Reuters - People age 75 or older recover just as well as younger patients from knee or hip replacements to correct the ravages of arthritis, researchers said on Monday.

Many people make the mistake of skipping or skimping on breakfast in their daily diet. This may be due to any number of reasons...rushing off to work, jumping into household chores, getting caught up with child care or just plain poor eating habits. Breakfast is an important element in one's daily diet, whatever type of diet you may prefer.

I used to skip breakfast all the time. I would often fill up on water and head out the door for the daily 1.5 hour commute to work. Of course, the first stop after getting off the train would be a coffee - simply to keep me going, not for the caffeine fix! When I worked in the Corporate World, I counted myself among the many who would skip their morning meal. Breakfast was a luxury time didn't permit.

Some who are very weight loss conscious, or just wish to control weight through diet, erroneously think that skipping breakfast is a good way to eliminate calories. This is a mistake in terms of overall health, calorie control and good diet habits. Because the food we eat in our diet, the times when we eat and the particular type of food intake (protein, starch, sugar) all affect blood sugar levels and appetite. We need to control food intake in our diet in order to keep energy and blood sugar at appropriate levels.

I started back at the gym two months ago after a five year hiatus. One of the first things I did, even before setting foot in the door of the gym, was incorporate a breakfast and a morning snack into my daily routine. It's made the world of difference. In fact, the days that I don't eat a full meal or skip my snack, I feel it in my energy levels when I hit the gym.

In essence when we awake in the morning our body has been through a period of "fasting", with no food intake for a number of hours. This results in relatively low blood sugar. If one skips breakfast in one's diet, the blood sugar taurine dosages side effects reviews continues to dip and a sudden craving can develop for food, especially for sugar in the diet, which again causes a quick rise in blood sugar. When the diet includes sudden intake of sugar, the sugar level jumps, which develops a roller coaster effect and leads to a poor diet which includes "quick fixes". Typically a quick response to low blood sugar is a sweet, a soft drink or alcohol...none of which are a good diet supplement.

A diet which maintains appropriate levels of blood sugar and energy will include a healthy breakfast. Blood sugar levels will be maintained with a diet that includes a balanced breakfast combining whole grain, some source of protein and fruit. Protein in particular in the diet, including breakfast, will maintain blood sugar levels, avoiding the dips which lead to snacking.

If you're pressed for time, consider a smoothie. You can chop your fruits and vegetables the night before and load them into your blender glass. Refrigerate overnight (or not if you prefer room temperature smoothies) and whirl away in the blender in the morning along with your favorite liquid. Five minutes is all you'll need to whip up a nutritious and substantial breakfast. You can even pour it into a travel mug or neoprene jug and tote it with you on your commute.

A healthy breakfast is an essential part of a healthy diet. Beginning your day with a good, nourishing meal is the first step toward maintaining a balanced diet and a sensible approach to good eating habits. Don't skip breakfast in your daily diet.

Your body will thank you.

Deborah Carraro is an avid nutrition, health & fitness enthusiast. If you're tired of feeling tired and drained all day and often fall victim to the 3 PM lows, then you're in for some surprises once you learn to make delicious and nutritious smoothies. Visit http://www.smoothiesforhealth.com for more information.

Reuters - Falls by elderly people are cut significantly when health care providers take basic steps such as prescribing physical therapy, monitoring medications and checking standing blood pressure, researchers said on Wednesday.

King Solomon once said, "There is nothing new under the sun." Everything, it seems, is a rehash of an earlier idea. With only 26 letters in the alphabet and eight notes in a scale, eventually the reasonable combinations are exhausted and will begin to come around again. The same, it seems, is true for diet scams.

With the advent of email, the unscrupulous marketer has been let loose on a mostly-unsuspecting public. Armed with an email address and the ability to send messages at no cost, these "scuz-balls" blast away without ceasing.

An unanticipated result of this "shotgun" approach is that consumers have become more saavy and discriminating over the years. But still, the scams persist. According to an article (http://foxnews.webmd.com/content/article/103/107165.htm) found on FoxNews.com, the same scams seem to continue to rear their ugly heads time and time again.

The author (Jennifer Warner, Web MD) grouped the diet scams into five categories.

- Herbal "metabolism boosters"

- Supplements that "block" fat and/or carbohydrates

- Weight loss teas

- Diet patches or other items worn on your body

- Body wraps

The first class of products are those that may be unhealthy or dangerous to use. In some cases, the product may actually result in weight loss, but the way the weight loss comes about is very unhealthy - and usually only temporary.

A few examples include the herbal "metabolism boosters", weight loss teas, and body wraps. In the case of the "metabolism boosters," products typically contain stimulants that do, in fact, keep hunger in check. The problem is that they also constrict blood flow and increase blood pressure. These are reasons why we lose weight in the first place. It is counter-intuitive and downright dangerous to increase blood pressure in the name of weight loss.

Weight loss teas that contain caffein and body wraps both promote water loss, which does cause a temporary weight loss, but not a healthy one. (See our archive and review the articles on sodium and drinking water for a review of this topic.) The human body does an incredible job of regulating its own fluids. Diuretics put a strain on the liver, which is the best fat metabolizer the body has to offer!

With that said, there are decaffeinated green tea extracts that have been shown to assist people in losing buy bulk l-tyrosine It may be -- ironically -- that this product helps because people who use it drink more water than when they are not using the product.

The second class of products are the ones that simply do not work. They are products that are purchased, but never do anything at all. They are typically described with glowing descriptions that appeal to our sense of immediacy. They are guaranteed to work now, without effort, without a lifestyle change, without exercise and the effects are not reversable. In short, if they sound too good to be true, they probably are.

Products that fall into this class are the diet patches, bracelets, necklaces, etc., and the "fat and carbohydrate blockers." Once again, there are certain supplements that can - to a certain extent - perform these functions, but not in a way that will provide the results one is expecting. Something that would prevent the body from breaking down fat or carbs would end up resulting in bloating, gas, and even diarrhea. Doesn't that sound fun? Also, the vitamins or minerals that are contained therein would be blocked as well.

Losing weight is a function of diet and exercise. There are many fine products that can assist us in our battle, but not without reducing our caloric intake and burning more than we consume through exercise. If a product promises results without sacrifice, don't buy it.

Michael Callen is the author of the Weekly Weightloss Tips Newsletter (http://www.weeklyweightlosstips.com) and the Chief Technology Officer for WellnessPartners.com (http://www.WellnessPartners.com), an online retailer of dozens of health and wellness products such as conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), r+ alpha lipoic acid (R+ ALA), and green tea extract.