Diet tips to improve urinary incontinence

Limit caffeine intake. Caffeine is found in soft drinks, teas, chocolate, and even decaf coffee. It makes you feel like you have to go, and it also prompts your body to get rid of liquids. Remove or reduce caffeine from your diet. Don't drink coffee past 7 p.m. Whether you prefer coffee, tea, or soda, limit yourself to one or two caffeinated beverages per day.

Limit spicy foods. Eating spicy foods can make your urinary incontinence or overactive bladder worse. Spicy foods irritate the lining of your bladder just like caffeine does.

Watch how much water you drink. If you don't drink enough water, you can get dehydrated. However, if you have incontinence and drink a lot of water, that can cause problems. It is recommended to drink 6 to 8 glasses of water a day. However, if you drink too little water, your urine can become concentrated which can irritate your bladder. This may make you feel like you have to go. Therefore, ask your doctor how much water you should drink.

Avoid carbonated drinks. Even if you find one that doesn’t have caffeine, this may not be your best choice. The carbon dioxide in the drink can irritate a sensitive bladder, causing you to have the urge to go.

Limit alcohol consumption. Alcohol makes you feel like you have to go more often. Alcohol also affects the messages from the brain to the bladder that tell it when to hold urine and when to go. Therefore, alcohol makes it more likely for you to have an accident. While some people choose to limit their alcohol consumption, it is best to completely avoid it when suffering from urinary incontinence.

How to boost energy without caffeine

We are sorry to be the bearers of bad news but the best way to boost your energy is to eat well.  There are no real short cuts to boosting your energy in a consistent and healthy way.  Doubling up on coffee, 5-Hour energy or energy drinks will give you a boost of initial energy but lead to a crash after a few hours.  This caffeine crash can leave you feeling worse and more tired than before.  So try these simple lifestyle changes to increase your energy level without the caffeine:

1.     Drink more water: Even slight dehydration will cause a drop in energy level.  You may be surprised to know that dehydration actually makes your blood thicker, making it harder for your heart to pump oxygen and nutrients to your muscles and organs.   Ultimately, this will slow you down.

2.     Don’t skip breakfast: Dubbed the most important meal of the day, skipping breakfast can often lead to fatigue throughout the rest of the day. Breakfast is the best way to boost the metabolism after a night of sleep.  Why? Because the body burns food and nutrients even as we sleep, leaving our reserves depleted by morning.  A meal shortly after waking up is important to replenish this depleted energy and energize the body.

3.     Disconnect from your electronics:  One of the most important ways to maximize your energy is to get a good night’s sleep.  The light given off by our electronics – our phones, TVs and tablets - can actually throw off our sleep cycles.  Your body works like this: ‘if it’s bright it’s time to get up, if it’s dark it’s time for sleep.’  Our body treats artificial light the same as it would natural sunlight.  The glow from our tech devices can keep us awake for longer and make it difficult for our bodies to wind down.

4.     Skip the drink before bed:  It’s a common habit many adults enjoy, an alcoholic drink after a long day of work to unwind before bed.  Seems like a great idea, except that alcohol can actually interrupt your sleep at night.  Initially, alcohol will depress your nervous system and produce a tranquilizing effect helping you to fall asleep.  However as it is broken down as you sleep, it gives the body a surge of energy, likely to wake you up at night.

5.     Don’t change your sleep schedule because it’s the weekend: Altering your sleep cycle on the weekends can leave you feeling tired by the time Monday rolls around.  Obviously, it is unrealistic to expect people to get to bed early on the weekends, but trying to stay close to your regular bed times can be helpful.  If you can’t stay near your regular bedtime, sticking to the same wake time is essential for your body to feel regular and stay energetic throughout the day.

High Fiber and Weight Loss

We've always known fiber to be an important part of a healthy diet. But what is it about fiber that makes it the secret to losing weight and keeping it off?  Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that the body can't digest. Though most carbohydrates are broken down into sugar molecules, fiber cannot be broken down into sugar molecules, and instead it passes through the body undigested. Fiber helps regulate the body's use of sugars, helping to keep hunger and blood sugar in check.

Aside from fiber’s regulatory benefits, high-fiber foods are rich in vitamins and essential nutrients, especially when compared to other food groups.  Fiber has been shown to lower blood cholesterol and blood pressure. As an added benefit, especially for keeping a healthy weight, fiber fills you up and keeps you feeling fuller longer. Recent studies have shown that people who added more fiber to their diet picked up other important healthy habits like exercising regularly.  So it seems that a simple high-fiber diet can provide immense health benefits and easier to stick to when compared to other diets that require multiple changes in eating habits.

The ease with which people can incorporate fiber into their diet makes it easy to stick to long term.  Many people struggle to follow complex dietary recommendations, with reason.  The easier something is, the more likely we are to stick to it.  When changes are too drastic, or involve an entire overhaul of or current lifestyle, these big changes often lead to falling off the wagon much sooner than anticipated. A simple diet that only requires you to increase your fiber intake may be an easier alternative and a great starting point for those who have tried many different diets and ways to lose weight.

In general, Americans have a lot of room for improvement when it comes to their fiber intake.  The truth is that fiber supplements do not provide the same health benefits as the natural fiber you get from whole foods.  Therefore, it is important to expand your fiber intake through high-fiber foods rather than only supplements. The recommended daily intake of fiber is between 25-30 grams.  Some of the best sources of fiber are fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds and beans.

Here are some of the best foods to add fiber to your diet, and support your weight loss goals:

·      Raspberries

·      Avocado

·      Chia seeds

·      Flaxseed meal

·      Oatmeal

·      Lentils

·      Broccoli

·      Cabbage

·      Apples

·      Brussel sprouts

10 foods that make you bloated

1.     Watermelon. Contains a high amount of fructose. Many people can't fully absorb fructose, which leads to bloating, gas, and sometimes diarrhea.

2.     Artificial sweeteners. Sweeteners like sorbitol and xylitol absorb very slowly in the small intestine. This can cause gas, bloating, cramping, and sometimes diarrhea.

3.     Muesli bars. A healthy snack bar which include protein isolate. This is derived from soybeans, which causes gas. Look for foods that do not have soy-derived ingredients.

4.     Yogurt. Yogurt contains dairy, which has certain levels of lactose which gets fermented in your body and makes you bloat. Aim for plain Greek yogurt and avoid nonfat and low-fat yogurts as these often have more sugar which will make you feel gassy and bloated.

5.     Grains. Grains like wheat and rye have non-digestible fructan. If you have a gluten intolerance, eating these grains causes an immune reaction which destroys the lining of the small intestine and leads to gas, bloating, diarrhea, and/or constipation.

6.     Beans. Filled with starch which makes you gassy and bloated. Try soaking the dried beans overnight. Hydrating them will break down some of the starch.

7.     Onions. Onions contain a carb called fructan, which is poorly absorbed and causes increased water content in the intestine.

8.  Dairy products: If you have trouble digesting lactose, this can lead to intestinal distress and bloating.

9.     Gum. Sugarless chewing gum often contains sorbitol, a sugar alcohol which causes digestive distress. Look for sorbitol-free gum.

10.  Vegetables. Veggies like brussels sprouts and broccoli all have a carbohydrate called raffinose. Because we don't make the enzyme needed to break down raffinose, it passes through the small intestine undigested. And when food enters the large intestine without being broken down first, it gets fermented by bacteria. This results in gas and bloating. Try roasting them instead. 

Why I Still Believe In Coffee As A Healthy Drink of Choice

Coffee has been touted to have many health benefits just this year through many health studies. A new study has suggested drinking three to five cups of coffee a day reduces the risk of clogged arteries and heart attacks. Published in the journal, Heart, researchers analyzed almost 26,000 people and measured their calcium levels in the coronary arteries, seeking any correlation between coffee consumption habits. 

 Many experts state that the effect of coffee consumption on cardiovascular health has remained controversial. This was shown after a recent analysis of 36 studies that showed moderate coffee consumption was linked to a decreased risk of heart disease and other research has made associations with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes. 

Researchers led by the Kangbuk Samsung Hospital in Seoul, Korean Republic, analyzed participants attending a regular health screening, including food frequency questionnaires and CT scanning to determine coronary artery calcium. The participants had an average age of 41 and no signs of heart disease.

 Coffee consumption was categorized into the following groups:

·       No coffee consumed

·       Less than one cup a day

·       1-3 cups a day

·       3-5 cups a day

·       Five or more cups a day.

 What they found was the prevalence of detectable coronary artery calcium was 13.4%. The average coffee consumption was 1.8 cups a day. Researchers observed the following calcium ratios for each group:

 ·       Less than one cup a day: 0.77

·       1-3 cups a day: 0.66

·       3-5 cups a day: 0.59

·       Five or more cups a day: 0.81.

 Researchers concluded that these findings add to the growing evidence that shows coffee consumption might help decrease the risk of heart disease, in particular the claims of coffee's positive affect on the risk of type 2 diabetes. 

 COFFEE AND CANCER

 Again some of the ingredients like chlorogenic acid and antioxidants are anti-inflammatory agents, which reduce inflammation. This is the leading factor in the progression of most cancers.  

 Notable studies:

 January 2015: National Cancer Institute published a study showing that people who drank four cups of caffeinated coffee a day had a 20% lower risk of melanoma than non-coffee drinkers.

 February 2015: AACR journal found that women who drink four cups a day have a reduced risk of endometrial cancer.

 Late March 2015 U.K. researchers released an analysis of 34 studies conducted around the world and concluded that coffee consumption—even just one cup a day—reduces the risk of liver cancer.

 Scientists still cannot determine what ingredient in coffee stunts tumor growth or reacts with cancer cells. But all these studies are leading us to the root connection.

 THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF COFFEE

There's been a number of reviews around studies that have cited the benefits of various aspects of drinking coffee. Most studies recognize a "cup of coffee" being an 8 ounce serving and when we talk about coffee, we mean black coffee, not with milk, sugar, syrup and other additives. Across the board of most studies, 3-4 cups per day for most everyone is where the peak benefit can be traced to.  Pregnant women and those who suffer from acid reflux and other issues should stay away.

 Black coffee has reported the following benefits:

·       Reduce risk of most all types of cardiovascular diseases

·       Reduce risk of stroke

·       Reduced risk of diabetes

·       Reduced overall cancer risk

·       Reduce the risk of all liver diseases (liver cancer, cirrhosis etc.)

·       Lower risk of Parkinson’s disease

·       Reduce risk of cognitive decline

·       Potential protective effect against Alzheimer’s

 For years, myths like coffee stunts your growth were touted among other, tleading many to believe coffee was not a positive drink of choice. With these new findings, there is no longer a need to view coffee as something we need to cut back on. More research has been done around this morning favorite and has shown potential benefits than almost any other beverage consumed.

Top Foods for Cholesterol

1.     Spinach. full of lutein which helps protect against macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness. Research suggests that just a half cup of spinach daily also protects against heart attacks.

2.     Salmon. Research shows that certain types of fat actually protect against high cholesterol. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in salmon which help lower "bad" LDL cholesterol, raise "good" HDL cholesterol, and lower triglycerides. The American Heart Association recommends eating at least two servings of fish every week, preferably fatty fish, by far the richest sources of fish-oil omega-3s.

3.     Beans: Beans are rich in fiber and very high in cholesterol-lowering soluble fiber. By eating just a cup of any type of beans a day (kidney, navy, pinto, black, chickpea, or butter beans) you can lower cholesterol by as much as 10 percent in six weeks. Eat beans five or more times a week. The FDA and the National Cancer Institute recommend that adults get 25 to 30 g of fiber each day.

4.     Soy. Reducing saturated fat is the most important dietary change you can make to cut blood cholesterol. Used as a replacement for meat and cheese, soy foods help your heart by slashing the amount of saturated fat that you eat. The FDA recommends getting at least 25 grams of soy protein each day. Consuming 25 grams of soy protein daily lowers high cholesterol.

5.     Avocado. Avocados are an excellent source of monounsaturated fat. This is a type of fat that may actually help to raise levels of HDL while lowering levels of LDL. The American Heart Association recommends that you get up to 15 percent of your daily calories from monounsaturated fats like those contained in avocados.

Foods that burn more calories than they contain

Celery is not the only food that actually makes you burn more calories than it provides. There are a number of other delicious, yet healthy foods one can eat to burn calories while trying to lose weight. These foods not only burn more calories than they provide, but also contain additional minerals and nutrients that are essential for a healthy diet. Therefore, these are great additions to add to any meal while trying to shed some pounds and improve your eating habits.

Cucumbers. Calorie content: 100g contains 16 calories. Cucumbers are made up mostly of water. They are an excellent source of vitamin C and can be effective in reducing any high levels of inflammation in the body. They also contain ascorbic acid and caffeic acid, which helps prevent water retention.

Asparagus. Calorie content: 100g contains 20 calories. Asparagus contains antioxidants that can help reduce inflammation. It can also help to improve your metabolic rate and has diuretic nutrients that can aid in getting rid of harmful toxins. Additionally, they are rich in folate, which makes it a good food for pregnant women as folate is beneficial during pregnancy.

Cauliflower. Calorie content: 100g contains 25 calories. Cauliflower contains no fat. It is rich in Vitamin C, vitamin K, and fiber. Cauliflower is also rich in flavor, so there is no need to have to add additional spices and things to make it taste good. A good way to eat cauliflower is when it is lightly steamed or even raw. This way, it will remain crunchy. It will also make you feel fuller longer because will take you longer to chew, giving your body more time to realize that you are actually full.

Celery. Calorie content: 100g contains 16 calories. Celery is made up of 75 percent water and 25 percent fiber. Because it is rich in water, you are able to burn more calories while eating it as opposed to gaining them. Celery is a great snack while trying to lose weight because it takes more calories to eat celery than celery contains.

Tomatoes. Calorie content: 100g contains 18 calories. Tomatoes are rich in flavor and lycopene. It is actually the lycopene that gives tomatoes their vibrant red color. They are rich in vitamin C and low in calories. Tomatoes are also an antioxidant which helps lower the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Prior research says that cooked tomatoes are the most beneficial. Cooked tomatoes can have the same benefits as statins for people with high cholesterol or high blood pressure.
 

Papaya. Calorie content of papaya: 100g contains 43 calories. Fresh papayas have less calories per gram. Therefore, eating fresh papaya makes you feel full without going over your daily limit. They are rich in antioxidants, fiber, as well as vitamins C, E, and A. They also have digestive enzyme called papain which can help with digestion. Their fiber content can help lower cholesterol and with constipation.

 Chili peppers. Calorie content of chili peppers: 100g contains 40 calories. Chili peppers are known to be hot and spicy. These are actually one of the best foods for burning calories. They contain capsaicin which helps boost your metabolic rate and as a result helps the body burn more calories right after eating them. Raw chili peppers are a great addition to meals. Or, since they are used to make hot sauce and chili flakes, try adding one of these to your next meal for additional spiciness, flavor, and a boost in your metabolic rate. Chili peppers are also great for curbing your appetite.

 Apples. Calorie content of apples: 100g contains 52 calories. The best kind of apples to eat are green apples. Specifically, granny smith green apples. This is because green apples are rich in dietary fiber and help you feel fuller for a longer amount of time. Prior research has shown that dietary fiber is can help with weight loss as it curbs your appetite. Their high fiber content also makes them have a lower glycemic index compared to other fruits.

Coffee. Calorie content of plain black coffee: 0-2 calories. Just one cup of black coffee is all you need to jump start your day. It is best to drink it black as that contains little to no calories, which is great when trying to lose weight. Try to limit or avoid adding sugar or milk, as this can significantly increase the calorie intake. Black coffee also boosts your metabolic rate which can also help curb your appetite.

Most Common Eating Problems Solved

1.     You don’t have time to cook. Most people don’t realize that ready-to-eat meals are actually much less healthy than a home-cooked meal. Therefore, if you can find even just an hour to cook, it is better than getting takeout or eating frozen dinners every night. Try to plan ahead to make it easier for you.

2.     You eat every time you’re feeling down. Even if you’re responsible for the foods that you choose to eat most of the time, you may have the habit of easily making an exception when you’re in a bad mood, as a special concession for what you’re going through. Once you know how the cycle of poor moods and comfort foods works, you can try to find ways of comforting yourself in other ways.

3.     You can’t stop snacking in between meals. If you have a weak spot for snacking between meals, you risk eating too much and potentially gaining weight. To get this under control, don’t try to cut snacking out completely, but change the kind of snacks you are eating. Aim for healthy snacks instead of unhealthy snacks.

4.     You skip breakfast. You should never skip breakfast. This could cause you to end up being less efficient at work due to lack of energy, and less healthy. Breakfast does not have to be a larger meal. You only need servings of protein, fruit and whole grains. Try to at least grab a breakfast wrap or smoothie as long as they are healthy.

5.     You can’t stop snacking while watching television. Research shows that people who eat while doing other things such as television watching, end up eating 50 to 60 percent more than they do when they aren’t doing anything else. When eating, make that the sole activity. 

Trick yourself to lose weight

1.     Trick your brain into eating smaller portions. Eat on smaller plates. A huge piece of chicken looks a lot larger on a medium sized plate than it does on a large platter. And a small serving of rice is much more appealing in a small bowl than in a large one. You can only fit so much food onto smaller dishes. Just don't use this method as an excuse to go back for seconds.

2.     Always try to eat at a table. Eating on the go, at your work desk, or in front of the television can be harmful to your weight-loss plan. Research shows that focusing on food, with minimal distractions, can help you enjoy flavors and reduce overeating. Eating at the table can also help with portion control: Prepare your meal, and then commit to yourself that you won't go back to the kitchen for seconds.

3.     Eat before going to the grocery store. If you go to the grocery store on an empty stomach, you’re more likely to buy whatever you think would satisfy your hunger at that moment. Research shows that shoppers bought more high-calorie foods in the hours leading up to dinnertime than earlier in the day. So make sure to have a snack that is packed with protein before you go to the grocery store. Or, plan your trip to the grocery store after a meal. And don't go grocery shopping without a list of healthy foods.

4.     Only eat half the portions at a restaurant, pack the rest to go. Restaurant meals are often too big and loaded with calories and sodium. This is hard to do halfway through the meal, so ask for one half to be packed up as soon as it arrives. This leaves you with a reasonably sized plate of food, as well as an additional meal for another time.

5.     Keep healthy food stocked and visible. A recent study shows that thought process is pretty common. The research suggests that people who eat healthy often do so because nutritious foods like fruits and veggies are visible and easy to reach. Therefore, buy a fruit bowl and put some fruit you like in it. Another option is to keep cut up veggies right in front in your fridge. 

To keep weight off, keep kitchen counters food free

How much food do you keep in plain sight on your kitchen counter?  You might reconsider putting it in a cupboard or pantry as the saying, “out of sight, out of mind,” appears to have a special association when it comes to body weight.  A recent 2015 study conducted by the Cornell Food and Brand Lab headed by Brian Wansink, professor and director of the lab and author of Slim by Design: Mindless Eating Solutions for Everyday Life, has found a correlation between the amount and type of food visibly kept on a kitchen counter and how much the members of that household weigh.

Wansink has extensively studied eating behavior for years and this most recent study is an example of how our food environment in our homes influences our eating habits and our body mass index.  This current study has two parts: in Study 1, 500 households nationwide were asked to inventory their kitchen along with providing their height and weight; in Study 2, also called The Syracuse Study, researchers photographed and catalogued 210 households in Syracuse, New York with occupants of the households also providing their height and weight. 

The results of the studies demonstrated habits of slim people differ from habits of overweight to obese people which may play a huge role in whether a person gains weight or not. People desiring to lose weight are often told to go on a diet and count calories when maybe one of the best things they can do is modify their food environment within their homes.  Making some small yet appreciable changes might make a world of difference.

An example of Wansink’s past research shows notable behavioral differences between how obese individuals and normal weight individuals at an all-you-can-eat buffet:  obese diners tend to sit closer, facing the buffet, use a larger plate and are likely to sit at a table.  Normal weight diners tend to sit farther from, facing away from the buffet, using smaller plates and sit in a booth.  Neither the obese or normal weight individuals were counting calories, yet the normal weight individuals were naturally practicing fat-proofing tricks they had unconsciously been doing for years.

This recent study has applications that each of us can use to help design our food environment within our homes, particularly our kitchens, to make them more conducive to reduce temptations to overeat leading to weight gain. 

Food environments of homes where the occupants were overweight to obese:

·      Tended to store or keep food – such as regular or diet soft drinks, cereals, packaged snack foods, cookies, candy - visibly out in the open on a kitchen counter or other highly visible location.  They weighed 24 to 26 lbs more than people who did not store food out in the open.

·      Tended to buy food in bulk or large-sized packages.  Just keeping breakfast cereal on the counter was associated with the women in that household weighing 20 lbs more. 

Food environments of homes where the occupants were normal weight:

·      Tended to have fruit in a fruit bowl on the counter and no other food visible.

·      Tended to have a designated cupboard for snack items.

·      Tended to not buy food in bulk or large-sizes.

Even though the findings of this study are correlational, it does suggest the notion that when we can visibly see food and it’s convenient to us, there’s a good chance we’re going to consistently eat more which increases the chance of gaining weight.  When you remove eating cues in your home environment, it lessens the tendency to overeat. 

Wansink’s Slim By Design book makes these suggestions to help win the battle of weight gain by redesigning your kitchen environment:

·      Keep your kitchen a little less inviting.  Remove the TV, the iPads, computer and comfy chairs so you are not as tempted to spend a lot of time there.

·      Keep tempting foods out of sight and inconvenient to get to. 

·      Rearrange cupboards, pantries and the refrigerator so the first foods you see are at eye level and the healthiest for you.

·      The only visible food allowed on the kitchen counter is a bowl of fruit.

·      Make it easy to cook in your kitchen.  If you can easily move around in the kitchen, you’re more likely to want to cook from scratch which generally is healthier.

·      Even the color of your kitchen makes a difference.  Too bright of a color may cause you to eat quickly eating too much whereas too dark of a color may cause you to linger longer eating more.  Find a happy medium between too bright and too dark of a color.

Overall, we need to consider how our food environment does affect our eating behavior more than we realize.  When we are bombarded by seeing food throughout the day within the convenience of our homes, it can tempt us to overeat.  Make a few simple changes in your environment, and the chances of temptation are significantly reduced.

Make time for tea time each day

Before you read this article, go make yourself a cup of hot tea.  You’ll be joining over 158 million other Americans who drink tea, hot or cold, on any given day.  It is one of the healthiest beverages people have consumed for the past 5,000 years and is second only to water as the most widely consumed beverage in the world.  Tea is an all-natural, environmentally sound product coming from a renewable source and tea manufacturers often use recycled paper for packaging. 

Tea is naturally sodium, fat, calorie and sugar free. Tea contributes to good health in many ways – it helps maintain proper fluid balance in the body, it contains flavonoids that neutralize free radicals along with other antioxidant properties that appear to be good for heart health and reduce risk of cancer. 

Hot tea does have some advantages over drinking cold tea.  When tea is steeped, the hot water permeates into the tea leaves drawing out the flavonoids found in the leaves which contain powerful antioxidants.  If you allow the tea to cool down, it loses some of that antioxidant content whereas drinking hot tea allows for maximum antioxidant effect.  In addition, hot tea has a stronger aroma and flavor than cold tea.          

Take time each day to have a cup or two of hot tea.  It’s an excellent healthy alternative to other beverage choices such as sugary juice or soft drinks.

Listed below are several varieties of tea each with their own unique health properties to try out:

·      Green Tea – Made from unfermented leaves, green tea contains the highest concentration of powerful antioxidants called polyphenols that fight free radicals damaging DNA and changing cells.  In traditional Chinese medicine, green tea has been used as a stimulant, a diuretic to get rid of excess fluid in the body, and to improve heart health.  A phytonutrient green tea contains is EGCG making it very effective at fighting cancers by inhibiting growth of cancer cells.  It may also help prevent or slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s Disease. An 8 ounce cup contains 24-45 mg of caffeine.

 ·      Black Tea – This tea is made from aged leaves and stems whereas green tea is made from fresh leaves of the Camellia sinesis plant. One 8 ounce cup provides anywhere from 14-70 mg of caffeine thus possibly affecting mental alertness and thinking.  Black tea also contains powerful polyphenols helping to prevent tooth decay and kidney stones.  The antioxidants in black tea prevent plaque from building up on the teeth leading to an added bonus of fresher breath. 

·      White Tea – Compared to green and black teas, white tea is the least processed and has the highest antioxidant levels.  It has one of the lowest caffeine content at 15-20 mg per 8 ounce cup.  The impressive antioxidant content of white tea performs various health functions ranging from preventing growth of cancer cells, lowering blood pressure, reducing cholesterol, improving bone density, naturally kills off bacteria and viruses, prevents tooth decay and promotes healthy, radiant skin.  It has a flavor ranging from delicate to robust.

 ·      Oolong Tea – This tea was used widely in China 400 years ago.  It is a fermented tea that has combined qualities between green and black teas.  One of the more common features of oolong tea is it being touted as aiding in weight loss.  It contains a polyphenol that is effective in controlling metabolism of fat by activating certain enzymes that boost the functions of fat cells in the body.  However, more studies need to be conducted before that can be determined.  Oolong tea appears to possibly help reduce eczema, protects teeth from decay, strengthens bones, regulates blood sugar and insulin and may reduce cancer risk. Drinking 8 ounces of oolong tea will provide 30 mg of caffeine.

 ·      Peppermint Tea – If you’re looking for a clean, fresh, invigorating taste from a tea, peppermint tea may just be your choice.  This is an herbal tea sometimes called mint tea.  Peppermint tea is caffeine free making it a relaxing tea to try before bedtime without disrupting sleep.  Health benefits it provides include helping to reduce a fever as it contains menthol which can cause sweating to break the fever, can reduce chances of nausea and vomiting, can relieve coughing, bad breath, stress, and helps reduce the pain of cramps, bloating and indigestion.

 ·      Chamomile Tea – This caffeine-free tea is an herb coming from a flowering plant from the daisy family.  For centuries, both the fresh and dried flowers of chamomile have been used to make tea to treat different health conditions.  It contains an essential oil called bisabolol, having anti-irritant, anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties.  Are you allergic to ragweed, pollen or hay fever?  Chamomile tea may not be for you as it may cause severe symptoms and it can also interfere with blood thinners. Its health benefits include treating insomnia, anxiety, stomach cramps, migraine headaches, and reducing excess gas and bloating in the intestines associated with irritable bowel syndrome. 

 There are many other varieties of tea to try out – have fun discovering which ones you like best and in the process obtain the many health benefits each provides.

Want healthy gut bacteria? Follow the Mediterranean diet

Once again, the Mediterranean Diet continues to shine as an exceptionally healthy way of eating.  A recent 2015 study demonstrated a direct link between the type of food consumed in the Mediterranean Diet and the production of health-promoting short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in our intestinal tract.

When we eat insoluble fiber from plant based foods such as fruits, vegetables and legumes, it is fermented into SCFAs by bacteria living in the intestinal tract. These SCFAs are beneficial as they appear to help reduce heart disease, diabetes and inflammatory diseases. 

The study looked at 153 Italian adults who followed the Mediterranean Diet.  The Mediterranean Diet consists of large amounts of vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, whole grains, fish and low amounts of saturated fat, red meat and dairy foods.  The Italians following this way of eating had high levels of SCFAs and those who consumed the most plant based foods, basically vegetarians, had even higher levels of SCFAs than those who ate meat.  Meat eaters can benefit from SCFAs if they keep portion sizes small and consume more plant based foods.   A compound called trimethylamine oxide (TMAO) found in higher levels of individuals who eat beef, eggs, pork, and fish, is linked to heart disease.  The vegetarians and those who follow the Mediterranean Diet have lower levels of TMAO. 

The message learned here is to eat more plant-based foods having them fill up at least one-half of your dinner plate each day and keeping meat portions to a minimum.  Learn more about following the Mediterranean Diet way of eating and how it can boost your health and reduce disease.

Eat right or exercise? Which to choose when in a pinch

A few weeks ago, my sister asked me this question, “If you had to cut corners, which is better to choose - eating healthy or exercise?”  My initial response was “Trying to cut corners should be kept to a minimum.  To achieve health and fitness, making wise food choices and engaging in consistent exercise are both necessary – they go hand-in-hand.”  But I understood what she was asking.  There are times in our lives when things get busy and we find ourselves doing one thing but not another. 

Which one should we choose if we have to make a decision when in a pinch?  Healthy eating wins hands down.  Here’s why:

1.     If you focus only on exercise without making changes in your food choices, you won’t see much of a weight loss.  Those who exercise with the goal of losing weight but without cutting back on portion sizes or choosing healthier food, will see minimal weight reduction in 6 to 12 months compared to combining exercise with healthy eating.

 2.     Here’s another way to look at it. To calculate the number of calories burned per mile either walking or running, use the following formula from Runner’s World website: 

WALKING - calories/mile - .57 x wt in lbs – or calories/minute - .03 x wt in lbs

RUNNING - calories/mile - .72 x wt in lbs –  or calories/minutes - .07 x wt in lbs.

Let’s say you walk 2 miles and you weigh 165 lbs.  Take 165 x .57 = 94 calories burned for each mile walked (188 calories).  But then afterwards you’re tempted by Starbucks on the way home and order a nonfat green tea latte - sounds healthy right?  The only problem is it contains 210 calories which just wiped out the 188 calories you burned walking. 

 3.     Some people will believe that because they are exercising, they can eat more food. They have the mentality of thinking “because I’m exercising, I can eat whatever I want.”  This goes along with the point made in no. 2 – eating more calories than what you burn through exercise will undo all your hard work.  It’s not easy to out-exercise poor food choices.

 4.     If you exercise faithfully yet your food choices are unhealthy, you won’t be feeding your body the fuel it needs to perform its optimal best.  Skipping meals or going for long periods of time without eating, can lead to fatigue along with blood sugar spikes and drops.  Exercise gives us energy but eating healthy, well-balanced meals throughout the day, fuels you with the necessary nutrients needed to keep energy levels sustained and help reduce hunger jaunts tempting you to make poor food choices. 

 My best advice is to not get into situations where you have to make the choice between whether to eat right or exercise. However, next time you find yourself in a time-crunch, remember to choose healthy foods first over exercise.  Limit highly processed/refined foods, eat a lot of plant-based foods (vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, whole grains), drink more water and you will be able to keep your weight in check until you are able to include both healthy eating and exercise in your daily routine once again. 

Counting calories for weight loss is not working and here’s why:

I remember in my undergraduate years training as a student of dietetics, having to sometimes keep a food log for a class recording our calorie intake.  I found it tedious and boring.  Later on, working with clients seeking to lose weight, we were taught to place them on a certain calorie level to induce weight loss meaning they had to look up calorie levels of food.  For some it did work but I remember thinking to myself, “thank goodness that’s not me having to do that.”

Why did I not like counting calories?  Because I rarely put the emphasis on the number of calories consumed.  Instead my focus, my motivation always was and still is, on the nutritional quality of food I’m eating.  I’ll admit, I’ve never been overweight in my life therefore I’ve never been on a weight loss diet.  I’m not saying that in a bragging sense but rather to emphasize when our focus is shifted from thinking in terms of calories to instead thinking in terms of nutritional quality, everything changes.  

The notion weight loss can best be achieved by keeping track of how many calories you’ve eaten in a day, is beginning to be questioned more and more.  Is this really the right thing for people wanting to lose weight to focus on? The weight loss industry, bringing in $58 billion in revenue each year in the U.S., highlights calorie restriction by either cutting out entire food groups or severely restricting calories, and yet most people will regain the weight lost on these diets.  Currently, 34.9% or 78.6 million adults in the U.S. are obese (obesity being defined as a body mass index or BMI of 30 or >), a record level.  Clearly, something is not working.

The food industry has not helped.  Remember back in the 1980’s and 1990’s when fat was considered a villain and suddenly supermarket shelves were filled with snack foods labels proudly proclaiming “fat-free” or “reduced-fat.”  What do you think they replaced the fat with?  Sugar.  Sugar is a simple carbohydrate rapidly absorbed in our intestinal tract. This leads to a brisk rise in our blood sugar causing the pancreas to release the hormone insulin. Insulin gets the sugar out of our bloodstream and into the cells of our body, which is its job, but then this leads to a corresponding rapid drop in our blood sugar.  When we have a rapid drop in our blood sugar, we get hungry and our cravings lean towards eating more highly-sweetened carbohydrate foods, resulting in a viscous cycle. 

The results of replacing fat with sugar and other highly refined/processed food in our food supply during the 1980’s-1990’s was very likely one factor in the explosion of the obesity rate in the U.S.  People didn’t eat less, they ate more.  Consuming easily absorbed carbohydrates that quickly enter into our bloodstream make us hungrier faster than foods that take longer to be digested. 

You’ve probably heard of the phrase “a calorie is a calorie no matter where it comes from.”  This is no longer accepted.  Two separate journal articles, one a 2014 commentary in Public Health Nutrition and the other, a 2015 editorial address this.  Calories are units of energy, a measure of the potential energy a food can release. Calories come from protein, fat, carbohydrates and alcohol, each having varying effects on our satiety, food consumption, weight maintenance and body composition by how they interact with different hormones and physiological pathways.  Hormones affected include:

·      Ghrelin – an appetite –stimulating hormone

·      Leptin – an appetite-suppressing hormone

·      Glucagon – a hormone raising blood sugar

·      Insulin – a hormone lowering blood sugar

When a person reduces their caloric intake, it tends to result in fatigue along with increasing hunger usually for carbohydrates that are absorbed quickly – highly processed and refined foods such as white rice, sodas, food made with white flour – often resulting in rebound weight gain in the long term.  Eating carbohydrates that are rapidly absorbed, may be promoting leptin resistance, the appetite-suppressing hormone.  Maybe it’s not so much the number of calories eaten but instead the type of carbohydrate foods we’re choosing leading to weight gain. 

So, should all of us quit counting calories and stop looking at the calorie amounts on the back of food labels?  It depends. 

Here are some reasons why counting calories may be harming your weight loss efforts:

·      It can be monotonous leading to burnout making you feel like a human calculator.  If you love math and keeping figures, you may enjoy it.  But often you feel resentful if you deprive yourself from all high calorie foods.  When foods are forbidden, you may end up craving them and eating more when the opportunity arises.

·      If you restrict yourself on the number of calories you can consume, anytime you give into temptation, it can lead to bingeing.  It’s called the “what the hell effect.”  You have a tendency to feel “if I’ve blown my diet, I might as well eat even more.” 

·      It can cause you to overthink your food choices.  This can lead to feelings of stress and deprivation that takes a toll on our mental and physical well-being to where you lose the pleasure of eating.

·      It may not be helping you learn to listen to your body intuitively.  There will be some days you want to eat less calories you’ve been assigned to or other days you want to eat more.  When we begin really paying attention to our hunger/fullness cues throughout the day, this can go a long way to curbing your intake of food more naturally.

So, what can be done? 

Both aforementioned journal articles had suggestions that merit a closer look and are ones I’ve always advocated as a registered dietitian.  Our focus should not be so intense on the calories found in food.  Here are ideas that may turn the tide in reducing obesity:

·      Put the focus on eating actual food.  Not processed or refined food but food Mother Nature provides for us.  The kind you grow in your backyard or find at a farmer’s market or in the produce section at the grocery store. 

·      Think in terms of the nutritive value of the food and not so much the amount of calories in it.  What kind of minerals, vitamins and phytochemicals does the food provide, that should be the focus.  Build meals around fresh, healthy food.

·      Decrease consumption of refined/highly processed foods to a bare minimum.  The more ingredients listed usually the less healthy it is for you.

·      Work with agricultural industries to help create subsidies for fruits and vegetables, making them more affordable and available to the general public.

 ·      Have tighter controls on marketing of junk food.

·      Eat regular meals each day.  Avoid skipping or eating chaotically throughout the day. 

 ·      When choosing what to eat, think in terms of “How will this nourish my body?  Is this a food promoting my health or harming my health?”

There are no short term fixes.  Counting calories may be the solution for some people but it’s been tried over and over without making much headway when it comes to weight loss.  It’s time to get back to basics by wiping clean the highly refined/processed foods from your diet and starting with fresh, natural foods – vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes, whole grains, lean meat, fish, poultry, dairy.

Simply eating healthy without having to count calories is one of the easiest things to do.   It frees you up to enjoy food without stressing over a certain number to meet.  In addition, keeping things simple makes everything more likely to fall into place.