Okay, I have a bunch of other posts in line, but this is on my mind now. So I'll get it out of the way and then get to the kid stuff. I have some more health and weight loss things to try... I hope you don't mind. I'm not one to sugar-coat or keep secrets or withhold information that I think could be useful. And I will also say that I am not a dietitian and don't have any background in this, but it's just me reading books and passing along info. So if you don't agree or don't think it sounds right, that's okay. I don't know whether it's actually right or not either. Just Annie here sharing what maybe could help you. Or not. You read it and decide if you want to try it. Doesn't hurt to try. And that's the best way - try it out. If it works, great. If not, try something else. (Although some things might take 6 months to a year to notice a difference.)
Anyway, so my books of choice are often self-help, health related, books about parenting, etc. Hmmm...why am I attracted to those... I need a lot of energy for a lot of kids.
Here are a few of my latest health reads: "Little Sugar Addicts" by Kathleen Desmaisons (LSA), "Power Foods for the Brain" by Neal D. Barnard (PFB), and "Wheat Belly" by William Davis (WB).
LSA was an interesting look at how sugar affects your body. The title immediately caught my eye because I am addicted to sugar myself, and I think I have a few little sugar addicts as well. Sugar acts like a drug in the body. It affects the same brain chemicals that heroin and morphine do. Obviously the affects are different, but it is interesting that sugar does have the power to literally make you feel good and you can become addicted to it. Trying to get off sugar can give you similar withdrawals as drugs (so you just have to push past that crave and also don't go cold turkey). Too much sugar leads to imbalances and sugar sensitivities in 3 areas: blood sugar, serotonin, and beta-endorphins. You'll have to read up more on these, but basically when you consume too much sugar, it causes your system to overreact or affect the chemicals in your brain responsible for calming you (serotonin) or painkiller (beta-endorphins). When your body processes sugar, it has to release insulin. If you overload the system,
you have blood sugar spikes, so the body has to release adrenaline. (Think sugar high, particularly for
kids.) I thought it was also interesting what the author mentioned about caffeine. It also acts like a drug, it peaks in 40-60 minutes, and takes 3-7 hours to get out of your system. Caffeine blocks adenosine (that quiets the brain), contributes to sleep disturbance, and causes an increase in serotonin receptors (which deal with impulse control; making it hard to say "no").
Okay, next book. PFB talked about the best and worst things for our brain. We have to be careful about toxic metals - not just aluminum, but iron, zinc, and copper. Too much of these leads to Alzheimer's and other problems. One interesting note is NOT to take a supplement with minerals. You'll end up getting more than you need. If you do take a multi-vitamin, get just a vitamin supplement without the minerals. Liver and meat-heavy diets contain a lot of iron, which is harder for the body to regulate. Exercise does help get rid of excess iron. Plant-based diets help avoid an overdose of zinc and copper. Avoid partially hydrogenated oil (trans fat), which cause the body to make more cholesterol, which eventually pinches off the passage of blood. Get plenty of vitamin E, an antioxidant (from broccoli, spinach, sweet potatoes, almonds, walnuts, flaxseed, etc.) Although
don't eat too many nuts, which are high in fat. Get folate (leafy greens!, citrus fruits, etc.). Get Vitamin B6 (whole grains, green veggies, beans, bananas, nuts, etc.). Get B12 from fortified foods or supplements. Orange fruits and vegs have the most heart protecting power. Apples and pears are best for preventing stroke. Get plenty of exercise! The author actually advocates a vegan diet (not eating anything that is animal based - meats, eggs, etc.) as the best for your brain, but I'm not jumping on board with that. A side note for migraine sufferers: common triggers are dairy, chocolate, eggs, citrus, meat, wheat, nuts, tomatoes, onions, corn, apples, and bananas. What's left to eat... you get to eat veggies and beans!
Alright, WB book. The author coined the term "wheat belly" to mean the accumulation of fat from consuming foods that trigger insulin, the hormone of fat storage. It doesn't just accumulate in the belly, although that is a common area (and one of most concern as far as leading to diseases). In the book, he talks about the destructive nature of today's modified (dwarf)wheat. The wheat being grown today has small changes in the wheat protein structure, which is hard for your body to process. The
author argues that wheat is the most destructive dietary ingredient, due to these reasons: appetite stimulation, exposure to brain-active exorphins (counterpart to endorphins), exaggeraged blood sugar, inflammatory and pH effects that erode cartilage and damage bone, activation of disordered immune responses, and leads to diseases - neurological, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis. Supposedly, looking at glycemic index, whole wheat bread increases blood sugar as much as or more than table sugar.
And this is not just a gluten free thing, the author says that foods made with cornstarch, rice starch, potato starch, and tapioca starch increase blood sugar even more than wheat products. Many gluten free foods are made with these starches. His best advice for weight loss is to completely cut out wheat from your diet. I'm not on board with that either, but I also don't have a weight problem to deal with. If I did and was desperate, I might be willing to try it. My thought is that if you really did cut out all wheat, you would also be eliminating the processed foods and bakery items and junk food that also have other destructive ingredients in it.
Okay, so I don't just go with everything I read, but I take bits and pieces and try them out. From things I have read recently and in the past, I started jotting down a list of things I wanted to incorporate into my diet. Here are some of my weight loss tips:
- Exercise (45 minutes a day, 4-5 times a week)
- Limit sugar (sweet treat once a week)
- No soda, alcohol, coffee, or tea
- Drink more water (I'm bad at this one...)
- Avoid fruit juice
- Eat a good protein breakfast
- Don't snack in between meals or right before bed (working on this too...)
- Limit wheat and corn (just less, not eliminate)
- Eat more fruits and vegetables (but limit underground vegs like carrots and potatoes)
- Eat more leafy greens
- Replace oils with olive oil
- Limit processed foods
- Avoid bacon, ham, and pork
- Red meat once a week
- turkey or fish (or chicken if you're not blood type B...) twice a week
- Eggs and nuts (almonds/walnuts) daily
- Incorporate "super foods" into diet (broccoli, onions, berries, spinach, kale, pineapple, garlic, etc.)
- Avoid aspartame, cornstarch, corn syrup (especially high fructose), ketchup, MSG, soy sauce, tapioca, Worchestershire sauce
-You might need a B12 supplement if you're not getting enough of the B12 fortified foods
- Don't eat out often (maybe once a month, unless you can find restaurants with healthy choices AND stick to the healthy choices. When I eat out, I tend to eat more and more of the stuff I'm not supposed to.)
- And don't have a lot of friends... :) they make you eat out and have girl's nights with lots of sweets and comfort foods... and then there's baby showers and church activities...okay, good luck with those. I'm too weak not to pig out at those! Really, do all social activities have to revolve around food? Guess so. Otherwise, we would just be sitting around looking at each other, instead of looking at each other between mouthfuls. Ha ha.
One thing to mention: I don't think there's a temporary or quick loss solution. It has to be considered as a lifestyle change, and it has to happen gradually so your body has time to adjust to the metabolism changes. Good luck to finding out what works for a healthier you!
Oh, one recent discovery (from a cooking class) - did you know you could make oat flour by putting oats in your blender? Makes a pretty good flour substitute.
6 comments:
Some great ideas here! Just be sure to not change too many things at once. I find that, for me, that is a recipe for failure. Today my goals are to eat raw veggies and exercise. Kudos to you for striving to improve your health!
Quick question- then I'll be back later :) Are all sugars the same result? Raw...refined...natural in fruits?
I am also very passionate about health and fitness, and have some pretty strong opinions. I could go on and on... Too bad we can't talk in person. The biggest thing I believe in is that everyone and everybody is different. Some people feel better eating and exercising in one way, while others feel better using a different plan. I'm constantly tweaking what I'm doing to try to get optimized results, which for me is just feeling good and having energy (not weight loss). I agree totally that formal exercise is critical, but I also try to move as much as I can during the day because 45 mins of exercise doesn't counteract a day full of sitting. Not like a busy mom sits all day, but you get the idea.
I definitely agree that we eat too much refined sugar and unhealthy fats. I really learned a lot from reading Salt Sugar Fat by Michael Moss about the processed foods industry, so I agree that eliminating those is super important. But I do disagree with the notion of the Wheat Belly book on some level. Of course, processed, refined, "grains" are really no longer "grains" but I can't think that properly grown, non-GMO whole grains are bad, especially in light of Section 89. Sure some people are intolerant or allergic, just as some people are allergic to nuts, eggs, dairy, but not all of us are. I still consider non-GMO organic grains to be healthy unless someone truly has an intolerance.
Oh, and I have to have a treat every day. It helps me to know that everyday I'm going to get a serving of a treat, which is usually M&Ms, or ice cream, or a homemade baked good. Just one serving, though. I think I'd go nuts if I could only eat sweets once/week!
Mom, I found a pretty good link that explains sugar. It's not all equal. Naturally occurring sugar in fruit is better, mainly because you're getting fiber and other nutrients as well. And I think your body handles it better than the refined sugar. I guess you could overload on fruit too. If you put too much in the system, you still have to release more insulin to deal with the sugar. This one is kind-of funny, but explains it pretty well: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2013/06/17/everything-you-need-to-know-about-sugar/
Lisa, but where do you find non-GMO wheat these days? I think that was the point of the Wheat Belly theory - that wheat isn't grown the way it used to be anywhere (except some remote place in Africa?). You can't find anything but dwarf wheat. I'm not saying I agree with the theory, but I wonder if most of the general population is intolerant in some way to the dwarf wheat? I don't know. Just something to think about. There are so many factors to consider - it's hard to single out one variable. I still think it is more the sugary fatty things that are made with wheat that is the problem. I'm still eating bread, but not whole wheat and less of it when possible. But not just because of this one theory. The no wheat thing is also part of the blood type diet - inflammatory and allergy-triggering for type B's. A better choice for me is spelt or millet - and I don't know where to get those, so I'm trying to substitute oat and rice flour in things when I can.
Oh, and I think you're a sugar addict too! :). That's why you HAVE to have it... good thing you have a good metabolism!
Great info Annie! I have become very convinced that sugar is a poison for me too. I've tried to give up the processed sugar...and just stick with fruits and veggies and proteins. Of course...I just had a baby...so weight loss is important for me! :)
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