<![CDATA[Wellbeing news from metro.us/newyork]]> en-us <![CDATA[In the kitchen with Teresa Giudice]]>
When we think of Italian food, we often think of heavy dishes like eggplant parmesan or spaghetti and meatballs. What are your tricks for lightening up these meals while keeping the flavor intact?

The key to a lot of it is baking and not frying. In this book I do a naked chicken parmesan: You use reduced-fat mozzarella cheese, and then it's sauce, peppers, salt, chicken breast, olive oil and freshly grated parmesano-reggiano cheese. One of my favorites, I'll tell you, is the chicken bruschetta. That's [cooked] in the oven. I have a fettuccine carbonara in my book just using eggs and egg whites instead of the heavy cream. I definitely use whole-wheat pasta. My kids, I have to say, they've gotten used to the taste -- at first they didn't like it. But now my kids love it. And you know what, it's really good for you because there's a lot of fiber in it.

How do you stay in shape?

Everyone's always [telling] me "you look amazing." They love my arms! My thing is, of course, just eat healthy, but you also have to exercise, and I think that keeps your heart healthy and it makes you look great also. My husband and I go to the gym together and this is the thing: You don't always do the same thing. You have to mix it up. I'm always mixing up my routine. I never do the same thing because then your body gets used to it and you don't see any change. Sometimes I use the machines, sometimes I use free weights, I do boxing, I do TRX. You have to mix it up so your body doesn't get used to the same thing -- that's how you see results in your body.

So are you trying to be the next Bethenny Frankel with these low-fat recipes?

Well, my first cookbook was "Skinny Italian," and I think that was even before she even came out with Skinnygirl Margarita. It takes a year for a cookbook to come out, so I think when her Skinnygirl Margarita came out, my "Skinny Italian" book came out at the same time. I wasn't copying off of her or anything. If anything, you know, "Skinny Bitch" has been around so long. My thing is, everyone always would tell me "you're a skinny Italian," so that's where I got "Skinny Italian" from.

Were cookbooks something you always envisioned yourself doing?
   
Well, cooking has always been my second nature. My parents are off the boat, I'm first-generation [Italian], so I've always cooked with my mom growing up and I've always been around authentic Italian food. I guess being on the "Housewives" gave me the opportunity to show another side of me, that yeah, I do cook for my family. For me it's very important to cook for my family every night. I think it's an important thing for every family to sit down together and have a meal together. I think the kids love it, and it's a good upbringing [for them]. ]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143793--in-the-kitchen-with-teresa-giudice Tue, 22 May 2012 18:14:40 -0400 MEREDITH ENGEL, NEW YORK http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143793--in-the-kitchen-with-teresa-giudice <![CDATA[Dr. Oz's tips to transform your health]]> Get your checkup: A staggering third of Americans skip their yearly health checkup. But thinking ignorance is bliss could really mess you up.  

Being "too busy" is the most common excuse for failing to go to the doctor's, says Dr. Oz, but the truth is, people don't want to be inconvenienced with bad news. "Who wants to hear they have cancer? What people don't get is that a doctor is there to guide you to better health, not make you feel bad or embarrassed," he says. "They help you understand your health so you can prevent problems in the future. They have the tools to calculate key health indicators, including blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol levels," he continues. 

Enlist your peers: Studies have shown that people who lost weight by engaging in group activities were more successful at keeping it off in the long term: "The moment you go public about your proclamation of health, you're holding yourself accountable," explains Dr. Oz. "Friends will be inspired by your achievements."

Watch your waist: "Waist size predicts the amount of fat inside the intestines; it should be no more than half your height. It's the most dangerous type of fat for your body. [Too much] can put pressure on the kidneys, which can then raise your blood pressure and can also poison the liver, leading to higher cholesterol levels and diabetes,"  Dr. Oz says.

His shopping list


Add these to your shopping list for a health boost:
  
Broccoli: The ultimate green superfood cleanses the liver and helps fight off cancer.
   
100 percent whole grain bread: Who says you have to give up carbs? This is a great way to get in fiber, which makes you feel full and reduces the risk of colon cancer.  
   
Milk: The perfect way to get your daily calcium dose -- unless you are lactose intolerant. Choose 2 percent -- it tastes the same as full-fat and also has less sugar.
   
Nuts: Almonds, walnuts and cashews are full of omega-3s and encourage smart snacking.
   
Green tea: It's full of antioxidants and contains low levels of caffeine, so it won't make you feel hyperactive.  
   
Quinoa: The super grain is rich in fiber and protein. It also happens to be gluten-free.
   
Fruits and vegetables: Eat unlimited amounts, as they contain a multitude of vitamins and minerals only found in natural foods.

Not on his list


The five foods to never load into your grocery cart if you're trying to lose weight:

Simple sugars or carbohydrates: Cakes, ice cream, white bread ... all empty calories. As these simple sugars are rapidly absorbed into the blood stream, they cause a spike in your blood sugar levels, giving you a short-term energy. This then triggers an insulin reaction, leaving you feeling tired and hungry.

Ingredients you can't pronounce: Does "thiamine mononitrate" or "partially hydrogenated soybean oil" sound good? If you can't pronounce the first five ingredients, put that food down.
Foods with deceptive labels, like "low in fat": They've had to make up for the lack of flavor somehow, and that somehow is heaps of sugar and salt.

Canned foods high in sodium: Many canned foods are so full of salt they can contain more than half of your daily recommended intake. Too much sodium in your diet can give you high blood pressure.
Fried foods: Frying food dramatically increases the fat content, as oil is absorbed into whatever it is you have cooked. Choosing the right oils, like olive or sunflower, will make frying a little healthier. ]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143770--dr-oz-s-tips-to-transform-your-health Tue, 22 May 2012 16:50:53 -0400 ROMINA MCGUINNESS, METRO WORLD NEWS LONDON http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143770--dr-oz-s-tips-to-transform-your-health <![CDATA[Should your kid take vitamins?]]>
Fill in the gaps
Check labels for nutrients most likely to be missing from your kid's diet, such as vitamin D, calcium, iron, folate and zinc. Most multis contain little calcium, so if your child doesn't consume much dairy or fortified food, consider a separate calcium supplement.

Do D diligence
Look for at least 400 IUs of vitamin D3 (not D2 or simply D). Vitamin D3, which may also be listed as cholecalciferol or calciol, is thought to be better absorbed than other kinds.

Avoid mercury
If the multi contains omega-3s from fish, look for a statement that the product has been certified free of heavy metals such as mercury and PCBs.

Parents brings moms and dads smart, fresh advice to help you raise healthy, happy kids. Check us out at Parents.com. ]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143677--should-your-kid-take-vitamins Mon, 21 May 2012 17:10:11 -0400 RACHEL MORRIS FOR PARENTS.COM http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143677--should-your-kid-take-vitamins <![CDATA[Is Facebook responsible for your divorce?]]>
Back in the day, people were only tempted to snoop through their significant others' emails and text messages. Today, Facebook is just as big of a factor.

According to a survey by Divorce Online, a UK-based legal services firm, more than a third of divorce filings contained the word 'Facebook' last year.

Another report by the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers claims that more than 80% of U.S. divorce attorneys say they've seen the number of cases involving social media increase.

Divorce attorney Gary Traystman told the WSJ's SmartMoney.com blog that he sees Facebook issues breaking up marriages "all the time."

Experts say that nowadays with Facebook it is easier to start extra-marital affairs as it only takes a few clicks to reconnect with an old flame.  

"The difference with Facebook is it feels safe, innocent and private. People put an enormous amount of incriminating stuff out there voluntarily," Randy Kessler, an Atlanta-based lawyer said to SmartMoney.com.

Facebook has become so influential that lawyers say it plays a major role in determining alimony and child custody, as everything from posts, to photos and status updates have been used in divorce court.

So, people, if you're going to cheat, don't make it obvious by posting about it on Facebook. You're only asking to be caught. ]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143667--is-facebook-responsible-for-your-divorce Mon, 21 May 2012 15:51:54 -0400 MARY ANN GEORGANTOPOULOS, NEW YORK http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143667--is-facebook-responsible-for-your-divorce <![CDATA[Bobby Vaughn: Georgia man becomes third recent victim of flesh-eating bacteria]]> Lana Kuykendall and Georgia grad student Aimee Copeland remain in the hospital after a series of surgeries, the rare flesh-eating bacteria known as necrotizing fasciitis has stuck for the third time in recent weeks.

The latest victim is Bobby Vaughn, a landscaper from Cartersville, Georgia. Despite the media frenzy surrounding the rare condition recently, Vaughn said never suspected he had contracted necrotizing fasciitis when he first noticed his symptoms.

"I just started feeling very sick," Vaughn, 33, told WXIA in Atlanta. "I was throwing up and had a backache. I just thought it was a little infection."

When the swelling began, Vaughn went to the hospital where antibiotics failed to treat him. He eventually underwent five surgeries that removed two pounds of tissue, but is now on the road to recovery.

He is at the same Augusta, Georgia hospital as Aimee Copeland who is still in critical condition after losing a leg, her other foot, and both hands as a result of contracting necrotizing fasciitis after a zip-lining accident. Lana Kuykendall, who gave birth to twins three weeks ago, is also still battling the bacteria after seven surgeries.

There is no sure way to prevent NF, but there are ways to reduce your risk:

The single biggest preventative measure is keeping the skin intact!

Next is cleanliness. Always wash even the smallest opening in the skin and apply an antibiotic ointment. Buy tubes of antibiotic ointment and keep one in your car, your desk, your exercise bag, and at home.

Take care with your children, impressing upon them the importance of cleanliness.
  ]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/national/article/1143665--bobby-vaughn-georgia-man-becomes-third-recent-victim-of-flesh-eating-bacteria Mon, 21 May 2012 15:26:00 -0400 CASSANDRA GARRISON, NEW YORK http://www.metro.us/newyork/national/article/1143665--bobby-vaughn-georgia-man-becomes-third-recent-victim-of-flesh-eating-bacteria <![CDATA[How to overcome your need to fit in]]> The question: I feel like I'm never myself in social situations. It is almost like I'm a chameleon and I just try to blend in with everyone else. I'm not sure exactly why I'm like this. Do you have any insight into this and tips?

My guess is that you get anxious in social situations because you fear how people might respond. Perhaps you're afraid of rejection or judgment and you adapt by trying to be like others. Though it may make sense on one level, you're missing out on being you, while others miss out on seeing who you truly are. Follow this exercise taken from my book, "BE FEARLESS: Change Your Life in 28 Days."

1. Before you can be yourself you must know who you are: for example, what you stand for and what makes you tick. Know where you come from and where you're going. How would you describe yourself if someone asked? Be able to give such a description with ease and confidence. Make a list of your convictions, beliefs, passions, values and strengths.

2. Understand the role that hiding behind a mask plays in your life. Are you shy, anxious or unsure? Do you feel inadequate? Or perhaps you are afraid to shine or dislike attention. If so, seek help to address any underlying issues.

3. Practice expressing yourself by writing out your thoughts and feelings, including how you feel about yourself, situations you might experience on a daily basis and people you might encounter during the day. Learn to express yourself clearly.

4. Don't care so much about how others perceive you. The more you do, the more you are trying to fulfill their expectations and not your own.   

5. Do away with social comparisons. They only lead to resentment and move you away from being who you truly are.

6. Finally, practice opening up to people you trust by starting a conversation, talking about your day and how you feel. Be honest and forthright when expressing yourself.

- Jonathan Alpert is a licensed psychotherapist. His new book, "BE FEARLESS: Change Your Life
in 28 Days," is available at major booksellers and Amazon. Follow him online at www.jonathanalpert.com, on Facebook (www.facebook.com/jonathanalpert) and on Twitter @jonathanalpert.  

Metro does not endorse the opinions of the author, or any opinions expressed on its pages. ]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143561--how-to-overcome-your-need-to-fit-in Sun, 20 May 2012 16:37:03 -0400 NEW YORK http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143561--how-to-overcome-your-need-to-fit-in <![CDATA[How to quit making excuses so you can take charge of your life]]>
"People make excuses like, 'I don't have an iron will' or 'It's not in my DNA,' says Vaden, the author of "Take the Stairs: 7 Steps to Achieving True Success."

Self-discipline isn't the problem. "Procrastination is the problem. Self-discipline is the remedy," he says. "It's really not that difficult -- but there are no shortcuts."

Shortcut thinking is what gets people into trouble in the first place, which was the thinking behind Vaden's book title.

"Do we take the stairs, or the elevator? Easy, short-term choices lead to difficult long-term solutions," he says. "Problems that are procrastinated only amplify. A good example is a health problem. If you ignore it, it compounds until you're so out of shape it seems hopeless. It's the same with relationships: Any conflict that's ignored builds until everything explodes."

His three types of procrastination
   
Classic: constantly delaying what we should be doing
Creative avoidance: filling the day with menial work and avoiding the important things
Priority dilution: allowing distractions and interruptions to take priority over important tasks

Get it done

To strengthen your self-discipline muscle, Vaden suggests arming yourself with the following:

Relentless determination:  "Every single day, put two things on your to-do list and do them. Until you accomplish those two things, everything is a distraction."
 
Inspiration: "People become disengaged because they are uninspired. It's not a lack of work ethic; it's a lack of vision. If you have a vision of what you want, it's context for making a short-term sacrifice." ]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143554--how-to-quit-making-excuses-so-you-can-take-charge-of-your-life Sun, 20 May 2012 15:48:02 -0400 LINDA LABAN, BOSTON http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143554--how-to-quit-making-excuses-so-you-can-take-charge-of-your-life <![CDATA[A Study Has Found: Researcher who backed homosexual 'cure' apologizes to gay community]]>
Dr. Robert Spitzer, once praised for his role in eliminating homosexuality from the manual as a mental disorder, later went on to study and advocate reparative therapy as a "cure" for homosexuality in the 1990s. His work was widely attacked and criticized. Now at age 80, Spitzer is offering an apology, according to The New York Times.

Spitzer was prompted to make amends with the gay community following an interview with a gay journalist who told the aging doctor that he had been a patient of reparative therapy at a young age and it evoked thoughts of suicide.

The doctor drafted a letter, which has been posted online. In it, he wrote, "I believe I owe the gay community an apology for my study making unproven claims of the efficacy of reparative therapy."

He went on to discredit his own research by revealing that he never had the credible evidence to say reparative therapy was successful.

"I offered several (unconvincing) reasons why it was reasonable to assume that the subject’s reports of change were credible and not self-deception or outright lying. But the simple fact is that there was no way to determine if the subject’s accounts of change were valid," Spitzer wrote.

We guess an apology is better late than never, right?

More adventures in psuedoscience:


  • Depressed people often don't have the urge to get out and do much, but they will chat online, even more than people who aren't depressed.
  • Have a sweet tooth? It could make you an idiot, science says.
  • In turtle news, the species have come along way as scientists have discovered they were once as large as a small car.

]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143514--a-study-has-found-researcher-who-backed-homosexual-cure-apologizes-to-gay-community Fri, 18 May 2012 14:09:51 -0400 CASSANDRA GARRISON, CASSANDRA GARRISON http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143514--a-study-has-found-researcher-who-backed-homosexual-cure-apologizes-to-gay-community <![CDATA[A Study Has Found: Are men who eat meat manlier than vegetarians?]]>
A study conducted by researchers from several top U.S. universities and published in the Journal of Consumer Research found that people tend to associate meat-eating with manliness. This could be an explanation for why more women than men gravitate toward vegetarianism.

During the experiments, participants were surveyed on metaphors involving certain foods like meat and milk. Researchers found that participants viewed meat to be more masculine than vegetables. When people discussed meat, it tended to prompt them to use more masculine words.

Overall, the study found that participants viewed meat-eating men, especially those who eat muscle meat like steak, to be manlier than their vegetarian counterparts.

This association goes beyond psychology, though. Even linguistics give off the impression that meat is manly. Researchers studied 23 languages and found that most of them used a masculine pronoun for the word "meat."

"To the strong, traditional, macho, bicep-flexing, All-American male, red meat is a strong, traditional, macho, bicep-flexing, All-American food," the authors wrote. "Soy is not. To eat it, they would have to give up a food they saw as strong and powerful like themselves for a food they saw as weak and wimpy."

Guess the expression "you are what you eat" really rings true... at least in the eyes of society.

More fun psuedoscience:


  • You may be manlier if you eat meat, but you'll live longer if you drink coffee.
  • So get your fill on red meat and caffeine, but a study found that less young Americans are indulging in tobacco.
  • But if you like smoking a different kind of substance, you might identify with this group's message than weed is safer than alcohol.
]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143379--a-study-has-found-are-men-who-eat-meat-manlier-than-vegetarians Thu, 17 May 2012 13:24:28 -0400 CASSANDRA GARRISON, CASSANDRA GARRISON http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143379--a-study-has-found-are-men-who-eat-meat-manlier-than-vegetarians <![CDATA[This is why you're not married]]>
But before you get up in arms over these accusations, know that what she means isn't as harsh as those pronouncements sound. For example, by saying "you're not good enough" McMilllian explains that it's a woman's negative attitude about herself that allows her to accept poor treatment from men. She adds that, "A lot of people go looking for in a partner something that they don't even realize that they believe is missing in themselves."

But the extreme nature of the bullet points of McMillan's message did make her original Huffington Post essay, "Why You're Not Married" set the record number of page views for the site since it was posted in February 2011. McMillan's straight talk about how women can sabotage their own relationships is the kind of sage wisdom most dating books avoid.

"Finding someone that you are going to love one day at a time for the rest of your life isn't something you can hunt down and kill," McMillan says. "You need to operate in the part that's kind of beyond what you can control. What that means to me is that he may not look like what he's supposed to look like or have the job you think he's supposed to have. What you need could be very different from what you think you want, and I feel like a lot of dating advice books don't speak to that."

McMillan explains that love is work -- "the ultimate yoga" -- and that it's about examining our own behaviors before blaming the dating market.

"It's not easy to love another person because we're all really flawed, but I think if you can learn how to love yourself with your own flaws and work at making yourself better. You can also love another person and create a space for them to make themselves better," she says.

Where does McMillan get all this great advice from? Being married three times. She freely admits that she's made every mistake in the book, but all that experience has sharpened her sensibilities when it comes to dating.

"Oftentimes I'll be talking to someone who wants to be in a long-term relationship but can't figure out why she doesn't have one. And I can see it," she says. "It's because she seems angry or she's not nice or because she's dating guys who aren't willing to be in a relationship with her. I know a handful of women who can have casual sex, but that's a handful. The rest of us, we're so hung up on that guy six months later."

Buy the book
   
"Why You're Not Married ... Yet" will be released on May 29th. Reserve a copy now! ]]> http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143300--this-is-why-you-re-not-married Wed, 16 May 2012 17:14:09 -0400 HEIDI PATALANO, NEW YORK http://www.metro.us/newyork/life/article/1143300--this-is-why-you-re-not-married