End tiredness with yogurt!
Surprising new research shows that 63 million of us feel tired almost all the time, and the real culprit is often a hidden—yet very fixable—health problem! Read on to find your personalized prescription for restoring your get-up-and-go!
Muscles feel weak? ✓
Rx: whole grains!
If you’re tired most of the time and your stamina is dwindling, try steering clear of white flour. Instead, eat whole-grain carbs like brown rice, oatmeal and whole-grain pasta. This healthy switch could increase your energy levels and endurance 33% or more in two months, reveals a study in the journal Psychopharmacology. Tiredness combined with muscle weakness is a tip-off that the energy-producing mitochondria in your muscle cells have become sluggish—and the B vitamins in whole grains are what they need to function best, says study coauthor Crystal Haskell, PH.D.
Find it hard to focus? ✓
Rx: red meat!
A deficiency in iron or zinc can trigger fatigue by depriving your cells of energizing oxygen, Cornell University research shows. Fortunately, eating 4 oz. of red meat daily can correct those deficiencies within two months. Taking a daily multivitamin containing 15 mg. to 20 mg. of iron plus 15 mg. of zinc will also do the trick. One option: Nature’s Plus Ultra Source of Life ($36 for 90 tablets, Lef.com/ww).
Crave carbs? ✓
Rx: resveratrol!
Tiredness combined with impossible-to-ignore carb cravings is an often-missed sign of insulin resistance, a blood-sugar snafu that triples your risk of feeling spent 24/7. Now research in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has pinpointed a solution: a daily 200mg. to 500-mg. dose of resveratrol, a grape seed extract that improves insulin sensitivity and blood-sugar control. You’ll feel more energetic, and less prone to cravings in as little as six weeks. Bonus: Resveratrol invigorates the brain region that makes and stores memories, helping you feel sharper and more clearheaded, often within one month, say University of Florida researchers. (Check with your doctor first!)
Achy joints? ✓
Rx: a workout switch!
It’s well known that exercise fights fatigue, but there’s a catch: If you push yourself too hard too often, inflammation caused by intense workouts can increase your tiredness, plus trigger joint pain! Not to worry: Adding a bit of balance—say, doing your usual aerobic workout three times weekly, then on “off” days doing something different like yoga— can cut your fatigue 65%, without joint aches, say University of Georgia researchers.
White patches ✓ on your tongue? Rx: plain yogurt!
If you’re low on energy and have stubborn white patches on your tongue, you might have dysbiosis, a bacterial imbalance in your diges- tive tract. “When healthy intestinal bacteria are in short supply, yeast can grow unchecked, and the toxins they release can make your thyroid, liver and adrenal glands sluggish, triggering chronic fatigue,” explains Fred Pescatore, M.D., author of Boost Your Health with Bacteria. The white patches? They’re a yeast infection! Eating 1 1/2 cups of plain yogurt (with live cultures) daily will provide enough healthy bacteria to crowd out yeast and cut symptoms 50% within three weeks, Finnish research suggests.