About Herbalife

• Proven Success - Herbalife's record of success spans more than 27 years and includes millions of people. Herbalife is in at least 61 countries.
• Medical Scientific Advisory Board.
• Cellular & Molecular Nutrition Lab - Research Facility.
• Top Scientists: Nobel Prize winner - Dr. Lou Ignarro.

Herbalife is a leader in developing the most advanced weight management, nutritional and personal-care products. Advanced technologies have been utilized to create formulas for every need-whether related to gender, age, or a specific area of the body. These products are based on advances in food science, micronutrient supplementation and herbal science. They have been created to enhance your quality of life and to prepare you for a healthy future.

Herbalife emphasizes herbs and other natural ingredients in our weight loss, nutritional and personal care product lines. Our exclusive formulations appeal to the growing consumer interest in herbal and natural products.

Protein 101

It seems everywhere we look, someone is promoting a new diet that praises the power of protein. But whether you want to lose, gain, or maintain your current weight, the importance of protein goes far beyond physical appearance and muscle building.

A necessity for every body
Protein is an important component of every cell in the body. It is an organic compound, composed of 22 amino acids, otherwise known as the building blocks of life. Protein is stored in muscles and organs and the body utilizes it to build and repair tissues, as well as for the production of enzymes and hormones. Proteins also make it possible for blood to carry oxygen throughout the body. Along with fat and carbohydrates, protein is a "macronutrient," meaning the body needs relatively large amounts of it. The Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences has concluded that our daily protein requirements should be 10% to 35% of our total caloric intake, with men needing slightly more than women. A lack of protein can cause loss of muscle mass, decreased immunity, as well as weakening of the heart and respiratory system.

How protein affects your weight
The widespread popularity of high-protein diets is due in large part to their ability to help manage hunger. When protein is absorbed, it sends a signal to the brain to decrease your hunger. Another benefit of protein is that it raises your resting metabolism by maintaining muscle mass. As we age, muscle mass decreases without exercise, so staying fit is a key to burning fat by keeping your metabolism high. Protein also leads to a much less rapid rise and fall of blood sugar and insulin, so you avoid the "sugar highs and lows" after eating sweets without adequate protein. Certain foods, however, provide a healthier resource for protein than others.

Consider the source
You can obtain healthy sources of protein without high levels of saturated fat. For example, soybeans, nuts and whole grains provide protein without much saturated fat and offer plenty of healthful fiber and micronutrients as well. If you're looking for yet another great way to obtain healthy protein, vegetable sources of protein found in Herb life's Formula 1, are high-quality and have lower calorie levels with virtually no added fat. Herbalife products personalize your daily protein intake to match your body's needs. With a variety of shakes and snacks, the Shape Works program helps you build or maintain lean muscle while providing healthy weight management support.

Now that you've increased your knowledge of protein, you can effectively enhance your diet and allow good health to take shape.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

More people overweight than underweight

AUSTRALIA has the fastest growing childhood obesity rate in the world, leading the way in a global trend that has resulted in overweight people outnumbering the malnourished for the first time.

New figures reveal an alarming shift from a starving world to one of dietary excess with 1.3 billion people overweight or obese compared with about 800 million who are underweight: Leading American nutritionist Barry Popkin said his research showed Australia was the only Country in the world where childhood obesity rates had overtaken adult rates. Professor Popkin revealed the World Health Organisation figures at the international Association of Agricultural Economics conference in Brisbane yesterday.

"The rate of increase among children is amazing to me. It's double the rate of the US and triple the rate of the UK, so it's very scary, and I'm sure it will get higher every year," he said. Professor Popkin's research shows that in the past decade an extra 1.7 per cent of Australian children have become overweight each year compared with 0.8 per cent in the US and 0.5 per cent in Britain. An additional 1.1 per cent of Australian adults become overweight each year compared with 0.9 per cent in Britain and 1 per cent in the US.

He warned that healthcare costs for the obese would "skyrocket" and absenteeism from work would rise as the effect of being overweight took its toll on the nation. "The third effect is adults will be debilitated and disabled earlier with osteoarthritis and other illnesses caused by obesity, so you're going to go to nursing homes earlier," he said. Professor Popkin, a nutritionist and economist at the University of North Carolina, called for a tax on soft drinks similar to the levy on cigarettes, and subsidised fruit and vegetables. "I would like to see a tax or* a gram of sugar or fructose added to every beverage," he said.

The obesity crisis had reached pandemic proportions with many developing countries such as Mexico and Egypt now experiencing rising rates to match Australia, Britain and the US. People from low-income backgrounds were more likely to be obese. "As a whole, the number of underweight people is going down rapidly while the overweight is going up equally rapidly. This has become truly the most prominent global nutrition problem." Another speaker at the week-long conference said rising fuel prices might be hard on the hip pocket but could benefit Australian waistlines as people took up walking. Research carried out by Professor Benjamin Senauer, from the University of Minnesota, revealed an extra 2000 steps a day could be enough to combat obesity.

Copyright © 2006. The Age Company Ltd.

Eric and Lisa's Testimony

SOS Send Some Stuff ........we need more .....it's the first time Lisa and I have agree on anything . I have easily lost a kg a week ( in the first two weeks ) and what's more I'm not eating junk , don't even feel like it !!!

So we'd like to order another French Vanilla powder for me and a Dutch Chocolate for Lisa ! She obviously does agree with me that the stuff works ! So send it on please ,

Regards,
Eric and Lisa

Sharyn Sires Testimony

I discovered that not only did I lose weight on the products, 5 kgs in 5 weeks; but I enjoyed incredible energy, aches and pains that I had had for years seemed to vanish and I felt like a new person. Since starting on the products I have lost a total of 10 kgs.

In 1999 I was diagnosed as having Macular degeneration comparable to that of a person in their 70's, plus the onset of cataracts. I have eye check-ups every two years and have always had to have my prescription increased - EXCEPT for the last 4 years! Just 2 years after starting the products and including the targeted products into my daily programme, I had no prescription increase AND the Macular Degeneration has almost gone PLUS there is no evidence of cataracts - my optometrist was amazed and told me to keep doing what I'm doing... (our daily Herbalife vitamin and mineral supplements). I didn't really need to be told that of course!

Toward the end of 2004, I began to experience giddiness, I was extremely light headed when I laid down, stood up or turned my head - so much so that I wouldn't drive incase I passed out and caused an accident. Eventually, I went to the doctor and after blood tests, I was diagnozed with Vertigo and on the borderline of being anemic - I was advised to purchase certain brands of Iron supplements. I told my doctor that being a Herbalife Distributor I was using products that contained Iron supplement and that I would increase my intake of those. I did this by increasing Formulas 3 and 5 by 3 extra tablets per day. Within 1 month my iron level was back to normal.

We are now concentrating on building a home based business and helping as many people as we can to live a holistic lifestyle, free of financial burden.

We look forward to helping others to realize their dreams of good health, well being and financial security by introducing them to the wonderful world of Herbalife and network marketing and to duplicate the skills required by providing our support, time and knowledge to those that we sponsor.

Ray and I have qualified for overseas events through this wonderful business, and have gained a wealth of knowledge, ideas and support along the way.

I have no hesitation in recommending Herbalife to everyone - If my story helps someone else, then I have been greatly rewarded by sharing it.

Ray Sires Testimony

I was very skeptical when I learned that the product that I was required to market was Herbalife. I had heard all the comments about pyramid selling, etc, etc and had worked with a part-time Herbalife distributor who did not appear to have benefited from the product.

The promise of financial independence and the opportunity to change our lifestyle for the better forever, decided me to take up the challenge.

I started on the products when my International Business Pack arrived, and lost 6-1/2 kgs in 5 weeks and dropped 2 trouser sizes.

My blood pressure had always been 155/90 and although I tried many ways to reduce this, nothing worked, until Herbalife. My blood pressure dropped to 140/70 and remained so till this day. I have increased stamina, and in general, feel and look a lot healthier and younger than others my age. I intend to continue on the products for the rest of my life.

I have worn glasses for 22 years and have always had to have an increase in my prescription every check up ... that is up until the last 4 years. My vision has not deteriorated at all since commencing on Herbalife!

Besides changing our inner nutrition, we have been using outer nutrition products with great results as well.

Green Tea linked to reducing pain of arthritis

Green tea and fish oil may be the answer to reducing inflammation in people with rheumatoid arthritis and kidney disease, a US report says.

It has found that an ingredient in green tea may provide therapeutic benefits to people with rheumatoid arthritis because of the way it inhibits molecules contributing to inflammation and joint damage.

Called EGOG, the compound was found to inhibit the production of several molecules in the immune system that contribute to inflammation and joint damage.

"Our research is a very promising step in the search for therapies for the joint destruction experienced by people who have rheumatoid arthritis"

Lead researcher Salah-Uddin Ahmed from the University of Michigan, told the Experimental Biology 2007 Conference in Washington.

The researchers isolated cells which form a lining of the tissue surrounding the joints in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and incubated them with the green tea compound.

EGOG has been found in animals to reduce the symptoms of other auto-immune diseases such as Sjogren's syndrome, a disease that attacks the salivary glands. Causing a dry mouth and the inability to produce tears.

The anti inflammatory properties of fish oil will be studied in kidney disease patients in a Queensland University of technology study. Patients undergoing dialysis will be given daily doses of fish oil and tested for changes in inflammation and appetite.

Regular doses of fish oil have shown to decrease inflammation which is a common problem in kidney disease patients.

"Patients with kidney disease on dialysis experience a range of complications thought to relate to chronic inflammation" dietician Rachel Zable said "They can have poor nutritional status, disturbed appetite and a lower quality of life,"

Fish oils have anti-inflammatory properties due to a high concentration of EPA and omega-3 that protects the body against damage from infection and cholesterol, MS Zable said

With one in three people in Australia at risk of developing chronic kidney disease, improving the quality of life of patients was essential.

"While fish oils won't cure kidney disease, it may provide a better quality of life for sufferers." She said

Royal Perth Hospital is conduction a study looking at the effect of fish oil and aspirin on reducing blood clots and improving the livers of dialysis patients.

"Fat Wards" Plea

Hospitals struggle to cope with obesity epidemic

Hospitals are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on specialist equipment to treat obese patients.

The nation's obesity epidemic has caused a boom in the amount of equipment needed to deal with patients weighing more than 300kg

But obesity experts warn the problem is getting worse and have called for specialist public hospital wards to effectively treat obese patients.

University of Queensland and Brisbane Wesley Hospital obesity expert Prof. David Carey said there should be a dedicated hospital in Queensland able to cater for morbidly obese patients.

"There are some facilities but patients would need to go searching for them." He said.

"At least one hospital in every state should be able to cater for morbidly obese patients and have basic facilities such as wheel chairs, beds. X-ray equipment and operating tables that are big enough.

"Obesity is a pandemic-20 percent of our kids are overweight or obese. "We need to be aware of the tidal wave that's heading our way as our children become morbidly obese adults."

The Royal Melbourne Hospital recently opened a purpose built bariatric or obesity ward with extra wide doorways, reinforced toilet and arm rails and beds to hold patients weighing between 350 and500 kg.

Most major Queensland Hospitals have some bariatric equipment, such as a patient-lifter or beds.

The Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital has four bariatric beds (and plans to buy a fifth), one mechanical patient lifter, five wheel chairs and four bariatric shower chairs.

National hospital equipment manufacturer Pro-Med has seen a huge increase in the request for bariatric equipment.

Customer support manager Justin Bowler said: "Three or four years ago we had to manufacture a special apparatus to lift a 300 kg plus person for a hospital because there was nothing in Australia at the time.

"Now we are averaging orders for two 300kg bariatric lifters a month, and we have had requests for lifters to hold up to 450 kg."

Figures from the Australasian Society for the Study of Obesity estimate that more than half of Australian women and two thirds of Australian men or almost 60 percent of the adult population re obese or overweight.

By 2010, it is estimated 70 percent of Australians will be above their healthy weight range, and by 2025 one in three adults will be obese.

Obesity related illness kills an estimated 17000 Australians every year. Health risks include heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep apnoea and asthma.

Child obesity time bomb a threat to life expectancy

Child Obesity is a ticking "time bomb" that could result in the first drop in life expectancy for more than century a British health chief has warned.

The British government's most senior advisor on food and health urged action to tackle the child nutrition problem, saying "Doing nothing is not an option."

"What we are faced with is a situation where, if nothing is done to stop the trend, for the first time in a hundred years life expectancy will actually go down," Food Standards Agency chairman John Krebs told The Observer.

"That is an extraordinary reversal of the general gains in health. We're all looking forward to a longer and healthier old age, and that trend could be reversed. So that's what we are staring at: a public health time bomb which could explode."

Figures show 8.5 percent of British six year olds and 15 percent of 15 year olds are obese. The agency predicts that by 2010 obesity will cost Britain about £ billion ($8.5 billion a year.

Sir John said debate must be encourages on what could be done to improve the health of young people.

He added: "We already know that many children's diets contain more fat, sugar and salt than is recommended. We know that the level of obesity in children is rising and in the words of the chief medical officer, is a health time bomb that could explode.

A review by University of Strathclyde marketing expert Gerard Hastings concluded in September that advertising to children affected their food preferences, purchase behavior and consumption. These effects occurred not just at brand level but also for different types of food. Although the link between junk food advertising and poor diets in children has long been suspected. Professor Hastings study was said to provide the first evidence of its existence.

In response the FSA has produced a discussion paper examining possible action in areas such as sponsorship, advertising of less healthy food during programs aimed at pre-school children. Vending machines could also include healthier options in schools

Pregnancy health crisis linked to obesity epidemic

OBESITY among young women has been blamed for a quadrupling in the number of pregnant women with gestational diabetes.

Last year more than 18,500 women were diagnosed with the disease, up from 4286 in 2000, figures from Diabetes Australia-NSW showed.

The increase came as experts said young women were in denial about the medical risks of being overweight.

Research shows that women between 18 and 35 are gaining weight more quickly than any other age group, with 22.3 per cent of 25- to 34-year-olds and 17.5 per cent of 18- to 24-year-olds obese.

Diabetes Australia-NSW president Dr Neville Howard said the 300 per cent increase in gestational diabetes was of great concern because between 30 and 50 per cent of women with the condition might go on to develop type 2 diabetes within five years.

Gestational diabetes increases the risk of pregnancy complications, such as having a larger baby, which makes labour and delivery harder.

A survey of 600 women, presented at the Australian Diabetes Society annual scientific conference last month and reported in the Medical Observer, found that although nearly all were told they were at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, more than half were still overweight or obese.

Associate Professor Kate Steinbeck said young women were being overlooked in weight management programs, which focused mostly on middle-aged people.

Professor Steinbeck, the director of metabolism and obesity services at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, said only 10 per cent of the 400 patients who attended the service each year were between 18 and 30.

She said young women failed to perceive obesity as a medical problem and saw weight loss as a concern for older people. "Young women are often quite surprised that they could have health risks now, as they see it happening a lot later in life," she said.

Dietitian Karen Inge said doctors needed to recognise obesity as a disease and refer their patients to weight-management programs.

"When you are seriously overweight you do need support, like an accredited dietitian or commercial weight-loss operator, because it is important to set realistic goals embarking on a program," she said.

Women of child-bearing age were the most critical group for the health of future generations, one of the world's top obesity experts said.

Philip James, chairman of World Health Organisation-affiliated International Obesity Taskforce, said overweight and obese women had more complications during pregnancy and delivered bigger babies, leading to a "vicious inter-generational problem".

"They are the link to childhood obesity," Dr James said. "If you have fat girls becoming pregnant they produce bigger babies with a bigger risk of getting diabetes."

Dr James will lecture at the 10th International Congress on Obesity at Darling Harbour tomorrow.

The Mercury Tale

Fish was pretty much a staple of the Riddington household. It was fundamental to the healthy lifestyles of former ironman and lifesaver Craig and nutritionist Rebecca.

So much so that Rebecca sometimes consumed fish three times daily, thinking she was doing the right thing. She wanted to fall pregnant and fish was brain food, rich in nutrients for her child.

But then Rebecca suffered a miscarriage and less than a year later they lost their second baby at 22 weeks into the pregnancy. They'd already named him Lachlan.

"We began to feel him kick ... so he was very real," she said.

A barrage of tests came back saying Rebecca was healthy. But one thing stood out - the levels of mercury in her body, which in a normal person would be less than six units. Rebecca's level was 312.

These elevated levels of mercury are what Craig believes led to the death of their son Lachlan.

Food Standards Australia and New Zealand chief scientist Marion Healy says varieties of fish which can be harmful, particularly to expectant mothers, are the larger, long-lived varieties at the top of the food chain. These include swordfish, southern blue fin tuna, orange roughy, deep sea perch, flake, ling, gemfish, even barramundi.

Authorities say that expectant mothers should avoid these or have tiny portions at any one time and no more than four portions per week.

The American Medical Association and the respected New England Journal of Medicine go further, saying that too much of these fish can cause defects to children and nerve damage in adults.

But Rebecca Riddington's GP doesn't see this as a warning not to eat fish.

"I think it's important to eat Omega 3, but the source needs to be changed from those fish in the high end of the food chain - the larger fish - to smaller fish," she says.

Standards Australia and New Zealand say shellfish is fine for expectant mothers.

Eight months after losing Lachlan and four months after undertaking detoxification treatment to remove the mercury from her body, Rebecca's tests reveal she has dropped from 312 down to 261. It was a disappointing outcome for a couple keen to start a family.

"It disappoints me because more than anything I want to have a baby and I won't be able to for a long time."

Did you know...

The BBC News Online reports that researchers from Oxford Brookes University have determined that these foods make you hungrier come lunchtime. That is, eat Corn Flakes or Rice Krispies for breakfast and you'll pig out at lunch.

What are the best breakfast foods? That would be cold or hot cereals made from whole grains. Oatmeal is ideal. As Mom used to say, oatmeal sticks to your ribs, and that means you'll eat more sensibly at lunchtime because you won't have strong hunger pangs.

The message here is exciting. Eat the right foods for breakfast and you could lose weight without dieting-just being smart in what you eat. Of course, the opposite is true as well. If you eat the wrong foods, you could gain weight even though you don't realize it. And the magic element is a low glycemic index or GI, which is a measurement-assigned as a number of 0 to 100--to describe the effect specific foods have on our blood sugar levels. Carbohydrates that breakdown quickly during digestion have the highest GIs with a blood glucose response that is fast and high. Carbohydrates that breakdown slowly, releasing glucose gradually into the blood stream, have lower GIs.

The study: The British researchers recruited 37 children ages 9 to 12 and divided them into three groups. The first ate a breakfast of porridge or a bran-based cereal with a glycemic value of less than 55.

The second group had the same breakfast, but with added sugar to raise the glycemic value above 55. The last group ate white bread and sugary cereals with a glycemic value of 75 to 100. The children ate no snacks during the morning. At lunchtime, they were allowed to eat all they wanted from an open buffet.

The results: The kids who ate a breakfast with a low GI index ate significantly less for lunch than those who ate breakfast foods with a high GI. They were also less likely to feel hungry between meals, notes the BBC.

Calling the study "remarkable," lead researcher Jeya Henry told the BBC, "By selecting the type of breakfast we feed our children, we can alter their subsequent food intake. Feeding them a high GI breakfast will mean they will eat more."

If you want to eat foods with a low GI, the University of Sydney in Australia recommends the following:

* Breakfast cereals based on oats, barley, and bran.
* "Grainy" breads made with whole seeds.
* Reduce the amount of potatoes you eat.
* All types of fruit and vegetables (except potatoes).
* Plenty of salad vegetables with vinaigrette dressing.

The study findings were published in the journal Pediatrics.
*Results Not Typical