A Calorie is Not a Calorie

Eat less than you burn and you’ll lose weight – it’s preached as the “be all, end all” of weight loss and it’s completely WRONG.

Truth is, the number of calories you eat is not the only factor that affects your body composition.  In fact, there are at least 5 other factors that need to be considered, including:

1.The thermic effect of the food ingested.  The thermic effect of food (TEF) measures the amount of energy that is required to support the processes of digesting, absorbing, and assimilating food nutrients as well as the energy expended as a result of the central nervous system’s stimulatory effect on metabolism when food is ingested.  Of the three macronutrients, protein carries the highest thermic effect.

2. The fiber content of the food ingested.  Due to its chemical makeup, fiber is classified as a carbohydrate; however, it is unlike other carbohydrates in that it is a mostly indigestible nutrient.  Even though each gram of fiber contains four calories, these calories will remain undigested and will not be absorbed.  Therefore, if one were to consume 300 calories of red beans (a food in which nearly 1/3 of the caloric content is from fiber), approximately 100 of these calories would pass through the intestinal tract undigested.

3. The glycemic and insulin index of the food ingested.  The glycemic and insulin index are scaled numbers that refer to how quickly a particular carbohydrate source enters the bloodstream as sugar and how much insulin is needed to rid that sugar from the bloodstream, respectively.  Generally speaking, there is a positive relationship between the two; that is, the quicker sugar enters the bloodstream, the more insulin is needed to rid that sugar from the bloodstream.  When high levels of insulin are present within the blood, fat burning is brought to a screeching halt, which is anything but desirable for those whose goal is just that.

4. The macronutrients present in the food ingested.  Although insulin’s primary function is to shuttle glucose (sugar) into skeletal muscle, it also carries many other nutrients to their respective storage sites; this includes fat.  Since carbohydrate ingestion stimulates a large insulin response and fat ingestion gives rise to blood lipid levels, the two, when consumed together in high levels (especially in the absence of protein), promote the greatest fat storage.

5. The timing of the meals ingested meals.  Ingesting a large amount of carbohydrates before bed spikes insulin, sabotages overnight fat burning, and increases fat storage during sleep.  On the contrary, consuming a great deal of calories early in the day does not bring about this problem; rather, these calories are likely to be used as energy to support daily activities.

As you can see, someone could be eating a relatively small amount of calories daily, but at the same time promoting a great deal of fat storage by:

1) making poor food choices
2) eating carbs and fat together in large amounts without protein, and
3) consuming meals at inopportune times

Information from Joel Marion & Josh Bezoni Founders of BioTrust Nutrition.

Dietary Guidelines for Maintaining Healthy Brain Function and Avoiding Alzheimer’s Disease 

It’s becoming increasingly clear that the same pathological process that leads to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes may also hold true for your brain. As you over-indulge on sugar and grains, your brain becomes overwhelmed by the consistently high levels of glucose and insulin that blunts its insulin signaling, leading to impairments in your thinking and memory abilities, eventually causing permanent brain damage.

Additionally, when your liver is busy processing fructose (which your liver turns into fat), it severely hampers its ability to make cholesterol, an essential building block of your brain that is crucial for optimal brain function. Indeed, mounting evidence supports the notion that significantly reducing fructose consumption is a very important step for preventing Alzheimer’s disease.

Because of the very limited treatments, and no available cure as of yet, you’re really left with just one solid solution, and that is to prevent Alzheimer’s from happening to you in the first place. Dr. David Perlmutter, the author of the book Grain Brain, explains that Alzheimer’s is a disease predicated primarily on lifestyle choices; the two main culprits being excessive sugar and gluten consumption.

• Avoid sugar and refined fructose. Ideally, you’ll want to keep your total sugar and fructose below 25 grams per day, or as low as 15 grams per day if you have insulin resistance or any related disorders. In one recent animal study, a junk food diet high in sugar resulted in impaired memory after just one week! As a general rule, you’ll want to keep your fasting insulin levels below 3, and this is indirectly related to fructose, as it will clearly lead to insulin resistance.

• Avoid gluten and casein (primarily wheat and pasteurized dairy, but not dairy fat, such as butter). Research shows that your blood-brain barrier, the barrier that keeps things out of your brain where they don’t belong, is negatively affected by gluten. Gluten also makes your gut more permeable, which allows proteins to get into your bloodstream, where they don’t belong. That then sensitizes your immune system and promotes inflammation and autoimmunity, both of which play a role in the development of Alzheimer’s.

• Eat a nutritious diet, rich in folate, such as the one described in my nutrition plan. Vegetables, without question, are your best form of folate, and we should all eat plenty of fresh raw veggies every day. Avoid supplements like folic acid, which is the inferior synthetic version of folate.

• Increase consumption of all healthful fats, including animal-based omega-3. Beneficial health-promoting fats that your brain needs for optimal function include organic butter from raw milk, clarified butter called ghee, organic grass fed raw butter, olives, organic virgin olive oil and coconut oil, nuts like pecans and macadamia, free-range eggs, wild Alaskan salmon, and avocado. Also make sure you’re getting enough animal-based omega-3 fats, such as krill oil. High intake of the omega-3 fats EPA and DHA help by preventing cell damage caused by Alzheimer’s disease, thereby slowing down its progression, and lowering your risk of developing the disorder.

• Optimize your gut flora by regularly eating fermented foods or taking a high-potency and high-quality probiotic supplement
• Eat blueberries. Wild blueberries, which have high anthocyanin and antioxidant content, are known to guard against Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases.

Source: Dr. Mercola.com

Chocolate – The World’s Most Powerful Antioxidant???

This metabolic rock star is what gives chocolate its melt-in-your mouth, satisfying quality.  Infused with relaxing minerals like magnesium and potassium, cacao butter ALSO has the antioxidants epicatechin and resveratrol that cools the inflammation that makes you fat, especially around your belly.

And it’s loaded with super-healthy fats like oleic acid (same as in olive oil), that keep your appetite DOWN and your energy UP and saturated fats like palmitic acid that strengthen your brain and heart.

SHOCKER: the cacao bean contains THE highest antioxidant power of any food in the world – 10 x more than blueberries and 20 x more than spinach.

Keep in mind though that if you eat the cacao bean in its raw state – you may think this is not chocolate!!! It is very bitter, high in fiber, and no sugar has been added.  So the candy chocolate you buy in a store is NOT a super food and is very unhealthy because it full of sugar and highly processed. The higher the cacao percentage the higher the antioxidant capacity. So maybe start eating 60% chocolate instead of milk chocolate and later work your way up to 85% chocolate. Ideally you can make you own raw chocolate which would be healthiest and you can add healthier sweetener such as raw honey or coconut sugar which has a very low Glygemic index or erythritol which has no calories.

Some research suggests that dark chocolate may lower blood pressure, improve cognitive function in elderly people with mental impairment, increase the beneficial HDL, protects LDL from oxidation, and lowers cardiovascular death. Very Powerful benefits.

I add raw cacao powder to my smoothies and make a delicious almond chocolate pea protein smoothie. Good for the muscles, brain, heart, and soul. =)

Can Honey help prevent and heal cancer?

 I love honey but have been limiting it because of information online saying how honey is just another sugar which we know is not very healthy and caused many diseases so common now in the USA.  Maybe this is true for most of the processed heated honey but here is some new research indication that honey really is a great food!

This is what researcher found out about honey:  “Honey is highly cytotoxic (causes cell death) against tumor or cancer cells while it is non-cytotoxic to normal cells. The data indicate that honey can inhibit carcinogenesis by modulating the molecular processes of initiation, promotion, and progression stages. Thus, it may serve as a potential and promising anticancer agent which warrants further experimental and clinical studies.”

If you are interested in learning about many more benefits of honey such as MRSA treatment with Manuka honey, improvements of blood lipids, skin infections, dermatitis, coughing, periodontal disease,  etc. check this link:  http://www.greenmedinfo.com/substance/honey

I will for sure use honey instead of regular sugar or Agave syrup.  It is important to buy good quality honey such as Manuka  honey or any local RAW honey which has not been heated and processed. Enjoy the treat and remember everything in moderation.

References:

Molecules 2014, 19(2), 2497-2522; doi:10.3390/molecules19022497

Effects of Honey and Its Mechanisms of Action on the Development and Progression of Cancer

http://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/19/2/2497

ARE YOU IN CONTROL OF YOUR GENES?

In essence, you ARE changing your genetics daily and perhaps even hourly from the foods you eat, the air you breathe, the exercise you do, and even by the thoughts you think. That you can modify your genes is the focus of a new field known as epigenetics, and it is probably the most important biological discovery since DNA.

No matter what hand you were dealt at birth, you can take steps to “activate” the disease-busting, health-boosting genes and suppress those that will cause you harm. This is evidenced perhaps most clearly by identical twins, who start out with the exact same genetic code … but end up very different.

As you age, your genome does not change but your epigenome changes dramatically, especially during critical periods of life, such as adolescence. It is influenced by physical and emotional stresses — how you respond to everything that happens in your environment, from climate change to childhood abuse.

The secret is in the methyl groups that overlie the DNA molecule, which is the realm of the epigenome.

When a gene is turned off epigenetically, the DNA has usually been “methylated.” When methyl groups adhere to a segment of DNA, they inhibit the gene’s response.

Methylation-gone-wrong is now suspected in autism, depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.

You do not manifest disease merely by a defective gene, but by your epigenome. In other words, whether or not you develop disease is determined by how your genome is being directed to express itself. There are also “master genes” that can switch on and off clusters of other genes.

A Healthy Lifestyle Supports Healthy Genetic Expression

One way to look at epigenetics is this: all of your cells contain ALL of your genes. The reason why your skin cells behave differently than, say, your liver cells, is because the genes that are not needed by a particular cell are turned off by epigenetics.

Epigenetics focuses on that your lifestyle choices will determine the expression of your genes.  Just think of a body builder and a long distance runner. Their activity will determine the size and metabolism of their muscle, heart cells.  So how about if you eat healthy fat vs. unhealthy fat or high vs a low sugar diet, it will determine the EXPRESSION OF YOUR DNA!

Start today to encourage your genes to express positive, disease-fighting behaviors by leading a healthy lifestyle even before a disease has manifested.  If you have a disease already, it is possible to change you gene expressing to you will heal yourself.

Take the time to invest in your Health, Eat Healthy, Exercise, Relax, Do Fun things and follow your Passion and Smile a lot!

Superfood Chia – 11 Ways to use Chia seeds

Chia, pumpkin and flaxseeds, for example, all contain anti-inflammatory magnesium and healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Two tablespoons of chia seeds contain 18 percent of the DRI for calcium, 35 percent for phosphorus, 24 percent for magnesium and about 50 percent for manganese. (1 ounce of chia seeds has more calcium than half a glass of milk!)

Fiber is associated with reducing inflammation, lowering cholesterol and regulating bowel function. Chia seeds are an excellent source of fiber, with a whopping 10 grams in only 2 tablespoons.

1. Substitute for eggs (1 ground tbs of Chia with 3 tbs water for one egg) in recipes

2. Thicken up Soups or Gravy – Add 1 ts of seed at a time until you reach the desired thickness. It needs a few minutes to thicken

3. Sprout Chia seeds for salads

4. Add them to  Brownies or truffles to increase protein and fiber

5. Add chia seed to coconut water, especially if you are an athlete for an energy mineral dring

6. Use in slow cooler to thicken sauce

7. Add chia seeds to beaten egg, soak for 10 min and make omelette.

8. Make Crackers – Make thin batter of chia seeds and milk and cook in slow oven or dehydrator to make crackers, you may want to add cinnamon, or vanilla stevia for sweet crakers or salt and herbs for salty crackers.

9. Make a Cinnamon Nut Butter – Add ground chia seeds to nut butters, or add to butter with some cinnamon,,

10. Make Healthy Pudding  – Add ½ cup of chia seeds to 11/2 cups of almond or milk of your choice. You can add cinnamon, stevia or any other natural stevia. Can be served with fresh fruit.

11. Add to smoothies – I love to add chia seeds to my smoothies, it makes them richer and thicker and the smoothie will keep me full longer!

Love to hear other ways you like to use Chia Seeds!

Is Stevia good for me?

 It is pretty much known that processed sugar is very unhealthy and it contributes to cardiovascular disease and cancer.  However, Americans eat more sweets than ever before.  It is almost difficult to find food in the grocery store which does not have high fructose corn syrup, sugar, dextrose etc.  A lot of sugar is hidden in ketchup, most sauces, cereals, breads etc.

So some people are aware that sugar is not good so they use diet products which has artificial sweetener in them which can cause many other health problems.  It was never proven that people lost weight on diet foods.  In fact, they feed artificial sweetener to cows which they have found increases their appetite and consequently they eat more and gain more weight which means more money.  So artificial sweetener is a NO NO in a healthy diet.

What about Stevia?  Here is what studies have shown:

1. In one study, when participants consumed stevia before their meals, they felt satisfied with fewer calories, and did not eat more food throughout the day to make up for the lack of food at their meal. (2)

2. In that same study, the stevia group showed lower after-meal glucose and insulin levels. (2)

3. One of the biggest issues around healthy blood sugar levels is the fasting glucose levels, which refer to the glucose levels in the morning after consuming no food for eight hours. During the night, the liver releases a certain amount of the hormone cortisol, in order to prepare for the stressors of the coming day. The liver matches this cortisol with glucose, to drive the energy needed for that day. The liver makes this glucose by itself through a process called gluconeogenesis. While it is not clear why, the liver often overshoots the runway, allowing glucose levels to rise to unhealthy levels in the morning. Anything over 85mg/dL is considered too high. There are a handful of agents that will slow the liver’s production of first morning blood sugars and stevia is one of them. (3) This is a pretty amazing effect!

4. Stevia has also been shown to support healthy intestinal, urinary, and immune functions.

5. Stevia has been shown to support healthy blood pressure levels.

Out of the benefits listed above, stevia’s strongest effects seem to be its ability to help regulate blood sugar and blood pressure levels.

Grocery store shelves can attest to the fact that stevia is making its way into the mainstream, replacing other sweeteners in many comfort foods and packaged products. As far as I can tell from the research, this may be a very good thing. There is no doubt that, if we are going to be ingesting sweets, pure, unadulterated stevia ranks better than any of them. While I have not seen research comparing the effects of processed or extracted stevia with that of raw stevia, I always suggest non-processed products whenever possible.

Lets talk about the taste. It does not taste as good as sugar and one gets used to that unique stevia taste, research seems to show that it is a very healthy alternative to sugar.  At least REDUCE the amount of sugar you are eating, your body will thank you for it.

References:

1. Cardiovasc  Hemotol Agents Med Chem. 2010; 8(2):113-27 An Evidence Based Review of Stevia

2. Appetite 2010;55(1):37-43. Effects of Stevia

3.  Planta Med. 2005;71(2):108-13. Mechanism of Hypoglycemic Effect of Stevia

4. Iafelice R. Sweet As Sugar. 2014. Feb 2014