Suppressing the Appetite

When I get stressed I do one of two things-- either I snack all the time, or I stop eating altogether.

My diet plan is to control the appetite so I'm in charge of it. I've found a great supplement to help with that effort, called EasySlimRX. It includes some known appetite suppressant ingredients, including

• Hoodia gornonii, a product created from a prickly succulent plant found in the African Kalahari desert.
• Wakame, a seaweed used widely in Japan as an appetite suppressant
• Green tea, another appetite suppressant frequently used in Asia, and a favorite diet secret of Oprah Winfrey, among a whole array celebrities.

Anyway, I'm sitting at my computer smelling a delicious meal of country ribs in my crockpot. Normally, it would make my tummy growl with hunger and I'd be snacking right up until the time I can get at the ribs at dinner.

With the EasySlimRX I am able to enjoy the great aroma without getting a severe case of the snackies and I'll be able to enjoy a small portion of the ribs for dinner in another few hours.

Liz Nichols

On Fasting

A friend of mine reported on his regular Wednesday Blogtalk that he just completed a two week fast. During that time he ate almost exclusively fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds. He eliminated alcohol and other beverages other than water.

While his purpose was to gain focus on his business and religious clarity about his business direction, fasting is a great way to experience rapid weight loss.

I have not quite convinced myself to go to the extreme of a fast during my diet, but I may eventually get there. I was sufficiently impressed with my friend's fortitude that on my shopping this week I at least doubled my buy of fruits, veggies and nuts, and got very little meat and junk food. I had been craving ice cream all week and decided rather than to go without completely for another week I'd get frozen low fat yogurt. The peach flavored is SO GOOD!

All week I have been reaching for unsalted nuts rather than sweets. It's not as virtuous as reaching for carrots, but then my diet is not about eliminating all temptation, just in cutting back.

What has helped to keep me from having the munchies all the time is that I am taking two capsules of EasySlimRX every morning. This product has a triple action formula of hoodia gordonii, green tea extract and a seaweed called wakame to help keep the appetite at bay. I recommend it. For more about the product visit the site EasySlimRX.

Liz Nichols

GlaxsoSmithKline Petitions FDA for Tighter Dietary Supplement Stds

If you don't mind involuntary discharges into your underwear, you may not mind the fat-blocking supplement, Alli, the first FDA-approved weight loss formulation in history. Manufacturer, GSK warns that soiling is one of the unpleasant side-effects of this product if you exceed 15 grams of fat per day while taking this product. Remember potato chips with a special fat blocking feature? They didn't last long on the market, did they?

In its latest financial report GSK indicates that it fell a million short in its sales in its first year of sales with Alli. Don't imagine users liked the messy side-effect.

So, to solidify its tenuous position, GSK has petitioned the FDA to place stringent testing requirement on all dietary supplements to prove safety and effectiveness.

Products like EasySlimRX, a weight loss pill with virtually no side-effects might be pulled from the market in order to undergo years of laboratory testing.

Now, certainly, we want to make sure anything we put in our bodies is safe to consume. Extensive research has gone into each ingredient to make sure that it is safe to use. No claims can be made by a dietary supplement on effectiveness scientifically, and we are very careful not to make such claims.

However, there is heuristic evidence from satisfied customers that products such as EasySlimRX, with its combination of appetite suppressants that have been used for human consumption for hundreds or thousand of years for the purpose of weight loss, are beneficial for many of the people taking these products.

Over-regulating dietary supplements will unnecessarily limit the choice the public has on the products it chooses to use for weight loss. It will virtually place a monopoly on the field with Alli as the only contender. People who would otherwise choose not to put up with the diarrhea sometimes caused by this product will have little choice if they wish to use a dietary supplement. One can imaging that with a monopoly prices will soar for any product that manages to get through the long and involved FDA approval process.

You can send your comment to the FDA RE this proposed regulation change to:
http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=SubmitComment&o=0900006480511d9b
Liz Nichols

What is Hoodia Gordonii?

Hoodia Gordonii is a dietary supplement product made from a South African prickly succulent which promotes weight loss by reducing the appetite. Apparently for centuries African bushmen have been using the meaty parts of the plant to suppress appetite in order to withstand the ordeal of journeys through the Kalahari Desert.

The plant is now protected by the governments of South Africa and Namibia and is licensed for sale through only a few companies. There is some concern that its growing popularity may make the plant more scarce. It's popularity has certainly increased the cost of the product.

A 2004 segment on "60 Minutes" TV news magazine popularized the use of the product as a weight loss supplement. Some 250 products now purport to contain Hoodia Gordonii, although not all of these products have actually tested out to contain the real thing.

Much evidence of the effectiveness of Hoodia Gordonii is anecdotal. However, there have been a couple of researh studies. Richard M. Goldfarb, MD, Morrisville, Pa., conducted a study of Hoodia gordonii on seven individuals and found it effective. It caused a reduction of 3.3% of body fat and helped most participants to reduce their caloric intake by at least half. Goldfarb's patients reported no side-effects, such as jitteriness or insomnia.

Phytopharm, a U.K. company, cites its own study in 2001 where users of the plant extract reduced average calorie intake and body fat within a two week period.

Be sure that the weight loss supplements you buy contain genuine Hoodia Gordonii. There are many knock-offs that do not, in fact, contain African hoodia.

One product that does contain Hoodia Gordonii is EasySlimRX. This product is available online.

Liz Nichols

Weight Loss Recipes: Tasty Chicken Soup

We never waste any part of a chicken or turkey. Once most of the meat is off, the carcass goes into a pot with about 4 quarts of water, a couple teaspoons of lite salt, and some celery tops, if I have them on hand.

Once the carcass has simmered for 30-45 minutes, I remove the pot from the heat and let the carcass and the liquid cool. If there is meat or bone left floating in the broth, I'll use a strainer to remove all of the particles from the broth. The liquid then goes into the refrigerator to continue to cool over night, and the carcass is cleaned of all remaining meat. The meat will be stored with other scraps of chicken or turkey I've saved for the soup and the carcass is thrown out.

The next day an hour or more before I plan to serve the soup, I skim off the congealed fat, add a little more water or chicken broth if the liquid has boiled down below about 3 quarts, and then I reheat, adding two packets of onion soup mix. 1/4 cup of white or brown rice will also go into the mixture and be simmered for 20 minutes while I prepare vegetables. I'll usually add another 1-2 tsp. of lite salt, 1 tsp. of black pepper, and a couple of bay leaves for flavor while the broth and rice are simmering.

Usually, I will add 2 cups of sliced carrots and 2 cups of sliced celery to the mix. Another good veggie to add to the soup mix is broccoli, which adds more vitamins and minerals to the soup than the celery. The cut up pieces of left over chicken or turkey will be added maybe 15 minutes before serving the soup.

This delicious dish will only set the diet back 100-150 calories, is hearty and filling.

Liz Nichols

The Secret to Long Life

My 92 year old mother fell yesterday. We spent 6 hours in the hospital emergency room getting her checked out and patched up.

For most people of that age a fall flat on the face on a concrete sidewalk would spell a broken hip, a cracked head, and possibly a heart attack. Not for my mother. Oh, she went home with a splint on a broken wrist and a broken jaw that will be wired up on Monday. But thanks to a remarkable constitution and particularly strong bones, she was able to go home that same day and could even walk a few paces with assistance. Except for a broken collarbone a few years ago, this is the only other accident my mother has had that has caused broken bones in 92 years.

What is the secret to my mother's long, healthy life? Well, for one thing, she walks regularly. That's what she was doing when she fell. Unfortunately, sometimes you need to deal with the risks in order to get the longterm gain. Until recently, Mother was walking about 3 miles a day. Because of a case of vertigo she now only walks a mile or so a day, with the help of a cane or walker. She was wearing a pedometer at the time she fell, contributing to her team's good showing at her retirement home's walk-a-thon contest. Now she'll be stuck in a wheel chair until her wrist heals, but I'm sure she'll be back at it soon, walking at least a mile a day.

Another secret to my mother's longevity are her strong bones. She has always eaten right. She generally eats her main meal during the noon hour and goes for lots of salads, fresh vegetables and homemade soups. She almost always has a glass of milk with her lunch, and usually has a glass in the morning with cereal. She takes a regular vitamin supplement, and she swears by Goji Juice, a tasty and refreshing natural berry drink made from the Himalayan Goji berry. My mother has experienced a drop in blood pressure, easier time sleeping and fewer aches and pains from arthritis that she attributes to a daily regime of 4 ounces of Goji Juice.

Another key ingredient to my mother's long and healthy life is that she has kept the weight off all her life. She lost 32 pounds shortly before she got married in 1940 and she's stayed within 5 pounds of the same weight ever since, right around 112. If she feels that her clothes are getting just a little tight she does something about it immediately. She'll cut down on carbs or go for more frequent walks-- something to get that extra couple pounds off immediately. This way she's never let those pounds get ahead of her. No having to stare a 75 pound diet in the face like me!

Lastly, my mother always looks on the optimistic side of things. Even in the emergency room and with a broken jaw yesterday, my mother was able to smile at the doctors and joke a bit. While she was flat on her back on a hospital gurney waiting for the next round of doctors to examine her she was quoting some of her favorite poetry about looking on the bright side of things. My mother is also thoroughly convinced that having an optimistic attitude is what has kept her going long after others have died. She commented that she can't think of a single person at her retirement facility who has opted to be a sourpuss who is still alive. Long life and health definitely are more frequently conferred on people who take life as it comes and turn lemons into lemonade.

Well, time to go check on my mother.

Liz Nichols

Stalled on the Diet

Today I took a bit of a break from the diet. Hopefully, it won't do long term damage.

I've missed my walks the last couple days and I've eaten more than usual. I felt hungry all day.

Tuesday mornings are Rotary mornings, and a bigger breakfast. At least I avoided the humongous sweet rolls and stuck with eggs, fruit and some French toast and bacon. Lunch was half a peach and four crackers with small squares of cheese.

By 3 p.m. I was fighting a mid-afternoon let-down that even a couple glasses of iced tea could not beat. I did some errands with my 20 year old daughter, who was celebrating the fact that her Economic Stimulus check had come. While she was shopping I took off for Starbucks, something I am doing infrequently now. I broke the diet with a low fat latte and a piece of pound cake.

Dinner was equally bad diet-wise-- peas, two sloppy joes, ice tea and the other half a peach. I guess it could have been worse. I avoided chips, alcohol or dessert.

Now my stomach feels too full. I guess it's progress that when I eat a little too much I feel it. That's a good thing. It will keep me on the straight and narrow.

There's always another day when it comes to the diet. Tomorrow will be better.

Liz Nichols