Nutrient Levels are Dropping

According to research done at Iowa University, typical fruit or vegetable travels thousands of miles over several days to get from the farm where it was grown and harvested to the supermarket. Produce grown in Chile, Mexico, China, and other countries travel even farther. Levels of many vitamins and antioxidants drop as soon as a fruit or vegetable is picked. The longer it takes to go from stem to store, the less nutritious your produce. To ensure that some varieties of fruits and vegetables are not overripe when they reach the store, farmers pick them earlier in the ripening cycle. The less ripe a fruit or vegetable is at harvest, the fewer nutrients it will contain.

Enliven Meals with Olives

Olives are such a nutritional power-house that we’ve added them to your daily food plan right from the start. They are great snack foods. Three-quarters of the caloric content from olives comes from healthful monounsaturated fat that can lower levels of bad LDL cholesterol and raise good. Olives are a rich source of vitamin E, a fat-soluble antioxidant that disarms dangerous free radicals and help prevent colon cancer. The polyphenols and flavonoids in olives fight inflammation in the body, which can relieve the symptoms of asthma and arthritis.

Eat a heart-healthy diet

Limiting certain fats you eat is important to a heart-healthy diet. Of the types of fat — saturated, polyunsaturated, monounsaturated and trans fat — try to limit or avoid saturated fat and trans fat. Aim to keep saturated fat to 5 or 6 percent of your daily calories. And try to keep trans fat out of your diet altogether.

Major sources of saturated fat include:

    -Red meat

    -Full-fat dairy products

    -Coconut and palm oils

Sources of trans fat include:

    -Deep-fried fast foods

    -Bakery products

    -Packaged snack foods

    -Margarines

    -Crackers, chips and cookies

If the nutrition label has the term “partially hydrogenated” or “hydrogenated,” it means that product contains trans fat.

Include vegetables at every meal

Vegetables contain fiber, so they fill you up and keep you regular. Vegetables also contain important antioxidants, nutrients that protect your cells from oxidative damage. Find creative ways to sneak fiber-rich vegetables into everyday foods such as grilled cheese and even hamburgers. Add more veggies by rounding out lunch and dinner with side salads and heaping servings of steamed or sauteed broccoli, cauliflower, greens, or another veggie of your choice.

The Cleanest Fish on the Planet

All fish contain some pollutants, including mercury, which is why we recommend you eat no more than 12 ounces of fish a week. According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency tests, the following fish have the lowest levels of mercury:
– Shrimp
– Pollock
– Catfish
– Canned Tongol tuna
– Wild salmon (Farmed salmon are also relatively low in mercury, but they are dosed with antibiotics and consume feed containing a pigment that is a suspected carcinogen. This feed is also rich in the remains of fatty fish such as sardines and, as a result, tends to contain contaminants like PCBs and dioxin.)

Pesticides Residues

Conventional farmers use more than 400 chemicals to kill weeds, insects, and pests that attack crops. Fruits and vegetables are washed many times before they reach the supermarket, but tests show that pesticide residues linger. Researchers have determined that up to 17 percent of the original pesticide remains on produce. These residues are probably harmful to your health, and may interfere with your metabolism. Does 100% of your produce have to be organic? No – especially if you can’t afford to pay higher prices that are often charged for these foods.

A Low-Carbohydrate Eating Plan Turns Off Your Hunger Switch

Of the three macronutrients, fat and protein are most satisfying. Both take longer to digest than carbohydrates. As they sit in the stomach and the intestines, they weigh down these organs, stimulating stretch receptors to tell your brain, “Still full down here. No additional food is needed” Fat also does not increase blood sugar as much as protein and carbohydrates can (despite popular belief, some of the protein you consume is converted into blood sugar). This keeps insulin levels low, so fat cells will be more likely to notice small insulin increases and respond by releasing leptin, a hormone that travels to the brain with one loud message: “I’m full.”

Eat Minimally Processed Foods as Little as Possible

Whole organic fresh fruits are better than skinned, jarred fruit. Raw nuts are better than roasted. Whole grains (barley, quinoa, wild rice, and oats) are better than products made from flour (such as breakfast cereals), even if some of the flour is whole grain flour. This is because most processed foods made from flour (bread, cereals, crackers, and so on) contain a mixture of refined and whole grain flour. If you check the ingredients labels, you’ll see that nearly all of these supposedly whole grain foods are much lower in fiber than you may realize.

Can we handle sweeteners as we age?

As you grew to adulthood, sugar and other sweeteners probably became a dietary staple. Americans today are now consuming 14 percent more sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, and other sweeteners than they did in 1965, with most of us eating more than 20 teaspoons a day. We’re eating more sugar than ever before in history, but our bodies have not evolved to handle the increase.

It used to take 15 to 20 years for steady consumption of sugar and other sweeteners to trigger conditions such as type 2 diabetes. That’s why we used to call type 2 diabetes “adult onset” diabetes: It only affected adults. Now we’re seeing type 2 diabetes in children as young as age 6.

Mercury and Other Environmental Pollutants

Our rivers and oceans absorb the mercury produced when we drive cars, burn coal to fuel power plants, and incinerate household wastes. They’ve also become toxic waste dumps for many other industrial pollutants, such as PCBs and dioxin. These harmful chemicals are absorbed into algae and plants that are then eaten by fish. The pollutants become more and more concentrated as they travel up the food chain. Once one of the world’s healthiest foods, all wild fish and even some farm-raised varieties are contaminated with disease-promoting chemicals. To reduce your risk of consuming more of these toxins than your body can clear, consume only fish that have been shown to have the lowest levels of mercury.

Is it safe for a person with diabetes to eat sweets?

Diabetes is a chronic condition that causes a person’s blood glucose levels to become too high. Although people with diabetes often need to carefully manage their diet, incorporating the occasional sweet or sugary food into a healthful diet can still be okay.

There is a popular misconception that people with diabetes must avoid all sweets and sugary foods. Carefully monitoring the carbohydrates and sugars a person eats is vital because of the impact it can have on blood glucose, or sugar, levels. However, it is still possible to eat sweets or sugary food, as long as it is part of a healthful diet plan.

The amount of carbohydrate and sugars a person with diabetes can eat depends on factors, including:
– their activity levels
– whether they are trying to lose weight or maintain a heavy weight
– whether they are tying to lower their blood glucose levels

According to the American Diabetes Association, people with diabetes can still have sweets, chocolate, or other sugary foods as long they are eaten as part of a healthful meal plan or combined with exercise.

Eat Plenty of Produce

Aim for 2½ cups of vegetables and 2 cups of fruit a day, for a 2,000-calorie diet. If you consume more calories, aim for more; if you eat fewer than 2,000 calories, you can eat less. Include green, orange, red, blue/purple and yellow produce. The nutrients, fiber and other compounds in these foods may help protect against certain types of cancer and other diseases. Legumes, rich in fiber, count as vegetables, though are moderately high in calories. Choose whole fruits over juice for more fiber. Frozen and canned fruits and vegetables are good options.

Should I take a fiber supplement?

In a word, no. Are you surprised? Many of our patients are. They stare at us with eyes the size of dinner plates when we tell them to stop using their supplemental fiber. The fiber supplement industry has done its advertising and marketing so well that nearly everyone in America is convinced they need to drop some powder in a glass of water, stir, and drink every morning. It’s just not true.

In fact, you might be surprised to learn that most fiber supplements contain very little fiber. Most foods contain more. Take a look at the nutrition facts panel on any fiber supplement. You’ll find that most supplements contain somewhere between 3 and 5 grams of fiber and 25 or so calories. You can easily get that much fiber from food. More important, the fiber in food comes in a complete package that aids digestion. A colleague of ours at Johns Hopkins Hospital tells us that nearly all of his patients who take fiber supplements experience lots of gas and bloating and little constipation relief. Real foods work better, he says, because most contain water and/or oil, two essential ingredients that help fiber do its job.

Health Benefits of Fruits and Vegetables

There is a good amount of research documenting the many benefits of fruits and vegetable intake on health. Several studies have found that eating more fruits and vegetables is associated with a decreased risk of heart disease. One study even found that eating more than three servings per day slashed the risk of heart disease by 70%. Because fruits and vegetables are low in calories but high in fiber, they could even help keep your weight under control. One study followed 133,000 people over a 24-year span. It showed that when people increased their intake of fruits and non-starchy vegetables their weight tended to decrease. Finally, fruit and vegetable intake may benefit your blood sugar. The fiber from these foods slows the absorption of sugar, which can keep blood sugar levels steady.

A low-carb diet promotes fat burning

Cells throughout your body are capable of burning a number of different fuels for energy, including carbohydrates (in the form of blood glucose or muscle glycogen), protein, fat, and ketones (by-products of fat burning). By putting yourself on a carbohydrate budget, you’ll consume fewer carbohydrates than your body uses for energy. Once your carbohydrate gas tank reads “empty,” insulin drops and stays low. Think of insulin as a switch. When it’s high, you burn carbohydrates for energy and store excess calories as fat more easily. When it’s low, your body can burn fat rather than storing it, and it will also burn triglycerides–fat in the bloodstream–lowering your risk for heart disease.

Eat your veggies daily

Are you consuming at least 3 cups of leafy and green vegetables and 2 cups of other vegetables daily? If not, make an effort to do so. Use these pointers.

• Purchase plastic food containers in various cup sizes. Fill these containers with salad greens or chopped veggies and take them with you for an easy lunch or snack. This allows you to easily know how many cups you’ve gotten in during a given day.
• Precede lunch and dinner with a salad. Starting your meal with a salad provides the side benefit of filling you up, so you are less tempted to reach for the bread or pasta.
• Buy an assortment of frozen vegetables. Many of these will steam in the bag, making them quick and easy to prepare. Serve on every night with dinner.

Try to be realistic

We all travel. We all attend dinners at friends’ homes, where choices may be tempting. Remember: It’s your choice, and you can remain in control. We all indulge from time to time. As long as you keep those indulgences to a minimum, you will be able to keep off the weight. Don’t stress about occasional luxuries. Stress is just as bad for your metabolism as poor eating habits are.

When in doubt, eat real food

If you want to indulge in something sweet, do so, but make it a small serving of a real food. Ice cream means sugar and cream, and almost nothing else. Don’t go for the low-fat or artificially sweetened varieties. These are not only less satisfying and satiating, but they also tend to cause people to lose self-control. It’s psychological. When we eat reduced calorie foods, we assume we can have more. When we eat high-calorie foods, we assume we can have less and stick to it.

The Yoga Effect

A study of 15,500 men and women determined that study participants who practiced gentle yoga for 30 minutes once a week for 10 years did not gain the typical 2 pounds a year that non-yoga practitioners did. The yoga practitioners who were overweight at the start of the study lost 5 pounds in 10 years, even though they were not dieting. The researchers speculated that increased body awareness allowed study participants to gain more control over their eating choices.

Calcium is important for strong bones

You’ve probably heard that calcium is important for strong bones, and it is. But did you know it can also stimulate weight loss? At least six studies to date have shown that women who consume more calcium–either through food or through supplements–tend to weigh less and have less body fat than women who consume less calcium. For example, when researchers supplemented overweight African-Americans with 1,000 daily milligrams of calcium, the women lost weight effortlessly. Multiple studies have been completed since and have continued to find the same beneficial results. People who consume more calcium–through supplements of food–tend to weigh less than people who don’t. Dieters who take calcium lose more weight than dieters who do not.

Include vegetables at every meal

Vegetables contain fiber, so they fill you up and keep you regular. Vegetables also contain important antioxidants, nutrients that protect your cells from oxidative damage. For each level of diet, you’ll find a number of recipes that creatively sneak fiber-rich vegetables into everyday foods such as grilled cheese and even hamburgers. Add more veggies by rounding out lunch and dinner with side salads and heaping servings of steamed or sauteed broccoli, cauliflower, greens, or another veggie of your choice.

Emotional Eating

Do you eat when you are under stress? How about when you feel sad or angry? Although emotional eating is very common-among men and women-it’s also destructive. To overcome emotional eating-whether you eat out of stress, sadness, anxiety, or even happiness-you must break the association that links your emotional state with eating.

Get honest with yourself. There’s probably a little voice inside your head that’s whispering phrases such as “But I’m really hungry,” “But I really need it,” or “But I can’t stop myself.” Oh, hush. Try hunger comes on slowly. You can satisfy true hunger with any food, including broccoli. Emotional hunger surfaces quickly and centers on one or two specific finds. With emotional hunger, broccoli or a meatball won’t do. You must have the bread of bagel or cake or cookie or whatever it is that calls to you.

As soon as you realize that you are craving a specific food, you need to find a way to soothe yourself with something other than food. Thin about which emotions drive you to eat. Then think about other ways you can deal with those emotions.

Carbohydrates related to Heart Disease

Consider that a recent Harvard study followed the eating habits and health outcomes of more than 8,000 nurses over 2 decades. Women who consumed higher amounts of carbohydrates from refined sugar and highly processed foods nearly doubled their risk of heart disease compared to women who ate a lower carbohydrate diet. This latter group actually cut they risk of heart disease by 30 percent on average. At least five other studies—conducted at prestigious institutions such as Duke University and the University of Pennsylvania—show similar results for heart disease rise reduction.

Eating Fiber to Lose Weight

By consuming more fiber-rich carbs, you will support weight loss in the following ways. (Paragraph break) You’ll feel full sooner after eating. High-fiber foods are chewy, and, as a result, take a long time to eat. This slowed eating pace allows fullness signals from your stomach and intestines the time they need to reach your brain and flip off your hunger switch. Fiber also makes food heavy, weighing down and filling up your stomach. This triggers stretch receptors and nerves to turn off your hunger switch.

Do you have a metabolic disadvantage?

The vast majority of people who are overweight – especially people who struggle unsuccessfully to lose weight – generally have a metabolic problem that is working against them. Without the right supplements, fiber, and nutrient-rich vegetables, plus a strict avoidance of certain types of both carbohydrates and fats for an extended period of time, these metabolic problems do not resolve. The enable weight loss, you must fix the problem, and, to fix the problem, you must no one exists in the first place.

Mental Activities

If you don’t already take part in a hobby, think about starting one. Activities such as painting, dancing, singing and knitting help boost your sense of self, which can go a long way toward helping you stick with a new way of eating. They also keep you busy, which is important when losing weight. Boredom often leads to only one thing: thoughts about foods you wish you didn’t find tempting.

Boost Your Mood

Exercise raises levels of brain chemicals that elevate mood. This makes you more likely to stick with your eating habits, because the happier you are, the less emotional eating you will do. Excerise also helps sensitize the body to many different hormones, including insulin and cortisol. This ensures that, once you mend your metabolism, the right amount and right types of exercise will keep you healthy.

 

The True Coronary Culprits

Countries that consume diets rich in saturated fat tend to suffer very little heart disease, whereas countries that consume diets rich in hydrogenated trans fats suffer high rates of heart disease. Population studies show that people who eat small amounts of trans fats, white flour, or sugar do not have heart attacks. Common sense should tell us that the problem isn’t animal fat alone. It’s trans fats, sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, and refined carbohydrates.

 

Eggs are good

People shy away from eggs because of outdated research about the dangers of dietary cholesterol and fat. Eggs, as it turns out, are on the healthiest foods on the planet. The yolks contain lutien and zeaxanthin (antioxidants that protect your eyes from cataracts and blindness) and choline (important in preserving memory).

The Dangers of Pesticides

Conventional farmers use more than 400 chemicals to kill weeds, insects and pests that attack crops. Fruits and vegetables are washed many times before they reach the supermarket, but tests show that pesticide residues linger. Researchers have determined that up to 17 percent of the original pesticide residue remains on produce. These residues are probably harmful to your health, and may interfere with your metabolism.

Long Chain Fatty Acids

All long chain fatty acids require bile salts from the liver for lypolysis, which is the first step of their digestion. Once freed from the glycerol backbone, they are too large to move through the intestinal wall of their own. Instead, they must first be coupled with special proteins and cholesterol and chylomicrons (a type of cholesterol particle) for active transport through the instestinal wall, then carried to all cells of the body for metabolic use.

Carbohydrates & Blood Sugar Levels

You may think, “I won’t be eating a lot of carbohydrates, so my blood sugar levels won’t matter anyway.” That’s not true, your body is capable of converting protein into blood sugar and will do so if you consume a diet rich in protein and low in fiber, carbohydrates, and fat.

 

Low Sugar Diets

When 50 teenage boys in an Australian study stopped eating junk foods laden with sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, their acne cleared up. The results were better than those of over-the-counter acne medictions. The low-sugar diet works, yet again, by reducing insulin levels and normalizing levels of other hormones.

Dry skin equals underactive thyroid

Did you know that dry skin, fatigue, thinning hair & constipation are symptoms of an underactive thyroid? Make an appointment with us today to ensure your thyroid is functioning correctly.

Balancing Healthy Fats

Balancing healthy fats, avoiding trans-fats along with consuming adequate fiber and exercise can decrease LDL (bad cholesterol) and increase HDL (good cholesterol). Sources of trans-fat include: Deep fried fast foods, bakery products, packaged snack foods, margarines, crackers, chips and cookies.

 

How do I know if I have hypoglycemia?

Dr. Keith answers the simple question.

11 changes to make to balance the hormones naturally

You may think, “i won’t be eating a lot of carbohydrates, so my blood sugar levels won’t matter anyway.” That’s not true. Your body is capable of converting protein into blood sugar and will do so if you consume a diet rich in protein and low in fiber, carbohydrates, and fat. This drives up insulin levels, even in the absence of carbohydrates, and is precisely why many people hit a plateau on typical low-fiber, low-carbohydrate diets.

http://nutrilifetips.com/signs-of-hormonal-imbalance-and-11-changes-to-make/

 

Eat Real Fat To Burn Fat

Synthetic trans fat (hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil) has been linked to a range of health conditions, including obesity. Although food manufacturers have been reducing their use of trans fats in recent years, the additive still remains in many processed foods.

Real fats are not synthetic.  They are found in nature’s foods and come from:

• Animals raised on food they were designed to eat (not grain or soy)
• Vegetables
• Fatty fruits such as avocados and olives
• Nuts and seeds
• Olive and coconut oils
• Fish

Here’s another way in which we diverge from other low-carb diets you may have tried. Many popular diets tell you to replace carbs with lean protein such as egg whites and skinless chicken breast. They also tell you to refrain from adding fat to your food. In other words, skip the butter and the olive oil. Does this sound like a fun way to eat to you? If it doesn’t, that’s probably why you couldn’t stick with such diets.

You can lose weight–possibly even faster and definitely in a more healthful way–by not concerning yourself with the leanness of the meat you eat or avoiding fatty vegetables such as olives. Eat the meat you want. Go ahead and have real eggs. Put avocado in your salads. Eat the dark meat on that chicken. (You can even have the skin.) Go ahead and have red meat too. Use real oil on your green salad and real mayonnaise in your tuna salad. Enjoy fat and enjoy it without guilt!

Eat Fat, Live Longer

You’ve probably heard that the typical American diet-with its high emphasis on fatty cuts of meat-is what causes heart disease. We’re wondering, however, if anyone ever told you about the high-fat diets of the Masai? No, you say? That’s the answer we expected you to give because many industry groups would probably rather you didn’t know about the Masai and others who seem to thrive on a high-fat diet. It seems to confuse the low-fat message, doesn’t it?

The Masai are a tribe in Africa that consumes a diet that is almost 100 percent saturated fat. Whole milk and beef are dietary staples. Do the Masai drop dead from heart attacks at age 40? No, they do not. The members of this tribe do not suffer from heart disease. They just don’t get it. Are they genetic anomalies? Do they lack a heart disease gene? It’s not likely.

The Masai are just one of many species around the globe that thrives on a diet rich in fat. The Inuit are another example. They live in North America and also develop little to no heart disease, obesity and diabetes. They also eat a considerable amount of saturated fat, mostly from whales, fish, seals, and other animals. Is it possible that the Inuit, like the Masai, lack the heart disease and diabetes genes? It’s possible, but not likely. You want to know why? Canadian Arctic explorer Vilhjalmur Stefansson lived with the Inuit for a year and consumed their fatty diet. He suffered no ill health effects.

How can this be? How can so many populations from so many different places in the world consume diets rich in animal fat and manage to stay healthy? They can because animal fat alone is not what causes heart disease, cancer, and other health problems. It’s not until members of these healthy-fat-eating societies start eating typical American convenience foods such as fast food and processed foods that their rates of heart disease start to climb. It appears that natural sources of fat are not what make Americans more likely to suffer a heart attack than folks living in other countries around the world. It’s the sugar, processed flour and starch, and synthetic fats.

ndeed, consider that a recent Harvard study followed the eating habits and health outcomes of more than 80,000 nurses over 2 decades. Women who consimed higher amounts of carbohydrates from refined sugar and highly processed foods nearly doubled their risk of heart disease compared to women who ate a lower carbohydrate diet. This latter group actually cut their risk of heart disease by 30 percent on average. At least five other studies conducted at prestigious institutions such as Duke University and the University of Pennsylvania show similar results for heart disease reduction.

Finally, a 2-year study that compared a high-fat, low-carb diet and the Mediterranean die (which emphasizes poultry, fish, olive oil, and nuts) determined that the low-carb dieters lost nearly twice as much weight as the low-fat dieters. And they were healthier at the end of the study. Their cholesterol profiles improved the most.

Why Insulin Matters The Most

Your insulin level probably matters much more to your overall health than your cholesterol level does. Whereas high levels of certain types of cholesterol have been linked with heart disease, high insulin levels have been linked with nearly every health-related cause of death. High insulin levels have been associated with obesity, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and overall aging. A low-carbohydrate diet drives down insulin whereas a high carbohydrate diet raises it.

Here’s how high insulin levels can increase your risk for a number of diseases.

Heart disease. High insulin levels trigger the liver to produce triglycerides, raising your risk for heart disease. In the 22-year Helsinki Finnish Policeman study of 970 men, the men with the highest insulin levels were most likely to suffer a heart attack over the course of the study. Other studies have yielded similar results.

Reduced life span. Researchers have long known that people who reduce their insulin levels either through exercise or calorie restriction tend to live longer than people with higher insulin levels. For example, studies show that centenarians tend to have lower insulin levels than people who died earlier, and their cells tend to be more sensitive to the hormone’s effects. High insulin levels have been shown to speed the aging rate of cells and tissues throughout the body. When insulin levels remain low, cells more easily fight off age-related diseases such as cancer, dementia and stroke.

High blood pressure. If your cells are resistant to insulin and consequently insulin levels rise, this causes the body to excrete magnesium. Cells need magnesium to relax. When levels are low, blood vessels constrict and blood pressure rises.

Weak bones. Insulin affects other hormones such as growth hormone, testosterone, and progesterone. When cells become resistant to insulin and levels rise, bone-building hormonal signals get distorted, causing the body to excrete calcium and weaken bones.

What raises insulin? In a word: excess carbohydrates, especially from sugar and refined grains. When you consume grains and starches, the pancreas must produce insulin with high-glycemic faster-digesting carbs creating a greater and more rapid response than lower-glycemic carbs. Individually, fat and fiber do not trigger a response.

Why Eating Less Doesn’t Work

“Weight loss is easy. Just eat less.”

Over the years, we must have said that to hundreds of patients, even though only a few were successful. We now know why. This conventional advice- eat less, exercise more- only works if your metabolism is in balance. For everyone else, the divide between wanting to eat less and actually managing to do it can be as wide as the Grand Canyon. If your metabolism is out of balance- as it is for 90 percent of the patients we see- calorie cutting and portion control will only make you hungrier, more tired, and eventually fatter.

Here’s why. If you reduce calories the way the U.S government and many medical establishments suggest, you do so mostly by reducing fat. That means you’re still consuming most of your calories from carbohydrates. All of the carbohydrates you eat turn into blood glucose, and, right now, your body probably does not handle blood glucose effectively. Until you fix your metabolism, a high carbohydrate diet will cause blood glucose to quickly rise, which will cause your pancreas to pump out the hormone insulin, which will direct 85 percent of excess glucose into fat cells, causing blood glucose to drop and resulting in hunger, and starting the cycle all over again.