10 Weight Control Tips From the NIH

· Use nutrition labels. Don’t guess how many calories you’re eating.

· Watch your portions. Value-size servings aren’t a bargain if you’re eating too much.

· Cut the sugar. Don’t let sugary soda or other sweets crowd out healthy foods and drinks.

· Don’t eat out of habit. Mindless eating at work or in front of the TV can pack on the pounds.

· Think about the whole meal, not just the main course.

· Use smaller dishes and containers. Larger ones encourage you to eat more.

· Keep reminders of how much you’re eating. Wrappers, empty containers and bones nearby remind you of how much you’ve eaten.

· Get enough sleep. Less sleep is linked to higher rates of obesity.

· Get active. Look for opportunities to add physical activity to your daily routine.

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Every week I get an e-newsletter from Gaiam. They sell tons of workout equipment, and DVD’s while trying to use products that are eco-friendly or organic. I personally love their Rodney Yee yoga series of DVD’s. This the newsletter week featured a new work-out DVD called 5 Day Fit Weight Loss, so naturally I thought I’d turn on my readers to the DVD.

Here is how they describe the work out, “Any personal trainer will tell you that variety is the key to fitness success. Five Day Fit Weight Loss offers five distinctly different fitness styles that share the same end result: a slimmer, sexier you! This DVD introduces you to Budokon, yoga, dance, cardio sculpting and even walking as effective ways to drop unwanted weight. Each genre keeps your workout fresh by challenging and moving your body in different ways as you shed pounds.

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A patient of mine turned me onto a brand of dark chocolates called Xoçai™ Healthy Chocolates, which are minimally processed, high in anti-oxidants and which use the low glycemic sweetner called agave. I tasted several varieties of the brand because I just love dark chocolate, and she gave me a huge bag full for free. These chocolates are really tasty and I felt like I only need one or two pieces to curb my chocolate cravings.

The website product information says, “Xoçai™ products contain all natural, unprocessed cold pressed chocolate. Being unprocessed, it holds 100% of its antioxidant and nutritional value. With Xoçai™. Healthy Chocolates, you get ALL the antioxidant power of dark chocolate without the fat, preservatives, fillers and high sugar like you do in other chocolate”.

If you love chocolate as much as I do, but need to reduce calories for optimal weight loss or weight maintenance then eating a few pieces a week of these chocolates would be a healthier choice instead of chocolates which are high in sugar, fats, and calories.

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Those of you who are familiar with my writing know that, for a variety of reasons, cinnamon is my favorite spice. Versatile cinnamon, is traditionally utilized in both sweet and savory dishes found all over the globe. But can we believe the claims that cinnamon is useful to reduce blood sugar levels and to melt body fat?

Many significant, and in my opinion dependable, research studies have shown that cinnamon is effective in lowering blood glucose levels thus leveling out and reducing blood sugar levels. WOW! Isn’t it wonderful that something that tastes so great can be so healthy?

But, what about the weight loss question; can cinnamon really help flatten our bellies and thin out our thighs? Nutritional science teaches that High Glycemic Index foods flood the body with sugars which convert onto fat. So it makes logical sense that eating an herb which reduces and steadies blood sugar levels, will help us lose weight, or at the very least it will help prevent weight gain.

Cinnamon has also proven effective against bacteria and viruses!

Now, just because you heard this does not mean you can go runnin’ out to Dunkin’ Doughnuts for a cinnamon doughnut. Junk food is still junk food. But, you can take cinnamon capsules to get your daily dose, and start incorporating the tasty spice into your healthy diet.

Tips to Incorporate Cinnamon Into Your Diet:

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Over the years patients have asked my professional opinion about liquid diets, (which are usually raw) for rapid weight loss. My answer has always remained the same, “Liquid diets are unhealthy. They are considered to be “questionable diets” or “crash diet” to the health care community. Sure, you will lose some weight. You will also lose muscle because once the body burns off the fat for energy it starts to use the muscles for energy.

Your body uses all the fat and muscle for energy because it is not getting enough energy from your liquid diet to sustain your life functioning’s. And then you start eating solid food again, will gain back the weight, plus some more weight. The muscle mass does not come back as easily, you have to exercise regularly to get it back. Loss of muscle equals weakness of the body. Patients who are already in physical pain due to weakness can worsen the condition. Sure you want rapid weight loss. Who doesn’t want to lose weight quickly? But the loss of health that comes with rapid weight loss it is just plain dangerous.

The following material, excerpted from my book Chinese Medicine & Healthy Weight Management An Evidence-Based Integrated Approach, discusses more details about how and why liquid and raw diets are not recommended by most health care professionals.

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You are transforming your energy and your life. The transformative process takes patience, perseverance and compassion. So, as you embark on a new way of eating (or any new habit), be kind to yourself if you slip into an old habit.

Just acknowledge the awareness that you slipped and explore why. Do not beat yourself up. Instead ask yourself questions like: Was it because I had no food in the house that I went to a fast food restaurant? If so, how can I plan to stock my refrigerator and cabinets to avoid eating fast foods? Was I feeling emotionally vulnerable when I ate that entire box of cookies? What healthier choice can I make to feel better when I am emotionally vulnerable? Then, after you have acknowledged your awareness, learn why you made the mistake and prepare yourself how to do better next time, inhale and exhale to let go of the mistake. Keep in mind that each new moment offers the opportunity to “begin again.”[i] And if you make another mistake, simply begin again, again.

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Blame your brain for sabotaging your efforts to get back on track after splurging on an extra scoop of ice cream or that second burger during Friday night’s football game.

Findings from a new UT Southwestern Medical Center study suggest that fat from certain foods we eat makes its way to the brain. Once there, the fat molecules cause the brain to send messages to the body’s cells, warning them to ignore the appetite-suppressing signals from leptin and insulin, hormones involved in weight regulation.

The researchers also found that one particular type of fat – palmitic acid – is particularly effective at instigating this mechanism.

“Normally, our body is primed to say when we’ve had enough, but that doesn’t always happen when we’re eating something good,” said Dr. Deborah Clegg, assistant professor of internal medicine at UT Southwestern and senior author of the rodent study appearing in the September issue of The Journal of Clinical Investigation.

“What we’ve shown in this study is that someone’s entire brain chemistry can change in a very short period of time. Our findings suggest that when you eat something high in fat, your brain gets ‘hit’ with the fatty acids, and you become resistant to insulin and leptin,” Dr. Clegg said. “Since you’re not being told by the brain to stop eating, you overeat.”

Dr. Clegg said that in the animals, the effect lasts about three days, potentially explaining why many people who splurge on Friday or Saturday say they’re hungrier than normal on Monday.

Though scientists have known that eating a high-fat diet can cause insulin resistance, little has been known about the mechanism that triggers this resistance or whether specific types of fat are more likely to cause increased insulin resistance. Dr. Clegg said she suspected the brain might play a role because it incorporates some of the fat we eat – whether it is from healthy oils or the not-so-healthy saturated fat found in butter and beef – into its structure.

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Eating quickly leads to becoming overweight or obese according to a British Medical Journal survey of 3,287 adults. The participants of the survey reported that they ate both fast and until they were full. Compared to slow eaters, the fast eaters were more then three times as likely to be overweight then their slower eating counterparts.

Eating until fully satisfied is important, after all who wants to feel starved? But one of the reasons the fast eaters gain more weight is that they likely eat more than slow eaters. You see, a hormone is released from the gut which sends a message to the brain telling us when we are full. However, that message takes about 20 minutes to reach our brain. So the only other way we can know we are full is when we feel it after over eating, the result of which is literally feeling full and bloated. Slow eaters are eating less food in the same amount of time as the fast eater, and in that time, they will receive the hormonal message to the brain that they are full.

Tips for Slowing Down:

1. Avoid the T.V. A variety of studies show that adults and children who eat in front of the set tend to eat 230 (or more) calories per sitting then people who do not eat in front of the set. Let’s do some math with those numbers to calculate how many pounds you will pack on while multitasking between TV watching and eating. 230 calories times 28 days = 6,440 calories per month = 1.84 pounds per month times 12 months = 22.08 pounds per year. How many meals per day do you eat in front of the TV set, or computer? Now do your own math.
2. Chew slowly. Take your time while eating. Really taste and savor your food. Remember what I wrote above about the time it takes for the satiety hormone to reach the brain. Chewing slowly will give you time. Also, the first step to digestion takes place in the mouth where secretion of the enzyme amylase begins the breakdown of food. Chewing slowly is especially important when eating carbohydrates and tofu. (Aiyana, Juliette, New Years Diet Resolutions, 2006. www.amazinghealing.com) [Read more →]

Craving chocolate pudding but put off by the calories? I got this healthier pudding recipe from nutritionist, Stacy Cantlin, who says it fools even the most savvy chocolate pudding fans into eating every last bite.

Chocolate Pudding
 
2 Avocados
6 Dates (pitted & soaked for 8 hours)
2 Tbs Cocoa Powder
 
Blend together in food processor.  Add enough water to move everything around.
 
Add more dates if you need it sweeter.

YUMMY!

If you like this, then you will love this vegetarian weight loss meal planner.

Kids should not be put on a weight loss diet, a meal replacement diet, or be forced to eat salads for every meal. It is important for children’s physical and emotional well being that eating food, and conversation about food, is enjoyable, not stressful or forced. In fact, it is advisable to avoid telling children they are on a diet at all. Instead parents can use words like, “we are eating healthy foods” and “our family eats foods that make us strong and smart”.

To help kids stay healthy and lean, parents can feed kids better quality, fresh foods and snacks, and reduce portion sizes. For children who are over weight, eating several smaller, balanced meals per day, plus snacks is the healthy way to lose weight and maintain the loss, while staying healthy, energetic and happy.

Involving kids in making healthy foods and snacks makes eating healthfully more fun and enjoyable for the whole family. Whole Foods is inviting parents and kids to join the “School Lunch Revolution” with tips from Chef Ann Cooper, “The Renegade Lunch Lady”. They say, “If highly processed chicken nuggets and artificially flavored popsicles aren’t your idea of a healthy lunch, it’s time you joined “The School Lunch Revolution! Highly processed foods are standard fare in many school lunchrooms, and more than two-thirds of public schools serve lunches that exceed recommended limits for fat content. And, we’re paying for it with our kids’ health. At least 30 percent of children are overweight, childhood obesity has more than doubled, and it is predicted that one in three will develop diabetes”.

The Whole Foods website provides tons of information and recipes to help you create healthy balanced meals for kids and the whole family! Try them out and leave a comment below this post with your experience.

Back to School Recipes
10 Essential Lunch Lessons
School Lunch Revolution Videos

Brown bag lunches made at home have the potential to be much healthier than lunches provided at school. And the same goes for parents at work. Bring your own food to work, rather then ordering fast food or grabbing something at the local deli. Brown bagging lunch is an important part of your weight loss and weight maintenance plan. Also, if you have your lunch ready to eat, rather then having to run out to pick something up while you are busy at work, you are less likely to skip meals and then gorge on unhealthy foods later in the the day.

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