What Do The Kids At YOUR Cheer Gym Drink?

Gatorade erodes teeth faster than Coke, a new study shows.

That doesn’t mean that Gatorade and other sports drinks are necessarily harder on your teeth than are Coke and other soft drinks. But it may be a surprise that they aren’t any better, either, says researcher Leslie A. Ehlen, a student at the University of Iowa School of Dentistry.

“I don’t think everybody realizes how erosive these things are, especially Gatorade and Red Bull,” Ehlen tells WebMD. “People need to be aware that all sorts of beverages can be causing dental erosion.”

Ehlen presented the study at this week’s annual meeting of the American Association for Dental Research in Orlando, Fla.

More and more dentists now think sugary drinks are the major culprit in tooth decay, says Brian Burt, PhD, professor emeritus of epidemiology at the University of Michigan School of Public Health.

“There is pretty good evidence now that this is not just sports drinks, but soft drinks and juices in general,” Burt tells WebMD. “They have become the main source of sugars in the diet. It comes down to the more sugar in the drink, the more risk of [cavities] to the person drinking it.”

1 Day of Soft Drinks, Lots of Erosion

The University of Iowa researchers covered extracted teeth with nail polish. They left bare two patches on each tooth, one on the enamel and one on the root. Then they dunked the teeth in test tubes filled with regular Coke, Diet Coke,Gatorade, Red Bull, or 100% apple juice.

Every five hours, the researchers refreshed the beverages. After 25 hours, they examined the teeth with a microscope. All of the beverages eroded the bare spots on the teeth. But different beverages had significantly different effects.

On the enamel, Gatorade was significantly more corrosive than Red Bull and Coke. Red Bull and Coke, in turn, were significantly more corrosive than Diet Coke and apple juice.

On the roots of the teeth, Gatorade was more corrosive than Red Bull. Coke, apple juice, and Diet Coke followed in that order.

The difference in the effect isn’t simply due to their sugar content. Gatorade is 6% carbohydrates, mostly sugars. Coke is about 10% sugar. Both are acidic beverages.

University of Michigan pediatric dental researcher Michael Ignelzi, DDS, PhD, has recently reviewed new research on the effects of beverages on children’s teeth. But he says there’s no evidence showing thatsports drinks are any worse than other soft drinks.

“I know of no data that sports drinks are more harmful than other drinks,” Ignelzi tells WebMD.

Sports Drinks and Cavities

Because of their acidity and sugar content, researchers have studied the role of sports drinks in the development of cavities. Most of the studies, however, exonerate the sports drinks.

Craig Horswill, PhD, senior research fellow at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, in 2005 reported a study of saliva flow in endurance athletes who drank Gatorade, diluted orange juice, a homemade sports drink, or water. The study showed that if the sports drinks had any effect, it was to decrease dehydration and increase saliva flow, which reduces cavity formation.

More to the point, a 2002 Ohio State University study of 304 athletes found no link between sports-drink use and dental erosion. The study was sponsored by Quaker Oats, which makesGatorade.

“Dental erosion among users of sports drinks in the Ohio State study was the same as it was in nonusers,” Horswill tells WebMD. “And they averaged 10 years of sports drink use.”

Ignelzi says that what matters most isn’t which beverage people drink. It’s how and when they drink it.

“A lot of things can cause [cavities], including sugared drinks. It is the way they are taken that is most important,” he says. “The frequency of exposure is key. If you sip a Pepsi all day, that is very harmful. But if you are taking any sweet or carb — cheese puffs, bread, raisins — if you take it during meals, it is a good thing. Because the saliva stimulated by your chewing buffers the acid. But if you are constantly snacking on sweets or sipping a sweet beverage, your teeth are exposed to acid all day long.”

What's an alternative?

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Teen Fitness - The Fight Against Childhood Obesity

Anyone who has been a parent, or a kid for that matter, knows that the life of a teenager is often a state of confusion loosely controlled by peers, trends and a seed of good taste. Mom’s once-revered advice starts to have the tinny resonance of an old cassette tape. On one hand we long to see them come into their own; while the other hand clutches those apron strings so tightly you’d think it would take the Jaws of Life to pull them apart. Most teens make it through unscathed and for others the piercings heal over, the tats fade and life becomes the long happy journey it’s intended to be. Today that scenario is changing as teenage obesity rates climb sky-high and the scientific community grows increasingly concerned that unhealthy teen habits create irreversible damage leading to premature death. “Childhood obesity not only has health consequences for children, but increases the risk for death in adulthood,” said Dr. Frank B. Hu, an associate professor of nutrition and epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Hu was the lead researcher in a study that examined the highly-regarded Nurses’ Health Study data relating to 102,400 women aged 24 to 44. The women had provided answers to a number of questions including their weight at age 18. Researchers followed up 12 years later and found that the heavier a woman was at age 18, the greater her chances of death from heart disease, cancer, suicide and other causes. The obesity epidemic in the U.S. is not isolated to teens. We are the fattest nation on the planet. As life got easier, and food became cheaper and more processed, we’ve all scrambled to find ways to maintain our health. We are all still learning and seeking answers for a world that is so new, even the scientists can’t predict its long-range repercussions. Why didn’t someone tell us ten years ago that saving those margarine tubs for microwaving wasn’t smart? For that matter, why didn’t they tell us light butter might be a better alternative? About the only thing for certain is that the American lifestyle is killing us. Scientists choose their words very carefully, and epidemic is not a word to be taken lightly—think Bubonic Plague or the Spanish Influenza Epidemic, both of which claimed millions of lives. Obesity is a serious problem in the U.S. as evidenced by organizations and legislation that is struggling to contain it. That containment requires increasing exercise opportunities including stress relieving exercise, and decreasing consumption of processed foods that store themselves quickly and easily as fat. One-third of U.S. children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are overweight or obese. Obesity in children is a risk factor for high blood pressure, increased levels of cholesterol, chronic inflammation, type 2 diabetes, breast cancer, asthma and premature death.1 All this pales against the fact that obese and overweight children are the brunt of cruel teasing in school, often leading to low self-esteem and other psychological problems. The spotlight on teen obesity lit up in 2000, when the excitement of the new millennium had statisticians working overtime at measuring how times had changed. One of the millions of statistics to come out was the fact that child obesity rates doubled since 1980, and tripled in the case of teenage obesity. Type 2 diabetes, once considered so rare in young people that it was called “adult onset” diabetes, was suddenly being seen in adolescents. The condition, now also referred to as an epidemic, can result in amputations, kidney problems, blindness and death. The good news is that reversing the teen obesity epidemic is a top priority in America. Identifying Solutions Last November former President Clinton said about the teenage obesity epidemic: “We need to do something about it for our children and for our country, because something like this could easily collapse our nation if we don’t act now.” That statement was made at CNN’s first Fit Nation Summit. Fit Nation Express is an ongoing, multi-platform initiative against obesity lead by CNN’s chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta. In its third year, Dr. Gupta’s Fit Nation Express will once again travel around the country rallying more Americans to take charge of their weight by exercising more and eating healthier. Selected destinations include Denver, San Diego and Chicago this year. Dr. Mehmet Oz, now a household name with his ongoing appearances on the Oprah Winfrey show and bestselling books, has founded HealthCorps® in a bold move to impact the lives of U.S. teens. Recruiting medical graduate students and other young people interested in careers in medicine and nutrition, HealthCorps® brings their class to America’s classrooms. Funded through private donations there is no cost to the school, and the young educators present in and afterschool seminars on diet, nutrition and exercise. In the same engaging way Dr. Oz and partner Dr. Michael Roizen present important health information to millions of Americans, the HealthCorps’ young staff—some not much older than the students they teach—use a variety of methods to bring their message home. Students may engage in an exercise class, take an actual trip to the grocery store, or even touch and hold human organs to see and feel the difference between healthy and sick. “By giving students, parents and community members the necessary tools to surround themselves with healthy options” says Dr. Oz, “HealthCorps® is working today for a healthy America tomorrow.” Taking Aim at Soda “Parents and health officials need to recognize soft drinks for what they are—liquid candy—and do everything they can to return those beverages to their former role as occasional treat,” says the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a U.S. consumer group. In fact, CSPI has recently petitioned the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) calling for cigarette-style warnings on soft drinks to caution people of their potential health risks. They are far from alone in their campaign. Changing the tide of teen obesity requires a combination of programs to encourage exercise, education about nutrition and disease prevention, and state legislation to provide mandatory exercise and healthy food fare in our nation’s schools. The Alliance for a Healthier Generation—a joint initiative of the William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association—reached an historic agreement with representatives of the world’s largest soft drink bottlers in 2006. Under the deal, elementary schools will only sell water, juices with no added sweeteners, and low-fat or fat-free regular and flavored milk. The drinks will be sold in 8-ounce containers. Middle schools will offer the same choices, but in 10-ounce servings. High schools will only sell 12-ounce beverages of about 100 calories and in addition to the drinks offered to elementary and middle school kids, high schools will also offer no-calorie or low-calorie drinks like teas, diet sodas, sports drinks and flavored waters. According to the latest statistics released by the American Beverage Association (ABA), shipments of full calorie soft drinks to schools were 45% lower during the 2006-2007 school year than they were in 2004.4 Shipments of water increased by 23% that same period. The agreement states that the industry will strive to fully implement these guidelines prior to the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year, providing schools and school districts are willing to amend existing contracts. The program is estimated to affect 35 million students across the country. The ABA report sounds positive on the surface, but the noted 41% reduction in calories shipped into schools may not translate to a measurable decrease in weight gained. Part of the problem lies in the nation’s new love affair, particularly amongst teenagers, with energy drinks. Energy Drinks: Teen’s New Sodas A calorie-conscious market began clamoring for soft drink alternatives at the start of this decade. The genre’s all-star, Gatorade, was reborn in dozens of colors and flavors, and was soon taken over by dozens of new brands. On the heels of this burgeoning market for sports drinks came the energy drink. In 2006, just as the Alliance was signing their groundbreaking agreement, America went energy drink wild. According to market researcher Information Resources Inc., energy drinks outperformed all other categories of beverages that year. Sales topped $5 billion in 2007 and insiders project it to exceed $10 billion in the U.S. market alone. Some of these drinks pass the Alliance guidelines for calories, but insinuate a new problem for parents by adding other non-calorie, and sometimes dangerous, ingredients. Other popular energy drinks are loaded with waist-widening High Fructose Corn Syrups (HFCS) and while they may not make it to school vending machines, they reach campus in backpacks. Energy drinks are the new Starbucks: the must-have beverage for the younger generation. Last year, several teens in Colorado Springs sought medical attention after drinking SPIKE Shooter, as did another student at Smoky Hill High School in Aurora, CO. The 8.4-ounce can has more than three times the caffeine of a cup of coffee, plus several herbal stimulants. Their label now recommends that individuals under 18 and the elderly should not imbibe; however, there is no regulation to stop kids from buying it. Even though the label recommends “newbie’s” to start with one-half can and not to exceed one can per day, many teens take such warnings as a challenge. Several Colorado high schools have warned students and parents of the dangers, with one Denver school actually banning the drink on campus and persuading a nearby 7-Eleven store to remove it from their shelves. A month later the scene repeated itself in Florida where four teenagers from Falcon Cove Middle School in Weston were taken to a hospital emergency room after ingesting Redline. That incident prompted talk from Broward County School Board members about a possible ban. These and other similar stories prompted a group to form called Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood which is lobbying the FDA, along with groups like the CSPI and the American Medical Association, to force food manufacturers to list the amount of caffeine on product labels. The ABA has issued voluntary guidelines asking for caffeine label information separate from the ingredients statement, but as the case with SPIKE Shooter, compliance usually occurs only when a manufacturer’s forced by public outcry. A new energy drink aimed at teens With energy drinks rocking the beverage industry, an Arizona based liquid nutritional supplement company called Vemma wanted to bring a competitive, but much healthier alternative to the market. The end result was Verve. Verve uses a super-antioxidant formula as a base, has 80 mg of natural caffeine equal to about one cup of coffee, natural sugars equivalent to about an apple and a half, light carbonation, the flavor from carefully selected fruits, and hip packaging. “High fructose corn syrup is a cheap way to sweeten drinks,” explains BK Boreyko, the founder of Vemma and the father of three young boys. “When I look at all the kids consuming all those calories – sodas, sport drinks – and I think of those poor little pancreases working overtime to process the junk, it just breaks my heart.” Take Action! To avoid consuming high fructose corn syrup and other potentially unhealthy ingredients, it is vital that youth learn to review the nutrition information on packaged foods. In the summer of 2007, the FDA launched a campaign called “Spot the Block”, to encourage this very behavior. The campaign targets youth ages 9 to 13 and their parents. The campaigns aims to inspire youth to seek out the Nutrition Facts on the food label, understand the information it provides, and use it for making healthful choices related to their own dietary management. As a parent, you can inspire your child to do this by urging them to look for, read, and think about the Nutrition Facts information on food packaging. You can also use mealtime and grocery shopping as a means to teach kids to read labels together and discuss healthy eating habits.

Teen Fitness Protects Against Breast Cancer Later In Life

Teen Exercise Protects Against Breast Cancer Later In Life By Lauran Neergaard AP Medical Writer

New research shows exercise during the teen years - starting as young as age 12 - can help protect girls from breast cancer when they are grown. Middle-aged women have long been advised to get active to lower their risk of breast cancer after menopause. What is new: That starting so young pays off, too. “This really points to the benefit of sustained physical activity from adolescence through the adult years, to get the maximum benefit,” said Dr. Graham Colditz of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the study's lead author. Researchers tracked nearly 65,000 nurses ages 24 to 42 who enrolled in a major U.S. health study. They answered detailed questionnaires about their physical activity dating back to age 12. Within six years of enrolling, 550 were diagnosed with breast cancer before menopause. A quarter of all breast cancer is diagnosed at these younger ages, when it's typically more aggressive. Women who were physically active as teens and young adults were 23 percent less likely to develop premenopausal breast cancer than women who grew up sedentary, researchers report Wednesday in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. The biggest impact was regular exercise from ages 12 to 22. “This is not the extreme athlete,” Colditz cautioned. The women at lowest risk reported doing 3 hours and 15 minutes of running or other vigorous activity a week or, for the less athletic, 13 hours a week of walking. Typically, the teens reported more strenuous exercise while during adulthood, walking was most common. Why would it help? A big point of exercise in middle age and beyond is to keep off the pounds. After menopause, fat tissue is a chief source of estrogen. In youth, however, the theory is that physical activity itself lowers estrogen levels. Studies of teen athletes show that very intense exercise can delay onset of menstrual cycles and cause irregular periods. The moderate exercise reported in this study was nowhere near enough for those big changes. But it probably was enough to cause slight yet still helpful hormone changes, said Dr. Alpa Patel, a cancer prevention specialist at the American Cancer Society, who praised the new research. And while the study examined only premenopausal breast cancer, “it's certainly likely and possible” that the protection from youthful exercise will last long enough to affect more common postmenopausal breast cancer, too, Colditz added. “If you were a bookworm as a teen, it is not too late.” Patel said. Other research on the middle-age benefits of exercise shows mom should join her daughter for that bike ride or game of tennis or at least a daily walk around the block. Many breast cancer risks a woman can't change: How early she starts menstruating, how late menopause hits, family history of the disease. Even though the exercise benefit is modest, physical activity and body weight are risk factors that women can control, Patel stressed. “I'd say you and your daughter should get off the couch,” she said. “Women who engage in physical activity not only during adolescence but during adulthood lower their risk.”

Get Rid of the Gatorade! Yoli Blastcaps are HERE!

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Most parents & kids don't realize that one bottle of Gatorade has the equivalent of about 30 packets of sugar in it! There IS an alternative! Yoli Blastcaps are a new product to recently hit the market. It's a patented delivery system, called the Blast Cap and is placed on top of a water bottle. Push it down and the nutritional supplement is blasted into your water! What's the difference? Yoli Blast Caps are ALL NATURAL and contain NO added sugar or preservatives! There is nothing artificial and Yoli Blastcaps are sweetened with Stevia, an all natural sweetener! Kids LOVE activating the blastcaps and they love the taste even more! Cheer Gyms can now offer Yoli Blastcaps at their gym! It also makes a great fundraiser, too!

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Watchdog bans Vitamin Water Advertisement - Misleading

Watchdog Bans Vitamin Water Advertisements

October 7, 2009 12:11 am

Publicity for vitamin-enriched water made by Coca-Cola fell flat with the advertising watchdog for "misleading" claims about its nutritional benefits.

Watchdog bans vitamin water advertisements.

Posters and a leaflet for Vitamin Water featured slogans such as "more muscles than brussels" and "keep perky when you're feeling murky".

An advert for the "power-c" drink said: "Popeye had it easy. A can of spinach and he bulked up ... the nutrients in this bottle won't enable you to walk on mud, or become a strapping sailor man, but they will help you beat your granny in an arm wrestle."

Another read: "If you've had to use sick days because you've actually been sick, then you're seriously missing out my friend. The trick is to stay perky and use sick days to just, erm, not go in."

Complaints were made about the implications that the drinks were equivalent to vegetables and had health benefits such as raised energy levels and resistance to illness.

Two people also said that the adverts implied that the drinks were "healthy", even though they contained 4.6 g of sugar per 100ml.

Coca-Cola insisted the advertising was "humorous and irreverent" and the reference to "brussels" referred to the nickname for action film star Jean Claude Van Damme aka "the Muscles from Brussels", not sprouts.

The reference to staying "perky" meant mood rather than fighting illness, and consumers would not think that arm-wrestling their granny would need more energy.

But the Advertising Standards Authority upheld the objections.

The ASA also found that the drinks contained nearly a quarter of the recommended daily amount of sugar in 500ml but the publicity made it likely that consumers would think the products were "healthy". The adverts must not be used again.

Health Drinks for Kids Makes Biggest Gains!

Big growth forecast for US children’s healthy drinks market

By Mike Stones, 24-Sep-2009

The US market for children’s food and drink will grow in value by 50 percent from $16.4bn in 2007 to $26.8bn within two years, according to a new report from New Nutrition Business.

The report, Marketing Kids’ Healthy Beverages, identifies health drinks as making the biggest gains. Fruit juice, fruit-flavored water and dairy drinks are still the biggest and most dynamic areas of the junior beverage sector as more companies recognize that parents are looking for alternatives to sugary colas and sodas.

“There are a number of factors that give fruit drinks for kids a competitive advantage over other categories,” says the report. “For one thing the “naturally healthy” image of fruit drinks makes them a suitable vehicle for health benefits – as does children’s love

of fruit-flavored, sweet drinks. They are also convenient to carry and pack in lunchboxes.”

Appealing to customers

Underpinning a brand with the claim of naturalness is proving to be just as strong and profitable a trend in children’s food as in adult nutrition, according to the report.

“Across all food and beverage categories, the message that a food or food component is naturally and intrinsically healthy is one of the most appealing to consumers in all cultures,” writes the report’s author, food specialist Julian Mellentin.

As almost all of the ten case studies featured in the report illustrate, health-conscious parents are increasingly choosing products that they perceive to be as natural as possible. Increasingly they are shunning ingredients that they see as undesirable or unnatural or potentially harmful, such as added sugar and artificial sweeteners, preservatives, colors, or flavors.

“Being able to offer one or more of the benefits of being “free-from” dairy or wheat (to take just two examples) is essential for any brand targeting children and health conscious parents,” advises the report. “Kids’ beverages should contain no added sugar – use apple or pear juice concentrates as your sweetener, or perhaps fructose.”

Although beverage products should be as natural as possible, manufacturers who want to deliver a health benefit from an added ingredient should choose one that mothers accept and understand. That means, in most countries, either a probiotic or an omega-3, said the report.

Digestive health

Parents’ key concerns for their children’s health focus on immunity and digestive health, according to the report.

“In coming years expect to see an increasing focus on developing brands to meet these needs. Concerns around digestive health suggest an untapped opportunity for fiber (one that Froose beverage in the US has picked up on) and probiotics,” it predicted.

Also important is strong beverage packaging which is equally as important as products’ scientific credentials, research and development, or advertising investment.

The report is available from New Nutrition Business at www.new-nutrition.com . No information on prices was available.

New York City's Ad Campaign Against the Sugary Beverage Industry

All across New York, billboards are going up in the subway today show streams of sugary drinks turning into glistening yellow globs of human fat, mottled with blood vessels and served on ice. It’s great to see Yoli supporters popping up all over these days…Yoli Supporters in New York… new ad campaign says soda is pouring on the fat September 2, 2009. All across New York, billboards are going up in the subway today show streams of sugary drinks turning into glistening yellow globs of human fat, mottled with blood vessels and served on ice.

It’s disgusting. And that’s the point, say Health Department officials who conceived the campaign to scare New Yorkers away from soda, sports drinks, bottled teas and other drinks with sugar in them. “Just trying to be positive and encouraging doesn’t always get people’s attention,” said Associate Commissioner Geoff Cowley. “If you get in people’s faces a bit, that does get people’s attention.”The fat campaign aims to reduce obesity and diabetes by showing New Yorkers just how much sugar is in the drinks they grab off bodega and deli shelves. A 20-ounce bottle of soda can contain 16.5 teaspoons of sugar, a 20-ounce lemon-flavored iced tea can have 14.5 tablespoons of sugar. Even a 20-ounce bottle of a sports drink can have 7.5 teaspoons, the department says. Vitamin water, Gatorade, Red Bull, etc. also add much sugar.

Agency officials hope New Yorkers – especially parents of young children and teenagers – will think twice and instead grab lowfat milk, a diet soda or just plain water… or ditch all of those and just drink a low calorie, nutrient rich, sugar-free beverage.“If you thought you were doing well because you weren’t drinking a sugary soda, but you were drinking a lemon-lime drink and it turns out to have the same amount of sugar, that’s shocking,” said Cathy Nonas, the Health Department’s director of physical activity and nutrition.

“These kinds of things are shocking to people,” Nonas said. “In every age group, you see the increase in portion sizes and the number of servings.”Health surveys show between 21% and 29% of city teens drink soda daily, slurping down 360 calories that would take a 70-block walk to burn.

A companion video ad, set to be released in a few months, shows an actor pouring pure fat from a soda can into a glass – and then appearing to drink it. “Are you pouring on the pounds?” the ad says. “Drinking one can of soda a day can make you 10 pounds fatter a year.”

Healthy Snacking

Healthy Snacking Between school, homework, sports, your after-school job, and hanging out with friends, it may feel like there's no time for healthy eating. And when you do stop to eat, it's probably tempting to go the quick and easy route by grabbing a burger and fries, potato chips, or candy. But it is possible to treat yourself to a healthy snack. In fact, if you have a hectic schedule, it's even more important to eat healthy foods that give you the fuel you need to keep going. Even if you take time to eat three meals a day, you may still feel hungry at times. What's the answer? Healthy snacks.
Snacking on nutritious food can keep your energy level high and your mind alert without taking up a lot of your time. Why Healthy Snacking Is Good for You You may have noticed that you feel hungry a lot. This is natural — during adolescence, a person's body demands more nutrients to grow. Snacks are a terrific way to satisfy that hunger and get all the vitamins and nutrients your body needs. But you need to pay attention to what you eat. Stuffing your face with a large order of fries after class may give you a temporary boost, but a snack this high in fat and calories will only slow you down in the long run.
To keep energy levels going — and avoid weight gain — steer clear of foods with lots of simple carbohydrates (sugars) like candy bars or soda. Look for foods that contain complex carbohydrates like whole-grain breads and cereals and combine them with protein-rich snacks such as peanut butter or low-fat yogurt or cheese. Judging Whether Snacks Are Healthy Choosing healthy snacks means shopping smart. Be cautious of the health claims on food packages. Here are some things to watch out for.
Just because something is "all natural" or "pure" doesn't necessarily mean that it's nutritious. For example, "all natural" juice drinks or sodas can be filled with sugar (which is, after all, a natural ingredient) but all that sugar means they'll be high in calories and give you little nutrition. A granola bar is a good example of a snack that people think is healthy. Although granola bars can be a good source of certain vitamins and nutrients, many also contain a great deal of fat, including a particularly harmful type of fat called trans fat. On average, about 35% of the calories in a regular granola bar come from fat. And there can be a lot of sugar in granola cereals and bars. Check the Nutrition Facts label on the package to be sure.
Be skeptical of low-fat food claims, too. If the fat has been eliminated or cut back, the amount of sugar in the food may have increased to keep that food tasting good. Many low-fat foods have nearly as many calories as their full-fat versions. Whatever claims a food's manufacturer writes on the front of the package, you can judge whether a food is healthy for you by reading the ingredients and the nutrition information on the food label.
Smart Snacking Strategies Here are some ways to make healthy snacking part of your everyday routine: Prepare healthy snacks in advance. Did you know that you can make your own granola or trail mix? When you make something yourself, you get to control the ingredients and put in what's good for you! You can also keep plenty of fresh fruit and veggies at home so you can grab them on the go. Cut up melons or vegetables like celery and carrots in advance. Keep the servings in bags in the fridge, ready to grab and go. Keep healthy snacks with you. Make it a habit to stash some fruit, whole-grain crackers, or baby carrots in your backpack or workout bag so you always have some healthy food nearby. Half a cheese sandwich also makes a great snack to have on standby.
Make it interesting. Healthy snacking doesn't have to be boring as long as you give yourself a variety of choices. Whole-wheat pretzels with spicy mustard, rice cakes with peanut butter and raisins, or low-fat fruit yogurt are healthy, tasty, and easy. Satisfy cravings with healthier approaches. If you’re crazy for chocolate, try a hot chocolate drink instead of a chocolate bar. An 8-ounce mug of hot chocolate has only 140 calories and 3 grams of fat. A chocolate bar, on the other hand, has 230 calories and 13 grams of fat. Substitute nonfat frozen yogurt or sorbet for ice cream. If you’re craving savory munchies, snack on baked tortilla chips instead of regular corn chips and pair them with salsa instead of sour cream. Or satisfy salt cravings with pretzels instead of chips.
Read serving size information. What looks like a small package of cookies can contain 2 or more servings — which means double or even triple the amounts of fat, calories, and sugar shown on the label. Don't slip up after dinner. Evenings can be a tempting time to indulge in sugary, fatty snacks. If you're really feeling hungry, don't ignore it. Instead, pick the right snacks to fill the hunger gap. Whole-wheat fig bars, rice cakes, or air-popped popcorn can do the trick, as can fruit paired with cheese or yogurt.
Treats to Try Here are a few healthy snacking ideas: Ants on a log — Spread peanut butter on celery sticks and top with raisins. Banana ice — Peel several very ripe bananas, break them into 1-inch pieces, and freeze the pieces in a sealed plastic bag. Just before serving, whirl the pieces in the blender with a small amount of water or juice. Serve right away. Add berries for a different flavor or top with fruit or nuts. Healthy ice pops — Freeze fresh, unsweetened 100% juice in ice pop molds or ice cube trays. Whole-grain pita and hummus — Warm a pita in the oven on low, then cut it into small triangles. Dip it in a tasty, low-fat hummus. Hummus is available in yummy flavors like garlic and spicy red pepper. Hummus also makes a tasty dip for cut–up veggies. Happy trails mix — Combine 1 cup whole-grain toasted oat cereal with 1/4 cup chopped walnuts and 1/4 cup dried cranberries for a healthy trail mix. As with everything, moderation is the key to smart snacking. People who eat regular meals and healthy snacks are less likely to overeat and gain weight than people who skip meals or go for long periods without eating and then scarf down a large order of fries.
It's natural to feel hungrier at certain times — like between a long afternoon of classes and your swim meet. Knowing how much food your body needs to satisfy this hunger is critical. A handful of walnuts make great brain food before sitting down to do that math homework. But a whole bag won't help you add anything — except pounds!

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Do Energy Drinks Cause Acne?

READ THE ARTICLE HERE!

Why would energy drinks cause acne?
I have a few different theories to why energy drinks may in fact cause acne. Again, these are all theories. If I do know one thing however, consistently drinking energy drinks will definitely cause you to breakout.
Energy Drinks are dehydrating like soda: Does soda cause acne? Sure it does! Soda is very dehydrating and dehydration is directly linked to acne. Could it be that energy drinks are also dehydrating?
Caffeine can also cause acne: Another reason to believe that energy drinks may cause acne is the fact that they have so much caffeine, which is directly related to acne.
I'm no longer consuming energy drinks.
I can't be walking around telling people how to get rid of their acne if I have acne myself. With that being said, I have replaced my habit with water. Once again, I am almost clear.
If you can take anything from this post, know that the things you put in your body, definitely do play a role in whether or not you will get acne. With that being said, energy drinks definitely cause acne!Does soda cause acne? The simple answer is yes. Drinking pop can lead to breakouts. You may be surprised. For the longest time, acne companies, dermatologists, and everyone else related said that drinking cola won't cause you to break out. I'm not saying I'm more knowledgable than these people, but I can say that they're wrong. The foods you eat, can play a role in whether or not you will get acne.

Are Sports Drinks Bad For Your Teeth?

Sports drinks can rehydrate you after a workout, but they also may wreak havoc on your teeth. Prolonged consumption of these types of beverages could lead to erosive tooth wear, according to a study presented at the International Association for Dental Research in Miami on Friday.

Sports drinks are acidic, and pose a risk to teeth, new research says.

Mark Wolff, professor and chairman of the department of cardiology and comprehensive care at New York University College of Dentistry, and his colleagues immersed cow teeth (because of their similarity to human teeth) in either water or a top-selling sports drink -- including Vitamin Water, Life Water, Gatorade, Powerade, and Propel Fit Water. After soaking for 75 to 90 minutes, to replicate consuming a beverage over time, researchers measured the strength of the teeth.

Previous studies found that sports beverages can damage tooth enamel -- even more so than soda -- due to a combination of acidic components, sugars, and additives. This research looked specifically at the way sports drinks affected dentin, the dental tissue under enamel that determines the size and shape of teeth.

All of the tested sports drinks caused softening of the dentin, and Gatorade and Powerade caused significant staining. The researchers used cut-in-half teeth in the study, which exposed the dentin.

"Sports drinks are very acidic drinks. When they become your soft drink, your fluid, then you run the real risk of very significant effects, such as etching the teeth and actually eroding the dentin if you have exposed roots," says Wolff.

Any beverage that has high acid content can weaken the enamel, making the teeth more susceptible to bacteria that can sneak into the cracks and crevices in the teeth. Sugar can exacerbate the situation, encouraging the bacterial growth, according to Kimberly Harms, a spokesperson for the American Dental Association. "Sugar is bad, and acid is bad, but many of these [sports] drinks have both. The combination causes tooth decay," says Harms.

Wolff says adults shouldn't choose a sports drink as their everyday beverage, but Harms says it's more important for younger people to avoid excess intake. "The group I'm most concerned with are the high schoolers and teenagers, because they carry the drinks around school with them."

Either way, you may want to resist the urge to grab your toothbrush immediately after finishing your sports drink, says Wolff. "Mom always told you to brush your teeth after meals, but you may be damaging the tooth structure." The tooth enamel softens after consuming a sports drink, making teeth sensitive to the harsh properties in toothpaste. Instead, wait 45 minutes to an hour before you brush, and let your mouth do the work. "Saliva has the capability of re-mineralizing the tooth structure and neutralizing the damage."

Teen Athlete Nutrition - Eat Extra For Excellence

Eat Extra for Excellence

There's a lot more to eating for sports than chowing down on carbs or chugging sports drinks. The good news is that eating to reach your peak performance level likely doesn't require a special diet. It's all about working the right foods into your fitness plan in the right amounts.

Teen athletes have unique nutrition needs. Because athletes work out more than their less-active peers, they generally need extra calories to fuel both their sports performance and their growth. Depending on how active they are, teen athletes may need anywhere from 2,000 to 5,000 total calories per day to meet their energy needs.So what happens if teen athletes don't eat enough? Their bodies are less likely to achieve peak performance and may even break down rather than build up muscles. Athletes who don't take in enough calories every day won't be as fast and as strong as they could be and may not be able to maintain their weight. And extreme calorie restriction could lead to growth problems and other serious health risks for both girls and guys.

The Truth About Energy Drinks

The Truth About Energy Drinks

Do energy drinks really rev up your body and sharpen your mind? And what, exactly, are they even made of? To help you separate the science from the sales pitch, we analyzed the claims and ingredients of five of the most popular potions on the market, and rated them from best to worst. All to answer the most important question of all: Are energy drinks safe-or should you can these beverages for good?

Red Bull (8 fl oz)
110 calories27 g sugars76 mg caffeine
The Claim: "With Taurine. Vitalizes body and mind."
The Truth: Caffeine certainly offers brain-boosting benefits, and the added slew of B-vitamins are conceivably helpful for a more efficient metabolism. Unfortunately, the sugar and taurine work to counteract those forces. A New Zealand study found that even the 27 grams of sugar in Red Bull is enough to completely inhibit your body's ability to burn fat. And taurine, an amino acid that works as a neurotransmitter, might act more like a sedative than a stimulant, according to researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College.
Is it safe? Certain European countries have banned the product out of fear that its stimulant properties increase the risk of heart attack. However, a 2008 research study presented to the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology observed no negative side effects in people after the subjects quaffed one can. The best thing about Red Bull is the pre-packaged portion control. It's half the size of many other sweetened energy drinks, meaning half the calories and half the sugar of its supersized counterparts.

AMP Energy ((16 fl oz)
220 calories58 g sugars142 mg caffeine
The Claim: "With its energizing blend of B-Vitamins and a specially formulated intense combination of taurine, ginseng, and guarana, AMP keeps you connected and on top of your game at all times."
The Truth: AMP is basically a hybrid between Red Bull and Starbucks Double Shot Energy, but with more calories and sugar and without the brain-beneficial coffee-rendering it a veritable witch's brew of sweeteners, herbal supplements, and suspicious-sounding additives.
Is it safe? Just consider it a double Red Bull. One probably won't hurt, but don't make it a habit, if only for your waistline.

Starbucks Double Shot Energy and Coffee (15 fl oz)
210 calories26 g sugars146 mg caffeine
The Claim: "A powerful, great-tasting brew of B vitamins, guarana, ginseng, and natural proteins from milk. Charged up with coffee. That extra surge to keep you energized and alert."
The Truth: Most energy drinks laud their herbal supplements, but the science behind the add-ins is somewhat fuzzy. Ginseng, for example, won't give you an energy blast, although it might boost your brainpower. For instance, Australian researchers found that people who swallowed 200 mg of the extract an hour before taking a cognitive test scored significantly better than when they skipped the supplement. And guarana's benefit may simply be due to its caffeine content-a guarana seed contains 4 to 5 percent caffeine (about twice as much as a coffee bean). Fancy marketing ploys aside, the Double-Shot ultimately one-ups the competition by virtue of containing actual health-boosting coffee-a beverage that delivers disease-fighting antioxidants.
Is it safe? Ginseng has been shown to interact with certain medications, like the blood-thinner warfarin, potentially altering its effectiveness. And scientists at Florida's Nova Southeastern University concluded that the amount of guarana found in most energy drinks isn't large enough to cause any adverse side effects. However, there's still a question as to the safety of downing a few cans of the stuff in a brief time span.

5-Hour Energy (2 fl oz)
4 calories0 g sugars(Exact caffeine content not provided by the company)
The Claim: "The two-ounce energy shot takes just seconds to drink and in minutes you're feeling bright and alert. And that feeling lasts for hours."
The Truth: Sure, it'll give you a jolt. That's because it's mainly caffeine-about the same amount that's in one cup of coffee, according to label claims. (So somewhere between 65 to 135 mg of caffeine.) And turns out, the half-life of caffeine-the time it takes for half of the stimulant to be eliminated from your body-is about 5 hours. What's more, the company touts that since the product doesn't contain sugar, you won't experience the sugar crash that comes a couple of hours after guzzling the sweet stuff. And that's true, too. Of course, you could just grab a cup of unsweetened Joe for the same effect.
Is it safe? Downing a bottle should be no problem for a regular coffee drinker. Too much caffeine, however, could cause headaches, sleeplessness, nausea, hallucinations, and a spike in blood pressure.

The Worst Energy Drink
Sobe Energy Adrenaline Rush (16 oz)
260 calories66 g sugars152 mg caffeine
The Claim: "Elevate your game with high performance energy for your mind and body. Bold citrus taste enhanced with a unique blend of energizing elements including D-ribose, L-carnitine and taurine. So good."
The Truth: D-ribose and L-carnitine sound exotic, but they're simply natural compounds that your body needs for proper metabolism. While research shows that carnitine supplementation may aid in recovery from exercise, there's no strong evidence to suggest either compound helps improve performance or enhances energy levels. The massive sugar load, however, will certainly spike your energy-for a price. You see, this drink quickly sends blood glucose soaring, which sets you up for a major sugar crash to follow: British scientists discovered that sleep-deprived people who consumed a sugary drink actually had slower reaction times and more sleepiness 90 minutes later.
Is it safe? Not if you're diabetic or pre-diabetic. Sobe Energy Adrenaline Rush contains as much sugar as 5 and a half scoops of Edy's Slow Churned Rocky Road Ice Cream. Additionally, taurine is probably fine in small doses, but chug too many energy drinks and the picture becomes less clear. According to a recent case report from St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, three people had seizures after drinking approximately two 24-ounce energy drinks in a short period of time. Whether the seizures were due to caffeine, taurine, or pre-existing health conditions is unclear. So, limit yourself to one-at the most.

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