Confused About Whether Eating Before Exercise Is a Good Idea or Not? Answers...

A lot of people are confused about eating before exercise. In fact, Vitamin G reader kristindenae asked for some clarification. Some say it's a must. Others say no way and would rather sweat it out on an empty stomach. Which is best? The answer ...

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Eat! That's what most nutrition and fitness experts say. Fred DeVito, co-founder of Exhale Spa's Core Fusion classes says it's very important to be nourished before exercise. (P.S. If you live near an Exhale location, check out their new promotion--sign up for an annual membership, and get all kinds of freebies and discounts.)

"It is not advisable to work out on an empty stomach," he says. "I see people get light-headed, dizzy and have even seen people pass out cold after the first 15 minutes of intense exercise and almost 100 percent of the time, these people have had nothing to eat prior to class."

Collagen Deficit May Cause Osteoarthritis

U.S. scientists studying mice have found a deficiency of a certain type of collagen causes osteoarthritis and degenerative disc disease.

The Duke University Medical Center researchers said they found mice with their Type IX collagen gene inactivated prematurely developed the common and chronic musculoskeletal disorders. Both diseases cause joint pain and loss of function.

The scientists, led by postdoctoral fellow Kyle Allen, compared behavioral abilities of collagen deficient mice to wild-type mice.

"We observed a pattern of behavioral changes in the collagen deficient mice that suggests a relationship to (osteoarthritis and degenerative disc disease)," said Allen, who noted the collagen deficient mice also had elevated levels of knee and intervertebral disc structural changes.

Butter vs. Margarine--Which Side Are You On?

There are definitely two types of healthy eaters: Those in the all-natural, nothing-artificial, a-little-butter-isn't-going-to-kill-me camp, and those who love their margarine because it's lower in fat, especially saturated fat. What side are you on?

But, really--which is healthier, butter or margarine? It's a subject health experts find themselves commenting on a lot. Butter gets blamed for saturated fat, margarine gets blamed for trans fat and artificial ingredients (though there are many healthier, trans-fat-free margarine products on the market these days).

So which is better?

One Mayo Clinic expert says that margarine is better for heart health. Because it is most often made from vegetable oils, it has little or no cholesterol.

Breakfast at Your Desk: The Epiphany About Breakfast That Can Benefit Your Health--Today

I was chatting with a friend recently about an International vacay she just got back from, and I realized something that made me think "huh--America has it so wrong when it comes to breakfast" ...

Here's the deal: In many countries of the world--especially in Asia--the first meal of the day is not sweet or heavy. Contrast that to traditional American morning meals:

*Cereal, pastries, muffins = sweet

*Eggs, bacon, ham, biscuits, hash browns = heavy

While there's nothing wrong with eating tasty food and a substantial meal in the mornings, it's interesting to note that most countries of the world don't even go for sweets in the morning. (Just think of the built-in boost of energy when 10 a.m. hits and they don't have a low blood sugar moment.) Instead, they eat light, veggie-based, savory meals--like miso soup and rice in Japan.

Book Review: The Carb Lovers Diet

On Friday I told you that I was eager to make some recipes from the new New York Times bestselling cookbook from Health magazine, The Carb Lovers Diet. So far, the book has been getting rave reviews. I made three of the recipes from the book. My opinion?

I'm not a huge fan of diet books--for obvious reasons. But what I do love are books that take a realistic approach to weight loss and offer easy, yummy recipes that people can actually enjoy making. That's the case with Health magazine's new book, Carb Lovers Diet. Authors Ellen Kunes (Health's editor in chief) and Frances Largeman-Roth, R.D., the mag's food editor, put forth a doable program that promises to help you shed as little as 15 pounds or as many as 100, by offering slim-eating strategies and the recipes to get you there--many of which utilize ingredients rich in resistant starch, which some health experts say can help fight the battle of the bulge.

Dog Crates best Solution for Dog’s Tiredness

If you have a hyperactive dog, sometimes you will find a serious condition where you’re dog look so stressed out and very tired for long time. There are lots of reasons why dogs can get these symptoms but most of them are proven unknown. As we know either in neither our body nor the dogs are being controlled by some certain chemicals active called hormones, so when you pump your hormones to much there will be the side effects that make you your body compromise the other round.

That’s why when you have this problem to your dog, you will need a certain things to help them out and that is a dog crates, dog crates help your dog keep away from always tired symptoms and result in provigil prescribed. As you know provigil is used to treat some tiredness symptoms which usually lead to depression in adult people. Though it’s clinically proven that will wake up your dog’s hormones and stabilize the rest other of course you will need another treatment that will work better to your dogs.

Body Image: Are You Loving The New Long Summer Dresses That Everyone Is Wearing?

I asked you guys about whether you felt comfortable in dresses, and I admitted that I feel a little fussy in them, myself. Some of you agreed. And now, suddenly, I feel like every woman in America is sporting a long 1970's-esq ankle-length sundress this summer. Is this the new modern-day mumu? And why do I want five of them--right now?

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There's something wonderful about slipping into a dress that is both comfortable and cool (hello air-conditioning!) on hot summer days. And, I have to admit, I kind of love the new wave of long sundresses (I think they're called "maxi dresses" but, um, I'm a teensy bit fashion challenged, so don't quote me on that) that seem to be everywhere right now. Angelina Jolie is always wearing them, BTW.

Bathroom Talk: What Women Really Think About The Restroom

This month, Quilted Northern is launching its new three-ply toilet paper. (OK, high-thread count sheets are great, but three-ply toilet paper--do we really need that? Just asking.) And with the launch of their new luxurious bathroom tissue, they're releasing a study that gives a revealing look at women's thoughts about the bathroom.

For instance, did you know that 70 percent of the women polled in the survey would rather "hold it" and wait to get home to their own bathroom than use a public restroom?

Apparently we're also quite chatty in the loo: 34 percent of women report having had a conversation with a stranger.

Aid for Menopause

Whitehall-Robins Healthcare has remixed its Caltrate formula to help women get through menopause. The company's Caltrate 600-plus-Soy contains soyisoflavones, which the company claims can help a woman's body support the changes it goes through during menopause, along with calcium for stronger bones and Vitamin D, which aids calcium absorption.

Dr. Clare Hasler, executive director of Functional Foods for Health, says long before menopause women may experience menopausal changes and be at higher risk for osteoporosis and heart disease. She says studies show soyisoflavones, calcium and Vitamin D can help "manage the changes of menopause."

Alopecia Areata Treatment

Learn more about alopecia areata and alopecia areata treatment

Recently I saw a young boy with bald patches on his head, it struck me as strange because a boy so young shouldn’t be going bald. I quickly started touching my hair and felt reassured with my full head of hair, but sadly that young boy has to deal with his condition. This condition is called alopecia areata, where there is severe hair loss on parts of the body especially the head, and it will typically affect one half of the head more than the other. Do no confuse alopecia areata with male pattern baldness. Recently it has been found that alopecia areata is caused due to some kind of abnormality in the immune system, which causes autoimmunity, which causes the body’s immunity to attack hair follicles, and affects hair growth. Alopecia areata can also be cause due to some other autoimmune condition like allergies, thyroids, rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis. It can also be genetic and hereditary.

Alopecia Areata Barbae

Alopecia areata barbae, or alopecia areata for short, is a condition of hair loss that takes place in women, men, and even children. Find out here about what causes this, what other kinds of hair loss problems exist and how to treat this when it occurs...

Alopecia areata or alopecia barbae, is a condition where one loses hair, either in round small patches, that can stick around for a short while, or that can remain permanent in some cases. Some people experience a period when they lose all their scalp hair, and some who cease to grow hair from the scalp and the rest of the body too. The former condition is known as 'alopecia totalis' and the latter as 'alopecia universalis'. Anyone can experience the effects of alopecia areata barbae, and no one is really excluded from the possibility of this taking place. Although known to affect the scalp area, it can also move to other parts of the body, where patches of hair loss or the absence of it, can take place. It is known as an autoimmune disorder, in that, it cannot be explained as to why this happens in healthy people mostly, but there are some outside elements that trigger this problem, like a virus or certain medications. People do other things to their hair to affect their follicles, leading to hair loss later on, which we will come to in a bit. If you have a history of this condition in the family, then you are likely to develop it, since this is hereditary. Find out what causes this condition that is commonly brought on when it comes to people taking care of their hair. There are a significant number of treatment methods out there, which we further look into as well.