I Write For SocialSpark

I’ve had a few questions about paid posts on my blogs. The paid post advertising is often confused with a paid review, or an endorsement for a product. Instead, they should be viewed in the same light as an advertisement in a newspaper. You would never throw away a newspaper because there was an ad beside the article.

However, there are paid post companies that expect their bloggers to write posts on any client, without any regard to the blogger or their readers. I do not sign with these agencies. I write only for companies that let me pick and chose the posts I want to write about. The newest, and already the best is Social Spark.

You will always know if I post for SocialSpark. There will be a bar at the bottom of the post. This lets me write a post for a client that I believe in, but lets you know that the advertiser sponsored the post. It also lets you know that I’ve handpicked the sponsors for this blog.

SocialSpark was built by IZEA to meet the needs of bloggers and their readers. You need good content, and I work hard to find information that will improve your life. Sponsors do not intrude on our blog, instead, they support the blogs so that the good ones do not go ‘off line’ because the blogger needs to spend more time at their job.

Enjoy the blog. I write it for you. Enjoy the sponsored posts – those companies believe in this blog and offered to sponsor it so it would stay online.

Foods That Help Dieting

I Am Hungry!

How do you diet when you feel hungry all the time? This can be one of the most difficult aspects of losing weight. I’ve resorted to some ‘no-no’ habits. I’ll pop some fiber pills if I am hungry. That works if I can force down a couple bottles of water afterward.

I’ve taken to having small fruit around. Sometimes I cannot down a full apple. But I’ll eat a few strawberries. I doubt I am really hungry, I just want to snack. My main problem is that I am a grazer. I like to eat a little at a time, all day. My problem is that I like crunchy foods. There is no natural substitute for crunchy and starchy foods.

Negative Calorie Foods
Asparagus
Broccoli
Cabbage
Carrots
Cauliflower
Celery
Cucumber
Fennel
Leek
Lettuce
Peppers
Tomato

Negative Calorie Fruit
Blackberry
Blackcurrant
Mandarin orange
Melon Cantaloupe
Peaches
Plums
Raspberry
Rhubarb
Strawberry
Grapefruit
Honeydew Melon
Tangerine

Understanding Your Need for Sleep

A Canadian study, published today in the medical journal Sleep, tested 276 adults between 21 and 64 years of age. They tested short and long duration sleepers. They found that 35 per cent and 25 per cent are more likely to gain 5kg (11lb) compared with average duration sleepers who maintained 7 hours sleep.

Short sleepers gained 1.98kg (4.3lb) while long sleepers gained 1.58kg (3.4lb).

The risk of developing obesity increases more than 27 percent for over sleepers.

Previous research suggested that sleep loss could disturb the production of hormones that control the desire for calorie rich foods. The level of ghrelin, the hormone released by the stomach to signal hunger, was 15 per cent higher in people who sleep five hours compared to those getting eight hours.

Lack of sleep leads to tiredness during the day, which reduces the level of physical activity.

The alarming statistics are for those who lack sleep. People who sleep five or fewer face a 70 per cent risk of dying from all causes - and twice the risk of death from a cardiovascular disease.

Professor Jim Horne, director of the Sleep Research Centre at Loughborough University, said those whose sleeping habits exceed seven hours, or who regularly get less, should not despair. They are not at risk.

"There is a great deal of evidence now that sleeping less than five hours a night is linked with putting on weight," he said, "but it's a very slow weight gain over a number of years."

So, enjoy a full night’s sleep.

Happy Earth Day

Most years April is wet and cool. This year, the temperature is a balmy 20C. The windows are open. The sky is blue. The air is warm. I love spring. I've already been to the garden centers. Their racks are still bare. The skids stacked in patient repose. Only the greenhouses are a hive of activity, their thousands of plants yearning for the summer's light.



Work at Home Freelance
Pro Aging
Living With Food Related Diseases

Open Windows

I opened the windows today. It was so nice to work with the soft spring air floating in the window. I am so looking forward to getting my Dalphinums and cala lillies into the garden. I have some huge ones so I can create a huge red wall across the back of the yard. They look so beautiful under the pear trees.

I'll take a picture of them this year so you can see. I'll be working more on the left of the yard this year. It is a hard area to work with becuase we have a church which covers 1/3 of my hard in shade ALL day - no sun at all. This is hard even for shade plants.

I feel so land locked. I just can't wait to get outside.