Posts from — February 2008

Heart health is an important issue because we are concerned about high blood pressure and diabetes. It seems everyone is interested in cholesterol supplements, fish oils, CoQ10 and supplements for heart health and specific conditions.

For reasonably healthy adults in their 20s, 30s or early 40s, a severe cardiac event occurring to a parent or other loved one is often the impetus for that individual to think more seriously about his or her own cardiovascular wellness.

Women are at a significant risk since there is widely publicized knowledge that heart attacks are the number one killer of post-menopausal women.

When testing becomes available, that is when you see increasing and decreasing incidents. Prostate cancer was not widely known about until a test came about. Then cancer rates skyrocketed. The same can be said for the heart market. Once a good test came about, like cholesterol, then you have increased incidences. Once you have a test to determine if you are at risk, you can be healthier.

Medically, heart disease is treated as a chronic condition that cannot be cured but can be maintained; people can live longer based on lowering their cholesterol by eating healthier foods, exercising and taking medication, be it natural or synthetic.

As that awareness grows, it is up to business savvy owners such as VitaminBaron to provide the products customers are after, but also to be a part of the education process. Many consumers find information on the Internet, but have no understanding of the source or purpose behind it. This leads to buying decisions that may not be in their best interest. We are encouraging interaction with your physician; and we want to help educate the customer.

VitaminBaron talks to customers on the phone or in person to assist with health questions and helps each person select appropriate products. Many of our customers are 50 or older, so cardiovascular concerns are becoming more prominent. If your family has a history of heart disease, you may be looking for preventative products. There is also an abundance of research news about fish oil and CoQ10 on the Internet.

Eye on Ingredients

Top Products of the Moment

Market research shows gains of sales for these six products:

Omega-3s: The American Heart Association recommends 2 to 4 g per day for anyone with high triglycerides, and at least 1 g per day for anyone with documented coronary heart disease. The most potent formulas are derived from fish and contain both EPA to DHA.

CoQ10: Found in every cell of our bodies and necessary for the production of cellular energy, CoQ10 increases plasma levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, vitamin E and vitamin C; and decreases levels of total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. In patients at risk for future coronary events, CoQ10 may prevent thrombosis and have protective effects on vascular and myocardial remodeling and endothelial function. For hypertension, taking CoQ10 orally seems to provide an additional blood pressure lowering effect and might allow dosage reduction or discontinuation of some antihypertensive medications.

Policosanol: One of the most popular supplements available for supporting healthy cholesterol, one randomized independent study paired. Policosanol against two of the most popular cholesterol lowering prescription drugs and found it had equal or greater cholesterol lowering effects, without any of the common side effects.

Hawthorn: Used for decades as a cardiovascular tonic, as it has been shown to improve efficiency of the pumping action of the heart by increasing blood flow in the coronary arteries. The main constituents in hawthorn have been identified as flavonoids.

Magnesium: Over 300 enzymatic processes in the body require a vital structural component of all muscle cells, including the heart, magnesium. Government studies have shown that the average American diet provides only 40 percent of the magnesium people need in a day.

Antioxidants: Like flavonoids in fruits and vegetables, antioxidants may help lower your risk for cardiovascular disease. Olympian Labs Grape Seed Extract offers a proprietary high oxygen radical absorbance capacity formula containing very high amounts of antioxidants.

If you go on a fad diet and it helps you lose weight fast and get results, what's wrong with that?

I'm sure you've seen many ads on the internet and in magazines promising you huge weight loss in only a few days time.

Is this type of weight loss really possible? Yes - but … in almost every case the weight loss from a fad diet is temporary and usually due to loss of water weight. Our bodies are made up of a large percentage of water so as soon as your body rehydrates itself you'll put that quick weight loss right back on.

What are some of the reasons a fad diet is bad for you?

#1 A fad diet usually tells you to focus on a single food type and avoid all others. This means you miss out on the nutrition you really need and can get from a more balanced diet approach. Quite often these fad diets will even tell you to take vitamins and supplements to make up for all the nutritional deficiencies you experience while on that fad diet. However, your body will not be able to absorb the nutrients from the recommended supplements unless you take them with food. And many of the foods that help you absorb nutrients are banned on fad diets.

#2 Fad diets are usually so restrictive and unappetizing that, after as little as one day, you'll begin having overwhelming cravings for other foods and most likely you'll give up. This can also wreak havoc on your self esteem if you beat yourself up for not having enough willpower to stick it out with the diet.

#3 Fad diets are temporary solutions to your weight problems. Even if you do follow through to the end with a fad diet you have not made permanent, healthy changes to the way you handle food in your life. So fad dieters tend to be yo-yo dieters that go back and forth between extreme low-calorie fad diets to periods of bingeing on food groups that were missing from the fad diet. So fad dieters will inevitably end up on a roller coaster of gaining and losing the same pounds, over and over.

No matter what you see in the media about quick weight loss fad diets, realize that these diets will never work long term.

The best way to lose weight and sustain that weight loss (so you never have to diet again) is to eat a variety of healthy foods, avoid overeating, and do regular exercise. This simple formula works every time.

By: Keira Adams
Keira Adams is publisher of The Internet Spa at http://www.internet-spa.com.
Get the information you need to rejuvenate your mind, body and spirit.

I get asked often do I exercise and lift weights to prepare for participation in other "real" sports. My response is always the same. Weight lifting is a "real" sport. Actually one of the few "real" sports. Let me explain.

Since the assumption is that I am training for another sport, my other sport probably involves competition against another entity, hence the reason I am training, to gain an advantage. I need an advantage because in this sport I must be training for, there will be a score kept, and at some point in time we will say the competition is over and the individual or team with the best score "wins". I mean that IS what sports are, right? Play, keep score, win or lose. I can not think of a sport where that isn't the objective.

I play golf. Very poorly, but I play. Very difficult individual sport. Me against the course. Me against my playing partners. I make a terrible swing and hit a crazy duck hook off the tee that hits a tree and bounces into the middle of the fairway. I make a rare perfect swing and hit a beautiful high fade and the ball lands in the middle of the fairway and rolls to a stop inside a three inch deep divot. This is sport? You can use any team or individual competition out there and they all have these forces at work.

Weight lifting is black and white. No grey areas. No luck. No time table. No excuses. No funny bounces of the ball. No wind assists. No bad calls from the ref. No home field advantage. No equipment advantages. And most importantly of all, the only opponent anyone ever needs.

Themselves.

You want to keep score? How about this: a 100 lbs today will be the same as a 100 lbs tomorrow and forever. Lift it today. Can you lift it the next time you try? You want time frames for the competition? Fine. Could you lift it a year ago? Can you now? You see there's no hoping tomorrow's opponent is easier, or that you're the home team and you're hitting down wind on 18. There's no blaming the refs, I was good but my teammates stink and damn that 10 pin tap. Live with that.

So the next time you see someone lifting weights and taking it serious, and you wonder what sport they are training for, know this. The only sport that matters. Their life.

By: Steve R Robbins
Steve R. Robbins has been a life long fitness enthusiast. Has the distinction of being able to run a marathon and bench press twice his weight in the same day. All at the age of 50. Editor and regular contributor to http://www.MuscleandHealth.org.