Everyday Eating

• Think through your daily beverage intake After water, daily drinks that are good for your health include coffee, tea, milk, natural unsweetened fruit juices and even wine. Spread those out throughout the day, and you diminish the need for fizzy drinks.
  Discover the art of iced tea Brew your own fruity, herbal iced tea the easy way - drop four tea bags into a litre (2 pints) of filtered water and refrigerate overnight. Give it extra zing with a spirtz of lemon and enjoy as much as you wish, as an alternative to water.
  By pass diet versions of fizzy and sweetened juices Diet drinks are one way to wean yourself off of a fizzy drink habit, but they should be a temporary solution, not a permanent one. There's new evidence that having more than one a day raises your risk of metabolic syndrome, a pre-diabetic condition that also threatens the heart.
• Sweeten your milk Have a cup of cocoa every day: add a tablespoon of pure cocoa and a teaspoon of sugar to skimmed milk, heat and enjoy. One teaspoon of sugar is a fraction of what's is most fizzy drinks.
• Make a rule: just water at restaurants Save calories - and money - by skipping fizzy drinks at restaurants. This is particularly true at fast-food restaurants: have bottle of water instead.
• Avoid caffeinated cola in particular Colas containing caffeine were associated with lower bone mineral density than decaf versions in one study. One alternative: home brewed iced tea (see above), made with black tea for a little caffeinated pick-me up.

Think of soft drinks as liquid sweets

           - a sneaky source of calories
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I rarely drink water

Damage done

If you barely drink any water, you may be living on the verge of dehyration - or flooding your body with hundreds of extra calories a day if you are drinking mostly juices and soft drinks instead.
 Even mild dehydration can make you feel tired. It can also lead to conspitation. Overtime, dehydration can raise your risk of a heart attack simply because your blood may be slightly thicker and more likely a clot. If you're taking a diuretic to control your blood pressure, or you take laxatives, you may need to drink extra water to maintain a healthy fluid balance in your body. Dehydrartion can happen faster with age, because your body already contains about 10 percent less water than it did
when you were younger - so there's less of a safety margin.

Can I undo it? Yes, immediately
Developing a water-drinking habit is easy, and it will quickly improve your health and energy levels.

plus benefits
Hydrating your body means more energy, less chance of confusion and dizziness, and less risk of falling. Water aids digestion and leads to a lower risk of heart disese.

Repair plan

Aim for five to six glasses of pure water, herbal tea or pure juice a day Sparkling water with a splash of juice or a twist of lemon counts, too.
Eat juicy fruit Enjoy watermelon, oranges, peaches, berries ... the juicier, the better.
Check your urine every time you relieve yourself if it's pale an has almost no odour, you're probably getting plenty of fluids. If it's dark, strong-smelling or you simply don't urinate very much or often, you probably need to drink more water.
Always have a glass of water first thing in the morning and with each meal and snack Don't wait until you feel thirsty to have a drink - the sense of thirst grows fainter after the age of 60, but your need for fluids remains the same or increases.
Drink moderately when you're active It's vital to stay hydrated when exercising, but don't overdo it. Drinking too much during prolonged physical exertion can reduce blood sodium levels and lead to collapse, confusion or even death from excess water on the brain, according to a study of London Marathon runners. Excessive water intake 'can be extremely dangerous,' warns Dr Dan Tunstall-Pedoe, medical director of the London Marathon. Organisers suggest that while trained, faster runners need a litre (2 Pints) of fluid an hour, slower runners should drink no more than half that.
Be alert to signs of mild dehyration These include sudden thirst, fatigue, headache, dry mouth, muscle weakness, dizziness and light-headedness.


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I rarely eat vegetables

Damage done

Significant. If you routinely shun salads, pass up the peas and banish broccoli from your plate, you've denied your body fibre, folic acid and antioxidants that help to guard against heart disease, diabetes, cancer, memory loss and stroke. Chances are high that you've filled your plate with extra potatoes, bread or rice and, as a result, may have put on extra pounds and elevated your risk of a pre-diabetic condition  called insulin resistance, too.

The benefits of adding vegetables to your diet are immeasurableCan I undo it? Absolutely

Finding veggies you like - or new ways to prepare and serve the ones you've have been avoiding - can lower your blood pressure, decrease levels of 'bad' LDL Cholesterol, smooth out your blood sugar, improve your digestion and perhaps even lower your risk of lung cancer. several
well-designed studies show benefits in as little as four weeks. Every serving of veggies you add to your day cuts your heart disease risk by 4 percent (or more) and your stroke risk by 3 to 5 percent.

Plus benefits

The benefits of adding vegetables to your diet are immeasurable, but some of the biggest ones include better digestion, stronger bones and a lower risk of heart attack, high blood pressure, stroke and some cancers. But that's not all: you may end up with fewer wrinkles!

Repair plan

• Start with 'nibble vegetables' The easiest way to reintroduce yourself to vegetables is to munch on crunchy raw choices such as cucumber and carrots. Getting into that habit  will make it easier to move on to eating cooked vegetables as well.
• Have a salad at every lunch and dinner It's hard not to like crunchy lettuce with a tasty dressing. Start each meal with a salad and you'll not only greatly increase your vegetable intake but also lower your appetite for the rest of the meal.

• Put more vegetables into your stews, soups and casseroles. There's no reason that your chill can't be bolstered with iced carrots, celery, peppers, onions and even green beans.
• Add a little fat A dab of olive oil, a teaspoon of margarine or a sprinkle of Parmesan heightens the flavour of cooked broccoli, spinach, green beans, squash and other veggies. Fat boosts the absorption of nutrients, too.
• Sip your veggies Low sodium tomato juice or vegetable juice counts as a vegetable serving.
• Double the amount of lettuce and tomato on your sandwich And use a dark green lettuce, such as romaine, or switch to baby spinach for an extra-nutritious kick.
• Buy pre-sliced No time to chop? Pre-cut carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans and more are waiting for you in the produce section of your supermarket. So is shredded cabbage. Take advantage - let someone else be your souls chef, Just microwave, steam or saute.