So, Should You Eat Gluten Or Not?

The gluten debate continues, often with more venom than opposition parties at election time. Why does this molecule ignite so much antagonism? After all, it's just a food…Or is it?

5 Snacks You Think Are Healthy But Aren't

As a nutrition company, we spend a lot of time talking to people about their health, mostly about the challenges of trying to maintain a healthy diet. And we've found that one of the hardest places to eat well is the airport.

We all know that airports could do a better job of replacing fast food joints with healthier restaurants (Chipotle, please!) and offering better options in their stores.

But it's also true that when traveling, we're pat of the problem! We're often stressed and distracted. We're carrying several bags, running to gates, dodging crowds, avoiding bathroom lines, and frantically trying to get somewhere on time. And because we're so focused on our destinations and not our health, it's easy to make poor decisions when it comes to food.

Since it's our mission at SmartyPants to make it easier for you to be healthy, all the time, everywhere, and since it's summer and we all love to travel this time of year, we've created a list of five common airport (and airplane) foods to avoid. They may seem like healthy choices, but actually they're not.

1. Trail mix

Read more

The Unhealthiest Hot Starbucks Drinks

Click Here to see The Complete List of Unhealthiest Hot Starbucks Drinks

15 Ways to Lower Cholesterol

Change your diet and lifestyle to lower cholesterol and your risk of heart disease.

Here's how.

Signs You're Addicted to Sugar

Do you feel bad when you skip your daily cookie "fix"? You may have a problem.

Get gentle tips to kick the habit.

How Factory Farms May Be Killing Us

A report from the CDC reveals the grave dangers of antibiotic resistance and says factory-farmed animals are a big contributor.

25 Guilt-Free Snacks

25 Super Snacks With 100 Calories or Less

Coconut Oil Benefits: When Fat Is Good For You

You've no doubt noticed that for about the last 60 years, the majority of health care officials and the media have been telling you saturated fats are bad for your health and lead to a host of negative consequences, including high cholesterol, obesity, heart disease and Alzheimer's disease.

Meanwhile during this same 60 years, the American levels of heart disease, obesity, elevated serum cholesterol and Alzheimer's have skyrocketed.

Did you know that multiple studies on Pacific Island populations who get 30-60 percent of their total caloric intake from fully saturated coconut oil have all shown nearly non-existent rates of cardiovascular disease? (1)

The fact is, all saturated fats are not created equal.

The operative word here is "created," because some saturated fats occur naturally, while other fats are artificially manipulated into a saturated state through the man-made process called hydrogenation.


Read more

Five Foods That Should Never Be In Your Grocery Cart

When shopping at the supermarket, Americans spend $100 every week and almost $5,000 annually. The items tossed in your grocery cart play a huge role in the health and well-being of your family. Here are 5 items that should never make it through the checkout line.

10 healthy uses for apple cider vinegar

The apple cider vinegar stocked in your cupboard may play a starring role in your salad dressing, but it’s also enjoyed a long run as the basis of many health remedies. (The organic, unfiltered kind, that is.)

Apple cider vinegar’s strong suit is balancing pH levels, and creating a healthy, alkalized state when you eat or drink it—or use it a skin-care product. (You want to be more alkaline than acidic for a trillion health reasons, some experts say.)

It’s also pretty renowned in natural-health circles for curbing digestive issues, spiking weight loss, promoting great skin, and banishing a handful of other pesky afflictions.

And in the medical community, small research studies point to its promise for lessening symptoms of diabetes and obesity.

Wonder how it can help you? Here are ten reasons to add apple cider vinegar to more than just your salad dressing:

1. Digestion and food poisoning. Vinegar contains malic acid, which can help common digestive issues like constipation or acid-reflux. And because it’s a trifecta of antifungal, antibacterial, and antiviral properties, a tablespoon or two in a 8 oz. glass of water may even help with a case of food poisoning.

Read more

An Age-Old Secret to Losing Weight

Obesity has become a public health issue. New research suggests moment-to-moment awareness does a better job of helping people control their weight than any diet.

READ MORE

A Sour Life Turned Sweet

My 14 years without sugar.

Late last century—on April 15, 1998, to be specific—I accomplished a feat that once felt completely impossible to me: I quit sugar, sweeteners, and refined carbs. Now, nearly 15 years later, I happily, joyfully, emphatically declare that letting go of my sugar addiction was the most life-changing thing I’ve ever done.

I’m now so much better, sweeter, kinder, nobler, gentler, happier, more soulful, and even (so I’m told) funnier and sexier—all because I made that one important dietary change. And, of course, I’m slimmer, too, although I wasn’t really overweight. (More about that another time.)

Thankfully, in the decade-plus since I became liberated from sugar, it’s finally become fashionable to decry the overconsumption of America’s sweetheart (sugar and its sweet siblings like high fructose corn syrup).

Indeed, 60 Minutes, other news outlets, and even highly respected doctors like Dr. Mehmet Oz, Dr. Robert Lustig and Dr. Christiane Northrup now tell us that sugar in excess can be downright toxic.

Read more

5 Grotesque Fast Food Products Americans Scarf Down in Their Cars

Fast food marketers are increasingly pushing unhealthy "snacks" for Americans to eat while driving.

Healthy Snacks

Packaged snacks tend to be highly processed and not very nutritious. Try these 100-to-200 calorie alternatives.

A small banana and 7 walnut halves

Baby carrots with 5 tsp hummus

1 cup fat free Greek style yogurt with 1/2 cup blueberries

Half a turkey sandwich

1 cup shelled edamame

3 cups air popped popcorn with 2 tsp Parmesan cheese

50 pistachios

A small baked potato with 1/2 cup salsa and 2 tsp fat free sour cream

3 small squares dark chocolate with 3 apricot halves

1 celery sticks with 1 tblsp peanut butter

The Joy of Avacados

Diet: Though high in fat, the fats are monounsaturated and help lower total cholesterol. Avocados also contain more potassium than bananas which is vital for muscle building and reducing blood pressure.

Supple Skin: Used as a face mask, natural oils found in avocados penetrate the layers of the skin, leaving it soft, smooth and moisturized. Not to mention, they slow down the aging process and doesn't clog pores.

Nutrients: Avocados provide vitamins B, C and E, aiding in their ability to heal and soothe dry, itchy or inflamed skin. They also contain a multitude of minerals: iron, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc and calcium.

Top 10 Iron Sources

ron is essential for building healthy muscles and maintaining healthy blood. Here, we give you the top ten food sources of iron, according to the USDA's Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Read more

Seven High-Calorie Beverages That Pack on Pounds

Liquid calories slip by so easily, it’s almost hard to take them seriously. But alas, all those super-sized beverages and high fructose corn syrup concoctions have contributed, quite stealthily, to our obesity epidemic. Our adults have the beer bellies and our children the Big Gulp guts to prove it. Although some cities have started to ban sales of soda in schools, we adults are free to roam in the world of heavily sauced drinks, sometimes adding a meal-sized amount of calories from a tiny little straw. Here are some obvious and not-so-obvious ways to bulk up without ever having to chew.

Read more

Potassium Superfoods

If you think bananas have more potassium than any other food, think again.

Why Factory Farmed Meat Is a Threat to Your Health -- Even If You Don't Eat It

David Kirby talks about his book "Animal Factory," and the risks that factory farming poses to our health and the environment.

READ MORE

Raw foods help control weight

If you eat 80 percent of your food fresh and raw, it is virtually impossible to be overweight.