It seems that the energy drink market in Europe is under transformation with high sugar content energy drinks being replaced by low/no/reduced sugar products. Many products are looking to using fruit as a sweetener, rather than artificial sweeteners.

The Euproe wide health effort is driving energy manufacturers introduce or reformulate healthier products. Hopefully the initiative will move into the confectionary market, where the use of artificial sweeteners is still high.

Sweeteners used for confectionery include sorbitol, xylitol, maltitol, aspartame, sucralose, acesulfame K, isomalt, mannitol and dextrin. Energy drinks are instead turning towards usinga range of fruit juices and concentrates which provide sweetness without the need for any ‘added’ sugars or sweeteners. Adding fruit flavours to beverages such as energy drinks is easier than with confectionary manufacture, due to its liquid form.

Earlier reports indicate that more than half of consumers are willing to switch to sugar-free versions of traditional confectionery lines, suggesting that sweeteners are no longer considered a ‘niche’ ingredient in sweets.

For more on this report using healtheir ingredients in energy drinks.

For reviews on energy drinks

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Wouldn’t it be great if you could boost up your calorie burning and turbo charge your energy supply whilst you sleep.

Well, that fantasy just took a big step closer to reality with the release of findings of a study by Cognis Nutrition & Health. Cognis is using the study, linking CLA to positively altering fat oxidation and energy burning during sleep in its marketing of Tonalin.

CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) is a fatty acid found primarily in milk, beef, and dairy products. It is well known in the food and supplements market for its effects on body composition, but studies have also revealed its potential to reverse the formation of atherosclerotic plaques – that sticky substance that clings to the inside of arteries causing cardio-vascular disease.

The study focused around the dreaded holiday weight gain, but finding showed CLA increased calorie burning during sleep by an average of 43kcal per subject. Not only does this result boost calorie-burning, the theory supports that CLA actually prevents weight gain.

The study provides important insight into the actual physiologic mechanism for CLA activity in reducing body fat.

The next step, according to Cognis, is to get its ingredient into more products and further educate consumers on the potential for Tonalin to prevent weight gain. With 12 different companies already using the Tonalin trademark in their labeling and another 30 to 40 companies who use the ingredient in their products, it seems Tonalin is establishing a health market [excuse the pun!].

Over 50 percent of Tonalin sales are to the US market, of which approximately 95 percent goes into dietary supplements and another five percent is destined for beverages. This is good news for the approximately one third of Americans who are obese.

The study was carried out during the holiday season – subjects taking CLA safely reduced their body fat mass by one kilogram (2.2 lbs) and their body weight by 0.6 kg (1.3 lbs). In comparison, those in the placebo group gained 0.7 kg (1.5 lbs) of body fat mass and 1.1 kg (2.4 lbs) of body weight during the months that are especially problematic for overweight people.

Since as individuals, we are making a poor effort to prevent serious weight related illnesses, it seems the market is already taking on the responsibility!!

Zapper

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In the past I have had short term periods in my life where my sleep was disturbed for short periods – with a new born baby, jet lag etc.

However, it wasn’t until recently that I experienced the debilitating effect of long term sleep deprivation. My neighbour started a new job that meant 3 consecutive nights a week she leaves for work at 3.50am, on another two nights she either arrives home around 11pm or 2am.

Her car has quite a noisy exhaust/muffler system, as as she climbs or descends down the steep driveway alongside my bedroom it would take the drunkest or deepest of sleepers not to be woken.

The real killer is the 4am starts – by this time one has had sufficient sleep, to find going back to sleep not quite so easy, and insufficient sleep [assuming a normal bedtime of 10.30pm] to carry out the day with a clear head and energetic bounce.  It normally takes me until around 5am-5.30am to get back to sleep, only to have to wake up at 5.45-6am to allow for a workout before departing for the office.

After three nights, the body has somewhat adjusted to awakening at this ungodly hour, and so it takes a couple of nights to get my sleep pattern back, all the while not quite knowing whether tonight will be disrupted at 11pm or 2pm

 …..the overall impact of four weeks of this is hellish. I still manage to get a couple of workouts done, my eating habits have declined as I am too tired in the evening to cook a proper dinner, this is leading to some gastric disturbance at night, making it even harder to get to sleep.  I have found myself lacking focus when driving, making silly mistakes with my work or home tasks and generally feeling very fuzzy headed.

My attempt to resolve the situation with earplugs, soft playing music [white noise], adapting my bedtime, chamomile tea etc have not been entirely successful [actually not at all!!]. As a last resort I phoned my neighbor and asked if she would consider leaving her car up the top of the drive on those early morning starts. Her response was “I will give it some thought”, which translates into “go to hell!”

• I feel like crap
• I look like crap
• I resent my neighbor – and we know anger is destructive both physically and mentally
• My general tolerance of everything is now very low – including my neighbors daughter, whose radio that blares out her window all weekend [they are not content to destroy my sleep all week - they also insist on destroying my chance to relax in peace or catch up on work in the weekend]

It is incredible how selfish and inconsiderate some people can be, and how much one action can snowball in impact on overall health and mental wellbeing.

I can certainly understand how individuals take aggressive actions towards others, beyond what they ever thought they were capable. Lack of sleep is indeed a killer – of your own life, and for those who are pushed too far, the lives of others.

So, I live in hope that my neighbor will at some stage feel some feeling of consideration, or lose her job!!!! Yeah!

All this aggression – just from lack of sleep.

So if you find yourself demotivated, stressed, depressed, not able to exercise, not bothering to cook proper foods, snappy or anything else described above – take a look at your sleep habits. If you are not getting 6-8 hours sleep at least 6 nights a week, your health is suffering.

Zapper

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Sleep apnea is a major problem for many people, resulting in problems in many areas of their lives.

This problem is common in overweight people with thick necks. The fat in the neck places pressure on the trachea, resulting in snoring, and disruptive sleep. Oxygen levels drop, placing strain on the heart.

Any neck diameter of over 16 inches in women, and 17 inches in men is a potential problem.

Lack of sleep slows reactions to the point of increasing the chance of having a car accident by 74%.

Reaction tests are used where a ruler is held vertical in front of the patient and let go. Those with normal reactions will catch the ruler at the 11cm level. A typical sleep deprived response will be at 20cm.

Healthy adults need 6 to 8 hours of quality sleep a night. Other major causes of disruptive sleep  are smoking, and drinking after 6pm. For more on sleep apnea

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Computer Fatigue Syndrome is a new High Tech condition that causes eyestrain, dizziness, headaches, low energy, and neck, back, and shoulder pain.

One of the main contributors is from the eyes. If you work or play on your computer for more than 3 hours a day: use The Three Rs

1. Readjust – your screen, so your eyes look down
2. Refocus – your eyes on something 20 foot away, every half hour
3. Remove – your whole body from your workstation ever hour

Zapper

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Stress can play havoc with your energy levels and mental focus. This can be either physiological stress or mental stress. The workplace is a danger zone for the very reason that unexpected stresses occur regularly and often obtaining the best nutrition is not always easy due to lack of appropriate food sources or time.

To help control energy at brain functioning at work, here are a few quick fixes I have used over the years. Continue reading ‘Energy and Brain Food Fixes at Work’

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We all have times when we make a major drawdown on our energy supply. One of those times is participating in a major sporting event.

There are strict regimes that serious sports people use both before and after the event to build up energy stores, and then replenish energy following the event. The two most common energy management methods are: Continue reading ‘Restoring Energy After Sporting Events’

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In our previous blog “Why Animal Protein Is Better Than Soy Protein” we looked at the difference between whey protein and vegetable [soy] protein.  One of the main advantages we highlighted of whey protein was the absorption rate being significantly higher than soy protein.

If you are like me, and just cannot tolerate whey protein for whatever reason, there are other things you can do to help protein utilization of the body.

Continue reading ‘Factors Affecting Protein Utilization’

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For those of you who are asking the question – why animal protein [whey protein] is better than vegetable [soy protein] protein, this may help.

Soy and gluten proteins increase your thyroid hormones triiodothyronine, and thyroxine to muscle-destroying levels. You will never see a pure vegetarian athlete in power and strength sports.  Ovo-lacto vegetarians, however, use milk and egg protein supplements, the premium diet for athletes.

Muscle building requires extra alanine. During and after weight training, the muscle branched-chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine are catabolized to make alanine and glutamine, which are then lost from the muscle.

Continue reading ‘Why Animal Protein is Better Than Vegetable Protein’

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• Your skin and mucous membrane completely rebuild themselves every month.

• Your blood supply renews itself every three months.

• Your muscle proteins are replaced every six months.

Continue reading ‘Effect Of Protein Deficiency In Muscle Growth’

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