Do you really need 8 glasses of water a day?What we have be told to know is that we need 6-8 galsses o water a day.It is said to be scientific.But a Scottish physician has blasted that standard in a British Medical Journal article, stirring the debate about how much water we should drink and how much is too much and bad for our health.Dr. Margaret McCartney argues there is no quality scientific evidence to support the recommendation, which she says can lead to over-hydration problems for some people.

Here’s what you need to know to sort hydration hype from good health advice.

Don’t skimp

The eight-glass formula doesn’t fit for everyone. It depends on your gender, size, and level of activity, other studies note. The Institute of Medicine calls for adult men to drink 13 cups of fluid daily (which totals three liters, or a little more than four tall reusable water bottles) and women to have nine cups (2.2 liters, or about the amount found in three reusable water bottles). That number changes according to lifestyle. The more active a person is, the more they will need to replace fluids. Larger people, pregnant and nursing women, and those who take dehydrating medications also will likely need to account for that by adding more water to their diet.

If you are active, it’s also important to account for your environment when calculating how much fluid you need. If you are exercising in temperatures that are very hot (likely leading you sweat more) or very cold (which can stunt your ability to sense dehydration), are an endurance athlete, or are active in a high-altitude area, you will probably need to up your water intake.

Don’t overdo it

The debate about how much water we really need to be drinking is centered around the risk of hyponatremia, or taking in more fluid that the body loses while sweating. It is a serious condition that occurs when there is not enough sodium (or salt) in the body fluids outside of the cells. This can cause swelling, including of the brain. Hyponatremia happens when a person sweats excessively in one stint, does not eat, does not urinate enough, and drinks a great deal of water. Symptoms include confusion, headaches, muscle spasms, vomiting, convulsions, and fatigue. In the worst cases, hyponatremia can lead to seizures, coma, and even death.

There are exceptions for medical conditions and other situations, but  athletes are often watched for signs of hyponatremia, especially those participating in endurance events like a marathon or triathlon.

Experts advise taking in some electrolyte-replacement fluids in addition to drinking water while you are exercising. However, you really only need a minimal amount to keep your body in balance and give you an energy kick. For example, it is recommended that runners out for 30 minutes to an hour take in three to six ounces of fluid every 15 or 20 minutes, including one sports drink. There’s also evidence that simply taking sips or swishing a sports drink will do the trick.

Don’t get sucked in to the sports drink hype

The risks of hyponatremia are steep, but take the hype about over-hydrating with a grain of salt. The multi-billion-dollar sports drink industry has pushed the idea that most people need more than water when they are active. However, some experts say that most people don’t need a lot of sports beverages, and that they often just add calories to diets. The CDC recommends choosing sports drinks that do not have added sugar, which can total 38 grams in just one bottle.

Consider these other drinks that carry the same benefits of electrolyte-replacement beverages but also have nutritional value or are less caloric:

• Chocolate milk beat out water, sports drinks and regular milk in a recent study of what is the best post-exercise drink for our bodies. Lowfat milk has also been touted as an ideal remedy for muscles that have been rigorously exercised.
• Coconut water is a nonfat beverage that has about half the calories of a sports drink while being high in potassium and antioxidants. Coconut water works best for average athletes.
• Pickle juice is packed with sodium and, if you can bear it, can be added to water or made into popsicles for hot-weather workouts. There’s also scientific and anecdotal evidence that drinking a shot out of the pickle jar will help alleviate muscle cramps faster.
• Beetroot juice has recently been recognized as a new “super drink” after one study found it helped competitive cyclists cut down their times by a few critical seconds. Not taking part in the Tour de France? Then keep an eye out for more research on how this alternative beverage might help weekend warriors.

Count other drinks besides water as fluids

It’s OK to include other drinks when you’re measuring how many fluids you take in per day. However, that isn’t a license to subsist on soda, coffee, and sugary drinks. Although caffeine in soda and coffee won’t dehydrate you, they shouldn’t be used to quench thirst or as a substitute for water. Add them to your fluid tally, but do reach for water more often than you pop open a can of bubbly stuff.

People who imbibe, particularly wine and hard liquors, should also be aware that those drinks with a high alcohol content can be dehydrating. Beer, however, is less dehydrating because it is predominantly water. Drinking a glass of water before and after alcohol can’t hurt fluid intake or the chances of avoiding a headache the next day.

Eat your water

You don’t always have to sip to stay hydrated. Experts say that 20 percent (or 2-1/2 cups) of the water we ingest comes from the foods we eat. Choosing the right water-rich fruits and vegetables will also add nutrients to your diet, fill you up, and may even give some oomph to your exercise.

Fruits like strawberries, cantaloupes, and peaches are packed full of water and potassium, which is the electrolyte shed when your body sweats. Adding more to your daily diet will help balance the fluids your body needs, regulate your heartbeat and circulation, and tastes better than chugging an energy drink.

Selecting foods that fuel your health while helping keep you hydrated will give you more bang for your buck. Watermelon offers a vitamin C boost, broccoli helps fight cancer, pineapple aids muscle recovery after a big workout, and yogurt ups immunity.

Sneak in the good stuff

If you’re up to your ears in cucumber salad or can’t manage to down another bottle of water, work in little ways to stay hydrated. Add slices of orange, lime, kiwi, or watermelon to a jug of water for a burst of natural flavor. Make a regular old glass of tap water feel fancier by adding fizz with a counter-top carbonator. Take 10 minutes once a week to stock your fridge, car, gym bag, and desk with water bottles so it’s convenient to grab water wherever you spend most of your day.  Finally, you can up your fluid intake with one little step by simply adding a straw to your glass of water.

How much water do you drink a day?

You must have heard that eating more chocolate could make you fatter.But,it is not meanning that eating chocolate is only harmful without any benefit.From recent report,eating chocoate could make you more beautiful.

Chocolate and beauty

The good news is some chocolate can have significant beauty benefits. The not terribly bad news is, the only chocolate that can deliver these benefits is dark chocolate with at least 70 percent cocoa content—which doesn’t apply to most treats found in the candy aisle at the grocery store, so choose wisely.

On the heart front, “cocoa contains naturally occurring plant substances called flavonoids that help keep platelets less sticky, decreasing your risk for heart attack or stroke from a clot,” explains Kristin Kirkpatrick, R.D., M.S., Wellness Manager for Cleveland Clinic’s Lifestyle 180 program, and YouBeauty Nutrition Advisor.

According to Kirkpatrick, dark chocolate relaxes blood vessels, which in turn reduces blood pressure. Several studies suggest that it may also be a feel-good treat that increases production of mood-enhancing neurotransmitters.

Dark chocolate also helps combat beauty’s public enemy number one: Stress. Cocoa helps reduce stress hormones, which means less collagen breakdown in the skin, and fewer wrinkles.

Flavonols (the type of flavonoid found in chocolate) help your skin look its best. Flavonols are antioxidants that help your skin protect itself from UV damage (hello, fewer wrinkles) fight free radicals (so long, sun spots) and increase blood flow (i.e. dewy glow!).

In one study, flavonols in dark chocolate even improved skin hydration and thickness—both mega important for young-looking skin.

Portions matter

Though the right dark chocolate clearly has concrete beauty benefits, you have to keep portion control in mind. If you eat a 12-ounce bar, you’re getting a lot more than just flavonoids—you’re also getting fat, sugar and lots of calories.

“The research indicates that two to three ounces of 70-plus percent dark chocolate a week is all you need to reap the health benefits,” says Kirkpatrick. “To satisfy your daily cravings without blowing your diet, a one-ounce square in the afternoon or as a mini-dessert at after dinner is fine.”

How to shop for chocolate

“When you’re shopping for dark chocolate, read the label and ingredients carefully,” says Thierry Muret, Godiva Executive Chef Chocolatier. Most dark chocolate bars with 70 percent or more cocoa clearly label it on the front of the package, but if you’re unclear, flip it over. “If the first ingredient is milk or sugar, the bar is not going to have 70 percent or more cocoa content,” continues Muret.

How do you know if you have quality chocolate? Muret believes that quality can really only be assessed by the taste, texture and ingredient content—not fancy packaging. High-quality chocolate will feel smooth in the mouth and not grainy at all.

Don’t be surprised to find wide taste variations from bar to bar. According to Muret, a smoother, more floral flavor comes from South American (particularly Venezuelan) beans, while a more pronounced earthiness is usually the mark of beans from Ghana or the Ivory Coast.

One thing to keep in mind: The beneficial flavonoids give dark chocolate a slightly bitter taste (the darker you go, the more bitter it gets). If you’re eating a bar that tastes a little too sweet, it’s possible that the flavonoids were stripped out to make the chocolate taste more consumer-friendly. If you’re skeptical, move on to the next.

Bottom line

If chocolate is your weakness, indulging in an ounce of the good stuff (dark with 70 percent or more cocoa content) each day is not only a delicious treat, but also provides benefits for your heart, skin and whole body.

1.The more you work out, the better. You already know that exercise is one of the best things you can do to maintain your weight and boost your overall health, but overdoing it can actually have the opposite effect. “Working out seven days a week can weaken our immune system, strain our joints, and tire us out,” Snyderman says. “Your muscles need time to repair so they can be more efficient during your next session.” And if you’re exercising with improper form due to fatigue, you’ll actually burn fewer calories than if you were exercising correctly, she says. To prevent workout burnout, schedule at least one day off a week, and change things up a bit each session—by doing arm weights one day, say, and leg moves the next—to avoid overusing one set of muscles. Be sure to keep your back straight and not to lean on the handles of cardio equipment, to prevent injury and maximize calorie burn.

2.Muscle weighs more than fat. If you’ve been working out and the scale reading is higher than you’d like, it’s tempting to tell yourself, “Well, that’s just muscle weight.” After all, muscle’s heavier than fat, right? Not so much: There’s no such thing as “muscle weight,” Snyderman says. A pound of muscle and a pound of fat both weigh…a pound! But because muscle is more dense than fat, having more muscle on your frame than fat makes you look leaner. And there’s another benefit: One pound of muscle burns an estimated 50 calories a day, while a pound of fat burns about two calories a day—so the leaner you get, the higher your metabolic rate. “Aerobic exercise, like biking and running, sheds fat, while weight-lifting helps build muscle mass,” Snyderman says. “Doing both is a surefire way to rev up your metabolism.”

3.Fresh fruits and veggies are more nutritious than frozen or canned. Frozen and canned produce can be equally as healthful as—and even more economical than—the fresh stuff, Snyderman says. Frozen fruits and vegetables are often flash-frozen straight off the vine, which helps them retain nutrients. And some canned produce is actually more nutritious than the fresh, raw kind, since we absorb antioxidants like the lycopene found in tomatoes and the beta-carotene contained in carrots more easily when they come from veggies that have been cooked. Bottom line: “It doesn’t matter how you get your fruits and vegetables, as long as you’re eating them,” Snyderman says.

4.Weight gain is inevitable as you get older. “This myth stems from the fact that belly fat begins to creep on as we get older, but a bulge is avoidable,” Snyderman says. Most of that fat isn’t gained—it’s weight that’s shifted due to hormone changes, childbirth, or weakening bones. And you can slow the shift with strength training, according to a study from the National Institutes of Health: Overweight and obese women who lifted weights just twice a week saw a smaller increase in intra-abdominal fat (7 percent over two years) than those who didn’t exercise (their intra-abdominal fat went up 21 percent in two years). The sooner you start pumping iron, the easier it is to keep that belly trim down the road.

5.Yo-yo dieting wrecks your metabolism. It’s become common wisdom that depriving yourself of food—a.k.a. dieting—puts you into “starvation mode,” in which you burn fewer calories because your body needs to hold on to what little nutrition it’s getting; over time, the theory goes, your metabolism slows down for good. But “while extreme low-calorie diets do temporarily lower your metabolism, the effects don’t last,” Snyderman says. Researchers in Canada compared the resting metabolic rates of women who’d yo-yo dieted for an average of 18 years with what their metabolism should be for their height, weight, and age—and found no difference in 92 percent of the subjects. “Yo-yo diets don’t hurt you, but they do frustrate you because they mean you haven’t found the right way to keep the weight off,” says Snyderman.

6.You need to lose a significant amount of weight to see any health benefits. Meeting your weight-loss goal can be daunting, especially when you have a double-digit amount to lose. But shedding even just a few pounds can have a huge impact on your health. For every two pounds of excess weight you lose, your cholesterol drops an average of 3 points. And in a study from the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research, men and women were able to bring their blood pressure down after losing as few as nine pounds. “Our bodies can tell when we lose weight, even when it’s a minimal amount, and they adjust very quickly,” Snyderman says. “So even if you have a significant amount of weight to lose, taking it a few pounds at a time will boost your overall health—and make your ultimate goal more manageable.”

There is no hard and fast rule to be followed while making your diet plan if you are suffering from hypoglycemia. It is just that you have to have your food at scheduled times to avoid getting faint all of a sudden.There are some tips to help you set up your own diet plan:

Break down your daily amount of intake into nothing less than 6 meals a day.

• Try to include as much high fiber, low fat, complex carbohydrate and protein in your diet.

• Stress on having, whole grain, fresh fruits and green vegetables

• Cut down on your sugar intake.

• Have sweets but as a part of your total meal and only at special meals that too in small quantity

• Stay away from caffeine content food stuff such as coffee, chocolates , colas and tea.

• Never have alcohol on an empty stomach and try to reduce the intake.

• Watch your weight, if that happens to be a concern.

• Exercise daily if that is possible for you.

Reactive hypoglycemia is nothing other than a chronic condition which calls for special treatment. With a good and a well planned diet program, you can definitely expect a steady progress to a healthy living.

Some healthy snack choices could be as follows:

• Fruits combine with two whole grain crackers.

• One half peanut sandwiches on bread with raw carrots.

• Low fat cheese placed between two whole grain crackers.

• Simple and plain yogurt mixed along with fresh fruits.

• Low fat milk with banana can also be a good choice for snack.

• Half apple with half cheese on a half sliced whole wheat bread can also make a good and healthy snack for you.

Broccoli has been shown to be useful in preventing breast cancer by altering the type of cancer-causing estrogen that the body produces. Broccoli sprouts are the most useful form of broccoli and are believed to help prevent colon and rectal cancers. The more bitter the broccoli, the healthier it is.

Raw carrots contain beta carotene, which may help reduce a range of cancers including lung, mouth, throat, stomach, intestine, bladder, prostate and breast. Unfortunately, you lose a lot of the benefits if the carrots are cooked. Stick to raw!

Garlic is rich in allicin that has immune-enhancing compounds that actually increase the activity of immune that slow down or prevent cancer development in the stomach, breast and esophagus. The sulphur compounds that give garlic its intense flavour have been shown to protect against cancer by neutralizing carcinogens. People who consume raw or cooked garlic regularly reduce drastically the risk of stomach cancer because garlic has anti-bacterial effects against certain bacteria that cause cancer there. To achieve full anti-cancer benefits, it is recommended that garlic is peeled, minced and cooked after 15 minutes.

Cooked tomatoes are high in antioxidants. A study by the National Cancer Institute found evidence from studies that antioxidants may slow or possibly prevent the development of cancer. Lycopene, the antioxidant found in tomatoes is also found in watermelon, guavas and grapefruits.

Soy products like tofu could help prevent both breast and prostate cancer by blocking and suppressing cancerous growths. Soy appears to lower cancer risks by inhibiting the growth of cells and new blood vessels that tumors require to expand. Women who have breast cancer or are at high risk should talk to their doctors before increasing their consumption of soy products.

As an old Chinese saying goes, “a bowl of porridge in the morning and a bowl of soup in the evening help people through autumn days.” It’s good advice to follow.

The summer heat weakens the body’s digestive functions, and when autumn comes, the intestines become more vulnerable to bacteria. Because the Lungs are especially sensitive during the autumn months, it’s a good idea to minimize the amount of spicy food you eat, to avoid irritating them. As a result, your Lungs will be less vulnerable to pathogens.

Eat daikon radish, lotus root, and miso soup. Eat fewer summer vegetables, and switch to autumn vegetables like squash, broccoli, and cauliflower. Eat more root vegetables like carrots, onions, potatoes, and beets. Avoid spicy foods, and as always, too many refined sweets. Autumn is also seafood season. Crabs, shrimp and lobsters are all irresistible. Containing an abundance in protein and low fat, seafood is good for people’s health. Just make sure the seafood is fresh.

Balance is Key
Strive to balance your diet so that it includes some vegetables, some fruit, some grain, and a handful of moderately spicy foods.

When the fall comes, more and more problems with skin come together. Because of the big difference of temperature between the day and night. So the resistance to decline, coupled with the fall of the air humidity was significantly lower than in the summer, experts advise should be noted that the scientific method of skin care.

For the health and beauty, you’d better follow the tips below to take care of your skin in Autumn.

Hydrate!  Just because it’s not hot, doesn’t mean your body doesn’t require the same amount of hydration.  You don’t breathe less oxygen at the change of seasons, do you?  Be sure to drink enough water to keep your skin hydrated.  Dehydrated skin looks dry, tired and may be prone to more wrinkling. 

Take more vitamins:The old saying ‘you are what you eat’ could not be more true. Whilst bad eating habits may not show overnight it has a cumulative effect on our body and skin. In summer months the skin tends to take on a more improved texture and glow. Sunshine provides us with a photogenic source of vitamin D – not found commonly in foods. The sun also helps relieve symptoms of SAD -Seasonal Affective Disorder -  which can cause lethargy and depression, so make sure you get out and about on sunny autumn days and enjoy and good vitamin D dose.

Moisturize! Topical moisture is just as important as hydrating the skin from the inside.    The best time to moisturize your skin is right after a bath or a shower – the skin has absorbed some of the water from the bath and is ready to have that moisture “sealed in”.  Try a natural oil such as virgin coconut oil, shea butter or avocado oil for all over moisture. 

Eat healthy! Autumn is the best time to visit your farmer’s market for fall fruits and vegetables such as pumpkin, yams, avocado, apples and pears.  You can mash the avocado up for a great facial mask too!Take care of your skin this fall – keep it hydrated, moisturized, and above all eat healthy foods.  The skin is the largest organ of the body and should be treated with care, naturally.

What should be eaten in Autumn? I will tell you in next article.

At present, people are puzzled by the fat problem because of the long time to stay without doing sports. So we need eat more low calorie food.As part of a sensible weight-control program – including diet, exercise and lifestyle changes – low-calorie foods and beverages do help dieters control calories and therefore lose weight. Dietitians and health professionals agree that calorie-control is the key to losing weight. The low calorie food list shows some great everyday foods which are low in calories and ideal for weight loss diets. The calorie content is shown in the foods average portion. The low calorie food list also gives calorie content in 100 grams so it can be compared with other foods you may normally eat.

Low Calorie Fruits. When eaten fresh, apricots, apples, melon, currants and grapefruits provide the least calories and plenty of vitamins and fiber.

Low Calorie Vegetables. While most vegetables are low in calories, it is useful to know that brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes, broccoli, celery mushroom, tomatoes, watercress, swede, red peppers are some of the vegetables that contain the least calories.

Meat and animal products low in calorie. Lean ham,  Lower fat hot-dogs, Beef,  Canadian bacon,  Ground turkey,White eggs,Low fat cheese.

When it comes to drinks water is the only thing you need. Water doesn’t contain any calories at all. A few cups of coffee a day is ok too but don’t add sugar to it.

Wash your hands often. This is probably the single best measure to prevent transmission of colds. Especially after shopping, going to the gym, or spending time in public places, hand washing is critical. Frequent hand washing can destroy viruses that you have acquired from touching surfaces used by other people. You can also carry a small tube of hand sanitizer or sanitizing hand wipes when visiting public places. Teach your children the importance of hand washing too.

Don’t touch your face. Avoid touching your face, especially the nose, mouth, and eye areas, if you are around someone with a cold or have been touching surfaces in a public area.

Keep household surfaces clean. Door knobs, drawer pulls, keyboards, light switches, telephones, remote controls, countertops, and sinks can all harbor viruses for hours after their use by an infected person. Wipe these surfaces frequently with soap and water or a disinfectant solution.

Drink Plenty of Fluids. Water flushes your system, washing out the poisons as it rehydrates you. A typical, healthy adult needs eight 8-ounce glasses of fluids each day. How can you tell if you’re getting enough liquid? If the color of your urine runs close to clear, you’re getting enough. If it’s deep yellow, you need more fluids.

Get Fresh Airs. A regular dose of fresh air is important, especially in cold weather when central heating dries you out and makes your body more vulnerable to cold and flu viruses. Also, during cold weather more people stay indoors, which means more germs are circulating in crowded, dry rooms, open windows when weather permits to circulate fresh air.

Maintain a healthy lifestyle. While there isn’t direct evidence to show that eating well or exercising can prevent colds, maintenance of a healthy lifestyle, with adequate sleep, good nutrition and physical exercise can help ensure that your immune system is in good condition and ready to fight infection if it occurs.

Control stress. Studies have shown that people experiencing emotional stress have weakened immune systems and are more likely to catch a cold than their calmer counterparts.

Don’t Smoke. Statistics show that heavy smokers get more severe colds and more frequent ones. Even being around smoke profoundly zaps the immune system. Smoke dries out your nasal passages and paralyzes cilia, the delicate hairs that line the mucous membranes in your nose and lungs that sweep cold and flu viruses out of the nasal passages. Experts contend that one cigarette can paralyze cilia for as long as 30 to 40 minutes.

Use disposable items if someone in your family is infected. Don’t share drinking glasses. Instead, use disposable cups in the kitchen and bathroom, using each cup only once and then disposing. Use disposable tissues when blowing your nose; use each tissue once, throw it away then wash your hands thoroughly. Bacteria and viruses can live on hand towels and sponges for hours. Use disposable paper napkins and towels in the kitchen.

Most people think that wine is bad for our health.In fact, it is’t true. Drinking a little red wine is good for women.Red wine is a particularly rich source of antioxidants flavonoid phenolics, so many studies to uncover a cause for red wine’s effects have focused on its phenolic constituents, particularly resveratrol and the flavonoids.

Red wines can help prevent some cancers and heart disease, while also reducing inflammations caused by arthritis. One study determined that revesterol, an antioxidant found in the red wine grape skins, might inhibit tumor development in some cancers. Other studies have shown women who drink one to two glasses of wine daily have 5 to 8 percent denser bones, preventing injuries. Another study noted this same antioxidant helped form nerve cells, which may help treat Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases.

One serving of red wine is four to five ounces. For maximum benefit, women should consume only one or two servings per day. Those consuming more than two servings a day face an increased risk for elevated fat in the bloodstream, nerve cell damage, and pancreas and liver damage.