed to the French high protein plan to lose post-baby pounds. What people like about the Dukan method is what made the Atkins diet so popular: you can eat as much as you want – as long as most of what you eat is fish, meat and fat-free cheese. But the buzz the Dukan diet is generating isn’t all positive and French doctors are concerned it could pose health risks. According to founder Doctor Pierre Dukan, obesity is the real risk. (more…)

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How many times have you decided to go on diet, only to lose the plot a few days later? You shouldn’t feel bad because you’d have to be superhuman manage constantly ‘sticking to a diet’ – it’s not natural and eventually your body will let you know it’s unhappy. Recent studies prove that diets do more harm than good. Dieters can put their health at risk in the long term. So why fight the odds? (more…)

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Eating healthily is essential on your path to weight loss but it can be challenging to come up with exciting, healthy foods that you actually want to eat on a daily basis. Healthy foods can also take longer to prepare than fatty, greasy takeaways and can be more expensive. If you are looking for inexpensive, on the fly healthy foods to eat everyday then carry on reading for suggestions on what to include in your daily diet. (more…)

Photo: Jingjing Cheng / Flickr

The Master Cleanse is one of the more recent dieting fads, popularized by pop superstar Beyonce Knowles, who reportedly followed the diet for 10 days in order to lose 20 lbs for her role in the 2006 film Dreamgirls. But, like other extreme ‘detox’ style diets, the Master Cleanse comes with its fair share of cons, and one should think carefully before following Beyonce’s methods to get rid of that Christmas bulge. (more…)

Photo: uberculture / Flickr

For people on a weight loss diet, one the biggest challenges is controlling their appetite. Cravings for all things sweet and greasy tend to crop up as soon as we start trying to adopt a healthier, more balanced diet. Curbing the urge to overeat can often be a battle but it is not impossible with the help of some natural appetite suppressants; both supplements and whole foods. Together with regular exercise and a balanced healthy diet, many people are able to reach and maintain their ideal weight with a little help from nature. (more…)

Photo: Rampant Gian / Flickr

In November 2004, a UN study reported that some edible insects could be used as an important source of protein and even replace conventional sources such as beef. One could be forgiven for initially being reminded of Pumba and Timon singing the virtues of a grub meal to the young Simba in the Disney animated film, The Lion King. Or perhaps, the first image that comes to mind is a particularly stomach-turning episode of Fear Factor. Either way, many of us have an aversion to creepy-crawlies and would think twice (or thrice) before including them in our favourite recipes. (more…)