stevia

When it comes to sticking with a diet, most people can use all the help they can get.  Changing your life and becoming more health conscious is of course a long term thing.  However, when trying to kick start your weight loss program; a good diet can do wonders.  Keeping yourself motivated is much easier when the scale moves downwards more quickly.

According to health and diet experts, the average North American consumes somewhere between two to three pounds of sugar a week.  This includes high fructose corn syrup, regular sugar, dextrose and other sugar derivatives.  Consumption of sugar and sugary byproducts has therefore grown from twenty-six pounds a year to a whopping 135 pounds a year.  Obviously this is a grave chang

Stevia, also known as sweet leaf, sugar plant, or sugar leaf, is an herb which grows natively in tropical and subtropical South America, but is currently grown all over the world. The plant grows like a shrub, only reaching a height of about four feet, and can be cultivated rather easily because of its natural insect repelling qualities.

Eating habits have changed a great deal in the last fifty or so years.  Today, people in wealthy nations consume a ton more than they used to, and of that consumption a great deal of it is composed of fats, processed foods, sugar and salt. 

When you factor in sucrose, dextrose and fructose corn syrup, the average American consumes 2-3 pounds of sugar a week. In the last 20 years, sugar consumption for the average American has grown from 26 pounds to 135 pounds of sugar a year. Surely, this is a ticking time bomb and must be reversed.

There are a lot of exciting things happening at AstroNutrition in 2010 as we roll up our sleeves and crack the whip. After more than 5 years in business, it's time to take it up a notch and I'm pleased to announce what's in store.

Since artificial sweeteners are carbohydrate-free, we've assumed that they don't have any effect on the body's abilitiy to handle glucose. There's some new evidence that these sweeteners can trigger the secretion of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), according to new research. GLP-1 is secreted from the digestive tract to signal the brain that it is "full."

Most people have a sweet tooth but how they deal with their cravings varies.  Recent studies have shown that around 70% of people eat way too much sugar on a daily basis.  Sugar causes inflammation in the body and constantly eating sweet foods does all kinds of harm to your internal body not to mention your external body.

Too much sugar has been linked to obesity, diabetes, and other health problems. If you use sugar substitutes to avoid having too much sugar in your diet, it is in your best interest to be very careful of which ones you use.

Millions of people worldwide have diabetes, yet there still seems to be lack of knowledge when it comes to the disease, and how to prevent it. Sometimes diabetes is hereditary but in many people it can be prevented. It is important not only to recognize prevention methods, but how to read the symptoms.

No matter how disciplined, everyone gets food cravings once in a while. In one study conducted, 91% of women get a strong food craving that is hard to ignore-and these cravings are almost all the time for foods that are not good for you. These cravings are caused by dopamine, which is a chemical released by the brain that produces a “feel good” sensation.

You know the drill-you vow to follow your New Years resolutions all year, you even make a list and stick it on your fridge. But then February approaches and it seems that you have let things slip-you vow to try harder, and you end up making the same resolutions next year.

Stevia is a species of herbs that is native to Paraguay and commonly used as a sugar substitute. The extracts that come from this herb are up to 300 times sweeter than sugar and completely natural. This natural sweetener has been gaining popularity due to the increased use of alternate sweeteners, although this is not where this herb’s advantages end.

Refined sugar is not so sweet.

It has been known for some time that the average diet in North America is far too high in sugar. Refined sugar (or white sugar) enters the food chain at several different points, and foods that we often don’t associate with sugar can sometimes be loaded with it. Bread, spaghetti sauce, breakfast cereal – even peanut butter ­– are all notoriously high in sugar. It was as early as 1900 that the average yearly consumption of sugar per person in America was five pounds. These days the average is over one hundred and thirty five pounds per person each year! And the number is growing.

Being healthy is sometimes about finding ways to renegotiate your existing habits. Many people love coffee, but don’t enjoy it without a little dressing ­– some cream and sugar. Luckily things are changing and specialty items that used to be expensive substitutes for unhealthy white sugars are becoming more popular and less expensive, even cheaper in some cases.