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Is Eating Too Many Bananas Bad for You? Image Credit: Tatiana Volgutova/iStock/GettyImages The banana is one of nature’s most nutritious foods. It contains many simple carbohydrates, which your body can break down rapidly for energy, and it’s also rich in vitamins and minerals like potassium and vitamin B-6. Eating too much of any type of food has its downsides, however, even if it’s a food as healthy as the banana. Find out more about the nutrition breakdown of bananas on MyPlate....

Ginger is alkaline and might help relieve the symptoms of acid reflux. Image Credit: piotrszczepanekfotoart/iStock/GettyImages A mainstay of Asian cuisine, ginger is celebrated for its healing effects. Used to treat inflammation, chronic pain and nausea, ginger provides an alkalizing effect on the body and can reduce acid reflux. Eating more alkaline foods might benefit bone health and improve cardiovascular health. Advertisement Tip Ginger is alkaline and might help relieve the symptoms of acid reflux....

List of Roughage Foods Image Credit: Trine Loklindt / EyeEm/EyeEm/GettyImages It’s a good idea to incorporate lots of fiber into your diet to reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer. Getting fiber from a variety of foods is best because eating too much from one source might not give you all the benefits of a healthy balanced diet. Many Americans do not get enough fiber the average adult only eats 15 grams of fiber per day according to the Harvard School of Public Health....

Don't fling yourself into lower back exercises. Instead proceed slowly and carefully. Image Credit: mediaphotos/E+/GettyImages You don’t realize how much you use your lower back until you injure it. And then even the most simple movements, like standing up, become a challenge. The pain from such an injury makes your bed seem rather inviting. It’s tempting to want to lie down all day. However, if you want to get back to normal, you’ll have to start moving again....

Many medications may interfere with your body’s ability to absorb iron. Not being able to properly absorb iron may lead to anemia. Common symptoms of anemia include fatigue and weakness, which happens because blood cells aren’t getting enough oxygen. If you need to use a medication that interferes with iron absorption, you may need to take additional iron supplements or alter your medication’s dosage or dosing schedule to prevent anemia. Always talk to your doctor if you are concerned you are not getting enough iron....

Navy SEALs often train by running on the beach. Trainees going through Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL Training, or BUD/S, will be expected to do many miles of running every week and continue to do so while training as full SEALs. Training for endurance-based distance running is a matter of putting in the miles. SEALs can run 30 miles in a week or more. Running routines of several miles a day, four to five days a week are used to train for these distances....

Long Island ice tea is a popular mixed alcoholic beverage containing vodka, triple sec, tequila, rum, gin, cola and sweet and sour mix. Image Credit: LauriPatterson/iStock/GettyImages Long Island ice tea, also known as LIIT, is a popular mixed alcoholic beverage containing vodka, triple sec, tequila, rum, gin, cola and sweet and sour mix. There are a lot of ingredients involved, and so the number of calories in a single LIIT is actually quite high....

Tzatziki is the tart, Greek yogurt-based sauce. Image Credit: istetiana/Moment/GettyImages Tzatziki is the tart, Greek yogurt-based sauce that puts the zest in your falafel. Some recipes of tzatziki are healthier than others, so make your own tzatziki sauce to keep the calories and fat at a minimum. Here’s what you need to know about tzatziki’s nutrition profile. Advertisement Health Benefits of Tzatziki Apart from falafel, tzatziki is also served with souvlaki, kebabs and gyros....

Consult a doctor if you have groin pain. Image Credit: fizkes/iStock/GettyImages Pain is unpleasant — and a groin pull is particularly so, because you can feel it with every step. A groin strain encompasses a partial tear of the small fibers of the adductor muscles, Berkshire Healthcare explains on its website. You should never attempt to self-diagnose or self-treat an injury, so consult your doctor if pain in your inner thigh persists or worsens....

Squatting with weights may cause injury. Image Credit: Robert Daly/OJO Images/Getty Images Squats are an exercise that involves lifting weights upon your shoulders and conducting a series of squatting movements. This strengthens your legs, especially the group of four muscles above your knee called the quadriceps. The quadriceps muscles taper together to form a large tendon, which attaches to your patella, or knee cap. This large tendon, called the rectus femoris tendon, is susceptible to injury while doing squats....

Exercising with a cold can be safe, but it's important to check in with yourself first. Image Credit: dima_sidelnikov/iStock/GettyImages We’ve all had that internal debate: Am I too sick to work out, or will exercising actually make me feel better? Advertisement Low to moderate exercise can sometimes improve your immune response when you have common cold symptoms — like a sore throat. Video of the Day However, if your sore throat is accompanied by additional symptoms, like a fever, you may want to avoid exercise until your symptoms subside....

Better watch out for the sugar content of most store-bought smoothie brands! Image Credit: GANCINO/iStock/GettyImages Strawberry banana smoothies are a cold, sweet beverage typically made by blending together strawberries, bananas, plain or vanilla-flavored low-fat yogurt and ice cubes. Advertisement Recipes for this treat vary, however, and sometimes include milk or heavy cream and other ingredients. Using other ingredients may increase fat and calories, as well as impact the degree of creaminess and thickness....

There has always been a misconception that weightlifting and resistance training will make you big and bulky. Image Credit: BJI / Blue Jean Images/blue jean images/Getty Images “Go outside and ride your bike.” That’s what my mom would say when I complained about being fat as a kid. And she wasn’t completely wrong. After all, if I wanted to lose weight, riding my bike more wouldn’t hurt. Advertisement But I took her words as gospel, and for decades I equated exercise with weight loss, fooling myself into believing that I could overindulge as long as I was active....

Coconut yogurt is a good source of probiotics, especially for vegans. Image Credit: Fascinadora/iStock/GettyImages Yogurt is a slightly fermented food filled with healthy bacteria. Traditionally, yogurt is made from animal milk. However, you can find lots of plant-based yogurts too, including coconut yogurt. Like other fermented foods, coconut yogurt is good for your gut. Advertisement Read more: 13 Surprising and Beneficial Probiotic Foods Video of the Day What Is Coconut Yogurt?...

Getting the recommended amounts of vitamin B-complex, vitamin D and the mineral iron may have a positive effect on your energy levels Image Credit: Hero Images/Hero Images/GettyImages If you struggle with sleepiness during the day, you’re certainly not alone. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 15 percent of U.S. women and 10 percent of men often feel either very tired or exhausted. Advertisement It's little wonder, then, that energy drink consumption is on the rise....

Hiking in a mountainous terrain is a highly aerobic form of exercise. The constant change in incline constantly challenges your muscles and elevates your heart rate. Calories burned are based on weight, incline and intensity. Weight Weight is one of the factors that determines calories burned when hiking a mountain. On average, a 200-lb. person will burn 540 calories in one hour of hiking; a 150-lb. person will 405 calories in the same time, says HealthStatus....

An assortment of supplements and vitamins. Image Credit: DimaSobko/iStock/Getty Images With the obesity epidemic spreading across the country, marketers have learned how to take advantage of America’s perilous health status. Whether you turn on the television, flip through a magazine or walk through your local shopping mall or grocery store, vitamin advertisements make a wide variety of enticing health claims. With so many promises jumping off the vitamin labels, you may be tempted to include several vitamins in your daily diet....

Switching to a low-sodium diet emphasizing fruits and veggies promotes fast water-weight loss. Image Credit: lola1960/iStock/Getty Images Whether you’re trying to drop 5 pounds as the first milestone in a larger weight-loss goal, or you’re trying to shed that last stubborn bit of fat, lifestyle changes can help. Good news: if you have a lot of weight to lose or live a very active lifestyle, you’ll likely be able to lose 5 pounds in two to three weeks....

Adding one dumbbell to your ab workouts is a great way to gradually increase the load and make movements more challenging. Image Credit: ljubaphoto/E+/GettyImages At-home fitness equipment might be harder to come by these days, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a little creative with the tools you do have. If you have a lonely dumbbell lying around, this 20-minute ab workout is just what you’re looking for. Advertisement While body-weight ab exercises like planks and sit-ups are great, you'll want to increase the resistance over time and make them more challenging, and adding load with one dumbbell is the perfect way to level things up....

It doesn't matter too much which type of leg press you do. Image Credit: Enes Evren/E+/GettyImages When you want to use a machine to build muscle in your quads and glutes, it’s not easy to know which is best. The leg press can be done in a number of different ways; however, they’re all fairly similar and work the same muscles. Advertisement Therefore, you only need to choose one of the versions — the horizontal or the vertical leg press, plus the 45-degree leg press — to achieve your goal....