If you’re going to lose weight and get healthy, it’s a MIND thing;  you have to think about food as a source of Nutrients that Build your Health, and you have to acknowledge that “food products”  Destroy your Health.   Every bite you put in your mouth is doing one or the other.

If you only think of Food as Calories, you’re doomed to the Diet Ferris Wheel Lifestyle – weight going up and down, health being compromised, and compulsive thoughts about food.

Take this “for instance”:

It’s morning, you scramble up two eggs in butter w a handful of basil or spinach, and/or a smoothie w/whole milk yogurt, cranberries, banana and flax seed.    Here’s a couple things this would give you: usable protein for muscles, serotonin, and dopamine; antioxidants to fight free radicals occurring from stress or chemicals or oxidation;  vitamins and minerals – with all their co-factors that allow them to be used and absorbed; fiber, and healthy fats – that build your brain, your heart, your hormones, and every single cell in your body, plus all the co-factors that allow them to be absorbed and used.  Real Whole Foods come with all the nutrients that allow each of the nutrients to be utilized. In addition, your Satiety Hormones and Signals would be TURNED ON.

This breakfast wouldn’t make you gain weight, as a matter of fact, the protein and fats in these foods would take a while to break down – preventing hunger.  The proteins and fats would be utilized by the brain to make neurotransmitters and myelin sheaths, so the brain would be satisfied and happy.   Fats and proteins would be USED AS BUILDING BLOCKS, not stored.  The lack of any fast absorbing carbohydrates would prevent any blood glucose rise, which means No blood glucose fall – no moodiness, and energy levels would be even. Insulin probably wouldn’t be used to process this meal – YEA!! Who wants  insulin coursing thru their body, damaging arteries and organs and nerves?

Compare that to the effects of a breakfast consisting of 3/4 cup Honey Nut Cheerios, with skim milk, which is exactly what Main Stream Health would say is a healthy breakfast.  Here’s the ingredient list on the Cheerios:

There are 7 sources of sugars and starches, artificial flavors, and synthetic vitamins and minerals.   Here’s a little info on some of them:  Modified Corn Starch has been chemically altered to make it dissolve quickly (because starch doesn’t dissolve quickly enough already?);  tripotassium phosphate only has a GRAS status(generally recognized as safe), it’s commonly used in pesticides, herbicides, cleaning products, and laxatives; and Natural Almond Flavor is a long chemical ingredient list to create an Almond smell and flavor.  There are 23.3 grams of carbs in 3/4 cups, and almost zero fat and protein, which means these carbs will be broken down very quickly, absorb right thru the intestine wall directly into the blood stream.  This is that Blood Sugar UP that I talk about.  No Satiety factors will be triggered.

Oh, the Skim Milk! Touted for decades as a health food, it’s not even close.  Something this “compromised and processed” doesn’t help with your weight either.

Here’s the scoop on Skim:

Before processing, skim milk has a very unappetizing blueish color, a chalky taste, and watery texture that doesn’t resemble natural milk. So, to whiten, thicken, and make it taste a little more normal, powdered milk solids are mixed into the milk.

What’s so bad about powdered milk? Well, in the manufacturing process, liquid milk is forced through tiny holes at very high pressure, which causes the cholesterol in the milk to oxidize, and toxic nitrates to form. Oxidized cholesterol contributes to the buildup of plaque in the arteries, while unoxidized cholesterol from unprocessed foods is actually an antioxidant to help fight inflammation in the body. The proteins found in powdered milk are so denatured that they are unrecognizable by the body and contribute to inflammation.

Shockingly, dairy manufacturers are not required by the FDA to label the powdered milk as a separate ingredient, because it’s still technically just “milk” .

What else is wrong with skim?  Vitamins A, D, and K are in the FAT of the milk, when this is processed to become fat-free, these vitamins are destroyed.  SYNTHETIC vitamins A and D are added back in, synthetic is NEVER as good as real.  Vitamin K is NOT added back in, we need K for our bones and our blood.   There are a BUNCH of minerals in milk, but minerals NEED SATURATED FATS TO BE TRANSPORTED AND USED,  so the calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium could go UN-USED here.

Add the 12 grams of milk carbs, along with the 23 grams from the cereal, and you’ve just had a breakfast that’s 35 grams of Simple, Quick Dissolving, Carbohydrate.  The nutrients are all “added/fortified”, and there’s very litte protein and fat.   Your Blood Sugar will zoom up, and very quickly, Crash Down.  Eat this for breakfast and be starving by mid- morning.  Not a good way to start your day.

Let’s go back to my original premise, start looking at your food in terms of nutrients and what it does to you, as opposed to how many calories are in it.  Calories in – Calories out doesn’t work for weight loss! Dieting doesn’t work for weight loss – studies show that 95 – 99% of EVERYONE who goes on a Diet gains the weight back. So toss that old used gauge out!   Eat foods that create and nurture your health, and if you need to lose weight, you will.  Start training your brain to think differently; learn to, and focus on the benefits  and the DELICIOUSNESS of Real Whole Foods.