FOODS THAT MAKE YOU SLIM

THEFACTSPROFESSOR 

Different kinds of foods serve different kinds of purposes. Of all the different purposes that food serves, here are  the most consistent one that can make you loose weight and make you feel happy and slim:-

1.  GREEN TEA

The green tea leaves contain L-theanine,  an antioxidant that is known to have relaxing effect on your senses.  Green tea will leave you with a fresher breath and help prevent tooth decay. So have a cup of green tea and treat yourself to some great mood and healthy teeth!

2. CHOCOLATE

Dark chocolate improves the blood-flow to the brain, and it provides an instant boost in concentration and mood. Generally, chocolate is thought to be only an aphrodisiac but that is clearly not the case. Therefore, it is advisable to keep dark chocolate handy and take a big bite the moment you feel low.

3. EGGS

‘Sunday ho ya Monday, roz khao ande!’ Eggs are healthy and are a must in everyone’s diet. Eggs contain sufficient amounts of vitamin B, iodine, zinc, proteins and omega-3 fatty acids. Eggs will not only ensure your mood stays upbeat, but they will also ensure your stomach stays happy

Does Cracking Your Knuckles Really Give You Arthritis?

You’ve heard it before. You’re in a quiet room in among a gathering of people, and then—POP!—a little cracking noise rings out, followed by another, and another, and another. For some, cracking knuckles is a habit, while for others that little pop brings relief. And it's not just reserved for tough guys before they beat people up: Between 25 and 54 percent of all people crack their knuckles multiple times a day. But is the old wives’ tale true? Are these knuckle-crackers more likely to hurt their hands and gradually develop arthritis as they get older? 

In short, nope! Despite the rumor that kids constantly hear, it turns out there is no scientific correlation between cracking your knuckles and developing arthritis in your joints, which is when one or more of the points where your bones meet develop inflammation. 

When you crack your knuckles, you're actually doing more bursting than cracking. The popping noise you hear is caused by small bubbles bursting in your synovial fluid, a yolk-like substance that lubricates the areas between bones and reduces friction for ease of movement.

Here's how it works: When you make the motion to crack your knuckles—either by stretching your fingers or bending them backwards—you expand the joint. This causes the pressure between the joint  to decrease, as well as the ligaments that connect the bones and the joint capsule that holds all of it together. That depressurization causes gasses like carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and oxygen that are dissolved in the synovial fluid to form into little bubbles that rush into the empty space. As the joints settle back into place, the fluid also returns to its rightful place and pops those little bubbles, causing that recognizable cracking sound. 

The sensation of cracking your fingers feels good because the stretching of the joint also stimulates nerve endings found along the fingers; joints can’t be cracked more than once within 15 minutes to a half hour, which is about how long it takes for those gasses to dissolve back into your synovial fluid.

Among the scientific studies conducted to prove that there is no correlation between cracking your knuckles and osteoarthritis, one published in the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine in 2010 found that, among a group of 215 participants between the ages of 50 to 89, arthritis was prevalent in about 18 percent of the people who crack their knuckles and in 21.5 percent who don't, making any correlation inconclusive. Probably the most entertaining study on the subject is by a Dr. Donald Unger who, inspired by his mother’s warnings as a child about getting arthritis by constantly cracking his knuckles, spent more than 60 years cracking only the knuckles on his left hand at least twice a day (in this case, the right hand served as his control). His finding, published in 1998 in a journal called Arthritis & Rheumatism, found there was no discernible sign of arthritis in his left hand as opposed to his right.

So don’t listen to what mom says, everybody—feel free to crack away!

SUPERHERO COMICS

by THEFACTSPROFESSOR 

These Superhero Comics That’ll Make You Laugh So Hard You’ll Cry.

4 Tips for Feeling the Amazing Effects of Meditation

There are so many mental and physical benefits that meditation brings into your life. Though meditation will take a little practice, it is not as complicated as you would think! Here are some easy pointers on getting started:

1. Sit in a comfortable position. Find someplace quiet and devoid of distractions. Turn off your cell phone, laptop, etc. Wear loose clothing. You can even put your feet up. Meditation doesn’t require sitting in the lotus position or any form of uncomfortable, forced posture.

2. Clear your mind. Easier said than done, right? I like to think of the light filtering in from a distant star. I imagine that love and light are enveloping me, draining all the stress and negative energy I have absorbed from my busy, stressful day. Yes, meditation is a process, but I promise you can do it. In just a few tries you’ll begin to feel a calm coming over you.

3. I suggest starting with sessions that last about 10-15 minutes. After you get the hang of it you can extend these periods if you like and have the time. Even brief periods of meditation are very beneficial.

4. Don’t over think it. Breathe deeply. Relax.

When you emerge from your meditation, however brief, you’ll notice emotional tranquility. The stressful day is erased. You feel refreshed and energized. You’ll have a more positive attitude about your life and a feeling of well-being. You may even be so clear minded that you’ve found the solution to a dilemma that’s been bothering you. You’ll see your life in a new light and start to have a different perspective on stressful situations in your life. You finally feel like you’re in control of the external pressures life dishes out.

These benefits have been known for years—now there’s a physiologic explanation. Knowledge scientists have gathered from brain scans and the measure of brain wave activity have given new info on the alpha state our brain experiences while meditating. Through this relaxation process, both mentally and physically, there are changes in our brain wave patterns. Our brains start to release chemicals known as endorphins. Endorphins are Mother Nature’s opiates; they give you a natural high and an amazing sense of well-being.

Meditation is the easiest way to achieve this feeling. And, no surprise, these good feelings continue for some time after the meditation session is over.

There are also real physical benefits from the practice of meditation. Endorphins boost your immune system. They protect you from infections and maintain good health. Just a few minutes a day can do all this.

Being in a Alpha brainwave state while you meditate will give you a feeling of calm, keep your mind sharp, and help you maintain composure in stressful situations. Give meditation a try and feel in control again.

Wishes galore for birthday boy Shah Rukh Khan

Shah Rukh Khan, one of the most popular and celebrated stars of the Hindi film industry, turned 49 Sunday. Who's who of the filmdom wished the man "who creates his own perception and dares to think out of the box!"

It's a double celebration for SRK as his just released "Happy New Year", a typical Bollywood potboiler directed by Farah Khan, hit the right notes and set the cash registers ringing. It made the quickest Rs.100 crore.

His birthday celebrations started Saturday night and fans assembled outside his house Mannat here to wish him. He came out to greet his eager fans and later tweeted, "So many beautiful people outside Mannat. Thank you all for celebrating my birthday with such ownership and love. Very humbling..."

Meanhile, celebrities took to Twitter to wish the man of the moment:

Kareena Kapoor Khan: Happy Birthday to @iamSRK, Kareena Kapoor with King Khan!

Sakshi Singh Dhoni: Happy Bday and lots of love to the King of romance....

Yusuf Pathan: Wish u many happy returns of the day Bhai from me @IrfanPathan n whole family. Allah sehat ke sath umardaraz Kare #greatman. (sic)

Tanishaa Mukerji: Happy Birthday to a man who creates his own perception and dares to think out of the box!

Aftab Shivdasani: Happy birthday to the tire-less and inspirational ... stay blessed bhaijaan. Love always.

Ranveer Singh: #HappyBudday For The King... Wish For You More Love & Success.

Sangeeth Sivan: A very happy b'day to the ever inspiring - your passion is infectious.

Manish Malhotra: Happy Birthday to the most talented, Spirited, Fit and Energetic @iamsrk.

Shruti Haasan: Happy birthday to my most favourite ever!!!

Milap Zaveri: Happy birthday to the man who made me wanna make films so I could work with him one day. You are an inspiration! Have a super year!

Farhan Akhtar: Rumi said, 'Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan the flames'. May you continue burning bright. Happy Birthday Shahrukh.

Karan Johar: Happy birthday Bhai!! @iamsrk.....have the most spectacular year!!!! And continue the victory march forever....lots and lots of love!!!

Boman Irani: It is a grace to be loved by millions that you have touched yet never met. I know I have surely 'met' you too. Happy birthday.

A Different Kind of Revolution – What We Can Learn From Cuba

“Look back over the past, with its changing empires that rose and fell, and you can foresee the future, too.” - Marcus Aurelius

In 1989 the Soviet Union crisis occurred and almost overnight the Cuban economy was left without oil. The dissolution of the Soviet Union hit the Cuban economy severely. The country lost approximately 80% of its imports, 80% of its exports and its Gross Domestic Product dropped by 34%. Food and medicine imports stopped or severely slowed. The largest immediate impact was the loss of nearly all of the petroleum imports from the USSR. (1) The effect was felt immediately. Entirely dependent on fossil fuels to operate, the major underpinnings of Cuban society—its transportation, industrial and agricultural systems—were paralyzed. According to some researchers around 90,000 tractors were unable to be used for the purposes of agriculture once the crisis hit. There were extensive losses of productivity in both Cuban agriculture —which was dominated by modern industrial tractors, combines and harvesters, all of which required petroleum to run —and in Cuban industrial capacity.

What happened in Cuba? – Urban Food

Australian and other permaculturists arriving in Cuba at the time began to distribute aid and taught their techniques to locals, who soon implemented them in Cuban fields, raised beds and urban rooftops across the nation. Organic agriculture was soon after mandated by the Cuban government, supplanting the old industrialized form of agriculture Cubans had grown accustomed to. Relocalization, permaculture and innovative modes of mass transit had to be rapidly developed. (2) The period radically transformed Cuban society and the economy, as it necessitated the successful introduction of sustainable agriculture, decreased use of automobiles, and overhauled industry, health and diet countrywide. People were forced to live without many goods they had become used to. During the ‘Special Period’ there were many years of hardship as the people of Cuba experienced widespread food shortages, starvation and malnutrition. The biggest struggles they faced were with the land. For years chemical fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides had depleted the valuable topsoil of nutrients. Due to the Soviet crisis chemical fertilisers were no longer available. In hindsight this would help make Cuba a world leader in organic urban agriculture. With the widespread destruction of top soil, it took Cuba approximately three to five years to regenerate soil quality to the point where it became fertile and productive again.

Urban Agriculture in a Time of Crisis

Havana has an approximate population of 2.2 million people, so it is a dense urban environment. Most of the food that was supplied to Havana prior to this sudden shortage of oil was transported to the city from rural areas or imported. With scarce fuel for farmers to operate machinery, no fertilisers to protect crops and no way of getting the food that was grown to town, it was the obvious solution for Havana. What the Cubans did out of sheer survival has become a blueprint for Western society moving forward to a more sustainable less fossil fuel dependant economy. The Cubans transformed every piece of available arable land in Havana into organic food production. In a relatively short period of time Cuba had solved the food problem, creating a healthier and more sustainable way of life for its citizens. More than 35,000 hectares (over 87,000 acres) of land are being used in urban agriculture in Havana alone.(3) The city of Havana produces enough food for each resident to receive a daily serving of 280 grams (9.88 ounces) of fruits and vegetables. The urban agricultural workforce in Havana has grown from 9,000 in 1999 to 23,000 in 2001 to more than 44,000 in 2006. Since the late 1980′s over 350,000 new, well-paying and productive jobs have been created in these subprograms over the last twelve years. With the Cuban workforce of around 4.8 million people the jobs created in urban agriculture have been a significant contribution to the country’s total employment.(4)

To this day, approximately 60% of the food for Havana is grown in the city itself urban gardens now produce the majority of the fruit and vegetable requirements of urban areas and in some areas surpluses are sold for wider consumption, with a third of all vegetables now being produced for export.(5) Through careful composting, crop rotation and management Havana can literally feed itself. The fast acting Cuban government allowed local communities to grow organic crops in Havana and invested in organic food production technologies. Now Cuba is a major exporter or bio fertilisers and bio pesticides throughout Latin America. Don’t think for one minute it was plain sailing and Cuba is some utopian place because of this revolution, many people died of starvation and like everywhere Cuba still struggles with many aspects of life and society.

A Western Comparison

If we compare the productivity of Havana, Cuba to Canada’s largest city, Toronto, Ontario with a population of just over 5 million (Greater Toronto Area) we can see how reliant Western cities are on cheap fossil fuels. Toronto imports 60 percent of the fresh produce from the U.S.,  the remainder of produce can travel up to 350 miles from within Canada to reach the city of Toronto.(6)  While there are obvious differences in culture and economic systems we can see what can be done by way of localisation and poses questions to the sustainability of current food production systems. Like many Western cities Toronto is expected to grow to  8.6 million by 2031 according to Toronto’s ministry of Public Infrastructure which will engulf valuable land on the urban fringe which is prime farmland.

Some Key Lessons From Cuba – A Blueprint for Western cities

“The future belongs to those who give the next generation reason for hope.” – Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

Relocalization

A focus toward smaller local communities that are connected and self sufficient in delivering food without the excessive long distance transport costs and externalities. Bringing back the community through greater awareness and connection to food production.

Urban Gardening - Roof Top Gardening – Small Spaces

What started initially on domestic/residential rooftops and balconies quickly took off and enveloped unused spaces such a sold parking lots or derelict land. Maximising wasted and unused space in urban environments or converting unproductive space into productive and abundant spaces allowed Havana to grow food in the city. Organopónicos are a system of urban organic gardens that developed in Cuba. They often consist of low-level concrete walls filled with organic matter and soil, with lines of drip irrigation laid on the surface of the growing media(7) these systems helped facilitate the growing of crops through the efficient use of resources and water.

Organics – Permaculture - Organopónicos

Cuba has demonstrated that organics farming and permaculture on a large scale can produce large volumes of food in smaller areas without the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Organic materials can be used to produce organic compost and beneficial insects ‘biocontrols’ can be used to help with pests and disease. With appropriate crop rotation the use of green manure and cultivation to maintain soil productivity.

Connection – Collaboration – Design

As well as developing new ways of growing food, this move to more sustainable production has had the added benefits of improving the overall environment. Deforestation has now been reversed throughout the country. Megan Quinn, The Outreach Director for, ‘The Community Solution’ who worked on a film ‘The Power of Community How Cuba Survived Peak Oil,’ outlines one of the defining factors that helped the Cubans survive the oil crisis was the fact that people came together to solve the problem. Being a socialist society helped with a relatively quick transition to develop this powerful group dynamic, enabling Cuba to take on this challenge. From this crisis many positive health, social and educational benefits resulted. Cuba now has a life expectancy equal to that of its nearby counterpart (the United States) and infant mortality rates are lower than that of the United States.

The Cuban experience showed that immediate action of communicating and collaboration between government, communities and citizens was crucial for getting projects happening within the city. The Cubans demonstrated that when working together for the common good problems can be solved. Collaboration and cooperation are the keys to developing more sustainable communities that thrive.

Meditation for Beginners: 20 Practical Tips for Quieting the Mind

Meditation is the art of focusing 100% of your attention in one area. The practice comes with a myriad of well-publicized health benefits including increased concentration, decreased anxiety, and a general feeling of happiness.

Although a great number of people try meditation at some point in their lives, a small percentage actually stick with it for the long-term. This is unfortunate, and a possible reason is that many beginners do not begin with a mindset needed to make the practice sustainable.

The purpose of this article is to provide 20 practical recommendations to help beginners get past the initial hurdles and integrate meditation over the long term:

1) Make it a formal practice. You will only get to the next level in meditation by setting aside specific time (preferably two times a day) to be still.

2) Start with the breath. Breathing deep slows the heart rate, relaxes the muscles, focuses the mind and is an ideal way to begin practice.

3) Stretch first. Stretching loosens the muscles and tendons allowing you to sit (or lie) more comfortably. Additionally, stretching starts the process of “going inward” and brings added attention to the body.

4) Meditate with Purpose. Beginners must understand that meditation is an ACTIVE process. The art of focusing your attention to a single point is hard work, and you have to be purposefully engaged!

5) Notice frustration creep up on you. This is very common for beginners as we think “hey, what am I doing here” or “why can’t I just quiet my damn mind already”. When this happens, really focus in on your breath and let the frustrated feelings go.

6) Experiment. Although many of us think of effective meditation as a Yogi sitting cross-legged beneath a Bonzi tree, beginners should be more experimental and try different types of meditation. Try sitting, lying, eyes open, eyes closed, etc.

7) Feel your body parts. A great practice for beginning meditators is to take notice of the body when a meditative state starts to take hold. Once the mind quiets, put all your attention to the feet and then slowly move your way up the body (include your internal organs). This is very healthy and an indicator that you are on the right path.

8) Pick a specific room in your home to meditate. Make sure it is not the same room where you do work, exercise, or sleep. Place candles and other spiritual paraphernalia in the room to help you feel at ease.

9) Read a book (or two) on meditation. Preferably an instructional guide AND one that describes the benefits of deep meditative states. This will get you motivated. John Kabat-Zinn’s Wherever You Go, There You Are is terrific for beginners.

10) Commit for the long haul. Meditation is a life-long practice, and you will benefit most by NOT examining the results of your daily practice. Just do the best you can every day, and then let it go!

11) Listen to instructional tapes and CDs.

12) Generate moments of awareness during the day. Finding your breath and “being present” while not in formal practice is a wonderful way to evolve your meditation habits.

13) Make sure you will not be disturbed. One of the biggest mistakes beginners make is not insuring peaceful practice conditions. If you have it in the back of your mind that the phone might ring, your kids might wake, or your coffee pot might whistle than you will not be able to attain a state of deep relaxation.

14) Notice small adjustments. For beginning meditators, the slightest physical movements can transform a meditative practice from one of frustration to one of renewal. These adjustments may be barely noticeable to an observer, but they can mean everything for your practice.

15) Use a candle. Meditating with eyes closed can be challenging for a beginner. Lighting a candle and using it as your point of focus allows you to strengthen your attention with a visual cue. This can be very powerful.

16) Do NOT Stress. This may be the most important tip for beginners, and the hardest to implement. No matter what happens during your meditation practice, do not stress about it. This includes being nervous before meditating and angry afterwards. Meditation is what it is, and just do the best you can at the time.

17) Do it together. Meditating with a partner or loved one can have many wonderful benefits, and can improve your practice. However, it is necessary to make sure that you set agreed-upon ground rules before you begin!

18) Meditate early in the morning. Without a doubt, early morning is an ideal
time to practice: it is quieter, your mind is not filled with the usual clutter, and there is less chance you will be disturbed. Make it a habit to get up half an hour earlier to meditate.

19) Be Grateful at the end. Once your practice is through, spend 2-3 minutes feeling appreciative of the opportunity to practice and your mind’s ability to focus.

20) Notice when your interest in meditation begins to wane. Meditation is
hard work, and you will inevitably come to a point where it seemingly does not fit into the picture anymore. THIS is when you need your practice the most and I recommend you go back to the book(s) or the CD’s you listened to and become re-invigorated with the practice. Chances are that losing the ability to focus on meditation is parallel with your inability to focus in other areas of your life!

Meditation is an absolutely wonderful practice, but can be very difficult in the beginning. Use the tips described in this article to get your practice to the next level!