Children living in the San Francisco area may soon have their McDonald’s “Happy Meal” without a toy. The city’s Board of Supervisors gave preliminary approval on Tuesday to a law that bans restaurants fromproviding toys with kid’s meals that are loaded with calories, fat, and sugar. If the ordinance passes its final vote next week, it will go into effect in December 201. Restaurants will only be able to give toys away with kids’ meals if they meet certain specifications. They cannot contain more than 600 calories or 640 milligrams of sodium, and no more than 35 percent of calories can come from fat. Meals must also come with at least a half-cup serving of fruit and a three-quarter-cup serving of vegetables. Beverages that come with the meal also have to be low in fat and sugar,

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A new study shows that regularly eating a handful of walnuts can affect the blood pressure response to stress. It is known that people who show an exaggerated biological response to stress are at higher risk for heart disease. The purpose of the study was to determine if omega 3-fatty acids from plant sources would blunt cardiovascular responses to stress. The result was that including walnuts and walnut oil in the diet for 6 weeks lowered both resting blood pressure and blood pressure responses to stress by two to three points.

Walnuts are known to be a rich source of fiber, antioxidants, and unsaturated fatty acids, particularly alpha-linolenic acid.  Alpha-linolenic acid is an omega-3 fatty acid, which the researchers say could explain the beneficial effects on blood pressure. In the study, participants were eating nuts and oils in place of other foods, the walnut diets were not higher in calories so no weight gain was seen.

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Are you taking care of yourself? Are you living a healthy lifestyle? It is never too late to change it. Experts have suggested that 400,000 people will die this year in the U.S from heart disease. This, of course, is fueled by increased obesity, smoking, cholesterol and heart issues. A study by British scientists found that about half of these deaths could be averted if people ate healthier food and quit smoking, and experts warned there was no room for complacency when it came to heart health risks. The obesity rates are alarming, it is suggested that 1.5 billion adults worldwide expected to be overweight by 2015. The researchers calculated the number of deaths based on lifestyle trends, taking the year 2000 as a base. They found that almost 200,000 lives could be saved if certain heart risk factors were cut, even modestly to include a healthy diet and stopping smoking. Two-thirds of U.S. adults and nearly one in three children are overweight or obese, a condition that increases their risk for diabetes, heart disease and other chronic illnesses.

Tags: Adults, British Scientists, Cholesterol, Chronic Illnesses, Complacency, Deaths, Diabetes, Health Risks, Healthy Diet, Heart Disease, Heart Health, Heart Issues, Heart Risk Factors, Lifestyle Trends, Living A Healthy Lifestyle, Obesity Rates, Overweight, Stopping Smoking, Two Thirds, Year 2000

Do you have a high fat diet? Do you even think about how much fat you eat? You should! A recent Oxford study shows that a high fat diet causes a reduction in physical endurance and a decline in cognitive ability after just a few days. A 30% reduction in physical endurance was seen in 3 days and the heart was working harder. After nine days the physical endurance was reduced 50%. The high fat diet was about 55% of daily calories and the low fat diet was about 7.5% of calories. A diet high in junk food could get to be close to 60% fat so this was not an unrealistic amount.  This study looked at the short term physiological effects of fat since we know the long-term effects of high fat are diabetes, cancer and heart disease. The American Heart Association recommends that you get around 25% of your total calories from fat. If you require 2000 calories each day, you’re allowed about 55 grams of fat each day.

Tags: American Heart Association, Calories Fat, Calories Food, Cancer, Cognitive Ability, Decline, Diabetes, Diet Food, Fat Calories, Fat Reduction, Few Days, Heart Disease, High Fat Diet, Junk Food, Low Fat Diet, Nine Days, Oxford Study, Physical Endurance, Physiological Effects

Soon it will be Halloween, the unofficial start of the holiday season, and the next 8 weeks will be full of parties, festivities, food and calories. How do we cope and watch our weight? For now, if you know you will indulge in holiday treats, prepare for it. Be smart. For example, Halloween is on Sunday, so begin reducing your sugar and empty calorie intake from other foods, such as sodas and desserts today. Avoid high-calorie drinks like large caramel and pumpkin lattes. They can have as many as 400-600 calories. You can still enjoy a coffee treat but choose a small skim latte and sprinkle on a bit of cinnamon and/or nutmeg. On Halloween day, eat smaller meals. Increase your vegetable intake and keep carbohydrates to a minimum. Also exercise more to burn those calories. The more you exercise, the more you can eat. As you are passing out candy, keep your mouth busy by chewing sugar-less gum so you don’t get the urge to snack on the candy. If you do have to have some candy, make sure the calories are worth it and it is something you are really going to enjoy. Sip on hot apple cider, spiced tea (unsweetened) or sugar-free hot cocoa. You will feel like you are having a treat without having the calories.

Tags: Burn Calories, Calorie Intake, Calories Exercise, Caramel, Cinnamon, Desserts, Festivities, Gum, Halloween Day, High Calorie Drinks, Holiday Season, Hot Apple Cider, Hot Cocoa, Nutmeg, Pumpkin, Sip, Snack, Sodas, Spiced Tea, Vegetable Intake