INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Choosing a good nation is vital to winning the game. If you want to have a head start, Great Britain is one of the better choices. Great Britain has powerful navies, which allow you to control the waters around Europe, India, and the New World. This island empire will be left untouched unless an enemy country manages to build a strong battleship. Early trade agreements and alliances will give you an edge. It will boost your income and relationship with the nation you wish to work with. Building your income in the early portion of the game is crucial for building your military might.  There are chances that your allied nation will remove the treaty, so make use of them as much as you can. Build trade ports. The more trade ports you have, the more trade partners you can get. You can also trade with neighboring countries by land. If you're using Great Britain, it's necessary that you have a trade port for your supplies to be exported and to receive resources from your trade partner. Pirating is a good way to decrease your enemy's resources. To do this, have your privateers block your enemy's trading route. Building and upgrading farms will help field larger armies, and production such as furs, cotton, sugar, and coffee will help increase your economic power.  Destroy Church Schools and replace them with Schools to let you do research. Research is conducted in Schools. The more you upgrade your Schools and fill them with Gentlemen, the faster the research goes. If you have multiple schools, you can research multiple technologies at the same time, but Schools cannot team up on the same technology. Researching technology costs a certain number of research points. Research points can be gained from Schools per turn. The higher the level of your school, the more points they produce. Gentlemen also provides points and decreases the turn time required to finish the research, so make sure to put your Gentlemen inside the School building to acquire this bonus.

SUMMARY: Create a new campaign. Make trades and alliances. Upgrade your farm and production.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Simple carbohydrates are digested rapidly, causing a sharp increase in blood glucose which can trigger reactive hypoglycemia.  Concentrated sweets mainly contain simple carbohydrates, also called simple sugars.  You want to eat foods with a low glycemic index.  Glycemic index offers information on how foods affect blood glucose and insulin.  A lower number indicates a smaller effect.  Read food labels looking for terms like sugar, honey, molasses, fructose, corn syrup, corn sweetener, and high-fructose corn syrup.  Products like candy, cookies, cakes, fruit drinks, soft drinks, and ice cream are concentrated sweets which will have a high glycemic index  You can use sugar substitutes like sucralose (Splenda), saccharin (Sweet’N Low), and aspartame (Equal) to replace table sugar.  Read the labels on “sugar-free” foods, carefully.  They may contain other ingredients that can raise your blood glucose too rapidly.  Sugar substitutes may cause other health problems. Glucose enters the bloodstream more slowly over a longer period of time when these types of nutrients are eaten.  Incorporate starch-containing foods like whole grain breads and pasta, potatoes, corn, and beans into your diet. Protein and healthy fats help to regulate blood sugar and prevent high blood sugar spikes followed by blood sugar dips (hypoglycemia). Fiber also does this. Protein can be found in animal sources as well as legumes (beans and peas), nuts, and seeds. Use complex carbohydrates and proteins as your major energy source.  Complex carbohydrates are made up of simple sugars connected together, like beads on a chain.  These complex sugars are harder to digest.  It takes a while for proteins to be converted into glucose in the body.  This slower digestion is why your blood glucose levels rise in a more gradual fashion. Healthy fats should be a major energy source too. They maintain proper blood sugar levels and they also provide long satiety. Fiber is a non-digestible complex carbohydrate found in plants.  The soluble type of fiber is found in legumes, oat products, and in fruit as pectin.  When soluble fiber dissolves in water, it forms a sticky gel.  Stomach emptying, digestion, and the absorption of glucose are delayed.   Canned fruits with added sugars could lead to reactive hypoglycemia.  Eat fresh fruit or canned fruits without added sugars.  Insoluble fiber, like wheat bran, does not dissolve in water.  It adds to bulk to the stool and helps keep your bowel movements regular.  It could be a healthy part of your diet, but it will not help with the reactive hypoglycemia. The goal is to keep your blood glucose levels as even as possible.  Experiment to see what works best for you.  Make every meal well-balanced by eating complex carbohydrates, protein, and a fibrous food together.  Snacks do not necessarily have to contain all three. Your options range from eating 3 larger meals a day with 3 healthy snacks or eating up to 6 smaller meals, evenly spaced throughout the day, with an evening snack. Both of these “drugs” can exacerbate the symptoms of reactive hypoglycemia.  Alcohol lowers blood glucose levels.  Caffeine stimulates the production of adrenaline.  Do not counteract your efforts to prevent hypoglycemia.  In some studies, the acute consumption of alcohol increased insulin secretion, thus decreasing blood glucose levels.  Do not magnify your fight-or-flight symptoms (hunger, anxiety, sweating, rapid heartbeat, and faintness) by consuming caffeine. Excess weight has been shown to interfere with the body processes which control your blood glucose levels.  Lose any excess weight with a healthy diet and exercise. You can get an idea of your ideal by referring to your body mass index (BMI), a screening tool that uses your height and weight to determine your body mass.  If you are 20 years or older, a healthy BMI is in the range of 18.5 to 24.9.  The formula is: weight (lb) / [height (in)]2 X 703.  It is best to consult a doctor when trying to lose weight.

SUMMARY:
Do not eat concentrated sweets or meals high in simple carbohydrates. Make complex carbohydrates and protein an important part of your diet. Add soluble fiber to your diet. Personalize the size and frequency of your meals. Limit the alcohol and caffeine in your diet. Maintain a healthy weight.