Like vitamins, minerals are nutrients which help to keep the body functioning correctly. They too are found in the foods we eat, or they can be taken in supplementary form.

Here, we’ll look at the different types of minerals, what they do and why we need them to stay healthy.

Understanding the Different Types of Minerals

There are two main types of minerals; trace and macro minerals. Both are required by the body to maintain general good health.

Trace minerals are also referred to as micro minerals and they are essential for our health. However, we only need them in small quantities. They include iron, copper, chromium, manganese, fluoride, zinc, iodine and selenium. You typically need from 0.2 to 15mg of trace minerals daily.

Macro minerals are required in larger quantities and they include calcium, phosphorus, chlorine, potassium, magnesium, sulfur and sodium.

Why Do We Need Them?

Our body needs healthy levels of both trace and macro minerals. They help with practically every function of the body. Some of the main benefits minerals provide include:

•        They balance fluids in the body

•        They aid in nerve transmission

•        Healthy bone and teeth development

•        They regulate blood pressure

•        Assist in wound healing

•        Help fight off disease

If you don’t get enough minerals within the diet, it can lead to a variety of health issues. So, it is important to ensure you’re eating a balanced diet to retain proper levels of nutrients throughout the body....

Cold Weather DIY Heat and Light Sources

Dual function is something you’ll want to consider as part of your emergency preparation plan. While many people are fully prepared in the event of a cold weather situation and they need heat and light, it can be easy to get caught off-guard.

You might be in a situation where you need heat and light but you don’t have the supplies and you can’t get out to get them. If that’s the case, there are still ways that you can use what you have at home to get through the event until life returns to normal.

If you try to burn your flashlight at night in order to have light in your home, there’s the risk that the batteries might not last as long as you need them to if you don’t have solar power or rechargeable batteries.

You can turn to your pantry to find a solution. One way to have both a heat and a light source is by using your container of Crisco. You can use the shortening to quickly make a candle.

You can place a candle wick in the center of the Crisco if you have one in your supply closet. If you don’t, you can still make this type of candle without a wick. You can use something like twine or string as the wick.

You can also use a small piece of tightly rolled paper towel or even a toothpick as a wick. Once you light it, the wick will burn the Crisco for days on end, giving you both light and heat.

Another option that you can use is something that you probably already have plenty of in your home. You can use Crayola crayons to make candles that will give off both heat and light.

What you have to keep in mind when using these is that when used individually, the crayons tend to burn out within about 15 minutes. But if you mix them with regular wax, it extends the burning life.

You can heat the bottom of the crayon with a flame and the hot wax on the bottom can then be used to stick the crayon in an upright position. Hold a flame over the top of the crayon until it lights, and it’ll burn steadily once it’s lit.

Terra cotta planter heaters - also known as flower pot heaters - are another option to give you both a heat and a light source. You’ll need something like tea light candles. These are inexpensive to purchase.

You can usually find a 100 of them by the bag for less than $5. Place these tea lights on a clay planter base. Secure the planter upside down over the tea lights. Don’t fully cover the lights with the planter.

You want it on a raised platform so you can see the candles. You can create this raised platform by using rocks, bricks or something else that won’t burn. This creates a heater effect.

While it won’t make the room you use it in comfortable enough to wear short sleeves in the cold, it’ll keep the worst of the cold temperature at bay. If the power grid ever goes down and leaves you freezing, you’ll be happy to have a few methods to warm yourself and your food and drinks up.

Vitamins are essential nutrients that the body needs to stay healthy. While they are crucial to the health, the body doesn’t actually produce them by itself. Instead, we get most of our vitamins from the foods we eat.

Here, we’ll look at some of the different types of vitamins the body needs, where to find them and the benefits they provide.

What Are the Different Types of Vitamins?

Vitamins are split into two main groups – fat-soluble and water-soluble vitamins. They are absorbed slightly differently by the body and provide different benefits.

Fat-soluble vitamins include vitamin A, D, E and K. They dissolve in fat and then travel through the bloodstream. These vitamins are found in foods such as egg yolks, fatty fish, dairy products and liver.

Water-soluble vitamins include vitamins B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, B6, B7, B9 and B12. They also include vitamin C, making them the most common type of vitamins. They dissolve in water and are absorbed easily by the body’s tissues.

What Benefits Do They Provide?

Vitamins provide a huge range of benefits to the body. Each one offers slightly different benefits.

Vitamin D, otherwise known as the sunshine vitamin, has several different functions. Most importantly, it helps to regulate the absorption of phosphorus and calcium. It is also responsible for ensuring the immune system is working correctly. A good level of vitamin D is also required to help the bones and teeth grow strong and healthy....

If you’re planning on taking vitamin and mineral supplements, it helps to do your homework. There are a lot of things to know about supplements before you add them to your daily diet.

Here, we’ll take a look at answers to some of the most common questions about vitamin and mineral supplements.

Who Needs Vitamin and Mineral Supplements?

Vitamin and mineral supplements are often considered something everyone should take. However, if you eat a balanced healthy diet and you’re generally healthy, you might not need them at all.

Supplements are made to provide additional nutrients to those who need them. Deficiencies can be caused by a range of factors including medical conditions. So, when the body isn’t getting enough nutrients, supplements can help. Just remember that they are in no way a replacement for a poor diet.

Are Supplements Regulated?

You’d think that anything you can take for your health would be well regulated. However, when it comes to supplements, that isn’t always the case.

The supplement market isn’t regulated like medications. They can be sold without any actual proof of purity, effectiveness or safety. A recent study has shown that over 500 supplements have been found to contain pharmaceuticals of some kind. These included antidepressants, steroids and weight loss medications.....

The Most Popular Intermittent Fasting Methods

There have been numerous research studies that prove intermittent fasting works for weight loss and delivers other health benefits as well. If you are considering it then there are different intermittent fasting methods that you can choose from.

All of the popular methods shown in this article will produce results for you. They have all been tested and people have seen good results from them. You may have seen some of these methods before. Some of them are best sellers.

There is a principle with intermittent fasting that you need to understand. The longer that you are able to fast the better results you will achieve. That’s why there are so many methods out there that have different eating and fasting windows.

When you are just starting out with intermittent fasting it is essential that you do not try to do too much. It is going to take time for your body to adjust to not eating all day so we recommend that you choose an easy method to begin with. Here are three of the most popular intermittent fasting methods:

1. Lean Gains 8:16

Lean Gains or the 8:16 intermittent fasting method is far and away the most popular. The reason for this is because it is most likely the easiest method to adopt. You have an eating window of 8 hours and a fasting window of 16 hours.

While you will see good results with the 8:16 method even if you eat what you want during your eating window, it is recommended that you change to a healthier diet if this is necessary. You will get better results when you do this. The important thing is that you feel full when your eating window closes.

You will probably already be fasting for 8 hours a day while you sleep so the adjustment to 16 hours of fasting is not as bad as some of the other intermittent fasting methods. This is a great method to get started with.

2. The Warrior Diet 4:20

If you want to see better fat burning results then you can look at the Warrior Diet. This is not for the feint hearted as there is only a 4 hour eating window and a 20 hour fasting window. With only 4 hours to eat it is unlikely that you will be able to consume more than one large meal or two small meals.

This is an intermittent fasting method that we recommend you consider once you have been on the 8:16 method for a while and your mind and body are used to the fasting concept.

3. Eat Stop Eat Fasting For Whole Days

This is another popular intermittent fasting method that produces good results. Here you will eat for a couple of days and then fast for a full day. In a week you are going to be fasting for 2 or 3 days.

Can you handle fasting for an entire day? It is not something that you should do to start your intermittent fasting journey as it will be extremely difficult for you to maintain. But after a while you can think about scaling up to this method.

So we recommend that you start with Lean Gains and 8:16 fasting and get used to this. You can then make the change to the Warrior 4:20 method and finally to fasting full days with Eat Stop Eat. Just start with the easiest method and work your way up.

How To Be Successful With Intermittent Fasting

There are a number of things that you can do to maximize your chances of success with intermittent fasting. Too many people give up because they are not prepared for the challenges that intermittent fasting brings. You need to anticipate these challenges and have a plan for dealing with them.

Intermittent fasting is not easy so you will need all f the help that you can get. The first two weeks or so will be the hardest and it is essential that you keep going during this period. You should find that after this everything becomes a lot easier for you.

Set a Goal

What is your goal with intermittent fasting? How much weight do you want to lose and by when? Without a goal you will just approach intermittent fasting aimlessly which will not improve your chances of success.

Think about the real reason why you want to lose the weight. This needs to be something emotional and totally honest. You do not have to share this reason with others so if you want to lose weight to look good for a specific person then only you need to know this. The point here is that this real reason will act as inspiration for you to succeed.

Use the SMART process for setting your goal. This stands for specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timed. You need to decide on the amount of weight you want to lose such as 50 pounds. It is also important that you set a time limit such as 6 months or a year.

Your goal needs to be achievable and realistic. There is no way that you are going to lose 100 pounds in 6 weeks for example. Even if you could do this it would be dangerous for you. Have a look online for what other results people have achieved with intermittent fasting and make your goal realistic.

Write your goal down on paper. There is something magical about writing things down. Think about how achieving the weight loss will make you feel. Visualize that you have already done this and look great. Note the strong feelings you experience and write these down on your goal statement.

The reason that these things help is that you can use your goal statement as a way to motivate and inspire you throughout your intermittent fasting journey. Read your goal statement every day and look at it whenever you need more motivation.

Go for a Calorie Deficit Diet

You will get much better results with your intermittent fasting if you choose a healthy, calorie deficit diet for your eating windows. Go online and look up the suggested calorie intake for your gender and build. Then choose a diet that will make you feel full but means that you will consume more calories than you need.

You do not have to do this straight away. Get used to intermittent fasting first by eating anything you want during your eating window.

Exercise regularly

You will get better results with intermittent fasting if you include a regular exercise routine. If you don’t exercise regularly at the moment there is no need to panic. Just gradually introduce some gentle exercise such as stretching and walking more. Do not go crazy here and go for intense gym sessions as this will be tough for you to maintain.

Scale Up Your Intermittent Fasting

If you want better results with your intermittent fasting then you need to consider scaling up. This means going for an intermittent fasting method that has a longer fasting time than the one you are currently using. Do not even consider doing this until you have spent at least a month from starting out and your mind and body are used to intermittent fasting.

The Dreaded Plateau

If you perform the exact same workout in the gym each time it will not be long before your body reaches a plateau. It gets used to the same exercise and these become largely ineffective. They do not take you to the next level. Unfortunately the same can be true with intermittent fasting.

If you have been using one particular intermittent fasting method for some time you may experience a drop in results. When this happens it is time for you to consider scaling up to a new method with longer fasting windows.

You will lose Water Weight fast

All of us have water weight. With some people this can be as much as 20% of their overall body weight. When you first start with intermittent fasting your water weight will be the first to go whatever method you choose.

This is great as you can look really good after losing your water weight. But most people want to go further than this and the best way to achieve that is to scale up your intermittent fasting. If you stick with the same method for a while you will lose some other weight on top of the water weight loss. But in time you will plateau and need to change for better results.

Start with the 8:16 Method

We would always recommend that you begin your intermittent fasting journey with the 8:16 method or Lean Gains. This gives you an 8 hour eating window and a 16 hour fasting window. This is the easiest method to start in our opinion and you should definitely see results with it.

The time that you stay with the 8:16 method is really up to you. If you are still seeing good results with it then stick with it until you don’t see good results. You may notice that you have not lost much weight at all this week compared to last week for example. This is likely to be the plateau point.

Try the 4:20 Method

This is known as the Warrior method and provides you with a 4 hour eating window and a 20 hour fasting window. You might think that this is a big jump to make but it shouldn’t be too bad if you have persisted with the 8:16 method for a while. You should start to see better results again when you scale up to 4:20.

Fasting for a Day or more

How do you feel about fasting for an entire day? If you think that you are ready to do this then you could go for the Eat Stop Eat method. Here you will eat for a couple of days and then go a day without eating. This means that each week you will fast for full days 2 to 3 times.

There are other methods where you can fast for up to 36 hours, 2 days at a time, 3 days at a time and so on. Migrate to these slowly having some experience of the less challenging intermittent fasting methods first.

Frequently Asked Questions About Intermittent Fasting

If you are considering trying to lose weight through intermittent fasting then you probably have a few questions about it. With so many people thinking about starting intermittent fasting there are many questions that arise. We have identified the most frequently asked questions about intermittent fasting and will provide the answers to you.

Where did Intermittent Fasting start?

Intermittent fasting did not start in one specific place. Many years ago our ancestors used to live by intermittent fasting. They had to hunt for food and some days they would eat and other days they wouldn’t if their hunt was unsuccessful.

Our ancestors didn’t know it at the time but they were intermittent fasting. If the hunt for food resulted in nothing (which it often did) then there would be no food to eat for that day. It was rare to see overweight people during these times.

The important take away here is that our bodies have a built in mechanism to deal with intermittent fasting. If they didn’t have this then our ancestors would not have survived. When you sleep for 8 hours a day you are intermittent fasting as you do not eat while sleeping.

Is Intermittent Fasting safe?

We could never say that intermittent fasting is totally safe for everyone. People are all different and their bodies react in different ways. There are some conditions where intermittent fasting needs to be practiced with caution or not practiced at all.

The good news is that most people can use intermittent fasting safely. There can be a few side effects with intermittent fasting but usually these are temporary. However, if you have a specific medical condition, are a pregnant woman or have a tendency with eating disorders then it may not be for you.

Always consult your doctor before starting with intermittent fasting.

Which Intermittent Fasting method should you start with?

One of the reasons that a lot of people fail with intermittent fasting is because they try and do too much at the start. It is commonly known that the more you fast the quicker you will lose weight. So people dive in to intermittent fasting methods where they have to fast for a whole day or more.

Intermittent fasting is not easy. Your mind and body have to become accustomed to it. If you try and do too much you are far more likely to quit. So we recommend that you start with probably the easiest intermittent fasting method which is Lean Gains or 8:16. You eat for 8 hours and fast for 16 hours.

It will take you time to get used to the 8:16 method and you will probably have some difficult days. But it is a lot easier to deal with than trying to fast for 24 hours if you have never fasted before.

What happens if you break the fasting rules?

If you eat during the fasting window then this is going to temporarily affect your results. What you definitely shouldn’t do is quit intermittent fasting if you break the fasting rules. Just start again the next day and be more persistent.

It is going to take around 2 to 3 weeks for your mind and body to accept intermittent fasting. Once you have got through this critical period then things should get easier for you. Any lifestyle change or new habit takes time so please accept that.

 Avoid These Intermittent Fasting Mistakes

As you can imagine, with so many people taking up intermittent fasting these days there are a lot of mistakes being made. We have researched the most common mistakes that people make so that we can make you aware of these. You need to avoid these costly mistakes at all costs if you want to be successful with intermittent fasting.

Giving up too easily

We are not going to tell you that getting started and sticking with intermittent fasting is easy because it isn’t. This will be a fairly radical change in your life and you need to prepare yourself for the challenges that lie ahead.

You are going to experience some tough days during your fasting periods. So you need to have strong willpower and be persistent. The good news is that the bad days should subside fairly quickly. After a couple of weeks or so, your mind and body will get used to intermittent fasting. Things should get easier after this.

Unfortunately, too many people give up on intermittent fasting too quickly. They have a hunger pang during their fasting window and decide that this is too much for them to handle. A little persistence and inspiration through your intermittent fasting goals will put you back on track.

Some people break the rules of their fasting window and eat something to stave off the hunger. If this happens to you then just start again the next day. Don’t beat yourself up over this and use it as a reason to quit.

No Plan for Intermittent Fasting

If you just dive in to intermittent fasting without giving any consideration to it then you are far more likely to fail. People that have no plan for intermittent fasting often end up watching the clock continuously waiting for their next eating window. This is no way to live your life.

Anticipating what can go wrong on your initial intermittent fasting journey is very important. You can think about how you will handle these situations if they arise. Don’t be afraid to adjust your eating window if things are not working out for you. It is better to keep going with a different schedule than to give up altogether.

Too much Ambition

We know that you want to lose weight as quickly as possible and want to see results as fast as you can. You probably know that the longer you are prepared to fast, the faster the weight loss results tend to be.

But if you are too ambitious here and embark on an intermittent fasting method where you will need to fast for long periods (even days) then you are setting yourself up to fail. It is much better to start with the easiest method so you can get used to intermittent fasting. You can always scale up when you have reached this point.

Not Planning your Eating Window

It is very important that your eating window leaves you full for the onset of your fasting window. You need to plan what foods you will eat during your eating windows to ensure that you achieve this.

There is nothing wrong with eating anything and everything when you first start with intermittent fasting. Once you have got past the initial 2 to 3 weeks we then recommend that you look at your diet and change it to a healthier one. This will provide faster weight loss results and you will feel much better.

Are There Side Effects With Intermittent Fasting?

Despite the weight loss and other great benefits of intermittent fasting it is possible that you can experience some side effects from it. Some people might not experience any side effects at all but you need to know that there is a possibility.

We believe in the benefits of intermittent fasting but we also want to be completely honest with you. You are going to be making a pretty radical change to your lifestyle so you need to be prepared for some side effects. The side effects that we will discuss may not last very long and some are more serious than others.

Grumpiness due to Hunger

How do you feel when you are hungry? Do you have a tendency to be irritable and grumpy? If this is the case then you may well experience this side effect when you start with intermittent fasting. You should be able to overcome this with time.

Excessive Fatigue and Brain Fog

Some people that participate with intermittent fasting report that they feel a lot more tired and fatigued than usual. In time, intermittent fasting should provide you with more energy. But in the beginning you could feel overly fatigued.

Another common side effect of intermittent fasting is brain fog. Things just don’t seem to be as clear as usual especially during fasting windows. Intermittent fasting can really benefit your brain and any brain fog should be temporary.

Obsessing about Eating

Because intermittent fasting is all about focusing on not eating this can lead to obsessing about what you can and cannot eat. If you have been on other diets and experienced this then you may well experience it again with intermittent fasting.

This is should not be a major side effect for most people and you can stop obsessing about food by doing some mindfulness meditation. Obviously if this really becomes a problem for you then you should stop intermittent fasting.

Low Blood Sugar Problems

This is where intermittent fasting can become dangerous for certain individuals. If your blood sugar levels become too low then this can lead to serious health problems. At a minimum level you can experience dizziness, nausea and headaches. Stop your intermittent fasting and seek medical advice if this becomes a real problem for you.

Disturbing your Sleep

There are some cases where intermittent fasting can cause disturbance to existing sleep patterns. Sleep is very important and if this is a question of just adjusting to the intermittent fasting then it should not be a problem. But if you cannot get the right amount of sleep when intermittent fasting then you need to stop and get advice.

Fast Weight Loss Menstrual Problems

Because intermittent fasting can provide rapid weight loss results it can also cause women problems with their menstrual cycles. This could be a temporary problem that just requires some time for adjustment. But if it persists then we recommend that you stop intermittent fasting and seek medical advice.

Constipation

Unfortunately, constipation is a fairly common side effect with intermittent fasting. This can be due to your body lacking in certain fluids, protein, fiber or vitamins. It is really important that you play close attention to your diet with intermittent fasting.

Remember that you are unlikely to suffer from all of these side effects and maybe none of them at all. Just be careful and check that none of them turn into serious problems.