Breakfast at Your Desk: Are You Getting Enough Bran? Why You Should Eat Up!

Bran may not be the world's sexiest food, but there may be good reason to eat your bran flakes and bran muffins, say researchers ...

According to a new study from Harvard Medical School, women (the study looked at diabetic women), who eat plenty of bran may live longer and are less likely to die of heart disease.

An interesting cheat sheet on bran, from MSNBC: "Grains consist of three layers: the fiber- and nutrient-containing bran and germ layers and the starchy kernel layer. Refined grains, like white flour, are largely stripped of the bran and germ; whole grains--such as oatmeal, brown rice, barley and breads made from whole wheat--retain more of those components."

5 Effective Weight Loss Tips

So you want to lose some weight? Here are 5 tips that will help you melt some body fat and lose some unwanted weight.

1. Throw away your scale

First off throw away your scale (okay don't literally do that). You naturally gain and lose weight throughout the day due to slight changes in your metabolism and how well hydrated you are. Body weight is not always an accurate measure of a healthy body composition. Instead you should focus on your body fat percentage.

There are many inexpensive tools available to measure your body fat. Many electronic scales now come with electronic body fat measurements. These can be fairly accurate although they can have up to have 25% margin of error depending on your hydration levels (and if your taking supplements). If possible visit your local gym to get a body fat test. The caliper test (pinch test) can be very accurate. Also ask about getting your basal metabolism measured. Your basal metabolism is how many calories your body burns a day at rest. There are now many devices such as bodygem that accurately measure this.

Allergy Safety in School

While being dropped off at school, a child with allergies once said, "Is this the day I'm going to die?"

Hearing that is like a dagger through the heart. Every parent of an allergic child not only wants their child to be safe at school, but also to feel confident.

Many schools make the effort to be peanut-free. But it's not always fool-proof. And serious allergies don't stop there...schools also need to be vigilant about tree nut, egg, dairy, soy, sesame and wheat allergies, to name a few.

Think about the dozens of people that enter your child's classroom in a day: the teacher, a substitue, an aid-worker, other kids' parents, the principle and administration staff, custodians...

Gout - The Formation of Monosodium Urate Crystals In Synovial Fluid

Monosodium Urate Crystal (MSU) is what causes the painful gouty inflammation that tortures many adult males nowadays. Most of the gout patients do not know much about the gout they are having, all they know is that gout is related to high blood uric acid level and they must reduce the consumption of high purine diet to minimize the possibility of another gout attack.

The drugs that they take during the gout attack are mainly for the purpose of anti-inflammatory and pain killing, none of the gout drugs really act on the monosodium urate crystals that trigger the inflammation. Even after the inflammation subsided, those urate crystals still stay in the synovial fluid and deposit on the cartilage layers of the joint. Whenever there is new formation for monosodium urate crystals, there will be another round of painful gout attack. The intensity and frequency of the attacks will increase as more and more urate crystals deposit in the joint.

Alopecia Areata and Hair loss: What Does Aloe Vera Have to Do with It

A disease of unknown cause in which well-defined bald patches occur, usually on the head and other hairy parts of the body. The condition typically clears without treatment; recurrences are common. Alopecia areata is an immune system disorder where hair follicles cease making new hairs. About 2% of us experience a case of alopecia areata at some point in their lives.

Even though medical doctors have no known cure for alopecia areata, there have been some discoveries in the medical research arena of aloe. (El Zawahry M;Rashad M;Hegazy MR;Helal M;. Use of aloe in treating dermatoses. Int J Dermatol. 1973; 12: 68-73)

Gout - What Causes Of Gout Are?

What is Gout?

A form of arthritis that is a painful inflammation and swelling of the joints caused by the buildup of uric acid in the body. Certain foods cause gout so diet plays a role. Treatment of gout can be achieved through medication and proper diet.

Gout is caused by a build up of uric acid (urate) in your blood. Urate is a normally harmless waste product which is formed when the body breaks down substances known as purines. Two thirds of your urate is produced by your kidneys. The other third is produced by your digestive system. Purines are found naturally in the body, but are also found in some foods and certain types of alcohol.

Allergy Season Is Here

Examples of some allergens' are: pollens, molds, dust mites, bee stings, stings by other insects, and foods, of which there are many. Some very distinct foods are allergy triggers, such as, peanuts, milk, eggs, gluten products, but it can be any food that will prove to be an allergen to a particular individual. When an individual reacts to any type of allergen, they are called allergic or "atopic". Allergic reactions occur in different forms such as:

·Allergic rhinitis (nasal allergies), which affects approximately 35 million or more Americans. Of these, 5 or 6 million are children.

· Asthma affects about 15 million in America-about 5 million are children.

Allergy Season Relief For Your Dog

Spring is almost upon us and you know what that means - allergy season has started. One of the most common concerns that we handle each and every day is the intense and aggravating allergy symptoms of itching and scratching that many dogs suffer from. We always try to resolve the issue with a change in nutrition, but during particular times of the year (such as springtime) the culprit may be more of an environmental cause.

If your dog gets hot spots or discoloration of the skin because of the constant itching and scratching, it may be a symptom of seasonal allergies rather than simply a nutritional deficiency. The condition is called "atopy" or atopic dermatitis. In this regard, our pets are no different than us humans - they can develop a sensitivity to their environment just like a we can.

Allergy Rotation Helps You to Achieve a Gluten Free Diet

Here is a list of food families. Use this list to create a 4-day rotation diet. Never eat foods from the same food family for two days in a row. For example, nightshade vegetables (tomato, potato, eggplant and peppers) are eaten on only one day. If you feel better on the other three days than you do on your "nightshade day" then you know that those are a problem for you.

Food Families List:

Abalone, clams, mussels, oysters & scallops. Anise, caraway seed, carrot, celery, celery seed, coriander, cumin, dill, fennel, parsley & parsnip. Apple, pear & quince. Artichoke, chicory, dandelion, endive, escarole, lettuce, sunflower seeds & tarragon. Asparagus, chives, garlic, leeks, onion & sarsaparilla. Avocado, bay leaves, cinnamon & sassafras.