Many people think of vegetarians as one homogeneous group that just doesn’t eat meat. But nothing could be further from the truth. There are different categories of vegetarians as diverse as the reasons for going vegetarian in the first place.

A vegetarian is generally defined as someone who doesn’t eat meat. But someone who is vegetarian could conceivably eat dairy products such as milk, eggs and cheese. A lacto ovo vegetarian doesn’t eat meat, fish or poultry, but does consume eggs, milk or cheese. A lacto vegetarian consumes milk and cheese products, but doesn’t consume eggs.

A vegan is someone who doesn’t consume any animal product or by-product, including dairy food. They eat only vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains and legumes. They also don’t use animal products, such as leather. Vegans also don’t use white sugar because it’s often processed with a substance derived from animal bones that whitens the sugar.

There are other categories within the vegetarian community. Fruitarians, for example, eat only fruit. Their rationale is that fruits, including fruits such as tomatoes, are self-perpetuating and don’t need to be planted to create the food source. They consider it a way of eating that’s most in balance and harmony with the earth, the most natural.

All of the above will eat cooked vegetables, fruits and legumes. There is also a growing movement towards eating only raw or living foods. This based on the assumption that cooking food processes most of the nutrients out of it, and to get all the nutritional value, vitamins and amino acids from food, it’s best consumed raw, or juiced. If cooked at all, it should only be cooked to slightly over 100 degrees, so the nutrients are still retained.

The more restrictive you become with your diet, however, the more educated you need to become to be sure you’re getting all the necessary proteins and vitamins that you need to maintain good health, especially muscle and heart health.

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Have you had just about all you can take from the diet industry? If so, then you are not alone. It seems as if they are always thrusting a new diet pill, secret concoction or gimmick our way; in the hopes that we will buy into their inflated promises…at least one more time. While the truth is that some of those weight loss products really do work, more and more people are wondering how to lose weight naturally.

This type of thinking is actually much more healthy in the long run. Let’s say there was a safe pill for weight loss. All you had to do was take it once a day, and then you could whatever you want and sit on the couch watching television. You could drop 25 pounds by just taking a pill, what would be so wrong about that?

There are two main problems with all diet pills (and we’re not counting the potential of harmful side effects, either). First, you will never develop good eating habits if you pop a pill and be done with it. But then what happens if you stop taking the pills? Not only would you gain all of the weight back, but you would probably gain more because you would be accustomed to eating without any regard to the consequences. The second problem is that even though you would be losing weight, all of that bad food would be taking its toll on your overall health. Again, we’re not talking about the side effects of the diet pills themselves, but rather the harmful effects of the unhealthy food itself.

The question of how to lose weight naturally has a fairly simple answer. It’s really just a matter of burning more calories than you take in, and making sure what you do take in is healthy for you. Furthermore, you shouldn’t take any synthetic supplements or drugs in your efforts to drop those extra pounds.

Food is the key to natural weight loss. Choosing foods as close to their natural state is the quickest way to ensure you are eating right. For example, a carrot is better for you than a big piece of fat-laden, sugar-added carrot cake that’s covered with another layer of fat and sugar in the form of frosting. Does that mean you can’t eat carrot cake? Not at all, but it does mean that you shouldn’t kid yourself that you’re eating healthy because there’s a trace of vegetable matter in the piece of cake.

Fresh fruits and vegetables (frozen is also a good choice), whole grains, healthy fats and lean protein are the cornerstone of a healthy diet for weight loss. Your fruits and vegetables should cover a wide variety of colors to make sure you’re getting as many vitamins, minerals and micronutrients as possible. Unprocessed whole grains are better than processed; for example, oats are a better choice for how to lose weight naturally than oatmeal cookies. Avoid white flour and white rice as well.

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Healthy eating is a way of balancing the food you eat to keep your body in great health. With healthy eating, you’ll have energy all day, get the vitamins and minerals you need, stay strong for activities you enjoy, and maintain a healthy weight.

Below, you’ll find tips designed to help you with healthy eating.

1. Don’t skip any meals
Eating 3 meals with snacks in between is the ideal way to maintain both energy and a healthy weight. When you skip meals and get hungry, you’re more than likely to choose foods that aren’t very good for you.

If you are eating away from home, take food with you or know where you can buy healthy food from.

2. Learn about how to prepare foods
Instead of deep frying, try grilling, stir frying, microwaving, baking, and even boiling. You should also try fresh or even dried herbs and spices to add flavor to your food. Before you eat any type of meat, be sure to trim the fat and skin off of
it.

3. Avoid a lot of sugar
Drinks that contain sugar are a major source of empty energy. What this means, is that the drinks contain a lot of energy that your body may not need, and it doesn’t contain any vitamins or minerals. If you plan to drink sugary drinks, don’t go overboard – limit yourself to 1 a day.

4. Avoid thinking about diets
There are no good food nor any bad foods. All food can be a part of a healthy diet, when eaten in moderation. You don’t need to buy any low carb, fat free, or even diet foods, as these foods normally have lots of other added ingredients to replaces the carbohydrates or fat.

Tags: Added Ingredients, Atkins, Diet Foods, Diets, Eating Habits, Eating Healthy, Good Food, Great Health, Healthy Diet, Healthy Eating, Healthy Food, Herbs And Spices, Losing Weight, Maintain Weight, Moderation, Snacks, Sugary Drinks, Vitamins And Minerals, What This Means —

If you’ve been looking for a way towards a high octane diet, you’ll find fiber to be exactly what you need. Even though research has shown fiber to be powerful, many people aren’t taking this nutrient seriously.

To help you fuel your health with fiber, here are 10 facts to help.

1. Fiber fights diseases. A diet high in fiber can help to prevent colon cancer and heart disease. High fiber helps the body to eliminate cholesterol by binding it in the digestive tract. For thousands of years, fiber has been used to stop constipation.

2. Fiber can actually help with overeating. All high fiber foods will take longer to chew and digest, making you feel satisfied longer

3. Most popular foods don’t have enough fiber. If you like the more popular foods, you probably need to increase your intake of fiber.

4. Grains offer the most fiber. Dietary fiber is actually plant matter that we cannot digest. The best sources are whole grains and concentrated grain products.

5. Kids need fiber as well. Children that are older than 2 years of age should consume a daily intake of fiber. Kids are most receptive to fiber found in fruits, vegetables, and even fortified breakfast cereals.

6. More fiber needs more water. In order to keep fiber moving through your digestive tract, you’ll need to consume a lot of water. With your diet of fiber, you’ll need eight or more glasses of water every day.

7. Fiber cannot be cooked out. When you cook your fruits and vegetables, don’t worry about cooking the fiber out, as it stays. The fiber found in fruits and vegetables aren’t just in the skin or in the peel.

8. You can get enough fiber. If you eat more than 50 grams of fiber in a day, you can get diarrhea and bloating, which can interfere with your body’s absorption of other key minerals.

9. Getting the right amount of fiber in your diet doesn’t have to be hard. Even though you may think so, getting the amount of fiber you need isn’t very hard to do. All you have to do is eat the right foods and you’ll be well on your way to a fiber
rich lifestyle.

As one of the key ingredients to healthy eating, fiber is something you don’t want to skip. Fiber can serve many different purposes, which were covered above. If you aren’t getting enough fiber in your diet – you should do something about now instead of waiting until it is too late.

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