Diet Soda: Better Than Regular Soda?

People often consume diet soda in order to replace the regular soda-consumption, which, as we all know, contains high sugar and calories. Consuming diet soda in a reasonable amount - say, 1 can a day - is considered safe, because the sweetener and the chemicals contained in it is still within the safe limits for most people.

image credit to thefoodfarce.com

But still, diet soda is not a healthy drink for you, especially those in diet. Even if replacing regular soda drinks with diet soda reduces significant amount of calories, but a lot of research indicates that the more soda you consume - diet soda or regular soda - your appetite will grow, heightening the risk of obesity and other related diseases such as diabetes mellitus or osteoporosis.

Other research also finds that consuming more than 1 can of carbonated drinks a day will increase the risk of metabolic syndrome as much as 40%. Metabolic syndrome is the main cause for heart disease and diabetes.

There are still a lot of healthier drinks around. The best one there is, is of course regular water, 8 glasses a day. For some variations, instead of drinking carbonated drinks, you can also consume juice, low-fat milk, of green tea. Bottoms up!

High-Quality Sleeps for You!

In the previous post, I've stressed that it's important to have enough rest for your workout to get your results. However, some people still can't get the results even if they have enough sleep. It simply means their sleeping quality is not good enough. There are many tips and suggestions on how to improve your sleep quality, though.

image credit to nativeremedies.com

Here are some "good habits" for better quality of sleep:
1. Do some workout regularly. Have some time to workout everyday. Any simple exercise will do.
2. No caffeine after 7 PM.
3. One hour before you sleep, don't do any work or activity that needs you to think hard and concentrate.
4. Adjust your room temperature to be cooler.
5. Turn off the lamps in your room. Research indicates that even the dim light from digital alarm will disrupt the sleep. Nowadays there are a lot of glow-in-the-dark things, which also disrupt the sleep.
6. Tidy up your bed. A messy bed will definitely mess up with your sleep.

If you have trouble sleeping, try to do some of these tips:
1. Take a slow and deep breath as long as you can.
2. If you have many things in your mind (ex. planning your your vacation, making a shopping list, concerned about your medical diagnosis, etc.), write it down. This usually helps a lot.
3. Pamper yourself with body lotion. Besides the fact that it relaxes you, if you have trouble sleeping because it's too hot, body lotion will cool you down.
4. If your feet is cold, wear socks. Some people even wear this because it calms them down.
5. Relax. Do simple stretching if you need to.
6. Some people claim that warm milk contains melatonin and tryptophan, natural supplements that can help you sleep. However, a glass of milk does not contain enough of those substance to actually help you sleep. But still, it can be quite a relaxing drink.
7. Yawn.

If you have some trouble sleeping, just think of it as an extra time off your daily schedule. You can use that time to do some chores that you haven't done, like tidying up your books or something. The next morning, you'll feel glad because you feel like you achieve something even if you just started your day.

Try to apply those simple tips to have high-quality sleeps and get ready to face your day!

Blame It on the Alcohol. Really?

When I mentioned alcohol, most people will immediately think about partying and get drunk. But is it really that bad? Are there any benefits of alcohol for our health?

image credit to universal-healthcare.org

Like any other things in life, it's good when you have enough. Consuming the right amount of alcohol can give you some health benefits. Fact is, alcohol can lower the risk of heart disease, heart attack, stroke, gallstone, and diabetes.

On the other hand, if you consume too much alcohol, it will definitely increase the risk of:
- pancreatic, mouth, throat, and liver cancer
- swelling of the pancreas
- dying of heart attack
- high blood pressure

Unfortunately for some people, alcohol is a big no-no. For those of you who had some stroke (from hemorrhaging), have liver or pancreatic illness, or in the middle of a healing process, ALCOHOL IS A BIG NO.

So you can see that alcohol is actually a double-edged sword for your health. About 355 ml of beer and 150 ml of wine twice or thrice a week is good for you.

Got Milk?

Having a smooth and healthy skin is every woman's dream. However, many people - men and women - have some trouble with their skin. This is why a lot of cosmetic products claim to fix those problem, making your skin smooth, shiny, and healthy. But do you know that drinking milk daily is effective to make your skin healthy and smooth?

image credit to technorati.com

A lot of skin problems came from stress, unhealthy lifestyle, smoking, ultraviolet radiation, and other kinds of solution, making our skin dry, even cracked. Drinking milk daily is one of the many ways to keep your skin healthy.

Naturally, milk contains vitamin A and D, which smooths your skin. Besides that, other important mineral in milk such as iron, calcium, and copper also have some 'cosmetic' function for you, making your skin healthy and supple.

The protein, calcium, and iron in milk that we consume everyday will also slow down the aging process, while brightening it. This is why, for hundreds even thousands of years, milk is known as women's beauty secret for its benefits of making skin smooth, wrinkle-free, and brighter.

Milk also contains lactic acid, which have the role to moisten the skin naturally, while lifting the dead cells in your body, recovering it to make your skin prettier and healthier.

Therefore, if you want a smoother, brighter skin, start drinking milk daily!

Yummy and Healthy Beverages

To achieve your ideal own ideal weight, it's really important to have some variations in your diet menu. Drink variations in your diet menu are as important as food variations. There are a lot of drink nowadays that are high in sugar, also artificial coloring and sweetener. Our body won't be in its best condition by consuming those drinks. So here I'm gonna post some of the healthy drinks that you can add into your diet menu :)

image credit to howtojuice.org

Orange Juice
The favorite drink that people usually add into their diet menu is orange juice. Orange juice got this natural flavor that people tend to like, and it's easy to prepare too. Besides its high content of healthy vitamin C and phyto-nutrition, eight ounce of orange juice had the same potassium content as it is in bananas. With its many vitamins and nutrition in it, orange juice has been believed to lower the blood pressure.

Apple Juice
Apple juice is a compulsory drink that you have to have in your diet menu. The right way to serve it is without sugar, because apples have enough sugar content to get the natural sweet taste. Fresh apple juice contains many useful vitamins and minerals. The malic acid in apples can be your additional energy when working out. The old saying of "an apple a day can keep the doctor away" is true, apparently, because there are already some research that indicates how apples can prevent heart diseases and lower the cholesterol.

Cranberry Juice
Another healthy drink is cranberry juice. The antioxidants from cranberry juice has been long known for its curing ability for urinary tract infections. The acidic taste from cranberry juice can prevent the growth of the germs causing the infections. A cranberry juice in your diet menu can keep you fit everyday.

Besides the three drinks, you can also combine it with other kinds of fruits and vegetables such as pineapples, carrots, and also tomatoes. With the three choices, you can be closer into the workout goal that you want to achieve :)