Weight Loss Gimmicks to Avoid

Many people are looking to lose weight and lose weight fast, so they fall for many weight-loss gimmicks.  The best way to lose weight is to change your lifestyle, healthier eating and more exercise.  But a lot of people don’t want to make the effort.  They look for an easy way to lose weight and then try one or more weight-loss gimmicks.  What are some of these weight-loss gimmicks that you should avoid? 

• Short, 7-Minute Workouts – you have seen these headlines:  Lose weight by exercising only 7 minutes a day.  Any exercise is good for you but exercising only 7 minutes a day won’t lead to weight loss.  If you keep repeating the 7-minute workout and exercise for 21 minutes or more, then the exercise can burn up some calories.
  
• Detox and Teas that promote weight loss – I have heard many people say they are on a “detox diet” thinking this is a good thing.  But your liver “detoxes” every day and you don’t need to go on a “detox diet”.  Johns Hopkins Medicine states: “Your liver represents the human body’s filtration system, converting toxins into waste products, cleansing your blood, and metabolizing nutrients and medications...”   Many of the detox teas want you to skip meals and drink the tea instead. Yes, this would lead to weight loss but because you are eating less calories.  Some people promote Green Tea for weight loss.  Green Tea is certainly healthy, as it is full of good antioxidants.  But many studies have found weight loss from drinking Green Tea wasn’t significant.  Nothing wrong with drinking Green Tea – I really enjoy drinking it in colder weather.  And, if you exercise and switch to a healthier diet, drinking Green Tea can fill you up so you may eat less.

Say no to any detox diet. 

• Juice Cleanses – a person I know goes on a “juice cleanse” diet for a week every year.  During that week, he admits to having low energy and feeling weak and tired.  He truly thinks this week of sacrificing is good for his health.  MedicalNewsToday notes some downsides of juice cleanses.  “Consuming an insufficient number of calories can cause a person to experience symptoms relating to low blood sugar because the body does not have enough energy.  Examples of these symptoms include fainting, weakness, dehydration, headaches, and hunger.”  No wonder “Mr. Cleanse” felt weak and tired when on his juice cleanse for a week.  The juice cleanse consists of fruit and/or vegetable juices with usually no solid food.  Will you lose weight on a juice cleanse?  Probably.  But the weight loss is lots of water, some fat but also some muscle – lean muscle mass you really don’t want to lose.  Then, when you go back to eating your regular diet, you will probably see the weight you lost return because you really haven’t changed your lifestyle.  Brian Kiselstein, a certified fitness professional, states, “Juice cleanses do not promote a healthy lifestyle and won’t make you healthier, other than just losing a few pounds.”  And pounds you probably gain back pretty quickly.

Drink the juice but skip the juice cleanse diet.

• No-Carb Diet – So many diet myths and the myths about carbs and dieting are on top of the list.  Many people think “carbs are bad” and go on a low-carb or even a no-carb diet.   A common such diet is the Atkins Diet.  You actually need carbs in your diet as carbs are your body’s energy nutrient.  In fact, most of the calories you eat each day should come from carbs.  Will you lose weight on a low-carb or no-carb diet?  Probably.  But US News & World Report notes:  “In 2003, researchers who analyzed about 100 low-carb studies concluded in the Journal of the American Medical Association that weight loss on those diets was associated with cutting calories and not with cutting carbs.”  If you want to lose some weight, check out the pros and cons of Best Weight Loss Diets for 2020.    

Keep the carbs, the energy nutrient.

• Diets that eliminate one or more food groups – some people fall for diets that eliminate dairy, grains, fruit and/or vegetables.  The reason there are food groups is because each food group provides important vitamins and minerals and other nutrients your body needs.  Eliminate an entire food group and you eliminate or reduce your intake of important nutrients.  To be healthy you want all food groups in your diet.  You don’t want to eliminate grains but focus on eating more whole grains. Eliminate dairy and you will be eating less calcium and less vitamin D and missing out on a high quality protein source.  A healthy weight loss diet focuses on whole grains, fruits and vegetables, lean protein and low-fat dairy.  

Losing weight and keeping it off means lifestyle changes, not quick fixes.  No low-carb diet for me.  I love carbs and enjoy my oatmeal for breakfast, my whole grain bread at lunch, and whole grain crackers or popcorn for snacks.  As for dairy – I have real dairy at every meal.  Real cow’s milk at breakfast, yogurt and usually cheese at lunch and milk at dinner.  I include all the food groups and don’t eliminate any.  Skip the gimmicks and focus on eating healthier and moving more.

Sources:  gimmicks , liver , Johns Hopkins Medicine , Green Tea , MedicalNewsToday , states , US News & World Report , Best Weight Loss Diets for 2020  Image Sources: Juice , detox , carbs

 

What Vitamins Fight COVID 19?

Are there vitamins that can reduce your risk of getting COVID-19?  What supplements is Dr. Fauci taking to keep his immune system in good health?  A Boston University School of Medicine study found that vitamin D “improves your ability to fight infectious diseases, including viral infections”.  

The studies on COVID and Vitamin D

A study on vitamin D and COVID was conducted by the University of Chicago and another study was conducted by Boston University School of Medicine. 

University of Chicago study:  489 patients had vitamin D levels measured before during the year before they were tested for COVID-19.  Of this cohort, 71 or 15% of study participants tested positive for COVID-19.  They found that people who were deficient in vitamin D were almost twice as likely to test positive for COVID-19 compared to participants who were sufficient in vitamin D levels. 

The University of Boston study looked at the vitamin D and COVID 10 infection rates in over 190,000 people.  According to one of the study authors, Doctor Michael F. Holick, “If you’re Vitamin D deficient, you have a 54% higher risk of acquiring this infection compared to people who were vitamin D sufficient.”  He went on to say, “this was for all ages, for all ethnicities, and for all latitudes in the United States in all 50 states.”   

How many Americans are low in vitamin D?

According to NIH, about 40% of adults in the U.S are deficient in vitamin D.  NIH notes “that vitamin D deficiency is becoming epidemic across the United States...”  Most at risk are African-Americans, Mexican-Americans, people who are obese, and people with diabetes.  Interesting that those over 65 are less likely to be vitamin D deficient.  Maybe because they go outside more or are more likely to take supplements that provide Vitamin D.

How can we get vitamin D?

There are 3 ways to get vitamin D.  From foods like cow’s milk, from being out in the sun, and from supplements.  NIH states: “the daily consumption of milk products serves as an effective prophylaxis against vitamin D deficiency”.  That would be real cow’s milk which is fortified with vitamin D and yogurt which is usually fortified with vitamin D.  (Buy milk in the carton, not a plastic container to avoid all the plastic now in our diets.) Cheese is not a good source of vitamin D as cheese is not usually fortified with D.  Some other foods that provide vitamin D are fatty fish including salmon, tuna and mackerel, liver and eggs.  Orange juice provides no vitamin D unless you choose calcium-fortified OJ that is also fortified with vitamin D.  For more information on foods and vitamin D, go to my blog, Can vitamin D help you fight off COVID-19?

 

How does vitamin D fight infections, like COVID-19?

Most people know we need vitamin D for strong bones.  But many people don’t know we also need vitamin D for healthy immune systems.  According to one of the study authors, Dr. David Meltzer, “Vitamin D is important to the function of the immune system and vitamin D supplements have previously been shown to lower the risk of viral respiratory tract infections”. 

How much vitamin D is recommended each day?

• Infants, birth to 12 months:  400 IU
• Children 1-13 years:  600 IU
• Teens 14-18 years:  600 IU
• Adults 1-70 years:  600 IU
• Adults 71 years and older:  800 IU

It is interesting that Dr. Fauci takes vitamin D supplements to keep his immune system healthy along with Vitamin C.   (NIH also notes that vitamin C helps your immune system.)

This week to boost your immune system, go outside every day for some sunshine, drink some real milk at meals.  I drink real cow’s milk at every meal or enjoy a yogurt at lunch.  I go outside every day and start my day with a glass of real 100% juice for my vitamin C.  If you don’t like milk, then enjoy some calcium-fortified OJ that also has vitamin D.  (Read the label to be sure calcium and vitamin D have been added.)  And calcium-fortified OJ is a good choice as you get vitamin D and vitamin C in each serving.  Or try some Naked Juice with added vitamin D. 

Real juice with added vitamin D and no added sugar.

Sources:  study, found , Chicago, authors , NIH , states , foods , authors , recommended, Fauci , notes    Image Sources: Vitamin D milk  , Naked Juice , Vitamin D

 

Added Sugars and Risks for Your Health

Added sugar – many people don’t know the difference between sugars added to food versus the natural sugars in foods.  It is the added sugars that we need to be concerned about.  Nathan Myers, R.D., a clinical dietitian notes that it isn’t just the extra calories added sugars add to your day but all those added sugars can pose a risk to your health.  “Added sugar also increases your risk of developing a laundry list of serious health problems including being overweight and conditions related such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and even some cancers.” 

What is Added Sugar?  What is the difference between Added Sugar and the Natural Sugar in foods?

Added Sugar:  This is the sugar that manufacturers add to foods.  It can be the simple white table sugar, or brown sugar but it can also be high fructose corn syrup, fruit juice concentrate, maple syrup, molasses, corn syrup, or raw sugar.  FDA requires new food labels to clearly list the “added sugars” in a food.  You can also look at the ingredients list to see if any sugars have been added to a food.

Look at labels for Added Sugars.

Natural Sugars:  these are sugars naturally present in a food like fructose in fruit or lactose in real cow’s milk.  The manufacturer doesn’t add sugar to a banana or an apple.  Foods with natural sugar also provide important vitamins and minerals that our bodies need.  Real milk provides protein, calcium, vitamins A and D and many other nutrients.  Fruit not only provides vitamins and minerals but also fiber and those antioxidants that are so important to good health.  (See Antioxidants and Good Health.)

What foods are sources of Added Sugars?  There are 2 main sources of added sugar in the American diet.

•  Sugar Sweetened Beverages – Almost half of all the added sugar in our diets comes from sugared beverages.  Think soda, sweet tea, sweetened coffee, fruit drinks like Sunny D and lemonade, energy drinks.  CDC states: 
  

        “In 2011-2014, 6 in 10 youth (63%) and 5 in 10 adults (49%) drank a sugar-sweetened beverage on a given day.  On average, U.S. youth consume 143 calories from SSBs [sugar sweetened beverages] and U.S. adults consume 145 calories from SSB’s on a given day.”

•  Desserts and Snack Foods – this would be the candy, cake, cookies, donuts, ice cream, pastries and other treats we all enjoy.  These added sugar treats account for about 31% of the added sugar in our diets. 

Drink 100% juice.

 What are the health risks of Added Sugars?

1. Empty, useless calories – Natural sugars are found in whole foods that provide lots of nutrients as noted above.  Added sugars are loaded with calories but little else.  Almost no vitamins or minerals, no fiber and no antioxidants.  That is why added sugars are called “empty calories”.  Added sugars are empty of important nutrients your body needs.
   
2. As you age, the effects of added sugars are worse.  As you age your metabolism slows down, you need less calories and it is more important than ever that those calories are from nutrient-rich foods.  The more foods you eat with added sugar, the less room in your diet for nutrient-rich foods.
3. Can added sugars lead to a shorter life span?  Apparently so, as diets high in added sugar are linked to an increase risk of heart disease.  A JAMA Internal Medicine study, “found people who consumed 21 percent or more of their daily calories from added sugar were more than twice as likely to die from heart disease than those who kept it to less than 10 percent.”  Concerning since most adults in the U.S. consume 25% or more of their calories from added sugar.
4. Added sugar is habit-forming.  When you eat foods high in added sugars, you get almost instant energy as added sugar is digested rapidly.  But then, the energy is gone and you may feel a sugar low.  So to boost their energy, some people eat more foods with added sugar.  But when you eat a banana, or an apple, you get the fructose sugar but not rapid surge in energy, as the fiber in the fruit slows the absorption of the natural sugar.

What are some ways to cut back on added sugar?

The Mayo Clinic has some suggestions:

• Replace sugared beverages with water or low-fat milk.  Skip the sodas and sports drinks
• Drink 100% real juice, not Sunny D or another fruit drink.  If it has added sugar, it isn’t real juice.
• Cereals – choose cereals with less added sugars.
• Canned fruit – choose packed in water and not packed in heavy syrup
• Choose real food for snacks – popcorn, fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grain chips

I enjoy my desserts.  Who doesn’t like some candy, cookies or cake?  But I try to avoid the added sugar in other foods like sugared sodas, fruit drinks, energy drinks.  Read some labels this week and you may be surprised to find how many foods you eat have added sugar.

Sources:  notes , manufacturers , Foods ,  Antioxidants and Good Health , CDC , treats , useless , JAMA Internal Medicine , Mayo Clinic    Image Sources:  sugar  , juice, label

 

Snacks – how much is too much?

Americans love to snack.  Who doesn’t enjoy some snacks?  Most afternoons I enjoy some popcorn as a snack.  Not a bad choice since popcorn is whole grain and actually good for you.  We can fit snacks into our diet, even some not-so-healthy snacks.  But, some of us have no idea how much is too much.  We start to eat a seemingly small portion of a snack and before we know it, we’ve eaten most of the bag or box.  Eat This, Not That! Has some good recommendations on what the correct portion size is for snacks. 

Why watch the portion size?  Many snacks that we enjoy fall into the junk food or empty-calorie food category, meaning the snack food is loaded with calories but not loaded with nutrients.  What are some of those snack foods we tend to eat an over-size amount of?

• Potato Chips – one of my relatives who loved Pringles said they had to give them up cold turkey.  Why?  Because they would always eat the entire can.  These chips were just too good to stop at a “serving size” of the chips.  In the nutrition class I teach, I bring in a “snack size” bag of potato chips.  Many people think a “snack size” bag is a serving.  But look on the package and some of those seemingly small bags of chips are supposed to be for 2 or more people.  Yet, people buy the bag of chips, eat the whole bag and have no idea of how many calories they just ate.  An 8-ounce bag of Lay’s Classic potato chips is supposed to be for 8 people and a serving size is one ounce or “about 15 chips”.  Who eats only 15 chips?  Eat the whole bag and you take in 1,280 calories.  Eat the “serving size” of only 15 chips and you take in only 160 calories.  

A serving is only 15 chips. 

• Candy – so much candy comes in huge packages. Buy some jelly beans and it is easy to overeat.  A package of Brach’s Jelly Beans has a whopping 53 servings.  You are supposed to eat only 10 jelly beans for 110 calories.  Many people never look at the back of the package to see how much candy is a “serving”.

Jelly beans - 10 jelly beans is a serving

• Chocolate – yes, it is “candy” but so many people love chocolate and it is different than any other candy.  For example, chocolate has some health benefits and isn’t entirely junk food.  MedicalNewsToday says chocolate has healthy antioxidants, it may lower your cholesterol levels, and help your brain by preventing memory decline.  But it also recommends eating chocolate in moderation.

• Soda/pop – Believe it or not, before the 1950’’s, bottles of soda were quite small, around 7 ounces.  Then came the 12-ounce size and now, so many are 20 ounces or more.  Soda used to come in glass bottles, then mostly in metal cans.  Now those 20-ounce sodas are usually in plastic bottles.  Not good for you and not good for the environment.  Soda is truly an “empty-calorie” beverage.  All the added sugar in soda provides lots of calories but virtually no vitamins or minerals.  Interesting, that people who drink their calories in soda, don’t feel as full as they would if they ate those calories in solid food.  Harvard School of Public Health notes that if you drink just one soda a day, over the course of a year you could gain up to 5 pounds, if you didn’t cut back on calories from other foods.  Sodas and other sugar-sweetened beverages used to be a treat but now are an every day and sometimes many times a day “snack” for kids and teens.  Harvard Public Health says teens take in 226 calories a day form sugary beverages and kids 6-11 take in 130-209 calories a day from sugary beverages.  Cutting back on these empty-calories is good for anyone’s health.  Kids and teens should be drinking milk with meals.  Between meals, enjoy 100% juice or water.

Recommendations for healthier snacking:

1. Snack on healthier choices: popcorn, nuts, fruit.
   
2. Chips – choose some whole grain chips like Sun Chips.  If you like potato chips, choose Lay’s chips as they are made with heart-healthy oils.  Lay’s now offers some lightly salted chips with 50% less sodium.  The calories are the same, 160 calories per 15 chips, but there is less salt.
3. Candy – buy the mini bars of chocolate bars – mini PAYDAY’s, mini-musketeer bars.  Then eat 1 or 2 for a snack treat.
   
4. Look for 100 calorie snack packs and pack one bag in your lunch.
   
5. Cut back or eliminate the sugary beverages.  Skip the Sunny D and fruit drinks and buy real juice. Drink milk at meals and water between meals.  Or choose the low to no calorie seltzer waters.
6. Look at the Snack Tips for Parents and let your kids help choose some healthy snacks.

Buy the minis and eat only a few.

Enjoy some snacks this week.  But, look on the label and pay attention to the serving size.  

Choose 100 calorie packs.

Sources: portion size ,  MedicalNewsToday , drink ,  Harvard ,  Snack Tips for Parents   Image Sources:  chips   , Jelly,  Beans   , Chocolate , candy , snacks