6. Stay healthy by always carrying cleansing hand gel. You will prevent yourself and those around you from getting viruses by using hand gel regularly. Also, be sure to get your flu shot in October every year if you are in a high risk group. High risk groups include those over 50 years old, children with asthma, people with heart or lung diseases or people that care for others in a high risk group.

7. Eat fiber!! You have heard it all your life and it is true. People that fill up on fiber are much less likely to be overweight than those adults that do not. You will eat less and have a lower insulin level.

8. The healthiest foods to eat are following: avocados, spinach, broccoli, kale, cantaloupe, carrots, mangos, pumpkin, red bell peppers, strawberries and sweet potatoes. Spinach is one of highest antioxidant foods there is. It is filled with heart-healthy foliate, vitamin A, potassium, iron, calcium and vitamins C and A.

9. Do not skip breakfast! Research shows that eating in morning will increase your metabolism by 10 to 25 percent.

10. Walking everyday is an important step to preventing osteoporosis, improving circulation, increasing supply of oxygen to your blood and keeps your joints lubricated. Exercise is key to keeping unwanted weight off. Dieting may take off same weight but dieters that are not exercising will not keep it off for long run. If you only exercise and not diet, you will lose just as much weight as a dieter but will keep it off.

11. Adults lose as much as half their muscle mass between ages 35 and 70. Using a protein supplement and regular strength training will stop loss and even reverse loss. It also will prevent onset of osteoporosis.

It only takes a few extra pounds to raise risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol and high blood sugar-especially when these extra pounds around mid-section. Exercising for at least 20 minutes-three times a week will keep you fit and get you on road to a healthier future.

Reduced Consumption of Refined Foods - highly refined foods are source of many health problems. The more processed a food is, less nutrients are generally in it. The Atkins Diet encourages a focus on consumption of more natural state foods such as vegetables, lean meats, fish, eggs and healthy oils.

Some of negatives that have been associated with Atkins Diet include:

Rapid Regaining of Lost Weight - this can happen when a person comes off Atkins Diet. They regain all weight they lost. One of major reasons for this is that when you eliminate carbs from your diet for a long period of time, your body becomes more sensitive to them. When you go back to your regular eating habits (which may not have been great to begin with), your body reacts more strongly to sugar and carbs in foods, leading to weight gain. This weight gain can be reduced by easing off Atkins Diet gradually rather than by feasting on carbohydrates.

Lack of Food Choices - it can be difficult to find things to eat that are low carb. Most grocery stores are primarily stocked with carbohydrate-laden foods and it can get boring eating same things over and over again. Luckily, with popularity of Atkins diet and other low carb diets, there are many delicious recipes available to help alleviate this boredom.

The Atkins Diet may not be for you but by incorporating some of principles in it, such as lowering your carbohydrate intake and eating more natural-state foods, you may find that you can achieve great results without ever having to restrict yourself. It may take a little longer but results will be more permanent as it is more of a lifestyle change than a diet.