by Valerie Brooks
Published with permission from KosmicLife
A holistic trend is permeating the diet world, and this is a good thing. Rather than focusing on fad diets that may work temporarily, or narrowing in on one specific method, such as low-carb or low-fat, diet trendsetters are taking a broader approach. They’re taking the whole person into consideration and offering a wider array of healthy choices, lifestyle options, and support communities to help people educate would-be dieters, and assist them in making permanent changes that lead to healthy weight loss. As technology expands and perfected products hit the shelves, waist bands shrink.
Diet Programs
Most diet programs are trying to get you to eat well, eat less, and incorporate a sensible exercise routine into your lifestyle. The exact recipe for these things is what makes each diet program unique. But overall, the trend is to include all of these components in an effort to treat the “whole” person.
Weight Watchers Momentum Program
“Stop Dieting. Start Living” is the Weight Watchers motto. While they’ve always claimed to be more than a diet plan, their integrated approach to weight loss is being more fully addressed in their new “Momentum Program.” With an “eat smarter, not less” mindset, their point-based food system is personalized and explained more fully. The program is more “total health” oriented in that it will teach you about food choices, which will help you to select healthier options that offer satiety, but they will also address lifestyle issues that contribute to weight gain. They promise to help you develop healthy habits you can stick to, by sharing the latest nutrition research information, exercise tips, and a supportive environment. Check out weightwatchers.com for more info.
Online at eDiets.com
eDiets is the number one online diet program with a wealth of options. This mega website has become the one-stop place for healthy weight seekers. Its offerings are extensive but the site is easy to navigate. You fill out a profile and the site determines the best plan for you, complete with customized meal plans. Here are some of the ways to make use of the site:
- Review the assortment of diet plans. There are eight of them, including Atkins, glycemic, Mediterranean, and SlimFast Optima.
- Review the Healthy Living Plans. These are food choice programs focused on specific needs. For example, there are plans that are wheat-free, high-fiber, vegetarian, lactose-free, hear-smart, low-sodium, and a few more.
- Look at the nutritionist live support for quick answers to many questions about the program, including those related to how eDiets works, the meal plan, community, and general fitness information. You can also speak to someone “live” if your questions are not addressed here, although there may be limited hours, since I was unsuccessful in reaching someone on a Sunday night.
- They offer a limited number of discounted diet supplements for eDiet members.
- Check out the site’s featured articles. Some recent topics included boosting metabolism, exercise made easy, and toning your inner thighs.
All the info is at eDiets.com.
The Latest from Jenny Craig
Jenny Craig is also offering a comprehensive approach to dieting with their “Food, Body and Mind” philosophy on dieting. Like Weight Watchers, they concentrate on eating the right types of foods, not less food. They also design menus based on a personal profile, and offer helpful articles and a supportive online community. They are in tune with the latest concept in dieting, which is that one plan does not fit all. Everything is now personalized—your BMI (body mass index), personal eating habits, weight loss style, motivations, and eater type. More at JennyCraig.com.
Sensa, the New Weight Loss Technology
Sensa is a new approach to weight loss that uses a fascinating science pioneered by Dr. Alan Hirsch, America’s leading expert on the science of sensory response. His innovative system is based on using smell and taste technology to fight the urge to overeat. Sensa “Tastants” are sprinkled on your food, which signal the brain when it is time to stop eating. Over time, this will enforce healthy portion control and healthier eating habits. Unlike dieting, Sensa allows you to eat what you want, but it will help you to eat sensibly sized portions. Sensa “Tastants” contain maltodextrin, tricalcium phosphate, silica, and soy and milk ingredients, but no sodium, gluten, sugar, calories, or MSG. You can get a risk-free trial and a 31% discount on Sensa by using the coupon that appears on our Coupon Pages. It’s a great offer.
February 11th, 2009
by Alison Held
We’re more than half-way through January. Have you been able to stick to your health goals?
For many, the New Year revolves around taking better care of ourselves and ultimately reaching a state of ideal physical health. While it is a good idea to set your standards high, January has become a very daunting month for many.
Initially we are motivated to get to the gym, cook more dinners at home, eat healthier breakfasts….yet, as the weeks go by, we become uninspired, lose momentum, and often feel disappointed. Instead of looking at all that we’ve accomplished in just a few short weeks, we focus on the fact that we are not anywhere near to our end goal. To combat this perceived failure, I suggest you break down your gigantic desires into mini-steps and then create a personalized rewards system to implement positive reinforcement.
Your rewards should be fun and inexpensive. For instance, everyday that you get to the gym put a beautiful sticker on your wall calendar. Or, for every new recipe you make at home, add this delicious dish to your recipe portfolio. Each time you eat a vegetable; tell yourself that you are a, “healthy, vibrant person who loves life!” Keep coming up with new ways to reinforce all the good that you are doing for your body!
If your goal is in fact to be at your best state of health by mid-year, think about what steps you need to take to get there. Be specific and write each step down! Instead of saying that you’ll go to the gym 3x a week, schedule a gym date with yourself at a consistent time and put this directly into your calendar. If being at your ideal health by June means eating more vegetables and fruit, come up with creative ways that this goal becomes a part of your regular routine. Will you try one new vegetable a week? How about making sure you get three different vibrant colors of food into your digestive tract each day? You could also consider making a green or red drink investment for the next 180 days. Be creative and make sure it is something that you can commit to from a physical, mental and emotional state.
The best way to stay on track is to create a support system. Find a good friend who will help hold you accountable, hire a nutritionist, set up some sessions with a coach, create a reminder notice system on your computer, tell your trainer all about the good things you are doing. Stay committed by keeping a positive mind. Surround yourself with YES people and situations. Come up with a personalized mantra that you say over and over again throughout the day. When you fall down, take a deep breath and tell yourself that change is possible and you deserve only the best. Here’s to a healthy year!
Alison Held, MS is a nutritionist with extensive experience designing customized nutritional programs in private practice, business and non-for-profit settings. Please visit healthfuldirection.com to sign up for her complimentary monthly email newsletter that offers helpful tips and recipes so that you can become the healthiest version of yourself.
January 24th, 2009
This is a quick view of sweeteners for those of you who want to enhance the taste of your green drinks, while remaining healthy. I’m not even going to talk about artificial sweeteners, such as saccharine and Aspartame. These are highly toxic chemicals and should never EVER be considered as a sweetener. In fact, you should never ingest any of these toxic chemicals for any reason. You’d be better off with ANY of the sweeteners listed below.
Sugar, Evaporated Cane Juice, Unprocessed Sugar, Maple Syrup, Molasses
Sucrose sugar, which is made from sugar cane and sugar beets is 50% fructose and 50% glucose. The glucose is a simple sugar that gets processed quickly by the body into energy. Thus the energy spike when you eat sugar. If your blood-sugar metabolism is normal, then your body processes half of the sugar (the glucose) into energy quickly, while the other half (the fructose) is probably stored as fat. Sugar is high on the glycemic index, so it’s not good for diabetics and should not be eaten in excess.
When it comes to sucrose sugar, I prefer the least amount of processing, which means the evaporated cane juice (pure cane sugar) and maple syrup are the best. Molasses is basically cane juice that is cooked down into a dark syrup and unprocessed sugar is actually semi-processed sugar. You can also find pure sugarcane sugar in block form and grind it or cut it into chunks for your various needs.
Fructose, Corn Syrup
Fructose is the sugar that comes from corn (high fructose corn syrup) and many types of fruit. When we eat fructose, the liver and digestive system converts some of it into energy, but store much of it as fat. In fact, fructose is practically all carbs, so it can lead to weight gain quite easily. It is low on the glycemic index, so it does not cause blood sugar spikes, but that’s offset (for diabetics) by the growing evidence that it enhances the body’s resistance to insulin, thus increasing risk of diabetes. So the truth about fructose is that it comes from corn and it has the same nutrients as sugar (practically none) and it’s stored as fat when sugar is burned as energy. Sugar gets burned first. Then fructose.
Xylitol
A derivative of birch wood, Xylitol is not actually a sugar, but a sugar alcohol. Its chemical properties are different than sugar, which makes it safe for diabetics and less harmful on the teeth and on the waistline. It was discovered in Germany in the 1970s and is studied for its use as a sugar substitute.
Sweet as Stevia…er, uh, Honey
Honey is a combination of glucose and fructose, but it has more fructose than sugar, so while the sucrose gets converted into energy, the fructose is most likely stored as fat. What makes honey a terrific alternative as a sweetener is that it also contains nutrients–mostly in the form of minerals. Of course, that’s only if you get real honey that has not been made from corn syrup. Oh, and also if you get honey from other countries because most American honey is now bereft of nutrients due to migrational bee-keeping practices that have weakened our bees to the point that many hives have been abandoned. Honey also tastes great and is sweeter than sugar. But while I use honey quite often, I also have no problem using sucrose sugar in moderation to sweeten my green drinks from time to time.
Stevia
Let’s face it. Stevia tastes like…well…artificial sweetener. It has a bitter, almost chemical taste on the back of your tongue and it’s often over-used. Since stevia is hundreds of times sweeter than sugar, it’s very easy to over do it…and I honestly have never tasted a green drink formulation that uses stevia that I like. If you’ve tried stevia and you like it…you’re in great shape. Stevia has no negative health effects and is not a sugar, so it’s ok for diabetics. Personally, I’d rather go without sweetener than put stevia in my food. Now, I know that many companies claim to have solved the stevia after-taste problem, but I have yet to try one that delivers on the promise.
Agave Nectar
Lately, agave nectar has been getting a lot of attention. It has a low glycemic index, so it’s great for diebetics. It is easy to use, being much like honey in consistency, but “thinner”–and it tastes great. It is being used quite often in protein bars, drinks, and sauces, because it dissolves easily and goes well with these foods. Much like honey in its chemistry, it’s made up of mostly fructose and some glucose. From a health perspective, it’s much like honey, but has the added advantage of being low on the glycemic index.
Brown Rice Syrup & Barley Malt Syrup
Brown rice syrup, which is often made with barley malt syrup, a series of sugars, with very little glucose, which means it does not spike the blood sugar and is low on the glycemic index. It can be used as a time-release source of energy, because the combination of Maltose and carbohydrates burn off at different rates–usually giving energy for hours, if you remain active. It has a bit of protein and is made much like the process of honey–by adding enzymes to the starchy sugars.
Summary
If you are interested in fast energy for a workout or if you are active and plan to burn up that energy…then you should just use sugar in some kind of natural or raw form (provided you’re not diabetic). If you’re interested in a longer-lasting form of energy, then go for brown rice syrup. If you like sweet things and want to get as much of it as possible…and want to know what you should use to minimize your health risks, then I suggest a variety of all of these, with a focus on the non-sugar alternatives (Xylitol and stevia). The truth is, excess is more dangerous to your health than any of these sugars when eaten in moderation.
October 25th, 2008
A lot of people ask me what I think they should do to lose weight or what I think of some diet plan or other. Is white bread worse than sugar? Is it ok to eat olive oil? What about fruit like bananas and papayas? It seems everyone wants to know some special trick or validate what they’ve heard about some exotic supplement or diet plan. There’s the grapefruit diet, Hootia, guarana supplements…the list goes on and on. One person I spoke to was convinced that she should avoid all white foods.
The fact is, there’s nothing so secretive about losing weight. You don’t need special pills or supplements, weird diets or starvation fasts. It’s actually much less exciting, much more sensible, and a lot more boring than all that. Sorry, no magic pills or formulas. Want the keys?
- Cut out all dairy products (milk, cheese, butter, ice cream, etc.)
- Cut out all processed meats like deli and luncheon meats
- Cut out all soft drinks, beer, and distilled liquor (red wine is ok)
- Cut out all processed cookies, crackers and chips
- Minimize wheat products like bread and pasta
- Minimize sugar
- Minimize fried foods
Most important, get lots and lots of good nutrition by taking a superfood supplement before every meal. This could be a few leaves of fresh kale, a good green drink, bee pollen, olive leaf extract, or Spirulina and Chlorella supplements.
Now here’s the part that most people can’t handle: Keep up the above recommendations, without any major alterations, fasts, or modifications for as long as you want to look good. This is not a diet. This is your new healthy eating lifestyle and it works as long as you stick to it and stay balanced and sensible about it.
Want to add a half a grapefruit after every meal? Go ahead. Just don’t go nuts and make grapefruit your only food. Don’t fast. Don’t over do it on Hootia, guarana, or cat’s claw supplements. Don’t deviate too much. The desire to try something radical is very possibly a deep-seated internal mechanism that wants you to fail and go back to your old ways.
It’s sensible, but not necessarily easy. Thankfully, it works. My brother-in-law has lost fifteen pounds in three weeks using this technique with no exercise! He often wants to add something else to step up the program and I continue to advise him to stick to the same thing without change. If you want to step it up at some point, then add some exercise, but don’t change the diet.
April 16th, 2007
Losing weight does not have to be a struggle. Nature provides all kinds of herbs and foods that help you feel full, increase energy and metabolism, and process fats and sugars more efficiently. Here is a list of some of the best herbal supplements that you can add to a weight control program. Mix and match for best results, depending on your needs.
- Fucus Extract is a type of seaweed that is especially good for weight loss. First, its high fiber and bulk help with a feeling of fullness and decreased appetite, while it’s iodine content stimulates the Thyroid and, consequently, increases metabolism.
- Artichoke Extract helps reduce cholesterol while supporting the blood and liver by reducing blood fat. It aids the digestive system by increasing bile production and is high bulking to help reduce appetite.
- Garlic extract is known to purify the blood and liver while regulating cholesterol (increasing the good and decreasing the bad). It also thins the blood, which helps to increase metabolism and extend the life of other supplements.
- Omega-3 supplements with flaxseed oil help control cholesterol and remove bad cholesterol from the body.
- Mushroom cordyceps help increase energy, while decreasing blood pressure, cholesterol and plaque. They have many other healthy attributes not related to weight control.
- B-Complex vitamins, especially B2, which helps metabolize fat and carbohydrates and B3, which lowers cholesterol.
- Spirulina is a superfood that gives your body so much nourishment that it craves less food. It is rich in digestible protein, vitamins and minerals, including trace minerals. This is a food that actually helps you lose weight.
- Dandelion extract is another weight reducing food that you can eat as much as you like. Its nutritional value (high in calcium, potassium, iron, beta-carotene, and vitamins C and E) helps feed your body to reduce hunger sensations while enhancing your immune system. It also helps in digestion and reduces blood pressure.
- Probiotics replace the healthy flora in your digestive system, so that foods are digested more completely, and waste is eliminated more quickly and efficiently.
- Olive leaf extract helps metabolize fat, extends the life of vitamins C and E, lowers blood sugar, regulates blood pressure, and increases circulation.
- Green tea extract is known to increase metabolism and help burn energy. It also lowers cholesterol levels and aids in digestion. Many report that it reduces hunger.
- Guar gum is a natural appetite suppressant due to its high bulking properties when mixed with water. It also helps with elimination.
- Unha de gato from the Amazon region is a circulation and metabolism enhancer used for years in South America for dieters. It also provides energy and suppresses the appetite.
- Guarana, which is also from the Amazon, specifically Brazil, is a natural stimulant that includes caffeine and other substances to suppress the appetite and increase energy and metabolism. This one is effective if used in small amounts along with other supplements.
There you have it, a sampling of natures arsenal for helping control and maintain healthy weight by decreasing appetite, increasing energy and metabolism, improving blood and liver health, reducing fats, sugars and cholesterol from the blood and body, improving digestion and helping with elimination. By adding one or more of these to your healthy diet and exercise program, you are practically guaranteed to feel better, lose weight and keep it under control.
Dandelion photo by BenHur: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:BenHur
December 3rd, 2006
Margarine producers would love for you to think that the butter vs. margarine debate is still alive and well. But the debate was over some time ago. The discovery of trans fatty acids in margarine (which coat your arteries with fat deposits) delivered the final blow. Even if you once thought it was worth eating a semi-plastic hydrogenated oil (and all the poinsonous yellow dye added to it to mask its normally dark color) in order to save a whopping 3 grams of fat per tablespoon over butter, it should now be clear that since 2 of those 5 grams of fat in margarine are trans fats (responsible for all kinds of horrible stoppages in the body), you’re better off just getting the flavor and fat of butter.
But the margarine chemists have now come out with “zero-trans-fat margarine.” What up with that? Should we go back to eating soft plastic? Well, not if you consider how they achieve the zero mark for their labels. In short, they dilute the hydrogenated oil with water or liquid oil, thus reducing the amount of trans fats per tablespoon. If you were to dilute your butter with olive oil in the same way, you could reduce its percentage of saturated fat per tablespoon too. And keep the taste.
But here. Let’s just remove ourselves from this debate with the following all-natural, great tasting butter substitute. Ok, it doesn’t taste exactly like butter, but give it a chance. You might actually prefer it to butter after you get over your butter withdrawal.
Flaxseed Butter Substitute
1/2 cup flaxseed oil
1/8 cup brewer’s yeast flakes
1/4 cup lecithin granules
1/2 teaspoon honey
Mix the yeast in a spice grinder or coffee grinder until it turns to a powder, then stir it into the flaxseed oil and lecithin. Mix in honey. Use as a spread, just like butter. It works especially well on steemed veggies (cabbage, mmmm!). Store in the refrigerator.
NOTE: If you don’t like the taste of flaxseed oil, experiment with walnut and sesame oils — perhaps mixed with olive oil.
September 17th, 2006
