Trading on the popularity of the Biggest Loser television show, a number of books tout various methods to achieve the weight loss and healthy lifestyle of the show's most successful participants.

The diet encourages you to fill up on fruits, vegetables, lean protein, and whole grains; practice portion control; use a food journal; and exercise regularly (and with some intensity). The diet doesn't ban any food groups, and there's an abundance of recipes, online resources, and community forums to participate in. You'll likely want to invest in one of the books, like 30-Day Jump Start or 6 Weeks to a Healthier You, which each run around $20.

This is the most exercise-essential diet on this list, with the goal of educating you in body-weight training, aerobics, strength and resistance training, and yoga. In today's television/computer-centric society, getting off the couch/office chair is always a good idea.

See Flavonoids.

Are characteristic biological properties that can be detected and measured in parts of the body like the blood or tissue.

The known endocrine disruptor found in hard plastics and canned goods is linked to reproductive disorders, behavioral problems in animals, and liver damage. It may also be a human metabolic syndrome risk factor and is toxic at low doses, according to the Environmental Working Group. Choose plastic alternatives to avoid BPA. Eden Foods, Henry & Lisa's Natural Seafood and Vital Choice Wild Seafood and Organics are the first companies to launch BPA-free canned foods.

The pressure of blood in the arteries as it is being pumped around the body by the heart.

A measure of weight in kilograms (kg) relative to height in meters squared (m2). BMI is considered a reasonably reliable indicator of total body fat, which is related to the risk of disease and death. BMI status categories include underweight, healthy weight, overweight, and obese (See Table).

Overweight and obese describe ranges of weight that are greater than what is considered healthy for a given height, while underweight describes a weight that is lower than what is considered healthy. Because children and adolescents are growing, their BMI is plotted on growth charts for sex and age. The percentile indicates the relative position of the child’s BMI among children of the same sex and age.

Physical activity primarily designed to increase the strength of specific sites in bones that make up the skeletal system. Bone strengthening activities produce an impact or tension force on the bones that promotes bone growth and strength. Running, jumping rope, and lifting weights are examples of bone-strengthening activities.

Cage-free hens aren't confined to crowded pens in the coop. The USDA doesn't regulate the term, but the "United Egg Producers' and "American Humane Association" labels help ensure producers meet strict standards for pecking space and ventilation.

Of all the essential minerals in the human body, calcium is the most abundant. Calcium helps the body form bones and teeth and is required for blood clotting, transmitting signals in nerve cells, and muscle contraction. Calcium helps prevent osteoporosis; of the two to three pounds of calcium contained in the human body, 99% is located in the bones and teeth.

Calcium also seems to play a role in lowering blood pressure, and has been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in postmenopausal women.

Calcium is a mineral present in large amounts in dairy foods, such as milk, cheese and yoghurt. It is also found in calcium-fortified soy drinks, canned salmon with bones, sardines, oysters, almonds, sesame seeds and tahini. Calcium is important for building strong bones and teeth. Having enough calcium during childhood and teenage years is very important in fighting against bone loss and osteoporosis,(a condition where the bones are weak and break easily) in later life.

Calorie is a unit of measurement for energy. One calorie is formally defined as the amount of energy required to raise one cubic centimeter of water by one degree centigrade. For the purpose of measuring the amount of energy in food, nutritionists most commonly use kilocalories (equal to 1,000 calories), and label the measurement either as kcal or as Calories with a capital C. One kcal is also equivalent to approximately 4.184 kilojoules. Carbohydrates, fats, protein, and alcohol in the foods and drinks we eat provide food energy or calories. Carbohydrates and proteins provide 4 calories per gram, fat has 9 calories per gram, and alcohol has 7 calories per gram.

The balance between calories you get from eating and drinking and those you use up through physical activity and body processes like breathing, digesting food, and, in children, growing.

See Sterol.

A carb is a major source of energy for your body. Your digestive system changes carbohydrates into blood glucose (sugar). Your body uses this sugar to make energy for cells, tissues, and organs, and stores any extra sugar in your liver and muscles for when it is needed. If there is more sugar than the body can use, the liver may also break the sugar down further and store it as body fat.

Heart disease as well as diseases of the blood vessel system (arteries, capillaries, veins) that can lead to heart attack, chest pain (angina), or stroke.

Carotene is a substance found in some food, which is converted to vitamin A in the body.  There are three types: alpha, beta and gamma carotene. Beta carotene has the greatest level of vitamin A activity. The richest food sources of beta carotene include orange and yellow fruit and vegetables, such as carrots, pumpkin, mangoes, oranges, mandarins, pawpaw, rockmelons, apricots and yellow peaches.