Here is  the  best technique, the best ultimate secret, complete wisdom technique for dieting and health – ready?

Moderation.

Don’t eat a lot of anyone thing. And eat a variety.Eat when you are calm, allow time for food to digest.

Simple.

That’s a fine idea, but in this day and age of stress, and no time to cook, or eat properly, and everything is packaged or genetically altered and shipped and stored and packaged and preserved.

Time? – when

Moderation – how?

How do you keep moderation in a diet where in every, I mean every,packaged canned, prepared food its a guarantee there is salt, sugar and soy (in one of its many forms)

In fact there’s sugar in table salt.

In the last 20 years, we have increased sugar consumption in the U.S. 26 pounds to 135 lbs. of sugar per person per year! Prior to the turn of this century (1887-1890), the average consumption was only 5 lbs. per person per year! Cardiovascular disease and cancer was virtually unknown in the early 1900′s.

One of sugar’s major drawbacks is that it raises the insulin level, which inhibits the release of growth hormones, which in turn depresses the immune system. This is not something you want to take place if you want to avoid disease.

See – Nancy Appletons  146 reasons why sugar affects your health

A new study from the US suggests that a decrease in 9.5% in mean population sodium intake (as seen in the UK) would prevent thousands of strokes and heart attacks over the lifetimes of adults aged 40-85 years who are alive today, and save more than $32billion in medical expenses.

Cutting daily dietary salt intake by about one-third could drastically reduce the number of new cases of cardiovascular disease, heart attack and stroke diagnosed in the U.S. each year and prevent thousands of deaths, the researchers found. A population-wide reduction in salt consumption would also save the U.S. billions of dollars in annual healthcare costs.

A Canadian study states; The average Canadian consumes about 3,500 mg of sodium, or about 9 grams of salt, per day – nearly a third more than the maximum daily intake recommended by Health Canada.

Some easy ways to reduce daily salt intake include:

• Comparing brands to find the one with the lowest sodium content; look for less than 400 mg of sodium per serving.

• Make soup at home or dilute store-bought brands

• Canned vegetables and beans are convenient and nutritious but come loaded with sodium. Rinse under running water for two to three minutes to reduce salt content by up to 90 per cent.

• Top sandwiches and burgers with veggies instead of sodium-laden condiments.

• Use herbs and spices for flavour, rather than salt.

The difference between salt and sugar?

We need salt, we don’t NEED sugar.

However the U.S consumer has been taught to love sweet things. Its been a long process but the sugar and packaging companies have taught us to love all things sweet. U.S. foods, especially snack foods are noticeably sweeter than European or even Canadian snacks. The sugar content in U.S. Foods is higher than anywhere else in the consuming world.

Then there are the  Artificial sweeteners. Although FDA-approved, and widely used, may people wonder about the safety of sugar substitutes. But with rare exceptions, they appear to pose little or no risk when used in moderation.

Remember again that word MODERATION.

Artificial sweeteners add sweetness without calories in two ways. First, they are so sweet — 160 to 13,000 times sweeter than sugar — that you need only a tiny bit to achieve the equivalent taste. You consume a fraction of a calorie to get the sweetness of many more calories worth of sugar. Second, because the body doesn’t fully absorb them, it also doesn’t fully absorb the few calories they contain.

Low-calorie sweeteners contain only a few calories per gram. Also known as sugar alcohols or polyols, they are 50%–92% sweeter than sugar. These sweeteners are found strictly in packaged goods — look for sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, erythritol, and D-tagatose on the ingredients list. All sugar alcohols are absorbed slowly and incompletely by the intestine, which is why they have little caloric effect. However, this property can also cause gas and diarrhea if you consume too much. For many people, more than 50 grams per day of sorbitol or 20 grams per day of mannitol can cause these problems.

What about some of the other sweeteners, termed “no-calorie”? Here’s  some of the most popular.

Acesulfame K (Sunett, Sweet One): Incorporated in hundreds of products, acesulfame K is 200 times sweeter than sugar and can be used in baked goods. According to the FDA, its safety is backed by more than 90 studies.

Saccharin (Sweet ’N Low, Sugar Twin, others): Saccharin was almost banned in 1977 because of studies in rats linking it to bladder cancer. Since then, the National Cancer Institute and the FDA have concluded that its use is not a major risk for bladder cancer in humans. Saccharin is 200–700 times sweeter than sugar.

Aspartame (Nutra-Sweet, Equal, others): Despite anecdotal reports of adverse effects, the American Medical Association and the FDA have both concluded that aspartame is safe at recommended levels. However, people with a disorder called phenylketonuria (PKU) should avoid it. These people cannot metabolize an amino acid found in aspartame, allowing it to accumulate in the body to dangerous levels. Aspartame is 160–220 times sweeter than sugar.

Sucralose (Splenda): Sucralose, which is 600 times sweeter than sugar, is marketed as being “made from sugar.” Its manufacturers do use sugar as the starting point. However, they convert sugar to the non-caloric sucralose by changing its chemical makeup, so it’s not actually sugar any longer. Granulated Splenda can be substituted for sugar, spoon-for-spoon, in baking and cooking. Although it’s called a “no-calorie” sweetener, sucralose does have a small fraction of a calorie. There is also a new product called Splenda Blend that is half sugar, half Splenda.

Neotame: The most recently approved sweetener, neotame is 7,000–13,000 times sweeter than sugar. It is made by the same company that produces NutraSweet (aspartame). It is derived from aspartame, but with one chemical change. This enables the body to metabolize neotame differently than aspartame, so products containing neotame are not required to carry the PKU warning.
Should you use sweeteners?

The American Dietetic Association has approved the use of all five FDA-approved artificial sweeteners for people with diabetes, pregnant women, and children. Although artificial sweeteners are considered generally safe, some experts remain wary. These experts believe that there’s not enough evidence on the sweetener aspartame to be sure that it’s completely safe and that animal studies linking saccharin to cancer are a reason to ban it. (Harvard Review)

In moderation, foods containing artificial sweeteners can satisfy a craving for sweets while limiting the number of calories consumed. You’ll still want to keep an eye on total calories, because sugar-free does not mean calorie-free.

If you’re uncomfortable about using artificial sweeteners, despite current scientific evidence, you can get by without them. Try the following:

* Drink flavored seltzer water instead of diet soda.
* Cut back on the sugar you add to foods. With a little time and training, your taste buds can learn to enjoy other ways of sweetening food, like blueberries in your oatmeal instead of maple syrup.
* Compare grams of sugar when buying packaged foods. Some brands may have less sugar than others.
* Read labels and packaging carefully. Many products contain artificial sweeteners when you might not expect them to.

Soy

Like sugar and salt soy in its many forms is in almost every packaged food. And the soy marketing has been relentless.

All soybean producers pay a mandatory assessment of one-half to one per cent of the net market price of soybeans. The total – something like US$80 million annually – supports United Soybean’s program to “strengthen the position of soybeans in the marketplace and maintain and expand domestic and foreign markets for uses for soybeans and soybean products”. State soybean councils from Maryland, Nebraska, Delaware, Arkansas, Virginia, North Dakota and Michigan provide another $2.5 million for “research”.5  Private companies like Archer Daniels Midland also contribute their share. ADM spent $4.7 million for advertising on Meet the Press and $4.3 million on Face the Nation during the course of a year.6  Public relations firms help convert research projects into newspaper articles and advertising copy, and law firms lobby for favorable government regulations. IMF money funds soy processing plants in foreign countries, and free trade policies keep soybean abundance flowing to overseas destinations.

The new fairy-tale food has been marketed not so much for her beauty but for her virtues. Early on, products based on soy protein isolate were sold as extenders and meat substitutes – a strategy that failed to produce the requisite consumer demand. The industry changed its approach. “The quickest way to gain product acceptability in the less affluent society,” said an industry spokesman, “is to have the product consumed on its own merit in a more affluent society.”3 So soy is now sold to the upscale consumer, not as a cheap, poverty food but as a miracle substance that will prevent heart disease and cancer, whisk away hot flushes, build strong bones and keep us forever young. The competition – meat, milk, cheese, butter and eggs – has been duly demonised by the appropriate government bodies. Soy serves as meat and milk for a new generation of virtuous vegetarians.

But soy’s story is not all sweet and light. Soy is one the right foods primarliy responsible for allergies , and one of the five foods responsible for most allergies in children (About.com)

There is also increasing concern that eating large amounts of soy can affect thyroid function. Particularly worrisome is the presence of phytoestrogens in soy-based infant formulas (isoflavones are a category of phytoestrogen). Critics point out that the level of phytoestrogens in soy-based formula is over 20,000 times that found in breast milk. In a 1999 press release, the Canadian Health Coalition stated that consumption of soy formulas could lead to a host of health problems, including thyroid dysfunction.

Vegetarians who consume tofu and bean curd as a substitute for meat and dairy products risk severe mineral deficiencies. The results of calcium, magnesium and iron deficiency are well known; those of zinc are less so.

Zinc is called the intelligence mineral because it is needed for optimal development and functioning of the brain and nervous system. It plays a role in protein synthesis and collagen formation; it is involved in the blood-sugar control mechanism and thus protects against diabetes; it is needed for a healthy reproductive system. Zinc is a key component in numerous vital enzymes and plays a role in the immune system. Phytates found in soy products interfere with zinc absorption more completely than with other minerals.19 Zinc deficiency can cause a “spacey” feeling that some vegetarians may mistake for the “high” of spiritual enlightenment. (mercola.com)

CONCLUSION

Soy salt and sugar are foods that are in every packaged food and most restaurant meal we eat.

Sugar serves no useful health purpose whatsoever, its just a bad habit we have been taught to cultivate from childhood onwards.

Salt is a necessity for our health -Salt is vital for our health. Right now, you have around 250 gr. of salt – about a cupful – working for keeping you alive. Without enough of it, muscles won’t contract, blood won’t circulate, food won’t digest, and the heart won’t beat. But as North American consumers we absorb too much from the packaged and restaurant foods we eat.

Soy may or may not be a ‘good’ good, but like any good thing you can have too much.

Moderation in all things.

Be aware of what you are eating. Read the labels, remember whatever is the first or second ingredient is the most predominant. And its almost always sugar. And then further down its salt,and then under that Soy, in all its variety of names – corn syrup substitute for example.

Try to make it a habit to prepare your own foods, your own salads, your own soups. I know in this rushed life we barely have time to think,so we gulp down what we can for nourishment and then rush on to the next appointment, the next task.

Create some time.

Create some time to eat, and to at least spend a little time on your health.