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In a high paced society of fast food, super-sized fries, and instant breakfasts, we've been trained to not only get the most out of our money, but also out of our time. Most people eat at least one meal a week while driving in their car, working, or doing other various efficiency-oriented routines. It is this multi-tasked mindset which turns our food and dining experience into just another item to check off from our overextended to-do list. However, could this shifting of a biological need into a check off item have repercussions on people's overall health? Science says it might.
On February 22, 2010, New York Times reported, "Researchers have found evidence over the years that when people wolf their food, they end up consuming more calories than they would at a slower pace. One reason is the effect of quicker ingestion on hormones."
The hormones the researchers are speaking of are insulin and glucogon-like peptides. Both of these enzymes are vital in the regulation of satiety and cell nutrient absorption. Another problem not mentioned in this study is that with fast eating comes fast foods. Fast foods contain high amounts of fructose and fructose further downregulates insulin, leptin, and ghrelin. This suppresses appetite signals even more and causes the body to store fuel as fat. A viscous cycle.
Another problem with eating too quickly, or on the go, is that your body enters a fight-or-flight stress response. This is the exact opposite nervous system response you wish to ignite for healthy digestion. In fact, stress hormones down-regulate all the enzymes mentioned above and instead activate catecholamines and stress hormones. High stress hormones can lead to insulin resistance and cause an increase in glutamate receptors in your brain. Glutamate increases anxiety and down-regulates serotonin, this may further contribute to the viscous cycle of weight gain, especially for emotional eaters.
So the equation of stress + chocolate chip cookie while driving = increased PROBABLITY of weight gain (and probably inflammation from stress) is one reason to learn to slow down and enjoy your food. A further reason is that with all this rushing and doing in life, there's no time to smell the roses, bond with family and friends, and enjoy a good meal. This leaves us feeling empty, depleted, and lacking of true social connections. This is not good for our heart-literally. Studies cited by Dr. Dean Ornish show that social isolation is the NUMBER ONE predictor of heart disease holding all other risk factors constant.
It's time for a food revolution America! Not just what we eat, but HOW we eat. This means, we need to change our priorities and do as the Europeans do- remember to pause, rest, bond, and enjoy delicious real food with loved ones.
Scientific journal links:
For more information on fitness, check out my website with a contributing article by the founder of menopause360, Gail Edgell.
This just in, and posted on my March Top Reads:Two studies are highlighted in this article: Study one discusses Vitamin D's effect on innate immunity through its antimicrobial activation of the anti-microbial peptide and the resultant recruitment of other immune boosting white blood cells. The second study demonstrates vitamin D's role on the adaptive immune system by it's signaling of an important immune cell, the helper T-cell, which controls activation of other immune players. Vitamin D acts at the genetic signaling level! For Saratoga.com readers:
Highlights from the articles As Dr. Geisler said, "Scientists have known for a long time that vitamin D is important for calcium absorption and the vitamin has also been implicated in diseases such as cancer and multiple sclerosis, but what we didn't realize is how crucial vitamin D is for actually activating the immune system - which we know now."
Danish findings hold practical implications The Danes say that they believe their discovery may help doctors enhance patient's immune responses and deal with autoimmune diseases and reduce rejection of transplanted organs.
It's been termed Diabesity by Mark Hyman, MD, the Silent Epidemic by Joseph Mercola, OD, and a threat to national security by the US Military. It is a condition with many names plaguing millions of Americans and one in three children all leading to the same effect-obesity. Whether it's labeled Pre-diabetes, Insulin resistance, Metabolic syndrome, Syndrome X, Adult onset diabetes, Diabetes Type II, or simply Obesity, all have the same underlying root cause. They are all due to a poor diet abundant in processed sugars, fructose, highly processed, trans-fat, frankenfoods.
These foods are so different from nature, they are chemicalized and nutrient deprived, and can't be effecively processed by the body and used for energy. Worst of all, they are manufactured to create a viscous cycle of cravings. Fructose and many of these foods actually shuts down the insulin-leptin signal of satiety leading to undernourished yet over-fed Americans. (View my article with a link to pediatric Endocrinologist, Dr. Lustig, on fructose and the explanation of the biochemistry.)
It's 5-2-1-0, and it breaks down like this: 5 -- as in eat five fruits and vegetables a day. 2 -- as in limit screen time -- TV in particular -- to 2 hours or less a day. (The AAP says to avoid any screen time for children under the age of 2.) 1 -- as in do one hour of physical activity a day. 0 -- as in have zero sugar-sweetened drinks -- or at least make sugary drinks a special treat and not a veritable birthright. Please view the references I linked above. Dr. Mercola also has a wonderful video posted by a British Cheif, Jamie Oliver. He offers solutions starting with our school lunches for children, cooking at home, parents modeling healthy behaviors, and changing our food choices for our family. The following two articles speak to solutions for our children. Schools with Healthier Lunches Reap Major Benefits (Dr. Mercola) Altering school lunches CAN help diminish illness and increase learning. In one Swedish study, when they eliminated all sweet buns, sweet drinks, and candy from school premises, they saw a 6 percent drop in obesity in four years. Behavioral problems have also been remedied by giving kids healthier lunches at school. For instance, in 1997 one Wisconsin high school instituted a healthy lunch program. No longer were the cafeterias filled with fast-food nachos and French fries; instead they were filled with fresh salads, meats, whole-grain bread and fruit. At the same time, vending machines were removed and good drinking water added. The program is based on work done some 30 years ago by Dr. Feingold. He recommended that eliminating synthetic colors, synthetic flavors, and the preservatives BHA, BHT, and TBHQ would be beneficial to health, learning and behavior problems in children. However, his findings were not accepted by most medical professionals at that time. When the healthier diet had been in effect for close to five years, the school showed amazing results. In annual state reports, the school's incidence of dropouts, expulsion, drug use, weapons and suicide was zero. On top of this, reports said that grades improved. This from a school that previously reported having discipline problems and students carrying weapons. Another issue, TV commercials. A recent study was published on the relation of obesity to commercial television viewing.
According to the authors, the findings strongly suggest that steering children away from commercial television may be effective in reducing childhood obesity, given that food is the most commonly advertised product on children's television and the fact that almost 90 percent of children begin watching television regularly before the age of 2. By the time they are 5 years old, children have seen an average of more than 4,000 television commercials for food annually. During Saturday morning cartoons, children see an average of one food ad every five minutes. The vast majority of these ads -- up to 95 percent -- are for foods with poor nutritional value, the researchers say. (Science Daily)
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An article from the Daily Green recently reported on some common marketing ploys used in food ingredient listings in order to boost sales. The misleading marketing claims were related to: fiber amount, omega 3 content, serving size portions, "food as medicine" claims, whole grain listing content, the ingredient list itself, hidden sugars, trans fat, "cage free" eggs, and "real fruit".
Here's why these claims aren't necessarily the whole truth:
Fiber amount: Some fiber products taint their contents with unnatural fibers in order to boost the gram amount on the label. These additive fibers can be processed and contain chemicals such as MSG and aspartame. I have even seen the ingredient propylene glycol added to some "fiber blends." This acts as an irritant to the intestine, leading the consumer to believe the fiber is "working". However, it is the irritation from the chemical that is increasing bowel movements. Furthermore, these additives have been linked to health hazards.
Omega 3 content: I disagree with this article. You can search this site for my previous articles on cholesterol and fish oil to see how claims of heart health and omega 3s are warranted. Still, you want to get healthy fats from organic, high quality sources, not oxidized and rancid sources or unhealthy chickens.
Serving Size: Can be misleading as it includes content for only a portion of the product.
Whole grain listings: A product can say "whole grain", and only sprinkle in whole grains while filling the main content with white, bleached, processed flour.
The ingredient list: Manufacturers are not required to list ingredient sources. This means that various additives and preservatives can be made from an allergic sources such as corn and soy, but the label may not portray this. This can be confusing and hidden ingredients may cause issues with the consumer.
Trans fat: No trans fat doesn't mean safe. New processing of fats can be just as toxic such as interesterfied fats
Cage free eggs: Unless they are organic, "cage free" , means the chickens might only have 5 minutes access to outdoors
Real fruit:....with lots of sugar and other additives
A further issue with food labeling is validity. According to an article in Dr. Mercola, a food label has a buffer of 20%. In other words, in order for a food label to be flagged by the FDA, it would have to be off 20%. This means a label with 400 calories could actually contain 480.
What is the solution? The best solution is to be aware. The USDA organic seal is your best option to look for, along with staying away from processed foods. A product is only 10% organic if it claims "100% organic" on the label. If it says "made with organic ingredients", it is 70-95% organic, and can contain additives.
In summary, I would like to post an excerpt from an article by Dr. Jospeh Mercola, states the importance of healthy foods and being aware of your choices:
I'm sure you've heard that old saying, and it's as true today as it ever was.
It all boils down to this: if you want to optimize your health, you must return to the basics of healthy food, ideally, chosen specifically for your nutritional type, because it's all about eating the proper ratios of the right types of food for your personal biochemistry.
There is no way around this simple fact. It may not be as convenient as you would like. It may be more costly in the short term, both in dollars and cents and in the amount of time required to obtain and prepare healthy foods. But make no mistake -- there are no short-cuts when it comes to this single most important thing you can do for your health.
In today's world, the need for speed has taken over our lives. Fast and processed foods are what most working people and families seek out for the sake of convenience and speed.
Then when years of bad food choices take their toll on health, people want to feel better by tomorrow. They want to be at their ideal weight by next week. And as luck would have it, there is an endless supply of drugs and fake foods available promising to do just that.
Unfortunately, nearly all of these "magic pills" and diets can worsen your health even more in the long run.
Ultimately, the simplest and most effective way to achieve good health and a long life is to focus on the nutrition you are putting in your body on a daily basis.
The results of a recent study on the favorable effect of the use of dietary supplements to aging was recently reported by Science Daily. The summary reviewed the findings from Experimental Biology and Medicine which involved the use of a dietary supplement cocktail containing vitamins B1, C, D, E, beta carotene, folic acid, garlic, ginger root, ginkgo bilboa, ginseng, green tea extract, magnesium, melatonin, potassium, cod liver oil, and flax oil. To assess the effect on aging, the scientists measured oxidative stress biomarkers (brain protein carbonyls), brain neuronal health (strial neuropeptide y) and energy use in the brain (mitochondrial protein carbonyls) and compared locomotion function with controls.
"The study found that a complex dietary supplement powerfully offsets this key symptom of ageing in old mice by increasing the activity of the cellular furnaces that supply energy -- or mitochondria -- and by reducing emissions from these furnaces -- or free radicals -- that are thought to be the basic cause of ageing itself.
Furthermore, the authors conclude,
"Most of the primary causes of human mortality and decline are strongly correlated with age and free-radical processes, including heart disease, stroke, Type II diabetes, many cancers, neurodegenerative diseases, and inflammatory and autoimmune conditions. Successful intervention into the ageing process could consequently prevent or forestall all of these."
An important note on the above study is how most of the bio-markers to assess the aging process are linked to many diseases. One could argue the underlying issue of most diseases is inflammation (click here for a taste of this research). Recently, the Stroke Journal published results on the link of inflammation to high blood pressure and Alzheimer's. Specifically, those with high blood pressure had an increased risk of developing Alzheimer's later in life.
What I found impressive about this study is that scientists tested the synergism of more than one ingredient. (Most drug and nutrient studies do not take into account reactions with other drugs). This is a more accurate portrayal of the use of nutrients today. Although it may be argued that controlling for one variable can show an effect of that variable, it doesn't necessarily exhibit everyday use by the consumer or safety.
Another study in Alzheimer's & Dementia demonstrated that the useuridine, choline, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), B vitamins, phospholipids and antioxidants, "improved memory (delayed verbal recall) in mild AD patients. This proof-of-concept study justifies further clinical trials." The mechanism behind these nutrients may be through improving actual neural synapse connection! This use of synergism in research may be a growing trend as medicine begins to shift from a one pill panacea to prevention and healthy living.
What I enjoy about the concept of Naturopathic and Functional medicine is the determination to get to the root cause of the issue, not to just simply surpress inflammation or other symptoms with natural pharmocopias. The job of an integrative health care practitioner is not to keep you dependent on supplements, but rather to address the cause of the inflammation, whether it be from immune imbalances, hormonal de-regulation, or gut dysfunction.
"Doctor" in latin means teacher. I consider it my job to educate my patients on how their body works and how to get in tune with it's healing potential. This requires attention in getting to know the patient as a person as well as through the observance of objective blood measures.
A healthy diet, supplementation, and lifestyle plan for your current needs can do wonders for calming inflammation. This individualized plan can be found in individualized health care where the doctor and patient work together for a common goal.
The Journal of Pediatrics News Release reported findings from a recent study on the relationship between parental food influence and prediction of obesity in teenage girls later in life. The study's results indicated highly restrictive parental control of childhood snacking was associated with a higher body mass index (BMI). Specifically, girls in the study who had a combination of low levels of self control and higher parental restrictive food control exhibited greater weight gain in later life.
According to Ms. Anzman, "Parental attempts to help children with lower self-control by restricting their access to favorite snack foods can make the forbidden foods more attractive, thereby exacerbating the problem." She suggests that parents can help their children learn to control their eating habits by allowing them to choose between healthy options. She adds that it is often better to not keep restricted foods in the house. "That way," she explains, "it is not necessary to constantly tell children they cannot have the foods they want."
This news release provides further evidence that children are born with a capacity to regulate healthy behavior. Unfortunately, society's obsession with outer appearance, negative parental influence, the use of toxins, and the manipulation of quality food, can turn off the body's own regulatory activity and feedback mechanism and negatively effect our health.
One example of this is how wheat sensitivity negatively affects our brain chemistry leading chronic disease and weight gain. Read about wheat gluten antibody's in my February newsletter.
A recent article in Vital Choice discussed several journal findings on the relation between omega 3 intake and psychotic symptoms. In one recent study, the author reports:
"Long-chain omega-3s reduce the risk of progression to psychotic disorder ... in young people with sub-threshold psychotic states ... omega-3s may offer a viable prevention and treatment strategy ..." (Amminger GP et al. 2009)
The researchers randomly assigned the volunteers to receive a daily placebo (coconut oil) capsules or supplements of fish oil containing 1.2 grams of omega-3s, including 700 mg of EPA and 480 mg of DHA. The participants took the supplements or placebo for 12 weeks, and were followed for one year. After 12 months, only 4.9 percent of the omega-3 group (two out of 41) had progressed to full-blown psychotic disorder, compared with 27.5 percent (11 of 40) in the placebo group. In other words, compared to placebo, supplementation with fish oil appeared to reduce the risk that at-risk youths would progress to "full threshold psychosis" within a year by one-fifth to one-quarter (22.6 percent).
Prior research has deomnstarted that schizophrenic patients had significantly lower levels of omega 3s in their cell membranes as compared to controls. It seems omega 3s have the benefit of favorably affecting the cell membrane for more effecient neurotransmission. They also increase the availability of the antioxidant glutathione and the key neurotransmitter glutamate.
Make sure to click on the article for additional reference sources!
Another Key to Optimal Mental Functioning to keep in mind (pun intended):
Exercise: According to the Archives of Internal Medicine, "Twelve months of once-weekly or twice-weekly resistance training benefited the executive cognitive function of selective attention and conflict resolution among senior women." Another study in the same journal, concluded, "Moderate or high physical activity is associated with a reduced incidence of cognitive impairment after 2 years in a large population-based cohort of elderly subjects." What to Avoid for Optimal Brain Power: The use of artificial sweeteners has caused a great debate in health care. According to AAHON, "scientists disagree about the relationships between sweeteners and lymphomas, leukemias, cancers of the bladder and brain, chronic fatigue syndrome, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, autism, and systemic lupus. Recently these substances have received increased attention due to their effects on glucose regulation."
More information available on my recent blog on artificial sweeteners at my main website.
A recent article published in The Journal of Clinical Nutrition demonstrated the beneficial effect of constituents in green tea on attention span in adults. Specifically, participants in this study who consumed a combination of l-theanine and caffeine vs those who received placebo, scored higher in attention tasks. Furthermore, brain imaging results showed these substances had a tonic effect to visual modulation, suggesting greater visual accuracy.
L-theanine is an analog amino acid to glutamine. It has the ability to cross the blood-brain barrier and is generally believed to have a calming effect. According to drugs.com, " L-theanine may help relieve stress by inducing a relaxing effect without drowsiness. L-theanine as been shown to promote the generation of alpha-brain waves, an index of relaxation. It may also boost natural resistance to microbial infections and perhaps even tumors. Researchers suggest further isolating and refining L-theanine from tea to use it as a drug to boost the infection defense of the body. Although limited, there is clinical evidence to support these claims". Due to the fact that stress has been shown to negatively affect neuronal cells in the brain, this relaxing effect may explain the benefit of L-theanine in potentiating attention span.
What about caffeine? Caffeine is a xanthine alkaloid. It acts as a mild stimulant to the brain. According to Science Daily, caffeine may impede brain circulation while increasing alterness through stimulation of higher brain wave patterns.
In combination, l-theanine and caffeine may produce a synergistic effect. Caffeine's stimulating and brain modulating effects are combined with the calming effect of L-theanine to increase attention span.
L-theanine and caffeine are only two of many different constituents present in green tea. Studying only a few substances of an herbal remedy never gives the full, synergistic picture. Green tea has also been researchered for it's ability to modify inflammation via its polyphenol content and to inhibit inflammation through its potent antioxidant properties.
Just a note of caution relating to high caffeine intake is warranted before I close- as it may induce inflammation. According to a researcher from National Institute of Health, "it has been known for many years that caffeine interferes with the adenosine receptor. If, in fact, adenosine receptors are needed for effective inflammation control, anything that hinders their function might impair the body's ability to regulate inflammation."
References: The modifying effects of green tea polyphenols on acute colitis and inflammation-associated colon carcinogenesis in male ICR mice. Kim M, Murakami A, Miyamoto S, Tanaka T, Ohigashi H. Biofactors. 2010 Jan 27.
Green Tea Polyphenols Prevent UV-Induced Immunosuppression by Rapid Repair of DNA Damage and Enhancement of Nucleotide Excision Repair Genes. Katiyar SK, Vaid M, van Steeg H, Meeran SM. Cancer Prev Res (Phila Pa). 2010 Jan 26. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 20103727
Antioxidant potential of tea reduces arsenite induced oxidative stress in Swiss albino mice. Sinha D, Roy S, Roy M. Food Chem Toxicol. 2010 Jan 19.
Oplinger, A. Dampening the Flames: Inflammation Control Mechanism Determined. NIH News. 2001.
And what about coffee??
According to Dr. Mercola: Most people are not aware that regular coffee consumption can be a significant source of pesticides. According to the CS Monitor, conventional farmers apply up to 250 pounds of chemical fertilizers per acre!
Pesticides contribute to a wide range of health problems, including prostate and other types of cancers, Parkinson's disease, and miscarriages in pregnant women.
So when you sip on your non-organic morning brew, you are also sipping on pesticide residues. Further, the U.S. has limited input and control over the type and quantity of pesticides used in the countries from which we import.
Since the vast majority of coffee, both organic and non-organic, consumed in the U.S. is grown outside this country, a return to non-organic farming of coffee beans in Latin America means a return to heavy use of pesticides.
Other adverse affects of coffee include increasing blood pressure, raising cholesterol and insulin, damaging metabolism, increasing risk for osteoporosis, interfering with nutrient absorption, and affecting hormone levels.
My thoughts: Some studies do exhibit some potential benefits to coffee. Therefore, as with everything, listen to your body, use common sense, and be informed. If you are going to drink coffee, do yourself and your liver a favor- purchase fair trade organic.
The Environmental Impact of Our HealthBased on the article from Integrative Practitioner: Breast Cancer and the Environment & Environmental Policy by Susan Luck There exists approximately 100,000 synthetic chemicals registered for commercial use in the world today, with several thousand new ones being formulated every year. Many of these chemicals have not been tested for human safety prior to approval. The release of the CDC's Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals concluded that most Americans carry approximately a 150 chemical body burden. Studies are now linking these chemicals to several disease pathologies including Alzheimer's, ADHD, Diabetes, and Hormonal imbalances as well as infertility. Furthermore, it has been suggested that the increase in the amount of cancers may be due in part to increased levels of exposure to these substances. Once substance known as BPA, found widely in plastics, has been linked to breast cancer in women. Global Research estimates that up to 50% of breast cancer may be related to endogenous and exogenous estrogen exposure from BPA and several other substances acting as endocrine disruptors. This not only affects hormonal cancers, but has a profound effect on the youth. Recent reports continue to determine that critical windows of susceptibility in early life exist. This means that a risk for deterimental genetic expression later in life increases with earlier exposure. Compounding matters is the decrease in nutritional value of our food, which contains potent phytonutrients aiding the body's detoxification measures. Without proper nutrients, the body is not strong enough to rebuild and detoxify.
For these reasons, I include a comprehensive history detailing a nutritional assessment, environmental exposure history, and lifestyle factors with every patient. It is becoming more and more evident in healthcare that environmental exposure histories must be implemented when assessing the cause of any illness. Please Review my links on my homepage for links to references of this article located on left hand side. The full report from the Environmental Working Group is posted under Physician's Resources, The Effect of GMOs, Personal Care Product Ratings, Why to Eat Organic, and EMFs are found under Resources.
Follow up article on Breast Cancer and Risk Factors from Cornell University: There has been growing interest in whether environmental factors, including exposures to certain chemicals or changes in lifestyle, may increase the risk of breast cancer. This fact sheet will discuss research linking environmental chemicals and the risk of breast cancer. This will include exposures of concern in the home and workplace, and chemicals known to cause mammary (breast tumors) in laboratory animals. The fact sheet will also discuss new emerging data on how exposures to certain chemicals early in life may affect breast development and breast cancer risk, as well as new work identifying important gene-environmental interactions. Current challenges and new avenues of research also will be discussed. Established risk factors only partially explain breast cancer risk Risk factors consistently associated with a higher breast cancer risk are called "established" risk factors. Established risk factors include getting older, having regular menstrual periods earlier, going through menopause later in life, having a first child late in life, not having any children, having a mother or sister with breast cancer, past exposure of breasts to ionizing radiation, or having certain types of benign breast disease. But these factors explain only about 25 to 50% of breast cancer cases (Madigan et al., JNCI vol. 87, pp. 1681-1685, 1987; Rockhill et al., Am. J. Epidemiol., vol. 147, pp. 826-833, 1998). Headings related to breast cancer include: Pesticide exposure, breast cancer risk on farms, organochlorine pesticide exposurer (DDT), Animal studies and linkages to cancer, endocrine disruptor (xenoestrogens), chemicals (DES), genes and environmental factors, examples of chemicals that cause breast tumors in animals and more references.
Exercise Helps Fight off Dementia
One recent study in Eurekalert looked at the effects of exercise in 29 individuals who were determined to have mild cognitive impairment. These patients were randomly assigned to either a high intensity aerobic exercise group or a control group and followed for 6 months. According to the researchers, "Six months of a behavioral intervention involving regular intervals of increased heart rate was sufficient to improve cognitive performance for an at-risk group without the cost and adverse effects associated with most pharmaceutical therapies."
The results were even more pronounced in women, which may be explained by the affect exercise has on insulin, glucose, and stress hormones.
Another study reported in Time followed 749 rural Italians over age 65. The results showed that those exercised moderatley decreased the probability of developing vascular dementia over those with little or no exercise.
The study's authors suggest that, "exercise lowers the risk for cerebrovascular disease by increasing blood flow to the brain; exercise may also enhance the brain's ability to build "functional reserves" against damage by building elasticity in synapses and decreasing the secretion of stress hormones that negatively impact brain tissue."
It is important to note that this study provided only a correlational link, not a causation link. This means that those who exercise also tend to exhibit healthier lifestyle patterns, such as stress management and nutritional diets. Therefore, the authors recommend regular exercise in conjunction with healthy lifestyle patterns for the best effect on your brain.
Foods To Protect Your Brain:
Blueberries help with memory, according to a study in Agricultural and Food Chemistry. The researchers investigated the memory performance in older adults with early memory impairment who consumed wild blueberry juice vs.a control group. The results showed improved performance on various memory tasks. "Blueberries contain polyphenolic compounds, most prominently anthocyanins, which have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. In addition, anthocyanins have been associated with increased neuronal signaling in brain centers, mediating memory function as well as improved glucose disposal, benefits that would be expected to mitigate neurodegeneration."
Another similar study showed the same beneficial effects of these potent phytochemicals in foods using concord grapes.
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