Why Am I Always Hungry??

May 24, 2013 / / Comments Off on Why Am I Always Hungry??

If I counted how many times I’ve heard, “I could never just eat 3 meals a day, I’d starve.  I think I have low blood sugar.  I can’t go more than a few hours between meals.”,    it would be in the hundreds.

Folks, you’ve been hypnotized into believing:  you need to eat constantly to keep your metabolism up;  you’ll waste muscle cells if you don’t constantly feed them;  you NEED to eat every couple of hours or you’ll get so hungry you’ll binge and eat a horse. eating a horse   This is all propaganda designed to get you to eat processed, refined food products – seriously.  This line of thinking started in the muscle magazines about 15/16 years ago, I know, because I was a devotee of every muscle mag out there for about 20 years.  Protein bar and Protein drink makers – successfully – pushed the idea that if you ate some protein every couple of hours, you’d build muscle and get lean.  Wow.  Is that an idea that just took off.  Their advertising and articles were accomplanied by pictures of incredibly fit bodybuilders who ate 6 or 7 mini-meals a day, a combination of real foods like meat and broccoli, with protein powder or protein bars.

A picture’s worth a thousand words, and these people looked great.  However,  if you read their blogs, and kept up with research on food timing, you’d be privy to the problems of constantly eating.  First of all, these are pictures of COMPETITORS, who despite eating 6 or 7 times a day, have an incredibly low calorie consumption – that’s how they get ripped and lean.  Second, if you attended any Body Building shows, or followed their blogs, you’d know that they cycle in and out of incredible leanness, and some degree of “not lean at all”, to plain “overweight”.    Plus, jokes about chronic stomach distress, low energy, and ammenorhea (lack of menstrual cycle), are the norm, not the exception.   Does that sound healthy?FLEX

When you eat low cal/low fat, the fact is that you will be Constantly Hungry.  You will be consumed with thoughts of food. (study after study after study confirms this)   Low Cal/Low Fat starves the body and brain of nutrients.   Our body is made of: water (60%ish), proteins (16%ish), fats (15%ish), carbs (2%ish), vitamins, and minerals .  The brain is 60% fat.  If you’re not taking in enough FAT and Protein – your body and brain will send CONSTANT signals to get you to eat. Try to live on vegetables and lean meats, or worse, “diet foods”,  and you are setting yourself up to fail.

As a matter of fact, THE BEST WAY TO GAIN WEIGHT IS TO GO ON A DIET AND CUT YOUR CALORIES AND YOUR FAT INTAKE.    It’s a guaranteed “sure thing”.  Plenty of studies prove this.

Need to lose weight?  Eat Real Whole Foods:  healthy portions of good meats and eggs, plenty of healthy fats, TONS of vegetables, some fruits, some nuts/seeds, some dairy if you tolerate it.    Feed your body the nutrients it needs to thrive, and if you need to lose weight you will. What about hunger?  It OFTEN – but not always – abates, when you regularly consume foods that nuture your body.   I’ve worked with many, many people who thought they couldn’t eat that many calories, or just eat 3 meals, or consume that much fat, but they could and they did and they lose weight and feel great.  I’ve also worked with some people who are so addicted to food and eating that it’s way more than a physical endeavor, it’s mental also.

Food addiction is something I’ve had a lot of experience with, so if this is your problem, get in touch with me.  You can escape food addiction – I promise.    There is hope and a future free of self-hate, negativity, and castigation.

Whether that’s your problem or not, changes in your health and weight are completely possible.

Back to the original thought about weight and meal frequency and metabolism.  It’s all a big sham and here’s a few reasons why:

1) Studies show it doesn’t matter how many meals you divide your daily calories into, it still takes the same amount of energy to digest (not “burn”) that food.

2) Constantly eating means constantly high levels of blood sugar/glucose, which means high insulin.  High blood sugar leads to low blood sugar, that’s the Blood Sugar Blues (weight gain, health issues, and attitude problems).  Insulin and excess Glucose are caustic and inflammatory – to just about the whole body.

3) High insulin + High blood glucose = High Triglycerides.

4) Constant eating has a BAD effect on your hormones (that’s the real reason people gain weight), because constant eating means high Insulin and high Cortisol.  Taking breaks between meals  allows blood sugar to stablaize, and Insulin to recede, which means GLUCAGON can be released, and this hormone taps fat cells to release their energy.  You could call this “fat burning”.

5) Frequent meals lead to …..  hunger, and a desire to eat more.  Eating becomes habitual.

6) Back to Metabolism!   A high metabolism is a sign of fast cell turnover.  Fast cells are HUNGRY cells.  People with fast metabolisms need to eat more often.   Slow metabolisms mean slower cell turnover; theoretically, these people SHOULDN’T be as hungry.  But, in America, with 70% overweight, hunger isn’t just about nourishment or an empty stomach, it’s about desire and want.  (back to addiction and habit – get in touch with me)

Once again,  the path to lean and healthy is “just eat Real Whole Food”.  Don’t be afraid of good fats, and let hours go between meals.   Food for thought.

(Don’t forget my Blood Sugar and Digestion workshops:http://www.rocksolidnutritionandwellness.com/workshops/)

 

Category: Carbs, Fats, Psychology of Eating /

What’s Wrong With Grains?

May 23, 2013 / / Comments Off on What’s Wrong With Grains?

I’ve got some great questions on which grains are okay, as in gluten free or “safe”.  My answer?  None are really okay or safe, and here’s why.

If you’re eating a grain that contains the protein “gluten”, you’re ingesting one of the most common allergens out there.  Don’t see any evidence of common allergy symptoms, like stomach ache or stuffy nose? That’s because food allergies, or food sensitivities, manifest in several different forms, especially sore joints, headaches, skin problems, and auto-immune eat less breadconditions.   Really.  The gluten protein is incredibly difficult to digest, for almost everyone.  It often goes thru the small intestine IN-completely digested, perforates the intestine wall, and leaks out into the blood stream as a large protein as opposed to tiny amino acids.  When our immune system sees the big proteins in the blood, it mounts an Immune Attack, and this can manifest as joint pain or an attack on different organs or systems.    Pretty serious stuff.

What if your grains, such as kamult or spelt,  don’t contain gluten?  They still contain “gliadins”.  Gliadins, once digested, become “exorphins”, which are morphine-like compound that bind to opiate receptors in the brain.  Their effect is to cause Addictive Behavior, and Appetite Stimulation.  Grains (and sugars – both become Glucose in the blood), are as addictive as modern feel good drugs.    Ever not been able to stop eating those crackers or sweets, even if you’re full?comfort w chocolate :wine

What about “healthy whole grains”, like buckwheat, quinoa, or millet??  They get stamps of approval on cereal packages – they must be good, right?

Here’s the carb counts on a few of those:

1/2 c oatmeal  29g carb

1/4 c wild rice 34g carb

2 oz wheat pilaf w orzo   40g carb

1/4c barley 32g carb

1/4c quinoa 30g carb

2oz whole wheat pasta  44g

Note that these serving sizes are really, really, small – not realistic portion sizes.

The point?  Grains are really high in carbs. So in addition to the proteins, or the lectins, or the gliadins that are either hard to digest or cause addictive behaviors, there’s the starchy part of the grain that’s incredibly easy – and quick – to break down and send thru the intestine wall, right into the blood stream, as Glucose.

If you’re struggling with weight, or blood sugar problems (more and more normal weight people are having blood sugar issues), you’ve just dumped a load of glucose in your blood that will need to be delt with ASAP.  (because high blood sugar is a TOP priority of the body).

What happens with excess blood sugar?  It get repackaged as TRIGLYCERIDES and deposited in the stomach area.  Here, you can call it belly fat, estrogen belly, wheat belly, or carb baby.  Whatever sounds the best.

So back to the beginning.  I don’t think there are safe starches – for most people.  I think most people should be getting their carbs from fruits and vegetables.  I do know a COUPLE of people who eat completely reasonably, and never OD on starchy carbs, but I think they’re the exception, and not the rule.  For most of us –  normal people – limit the grains if you want to be healthy and lean.

And of course, eat Real Whole Foods:)

PS:  Remember I have 2 local workshops coming up on Blood Sugar/Hormones and Digestion – the real keys to being lean and healthy.   Information is here:  http://www.rocksolidnutritionandwellness.com/workshops

 

Category: Carbs /

Iron Info and Lifestyle Thinking

May 21, 2013 / / Comments Off on Iron Info and Lifestyle Thinking

I’m feeling all motivation this morning, so that’s coming.  First though, I’ve had a few run-ins, in just a few days, with people who are having either iron overload problems, or iron deficiency.   Iron absorption is a pretty big issue, and I just want to touch briefly on a few pointers and guidelines about it.

Iron plays a large part in the amount of oxygen that gets delivered to our muscles, brain, and tissues, but it’s also involved in metabolism, immune function, DNA synthesis, growth, and healing, among other  things.  It’s important.

Deficiency and Over-Sufficiency both come with pretty serious consequences.  Children and menstruating females are most likely to be Deficient, and men and menopausal women are more likely to have too much iron.   It’s important to keep an eye on your levels via regular blood tests.

Moms, kids tend to be iron deficient, as a matter of fact, it’s a fairly common problem with the SAD (standard american diet) that most kids are on.  It will affect their growth, energy and health, so remedying that is important.

Here’s a few tips:  iron comes in two forms,  “heme iron”, which is from animal sources, and “non heme iron”, which is from plant sources, and egg whites. (that’s simplistic, but accurate)  Heme iron is MUCH more absorbable and usable by the body than non heme.  Much more.  For instance, spinach is loaded with iron, but less than 2% of it’s iron is absorbed (the Popeye thing was misleading- he lifted heavy for those forearms!);  soybeans have more iron than red meat, but less than 7% of their iron is absorbed.popeye

If you are iron DEFICIENT, you’re going to need to add some meat protein, as that iron is highly absorbable, and there are other “co-factors” in meat that aid  absorption.   Vitamin C also SERIOUSLY increases iron absorption – by 4X!!

Phytates in grains and nuts, the mineral CALCIUM, and Tannins in teas and coffee INHIBIT iron absorption.

If you’re iron status is normal, just eat well rounded meals and the body takes care of itself.

If you have too much iron, then add the CALCIUM, the phytates from your nuts (you know how I feel about grains), and your coffee or tea to your meals containing iron.  They will all help prevent absorption.

Enough about Iron – on to Food!

Here’s my quote for the day:  “Make your health and your energy your priority, and then if you need to lose weight you will.”

Honestly, it’s not the other way around despite decades of hearing it put that way:  Lose weight and get healthy.  That doesn’t happen because when people try to lose weight, they go on DIETS.  Diets make people GAIN WEIGHT and become LESS HEALTHY.  Don’t believe me?   Statistics say that at least 95% of EVERYONE who goes on ANY kind of diet and loses weight will GAIN IT ALL BACK PLUS SOME.  Some stats say that the real number is 99%.

Diets imply a beginning and an end.  An effort that you’re going to make for a period of time to not eat too many calories, to consume certain foods, to shun other foods, and usually to exercise to “burn calories”.

The average dieter displays an enormous amount of strength to resist their normal routines and habits for a few days, or a few weeks, sometimes even a couple months, and then, whether jumping off ferris wheelthey lost weight or didn’t (which does happen), they get tired of the mental effort required to constantly fight their urges.  They give in/fall off the wagon, gain weight, mess up hormones, and re-ignite negative patterns that keep them on the Diet Ferris Wheel. (let’s not forget the self-hate that comes with the Diet Ferris Wheel.)

Don’t let this happen to you!  If you need to lose weight, put your time and focus on eating Real Whole Foods:  meats, healthy fats, TONS of vegetables, some fruit, some nuts, some dairy (if you tolerate them).  Try to skip the snacks, avoid flour and sugar products (blood sugar blues and triglyceride production),  let hours go between meals so that Glucagon(a fat burning hormone) can be released.   Put your mental energy on RWFs being a normal LIFESTYLE for you, not a temporary effort that may or may not result in weight loss that won’t last.

Take steps, do ACTIONS, that will have positive results:  shop, cook, plan your day in writing,  get to bed at a decent hour (the evidence linking lack of sleep and belly fat is HUGE), exercise or at least move – every day, drink tons of water;  in other words, work on your daily habits.  These steps will only sound like an effort until they’re just normal.  Does that make sense?

Work on deleting the Diet Mindset.  Work on habits that make your liver, your hormones, your immune system, your whole body,… run right.    Our body wasn’t made to run on crappy carbs, tons of sugar, and chemicals.  If you’re sick, tired, and overweight, there is a simple solution that’s 100% full proof and long term.  Eat Real Whole Foods.

 

Category: Carbs, Cooking, Psychology of Eating, Uncategorized /

Power Cooking – The Secret to being Lean and Healthy

May 15, 2013 / / Comments Off on Power Cooking – The Secret to being Lean and Healthy

I’m writing this blog on a Saturday, so I’ve got weekend plans on my mind.  Who thinks about Power Cooking on the weekends?   And what the heck is Power Cooking?   It’s a great idea to take advantage of any spare hour or two, whether it’s over the weekend, or any week day, to prep and cook for several meals.

Power Cooking is when you’ve made a menu idea of foods that could last you a week or longer between the fridge and freezer; and you get them “table ready” in a a couple of hours. These foods can be for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.   Here’s an example:

pulled chicken, pulled roast, pesto, giant salad, roasted potatoes, hardboiled eggs.

cooking mamaIf these were my menu ideas, I’d make an ingredient list, shop, and PLAN/write down in my to-do book an appointment for myself  to spend a couple of hours cooking.  Sometimes this is Sunday afternoon, sometimes it’s a weekday.  It depends on my work schedule, and my kids sports/school schedule.  But I always schedule it.   If I didn’t schedule it, I wouldn’t get to it.

If any kids are home and available, I get them to scrub vegetables/chop.  Usually, I do this alone, because for me, I’ve trained myself to think of Power Cooking as Me Time.  I prop a TV up on the counter, I pop in a DVD to a great series (right now I’m on season 3 of Justified), and I go to town.   Sometimes I listen to lectures or Podcasts instead.  Other friends I know listen to music and drink wine when they cook – whatever makes you happy and in-the-moment!

I ALWAYS have a PLAN Written down and Displayed on my counter, something like this:

-chicken in pot to boil ( this cooks/simmers for hours, till it’s shreddable)paleo comfort foods

-S&P roast, wrap in foil, pop in oven at 200* for 24 Hours – set timer

(shred tomorrow, freeze half immediately)

-hard boil a dozen eggs to keep in fridge

-wash and cook 8 potatoes, 4 sweet, 4 white   (these last forever – I either

cut/dice/saute in butter, or split, fill, and twice bake)

-make basic salad to fill largest plastic container ( all my girls, and I, eat a lot of salad;  in the winter, I tend to cut and roast a lot of vegetables instead)

-make a favorite pesto recipe,  to be used on potatoes, or meat, or on eggs, or in salad

paleo book elenaSometimes I’ll make a actual recipe (casserole, dish), pop that in the fridge, and reheat on a particular night.  I was doing that a LOT for a while when all my kids were home.  I’ve learned from the Food Channel that flavors actually intensify over a few days in the fridge.  So night’s we’d get in late from a practice or game, all I’d have to do is pull the pan/pot from the fridge and warm it up.

Why all the effort?  Why’d I spend Focus Time on thinking of cooking as enjoyable, and Me Time?  Because food is that important to my health, my weight, and my families health – and their MOODS! I’ve got 4 daughters;  the amount of estrogen in this house is huge.  The last thing I need is to stoke any emotional fires by feeding my kids a diet of sugar, refined carbs, and chemicals.  Seriously.  And that goes for me too.

Looking for some fun recipes?  Try www.civilizedcavemancooking.com, PaleoOMG.com, primal palate.com, or any one of hundreds of sites on the web.   IMPORTANT:  if your time is limited, set a timer as to how long you let yourself browse recipe sites, because it can be quite additive.

Feed your body the nutrients it wants to build your brain, your muscles, your immune system, your hormones, ……. your health.   What we eat matters.  Eating – and cooking – Real Whole Foods,  is important.

Category: Uncategorized /

WORKSHOPS ON BLOOD SUGAR AND DIGESTION

May 13, 2013 / / Comments Off on WORKSHOPS ON BLOOD SUGAR AND DIGESTION

Howdy Readers,

I’m going to be holding 2 local workshops on Blood Sugar Regulation and Digestion.  Sound like odd topics?  Why not “How to Lose Weight” or “How to Get Healthy”?   OR :  I Can Make You Skinny By June! ??

Because, if you want to lose weight and get healthy, it’s ALL about how well your digestive system is working and the state of your hormones.  Period.  There’s No diet foods, or diet drinks, or diet pills, or diet protocols, or a “fat burning” exercise that will take your weight off and keep it off.

As a matter of fact, Diet Foods put weight ON.  Seriously, the evidence behind artificial sweeteners, chemical ingredients, refined carbs, and “franken” fats fills text books.  It’s no ones secret, yet the marketing behind these products is in the Billions and Brilliant.

Perfect digestion is critical to our weight and our health.  If you don’t have ENOUGH stomach acid, or sufficient pancreatic enzymes, or you have leaky gut, or not enough beneficial bacteria in your lower intestine,  you’re in trouble.     Anyone have indigestion,  burping, gas, cramps, or general stomach pain and discomfort?  What about a “stomach bloat” that comes on every afternoon and doesn’t disappear til morning?    NOT NORMAL,  totally  Fixable.

Fixable with what?  More Pepcid or Tagament?  Could your body be deficient in those meds??  Absolutely not.  And if you are taking digestive medications, YOU”RE DOING MORE HARM THAN GOOD.    Read the pamphlet’s that come with any of those, they’re meant to be used on a very short term basis – for good reason! (which I’ll be going over in the workshops)

Allergies, auto-immune, liver problems, weight issues, fatigue, migraines, etc etc – all the result of improper digestion, not a medicine deficiency.   Really, this is a Big, Important topic.  You should know how your body is supposed to work if you want it to work correctly;  don’t fall prey to marketing and advertising of products that literally bandaid your symptoms while allowing problems to grow, or have a set of side effects that make everything worse,

Blood Sugar Regulation?  Your hormones are the key to EVERYTHING!!  One of my instructors  has a line that “we look at the world through Hormone Colored Glasses”. (I love that)   When you eat too many  refined carbs (or even too many good carbs if you have blood sugar issues), and your Insulin ( a major hormone) is Dis-regulated,  YOUR WHOLE HORMONAL SYSTEM IS DISREGULATED:  cortisol, adrenaline, testosterone, estrogen, all of them, are affected and can be disregulated too.  Insulin is a Primary Hormone,  it sets the tone for all our other hormones.  (Actually, cortisol’s a biggie too;  I’ll be talking about that.)

Eat a typical, standard American diet (SAD) of cereal, coffee drinks, sandwiches, chips, snacks, and pasta, and you are a hormonal disaster.   Eat constantly, all day long, have your blood sugar UP and Down and Up and Down, You are a Hormonal Disaster.  Eating like that wrecks your gut too, and there goes your Digestion.

My workshops will be two hours long, and they will cover the same material.  Come once, or if you’re up for it, need to resolve issues and really learn how this Biology is supposed to work, come twice.

I’ll be holding each workshop at the Marshall Community Center.  It’s easy to get to, right off Rt 17 and Rt 66.  They have a great room that I’ve used for other workshops and it can accommodate a lot of people. Plus they have plenty of parking.  For my out of town readers,  Video formatting is in the works, more on that when it’s ready.

I don’t have my PayPal Widget set up, so I can’t take payments via my site (yet).  If you want to attend, please just mail me a check or pay at the door.  Either is fine, just let me know in advance if you’ll be attending so I can make sure the rooms set up correctly.

Details:

Digestion and Blood Sugar Workshop

May 31st, Friday 1-3 or June 5th, Wednesday 6 – 8pm

Cost: $30 per person – cheap, because I want people to learn this stuff and not be at the mercy of bad information and persuasive marketing.

Send checks to (or make checks out to)

Debbie Abbott

9277 Maidstone Rd

Delaplane Va 20144

and please email me to confirm attending.  Can’t wait to see you there!

Category: Carbs, Sugar /

Want to Lose Weight?

May 12, 2013 / / Comments Off on Want to Lose Weight?

cat-remember dietHow do you lose weight – PERMANENTLY?

Well, you employ the Real Keys to Weight Loss:   SMALL, CONSISTENT changes, day after day, week after week, month after month.  You eat Normal, Moderate amounts of Real Whole Foods, and let houurss go between meals so that your blood sugar has a chance to regulate/get within normal range, and THEN, fat cells can be burned for energy.  You stay persistent even after veering off course.
What happens when you eat way less calories than your body needs?  I.E., a real low calorie diet? ( I’m not giving a number, bc it would be different for everyone based on bone stucture, muscle propensity, and activity level, but if you’re genuinely hungary because your meals are so small, it’s probably “very low calorie”.)
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When you eat Very Low Calorie for just a couple of days, your brain perceives a starvation/crisis situation.  Muscle tissue is very metabolically active, and takes a lot of energy/calories to sustain.  Fat tissue is much less metabolically active, and takes very very Few calories/energy to sustain.    If your brain thinks that there is going to be a shortage of calories/energy, your brain will instruct specific hormones to TAKE APART MUSCLE TISSUE TO FEED THE BODY.  Your brain will STAY AWAY FROM BREAKING DOWN THE EASIER TO KEEP FAT TISSUE IN A TIME OF ENERGY SHORTAGE.  

Read that again.youll lose wt on any diet:crying

Low Calories Diets, even a couple of DAYS of Low Calorie, ( according to studies), trigger your body to break down muscle tissue for fuel to save energy for the brain and body.    Low Calorie Diets Fail.  Some people can sustain them; but they eat up a lot of their muscle tissue, and really  slow down their metabolisms.

Usually though, Very Low Calorie Diets aren’t sustainable – so after the short period of abstinance, when Muscle Tissue is destroyed for fuel and Metabolism is drastically slowed,  – then there’s a back-lash of over eating.  Now, there’s TOO many calories, and the body’s metabolism has been made slower from the Diet.  What does that lead to?  Weight Gain.  Easy weight gain.  Because now, with less muscle,  your body burns less calories at Rest and at Work.

This is why when I see magazine covers or ads promising  “Lose 7 pounds in 10 days”  I want to scream.  Anyone can do that – ask a wrestler.  Starve, spit, take laxatives, take stimulants, take drugs,   and you’ll lose weight.  All Muscle.
The body gives up FAT when it feels nourished (with healthy fats and proteins, tons of vegetables, some fruit, some dairy, some nuts and seeds), and it has Blood Sugar Under Control (from not overdoing the starchy carbs, and letting hours pass between meals so that blood sugar can regulate).

Diets Don’t Work.  That’s a Statistic.  Not my opinion.  If you want to lose weight, eat Normal/Moderate amounts of Real Whole Food, and let hours pass between meals.    Weight loss is about blood sugar and hormones.
Weight Loss is NOT about excessive exercise or Low Fat or Low Calorie. Think about it with Common Sense – who does that work for in the long run? No One.

So today, and everyday, Nourish Your Body.  Eat Real Whole Foods.

Category: Carbs, Psychology of Eating /

SOY JOY – NOT!

May 12, 2013 / / Comments Off on SOY JOY – NOT!

funny soyLet’s talk about soy. I know I’ve talked about it before, but wow, this is such a total LHBI (looks healthy but isn’t). It doesn’t deserve it’s mythical status, and a little more bad mouthing is totally appropriate:)

A couple decades ago, when the soy dream hit this country big time, we were all jumping on the band wagion, right? After all, Asians ate it, and they didn’t have menopause! It must be a miracle food!
The scientific evidence against soy has been piling up ever since, but somehow, the word doesn’t get out too well.

 

Here’s the word:
Soy is disastrous for your hormones and your gut.
Here’s some details:
-female babies fed soy milk have higher rates of harm to their reproductive systems thanks to the soy phytoestrogen, genisin
(btw, a phytoestrogen is a plant substance that mimics estrogen in our body)dog fat from soy
-studies show that testosterone decreases in men who consume soy
-soy accelerates puberty in girls
-soy isoflavones genistein and diadzein stimulate existing breast cancer cells (cells that you don’t always know you have)
-studies show that just 2 tbsp of soy a day, in healthy individuals with ADEQUATE iodine intake, slows thyroid function
(soy is definitely “goitrogenic”, which means it interferes with iodine use by the thyroid gland)
-soy contains Protease Inhibitors. This is big. Protease is an enzyme that digests protein. Our pancreas excretes it into our duodenum/first part of small intestines, and it’s a major step in our digestion. So the protein in soy, and any other protein you eat along with the soy, is rendered largely unusable. The Protease Inhibitors inhibit the breakdown of all sources of protein. Talk about gut disrupting. And nutrient depleting. We need protein, it’s our number 2 building block after water.

Then there’s the problem of undigested soy, and other proteins, continuing south through the digestive system – undigested. Instead of having been broken down into little, usable, amino acids, they’re too big to filter thru the intestine wall into the bloodstream. Destruction follows as the big proteins bust thru the wall, and cause…… Leaky Gut. Big problem, and far more common than you could imagine.

There’s more: soy also contains high amounts – more than any other grain – of Phytic Acid. Phytic acid prevents the absorption of minerals in the gut/use by our bodies. Which minerals? Calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc. Oh, guys, zinc is used to make testosterone – let that be another nail in soy’s coffin. To all of us, zinc’s important to immune function, collagen production, and the brain and nervous system.
All these minerals are vital, and deficiency is rampant. With soy being used in about 60% of all processed foods, you can see where this is a big problem.

How does China get away with it? They eat fermented soy. The fermentation process breaks down the phytic acids and protease inhibitors. Americans don’t eat much miso or temph or natto, (traditional, fermented soy preparations). Americans eat tofu, soy milk, soy protein isolate, soy protein concentrate, and other highly industrialized and processed forms of soy.

Still not convinced? Here’s a very detailed article by Dr. Mercola called Why you Should Avoid Soy.

More reasons to Read Your Labels!! It matters what we put in our bodies! The food we eat affects our mood, our health, and our weight. Eat Real Whole Foods.

Category: Looks Healthy But Isn't /

Which Butter is Best?

May 11, 2013 / / Comments Off on Which Butter is Best?
Here’s a great question that someone asked me recently…
Hi Debbie, I have been using Smart Balance Light Butter & Canola Oil Blend (spreadable). I am wondering if this is a good choice for me (it contains polyunsaturated fat).  I have high cholesterol.
Fat content: Total – 5gsmart balance
Saturated – 2g
Trans – 0
Polyunsaturated – 1g
Monounsaturated – 2.5g
Ingredients (in order) are water, butter, canola oil, 2% buttermilk powder, fish oil, plant sterols, salt, lactic acid, distilled monoglycerides, natural flavor, pectin, PGPR, potassium sorbate, vitamin A palmitate, beta carotene color. It looks good because the fat content is low ( and we’ve been led to believe that important); also, the Canola Oil Lobby has done an incredible job promoting their product as healthy.  I don’t think it is and here’s why.
Canola Oil is an Omega 6 oil, that means it’s “poly-unsaturated”.  Our body needs PUFAs (polyunsaturated fatty acids), that’s what Omega 3s are.  But of all the oils, their chemical structure is the most UNSTABLE.  This matters.  Unstable fats are 100% prone to damage in the presence of heat and light and oxygen (unlike Saturated fat, which is HIGHLY stable).  The body will use damaged fats to build cell walls and cell membranes if we eat them.  Imagine building a brick building with rocks from the drive way and trying to make it work.  Is that a good picture?The ONLY way to “expel” the oil from the seed of the canola (actually the plant is called RapeSeed, they call the oil canola to make it sound more pleasant), is ….thru heat. Period.  So when it gets to the bottle, it’s already damaged.  If you’re cooking with it, you’re damaging it even more.
Let’s look at the rest of the ingredients in the artificial butter-like spread product.  Buttermilk powder:  when you see this, or skim milk powder, which legally does NOT have to be identified when added to milk products,  know that it’s Oxidized.  Oxidized Fats are super super bad for us.  They damage artery walls.  Talk about skyrocketing LDL levels. Distilled Monoglycerides:  this is fascinating.  Mono and Di-glycerides are Hydrogenated Palm Oil.  As in , it’s a Hydrogenated Fat. (bad bad bad).  But when the chemists who discovered how to do it went for their patent, they applied for it as an EMULSIFIER, not as a hydrogenated fat.  So when you see mono and diglycerides on the ingredient label, they do NOT have to be included in the fat identification.  Ugh.  Thank you FDA.  Natural Flavor: read MSG and a TON of chemicals  (how else do you make butter flavor out of thin air?)  PGPR: an emulsifier from psycho showercastor beans usually used to make cheaper chocolates thin and viscous.  Moussalini force fed this to prisoners to give them dirrehea and stomach problems to make them talk.  I guess food scientists are just always keeping their ear to the ground for inventive ways to use neat products.  Potassium Sorbate:  this has a GRAS (generally recognized as safe) status, because the FDA says we would only see side effects (nausea and migraines) with long term use. Hmmmm. What the heck do they consider “long term use”?  Go back and look at the ingredient list for Butter (….. cream….).
 Compare that to this “healthy, low fat, butter substitute”.  And finally, to partially address the “I have high cholesterol” and since this contains PUFAs, it must be good, right? Read this:  There is NO Good Scientific Link Between Healthy Saturated Fats and High Cholesterol.
Cholesterol is going to be another email unto it’s self, so I’ll just point you in a couple of directions if you’re really interested:  go on WheatBelly.com or ChrisKresser.com and put cholesterol into their search bar.  Look at the research instead of listening to marketing via pharmaceutical makers.
Back to this product and cholesterol.  There’s damaged, oxidized buttermilk that raises cholesterol, there’s damaged PUFAs that raise cholesterol, and there’s chemicals that go thru the body and cause damage, and that raises cholesterol. Cholesterol is used by the body as a healing substance.  Seriously.  God did not make a giant mistake when He designed our bodies so that almost EVERY SINGLE CELL we have produces cholesterol.  And the liver produces tons.  Where there is INFLAMMATION, from Insulin, from Sugar, from Chemicals, and from Damaged Fats, the liver sends CHOLESTEROL to patch or fix it…….Reread that last paragraph.
food:medicineYou want lower cholesterol?  Quit eating sugar and processed carbs, quit eating chemicals, and quit eating bad fats.
Want to lose weight?  Quit eating sugar and processed carbs, quit eating chemicals, and quit eating bad fats.
Want to get healthy?  Quit eating sugar and processed carbs, quit eating chemicals, and quit eating bad fats.
Eat Real Whole Foods.
Category: Uncategorized /

The Evidence Against Diet Soda – it won’t make you skinny.

May 11, 2013 / / Comments Off on The Evidence Against Diet Soda – it won’t make you skinny.
How is the Real Whole Food effort going?  Remember, it’s just a journey.  Resolve to evolve:)Today I’m going to write about Diet Soda, and there’s so much information that it’ll be a struggle to keep this short.  If you DON’T drink Diet Soda, there’s still pertinent info here, as artificial sweeteners and phosphoric acid are in many, many food products.

Here’s the gist of it:  Diet Soda is Pure Poison.
Here’s the details, and some surprising facts:  The National Institute of Health and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition have both recently published the results of huge studies – more than 300,000 people, and longer than 14 years, where they accessed the health risks of Diet Sodas.  So these results are pretty substantial.  And surprising.
  • DIET soda drinkers are 30% more likely to be depressed than regular soda drinkers (surprising)
  • (Coffee drinkers are 10% LESS likely to be depressed than Non coffee drinkers – off topic, but interesting!)
  • Diet Soda increases the risk of Obesity by 200% – you read that right.  200%.  Not a typo.
  • Diet Soda, much more than regular soda, causes intense sugar and carb cravings.
  • Diet Soda has a high correlation to Weight Gain, Stroke, and Heart Disease, more so than regular soda.
  • Diet Soda drinkers drink TWICE as much soda as regular soda drinkers.  (Read: Twice As Many Chemicals)
Please don’t read those bullet point as me giving regular soda the green light, because that stuff’s poison too.  Pure Chemical Concoction . I’m talking about “diet soda”  for a reason:  There is a false sense of security that when we consume foods or drinks that are low in calories, /diet,oh you drink diet soda? we’re doing something good for our weight and our bodies.  If we’re talking about low cal veggies, that’s true.  If we’re talking about low cal Frankenfoods, that’s completely wrong.I bet if you’re a diet soda drinker, you’re feeling a little anxious right now. I understand.  I was addicted for years myself. But it matters that you give it up;  and Moms, it matters that you set the example for your kids.  Again, this stuff is poison.  If your kids see you drinking it, they’ll want to drink it because it’s Delicious and Highly Addictive.Okay, back to the facts.Diet Soda is usually sweetened with one of two sweeteners.   NutraSweet (aka Aspartame), which is a Neurotoxin that overstimulates brain neurons and causes neurological symptoms such as dizziness, seizures, depression, breathing problems, and weight gain.  Studies have linked it to cancer, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, and multiple sclerosis. Aspartame contains methanol, which converts to Formaldehyde.  In the body.  Gross.  NutraSweet  also spikes insulin, that’s your fat storing hormone. The other predominant sweetener is Splenda (aka Sucralose).  Sucralose decreases good gut bacteria by about 50%.  Also, Spenda is made by adding Chlorine to Sucrose;  this creates chemical changes that make this completely unsafe for pregnant women as there’s a link to birth defects and other prenatal conditions, and Chlorinated compounds do have suppressive effects on the Immune System. Splenda/sucralose also spike insulin (more fat storing), and some studies link it to migraines, gastrointestinal issues, and thymus gland damage.  Yikes.All soda, Diet or regular, caffeinated or non-caffeinated,  contains Phosphoric Acid.  Here’s the Diet Soda /  Osteoporosis Link.

Phosphorus is a necessary mineral in our body. The problem stems from OVERconsumption of Phosphorus; the average American consumes at least 3X as much as they need.  Phosphoric Acid is very Acidic (obviously);  Calcium, which we store in our bones, is Alkalizing.  When our blood becomes too acidic from the excess Phosphoric Acid, our bones give up their Calcium to neutralize the blood, or bring it back to Basic.   Have you ever heard of “swiss cheese bones”,  because that’s what can happen when the bones have to constantly give up TOO much Calcium to bring the blood back to homeostasis.

In 2012, the Surgeon’s Generals Report predicted that by 2020, 50% of ALL Americans will have weak bones. Several studies and groups, including the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, definitively link phosphoric acid with osteoporosis.   cartoon of kid in diet soda canNot good for us and Not good for our kids.

  • Phosphoric Acid also creates such substantial changes in your URINE, that Kidney Stone risk is 30% higher.
  • Diet Soda drinkers are 61% more likely to have Heart Disease.
  • Diet Soda drinkers are 34% more likely to have Metabolic Syndrome.
How bout the bullet point that Diet drinkers drink twice as much, what’s the significance there?  Artificial sweeteners are hundreds or thousands of times SWEETER than SUGAR.
What this means is YOU’RE TRAINING YOUR TASTE BUDS, AND YOUR BRAIN, TO LOVE THE TASTE OF  “VERY, VERY, VERY SWEET”.  This is a bad thing. Sugar is Addictive. Artificial Sugars are addictive. Your “taste” for “sweet” will be excessive.  Your bodies desire for carbohydrates, starchy or sweet, will be reinforced and intensified. Does this sound familiar?  Because if it does, and you want to break your Diet Soda habit, I do know a way, other than cold turkey. If you’re good at Cold Turkey, go for it!  If not, email me.

I want to point out that I used the NIH and AJCL studies because they’re well known organizations, and the studies were enormous.  But truly, the amount of studies out there, from different Universities or other scientific groups, confirming that Diet Soda drinkers have a higher risk for obesity and health problems, is big.

Here’s my wrap up:  Even though Regular Sodas are a horrible, unhealthy, pure chemical concoction;  Diet Soda, because of the addition of artificial sweetener, is even worse.   Diet Soda drinkers have a greater risk of Depression, Weight Gain, Diabetes, Heart Disease, Obesity, and Metabolic Syndrome.  The myth of Diet Soda making you skinny, or making you look like Beyonce or Taylor Swift (who are paid promoters), is a Marketing Lie. I feel like yelling “Rage Against The Machine” here:)

Again, if you’re addicted, please email me. Read your labels, drink water, eat meats, healthy fats, tons of vegetables, some fruits, some nuts, some dairy, some seeds and legumes. Choose RWF
Category: Food Additives, Looks Healthy But Isn't /

Serotonin and MSG

May 5, 2013 / / Comments Off on Serotonin and MSG
I recently attended a full day lecture called  “Nutritional Perspectives On Neurological Disorders”.  The guy was fantastic.  He was a Dr. from Vermont who was a great speaker, great presenter, and he had great information.  I’m obviously not a neurologist nor anywhere near that field; but there was plenty I could understand and absorb.

Here some interesting tidbits that I learned:
The amount of Serotonin you have in your brain is DIRECTLY related to the amount of Tryptophan you eat.  Directly.  Your highest food sources of Tryptophan are meats, dairy, and nuts and seeds. (it’s in other foods too, pull up a list if you want) YOU NEED PROPER/GOOD DIGESTION TO ACTUALLY GET THE TRYPTOPHAN OUT OF THE FOODS AND USE IT.  (Everything begins in the gut.)

Serotonin is an “inhibitory” neurotransmitter.  That means it has a calming effect.
When people have a hard day or a stressful event and they have INSUFFICIENT serotonin, but their brain wants some,  they will indulge in Carb/Junk Food fests, because processed/refined Carbs give quick doses of Serotonin.

Here’s the kicker: the elevated Serotonin ONLY LASTS BETWEEN 30 AND 60 MINUTES.  It’s not a permanent solution to your stress.  We all know that we can actually feel more stress when the  indulging is over. It’s also not a permanent solution to raising Serotonin.
stuffing face

High levels of Blood Glucose interferes with the chemical pathway of Tryptophan becoming Serotonin. This is NOT a contradictory statement with the above paragraph.  Tryptophan is found in meat, dairy, nuts and seeds.  RWFs!  There’s a chain of events that happens that allows the conversion of tryptophan to serotonin. High levels of BG are primarily from meals/snacks of processed and refined carbs.
Different pathways to Serotonin. One pathway, RWFs and good digestion, actually BUILDS SEROTONIN LEVELS IN YOUR BRAIN,  the other pathway basically gives you a short, temporary dose of Serotonin.  Which sounds better in the long run?

Moving on…You know how we’ve talked often about MSG – Monosodium Glutamate?   It has a couple dozen different, FDA approved names;  it’s an Excito / Neurotoxin, and it’s in at LEAST 70% of ALL processed and refined foods?  Glutamate is an EXCITATORY neurotransmitter.  That means it literally stimulates the neurons in your brain.  A LITTLE bit of this is good and normal, and some RWFs actually contain tiny amounts of glutamate.  Processed/refined foods contain whopper doses.  If you’re eating processed/refined foods all day long, or even a few times a day (or your kids are),   brain neurons are being OVERSTIMULATED to the point of exhaustion, and DEATH.  Let me repeat that :  Glutamate, an excitatory neurotransmitter present in about 70% of all processed and refined foods, overstimulates brain neurons to the point of death. For me, that’s old news.  One of my kids is epileptic, and I’ve tried hard to steer clear of glutamate – her brain’s excited enough.  Here’s the New News for me:  Brain Neurons Get Addicted To The Stimulation.  They send signals out for more stimulation.  Ever wonder why all the sudden the thought of certain foods pops into your head, and your desire for that food is overwhelming?  That’s the brain neurons – bored and anxious, and wanting their fix.

Moms,  don’t let this happen to your kids.  If they’re already addicted to junk food, they can be kid devouring jelly beansUNaddicted.  Don’t buy it, don’t bring it in your home. It will take a little while – a withdraw period – but it will happen.  Our bodies WANT to be normal and healthy. Given a chance, they will be. Eat Real Whole Foods!!!
Category: Food Additives, RWF, Sugar / Tags:
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