Acne is skin condition that occurs mainly in adolescence and early adulthood and affects the sebaceous glands. However, it does not always disappear after puberty. Nearly half of women and one in four men have acne at some point in adulthood and at least 20% of adult women visit dermatologists because they have pimples. The number of adults that suffer from this condition appears to be increasing, which may be related to the increasingly stressful modern lifestyle. Stress changes the hormonal balance in the body and increases the levels of androgens, the male sex hormone that can cause acne. Women are more prone to suffer from this skin disease in adulthood, perhaps due to their genetic predisposition or the multiple hormonal fluctuations due to menstruation, pregnancy and the use of birth control pills.
Read the rest of this entry »

‘Mum, can I have. . .?’
Supermarket shopping with kids in tow can be fraught with problems. Manufacturers know that children are attracted by bright, fun packaging, cartoon characters and on-pack promotions rather than what’s inside. These are all successful marketing ploys to get children to persuade their parents to buy what they want. And the products that appeal most to children are invariably packed with fat, sugar, salt or artificial additives. It’s vital to develop a clear strategy to combat pester power when food shopping. Otherwise it can quickly turn into a battle of wills.
Read the rest of this entry »

Fruit and nut bars
makes 12 bars
• 60 g (2 oz.) margarine or butter
• 3 heaped tsp honey
•2 x 125 g (4.5 oz.) cartons plain yogurt
• 225 g (8 oz.) low fat soft cheese or cottage cheese
• 2 eggs
• 60 g (2 oz.) chopped nuts e.g. almonds, walnuts, brazils
• 85 g (3 oz.) sultanas
• 225 g (8 oz.) wholemeal self-raising flour
• 60ml (2 fl oz.) skimmed milk
• Optional ingredients: 25 g (1 oz.) sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds, 40 g (1.5 oz.) desiccated coconut, 60 g (2 oz.) dried apricots, 60 g (2 oz.) chopped figs
Read the rest of this entry »

Everyone exercising for longer than 30 minutes will certainly benefit from drinking something during exercise. But with the growing array of sports drinks, sports ‘waters’ and energy drinks it’s a confusing choice for most regular exercisers.
Read the rest of this entry »

What you eat and drink the day before and during the several hours before your workout dictates how much energy you’ll have for training and how well you will perform. It also affects how much body fat, glycogen or even muscle tissue you burn. Get it wrong and you may find yourself struggling to complete your planned workout and performing under-par.
Read the rest of this entry »