Foods that Promote Happiness

From Yahoo!

If you’re feeling as blue as the skies above, you will be happy to know that a few spoonfuls of the right foods may turn that frown upside down! Whole foods contain vital nutrients that provide both physical and psychological benefits. Read on to discover which foods contain those mood-boosters to help you smile your way to longevity.
 
Fun with Folate
Eat folate-rich foods: Leafy greens like kale, broccoli, spinach, asparagus, turnip greens, bok choy, legumes, sunflower seeds, oranges, melons, beets, and fortified whole grains
Why? Folate, also know as folic acid, is a water-soluble vitamin that is necessary for cell division, DNA synthesis, and healthy blood cell production. Research at the University of York and Hull York Medical School has found a link between depression and low levels of folate. The recommended daily allowance (RDA) for men and women is 400 micrograms and 600 micrograms for pregnant women. To keep you smiling, increase your intake of folate-rich foods. A cup of cooked lentils provides 90% of the RDA of folic acid. Plus, the fiber and protein will satisfy you longer, stabilize blood sugar, and also promote a better mood. Additional bonuses: Folate can also decrease homocysteine, an amino acid that is linked to heart disease. Low levels of folate can cause anemia, while pregnant women must increase their folate levels to prevent fetal neural tube deficiencies. 

Boost Your B6
Eat B6 foods: bananas, chicken breast, garlic, Brussels sprouts, collard greens, sunflower seeds, broccoli, red bell peppers, watermelon, avocados, and potatoes
Why? Vitamin B6 plays a role in red blood cell metabolism, protein metabolism, and synthesis of neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine. It also helps maintain healthy blood sugar levels, and increases the amount of oxygen carried to your tissues. Low levels can lead to an increase of homocysteine, anemia, headaches, and depression. The RDA for adults from age 19 to 50 is 1.3 mg/day and approximately 1.6 mg for individuals over 50. The next time you’re feeling down, grab a banana and munch your blues away! 

Go Fish!
Eat omega-3-rich foods: fish like salmon, sardines, mackerel, anchovies, and herring, flaxseeds, walnuts, and algae
Why? DHA omega-3 essential fatty acid maintains healthy brain function and is vital for fetal brain and eye development. Current research also demonstrates the association between intake of omega-3 fatty acids and depression. A meta-analysis study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry found that depression was significantly improved in patients with unipolar and bipolar disorders after taking three daily fish capsules for eight weeks. Eat the oily fish listed above -- a 3-ounce serving of salmon contains between 1.1 - 1.9 grams of omega-3 fatty acids. Supplementing with high quality fish oil capsules may be an alternative if you don’t consume fish on a regular basis. Vegetarian sources of omega-3 can be found in flaxseeds, walnuts, and algae. Toss a tablespoon of sunflower seeds or walnuts into a creamy cup of unsweetened low-fat yogurt for a mega mood boost! 

Good Carbs, Bad Carbs
Eat good carbs: whole grains, fruits, vegetables
Why? Not all carbohydrates are created equal. Whole grains, fruits, and veggies supply us with prolonged energy, fiber, and multiple nutrients that our bodies need for optimal health. Good quality carbohydrates can also trigger serotonin synthesis. Recognized as the “happy hormone,” serotonin is an important neurotransmitter that affects our mood and sleep. The next time you feel blue, instead of reaching for that bag of chips or sugary cookies, opt for unrefined, unprocessed carbohydrates that will provide you with sustained energy and an improved mood. Toss that muffin and enjoy a whole grain cracker with a tablespoon of natural nut butter for a delicious and uplifting snack!

The Skinny Carbs Diet: Resistant Starch is the Key

From Health News:


Just like calories, not all carbs are created equal; some are better for you than others, particularly if you are playing the weight-loss game. And unlike low-carbohydrate diets such as Atkins and South Beach, The Skinny Carbs Diet actually allows you to have daily carbs in a reasonable amount, but is very specific about which carbs you should be putting into your mouth.
The Skinny Carbs Diet is based on resistant starches, which are starches that resist breakdown in the digestive tract and do not get absorbed by the intestine. Resistant starches deliver fewer calories per gram than regular starches while increasing your post-meal satisfaction. It may also improve blood-sugar control, lower cancer risk, and foster healthy digestion. This means concentrating on potatoes (including sweet potatoes), bananas, beans/legumes, certain breads and grains.
By not breaking down as quickly, the starch stays in your system, making you feel fuller and avoiding those sugar-rush highs. Recent research at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center for Human Nutrition confirms that starch-resistant foods help people "eat less, burn more calories, feel more energized and less stressed, and lower cholesterol." Starch-resistant Starch foods also have backing from the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO).
The University of Colorado research, based on the study of 4,451 participants, found that the slimmest ones ate the most carbs (from whole grains, fruits, and vegetables), while the heaviest ones ate the least carbs. The key to this, and the diet itself, is to “increase total carb intake and up the percentage of carbs from starch-resistant foods,” said Health magazine.

Eating Trans Fats Linked to Depression

From WebMD:

Eating too much trans fat, long known to raise heart disease risk, can also boost your risk of depression, new research suggests.
Eating a heart-healthy diet with olive oil can lower the risk of depression, says researcher Almudena Sanchez-Villegas, PhD, associate professor of preventive medicine at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in Las Palmas, Spain. The study included more than 12,000 people.
"The participants with an olive oil consumption higher than 20 grams a day (about 0.7 ounces) had a 30% lower risk of depression than those without consumption or with a very low consumption of olive oil," Sanchez-Villegas tells WebMD.
Those who took in the most trans fats, however, had up to a 48% increased risk of depression.
The unhealthy fats, says Sanchez-Villegas, are believed to lead to biological changes in the body linked with both heart disease and depression.
The researchers evaluated 12,059 men and women, with an average age of 37. All were free of depression at the start of the study.
The men and women completed a food frequency questionnaire, describing their intakes of various types of fat. After a median follow-up of 6.1 years (half were followed longer, half less) 657 new cases of depression had been diagnosed.
The researchers then looked at the type and amount of fat intake to see if it played a role. It did.
Those who ate a high amount of trans fat -- the fat type found in fast food, industrially produced pastries, and certain whole milk products -- had an increased depression risk, while those who ate the most olive oil had a lower risk than those with a low consumption of olive oil or no olive oil.
The trans-fat intake in the participants was fairly low, Sanchez-Villegas says. Those in the highest intake group took in about 1.5 grams daily, and it was in that group the researchers found the 48% increased risk of depression.
In the study, both good fats and bad showed what scientists call a ''dose-response'' relationship. "More consumption, more protection [for olive oil] and more intake, more risk [for trans fatty acids],'' Sanchez-Villegas says.
The biological changes that occur with high consumption of ''bad'' fats may explain both the heart disease and depression link, the researchers say.
The ill effects of bad fats on heart disease are believed to be due to increases in LDL “bad” cholesterol and reductions in HDL “good” cholesterol. There are also inflammatory changes, and these changes have also been linked with depression, the researchers say.
Inflammation may interfere with the brain's neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, Sanchez-Villegas says, and a lack of serotonin adversely affects mood.

New Front-of-the-Package Nutrition Labels

From Health News:


The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cracked down on the food industry and false labeling claims, and in an effort to take it a step further, are developing a proposal for front-of-the-package labeling system. However, food manufacturers have developed their own guidelines and are now debuting their front label “Nutrition Keys” to help consumers make informed decisions.
The new labels, called nutrition keys, were developed by Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) and will be put into practice later this year. Appearing on the front of packages, these keys will display calories, saturated fat, sodium and sugars. Some manufacturers will take it one step further and display those ingredients which might be appealing to consumers, such as fiber, vitamins, or protein.  The full nutrition labeling will still appear on the back or side of packaging.
"The industry's unveiling today of its front-of-package labeling system is troubling and confirms that this effort should not circumvent or influence FDA's effort to develop strong guidelines," Democratic Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro said in a statement. Despite the pre-emptive move by the industry, the FDA will continue with its plans to prescribe guidelines for front-of-the-package labeling, independent of what the industry has already announced.
Nutrition labels are an important factor in shopping and preparing for a healthy diet. While you might think that consumers don’t bother reading the grams and percentages of fat, cholesterol, fiber, protein, sugar, and vitamins, you would be wrong. An FDA Health and Diet Survey found that approximately 50 percent of shoppers take the time to check out food labels and the ingredient lists before buying a product. Understanding all the verbiage may be another matter, however.
The good news is that a study published last fall in the Journal of Consumer Affairs found that people who observe the labels and do not exercise display a slightly greater likelihood of weight loss than those who do exercise but do not pay attention to food labels. If label readers add in an exercise routine, the combination can mean success. They also found that women between the ages of 37-50 years are more likely to read food labels than men, and are therefore more likely to lose weight, and older individuals are less likely to lose weight by reading food labels.

Weight Loss As A Primary Goal Often Fails, Study Shows

From Daily Health Report:


In attempts to lose weight and eat a healthy diet, individuals may be actually gaining weight and decreasing overall health without knowing it, a new study explains.
Experts explain that to achieve the best results, individuals should focus on overall health instead of sheer weight loss for long-term success with a lifestyle change of this type.
With the growing number of individuals who are overweight or obese, many health officials suggest weight loss as the primary goal. However, researchers have found that fat has been extremely over-exaggerated in terms of the health risks that small amounts pose.
Instead of consistently encouraging weight loss, researchers suggest additional efforts be made to inform the public about nutritional food choices and ways to improve overall health instead of focusing mainly on weight loss. Not only does focusing on weight loss often lead to failure, but when the primary goal is to lose weight, a significant negative connotation is carried, also affecting self-esteem.
For this study, researchers analyzed data from more than 200 different studies. The findings are vastly different than most other health and weight loss studies.
Researchers found that weight loss may not prolong life, that diet and exercise may not work for everyone, and that weight loss should be the primary goal for overweight individuals, among other findings.
Additionally, the study found that focusing mainly on weight loss does not produce long-term results.
Experts suggest providing informational material to overweight individuals and to focus more on a long-term health approach instead of just weight loss.

Fad Diets: 150 Years And Still No Quick Fix

From HuffPo:

Before there was Dr. Atkins, there was William Banting. He invented the low-carb diet of 1863. Even then Americans were trying out advice that urged fish, mutton or "any meat except pork" for breakfast, lunch and dinner – hold the potatoes, please.
It turns out our obsession with weight and how to lose it dates back at least 150 years. And while now we say "overweight" instead of "corpulent" – and obesity has become epidemic – a look back at dieting history shows what hasn't changed is the quest for an easy fix.
"We grossly, grossly underestimate" the difficulty of changing behaviors that fuel obesity, says Clemson University sociologist Ellen Granberg, who examined archives at the Library of Congress. She believes it's important to show "we're not dealing with some brand new, scary phenomenon we've never dealt with before."
Indeed, the aging documents are eerily familiar.
Consider Englishman William Banting's account of losing almost 50 pounds in a year. He did it by shunning "bread, butter, milk, sugar, beer and potatoes, which had been the main (and I thought innocent) elements of my existence" in favor of loads of meat.
His pamphlet, "Letter on Corpulence, Addressed to the Public," quickly crossed the Atlantic and become so popular here that "banting" became slang for dieting, Granberg says.
While obesity has rapidly surged in the last few decades, we first changed from a nation where being plump was desirable into a nation of on-again, off-again dieters around the end of the 19th century, Granberg says.
Before then, people figured a little extra weight might help withstand infectious diseases that vaccines and antibiotics later would tame. It also was a sign of prosperity. But just as doctors today bemoan a high-tech, immobile society, the emergence of trolleys, cars and other machinery in the late 19th century scaled back the sheer number of calories people once burned, Granberg explains. Increasing prosperity meant easier access to food.
"An excess of flesh is to be looked upon as one of the most objectionable forms of disease," the Philadelphia Cookbook declared in 1900. Low-cal cookbooks hadn't arrived yet; the calorie wasn't quite in vogue.
By 1903, La Parle obesity soap that "never fails to reduce flesh" was selling at a pricey $1 a bar. The Louisenbad Reduction Salt pledged to "wash away your fat." Soon came an exercise machine, the Graybar Stimulator to jiggle the pounds. Bile Beans promoted a laxative approach.
As the government prepares to update U.S. dietary guidelines next week, the Library of Congress culled its archives and, with Weight Watchers International, gathered experts recently to discuss this country's history of weight loss.
Granberg recounted how real nutrition science was born.
The government's first advice to balance proteins, carbohydrates and fat came in 1894. A few years later, life insurance companies reported that being overweight raised the risk of death. In 1916, the Department of Agriculture came up with the five food groups. Around World War II, charts showing ideal weight-for-height emerged, surprisingly close to what today is considered a healthy body mass index.
Diet foods quickly followed, as did weight loss support groups like Overeaters Anonymous and Weight Watchers – putting today's diet infrastructure in place by 1970, Granberg says.
Yet fast-forward and two-thirds of Americans today are either overweight or obese, and childhood obesity has tripled in the past three decades. Weight-loss surgery is skyrocketing. Diet pills have been pulled from the market for deadly side effects, with only a few possible new ones in the pipeline.
More and more, specialists question how our society and culture fuel overeating.
"Should it be socially desirable to walk down the street with a 30-ounce Big Gulp?" asks Patrick O'Neill, president-elect of The Obesity Society and weight-management director at the Medical University of South Carolina.
Negotiating a weight-loss menu for a family with different food preferences is a minefield that affects how people feel about themselves and their relationships with loved ones, adds Clemson's Granberg, who began studying the sociology of obesity after losing 120 pounds herself.
"If what you need is a nutritionally sound, healthful weight-loss plan, you can get 100 of them," she says. "That, we have figured out in the last 100 years. It's how to do all this other stuff that I think is the real challenge."

Keep Cholesterol in Check

From Everyday Health:


Controlling your cholesterol is key to preventing heart disease. For some, this can be accomplished through the same healthy diet and exercise plan that keeps a whole host of illnesses at bay. You might not love the idea of cutting back on cheeseburgers and steak sandwiches, but for men who plan to live a long and healthy life, it could be a sacrifice worth making.
 
Cholesterol 101
Cholesterol is a soft, waxy substance found in all cells of the body and in the bloodstream. The body uses cholesterol to form cell membranes, make hormones, and produce vitamin D, among other functions. Your body makes all the cholesterol it needs, with your liver and other cells in the body creating about 75 percent of your blood cholesterol. The other 25 percent comes from food.
Cholesterol causes health problems when high levels exist in the bloodstream. Cholesterol starts to build up in the walls of your arteries, forming plaque deposits that narrow the arteries and force your heart to work harder to pump blood. This hardening of the arteries can lead to heart attack or stroke.
For a long time, high cholesterol has been a principal concern in maintaining a man's health. Statistics show that a slightly greater percentage of women have high total cholesterol than men. But because men have a statistically greater heart attack risk than women do, and suffer attacks earlier in life, controlling cholesterol levels can have a huge impact on preventing heart attacks in men. 
 
Cholesterol: A Numbers Game
Doctors measure your cholesterol by drawing blood after you've gone through a 9- to 12-hour fast without food, liquid, or medication. They look for three numbers:

• Total cholesterol levels
• Low density lipoprotein (LDL) or "bad cholesterol" levels, which is the type of cholesterol that forms plaque in your arteries
• High density lipoprotein (HDL) or "good cholesterol" levels; HDL helps sweep the bloodstream of LDL and return the bad cholesterol to the liver — the higher your HDL levels, the better your chances of avoiding heart disease.

People are considered to be at high risk of heart disease if they have:

• Total cholesterol levels above 239
• LDL levels above 190
• HDL levels below 35

People are considered at borderline risk for heart disease if they have:

• Total cholesterol between 200 and 239
• LDL levels between 130 and 159
• HDL levels between 35 and 60

Some 98.6 million adults in the United States have total blood cholesterol levels that put them at risk of heart disease, and of those about 34.4 million American adults have cholesterol levels considered high risk. You should have your cholesterol levels checked every one to two years.
 
Cholesterol: How to Lower Your LDL
People normally have high cholesterol levels because they've been eating too much fatty food. However, health problems like diabetes, obesity, genetic disorders, or a dysfunctional thyroid gland also can increase a person's of cholesterol level.
Lifestyle and diet changes are the first actions doctors recommend when you're trying to lower your cholesterol levels. That mainly involves altering your diet to reduce your intake of saturated fats — fats that are usually solid at room temperature, like butter, lard, or the white fat contained in red meat. Research has found that eating saturated fat increases LDL levels. On the other hand, eating unsaturated fats — fats that are liquid at room temperature, like olive or vegetable oil — lowers bad cholesterol levels if they are used in place of saturated fats.
To limit cholesterol and promote heart health, the American Heart Association recommends these diet guidelines:

• No more than 25 to 35 percent of your total daily calories should be from fat.
• Up to 7 percent of your total daily calories should be from saturated fat and just 1 percent from trans fat.
• No more than 300 milligrams of cholesterol should be eaten daily. Since one egg has 300 mg of cholesterol, don't plan on eating any other cholesterol that day if you have an egg. If your cholesterol is already high, that daily max comes down to 200 mg.
• Reduce your sodium intake to less than 2,300 mg to avoid high blood pressure and for overall cardiovascular health.
• Eat lots of vegetables and fruits. Whole grains and high-fiber foods are also good, as are lean meats, poultry, and fish. Choose fat-free or 1 percent milk-fat dairy products for the calcium and vitamin D benefits without the saturated fat.

You should get at least 30 minutes of exercise every day or at least on more days than not each week. Some people find that regular exercise affects their blood cholesterol level by increasing their levels of the good HDL cholesterol. Exercise can also help control weight, diabetes, and high blood pressure, all known risk factors for heart disease. Aerobic exercise in particular can help train your heart to work more efficiently and condition your lungs.
If you still have trouble lowering your cholesterol levels, there are medications available that can slow down the rate at which LDL is made or improve the ability of the liver to destroy LDL. Talk with your doctor about when to consider these prescription drugs; your doctor can also help you tailor the right diet and exercise plan, lifestyle must-dos even if you are on medication to lower cholesterol.
 

5-a-Day ‘Not Enough’ Fruits and Vegetables - New Research Finds 8-a-Day May Be Needed to Cut the Risk of Dying From Heart Disease

From Web MD:

We’re all urged to eat five servings of fruits and vegetables a day, but new research finds eight servings may be needed to cut the risk of dying from heart disease.
The diet and lifestyles of more than 300,000 people across eight countries in Europe found that people who ate at least eight portions of fruits and vegetables a day had a 22% lower risk of dying from heart disease than those who ate three portions a day.
Each additional portion in fruits and vegetables was linked to a 4% lower risk of death.
One portion counted as 80 grams, such as a small banana, a medium apple, or a small carrot.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. and around the world, accounting for more than one in every four deaths in the United States, according to the CDC.

Average Intake of Fruits and Vegetables

The average intake of fruits and vegetables in the various countries was five servings a day.
Spain, Greece, and Italy were the leaders in fruit and vegetable eating. Italian men enjoyed 7.5 portions a day, and Spanish women 6.7 portions.
Healthy eating tailed off the further north the researchers looked in Europe.
U.K. men managed 4.1 portions a day, and women 4.8 portions.
Swedish men and women were the worst, with only 3.5 and 2.9 portions a day.
The researchers say factors like cost and availability of fruit and vegetables are likely to account for differences in intake.
Data came from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)-Heart study.

Every Portion Counts

Study researcher Francesca Crowe, MD, of the Cancer Epidemiology Unit at the University of Oxford in England, tells WebMD by email, “We do need to be cautious in our interpretation of these findings as participants with a higher intake of fruits and vegetables tended to be slightly healthier overall. So we are unable to say whether the association between fruits and vegetables and heart disease is causal.”
In other words, did the fruits and vegetables make people healthier, or are people who eat better also more likely to have healthier lifestyles?
Crowe says healthy eating also needs to be added to healthy lifestyle behaviors as well as other recommendations “such as not smoking, not having high blood pressure or high blood lipids [cholesterol] and being in a healthy weight range.”
Stepping up from five servings to eight servings a day might be hard, but Crowe says, “It may be a more manageable public health guideline to recommend that everyone increases their intake by one portion per day.
“This is a much more modest effect for an individual but if everyone could achieve this then at a population level the impact would be quite large.”

Eating greens 'best way to look good', research shows

From The BBC:

Dr Ian Stephen who led the research believes eating carrots and tomatoes made you look better than a tan would.
Dr Stephen explained: "Eating five more portions [of fruit and veg] ups your carotenoid levels giving your skin golden tones."
Carotenoids are antioxidants which soak up damaging compounds that the skin encounters in daily life.
Students at the University's Malaysian campus, where Dr Stephen is based, ate five extra portions of fruit and vegetables a day for two months.
Afterwards students examined a variety of pictures where their skin had different pigmentations and deemed themselves more attractive when they had increased their vegetable intake.
Dr Stephen explained: "In humans, the more red and yellow tones found in the skin, the more attractive the people were found to be."
The redder tones are caused when people are flush with blood, particularly if the blood has lots of oxygen in it.
The psychology associate professor began the study after reading Charles Darwin's 'Descent of Man'.
English naturalist Darwin, had explored in his 1871 book, the reason why people have different colourings.
Dr Stephen then began looking at skin colours and what biological factors made skin look its most healthy and attractive.
Under Darwin's 'survival of the fittest', where the healthiest reproduce, people with healthier skin tones appear more attractive.
Dr Stephen concluded that practically a healthy intake of fruit and vegetables making you look good is great news too.
He explained: "It's better for you than lying in the sun, as if you've got red hair and freckles you're going to burn which won't happen from eating fruit and veg!"

Good Calories, Bad Calories

From Tropical Traditions:

In this groundbreaking book, the result of seven years of research in every science connected with the impact of nutrition on health, award-winning science writer Gary Taubes shows us that almost everything we believe about the nature of a healthy diet is wrong.

For decades we have been taught that fat is bad for us, carbohydrates better, and that the key to a healthy weight is eating less and exercising more. Yet with more and more people acting on this advice, we have seen unprecedented epidemics of obesity and diabetes. Taubes argues persuasively that the problem lies in refined carbohydrates (white flour, sugar, easily digested starches) and sugars–via their dramatic and longterm effects on insulin, the hormone that regulates fat accumulation–and that the key to good health is the kind of calories we take in, not the number. There are good calories, and bad ones.

Good Calories
These are from foods without easily digestible carbohydrates and sugars. These foods can be eaten without restraint: meat, fish, fowl, cheese, eggs, butter, and non-starchy vegetables.

Bad Calories
These are from foods that stimulate excessive insulin secretion and so make us fat and increase our risk of chronic disease—all refined and easily digestible carbohydrates and sugars. The key is not how much vitamins and minerals they contain, but how quickly they are digested. (So apple juice or even green vegetable juices are not necessarily any healthier than soda.) Bread and other baked goods, potatoes, yams, rice, pasta, cereal grains, corn, sugar (sucrose and high fructose corn syrup), ice cream, candy, soft drinks, fruit juices, bananas and other tropical fruits, and beer.

Taubes traces how the common assumption that carbohydrates are fattening was abandoned in the 1960s when fat and cholesterol were blamed for heart disease and then –wrongly–were seen as the causes of a host of other maladies, including cancer. He shows us how these unproven hypotheses were emphatically embraced by authorities in nutrition, public health, and clinical medicine, in spite of how well-conceived clinical trials have consistently refuted them. He also documents the dietary trials of carbohydrate-restriction, which consistently show that the fewer carbohydrates we consume, the leaner we will be.

With precise references to the most significant existing clinical studies, he convinces us that there is no compelling scientific evidence demonstrating that saturated fat and cholesterol cause heart disease. Based on the evidence that does exist, he leads us to conclude that the only healthy way to lose weight and remain lean is to eat fewer carbohydrates or to change the type of the carbohydrates we do eat, and, for some of us, perhaps to eat virtually none at all.

The 11 Critical Conclusions of Good Calories, Bad Calories:

1. Dietary fat, whether saturated or not, does not cause heart disease.
2. Carbohydrates do, because of their effect on the hormone insulin. The more easily-digestible and refined the carbohydrates and the more fructose they contain, the greater the effect on our health, weight, and well-being.
3. Sugars—sucrose (table sugar) and high fructose corn syrup specifically—are particularly harmful. The glucose in these sugars raises insulin levels; the fructose they contain overloads the liver.
4. Refined carbohydrates, starches, and sugars are also the most likely dietary causes of cancer, Alzheimer’s Disease, and the other common chronic diseases of modern times.
5. Obesity is a disorder of excess fat accumulation, not overeating and not sedentary behavior.
6. Consuming excess calories does not cause us to grow fatter any more than it causes a child to grow taller.
7. Exercise does not make us lose excess fat; it makes us hungry.
8. We get fat because of an imbalance—a disequilibrium—in the hormonal regulation of fat tissue and fat metabolism. More fat is stored in the fat tissue than is mobilized and used for fuel. We become leaner when the hormonal regulation of the fat tissue reverses this imbalance.
9. Insulin is the primary regulator of fat storage. When insulin levels are elevated, we stockpile calories as fat. When insulin levels fall, we release fat from our fat tissue and burn it for fuel.
10. By stimulating insulin secretion, carbohydrates make us fat and ultimately cause obesity. By driving fat accumulation, carbohydrates also increase hunger and decrease the amount of energy we expend in metabolism and physical activity.
11. The fewer carbohydrates we eat, the leaner we will be.

Good Calories, Bad Calories is a tour de force of scientific investigation–certain to redefine the ongoing debate about the foods we eat and their effects on our health.

Too Much TV, Computer Time May Hurt the Heart

From Web MD:

Hours spent lounging in front of a computer or television may hurt the heart, a new study shows.
The study shows that adults who averaged more than two hours sitting in front of a television or computer screen that was not related to their job or schoolwork had roughly twice the risk of having heart attacks, heart surgeries, strokes, or other cardiovascular events, compared to those who logged less than two hours of daily screen time.
What’s more, the risk did not drop appreciably when researchers factored in other variables, like a history of diabetes or high blood pressure, smoking, body weight, socioeconomic or marital status, or even a regular exercise routine.
Public health experts and cardiologists say the study offers more proof that people may need to shift their wellness goals slightly, beyond simply making sure they get a daily workout to also reducing the amount of time they are sedentary.
“It’s not even about the exercise. It’s about not sitting,” says Suzanne Steinbaum, DO, a preventive cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. “I think that sort of points us in a little different direction. In order for you not to cause harm to yourself, you really need to focus on getting up and moving.”

Heart Health Goes Down the Tubes

For the study, which is due to be published in the Jan. 18 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, researchers at University College London and the University of Queensland in Australia followed more than 4,500 adults who took part in the Scottish Health Survey.
Participants were over age 34 and were followed for an average of 4.3 years.
To figure out how much leisure time was spent sitting, researchers asked: “Thinking of weekdays, how much time, on average, do you spend watching TV or another type of screen such as a computer or video game? (Please do not include any time spent in front of a screen while at school, college or work.)”
Researchers also asked about physical activity both at work and outside of work, including any heavy housework like scrubbing floors, heavy gardening like digging, walking, and leisure time exercise, such as cycling, swimming, aerobics, dancing, and football.
They then linked the survey results to hospital data on admissions and deaths in Scotland from 1981 through December 2007.
Compared to people who spent less than two hours a day in front of a TV or computer, those who spent four hours a day on screen-based entertainment had a 48% risk of dying for any reason; those who spent more than two hours a day sitting in front of a screen had 125% greater risk of experiencing cardiovascular events like heart attacks and strokes.

Diet Season is Here!

Like the changing of the leaves or other harbingers of a seasonal change, one thing that happens every year is people start new diets in large numbers come January.  Most do it because of their New Year's resolutions, but others simply figure that a new year is time for "a new me."

Personally, my body is on a different cycle.  For most of my adult life, I'll gain weight in the winter and lose weight in the summer.  My goals, every year, are to gain less weight in the winter than I lost the previous summer, and to lose more weight in the summer than I gained the previous winter.  Like most middle-aged men, I've not been as successful as I like.

The reason you've not realized the results you wanted in the past, and the reason they're within your reach, all has to do with how you view the word "diet."  Instead of thinking of Diet (with a capital D) that you adopt in order to lose a specified amount of weight or engage in for a fixed period of time, think of diet (with a lower case d) that you can follow for the rest of your life.

To reach and maintain a healthy weight, you simply have to eat the way your body was meant to eat.  Our bodies did not evolve to consume trans fat and high-fructose corn syrup.  We're perfectly suited to eat reasonable quantities of vegetables, meat, fruit, grains, and legumes.  In other words, eat only real food. 

When you do your grocery shopping, think before reaching for a bag, bottle, box, or other item.  Ask yourself "did this food even exist two hundred years ago?"  If it didn't, or couldn't have (as it's the product of a laboratory instead of a farm), then pull your hand back, leaving that item on the shelf.  When you get to the checkout stand, your cart should have nothing but real food.

One great motivator is imagining everyone getting to see what you bought.  Pretend that your shopping cart will be exposed to everyone in the store to evaluate.  Are you proud of your purchases?  If you filled up with real food, you ought to be.  If your cart has chips, soda, frozen meals, and other pretend foods of modern technology, then you might be ashamed to let people see it - and you shouldn't be buying it.

So, that's the first step.  Buy real food.  What's next?  Preparing it in reasonable portions, and snacking only on healthy things.  The hardest part of changing your diet comes the first few weeks.  Your body will still crave the bad foods you're used to eating.  I find a couple of ways to help in this transition period.

The best motivator is to imagine your slimmer, fitter body, and how great you'll feel once you get it.  Knowing that you have a goal in mind will help you change your diet from one filled with fake food and large quantities to one made up of reasonable quantities of real food.  Every time you go into the kitchen, whether it's to prepare a meal or grab a snack, think about your goal.  This will help you make good decisions.

If you eat because you're bored, then you need to do something else.  Hobbies and activities will fill that time.  They also help you feel like a more complete person.  If you eat when you watch television, stop it!  That's one of the worst habits people can have.  Do all your eating while seated at your dining table.

Drink tea.  If you like it, green tea is good for you, and suppresses hunger.  Black tea has many of the same benefits.  Herbals teas, drank as a hot beverage, also help to suppress hunger.  Herbal teas come in many varieties, and it's almost unimaginable that you can't find several you like.

Limit your snacks to fruit.  If possible, eat seasonal fruit.  Berries and melons in the summer, apples in the winter.  The more colorful your fruit, the better for you it is.  I find that I like my fruit in the form of smoothies.  I'll put some berries, melon, banana, a couple of ice cubes and splash of juice into the blender, and voila!  If I'm not in the mood to eat fruit, I'm certain to be in the mood to drink a smoothie.

And finally, get more exercise!  The benefits of exercise are too numerous to mention, but I'll cover a few here.  In addition to burning calories, getting your muscles working and your blood flowing will help you sleep better, improve digestion, lift your mood, make you better able to do things, keep your brain fed with oxygen, etc.  Technology and the demands of modern life have diminished our physical activity, so we must find ways to fit exercise into our daily routine.  At the very least, go for a walk each day.  If you can do a brisk walk, hike, ride a bicycle, lift weights, row a boat or paddle a canoe, play a sport, or do more, you'll be much happier for it (for so many reasons).

So, with the onset of this year's Diet season, don't fall into the same trap that captures so many people every year.  This is the year you can change your life.  Adopt a lifelong diet and daily exercise regimen that will work for you!

Diet plan needs to be sensible

From News Observer:

Pull out your gym shoes and put away those holiday cookies. It's time for the annual diet-fest.
It's a good thing we're so motivated to lose weight this time of year. The big push to shape up helps compensate for holiday indiscretions and can give you the boost you need to enter the new year with dietary momentum.
Still, it's important for your diet strategy to be sound. No use wasting time - and emotional energy - on plans that are doomed to fail, and there are lots of those.

On the other hand, one of the best plans around is one you've probably heard about most of your life: Weight Watchers. It was your mother's - and maybe your grandmother's - diet plan, and it's one of the better approaches for losing weight.

A plan to live with

"It's the most livable plan to date," said Tonia Parrish, a Clayton schoolteacher, Weight Watchers leader and spokeswoman for the program. She lost 109 pounds on Weight Watchers over two years and has kept the weight off three years.

"Joining Weight Watchers was about my health," she said. "At the age of 33, I had borderline diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol."

Parrish lost the weight and brought those other health indicators under control.

The new PointsPlus program builds in incentives to choose more whole foods, fewer processed foods and more fruits and vegetables, changes designed to support health over the long run. Under the new system, fruits and low-calorie vegetables count as free foods or zero points, giving members more incentive than ever to fill up on these foods.

Mediterranean diet slows cognitive decline

From UPI:


The Mediterranean diet, which reduces the risk of heart disease, some cancers and diabetes, may also reduce cognitive decline, U.S. researchers say.
Researchers at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago say the Mediterranean diet -- lots of vegetables, fish, olive oil, legumes, non-refined cereals and moderate consumption of wine and other alcohol -- is associated with slower rates of cognitive decline in older adults.
Lead author Christy Tangney says the study involved 3,759 older residents of the south side of Chicago who are part of the Chicago Healthy Aging Project. The study subjects -- age 65 and older -- had a cognitive assessment that tested memory and basic math skills and they also completed questionnaires on the frequency with which they consumed 139 food items ranging from cereals and olive oil to red meat and alcohol.
Out of a maximum score of 55 -- indicating complete adherence to the Mediterranean diet -- the average study participant scored 28.
The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found those with higher scores for the Mediterranean diet had cognitive tests that showed a slower rate of decline, even after factoring for education.
"The more we can incorporate vegetables, olive oil and fish into our diets and moderate wine consumption, the better for our aging brains and bodies," Tangney says in a statement.