10 New Weight Loss and Diet Myths and Facts

There is a lot of information out there about weight loss diets and exercises -- perhaps too much -- especially since a lot of it is conflicting. In the news, one week protein is king; the next, carbs have ascended the throne. In the supermarket checkout line every magazine's cover suggests that the solution to your weight loss woes is to be found in its pages. At the gym, well, of course, everyone's an expert.

So, what do you think? Do you know your weight loss stuff? Or could you be sabotaging your own weight loss and diet goals?

Skip to see if you can separate weight loss and diet myths from facts.

Some weight loss diet myths are ridiculous constructs we make up ourselves simply because we want to believe them. Ever find yourself not "counting" those pieces from broken cookies, the mac and cheese scarfed off of your kid's plate or anything you eat while standing up as having any caloric value whatsoever? Mmm-hmm. Join the club.

But what if what you actually believe to be fact is also a fantasy? We asked fitness and lifestyle consultant Ashley Borden and celebrity nutritionist Paula Simpson to help us wade through some of the dizzying information that's out there. We'll help you separate myth from fact and, better still, help you capitalize on the facts as you pursue your weight loss goals.

So, if you're ready to test yourself, let's go.

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Healthy Skin Diet: 6 Yummy Foods That Prevent Wrinkles

You covet your souped-up anti-aging creams and high tech serums, but what you put in your body might just give you the anti-aging boost you've been searching for. That's what healthy skin diets are all about.

We had a chat with dietitians Lisa Drayer, MA, RD, author of "The Beauty Diet: Looking Great Has Never Been So Delicious" (McGraw-Hill, 2008) and Tanya Zuckerbrot, MS, RD, creator of the F-Factor Diet, to help you learn how to maximize your body's wrinkle-fighting abilities through your diet with these foods that have some of the highest percentages of anti-aging vitamins, yet are still super-tasty.

See the six foods that prevent wrinkles.

"While topical creams can show some improvements in skin quality, the majority of ingredients just remains on the skin’s surface," says Zuckerbrot. "A well-balanced diet can ensure that nutrients are absorbed into the skin." So why not just pop a few pills to get the vitamins your diet may be lacking? Well, consuming a healthy variety of food is by far the best way to meet your body’s needs because food provides a number of benefits that a supplement can't -- basically, you get more bang for your buck. "Not only is turning to food a tastier option, but supplements don't contain all the vitamins and nutrients present in natural foods. Nor have they been shown to have the same disease-fighting benefits," explains Drayer.

Here we look beyond the creams, serums and supplements to share the top beautifying super foods you should fill your plate with in order to look younger and more radiant.

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Best Diets for Women: 8 Must-Eat Superfoods

While you won't find the definition of "superfood" in any seriously scientific textbook, in recent years the term has been bandied about by the media, nutritionists and women's diet gurus to describe foods (mostly fruits, veggies and seeds/nuts) that are rich in phytonutrient content -- in other words, foods that boast significant amounts of stuff that's good for you and should be included in your diet. "Stuff" like antioxidants (to help prevent cell damage), anthocyanins (to help cells block UV light), vitamin C (to help with everything from wound healing to oxidative stress) and dietary fiber (to help food move through your body more quickly).

Used to be that you could feel relatively confident that you were "eating well" if you munched on a couple of carrots, snacked on the occasional apple and steered clear of Big Macs. Not so much anymore. These days it's all about maximizing the nutritional punch of the foods you eat. The more they pack, the healthier you'll be -- and the better equipped your body will be to help fend off certain diseases (including type 11 diabetes and some cancers) and even reverse the aging process. Or so the thinking goes.

See the 8 superfoods you should be eating

On his website, Dr. Steven Pratt, author of several best-selling books including "SuperFoods RX" says that "These nutritional powerhouse foods are loaded with nutrients crucial to a healthy, long life," and notes that they're readily available in most supermarkets -- you just have to know what you're looking for!

Are you game? Let's find out which foods you should add to your grocery list. But, first, a little about why we need to eat these foods rather than just take a vitamin -- or 12.

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10 Fast Food Options That Are Good for Your Skin

When you think of healthy skin diets, the last thing that should come to mind is fast food. It's loaded with salt (known to aggravate acne and cause tissue swelling), bursting with greasy fat (increasing inflammation), and sneakily packs in tons of sugar (causing wrinkles and sagging). The havoc it wreaks on your skin is gross. Super size gross.

Skip to see the best fast food options for healthy skin now.

But -- and that's a big but if you're eating fast food on the regs -- we don't live in a perfect world where you always have the time, money, and willpower to drink organic spinach/wild salmon/sweet potato smoothies all day. Fast food is, well, fast -- one of the reasons why we love it. And if you're crazy busy with a million things on your metaphorical plate, then your dinner has likely, on occasion, come in a cardboard box with no real plate in sight.

So what, are we smoking crack and telling you all your excuses for eating fast food are fine and you shouldn't worry about the damage it could be doing to your skin, not to mention your overall health? Of course not. But we are telling you that if you have to, or want to eat fast food, at least make choices that are better for your skin than the rest (and don't worry, we didn’t just pick salads from every menu). To help you navigate the fast food menu, we spoke to Jim White, R.D., a registered dietitian and American Dietetic Association spokesperson, to find out which options to pick at some of your favorite fast food joints.

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9 Most Unhealthy "Health" Foods

As a moderately health-conscious woman, I always check the labels when I go grocery shopping. Well, almost always.

For some reason, when I head into health food stores like Whole Foods, I just assume that everything in there is healthy, so I don't need to waste my time reading nutrition facts -- I can just toss whatever I want in my basket. And really, when half the products have some form of "organic," "all natural," or "gluten-free" on the packaging, can you blame me?

Click here to see the 9 most unhealthy health foods.

I'm not totally off base with my reasoning. Whole Foods promises on its website not to sell any products with "artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, sweeteners, and hydrogenated fats." So I already know I don't need to check the labels for any of those.

But, just because an item is in a store like Whole Foods and free of all that artificial stuff doesn't necessarily mean it's healthy. There are plenty of unhealthy health foods out there ready to help me pack on the pounds. To find out which so-called health foods are the worst offenders, I asked a team of nutritionists to head to their local Whole Foods stores, scrutinize food labels, and report back on the items they'd never drop in their carts.

Some of their picks (like the vegan cookies I chow down on almost daily) I had to admit I knew weren't good for me. But there were other health foods I was shocked to learn were actually really unhealthy. Keep reading to see what I mean and be prepared to re-think how you shop at Whole Foods and other health food stores.

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13 Best Highlighters

Not to be a Debbie downer, but it’s a fact of life that with each passing year, gravity takes its toll on our complexion. Our cheekbones are more sunken in, our under-eye bags get darker and lower, and our skin sallower.

With that said, is it a lost cause to yearn for that perfectly chiseled face and youthful glow from our teenage years? Nope. Here at Total Beauty, our motto is if you don't have it, fake it -- with some help from the best highlighter, of course.

Skip ahead to see the 13 best highlighters.

A great highlighter can perk up your complexion, accentuate the features you love, and even camouflage aging skin. With its light-reflective pigments, celebrity makeup artist Joanna Schlip calls highlighters "the secret weapon for a youthful, healthy glow -- especially for women aged 40 and over." It can minimize dark circles, decrease the look of wrinkles, and mimic a face-lift, all with an appropriately placed swipe. The key is knowing how to use it.

Celebrity makeup artist Geoffrey Rodriguez says to "apply the highlighter under the eyes, above the brows, and on the browbone to add life and brightness, which ultimately helps you to look healthier and younger." So if you're feeling fatigued or trying to minimize dark circles, Rodriguez says highlighters are the ideal solution.

Schlip also recommends applying highlighter on the apple of your cheeks over your blush where the color is most vibrant. And makeup artist Karen Scott says you can use a highlighter to "give the illusion of a fuller pout by applying a small dab just above the cupid's bow on your lip."

Now that you know all about this anti-aging essential, it's time to find your best highlighter. But don't worry, we've narrowed down your search by compiling our readers' top picks. From creams to powders, high-end makeup counters to the drugstore, we've got the 13 best highlighters that are guaranteed to brighten up your face. Keep reading to see the best highlighter list now.

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7 Nail Essentials from Celebrity Manicurist April Foreman

Red Carpet looks are inspiring, but what really stirs up discussions in the Total Beauty office are the often-overlooked celebrity manicures.

Every morning we play beauty detective, zooming in on event photos, trying to figure out the exact lacquer shades and how to do the nail art trends A-listers are wearing. After all, while it may take a not-so-small miracle for us to look like Charlize Theron or Jennifer Lopez, we can try to imitate their nails and actually make some progress.

Skip ahead to get the 7 nail essentials to get a celebrity-worthy manicure.

But here's some insider info: It takes more than knowing what nail polish colors to use to get a manicure that looks trendy and flawless. Celebrity manicurist and pedicurist April Foreman says the real secret is making sure these nail essentials are in your medicine cabinet. "The right tools will keep your skin soft and make your manicure last longer than it otherwise would," she says.

Foreman is no stranger to the Hollywood spotlight; she's been buffing and polishing the fingertips and toes of clients such as Natalie Portman and Christina Ricci for years. So when we had the chance to take a peek inside her mani/pedi toolkit, we couldn't wait to see her favorite nail essentials. Here are the must-haves Foreman says every woman should own.

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6 Ways to Brighten Your Skin

I used to think my freckles were cute -- a splattering across my nose and cheeks that made me look young. They fade in the winter until they're almost undetectable, and then they reappear the first time I go out in the summer sun -- even though I wear SPF 50. While I never wanted to enhance them, I didn't want to erase them, either.

Over the last year, however, I'm starting to feel a little different about my freckles. Maybe it had to do with turning 30. Maybe it was countless dermatologists referring to my freckles as hyperpigmentation -- or worse, age spots. What I used to think of as a sign of youth, I now consider just the opposite. And so I'm constantly trying to figure out how to brighten my skin (and in the process, disguise those spots) by slathering on the latest skin-lightening products. And when I go to the dermatologist, I don't want to talk about breakouts or fine lines -- I just want to know how to get rid of my freckles.

It turns out I'm not alone. According to consumer research, hyperpigmentation has become one of the top skin concerns globally. The "skin lightening" trend started more than 20 years ago in Asia with "whitening" products, but now "brightening" products -- which are essentially the same thing with a less controversial name -- are selling like crazy in the U.S.

Skip ahead to learn more about the best skin-brightening products.

"Lasers used to be the only way to really brighten and lighten skin," says New York City dermatologist Francesca Fusco, MD. "But now there are so many over-the-counter topical products that can actually make a difference." The key, she says, is to find an ingredient that works well for your skin and your particular kind of dark spots. We broke down six of the most common brightening ingredients to help you figure out which one you should try.

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Spray Tanning News: Is it Really Dangerous?

Bad news for all of us pale folks: There really is no such thing as a "safe" tan. We already knew that tanning beds and laying out in the sun were killing us slowly, but now it seems we need to add spray tans and self-tanners to the list.

"I used to recommend spray tans and tell my patients there's no risk, but now I have some reservations," says Darrell Rigel, MD, a professor of dermatology at New York University. The reason he's concerned: the release of several studies showing that the active ingredient in spray tans, DHA, may damage DNA and cause cancer.

Naturally, as fellow advocates of spray tans (and as beauty editors who have spent our fair share of time in a spray tan booth), we were also worried. But since we live in a world where a trip through airport security or a call on our cell phones can also be considered risky, we weren't quite ready to pull the plug on our Mystic Tan sessions. We wanted to do some digging first and find out just how bad spray tans are for you, and if you really do need to give them up for good.

Click here for the full story on spray tan dangers.

What we found was pretty shocking (and yes, a little scary). Keep reading to see the latest research and what the skin care experts have to say about spray tans, and decide for yourself if it's worth th

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7 Best Summer Hairstyles of 2012

Few things are less sexy -- or downright uncomfortable -- than a mass of hair stuck to your sweaty neck and face.

We've all been there. During the warmer season, keeping cool is nearly impossible if your hair isn't up and out of your face. Just as hemlines get shorter and sleeves disappear, bobs and tousled updos replace long and loose hairstyles.

Skip ahead to see the best summer hairstyles of 2012.

That's not to say we don't adore beachy waves. But unless there's a refreshing ocean breeze blowing on that perfect boho hairstyle, it's going to melt -- fast. So what do we do? We turn to our tried-and-true updos: the ponytail, the topknot, the (bo-ring) styles we wore last season.

To shake things up, we called the trendiest stylists we know for their picks of the newest (and chicest) celebrity updos and easiest-to-DIY Pinterest picks. If you're bored of the same-old updos you always turn to, read on. These summer hairstyles of 2012 will have you hoping for an unbearably hot day.

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8 Weird-but-Cool Uses for Your Beauty Products

The other day my co-worker's chair was squeaking to the point of annoying everyone in the office. It was begging for some WD-40. But since our office is long on beauty products and short on tools, we didn't have any.

To the rescue: Senior Associate Editor Cinya Burton and her stash of Saffron James Monoi Oil. It silenced the squeak, restored our collective sanity, and even left the chair smelling deliciously like vanilla (we'd like to see WD-40 do that!).

Admittedly, this probably wasn't the best use for a $40 organic coconut and vanilla bean body oil, but in a pinch it certainly worked. Which got us asking around about what other beauty products we could use to solve our various household problems.

Click here to see 8 weird-but-cool uses for your beauty products.

Not surprisingly, we aren't the only ones resorting to beauty products in home-improvement emergencies. But what did surprise us are all the creative ways makeup artists, hairstylists, and other beauty junkies use their favorite products for quick fixes.

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Gold Medal-Worthy Beauty Products from Around the World

We always love pitting products against each other --bronzer against bronzer, lipstick against lipstick, etc. -- to see which rates highest and comes out on top, -- victorious! And, now, with the Summer Olympics poised to captivate the world, we thought it would be fun to take our product pitting to the next level and figure out which country's beauty products deserve the most accolades .

So while the rest of the globe is gearing up to watch the fittest people on the planet compete, we're exercising our product savvy by putting the best beauty products to the test in our own "Beauty Olympics."

Skip ahead to see the gold-winning beauty products from the world.

And, though we may not be former world-class athletes (and didn't have NBC standing by to cover our competition), we're convinced that as judges, we merit a few medals of our own. As beauty editors and makeup artists, we're uniquely qualified for the task, having tried nearly every hair, skin, nail, and lash product out there -- and, as with the best in the Olympics biz, we're ruthless with our critiques. A broken palette, a rough brush, or a polish that chips after three days would all be sent to the showers.

So, to find out which products defeated the competition and went home with the gold, silver, and bronze medals, we say, "let the games begin … "

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DIY Beauty Products For a Non-Believer

When it comes to DIY projects, my motto goes something like this: If it's easier to buy it, then swipe that plastic

You see, I've spent too many hours glued to Pinterest, getting inspired by images of metal-studded denim shorts and ombre nail art -- only to spend many more hours ruining my favorite cut-offs with a glue gun and painstakingly trying to pick nail polish out of my cuticles. So, while there's a cool DIY beauty recipe that tempts me here and there, I've learned to just say no.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for natural beauty products. But creating a homemade hair mask can be a complete time suck -- especially when it only takes me two seconds flat to simply twist open the one I always keep in my shower caddy.

So color me shocked when my co-workers challenged me to find DIY beauty recipes even I could get into. And for me, that means ones that actually work as well as the brand name products I love so much. Their reasoning? If they could convince me, the biggest skeptic in the office, to love DIY, they could convince anybody.

Skip ahead to see the DIY beauty recipes that work as well as brand name beauty products.

Before setting off on my DIY adventure, I decided to set a couple ground rules.
No 1: There would be no tricky recipes. I don't cook, so the instructions had to be simple -- four ingredients tops.
No. 2: No recipes with a stench (think mayo hair mask). No matter how amazing someone claims the results are, I wasn't going to have my hair smelling like potato salad.

See if I survived this DIY beauty challenge -- and check out the recipes I'm still concocting at home.

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