Healthtips , Health News, Health Care and Fitness,Health and Nutrition Tips

Whether you prefer them green or black, olives are a healthy fruit to add to your meals. For the Greeks, they represent nobility and peace but more than that they know the wonders it does for your health.  Olive oil helps keep cholesterol levels in check and controls the blood sugar. It is one of the easiest to digest as it is monounsaturated. Drizzle some on top of a vegetable salad or dip a slice of whole-grain bread in some and eat as a snack. Olive oil can also be added to spicy dishes and acidic food items. Try adding them when making sauces and dressings. Make a mix of olive oil with onions, herbs (oregano, thyme etc) and garlic for pasta sauces. Use olive oil to marinate your meat dishes as this allows better penetration ofthe flavour into the food.

We give you simple exercises to treat lower back ache  Almost everyone suffers from lower back pain at some point or the other. It could be for a variety of reasons and is especially common among adults. It is often caused by overuse and muscle strain or injury. Here are some simple tips that will help you overcome it better... - Avoid positions or activities that increase or cause back pain, use an ice pack when needed and take a painkiller only if you really require it. Most lower back pain gets better when you remain active. - When your pain is getting relatively lesser, you can opt for simple strengthening exercises for your stomach, back, and legs along with some stretching exercises. Exercise not only helps you recover quicker, it also prevents re-injury to your back. 

A new study, which examined gender-specific influences of binge drinking on spatial working memory (SWM), has found that female teens may be particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of the habit.  Binge or "heavy episodic" drinking is prevalent during adolescence, raising concerns about alcohol's effects on crucial neuromaturational processes during this developmental period. Heavy alcohol use has been associated with decrements in cognitive functioning in both adult and adolescent populations, particularly on tasks of SWM. "Even though adolescents might physically appear grown up, their brains are continuing to significantly develop and mature, particularly in frontal brain regions that are associated with higher-level thoughts, like planning and organization," said Susan F. Tapert, acting chief of psychology at the VA San Diego Healthcare System as well as professor of psychiatry at theUniversity of California, San Diego.

Scientists have indicated that just one night of sleep deprivation can lead to weight gain.  It slows down the body's metabolism the next morning - meaning less energy, in the form of calories, is burnt off. Previous studies have linked sleep deprivation with an increase in hunger-related hormones during waking hours. "Our findings show that one night of sleep deprivation acutely reduces energy expenditure in healthy men, which suggests sleep contributes to the acute regulation of daytime energy expenditure in humans," the  Daily Mail  quoted Christian Benedict, who led the research at Uppsala University in Sweden, as saying. 

Good breakfast is the key to a healthy lifestyle determining the quality of your whole day's nutrition, according to research.  And the best way to start the morning is with a simple bowl of a healthy cereal, as it makes people less likely to turn to fatty, sugary food through the rest of the day, reports  express  . The study, by nutritionist Sigrid Gibson revealed the healthiest breakfast choice is cereal with milk because it is a good source of calcium and numerous other key nutrients, such as fibre, protein and carbohydrate. The research team analysed 12,068 food records from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey, which interviewed Britons aged from 19 to 64. 

Breathing exercises are among the most popular stress relievers. Not only do they work swiftly, they require very little practise and you can do them anywhere.  Here's why you should opt for them... - Stress is known to wreak havoc on you both physically and mentally. Breathing exercises are a great way to relieve stress as well as give you relief from hyperventillation, bad headaches, burnout, fatigue, help you sleep better, reduce anxiety and depression. - You can go in for breathing exercises when you're overcome by stress and want to feel better, when you feel overwhelmed in a situation and don't know what to do, you want to clear your thoughts, your body wants a release, you feel irritated when things don't go your way or when you're in the middle of an argument and want to calm down. - When practiced regularly, you will notice that you're able to handle stressful situations way better than what you used to.

Eating red meat, particularly processed meat such as hot dogs, sausages or bacon significantly increases your risk of developing type 2 diabetes, a new research has found. The study also shows that replacing red meat with healthier proteins, such as low-fat dairy, nuts, or whole grains, can significantly lower the risk. Study leader An Pan, research fellow in the HSPH Department of Nutrition, senior author Frank Hu, professor of nutrition and epidemiology at HSPH, and colleagues analysed questionnaire responses from 37,083 men followed for 20 years in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study; 79,570 women followed for 28 years in the Nurses' Health Study I; and 87,504 women followed for 14 years in the Nurses' Health Study II. They also conducted an updated meta-analysis, combining data from their new study with data from existing studies that included a total of 442,101 participants, 28,228 of whom developed type 2 diabetes during the study.