Category Archives: anti-aging

How to enjoy last night’s leftovers without a side of toxins

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 Carl Lowe

Follow these 4 tips to limit your exposure to phthalates, which can cause insulin resistance and hypertension:“BPA-free” is an important label you probably notice quite a bit. I hope you are heeding the warning and choosing BPA-free products if you use plastics, because BPAs and another “everywhere chemical”—phthalates—do nasty things to humans.

These rather toxic chemicals are quite literally found everywhere. BPA is used in hard, clear plastic products, like baby bottles and some food storage containers. It’s fairly easy to look for the warning labels to avoid exposure to BPA. But phthalates, used in plastics that need to be flexible, like pacifiers and plastic wrap, don’t necessarily come with a warning — and research has linked them to cancer and other serious health problems.

In the past, one particular phthalate, called di-2-ethylhexylphlatate (DEHP) was banned because of concerns over its potential carcinogenic effects as well as its harm to fertility. But research into compounds being used in plastic as supposedly safer, “less toxic” substitutes, are now showing that the new phthalates are just as problematic for your health. They can increase your blood pressure and make you more vulnerable to developing diabetes.

Steps to avoiding toxins in your food

This presents a big problem for you and me because these toxins are in a lot of the products we use every day — including plastic containers and plastic wrap we use to hold and store our food. And according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), they are leaching right into your leftovers and into the foods you bring home from the store in plastic packaging.

Those kinds of facts can be confusing. You can’t expect to be an expert on plastics and it can be a daunting task understanding which plastics found in stores have the worst effects.

But there are some uncomplicated solutions: An easy way to cut down exposure is to simply eat fresh fruits and vegetables that have not been wrapped in plastic or packaged in cans lined with plastic.

But don’t stop there. Follow these tips to further limit your toxic exposure:

  • When storing foods in the refrigerator, wrap them in wax paper or aluminum foil instead of plastic. Alternatively, you can store them in glass, porcelain or stainless steel containers.
  • Don’t microwave foods in plastic containers. Transfer them to glass or ceramic. Otherwise the high heat in the microwave can cause phthalates from the plastic to enter your food.
  • Wash plastic food containers by hand. Don’t clean them in the dishwasher. The high heat and detergents used in dishwashers can leach plasticizers out of the containers.
  • When possible, avoid using plastic containers which have the recycle numbers 3, 6 or 7 on the bottom. Those numbers indicate the plastic contains phthalates.
Ridding the rest of your home – and your body of toxins

To limit your exposure to phthalates outside of the kitchen:

  • Keep vinyl toys away from children
  • Choose fragrance-free personal care products when possible

In today’s chemical world, some degree of exposure to toxins like phthalates is just about inevitable. These tips can help you going forward, but what about the levels you’ve been exposed to already? For that, you may want to consider detoxing.  And whatever you do, avoid the plastic.

Remember, Tupperware is a brand, not a material. It’s plastic.

Stay Informed, Stay Healthy.

Eat like your grandparents did, and Stay Healthy

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Carl Lowe

I recently read that the World Health Organization projected that India will be home to 80 million diabetics by the year 2030. This is shocking news but it comes on the heels of a 12-year study that revealed something startling about how, generations later, we are affected by the way our ancestors ate. And when I say ‘we,’ I mean you and me.

The research, performed at the University of Sydney in Australia, in conjunction with the National Center for Cell Science and the DYP Medical College in Pune, India, showed that eating a ‘normal’ diet can cause obesity in animals whose previous generations were undernourished.

This mirrors what is happening in many underdeveloped countries, like India, where multi-generational undernutrition has given way to increasing prosperity and along with it, a rise in metabolic diseases, like diabetes, hypertension and heart disease.

Why is this happening? The DNA of recent generations of Indians has not caught up to their changed environment and diet, and is still responding to food in the way their malnourished ancestors did — as though there was a food shortage — and conserving calories in anticipation of a hungry tomorrow. This means they are storing fat in way that makes them prone to obesity and the diseases it causes, even when eating a normal diet.

If that’s the situation you find yourself in consider this: Eating like your grandparents may be the key to meeting your goal weight and avoiding metabolic disease. That’s because, most likely, eating a diet similar to theirs can lower your chances of blood sugar issues and diabetic complications.

Most likely your grandparents weren’t malnourished. But they ate a diet very different from what most of us eat today. They may have eaten less, but well, and were satisfied because they ate real food, full of fiber and healthy fats, vitamins and minerals, instead of the nutrient-deficient, low-fat processed stuff we call ‘food’ today.

That difference in your diet and theirs could be causing your body to store fat and get sick. Because if you’re eating the standard American diet, void of nutrition, your body may believe it’s starving. And in a very real way it is.

Food is also a business now, and in your grandparent’s day — not so much. Fast food chains and food companies market comfort foods to us day and night, irresponsibly encouraging us to keep indulging our taste buds until it seems perfectly normal to always have a snack in hand. But this study once again points to the importance of eating less processed food.

If you can make the commitment to eating like grandpa and grandma did — avoiding just about everything advertised on TV — you can improve your health in a wide variety of ways along with dropping your risk of diabetes. The transition isn’t easy. I know, because in following the paleo diet (a diet that closely resembles what most of our ancestors probably ate) I have had to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to everything society (and those relentless ads) tries to tell me about consuming ready-to-eat sweet treats.

But the health rewards are well worth it. And as far as diets go, eating paleo is probably the easiest you could ever follow. Avoid anything you get from a drive-in or a box and odds are you’re safe.

Fiber is Fab

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Adapted from Dr. Mercola

Why Is Fiber So Important?

It is actually because your body can’t digest fiber that it plays such an important part in digestion. Soluble fiber, like that found in cucumbers, blueberries, beans, and nuts, dissolves into a gel-like texture, helping to slow down your digestion. This helps you to feel full longer and is one reason why fiber may help with weight control.

Insoluble fiber, found in foods like dark green leafy vegetables, green beans, celery, and carrots, does not dissolve at all and helps add bulk to your stool. This helps food to move through your digestive tract more quickly for healthy elimination. Many whole foods, especially fruits and vegetables, naturally contain both soluble and insoluble fiber.

9 Health Benefits of Fiber
  • Blood sugar control: Soluble fiber may help to slow your body’s breakdown of carbohydrates and the absorption of sugar, helping with blood sugar control.
  • Heart health: An inverse association has been found between fiber intake and heart attack, and research shows that those eating a high-fiber diet have a 40 percent lower risk of heart disease.
  • Stroke: Researchers have found that for every seven-grams more fiber you consume on a daily basis, your stroke risk is decreased by 7 percent.
  • Weight loss and management: Fiber supplements have been shown to enhance weight loss among obese people, likely because it increases feelings of fullness.
  • Skin health: Fiber, particularly psyllium husk, may help move yeast and fungus out of your body, preventing them from being excreted through your skin where they could trigger acne or rashes.
  • Diverticulitis: Dietary fiber (especially insoluble) may reduce your risk of diverticulitis – an inflammation of polyps in your intestine – by 40 percent.
  • Hemorrhoids: A high-fiber diet may lower your risk of hemorrhoids.
  • Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): Fiber may provide some relief from IBS.
  • Gallstones and kidney stones: A high-fiber diet may reduce the risk of gallstones and kidney stones, likely because of its ability to help regulate blood sugar.
What Are the Healthiest Sources of Fiber?

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“…the current average fiber intake in the United States is about 13 grams a day for women and 17 for men. Increasing these amounts by seven grams a day would bring them close to the recommended levels of 21 to 25 grams for women and 30 to 38 for men. ‘Seven grams a day increase is an achievable goal…’ ‘You’re talking about… increasing vegetable and fruit by two portions a day.’”

If your diet could use more fiber, resist the urge to fortify it with whole grains. (And most certainly avoid fiber -fortified breakfast cereals!) Whole grains contain anti-nutrients that may damage your health. Instead, focus on eating more vegetables, nuts, and seeds. The following whole foods, for example, contain high levels of soluble and insoluble fiber.

Chia seeds Berries Vegetables such as broccoli and Brussels sprouts
Root vegetables and tubers, including onions and sweet potatoes Almonds Psyllium seed husk, flax, and chia seeds, Inulin
Green beans Cauliflower Beans such as kidney beans and Chickpeas
Peas

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A simple “rule” to remember is simply to get most of your fiber in the form of vegetables, not grains. And not breakfast cereals!

Be Healthy.

5 Reasons To Add More Protein To Your Diet

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One of the fastest ways to calm your hunger and sugar cravings is by eating protein. You probably know protein is great for keeping you satisfied, but did you know it can also decrease your cravings?That’s because protein puts the brakes on our neuronal reward system, the brain chemicals that make us feel good and motivate us to get more food, even when we’re not hungry. When we’re low in protein, cravings take over and crack the whip in search of a quick fix. Here are a few ways to combat cravings with protein:
1. Many times when a sugar craving hits, your body is really crying out for protein.

When you’re low in protein, your system knows it needs energy, and you crave foods that will give you fuel fast. Unfortunately, those high-sugar impact foods that you’re in the mood for, will only raise your blood sugar and trigger an insulin response, which shuts off fat burning.

Instead of reaching for a cookie, fill up on a handful of almonds or a yogurt, that way you’ll curb cravings for sweets by giving your body the kind of sustained energy it really needs.

2. Make sure you have a protein-rich breakfast.

One study found that a high-protein breakfast suppresses ghrelin, your hunger hormone, far better than a high-carbohydrate breakfast. Another study found a moderate- or high-protein breakfast curbed cravings in overweight and obese young people. Instead of having a carbohydrate-rich breakfast like cereal that will leave you hungry a couple of hours later, try a protein shake that will keep you full and focused for much longer.

3. You should have a sufficient amount of protein in all of your meals.

How much protein should you consume daily to get those crave-crushing benefits? One meta-analysis concluded 25 – 30 grams of protein at each meal benefits weight loss, appetite and other health factors. Based on my three decades working as a nutritionist, I’ve found the average woman should get 75– 80 grams daily, whereas most men should get 100– 120 grams of protein a day.

These numbers aren’t set in stone. Your weight and body composition will influence the amount of protein you need. Those needs increase if you’re under stress, if you’re healing or if you’re doing some heavy resistance training.

4. Find the right protein sources for your diet.

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The best sources of protein include high-quality animal protein, including grass-fed beef, free-range chicken, wild-caught low-mercury fish and (if you’re not intolerant) eggs.

Vegans and vegetarians sometimes find meeting their protein quota challenging, and supplementation ma be helpful in addition to plant-based high-protein foods like quinoa, legumes and nuts and seeds.

Whether you’re short on time or don’t have much of an appetite, a shake becomes the perfect higher-protein breakfast that takes minutes to prepare, but keeps you full, focused and crave-free for hours. Those are among the reasons I call a protein shake my number one needle mover for fast, lasting fat loss.

5. Make sure you’re not rushing through meals.

Even if you’re eating enough protein, you may not be assimilating it well. Speed eating, drinking too much fluid with your meals, not chewing enough, or low stomach acid (including if you take acid blockers) can all interfere with absorption. Low stomach acid becomes a real concern if you’re over 30 or under stress, which includes most of us.

Your goal, then, becomes eating enough protein but also digesting it well.

Do you know how much protein you’re consuming at meals? Do you find eating a higher-protein diet keeps you full longer or otherwise benefits you? Share your thoughts below.

From JJ Virgin.

And Stay Healthy.

Why your workout is not working

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You can’t out train a bad diet.

If you just “workout”, you could actually increase your cortisol, which will force your body to store more fat. You don’t want that.

You see it all the time. People work their butts off (figuratively that is, because at the end of the day their flabby butt is still there). They train and wonder ‘why am I not getting lean?’

Let me tell you why…three reasons:

#1 Backward Body Composition

We trade fat for muscle as we age. This tanks our metabolism because our muscle is metabolically active while fat is dead ugly weight.

Unfortunately, it’s easier to lose muscle than it is to lose fat. Our bodies PREFER to use lean muscle tissue for energy over our belly fat.

But with a strategic combination of high intensity interval training (HIIT), strength training and a nutrition plan that works synergistically with these workouts, you can actually force your body to harness belly fat as energy buy putting your metabolism into Afterburn.

#2 Hormone Havoc

Fat storing hormones like cortisol wreak havoc with belly fat and in today’s high stress world this hormone is at an all time high. Hormones that can promote fat burning like growth hormone and testosterone (women should have a healthy level of testosterone as well) decline with age but can be naturally boosted with the right kind of exercise. (This does NOT include things like running on the treadmill that actually increase fat storing hormones like cortisol.)

#3 Poor Eating

No matter what your exercise plan, if you’re not backing it up with solid nutritionally dense food, your plan will fail. And when it comes to eating, failing to plan is planning to fail, especially when your diet is too restrictive.

Adequate protein, nutritionally dense foods, weight training and HIIT together can get us the optimum health we so need.

Be Healthy and Stay Healthy.