I just started to keep my very own journal for logging everything I eat, in efforts to find out what foods have been upsetting my tummy. Although I didn't necessarily start the journal for weight loss reasons, I have noticed myself picking less in between meals. So could keeping a food journal be the next craze in the diet industry? Even American Idol winner and vegetarian, Carrie Underwood admits to writing down everything she eats! Well according to a newly published study, the benefits of keeping a food diary are far overlooked.

Keeping a food diary is a powerful tool in helping dieters lose weight, scientists said yesterday.

Those who compiled a detailed account of what they ate and drank and the calories it contained lost about twice as much weight as those who did not, they found.

The six-month study involved 1,685 middle-aged men and women from four U.S. cities – Portland, Oregon; Baltimore, Maryland; Durham, North Carolina and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Their average weight loss was about 13lb. But those who kept food diaries six or seven days a week lost about 18lb compared with 9lb for those who did not.

Those taking part in the study, whose average age was 55, were asked to eat less fat and more vegetables, fruit and whole grains. They were also told to exercise for three hours a week, mostly by walking, and attend support group meetings.

One of the study’s leaders, Dr Victor Stevens, of Kaiser Permanente’s Center for Health Research in Portland, said: ‘For those who are working on weight loss, just writing down everything you eat is a pretty powerful technique.

SOURCE: Daily Mail

Now that you know how helpful keeping a food journal can be, will you start your own?

From 2001 to 2005, the number of women who said they exercised regularly rose from 43 percent to 46.7 percent; the number of men who said the same thing rose from 46 percent to 49.6 percent, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The study looked at data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, which compared telephone responses from 205,140 people in 2002 with responses from 356,112 in 2005.

Regular physical activity was defined as at least 30 minutes per day of moderate-intensity activity at least five days per week or at least 20 minutes per day of vigorous-intensity activity at least three days per week.

The study found that racial and ethnic differences persist. Among men, non-Latino whites reported exercising the most (52.3 percent), followed by "other race" (45.7 percent), non-Latino blacks (45.3 percent) and Latinos (41.9 percent).

Among women, non-Latina whites were most active (49.6 percent), followed by "other race" women (46.6 percent), Latinas (40.5 percent), and non-Latina blacks (36.1 percent).

People with more education were more likely to say they got regular exercise. Among people who said they had graduated from college, the figures were 54.6 percent for men and 53.3 percent for women, versus slightly more than a third of men and women (37.2 percent and 37.1 percent, respectively) who said they had not graduated high school.

Don't be the percentage of Americans who don't exercise enough! STAY MOTIVATED WITH THESE TIPS:

 Don't make exercise a chore, find something that you enjoy doing.

 Try working out first thing in the morning, it'll give you a sense of accomplishment and energize you for the rest of the day.

 Give yourself variety! Take classes like Pilates or kickboxing and use a variety of machines at the gym.

 If time is an issue invest in some at home workout equipment, maybe some weights, a stability ball. You can even search your local classified listings for a used treadmill or elliptical trainer.

 Make exercise a priority like brushing your teeth even if it's just 20 minutes each day. Exercising every day is just as important as getting your hair trimmed every six weeks or exfoliating regularly. Looking fabulous requires maintenance.

 Try The Lunch Time Workout!

 Always keep your ipod updated with the Best Workout Songs.

SOURCE

Eating disorders rose significantly among American boys between 1995 and 2005, according to a study that examined weight control behaviors among high school students.

The study, based on an analysis of national data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, identified a large increase in all forms of weight control behaviors among males, including dieting, diet product use, purging, exercise and vigorous exercise.

Hispanic males were most likely to practice weight control, while white males were least likely, said the study authors, led by Y. May Chao of Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn.

They also found a significant overall increase in dieting and diet product use among female adolescents. White females were most likely practice weight control while black females were least likely, the researchers said.

The increased weight control behavior noted in males suggests growing social pressure for males to achieve unrealistic body expectations, thus increasing the risk of body dissatisfaction and eating disorders, the study authors said.

"Considering that males have negative attitudes toward treatment-seeking and are less likely than females to seek treatment, efforts should be made to increase awareness of eating disorder symptomatology in male adolescents, and future prevention efforts should target male as well as female adolescents," the researchers wrote.

SOURCE

You can purchase Brian's book "Mindless Eating" HERE for $10!

CNN reports that heavy kids miss more school. A new study observing more than 1,000 4th, 5th, and 6th graders from the Philadelphia school system found 4 main predictors for missing school including

• RACE
• AGE
• SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS
• GENDER

Digging deeper research discovered that overweight students were absent 20% more often than other kids. They suggest that the heavier children are avoiding school because of bullying and athletic performance in gym class. They interviewed one overweight girl who said " They would call me cupcake as a joke and I would just sorta laugh about it cause you know I knew I couldn't do anything about it."

Doctors say that their research shows being overweight not only causes health problems in children but psychological ones as well. They say that schools need to look at how they can help kids with weight issues over come these issues so that they can feel more comfortable at school.

SOURCE: CNN Video