When you consider how much of the food we eat has been warped and twisted out of its natural, healthy state it should come as no surprise when our bodies react in unpleasant ways.

On this blog I often talk about the links between processed, chemically abused foodstuffs and man boobs. But I could just as easily be talking about cancer, obesity, diabetes, heart disease… the range of modern health epidemics with proven links to the poor choices we make with our diet is virtually endless.

Now according to this BBC report, it looks like we can start adding mental health problems to the list.

A University College London study suggests that a diet high in processed foods significantly increases the risks of developing depression.

On a personal level this doesn’t surpise me in the slightest. Since  making the kind of profound changes to my diet and lifestyle that I discuss elsewhere on this site, the improvements to my mood, outlook, my overall love and enjoyment of life, have been immense.

Man, I hate cliches – but never was there a truer one spoken than the one that says ‘ you are what you eat’.

Our body chemisty is extraordinarily complex – robust yet also extremely delicate. What we do to it matters. Not just in terms of the way that we look, but also in terms of the way that we feel.

Processed Foods May Mess With More Than Just Your Metabolism is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

Related posts:

1. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 1 – Green Tea
2. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 3 – Sweet Potatoes
3. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 2 – Pistachio Nuts

I know I wrote quite a lengthy post recently on the subject of oestrogen pollution and the possible man boobs connection, but I came across an interesting article on the subject yesterday and I wanted to share it with you. It does a far better job of referencing all the relevant scientific studies and medical papers than I could ever hope to do.

Firstly, a little explanation – Xenoestrogens are basically industrial substances which resemble or mimic the oestrogen which is produced naturally by the human body. For many people, including me, the increasing quantities of these synthetic hormones in our environment is of real cause for concern – especially when you consider how conditions such as gynecomastia – which many experts believed to be caused by hormonal imbalance – are apparently on the rise.

According to the article, which you can read here, potential sources of Xenoestrogens include: the plastics used to package water and food, non organic meats, fruits and vegetables, some kinds of lotions, creams and fragances used in personal grooming and the contraceptive pill.

I’ve often speculated, both on this blog and in articles I have written for other websites, on the potential health risks of Xenoestrogen contaminating our food and water, but a lot of what is covered in the rest article was completely new to me. It’s definitely worth 5 minutes of your time.

Xenoestrogens – A Prime Suspect In The Man Boobs Epidemic? is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

Related posts:

1. Man Boobs, Oestrogen Pollution & Can We Trust The Water We Drink?
2. Have Your Say In The Man Boobs Survey

After ‘How do I get rid of my man boobs?‘, the million dollar question for most gynecomastia sufferers is usually ‘What caused my man boobs to appear in the first place?‘

Unfortunately it’s never an easy question to answer.

There are lots of different theories out there, and although experts tend to agree that the condition is most likely triggered by some kind of hormonal imbalance, we still don’t know what causes the hormonal imbalance itself to occur.

Is it genetics? Diet? Lifestyle? Age? Drugs? Cigarettes? Alcohol? Oestrogen in the drinking water? Chemical substances in the food we eat? Steroids? Lack of exercise? Or, a combination of various factors?

Nobody has any definitive answer.

It was out of frustration with this state of affairs that the idea for Man Boob Facts survey was born. It struck me that the growing numbers of people visiting this website provided an ideal opportunity for man boobs sufferers to share and compare their circumstances and pool valuable data in the process.

With time, and if enough people complete the survey, my hope is that some sort of clear patterns will emerge, and by taking part, you will have helped to solve some of the many man boobs mysteries that have been bugging so many of us, for so long.

Thanks in advance for your participation!

Please click here to take the survey

Have Your Say In The Man Boobs Survey is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

Related posts:

1. Xenoestrogens – A Prime Suspect In The Man Boobs Epidemic?

Spring and summer are definitely my salad seasons. Chicken salads, tuna salads, greek salads – you name it I can live on the stuff with hardly a second thought!

But once the holiday season approaches, bringing shorter days and slowly dropping temperatures, my body naturally starts to crave certain other kinds of meals, the kind that send you off to bed feeling super warm, full and satisfied – the kind of comforting soups and hearty stews that are best eaten in front of a roaring fireplace!

That’s why whenever I feel that slight autumn chill in the air and leaves begin to fade yellow and brown, my old friend the lentil makes its annual return to my larder.

The lentil is a thing of simple wonder and beauty. Packed with fibre and protein, super low in calories and super rich in essential nutrients like folate, iron and magnesium, if I were to list all the potential general benefits of a lentils this post could easily turn into a science essay.

So instead, just take my word for it when I say – they’re good for you. Very good.

And if prepared right, they taste great as well. In fact lentils are naturally ideal for cooking because of the way happily absorb the flavours from other foods.

Personally, I am a sucker for a good lentil stew.

It’s so easy to prepare – just start with some chopped onion, garlic and maybe red or green pepper as a base. Celery also works well if you have it. You can also add a little left over meat such as ham or chicken if you like.

Fry that mixture off for a few minutes. Then throw it all together into a deep stewing pot with a mix of whatever other vegetables you have to hand. Carrots. Parsnips. Broccoli. Whatever veggie floats your boat.

Then add some tinned tomatoes, some stock, a slug of good quality olive oil and maybe a glass of red wine. Season to taste, add a few herbs and a bay leaf, maybe even a pinch of chili if you’re that way inclined and that’s it.

Let your creation simmer, slow cooking the contents until the lentils are tender, making sure the liquid always covers the mixture by adding water whenever necessary. It’s such a flexible, satisfying way of cooking. Whenever I can I like to make a really big batch and freeze plenty of extra portions for the week ahead!

Photo by foodistablog

Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 4 – Lentils is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

Related posts:

1. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 2 – Pistachio Nuts
2. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 1 – Green Tea
3. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 3 – Sweet Potatoes

I often talk about how interval training is the most effective form of aerobic exercise for burning stubborn chest fat. One of things I love most about IT is its flexibility. This summer I’ve been switching between short, intense sprints, to hill cycling and bunch of different circuits. The variety not only keeps thing from getting too stale and predictable, but I also like to think it keeps my metabolism ‘guessing’…like it can never be sure what’s coming next!

One other session that I’ve been doing over the last month or so is one I ’stole’ from the Scottish tennis player, and current world number 2, Andy Murray. When he first appeared on the professional circuit this guy got a lot of criticism for not being in good enough condition– he wilted a few times in some big 5 set matches, and even vomited during a match at the US open as I recall.

Oops!

Anyway, a lot of the stick he received was pretty harsh, he was still basically a kid. And he definitely took a lot of it to heart, because in not much more than a couple of years he has turned himself into one of the fittest, and hardest working players on tour. I’ve really enjoyed watching him show his detractors what he’s really about, and I’ve also been fascinated by his workouts, which he sometimes documents on his blog .

They can be pretty hardcore to say the least. According to Andy, the most challenging part of his training regime, and the part that I’ve been trying to emulate this summer, involves running intervals of 400 metres at the track

A standard session involves 10 x 400 meter laps, run at around 75 seconds a lap, with 75 seconds rest in between.  You can see some photos of Andy in action toward the end of this post.

I’ve been doing my own ‘version’ of this kind of training at a local grass track near my home and believe me, it hurts. I’m currently wasted after just 6 laps of 85 seconds with 90 secs of recovery. Tomorrow I’m going to try for 7, but I just know the last one is going to bring me to my knees.

It’s a painful routine, but tremendously satisfying. 400 meters just seems to be an optimum distance for pushing to the limit with intervals. It combines some of the power of sprinting and also some of the endurance of longer distance running, Since I started in the beginning of June it’s helped me lose a couple of extra pounds around my waist and chest, plus I’ve noticed my aerobic performance in other areas has improved massively

AI feel lot of the effectiveness comes from running outside as opposed to using the treadmill, so if you you like the idea of measuring your performance against a world class athlete like Andy Murray try and find a track near you and put in a few laps against the stopwatch.

I promise it will give your man boobs nightmares

A Kick Ass IT Session Stolen From the Second Best Tennis Player in the World is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

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I don’t know if it’s because writing this blog means I have man boobs on the brain, but these days
I seem to be seeing the darn things everywhere. It’s summer in these parts, of course, which means that guys are finding them harder to conceal because of the heat and humidity. But even taking the weather into account, forget swine flu, the real pandemic seems to be man breast.

It’s almost got to the point where a guy with man breasts is the becoming exception rather than the rule. I was watching the world 20 20 cricket tournament last month. South Africa were playing and it seemed like at least half the team had a moob thing going on! These were professional athletes! What’s going on? When the sportsmen start sprouting em what hope is there for the rest of us right?

I’m kidding of course. Kind of. The fact is this summer man breast madness got me pondering seriously on a subject which I had been avoiding for a while. That’s the possibility that there might be more to this man boobs pandemic than just bad lifestyle choices – lack of fitness and poor diet etc. That’s not to say these things aren’t a factor. If you’ve read any of my advice for how to get rid of man boobs then you’ll know I take that stuff deadly seriously… but you know what?… there’s still this niggling doubt in my mind that there may be other factors involved that we haven’t fully understood. I touched it in my article about the causes of gynecomastia, but I want to talk about it more depth here.

I’m talking about oestrogen pollution, and specifically oestrogen pollution of our water supplies.

One of the reasons I’ve avoided talking about it before is because on some levels it sounds a bit paranoid, like one of those wacky conspiracy theories that claims the government controls us through medicating our drinking water. But in fact a quick search you know where throws up plenty of material published by reputable academics, institutions and media outlets, all voicing serious concern about the issue.

These people aren’t whack jobs. Here’s one particularly unsettling report from the UK press in 2002.

It describes half of fish in lowland rivers changing sex. Permanently. Sperm rates in Britain falling dramatically for half a century. One third of all drinking water supplies potentially at risk.

Now this stuff may or may not be a concern for you depending on where you live and what the source of your drinking water is, but for anyone who, like me, lives in an area that uses retreated water, this stuff has the potential to cause you some very sleepless nights.

The thing is, I always thought that there was a simple way around this issue and that was to drink bottled water. But guess what. Looks like there are some people out there that think that may not be such a good idea either.

Chemicals in plastic bottles leaching Xenoestrogens directly into the water you’re about to drink after your workout? That’s something to worry about, no matter where you live.

If the findings of the bottle study are true, and I have to admit that the information I can find on the subject is patchy at best, then it really is going to cause a problem. Oestrogen in the drinking water. Oestrogen in the bottled water.

Can’t a man get a clean swig of H20 these days?

Now, to be clear I am not saying that oestrogen in the water you drink is directly responsible for your man boob problem. I managed to get rid of mine despite the litres and litres of the stuff I drink every day. But I am suggesting that it may be a contributing factor for some people, something that may just make them more susceptible to the condition than they would be if they had accessl had access to uncontaminated water.

More studies are required. For my part, over the next few weeks I’m going to start taking a new, in depth survey of visitors to this site, which will chart all sorts of lifestyle habits including the kind and source of water that we drink. I’m hoping it will throw up some interesting insights.

Hope to see you there.

Edit: The survey referred to in this post is located here. Man boobs sufferers, please complete!

Man Boobs, Oestrogen Pollution & Can We Trust The Water We Drink? is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

Related posts:

1. Xenoestrogens – A Prime Suspect In The Man Boobs Epidemic?
2. Have Your Say In The Man Boobs Survey

Depending on where you live in the world, you may only be used to eating sweet potatoes on certain special occasions – Christmas or Thanksgiving for example, but hopefully after reading this post you’ll be encouraged to incorporate the vegetable as a regular part of your diet.

I eat sweet potatoes two or three times a week for lunch. Back in my man boob days I would have been eating regular white potatoes, baked. I used to live on those things! Of course I knew nothing about the glycemic index in those days and had no idea how my beloved jacket spuds would have been a contributing factor towards my weight/ moob problem. And I certainly never associated them with the massive sugar crash that used to hit me in every afternoon. In fact, I would never have even realised it was a sugar crash, I just figured that feeling lethargic and sleepy around four o’clock was par for the course.

Nowadays things are a lot different – I replaced the white potatoes with the sweet potatoes, plus eliminated the chips and fries and white bread, sandwiches and muffins and a whole lot of other high G.I badness that used to make up my lunch menu, and those lethargic feelings  are a thing of the past.

Do I miss some of that stuff I used to eat? Of course! But not it comes to potatoes, the sweet ones have the edge in all departments. I wouldn’t go back to the white ones even if health, fat and man boobs weren’t an issue.

Firstly, they’re tastier. Eat them for a few weeks, then try going back to the white potatoes – if you’re anything like me, you’ll find the white spuds amazingly bland and floury tasting.

Secondly, they’re packed with fibre and extremley filling. A decent portion of sweet potato will make it less likely for you to start giving in to those dreaded snack cravings. And as I already mentioned, if you eat sweet potatoes for lunch they’ll provide you with more than enough slow released energy to see you through the day, without the blood sugar burn and crash. This will set you up nicely for any man boobs workouts you may be planning.

Thirdly, the additional health benefits of sweet potatoes are many. They are rich in potassium and vitamin C and contain almost as much beta carotene as carrots. Beta carotene has been associated with reduced risk of cancer, heart disease and arthritis. We really talking about a super food here!

One final little sweet potato tip, you can take advantage of their natural ’sweetness’ to invent healthy replacements for traditional deserts.

Next time you feel your sweet tooth raging, try grilling a few sweet potato strips and serving them with cottage cheese and a dusting of cinnamon. Delicious and man boob friendly!

Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 3 – Sweet Potatoes is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

Related posts:

1. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 2 – Pistachio Nuts
2. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 1 – Green Tea
3. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 4 – Lentils

I should probably have dedicated this post to nuts in general, because when it comes to the kind of healthy snacks that will help in the fight against man breasts, there’s a whole range out there that you MUST add to your shopping list – almonds, walnuts, pecans, cashews, I’m a big fan of all of them. But despite that I’ve decided to focus on the pistachio mainly because it’s my personal favourite. I’m chomping my way through a bowl-full as I write this, and I think it’s definitely the tastiest and most addictive member of the nut family.

So without further ado, here is why if your man boobs could feel fear, they would fear the humble pistachio.

• Pistachios are the most nutrient dense nut you can eat.

Pistachios are an excellent source of vitamin B6, copper and magnesium; and are a good source of fiber, thiamine and phosphorus. In total they contain over 30 vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. In other words they generally help to your body in tip-top condition.

• Pistachios are one of the lowest calories nuts you can eat.

So you can tuck into a big bag of the fellas while watching a movie and not feel guilty at the end when you discover you’ve munched through the whole lot.

• Pistachios are super low on the glycemic index.

I’ve already discussed how eating low G.I foods can provide you with an excellent man boobs diet, and pistachios are a perfect example of a tasty alternative to other less healthy snacks. As well as that though, some studies have even suggested that pistachios may help to control and maintain healthy blood sugar levels, even after the consumption of high G.I carbs like mashed potato and rice.

• Pistachios help boost testosterone

Like so many other in the nut family, pistachios contain plenty of unsaturated fats, which are thought to lead to a rise in testosterone production. They also contain zinc, which is beneficial for exactly the same reason.

• Pistachios make you feel fuller

It’s thought that the repetitive act of shelling pistachio nuts and the way that this naturally slows down the speed of eaing, leads the body to think it has eaten more than it actually has. Hmm not sure if I buy this one, but pistachios taste better in their shells anyway so that’s reason enough to keep eating them that if you ask me!

So there are five good reasons for making friends with the pistachio nut  On top of all the above, they are believed to keep the heart healthy, are rich in cancer preventing antioxidants, and apart from anything else, taste fantastic.

So what are you waiting for? Time to let the pistachio into your life!

Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 2 – Pistachio Nuts is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

Related posts:

1. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 4 – Lentils
2. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 1 – Green Tea
3. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 3 – Sweet Potatoes

In this series of posts we’ll be taking a look at some of the best nutritional choices you can make in your fight against the moobs.  Not only will they help enormously when it comes to reducing chest fat, but you’ll also experience great improvements to your general health and well being.

So let’s get started with one of my favourite things in the world – green tea. The Chinese have known of the healing and invigorating properties of green tea for millennia. Let’s let Wikipedia take over for a second:

The Kissa Yojoki (Book of Tea), written by Zen priest Eisai in 1191, describes how drinking green tea can have a positive effect on the five vital organs, especially the heart. The book discusses tea’s medicinal qualities, which include easing the effects of alcohol, acting as a stimulant, curing blotchiness, quenching thirst, eliminating indigestion, curing beriberi disease, preventing fatigue, and improving urinary and brain function.

Pretty impressive stuff, huh? And a lot better fro your health than endless cans of soda. Modern studies have also found the tea to be effective in reducing the risks of both cardiovascular disease and cancer.

‘Yeah, yeah, yeah, ‘ I hear the cynics amongst you say. ‘All tthat general health stuff is all well and goog but you told me this stuff would be good for my chest fat. What’s the deal on that?’

Ok, here’s the scoop. Green tea is believed to have powerful thermogenic properties, which means that it promotes fat oxidation. Which means the stuff actually increases the rate at which your body burns up calories. We’re not talking about hundreds and hundreds of calories being evaporated while you sit on your couch, but it had been estimated that 4 or 5 cups of green tea a day may be enough to lose you an extra 80 cals per day.

This may not seem like a lot, but if you’ve already made some of the dietary changes I recommend on this website and have committed yourself to a regular routine of exercise for your man boobs then this 80 calories could provide a nice little extra boost.

Combine that with all the other super-healthy benefits of green tea I described above and you’re left with a true ninja food that you’d be crazy not to try.

Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 1 – Green Tea is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

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1. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 2 – Pistachio Nuts
2. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 4 – Lentils
3. Man Boobs Busting Super Foods Part 3 – Sweet Potatoes

I came across this interesting article last week. It talks about the rising numbers of British men opting for gynecomastia surgery and cosmetic surgery in general.

Here are a few of the key facts:

• The number of men having cosmetic surgery has risen by more than 300% over the last 5 years,

• Male breast reduction cases are up by 44%, replacing the facelift as one of the top 5 procedures for men.

• More than 320 of male breast reductions were performed last year, compared with just 22 five years ago.

320 male breast reductions – now that may not seem a particularly big number, even if it only relates to UK cases, but it does represent an amazing 1000% plus increase since 2003. That’s some jump!

So what’s going here?

The article talks about increased social pressures on men to look younger, healthier and sexier and also greater competition in the workplace forcing men to go the extra mile in terms of personal presentation.

So it’s because us guys are all turning into metrosexuals eh? Hmmm. Personally I don’t buy into this theory. I think the rise has more to do with the way the internet has changed the relationship people have with their bodies.

Before the dawn of the web a man’s only source of information about personal matters would have been his local doctor. Because of this there must have been thousands of men suffering with their man boobs in silence, ignorant of both the causes and possible treatments.

Then Google came along and guys suddenly had a place where they could share all their most private and intimate problems without fear of judgement or ridicule. No need to feel embarrassed when talking to the big G! And all the great advice was free!

The internet made people savvy and empowered them to make decisions about their bodies that under different circumstances they may never have considered. I sure as hell hadn’t heard the term gynecomastia until I first got online. And it would never have occurred to me that cosmetic surgery might be a viable solution.

Then there’s the sense of community that the internet provides -  these days you can find a forum discussing virtually every ailment under the sun.  You don’t have to look far to find people extolling the virtues of gyncomastia surgery and talking about how it has changed their life for the better.

This may or may not be a good thing, depending on your point of view.

For my part, I just hope all 320 of those guys that had their moobs reduced last year were aware of the powerful natural options available, and exhausted them, before paying to go under the knife.

Male Breast Reduction Surgery Up 44% in The UK is a post from: Man Boobs Facts

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