Archive for Fats

I Told You Butter Was Good For You!

March 27, 2014 / / 2 comments

blue bonnetIn case you haven’t caught all the science being revealed lately on the BENEFITS of saturated fat, cholesterol, and BUTTER, here’s an excerpt from the NYT, with the full link:

“That the worm is turning became increasingly evident a couple of weeks ago, when a meta-analysis published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine found that there’s just no evidence to support the notion that saturated fat increases the risk of heart disease. (In fact, there’s some evidence that a lack of saturated fat may be damaging.) The researchers looked at 72 different studies and, as usual, said more work — including more clinical studies — is needed. For sure. But the days of skinless chicken breasts and tubs of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter may finally be drawing to a close.

The tip of this iceberg has been visible for years, and we’re finally beginning to see the base. Of course, no study is perfect and few are definitive. But the real villains in our diet — sugar and ultra-processed foods — are becoming increasingly apparent. You can go back to eating butter, if you haven’t already.”

Our body is made out of Water, Protein, Fat, and Minerals.  Literally.  Vitamins make things happen (enzymatic reactions), and Carbs provide fuel for cells.  Eat foods that MAKE YOUR BODY.  Your body could care a less about calories, honest.  Who benefits from perpetuating the Low Fat/No Fat/Calories In/Calories Out line?  Big Food, Big Pharma, and Big Business.  Dieting is a Business; Real Whole Food is the key to Good Health and Good Weight.

Category: Fats, Looks Healthy But Isn't, RWF / Tags: , , ,

PMS Isn’t Inevitable; Conquer It And Lose Weight Too

March 26, 2014 / / Comments Off on PMS Isn’t Inevitable; Conquer It And Lose Weight Too

moms warpathWhen I meet with clients and listen to their worries, there’s a lot of subjects that come up often:  weight, compulsive eating, bloat/stomach issues, headaches/migraines, allergies, pain,  etc.  Something that doesn’t usually get brought up until I ask is PMS; most women have it, but it’s thought of as so NORMAL, that unless they’re smack in the middle of it, it’s not mentioned.

Just like I say Bloat’s Not Normal, and it’s our body yelling at us that something’s wrong;  PMS is the same situation.  Years of advertising has convinced us that when we have PMS, we’re just low on Advil/Tylenol/Diuretics/Midol.  OMG, that couldn’t be further from the truth!   POOR HEALTH IS NOT A DRUG DEFICIENCY.  EVER. No one needs to suffer from PMS.  I have 5 women in my household; we don’t use those meds (they’re not even in the house anymore), and we don’t suffer with: Cravings, headaches, low energy, cramps, or the low moods associated with PMS.  PMS ISN’T a Medicine Deficiency, it’s a NUTRITIONAL Deficiency, probably because of both diet and poor digestion.

Good news, you can fix this 🙂nervous breakdown

The biggest links with PMS and nutrition is  (1) too much sugar  (2) vitamin B deficiency  (3) magnesium deficiency  (4)  Omega 3 to Omega 6 imbalance.

Thinking that can’t be you because you take vitamins?  Think again, because if you had all the Bs and Mag you needed, you wouldn’t be having PMS.   What’s the link?  The SHORT explanation is that when blood sugar levels are high (use a glucometer, but if you’re eating ANY flour, sugar, or drinking wine, there’s a 99% chance they’re too high), it takes a lot of B’s and magnesium to metabolize those carbs.  It takes 45 molecules of Mag to metabolize 1 molecule of sugar!  That metabolism also burns through your Bs.  Big up and down swings of your blood sugar actually decreases oxygen and blood to your ovaries ( thank you Cortisol). That’s not good!

Remember, getting nutrients INTO THE CELLS takes a LOT of CHEMISTRY.  (We’re a chemistry set, not a math equation).  High sugar diets mess up the acidity of the stomach ( it’s supposed to be very acidic).  Stomach’s that aren’t acidic enough can’t properly digest proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals.  That’s why all those antacid boxes have warnings on them about pneumonia and fractures.  Less acidity always means poor digestion and nutrient deficiencies.  Always.

Our body isn’t made from medicines, and it’s sure not made from junk food, it’s made from nutrients in Real Whole Foods that get digested and absorbed.  Period.  When there’s Health Issues, look there.

Here’s some food for thought if you’re struggling with PMS ( follow these suggestions and weight comes off too).

1) ditch ALL grain flour, sugar, and alcohol ( liquid donuts), focus on plenty of good fats, quality meats, TONS of vegetables, some fruit, some nuts, some dairy if you tolerate it.

2) add B6, B12, and a B complex from a Real Food source, NOT SYNTHETIC.  Learn the HUGE differences here.

3) add magnesium citrate or glycinate, 400-600 mgs/day; try to take your minerals in the afternoon/evening because they’re better absorbed, and both vitamins and minerals absorb better with a meal.

4) if you have bloat/reflux/GERD etc, you’re not digesting or absorbing well.  Get in touch with me.

5) exercise; this doesn’t have to be a killer workout (unless you want that), but the links between moving, hormones, and mood is HUGE.

6) take a good Omega 3 fish oil, you don’t need Omega 6, that’s inflammatory and we get plenty of O-6s in our diet.  O-3 is harder to get.

7) evening primrose oil, 2 – 500 mgs daily  (fats need to be taken with meals)

Be a Real Whole Foodie.

Category: Carbs, Fats, RWF, Sugar / Tags: , , , , , , ,

Success Story! Recipe and Meal Ideas:)

March 17, 2014 / / Comments Off on Success Story! Recipe and Meal Ideas:)

You’re going to love this Success Story – I do!  Aimee so perfectly describes a Diet Roller Coaster that it should be in a dictionary.  Here’s her story:

After years dieting and just coming off of a strict low/no fat, 750 calorie diet AND topped off with 10 days of a Liver Detox, my body was MESSED UP. I came off the cleanse with out of control cravings and immediately gained 45lbs in a matter of three months, not to mention that I was a weepy, grouchy, exhausted mom. Did I mention that I was grouchy? I could not stop eating things that I knew were wrong for me – especially at night – I couldn’t stop to save my life! I heard of Debbie Abbott from a good friend of mine who said “Debbie has a gift of explaining things so that they make sense.” I signed up for a class that she had on Digestion and it really answered many things that I had been struggling with for a long time. Following the advice has completely changed my health around from the inside out:) I hadn’t realized that even though I was eating, my body was literally starving for nutrients. It is taking a while to undo all of the damage that I have done but Wow! what a difference in my energy and mood! The inflammation in my joints has significantly decreased as well. It is such a relief to know that I have the information that I need AND that I trust. I was also able to relay this message to my mom who had a blood sugar of 210. She and I rejoiced in the fact that within a few months of monitoring and eating correctly, her blood sugar is now staying around 80. No medication…just eating correctly and exercise. Thank you Debbie for all of the words of wisdom that you are so willing to share with everyone. You have truly made a difference in my life:)

If you want to be a healthy weight, and have a healthy mind and body, you’ll need to give your body what it wants.  And it doesn’t REALLY want ice cream, crackers, wine, or cookies.  Honest.  That’s your self-destructive urges talking there.  Your body wants the Nutrients necessary to perform all it’s functions.  Let’s look at just a few.

Your body needs to build your brain, which is 60% fat/25% cholesterol.  Glucose/sugar has a devastating effect on brain cells/neurons/connections. Glucose “glycates” parts of the brain, that means function and communication is ruined.  How well do you think a low fat, high carb diet is going to make your brain function?

Your body needs to digest food and then absorb the nutrients from it so that those nutrients can be sent throughout your body.  If you’ve compromised gut function by taking acid suppressors, then food breakdown and nutrient absorption isn’t happening.  Pretty soon, all those warnings on the antacid box will start coming true:  weak bones, weak immune system, vitamin B deficiencies, etc.

Your body needs to make Neurotransmitters, so that you can feel Even and Normal.  You’ll need protein, fat, and minerals to do that, which are absent in Cereal, Pasta, and Bread.

Your body demands a certain level of calories or it’ll TURN OFF your thyroid gland, and quit making Serotonin (a feel good neurotransmitter).  Low calorie diets also force your body to take muscle proteins and convert them into fuel, slowing down your metabolism even more.

Your body wants a LOT of healthy fats (saturated animal fats, coconut fats, olive/avocado oils), Tons of vegetables (everything from leafy greens to cruciferous, to starchy), some protein, some fruit, and some nuts and seeds.  Real Whole Food.  Eat enough at each meal that you’re not hungry again in 2 hours, that’s ridiculous.  We shouldn’t need to be on an all day eating schedule for several reasons; two are: (1) to go into hormonal Fat Burning Mode, glucose levels need to be completely NORMAL, 80-100mg/dcl of blood  (2) the gut’s not meant to function constantly, it’s a long explanation, but it needs rest periods.

I’ve posted enough Success Stories now that you should be seeing the pattern:  no one improves by going on a diet and adding medications.  No one.  Your body doesn’t want to starve, and will resist you, and NO ONE IS DEFICIENT IN A MEDICINE.  No one.

To reinforce that starving yourself isn’t necessary, and is in fact, disastrous, here’s a chocpbcakecake that we made Friday night for a family dinner, it was Delicious!!!  I got the recipe off of All Day I Dream About Food.  We served it after eating a dinner of 10 hour chicken (put a bunch of breasts in a big pan, a cup of water, lots of S&P and herbs,cover w foil,  200*, then shred), a bunch of broth/kale/onions/tomatoes/garlic/asiago cheese,  and roasted sweet potato (lots of butter and salt).

Honestly, Honestly, I SWEAR, if you want to be a healthy weight, with a healthy mind and body, low cal/low fat/tons of exercise ISN’T the way to do it.  You have to, you MUST, work with your body.  Give it the nutrients it uses to build every cell, every tissue, and give it the calories it needs to NOT SHUT YOU DOWN.  Go back and look at Aimee’s Diet Roller Coaster description.  Then make the decision to get OFF the Diet Roller Coaster like she did.  You can do this!

P.S. I didn’t make that cake, 2 of my daughters did.  I actually never make anything that has that many ingredients; I trend towards shorter recipes, like this recipe here.

 

Category: Carbs, Cooking, Fats, Mind/Body, Paleo Recipe, RWF, Success Story / Tags: , , , , , , , ,

How to REALLY Lose Weight (it’s not by dieting!) and Looks Healthy But Isn’t

March 8, 2014 / / Comments Off on How to REALLY Lose Weight (it’s not by dieting!) and Looks Healthy But Isn’t

debbie (27)I had the opportunity to look at a diet plan that a very large employer has probably paid a whole lot of money for their employees.  This plan includes a P90X style workout several days a week, and meal plans around 1300 calories.  You know how I say that Diet Plans (pills, programs, menus, foods, drinks etc) are just money makers, not actual “ways to lose weight and keep it off”?  This falls right in that category.

GOOD NEWS:  plans that have you starve yourself and work your butt off AREN’T NECESSARY.  No matter what Main Stream Media/Medical/Business/Government  would have you believe, the science Truly Truly Truly doesn’t support the THEORY that restricting calories through diet and burning more calories through exercise EVER works long term.

What the SCIENCE actually says is that if you Diet, you can be pretty assured of GAINING WEIGHT and causing Nutritional Deficiencies that will cause health problems for you down the road, or possibly immediately.

Here’s some pretty sobering statistics:

* A government review of 55 studies found NO SUSTAINED WEIGHT LOSS AT ALL AFTER 12 MONTHS.

* Between 95 and 98% of everyone who loses weight on a DIET, Gains It All Back

*2/3 of DIETERS REGAIN MORE WEIGHT THAN THEY LOST

* The more weight initially lost, the greater the rebound weight.

What’s going on here?  Why doesn’t restricting calories, limiting fat, and exercising a ton work?  Simple:  You’re a chemistry set, not a math equation.  Traditional, typical dieting SCREWS UP YOUR HORMONES.  Eating Diet Foods and Drinks screws up your liver.  Following a low fat plan depletes your hormones and messes up your brain (which is 60% fat).  Restricting calories shuts or slows down the thyroid almost immediately.  The neurotransmitters take an immediate hit with low cal dieting – there goes your mood/energy/thought patterns.  Cortisol increases BECAUSE LOW CAL DIETING IS SEEN BY THE BRAIN AS STARVATION, which equals STRESS.  Insulin ALWAYS increases when Cortisol increases.

Are you getting the picture?  Probably.  Here’s what’s harder for DIETERS to believe.

If you eat a diet of a couple thousand calories or more FILLED with FAT, PROTEIN, VITAMINS, and MINERALS from TONS of good fats, fish/meat/eggs/seafood, and tons of vegetables, you will lose weight.  Honest.  Your body doesn’t want to starve. Your body doesn’t want to diet. Bad things happen when you force it too.  Your body wants to run correctly:  it wants to have normal cell turnover, it wants to make all your sex hormones in normal amounts, it wants to repair every day damage, it wants to run thousands and thousands of chemical reactions that rely on the FUEL YOU PROVIDE YOUR BODY to complete.

Again, You’re Not A Math Equation, You’re A Chemistry Set.

Let’s look at a couple foods included in this program and other large programs; look at their ingredients and honestly access if you think these ingredients could in anyway make your body permanently slimmer, healthier, and more energetic.

Diet Cherry 7Up Antioxidant:  Filtered carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup or sugar and less than 2% of natural flavors, citric acid, potassium citrate, calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor).   ***** The FDA “plans” to study (it’s “high” on the priority list) the calcium disodium EDTA because it’s suspected of mutagenic, teratogenic, subsacute, and reproductive effects. Those middle two words – I don’t even know what they mean and I’m not looking them up.  I don’t need to.  This product contains dangerous chemicals in addition to high fructose corn syrup and sugar.  Antioxidant my ….

Weight Watchers Brownie Bliss ONLY 2 POINTS! Note the flours, sugars, hydrogenated oils, and chemicals:

Powdered Sugar, Sugar, Semi-Sweet Chocolate (Unsweetened Chocolate, Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin, Natural Vanilla Extract), Water, Enriched Wheat Flour Bleached (Flour, Niacin, Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Condensed Skim Milk, Partially Hydrogenated Palm Kernel Oil, Cocoa Processed with Alkali, Corn Syrup Solids, Inulin (Natural Extract of Chicory Roots), Glycerin, Soybean Oil, Pea Fiber, Dry Whey, Chocolate Liquor, Egg Whites, Soy Lecithin, Salt, Potassium Sorbate and Sodium Propionate (Preservatives), Nonfat Dry Milk, Caramel Color, Whole Milk Solids, Reduced Mineral Whey Powder, Dextrose, Leavening (Baking Soda, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate), Xanthan Gum, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Red 40.    

Let’s wrap up with a real shocker:  The American Heart Association APPROVED Subway meal:  Black Forrest Ham Sub, Apples, and Skim Milk:

The Ham:  Water, dextrose, 2% or less of modified food starch, salt, potassium lactate, seasoning [potassium chloride, pork stock, sugar, yeast extract, salt, lactic acid, fructose, sunflower oil, cysteine hydrochloride, calcium lactate, modified food starch, flavors, grill flavor (from sunflower oil), polysorbate 80, rendered pork fat, and smoke flavor], sodium phosphate, sodium diacetate, sodium erythorbate, sodium nitrite, caramel color.

The Bread: ITALIAN HERBS & CHEESE BREAD Subway® Italian Bread, Monterey Jack cheese (cultured pasteurized milk, salt, enzymes, artificial color), cheddar cheese (cultured pasteurized milk, salt, enzymes, artificial color) potato starch and powdered cellulose added to prevent caking, natamycin [a natural mold inhibitor]), garlic powder, corn maltodextrin, long grain rice powder, salt, toasted bread crumbs (wheat flour, dextrose, modified wheat starch, sugar, salt, yeast, caramel coloring, paprika), spice, parmesan cheese solids (milk, cheese, cultures, salt, enzymes, calcium chloride), cellulose, modified palm oil, oregano, natural and artificial flavor (including butter extract), sunflower oil, whey, gum arabic, citric acid, yeast extract, lactic acid, calcium lactate, disodium phosphate and not more than 2% silicon dioxide added (as anticaking agent).

I’m not even going to print the Apples and Skim Milk ingredients; trust me, they’re LOADED with flavors, preservatives, and additives.

Back to my original topic, Traditional Dieting/Calories In /Calories Out is a BUSINESS.  It promises weight loss and rakes in money.  In 2012, about 108 Million Americans were on a Diet, and the Industry brought in $20 BILLION that year, $20 BILLION.  It promises weight loss, but it doesn’t deliver weight loss.

Want to lose weight:  get your head on straight.  You need to eat Real Whole Foods Every Single Day.  You need to plan, cook, shop and pack, and make smart choices when you eat out.  Not because the food is “fattening”, but because it’s loaded with flours, sugars, bad oils and chemicals that make you sick and addicted.  Focus on the word “addicted”, because that’s the biggest struggle I see:  not being able to stop eating or resist foods calling to you.  As long as you’re eating addictive foods containing  Flour, Sugar, and chemicals, you’re going to stay addicted.  It’s just like cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs.  Trying to be “moderate” just ensures the addictive patterns continue.

I do a lot of work with Julia Ross’s Mood Cure and Diet Cure.  It’s an Amino Acid supplement program that restocks/replenishes the neurotransmitters in your brain.  You become ” Normal “, as opposed to Food Driven.  It’s an excellent program that I’ve used on myself, my husband, and several clients.  The results are unbelievable.  If you think you can’t stick to a Real Whole Foods program because the Fake Foods/flours/sugars/chemicals constantly call you, get in touch with me.  You can change.  You can get healthy.  You can be normal weight and full of energy.  Honest. You just need to become a Real Whole Foodie.

Category: Carbs, Fats, Food Additives, Looks Healthy But Isn't, Mind/Body, Psychology of Eating, RWF, Sugar / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Amanda’s Journey; Sleep Deprivation and Carb Cravings

March 6, 2014 / / One comment

manda me uvaEpilepsy sucks.  Trust me.  I don’t have it, but I’ve watched my #2 daughter struggle with this for almost 15 years.  She somehow gets up most days, goes to class, participates in sports, and clubs, and she (thank God) has a ton of great friends ( who’ve always been very supportive); but it can really knock you down sometimes. She had a really rough weekend that culminated in a middle of the night hospital stay, scary “heart attack like pains”, memory issues, and other symptoms.   We’re changing her meds and prayingmanda w wrap that it works.  Here’s two pictures of Amanda:  on the left is about a month ago on the lawn at her school, and on the right is in December after getting about 25 electrodes glued on her head for a 2 day EEG.  It didn’t last 2 days because she had a middle of the night seizure and “activity” that caused her to get up and take every single electrode out.  That’s from the meds, one of them disrupts her REM sleep, a lot.

Anyway, Mark and I rushed down to Charlottesville around 1 am last night and stayed up the whole night.  It’s a busy, busy hospital and there’s absolutely NO sleeping in the ER.  Checking my email the next day, I got not 1 but 2 emails about lack of sleep and over eating / craving bad foods.  One was a friend who has a puppy, and the other was a lady with a baby.  Sometimes there’s no way you can sleep through the night, right?  And wow, it really does a number on your immune system, your neurotransmitters, and your “hunger hormones”, ghrelin and leptin.

I have good news though:  the “unavoidable munchies because of lack of sleep”??  They can be avoided!!  Lack of sleep is such a hit to the body because GOOD THINGS DON’T HAPPEN when you’re up in the middle of the night (these are different things from what we’re warning our teenagers about, but just as bad).  When we’re asleep, the brain does repairs, the muscles do repairs, the immune system makes particular hormones, our glands make corticosteroids and sex hormones, the body makes Human Growth Hormone, the liver is incredibly busy breaking down hormones and toxins, the skin the lungs the kidneys, EVERYTHING is cleaning and repairing or making things.  Trust me when I say I just seriously condensed what goes on during our sleep.  If your sleep is disrupted, or you don’t go to bed early enough, you can get into real trouble.

Sleep has been a pretty big issue and topic in the news for the past few years, and I’ve often seen advice to “eat more protein” on the days you’ve missed sleep.  I agree with that, but I want to add:  Eat More Fat, on these days and every day.  Your body is CRAVING nutrients; you think it wants junk food, but that’s YOU, not your inner brain talking.  Your deepest smartest brain parts know exactly what it takes to build and repair your body, and it’s not carby cereal, or ice cream, or pizza, or chips, or a trip to Fast Food. Carbs build NOTHING, they’re just an energy source.  What you “hear” are the habits you’ve established as comfort when you’re tired/stressed/happy/sad/etc.  Give your body the fat and protein and vitamins and minerals it really wants, and you’ll see those cravings disappear, I promise.

Add the butter, add the fatty broths, pour on the olive oil, make treats with coconut oil, butter, or milk;  up the good fats with your proteins and vegetables and truly sooth your brain and body.  Also, make sure your Neurotransmitters are full:  the serotonin, dopamine, GABA, catecholamines.  These things make you “normal” feeling.  Amino acid supplements, on a particular timed schedule, do this.  Read the Mood Cure or the Diet Cure by Julia Ross, I swear it’s for real.  I’ve used her protocol on ourselves and several nutrition clients now, IT’S FOR REAL.

Another important factor:  don’t set yourself up for failure by having any thing munchie/quick/junkie in your house.  Nothing.  Quit telling yourself your kids might need a snack.  NO ONE needs crap that sets up life long bad habits or creates a state of terrible health in the body and mind.  NO ONE.  Not you, not your kids.

DO SET YOURSELF UP FOR SUCCESS:  have plenty of fats, vegetables, ….INGREDIENTS,.. that you can mix up and genuinely provide your brain and body what it’s actually craving to rebuild, repair, and make hormones and neurotransmitters.  (Remember:  ALL your steroid hormones, and ALL your sex hormones are made from Cholesterol, Saturated Fat, and Minerals.  ALL OF THEM. )

It always comes back to: eat Real Whole Food, doesn’t it?

 

Category: Carbs, Fats, Mind/Body, Question of the Week / Tags: , , , , , ,

Bloat; Leaky Gut; Hamburger Helper; A Recipe

March 3, 2014 / / Comments Off on Bloat; Leaky Gut; Hamburger Helper; A Recipe

stomach problemsWho struggles with:  bloat, gas, indigestion, diarrhea, constipation, IBS, reflux or GERD?  Statistically, at least half of you; actually, since you all are health seekers, I bet more than that.  Please read this, because your gut issues are EARLY WARNING SIGNS THAT SHOULDN’T BE IGNORED.

What I mean by that is if you’ve had any of those conditions long enough, other conditions will arise: headaches, depression, thyroid issues, rheumatoid arthritis / auto immune disorders, fatigue, skin problems, allergies, IBS, Crohn’s, colitis, even autism and behavior disorders.  Seriously.  It’s a big deal, and band-aiding your symptoms with anti-gas/anti-pain/anti-acid medications will absolutely set you up for disaster down the road.

Hippocrates said, ” all disease begins in the gut.”  Science has proven him to be completely correct.

Let me stop here for a second:  suppressing symptoms with medications, instead of solving the reason for the symptom, is not a good idea, ever.  Unfortunately, that “brain washing” I talk about comes into play here:  got a headache, take a pill, got a stomach ache, take a pill, something hurts, take a pill, feel sad/down/anxious, take a pill.   For all of you who take pills, ASK YOURSELF, HAVE THEY RESOLVED YOUR PROBLEMS?  OR ARE THOSE PILLS JUST A REGULAR PART OF YOUR LIFE NOW AS YOU TRY TO SUPPRESS YOUR BODIES CALLS FOR HELP DAY AFTER DAY AFTER DAY?

Back to the gut, here’s a little 411:  all those gut symptoms I listed above are NOT NORMAL.  They shouldn’t happen in a well functioning gut, but that doesn’t mean you need medication.  It’s a sign that your food isn’t digesting quickly or well enough. You can fix that without medications.  Gut medications have serious CONSEQUENCES; pull out your sheet from the pharmacist, or look in / on the box, and you’ll be able to read all about them.  Note this:  6 to 8 weeks is the MAXIMUM amount of time the FDA says ANYONE should be on most gut meds.  That’s because of the damage they cause.  It’s not hypothetical, and that damage won’t just happen to other people, it will happen to you.

What’s the first issue to address?  Your stomach isn’t acid enough. God made our stomach to be incredibly acidic.  Acid kills virus, bacteria, parasites, yeast, and pathogens; acid starts the initial break down of protein and fats; and it triggers the correct steps for the rest of the “southern digestion” in the small and large intestine.  Reduce your acid, and you inhibit all this, and create a gut condition ripe for problems.

There’s a great book by Dr. Jonathan Wright called Why Stomach Acid is Good For You, it’s awesome, and I wish everyone would read it.  If you want the short version, here’s a You Tube of Dr. Wright explaining it in 9 minutes.

There’s some simple tricks to acidify your stomach BACK TO NORMAL, which would hasten your digestion and allow for the proper digestive path to be followed.

What reduces acid, or actually, what suppresses acid production in the gut?  Many prescription and OTC drugs, stress, simple sugars/flours, phosphoric acid from sodas and drinks, certain chemicals in foods, and again: stress or more specifically, the hormone Cortisol.  Imagine the damage we’ve done to our gut after years and years of the Standard American Diet (SAD) and the pills we’ve used to conceal the symptoms.

The second issue to address with bloat, gas, reflux, constipation, diarrhea, and GERD, is the “consequence” issue; or what happens after you’ve had this condition for years.  This was me.  I started having BLOAT in my mid thirties.  I thought it was because I ate so healthy (pounds of fiber cereal, fiber breads, and fruits and vegetables).  I thought my bloat/gas/pain was actually an outward sign of my healthiness!!  I developed really bad asthma and had blood clots in my late thirties.  I took several meds for the asthma, but when the blood clots happened, that was a wake up call.  I wasn’t going on blood thinners, and I made the connection between the two conditions:  they were both “inflammatory” conditions.  I made no connection to my gut at this point whatsoever; but there was.

When you have Bloat/Gas/Reflux/GERD etc, that means you have Low Stomach Acid.  Low Stomach Acid means your food isn’t digesting properly down to the little tiny molecules that absorb through the small intestine wall into the blood stream.  Not only does that make you nutrient deficient, but big proteins (as opposed to tiny amino acids), break through the intestine wall and create “leaky gut“, aka Intestinal Permeability.  Now that you have holes in your gut lining, bacteria and virus that didn’t get killed ( because you don’t have enough stomach acid), and metabolic waste products, ALL OF WHICH SHOULD BE CONFINED TO YOUR GUT, and these big protein chains, “leak out” through the holes, into the bloodstream, where your Immune System sees them and ATTACKS THEM LIKE THE FOREIGN INVADERS THAT THEY ARE.  This should be good, right?  Wrong.

Keep eating the SAD, keep taking the drugs, and the holes stay open, because you’re perpetuating the situation.  INFLAMMATION IS DEVELOPING AND BUILDING as the Immune System stays on ‘over drive’.  Pretty soon, it’s attacking other proteins that “mimic” or resemble the big proteins; proteins in your Lungs, your Thyroid, your Heart, Your Joints, your Brain.  Remember, there’s plenty of proteins in those organs because the body is built from proteins and fats.

My point:  if you have Gut Issues, resolve the cause, don’t try to cover the symptoms.  If you have the Resultant Damage from years of gut issues (crohns,colitis, …), you’re going to have to “heal and seal” your gut if you want Real Healing and Improvement.  How long will this take?  I don’t know, from weeks to months, it depends on the damage you’ve done and how hard you work; but everyone can heal.

Everyone has the power to feel energetic, clear thinking, positive, and healthy, but only if you’re ready to commit to a different path.  If you’re struggling mentally and physically, all you have to do is look backwards and make an honest assessment of what you’ve done to get there. You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to figure it out, you just need to turn off the brain washing and really focus on making that serious connection between what we put in our mouth to our mind and body.  The food we eat becomes us. The food we eat becomes us.  The food we eat becomes us.  hamburgerhelper chicken

box coverLet’s look at another very SAD food product, Chicken Helper, Crispy Ranch Chicken.  Betty Crocker’s/General Mills market shares are down a little, they’ve taken a hit from Kraft’s Mac N Cheese Skillet dinners and frozen food items.  Still, the Hamburger Helper line sells around (2010) $350 Million A Year.

A serving size is one third of a cup. Does anyone eat a third of a cup of food for dinner?  Anyway, a THIRD OF A CUP is 350 calories of crappy fats, crappy carbs, and crappy chemicals.  Cancer in a box!

uncooked roastInstead of falling prey to food products like this, do the Real Whole Food thing, here’s some ideas:  Slow cook a roast for 24 hours:  salt/pepper/herb it; wrap it in a couple layers of aluminum foil, put it in the over at 180*, 24/25 hours before you want to eat it, and DON’T LOOK AT IT.  When it’s done, pull it out finished lamband shred it with two forks.  Keep some in the fridge for the week, and freeze the rest, flat, in freezer bags. Here’s the before and after pictures of a lamb roast I just did.  It was about as big as a loaf of fat bread.

Next, in a big frying pan, put in some broth OR butter and water, and cook onions, broccoli and carrots; or cook a bag of frozen vegetables.  Bake a few whole potatoes in the oven for an hour at 425.  Dinner’s done without a lot of effort.

We are the end result of what we put in our mouth.  What we eat matters.  Take the action steps necessary to be healthy and whole.  Eat Real Whole Food, and remember, focus on your health and your weight issues will resolve.

Category: Cooking, Fats, Food Additives, No Recipe Paleo Meals, RWF / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How to Cruise Without Gaining Weight; 411 on Canola Oil

February 18, 2014 / / Comments Off on How to Cruise Without Gaining Weight; 411 on Canola Oil

us off shipOla!  My husband and I just got back from the Love It Like You Mean It Marriage Cruise; it’s our third one and I highly recommend this for any and all marriages, it’s honestly fantastic.  This is our 5th time for cruising, loveitlikeyouand I thought you might be interested in how to do a cruise without gaining 10 pounds, because that would be reeaalll easy.

First of all, as with any and all vacations, or special occasions, don’t make the journey all about the food.  That’s a big mistake.  Anytime you anticipate food, or a food occasion, the compulsive-excited part of the brain takes over and before you know it, you’ve eaten multiple servings of really, really, unhealthy food.  That leads to all sorts of negative feelings and self-promises to starve/cleanse/detox/whatever it takes to get off the weight, which of course, always leads to “rebound gluttony”.  That’s the Diet Roller Coaster I talk about – you don’t want that!

The problem on a cruise, as opposed to a regular vacation, is that the food is so omni-present; it’s an assumed part of the cruise culture that you’re going to go on the ship and just eat and eat and eat.  With food not just highly available, but visually enticing you everywhere you go, it’s important to go mentally prepared.

What did I do?  Several things: I brought my own lunch food, (bison, beef, and turkey jerky), to eat at lunch time (yep, that’s all I ate at lunch, in my room).  I ordered omelet’s for breakfast with a ton of vegetables, cheese, and some bacon.  Every night, I chowed down on as many vegetables and as much fish and chicken as I wanted, and then I ate a big piece of dark chocolate (that I’d brought) after dinner, back in our room.  I knew from experience that if I let myself indulge in the dessert bar, my sugar switch would be tripped and I’d be in big trouble.  Plus, I’ve learned so much about gluten that I’m scared of flour desserts at this point.  Do I always shun desserts?  No.  But “dessert bars”, where there are literally (honestly) hundreds and hundreds of desserts to choose from, are dangerous.  I like feeling good, and I like not being “food-hungover”.  If you go on a cruise, don’t even look at the dessert bar; it has magical properties that will draw you over and suck you in before you know what hit you.  Seriously.  Don’t even look.

supps on shipI also brought my own Apple Cider Vinegar (it’s really important to keep the stomach super acidic because acid kills pathogens!), stevia packets, and tea.  And just like when we traveled all the way to Culebra, Puerto Rico, Mark brought his raw milk – so I stole some of the cream for the coffee we bought each morning:)  I also brought all my supplements, and some anti-viral/anti-bacterial essential oils that I used each day;  you can never be too careful on a cruise ship!

FYI: we were spending money on bottled and canned waters, thinking they were healthier than the ships water.  We were wrong (thank goodness, because they were expensive).  We took a “behind the scenes” tour and it’s a long explanation, but the water is desalinated and distilled with just steam and no chemicals – so it’s great!!!

All ships also have great gyms, with big weight rooms, plenty of cardio equipment, spin rooms, and yoga rooms; plus there’s always a big track on the top deck. Working out is a must for both of us; we don’t feel relaxed if we skip a workout.  Mark just lifted, but I did circuits every day alternating the elliptical and bike with leg presses, push ups, shoulder presses and triceps work.  Simple, but hard.

That’s enough about the cruise, but if you have any questions about the Love It Like You Mean It cruise, ask me.  It’s an awesome cruise with an awesome agenda.

How bout a little science?  I was asked if Canola oil is a good choice for cooking and salads.  My answer: No.  Canola oil, which is from the Rapeseed plant, can’t be safely extracted from the seeds, and that matters.  Here’s some details from one of my favorite sites:

“But here’s the main problem with canola oil, and why you should think twice before using it – canola oil is highly refined. The oil is removed by a combination of high temperature mechanical pressing and solvent extraction. Traces of the solvent (usually hexane) remain in the oil, even after considerable refining. Canola oil goes through the process of caustic refining, bleaching and degumming – all of which involve high temperatures or chemicals of questionable safety. And because it’s high in omega-3 and 6 fatty acids, (11% and 21% respectively) which easily become rancid and foul-smelling when subjected to oxygen and high temperatures, it must be deodorized. The standard deodorization process removes a large portion of the omega-3 fatty acids by turning them into trans fatty acids. The Canadian government lists the trans content of canola at a minimal 0.2 percent, but it is speculated that they are actually much higher due to the processing. This processing is much different from that of olive oil, which most often is first cold pressed to reduce the oxidation of the oil. Harmful chemicals and fatty acid-altering processing means do not occur with olive oil as they do with canola oil.”

From me:  the condition of the fats we eat really, really, matters. Fat and cholesterol make up about 60% of our brain matter.  Fatty acids and cholesterol comprise the exterior portions of ALL OUR CELLS.  Nutrients need to be able to properly enter cells, and wastes need to be able to properly exit cells.  Bad, damaged fats completely screw up this in-and-out process, and when that happens, all sorts of damage follows.  Canola oil is ALWAYS DAMAGED, always; the heat extraction and toxic chemicals used to produce it make that a sure thing.  There is no other method for extracting the oil at this point.                 elephant

Use good fats for cooking and eating:  butter from grass fed cows, cold pressed olive oil, and coconut oil are three sure bets.  Oh, one more picture from the cruise:  a fun towel animal that the cabin stewards make every night – I love the towel animals!

Category: Fats, Mind/Body / Tags: , ,

Meal Ideas, Food Pics, and Butter Facts

February 8, 2014 / / Comments Off on Meal Ideas, Food Pics, and Butter Facts

How bout some Fun Facts about Butter before I show more Food Pictures?  Good butter is definitely a “Real Whole Food”, one that’s been used by traditional, healthy cultures for thousands of years.  Between 1920 and 1960, heart disease skyrocketed to the number one cause of death in the U.S.  Butter consumption, between 1920 and 1960, plummeted from 18 lbs per person, per year, to 4 lbs per person, per year.  Look at those numbers again and ask yourself where our Health Gurus got the idea that Butter is Bad, and a cause of heart disease.

Butter is loaded with the fat-soluble vitamins, A,D, E, and K, in their most usable and absorbable forms.  These vitamins support the Thyroid gland, the Heart, the Immune System, and several other places in our body.  Vitamin A and D are critical for the absorption of calcium, and vitamin K2 (which the cows make in their stomachs from the K1 in grass) is critical for making sure the calcium goes into the bones and teeth, where it belongs, and not in the arteries, the eyes, the joints, etc, where calcium doesn’t belong.  Butter’s a good source of iodine; it also contains short and medium chain fatty acids that have strong anti-bacterial/anti-viral properties.

Butter from cows raised on grass is much more nutrient dense than butter from grain fed cows.  Interestingly, the vitamin D levels in the butterfat are actually reflective of how much sunlight the cows get, just like us!

And finally, butter doesn’t make you gain weight.  Your body uses and utilizes the nutrients (all the fats and vitamins) butter provides.  Any spare tires around your middle are usually the result of grains, hydrogenated oils, excess sugar, and chemicals masquerading as food products.   Your body USES the nutrients from Real Whole Food to build and to repair.

That said, we eat a lot of butter in this house, mostly Kerry Gold, and sometimes I make it from cream I get at my dairy.  Want to make vegetables taste great?  Add butter.  Even the pickiest eater will cave.

Ready to switch gears to Food Ideas:  here’s some meals from the past couple of days:

smoothie ingredTo the left: ingredients that went into a morning smoothie:  whole, raw milk; egg yolks and an egg, frozen spinach, frozen bananas, frozen cranberries, chia seeds, clove oil, cinnamon and nutmeg, frozen avocado chunks, frozen shredded ginger, cocoa powder, and stevia (which I forgot to put in the picture).frozen fruit

I always use frozen fruit and frozen greens instead of ice.  Here’s a pic: frozen oranges, bananas, blueberries, and cranberries.

chicken lunchOver to the left is one of my lunches:  left over chicken, carrots, brussels, onions, with sea kelp flakes and a plop of fermented beets that I got at Wegmans in the “healthy aisle”.  Got to get in your bacteria!

Here’s some peanut butter/almond butter cookies, the basic pb cookiesrecipe is from Elana’s Pantry, but I’ve messed with it.  I only use butter in cookies, even when it calls for coconut oil, bc I like the taste better.  I doubled the recipe, and used half chunky peanut butter and half chunky almond butter. And where she uses honey, I use Swerve – I LOVE that stuff!

Okay, I’m going to throw out something some of you may think is weird, and I’ve debated about disclosing this, but the last picture is my crock of Kombucha.  If you’re not already drinking it, surely you’ve seen bottles of Kombucha in the store?  It’s fermented tea, and to ferment, it needs bacteria, actually, it needs kombuchaa SCOBY which means Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast.  That’s what the yucky thing on top it.  Before you think that’s going to far, know this, we have over 100 TRILLION bacteria cells in our body. We’re supposed to have 3-5 POUNDS of bacteria just in our colon alone (party trivia fact)!  Current science has shown that we’ve really done an awful job maintaining and nurturing our bacterial “Micro-biome”, and we’re paying for in weak immune systems, mental problems, heart disease, skin issues, and I could go on and on.  Know this:  we need as much good bacteria as we can get, and homemade Kombucha is a traditional food/drink that’s been used since 212BC to do just that.

That’s it for now.  You can see why I don’t get hungry between meals, I eat too much fat and too many nutrients for that to happen.  Eating Real Whole Food everyday can be challenging at first if you’ve had years of fast, easy, thoughtless Processed Food.  Honestly though, a few weeks of effort in planning, shopping, cooking and packing, and it’s not an effort anymore, it’s a habit.  You’ll think differently, and what starts as hard becomes easy and normal.  I promise.  Nurture your body, give it what it needs to be healthy, to feel energetic, to stay well.  Your weight will normalize, your moods will stabilize, you’ll be stronger, less prone to illness, and if you start cooking for your family, your children will reap those same benefits.  Our body is made from trillions of cells that get made out of the foods we eat.  It matters what those foods are.  Be a Real Whole Foodie.

Category: Cooking, Fats, No Recipe Paleo Meals, Paleo Recipe, RWF / Tags: , , , , ,

Food Wisdom and Pictures!

February 5, 2014 / / Comments Off on Food Wisdom and Pictures!

Ready for a little piece of Food Wisdom and some more pictures this week?  Here’s the wisdom:  Real Food is so good, that you don’t even need recipes.  You can just throw a bunch of your favorite foods together in a pan or a pot, and end up with something delicious.  It’s honestly not hard.

I’ve said before that the Food Channel, the cooking shows, the food magazines, and the food blogs – as much as I love them – give the FALSE impression that making meals must be complicated;  something to be undertaken only if you’ve got formal training or years of experience. Not True. Not True!

Think I’m wrong because you feel uncomfortable in the kitchen?  That’s just mental.  Your kids feel uncomfortable when they first start learning math, or how to read, but anything done daily becomes very normal.  You should be cooking daily if you want to see improvements to your health, your weight, and your moods ( and your kids health, weight, and mood).  Real Whole Food has the power to change you for the better; crappy processed food does not.  Think you’re too busy to cook daily?  Then plan your schedule (write it down) to accommodate a few hours of Power Cooking when you do have time.  Let there be a flow to the process:  slow cook a roast and a bunch of chicken over night on 200, or the crock pot, shred, mix with broth and vegetables, cool, then freeze it.  Chop and roast a bunch of sweet or white potatoes, then freeze them.  Make sure you have plenty of good frozen vegetables in your fridge, they’re often much more nutrient dense than fresh since they get flash frozen in the fields now.   Make sure you always make extra so you have enough for lunches;  baggie-up appropriately!  Listen to a great podcast or bring a TV into the kitchen and watch a series.  Over Christmas vacation we had some big, group Power Cooking sessions where we binge watched Walking Dead – it was Heaven!

brussels, carrotsHere’s a recent dinner:  broth, sausage, brussels, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, onion, bunch of spices and herbs.

 

eggs brusselsAnd here’s what I did the next with it for lunch:  added a hard boiled egg ( heavy lifting day plus I taught classes and worked out with a couple clients – I knew I’d be starving)

 

And last, that potato thing:  I put a big glass pan in the hot roasted potatoesoven with a few tablespoons of kerry gold butter (in it) for a few minutes til the butter melts.  Then I chop a BUNCH of potatoes, put them in the butter, add salt and herbs (sometimes rosemary, sometimes italian), toss,  and roast at 425 for 45 to an hour.  I let them cool, then put them in a giant ziploc, and then freeze them as “flat” as possible.  There’s a few servings in the bag and I want to be able to “crack” off a chunk, then I reheat them in the oven for a few minutes ( after they’ve thawed).

Honestly, you don’t have to serve pasta and bread every night to make your meals.  There are other foods out there ( I often get asked, “what else do you feed your kids?”).  Fats, like good butter, olive oil, and coconut oil, make food delicious.  Salt, pepper, spices and herbs, make food delicious.  Hard cheeses grated over vegetables, make food delicious.  These things are loaded with nutrients that both add to and enhance the nutrients you’d already be serving when you serve Real Whole Food.  Be determined to become a Real Whole Foodie!

Category: Cooking, Fats, No Recipe Paleo Meals, RWF / Tags: , , ,

Thyroid Questions, Cholesterol Questions, and Superbowl Binges

February 2, 2014 / / Comments Off on Thyroid Questions, Cholesterol Questions, and Superbowl Binges

debbieI’ve had good questions and good meetings this week that centered on topics that apply to many people, so here goes a diverse post.

Two people asked me questions about Thyroid numbers on their tests.  One person had a high TSH, the other a high T3.  I only have INFORMATION for them to bring to their doctors, not a diagnosis, but it’s important information.  Often when doctors see these numbers, they throw “typical” pharmaceuticals at it; but there’s a much bigger picture to these numbers.  The thyroid doesn’t “stand alone”;  nothing in our body works in isolation, everything works ( or doesn’t work), in tandem with the rest of our body.  Modern medicine/pharmaceuticals treats problems in very isolated ways which explains why so often, health issues aren’t resolved by band-aiding symptoms.

Thyroid Facts:  the Pituitary gland makes TSH, the Thyroid gland does not.  A low or high TSH is something the Pituitary is doing, not the thyroid.  The pituitary is taking a measure of the level of T3 and T4 (the hormones the thyroid DOES make), and then sending out the TSH accordingly.  Here’s the problems:  the pituitary is looking at the amount of T3 and T4 in the blood.  There’s so many reasons for a “mis-reading”:  you don’t have enough Iodine in your diet ( that’s a common deficiency) to knock a T4 down to a T3;  you don’t have enough selenium which keeps T4 low in the blood and reduces reverse T3 ( RT3).  Maybe you don’t get enough zinc and copper – which have vital thyroid functions, or maybe you get these nutrients, but don’t absorb them well because  your stomach acid is too low?  How’s your Vitamin D status, studies show it’s EPIDEMICALLY low, and vitamin D has a HUGE role to play in thyroid function, and auto-immune thyroid disease (Hashimoto’s).  What if you don’t have the enzymes that help knock that 4th T (tyrosine – which is an animo-acid from protein – do you get enough protein?), down to T3, which is the thyroid hormone that actually is USED by our cells, unlike T4, which is basically just a pre-cursor to T3.  What if everything works up to the point of your cells using the T3, but most of your T3 is bound by “globulins” – which makes it Reverse T3 (RT3) and UNUSABLE.

Are you getting my point?  There’s many reasons for your “off” thyroid numbers, and throwing the typical meds (synthroid or armor) at it may not even come close to solving your problem.

Oh!  Stress/Cortisol has HORRIBLE effects on the whole chain of thyroid function – how’s your stress hormones?  Because if they’re shooting off like rockets, no thyroid drug in the world is going to fix that.

I bet I’ve confused you more – Good.  Get unconfused!  Here’s some great resources to read before you let anyone determine a course of action for you.  Dr. Brownstein is a renowned authority on thyroid, he has a great blog and books.  Dr. Izabelle is an expert – and she deals with it herself.    And then there’s the famous site: Stop The Thyroid Madness.

Next, I had a chance to review 2 blood work panels this week.  Interestingly, each of these people had very similar results:  slightly high total cholesterol, great/high HDL, “high” LDL, low triglycerides, and low VLDL.   Each was slightly worried about the TC/total cholesterol number.  I wouldn’t worry about either, and here’s why:  We now know CONCLUSIVELY that TC is a pretty useless, meaningless number when it comes to heart disease.  Even high LDL isn’t a sure thing, there’s 5 kinds of LDL and some are necessary and good.   Our body makes cholesterol in EVERY SINGLE CELL because it’s vitally important to life, health, and well-being.  We’d die without cholesterol, and low cholesterol is NOT linked to health and vitality, but to illness, shortened lifespan, and mental disorders.  Honestly.  Read This for an Expert Researchers/Scientist explanation of why we need cholesterol.

If you’re worried about risk factors for heart disease, look at your Triglycerides, your VLDL, your HDL to TC ratio, and your Triglyceride to HDL ratio.  Look here for the facts and equations. Read Cholesterol Clarity if you want to hear what 28 serious experts make of the latest cholesterol and heart disease information.

What I love seeing?   That 2 different doctors ran the VLDL numbers.  Very Low Density Lipoproteins are indicators of heart disease risk.  VLDL is small and dense, the “bad kind of cholesterol”.  It’s prone to oxidation and causes much artery damage.  Here’s the “good” thing:  our body only makes VLDL when we eat too many CARBS-SUGAR-GLUCOSE and has to convert the excess to TRIGLYCERIDES.  VLDL is made by the liver to carry these triglycerides through the blood to their designated destination ( usually, your abdominal area).  Want lower VLDL?? Eat less crappy carbs and watch your blood sugars.  It’s simple.

Thyroid and Cholesterol, two seemingly different subjects, but one single point:  quit trusting your Doctor to automatically determine the best course of action for you.  Read, learn, educate yourself about YOUR BODY.  We shouldn’t let the pharmaceutical industry (which is where doctors get their continuing ed from)  be our guiding light – they’re a BUSINESS who NEED TO SELL US DRUGS TO SUCCEED.

Drugs have serious consequences and side-effects.  Put some effort into figuring this stuff out before you travel down the path of taking pharmaceuticals, and then adding more pharmaceuticals to counter the side-effects of those pharmaceuticals.

Next:  I got asked what I’m eating for the Super Bowl.  Hmm.  That would just be my dinner around 6pm or so, and it’ll consist of meat and a pile of vegetables, maybe cheese.   I’m not dreaming of a binge, or planning one, or subjecting myself to feeling stuffed, bad, and then hungover.  Why would I do that to myself?

Last, I have to leave you with a few more facts, these are inspired from I don’t remember who in the Future of Nutrition conference:  Inflammation, and the conditions for Disease (heart disease, cancer, diabetes, thyroid…) are developing YEARS, even DECADES, before the manifestation of symptoms.  Actually, studies show that we build and nurture our diseases for an average of 20 years before they actually disrupt our lives.  Even pancreatic cancer and Parkinson’s, which seem to “suddenly-onset” and progress rapidly – studies show they’ve been brewing for an average of 20 years before the symptoms.  Take control of your life, your health, your eating, and your thoughts.  You really, really do have power over these things.

Make the connection between your foods, your eating habits, how you handle stress, how much you sleep, and how much you move, to YOU.  Your energy, your health, your general mood, your creativity, your vitality:  You.  What you do – every day, consistently, mostly, habitually – really, really matters.  Become a Real Whole Foodie:)

Category: Fats, Question of the Week, RWF / Tags: , , , , ,
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