Archive for the ‘Food’ Category

Protein rich foods

Monday, August 15th, 2011

Especially when you want to lose weight, it’s important to eat protein rich foods. Not all proteins, though, are alike.

Processed meat
Protein can be damaged by heat. When you heat it for too long or when the cooking temparature is too high, you ‘denature’ protein. Thus, the nature of the protein changes.

This is what happens with processed meat. Pre-cooked and pre-packaged meats like hot dogs, smoked meats, lunch meats, bacon, breakfast sausage and soy proteins, are all processed through heat. Their nutritional value is not only ruined, when your body breaks down these cured proteins, a byproduct can combine with the nitrites used in meat processing to make nitrosamines. There are over 300 different forms of nitrosamines, and over 90 percent are cancer-causing.

When it comes to eating protein, it is clever to follow two steps.

Step 1: Eat protein from a variety of natural sources. That can be anything from eating an egg every morning, to having a scoop of grass-fed whey protein from a pure and trusted source.

Also milk has protein, but pasteurized milk protein is denatured. Whole, raw milk still has its proteins intact.

Stick with meat from grass fed animals like beef. Also, eat wild-caught fish, free-range chicken and turkey and cage-free whole eggs. These are the purest forms of protein you can get, and have the most nutritional value.

Step 2: Take the nutrients that fight nitrosamines: vitamins C and E. Scientists found vitamin C’s protective power by accident. Researchers were studying nitrosamine formation caused by a drug they were testing. When they went to use a new batch, no nitrosamines were formed. They found that the new batch had been made with ascorbic acid (vitamin C) as a preservative, but the original batch had not. Vitamin E has a similar effect.

Studies show vitamin C works by disarming free radicals before they can damage your DNA or stimulate tumor growth.

When you add vitamin E, you increase the protection of vitamin C. As it turns out vitamin E is a ‘synergistic’ nutrient. It needs other antioxidants to work best. It’s prevention at its finest.

Sources
Besides fruit, other food sources of vitamin C are bright-colored peppers, and peppermint leaves. The spices thyme and parsley have a lot of vitamin C, too. You can add them to any soup, stew or salad.

The most important food sources for vitamin E are seeds, nuts and eggs. Dry roasted sunflower seeds and almonds are the natural sources with the most vitamin E.

Of course you can also take supplements. Not the cheap ones though, often they are not natural vitamins but synthetic. Ask a nutrition specialist for advice on this.

(Source: newsletter Al Sears, MD)

Posted in Food, Vitamines, Weight | Comments Off

3 weight loss myths explained

Tuesday, January 11th, 2011

Myth #1: cutting calories will make you drop weight
In the long run cutting calories doesn’t work because your body has a built-in intelligence. For example, if you drop your calories too low and grow hungry, your body reacts as if it’s starving and does everything it can to preserve fat. And whether you eat 500 calories or 5,000 calories a day, you’ll gain weight if you don’t eat the right kinds of calories.

For example, a starchy carb calorie is not the same as a protein calorie or a fat calorie. Your body ‘counts’ them in different ways. Take a French fry, for example. That’s almost the same as eating table sugar. And the excess sugar of starches and carbs is what spikes your blood sugar and eventually gets stored as fat.

A burger, on the other hand, is filled with protein – an essential form of fuel. So when you eat protein your body uses this energy source to function at its best – and actually melt fat. That’s why it’s not about eating fewer calories, it’s about eating the right stuff.

Example: two patients of dr. Al Sears tried to lose weight. One ate from 4,500-5,000 calories a day of mainly high-protein foods. He dropped six pounds. Another cut more than 600 calories a day from her diet, exercised five days a week, and still ended up gaining four pounds.

Myth #2: cutting back on fat will make you drop weight
Eating fat doesn’t make you fat. But eating the wrong kinds of fat will. Our bodies need fat to absorb vitamins. In fact, vitamins A, D, E, K and CoQ10 can’t even be absorbed without fat. And when you deprive yourself of fat, you eat more carbs. And that’s what really makes you fat.

One study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people who ate low-fat diets showed no improvement in body composition, blood sugar, insulin levels, or blood pressure (1)

The key to fat loss is NOT to deprive yourself of the fatty foods you were born to eat. You just need to make sure you eat the right kinds of fats in the right ratios.

Myth #3: long cardio workouts lead to fat loss
The exercise industry tells you that spending long hours pounding away at the treadmill at the gym is what you need to do to melt fat. Unfortunately, melting fat while you exercise tells your body to make more fat to melt the next time you exercise. After a while, your body gets very good at doing just that. Before you know it, you’ve hit a plateau. No matter how many hours you spend at the gym or how grueling your workouts are, you still might not be able to drop a pound. Smart exercising (like moderate power training and to fit in your day to day life lots of moments that you move around) is the key, not heavy exercising.

(Source: newsletter Al Sears, MD)

1 Knopp, R. H., et al, “Long Term Cholesterol Lowering Effects of 4 fat-restricted diets in hypercholesteroemic and combined hyperlipidemic men,” The Diet Alternatives Study, Journal of the American Medical Association. Nov. 12, 1997; 278(18): 1509-1515

Posted in Afvallen, ENGLISH POSTS, Exercise, Fitness, Food, Weight | Comments Off

Nutrients to help control blood sugar

Monday, November 29th, 2010

Gymnema Sylvestre
For more than two thousand years, people in India have used the herb gymnema sylvestre to help control blood sugar. In fact, the leaves of this climbing plant are prized by practitioners of Ayurvedic medicine, the holistic system of healing.

The herb is also called ‘gumar’ which literally means ‘destroyer of sugar’ in Hindi. This name describes the way that chewing the leaves interferes with your ability to taste sweetness. Because this herb decreases the sensation of sweetness in many foods, it may reduce your cravings for sugary snacks.

In one study, patients who took 400 mg of gymnema sylvestre extract daily for 18 to 20 months along with their oral medications showed a significant reduction in their fasting blood-sugar levels. (1).

Chromium
Chromium aids in digestion and helps move blood glucose from the bloodstream into the cells for energy. It also helps turn fats, carbohydrates and proteins into energy.

Also, chromium is critical for healthy insulin function. Without enough chromium in your body, insulin just doesn’t work properly.

Chromium exists in many foods including brewer’s yeast, meats, potatoes (especially in the skin), cheeses, molasses, whole-grain breads and cereals, and fresh fruits and vegetables.

Despite the wide availability of chromium from food sources, research shows that 90 percent of American adults have a chromium-deficient diet. This could be a key reason why an increasing number of Americans suffer blood-sugar problems.

Cinnamon
Recent scientific discoveries prove that this commonly used spice helps regulate blood sugar in ways previously unknown. Scientists at the Maryland-based Human Nutrition Research Center were studying the effects of common foods on blood sugar. They found that when patients ate apple pie, their blood-sugar levels actually improved.

Further investigation revealed it was the cinnamon in the apple pie that helped their blood-sugar levels. Researchers discovered that cinnamon increases your glucose metabolism. It contains a compound called methylhydroxy chalcone polymer, or MHCP for short, that works with insulin to help process glucose.

In fact, a laboratory test conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture showed MHCP increased glucose metabolism by roughly twenty times. People who control their blood sugar with cinnamon use around half a teaspoon before meals. Some studies show that cinnamon can reduce the glycemic response of a meal up to 29%!

Tip: if you will eat a meal that contains moderate or high leves of carbohydrates, take one or two cinnamon capsules (max. one gram) before this meal.

Warning: keep in mind that if you take medications, you need to consult with your doctor to make sure that cinnamon use does not interfere with the medications (especially with blood thinners).

Fenugreek
Fenugreek is an herb native to the Mediterranean, Ukraine, India and China.
Practitioners of Ayurvedic and traditional Chinese medicine have used the herb for more than two thousand years. Modern scientists now know fenugreek helps balance your cholesterol, triglycerides and blood glucose.

Fenugreek seed stimulates insulin release. This helps food sugars reach your cells properly. A well-known study published in the British Medical Journal divided patients with blood-sugar concerns into two groups. Group one received one gram of fenugreek seed extract and group two received a combination of dietary control, exercise and a placebo capsule for two months.

Group one saw more positive results for blood sugar, insulin resistance, cholesterol and triglycerides compared to group two. (2).

You don’t want to bite into a fenugreek seed, as they are also very bitter. But if you roast them in a pan for a minute or two, without burning them, they’ll taste a bit caramel-like. Then you can add them to other spices for a complex mix of flavor.

You can also make a tea with dried fenugreek leaves by steeping one or two teaspoons of the leaves in two cups of boiling water for five minutes.

Bitter Melon
Although it may be unknown to most people in the West, bitter melon has long been used in South America, the Caribbean, East Africa and Asia as food and a natural medicine. And scientific studies prove its value for treating blood-sugar problems.

For example, two studies show bitter melon could play a key role in helping to balance insulin in your body, which, of course, means healthy blood-sugar control. They also showed bitter melon had positive effects on the serum glucose levels of those taking it, following both fasting and eating. (3,4).

Bitter melon is often used in stir-fry dishes. Cut the melon open lengthwise without peeling. Then remove the seeds and the white ‘pith’ inside, and chop it like you would a green pepper. Boil the melon until the pieces are tender, and add them to your favorite stir-fry recipe.

(Source: newsletter Al Sears, MD)

1 Baskaran, K., et al, J. Ethnopharmacology 1990; 30(3):295-305
2 Sahelian, R., Report on study conducted at the Jaipur Diabetes and Research Centre in India
3 Leatherdale, B.A., et al, Br. Med J (Clin Res Ed), June 1981:282 (6279):1823-24
4 Welihinda J, et al, J. Ethnopharmacology Sept 1986: 17(3): 277-82

Posted in Bloedsuiker, Diabetes, ENGLISH POSTS, Food, Voeding | Comments Off

Stop food cravings

Monday, November 22nd, 2010

Many of the snacks we eat today hardly even qualify as ‘food’. In many cases they’re nothing more than sugar, refined grains and artificial flavors. These foods are nearly devoid of nutrients, so even after you eat them, your body will send you the ‘I’m hungry’ feeling. Your body needs nutrition and if it doesn’t get that, it will ask for it by giving you these ‘hunger’ signals.

Fresh, whole organic foods on the other hand don’t contain anything processed that doesn’t need to be there. They’re called ‘nutrient-dense’ foods, and they’re one of the best ways to stop the snack food (‘hunger’) cycle.

Take strawberries, for example. They’re nutrient-dense because each cup has only 150 calories, but 3.5 g fiber, 86 mg of vitamin C and 26 mcg of folate.

Other nutrient-dense foods include nuts, whole eggs, meats, fish, and organic vegetables and fruits.

That means you should fill up on natural, nutrient-dense sources of protein like walnuts, almonds or pumpkin seeds. And it also means you shouldn’t eat loads of nutrient-depleted foods like white pasta, white rice and cereal, and should stay away from stuff as crackers, chips and food bars.

Nutrient-dense foods give your body what it needs to stay up and running throughout the day. You won’t get the ‘hungry’ signal and you’ll be less tempted to eat trigger food.

Posted in ENGLISH POSTS, Food, Weight | Comments Off