Squash for Dummies

By Nancy Mehlert, MS

Now more than ever, there are a multitude of sizes and shapes and colors and in many cases, what we think is a kind of pumpkin, is really another relative in the winter squash family. We decorate and carve them but sometimes forget to appreciate the amazing dishes they make too! So today, let’s focus on the nutritional opportunity and great tastes found in the winter squash family.

There are more than a dozen varieties of winter squash and they are sweeter, denser and firmer than the summer squash (zucchini and yellow crookneck). In flavor and texture they generally tend to be more similar in taste and texture to a sweet potato though there are variances.

squash

Winter squash is an excellent replacement for potato, pasta, corn, and rice. They are an excellent vegetable option, generally low in calories and fat and a wonderful source of fiber, vitamin A and C, B6, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium and iron. They are also rich in important phytonutrients, plant nutrients that provide many specific health benefits but are not included in the definition of vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, or fats. Examples of phytonutrients that may sound familiar to you are lutein, quercetin, and zeaxanthin, all of which are found in winter squash.

The most popular and easily found winter squashes are Pumpkin, Spaghetti, Butternut, Acorn and Delicata. Other less common varieties include Red Kabocha, Carnival, Sweet Dumpling, Red Kuri, Buttercup and Blue Hubbard. Here are the ones represented in the picture:

Acorn, Sweet Dumpling and Carnival squash are all very similar in shape, much like an acorn. In our picture, the Carnival Squash is on the lower left and the Acorn is on the lower right. A Sweet Dumpling is shaped the same however its skin is edible and it is whitish and yellowish with slight bits of green in the folds of the squash. These squash are mellow, mild and sweet and can be used as a bowl to hold fillings such as chopped apple and cinnamon, ground sage sausage and quinoa or just plain butter. They are small enough to bake like a baked potato – just poke a small hole to vent, bake at 350° for 30-40 minutes until tender. Cut open, scoop out seeds in the center and if desired, fill up the hole and serve.

If you plan to bake more once filled, then remove them from the oven after 25 minutes, fill up and then place back in the oven until heated through.

Delicata squash are uniquely shaped in an oblong fashion, with edible yellow skin and green lines lengthwise. There are two in our picture along the back row, one to the right of the spaghetti squash and one to the right of the pumpkin. The flesh is creamy and soft with a sweet taste that will thrill kids and adults alike. Easy to prepare and quick to roast, just slice down the middle, scoop out the seeds and place single layer on a baking sheet with olive oil, coconut oil or melted butter, salt and pepper if desired. Herbs such as rosemary or thyme would pair nicely. If you are patient for pretty results, it is attractive to slice one inch pieces of the whole squash and carve out the seeds in the middle. The end result is a pretty flower-looking slice that will impress your guests.

Kabocha Squash and Buttercup Squash are very similar in appearance and can be confusing. In our picture, they are the two dark green squash on the left half of the picture. The larger one in the center is the Buttercup, distinguishable by its flat bottom. The Kabocha has a base that points out rather than in. Freshly cut, they have a very clean fragrance much like cucumber, though once cooked, are mild, dense and only slightly sweet. The Red Kabocha Squash (not pictured) is more similarly colored like a pumpkin, but is unmistakably sweeter. These squash roast well but are also perfect for creamy squash soup.

If you have yet to try Spaghetti Squash, (pictured on the left, bright yellow)you are missing out on the popular new rage to replace the pasta on your plate. A rather amazing phenomenon, when you bake this squash and begin to remove the flesh with a dinner fork, the flesh comes out in fine, angel hair pasta-like strands. Its delicate and mild taste pairs beautifully with traditional marinara, as well as simply tossed with pecorino romano cheese, cilantro or parsley and butter. Scramble leftovers in a pan for breakfast with chopped bacon and you have a delightful eggless breakfast. Smaller ones bake easily whole like a baked potato at 350-375° in 25-40 minutes while larger ones cook fast if cut in half first, remove the seeds and bake face down in a little bit of water.

Finally, the Pumpkin is the bright orange iconic symbol for October, Halloween and Fall. If you want to ditch the canned pumpkin, pick up the sweet, small Sugar Pumpkins that are easy to bake and puree for all of your favorite pumpkin recipes.

Be healthy, enjoy Fall and eat some squash!

By Mila McManus MD|2015-10-21T14:58:37-06:00October 21st, 2015|Articles, General, NANCY’S NUTRITIONAL NUGGET|

Active B Complex (by Prothera)

Active B Complex™ provides a full-complement of essential B-complex vitamins in a high potency formula. Activated, coenzyme forms provide optimum B complex vitamin support for individuals who may have difficulty metabolizing standard supplemental forms of B vitamins, particularly those with the MTHFR gene mutation/variant. Inclusion of L-5-methyltetrahydrofolate (L-5-MTHF), a bioactive form of folate, ensures more immediate effects on metabolism than folic acid, the form of folate commonly used in fortified foods and supplements. Activated vitamin B12 (methylcobalamin) enhances B12 absorption and bioavailability. Benfotiamine, the lipid-soluble form of thiamine, is also included together with active forms of riboflavin and vitamin B6. Provided in small easy to swallow vegetarian capsules.

By Mila McManus MD|2015-10-21T14:51:07-06:00October 21st, 2015|Articles, General|

Baked Acorn Squash with Apples

Serves 4

2 Medium to small Acorn Squash, halved with seeds & strings removed
2 Medium to Large baking apples, cored and diced
2 Tablespoons Coconut Palm Sugar or maple syrup
2 Tablespoons of Butter, melted
½-1 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice (or cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice)
Juice of ½ small lemon
1 Tablespoon bourbon or dark rum if desired

1) Preheat oven to 350°.

2) Use a baking dish large enough for the 4 halves, and place ¼ cup of water in the bottom of it. Place the acorn squash halves face down in the water and bake for ½ hour.

3) While baking, gently toss together in a bowl, diced apples with coconut palm sugar, melted butter, pumpkin pie spice, lemon juice and bourbon/dark rum, if desired.

4) Remove squash from the oven, drain any remaining water from the pan, and turn over the squash to bowl side up. Fill center with apple mixture.

5) Bake for an additional 30 minutes until apples are soft and browning.

Notes: Completed squash will hold heat for 15 minutes countertop so it can hold well while the remainder of dish is prepared and served. Can also be prepared through step 4 and refrigerated one day ahead before finishing. Remove from refrigerator 15 minutes before final baking step. Use a baking apple (Honeycrisp works well) and dice into small pieces to speed cooking time. Consider other stuffing combinations for acorn squash such as cooked pork sausage or bacon, pears, raisins, cranberries or currents, nuts and seeds. Excellent pairing for pork roast or turkey dinner. Also a great dessert option.

By Mila McManus MD|2015-10-26T16:56:46-06:00October 21st, 2015|Articles, General, Recipes|

Identifying and Preventing Food Allergies

By Nancy Mehlert, MS

In Collaboration with Mila McManus MD

Researchers estimate that up to 15 million Americans have food allergies. Food allergies affect 1 in every 13 children (under 18 years of age) in the U.S. That’s roughly two in every classroom. According to a study released in 2013 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, food allergies among children increased approximately 50% between 1997 and 2011. Eight foods account for 90 percent of all reactions: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, wheat, fish and shellfish. Even trace amounts of a food allergen can cause a reaction.[1] In comments on the US Food & Drug Administration’s 2005 Food Safety Survey, FAAN stated that “Accurate and reliable data on food allergy and anaphylaxis is lacking, and it is generally believed that the limited data now available represents an under-reporting of food allergy-related reactions and deaths”[2]. Here at The Woodlands Institute for Health and Wellness, we agree that food allergies are on the rise and prevalence is underreported for children and adults.

The information above pertains to IgE, or immediate type, allergic reactions such as lip swelling, hives, and/or anaphylaxis. What we see much more frequently at TWIHW are IgG, or delayed type, reactions which are generally ignored and dismissed in the conventional medical community. Symptoms related to IgG reactions are listed below in the paragraph that begins with “1”.

You can help yourself and your family to minimize the effects of food allergies and avoid them all together by taking a few proactive steps.

ONE: Clean up your diet. Focus on real, whole food and eliminate packaged, processed, and fast foods in exchange for plenty of fresh vegetables, fruit, healthy undamaged fats and meats. Reduce sugar as much as possible.

TWO: Restore and heal the gut (intestinal lining where digestion occurs) with plenty of probiotics and bone broth. Our highly processed sugary/carbohydrate diets with artificial sweeteners, flavors and chemical additives, in addition to overuse of antibiotics and steroids, have made it difficult to maintain a healthy gut. (Call us at 281-298-6742 for treatment programs to heal and seal and restore the gut and reduce allergic reactions to foods!)

THREE: Rotate, Rotate, Rotate. Food rotation means to eat a wide variety of foods and avoid eating the same foods day after day and week after week. When we bludgeon the body with a single food, day after day, the opportunity to induce a food allergy to it is very high. This is especially true of the eight listed foods above. Making sure that you only consume these foods once a week (or at least 3-4 days apart) can go a long way to reducing the opportunity for a food allergy to develop. While it is not as necessary to rotate the foods the human body is perfectly wired to consume such as meats and vegetables, undamaged fats, fruits and most seeds, rotation also helps to keep interest in a healthy diet and more importantly, provides a much needed diversity of nutrients for the body thus preventing nutrient depletion.

FOUR: Food allergy tests are available and can be expensive but there is a way you can do a little testing on your own. It is called an Oral Food Challenge. We suggest taking a look at the list above of the eight most common food allergens and conduct your own personal test. Your results will be better than any test available and it will allow you to witness in your own body what effect a food has on you. Instructions for performing the challenge:

1. Choose any one food listed above that’s currently part of your regular diet and eliminate it totally from your diet for a full 30 days or more. Three months would be an ideal test environment. Be sure to check ingredient lists carefully on everything to make sure you are doing a complete elimination. This is especially important with soy, wheat, milk and eggs since they are commonly found in many restaurant items, as well as processed and packaged foods. Make notes a couple times a week in a log regarding how you are feeling before elimination and how you are feeling as the elimination period is progressing. Common allergy symptoms can include aching joints, diarrhea/constipation, headaches, irritability/depressed moods, marked fatigue, inability to lose weight or weight gain[3], anxiety, sneezing, post- nasal drainage, cough, ringing ears, watery eyes, hives/itching/rash, cramps/bloating/ gas, asthma or breathing difficulty, canker sores, or difficulty concentrating. You may want to start by jotting down which of these symptoms you already experience on a regular basis to see if elimination of a food resolves the symptom.

2. Once the elimination period is complete, add the food back into your diet following precisely the three steps listed below. Remember that food allergy symptoms can be both delayed and cumulative, meaning increasing levels of the ingested food can trigger the reaction. If at any point in the steps you experience a reaction, stop eating the challenge food and recognize your sensitivity/allergy to it. We recommend documenting your symptoms to each food you test. Here is how to add the food back in:

i. Day 1-4: Eat the chosen food for 4 consecutive days, at least one serving each day.

ii. Day 5-8: Omit the chosen food totally again for the next 4 days. Be sure to omit the food and anything in which it is an ingredient.

iii. Day 9: First thing in the morning, eat a portion of the chosen food with nothing but a glass of water. Watch for symptoms over the next 30 minutes. If no symptoms occur, eat a second portion of the food with nothing but a glass of water. Without eating any more of the chosen food, wait and watch for symptoms over the next 3 days.

If you can complete this process without observing any symptoms at all, then you can draw the conclusion that you are not sensitive or allergic to the food. If at any point during the process you experience symptoms, stop eating the food, noting the food sensitivity for future reference. If you have a reaction, we recommend the ideal course of action to be avoidance. If the reaction is mild, it’s best to avoid the food for a few months and then attempt food challenge again and if you pass the test the next time, you may wish to eat the food once a week or less, if possible, with the understanding that more frequent ingestion will have a cumulative effect and could trigger symptoms again in the future. If your reaction is more severe with the first oral food challenge, then total avoidance is your best and wisest course of action, but with faithful avoidance for at least 6 to 12 months, you can test again and may be able to rotate the food back into your diet. It’s important to reiterate the importance of focusing on cleaning up the diet and healing the gut as part of a long-term plan to recover from food intolerance and prevent the development of more food allergies.

Call 281-298-6742 for more information and assistance from our skilled and experienced medical staff and nutritionist.

[1] http://www.foodallergy.org/facts-and-stats

[2] (FAAN, 2005

[3] Your Hidden Food Allergies Are Making You Fat by Roger Deutsch and Rudy Rivera M.D. (2002)

By Mila McManus MD|2015-10-06T12:36:01-06:00October 6th, 2015|Articles, General, NANCY’S NUTRITIONAL NUGGET|

Food Allergies

By Nancy Mehlert, MS

In collaboration with Mila McManus MD

In this article, you are going to learn a lot of medical lingo. This is a very important topic and we’re confident you’ll get through it!

The human body has a highly complex, multi-faceted system to defend it from outside threats or harm. We refer to it as our immune system. Immunoglobulins (Ig) are one part of this system and are a diverse group of proteins that protect the human body against disease. Another term used for immunoglobulins is antibodies. In reference to allergic reactions, you may be familiar with Immunoglobulin E, or IgE, and Immunoglobulin G, or IgG. When we ingest a food and these immunoglobulins incorrectly identify that food as foe rather than friend, an adverse symptom (or group of symptoms) results, which we call a food allergy. Some of the most common food allergens include cow’s milk, chicken eggs, wheat, soy, corn, legumes (e.g., peanuts), fish and shellfish. The common theme to responses are inflammatory symptoms including vasodilation which leads to swelling, tissue damage, increased vascular permeability (which allows substances to leak out of blood vessels), and the release of chemical mediators.

IgE is primarily found attached to mast cells. IgE allergies can be very serious and cause symptoms such as difficulty breathing, swelling, hives or even anaphylactic shock. IgE antibodies, once exposed to the allergen (aka, in this case, the food triggering allergic response), cause the release of histamines and other chemicals which cause symptoms such as itching and inflammation. Commonly these reactions are immediate upon ingestion of the allergen, occurring within minutes. Testing for this kind of allergy is done by skin prick or blood test and treatment is usually to block the release of the histamines with medications, and avoidance of the allergen. Click here for more information on ordering a test kit.

IgG is important for building immunity even as a baby grows in its mother’s womb. These antibodies build long term resistance to infections, toxins, bacteria and viruses. IgG allergic reactions do not release histamine and thus do not respond to a skin prick. In fact, these allergies are often called “delayed onset” allergies because immediate symptoms are less common. Rather, symptoms can take hours and even days to manifest and repeated exposure to the same allergen can be cumulative in nature because it takes much longer for the body to clear/reduce the IgG after exposure to the food when compared to clearance rate of IgE. The degree and severity of symptoms can also vary because of the genetic makeup of the individual. Symptoms can range from headache, nausea, seizures, hyperactivity, joint pain, fatigue, irritability, and cognitive dysfunction, to skin rashes and mood disorders. IgG reactions have also been associated with auto-immune diseases such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, Rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus. It is well understood that a significant portion of our ingested food proteins reach the lymphoid tissues (clusters of immune cells) in the gut where ideally the intestinal immune system can discriminate proteins in the food stream as innocuous (harmless) and not of any pathogenic (disease-causing) importance. However, if the mucosal barrier integrity is lost, this lymphoid tissue loses its ability to distinguish friend from foe, causing tolerance for certain foods to be lost. This often occurs with the foods eaten most frequently and repeatedly. Digestive problems play a major role in the development of IgG food allergies as a result of intestinal lining integrity being compromised by a poor diet or the use of antibiotics, steroids, artificial sweeteners, and medications such as NSAIDS (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). We call this “leaky gut”, and this allows food particles to enter the bloodstream where they are recognized by the immune system as a perceived threat that triggers an immune attack. Chronic attacks keep the immune system hypersensitive and overworked, leading to poor performance and weakening of the immune system. Treatment for IgG reactions includes avoidance of reactive foods and restoration of gut integrity. It is possible, but not guaranteed, that a person can later resume eating the foods in moderation. Since the antibodies are cumulative with IgG reactions, the frequency with which you eat the food will determine how quickly the antibodies rise again to the level which triggers symptoms again.

www.greatplainslaboratory.com/home/eng/e-newsletter/igg_vs_ige.pdf

By Mila McManus MD|2019-03-06T15:36:05-06:00October 6th, 2015|Articles, General|

Employee of the Month- Nancy Mehlert, M.S.

Every month at The Woodlands Institute for Health & Wellness, we celebrate one member of our awesome team. This month, we are celebrating Nancy Mehlert, MS. Nancy began her wellness journey at TWIHW as a patient. Several months into her wellness program, after realizing how life changing the experience had been for her thus far, she developed a passion for nutrition and the wellness field, left her successful career in management, enrolled in school to work for a Masters in holistic nutrition, and joined the TWIHW team in 2006 as our nutritionist on staff.

Nancy is unarguably one of TWIHW’s best assets. She’s extremely smart, kind-hearted, encouraging, amazing at everything she does, and is continually complimented by coworkers and patients alike. Some of the adjectives used to describe Nancy’s attributes include compassionate, enthusiastic, dependable, thorough, accessible, unique, bright, genuine, energetic, fiercely loyal, humble, and passionate. She is sincerely concerned for the health and wellbeing of everyone around her.

By Mila McManus MD|2015-10-05T14:00:55-06:00October 5th, 2015|Articles, General|

Carbo G

carbo G

by Transformation Enzymes

Adhering to a gluten free diet can be challenging when gluten is used as a food additive and even as a filler in some medications. It may be present in the least expected places, especially when eating outside the home. And since gluten sensitive individuals can become very uncomfortable or ill if they consume unexpected gluten, Carbo G offers a helpful solution to both mitigate anxiety and assist with the digestion of unexpected gluten. Carbo G includes enzymes that break down the polysaccharides which encase gluten as well as the DPP-IV protease necessary to digest the gluten proteins. Improved digestion helps to reduce symptoms of bloating, diarrhea, gas and abdominal cramps associated with grain and gluten sensitivities. Our practice emphasizes the avoidance of food allergens and sensitivities and does not promote the use of Carbo G as a way to routinely “allow” consumption of known allergens. Healing and restoration of the gut are key to resolution of the root problem. This supplement is available by special order at The Woodlands Institute for Health and Wellness. We are offering 20% off this Product of the Month for the month of October!

By Mila McManus MD|2015-10-05T06:44:22-06:00October 3rd, 2015|Articles, General|

Employee of the Month Sandra Caldwell, PA-C

Sandra Caldwell, PA-C, joined The Woodlands Institute for Health and Wellness 8 years ago as a healthcare provider and is also a member of our management team, overseeing the medical staff. Everyone on our staff will tell you that Sandra is an anchor for us in so many ways. She is always the calm one amidst the stormiest times and to all offers a much needed word of encouragement, compassion and sensibility. She often fills the “mom on staff” role when we need a mother’s tender care and she is as endearing to children as to the elderly. Selfless and loyal, she is especially good at listening, recognizing the needs of others and offering wise counsel and education. She also has an uncanny ability to take a nervous patient and make him or her comfortable and relaxed. Sandra is our all natural gal with a deep love of horses, dogs and animals in general. She loves the great outdoors, and anything just the way nature made it. She is our resident essential oil specialist and knows at least one natural treatment or approach for just about anything imaginable! If you can catch her out from behind the door with patients, it is always a joy to be in her presence and draw from her smile, her knowledge and her serenity in life.

By Mila McManus MD|2015-09-01T13:19:16-06:00September 1st, 2015|Articles, General|

Emotional Eating

By Nancy Mehlert, MS

Emotional eating is not an easy topic. Like other aspects of our lives that can become a slippery slope to abuse, such as drugs, alcohol, and credit card debt, emotional eating can be a problem we don’t want to face, much less talk about. Though very socially acceptable, like other addictions, it is not a sustainable habit. It’s also very difficult to stop since we do have to eat to sustain life, whereas, for example, we can completely abstain from alcohol when on the road to recovery so as not to be tempted. The consequences of emotional eating are many and include inability to lose weight and keep it off, obesity, diabetes, depression, high blood pressure, sleep disturbances, fatigue, brain fog, dependence on stimulants and depressants, low self-esteem and so much more. Most of us have no idea how it started or when we became emotional eaters. Nevertheless, for many of us, we are discovering that our emotions and eating are intertwined. It’s often the reason we get caught in the suffocating loop of trying to lose weight. Even when we know what to eat, and we know how much to eat, we somehow find ourselves at the mercy of our cravings and wondering if we can ever create a healthy lifestyle and maintain a normal weight. The reality for all of us who struggle with emotional eating is that we must come face to face with our emotional attachment to food and cut those ties loose. Here at The Woodlands Institute for Health and Wellness our goal is to guide our patients on a wellness journey to good health and, frankly, emotional eating is a common roadblock.

The functional, biological purpose of eating is to nourish the body. We need to eat when we feel physical hunger. Physical hunger is our body’s normal process to inform us that it is time to eat to fuel the body. In an ideal world, our relationship with food would be one where we feel hungry, so we eat and as soon as we are full, we stop eating. In a very simple sense then eating is defined as the normal response to physical hunger.

Emotional eating is a maladaptive coping response to emotional hunger. Emotional eating is a preoccupation with food to numb us or distract us from feeling what we don’t want to feel. Common emotions that trigger an eating response include fatigue, fear, emptiness, feeling out of control, stress, anger, boredom, sadness, shame or loneliness. For many, even positive emotions such as happiness, love and celebration are triggers. Whether positive or negative emotions, emotional eating is an unhealthy relationship with food.

How does this happen to us? How do we become emotional eaters? It is not hard to understand when we closely examine our culture of today as it has progressed over the last sixty or seventy years. Consider the reality of these common experiences:

We have become a culture that “lives to eat” rather than “eats to live”.
We have been taught to convey our love and friendship in the form of food. We reward success with treats, we soothe hurt feelings and disappointments with food, we offer food as expressions of love for holidays and birthdays.
Consider the advertisements reflecting smiling and laughing people as they eat, even if they are eating junk food. Corporations work hard to connect happiness, friendship and laughter with the food they want you to purchase. Movies can have similar effects.
Family and social bonding is done around food in our culture – potlucks, picnics, girl’s night out, reunions, birthdays, weddings, funerals, anniversaries, graduations, social marketing/sales gatherings, business meetings, bunko and bridge… what would they be without food?
Food has become a hobby for many. Cooking, gardening, social food groups, cooking and baking classes… we even have a name for food hobbyists. We call them “foodies”.
Parenting styles and instructions implant ideas and beliefs in our minds as well. What about “Clean your plate because there are starving children in Africa”. Or, “You may not leave the table without finishing your meal”. Perhaps your mother’s love language was cooking good food that made you smile and, yes, stuffed! In this way food can become a punishment or a reward.
Economic status during childhood may also have a bearing on your relationship with food. If food was scarce and hunger pangs were experienced often, a desire to hoard food as an adult is a protective, emotional response to the fear of being without.

Culturally we have become a food addicted society who associates eating with happiness, love, and comfort! And to most of us, this is “normal”, yet we are becoming brutally aware that our sedentary, food-focused lifestyles are contributing, at least in part, to the major health crisis in which we find ourselves. Emotional eating is taking its toll. We need a conscious effort to work toward resolution for ourselves, for our families and for our communities.

What to do? Easy to say, hard to change. Life is hard and food is easy (the name of a book on the topic, see below)! As with any obsession or addiction, recognizing that your feelings are interwoven with your eating patterns is the first step. It is possible (and healthy) to deal with your emotions directly, rather than using and abusing food and your body to avoid or work around your emotions. Once you become aware of the ways you have been using food thoughtlessly, you will become more conscious. Then you will be free to make different choices. Here are the key steps:

Step One: Identify all of the triggers that make you want to engage in emotional eating. There may be more than one and in fact it is not unusual to have a list of 10 or more! Writing them down as you recognize them can be helpful. Here are just a few examples:

o Avoiding work or projects that are hard to get started

o Avoiding hurting someone’s feelings

o Because everyone expects me to eat

o When I feel sorry for myself

o When I feel like I deserve a treat after surviving a hard day or circumstance

o When I see a food that looks really yummy and I want to try it

o When I’m really exhausted after a long day

o When I am frustrated about circumstances or people that I cannot change or control

Step Two: Understand why you eat under these circumstances. Try to think through the situation and identify how you connected these emotions to the eating. Reconcile the truth about your emotions/feelings or beliefs with the food and eating it. Here are two examples:

Whenever I visit my mom I want to eat. It is an immediate trigger, regardless of my need or lack of hunger. When I thought about it, I realized that my mother loved us by feeding us. She would spend hours or days preparing menus, shopping for food and preparing for our arrival home. Even during childhood, we ate at home and she loved us by making delicious home cooked meals. I realized that food was emotionally connected with receiving my mother’s love. Once I was able to realize that my mother’s love was not coming from the food, or in the food, and that the food was not my mother, I realized this emotional connection was a trap. Once I recognized this and got my mind off of food and focused on her, it helped me to be more intentional in listening to her, loving her and sharing life with her.
When I am in a social situation with people I don’t know very well, I want to eat. And eat. And eat. It is easy to do because virtually every social event has food involved. My top priority upon arrival at a social event was to find food and try it all. So why this trigger? After considerable thought and honesty with myself, I recognized that food was the escape and the comfort from doing what I am uncomfortable doing –meeting new people. Food was the numbing, distracting and comforting escape from what I did not enjoy doing and was not confident doing. I used food for comfort, distraction and a place to stand! Recognizing this pattern of escape helped me to anticipate social events, set boundaries around the food served there and learn better social skills to enjoy people and make new friends.

Step Three: Detaching eating from these triggers. Work to understand how you linked these emotions to eating in the first place. Recognize then that the emotional link is not reality. A very good way to see the problem with your false thinking is to see how people with a healthy relationship with food deal with the same kind of situation. If you observe closely or talk to a friend or family member you know who has a healthy relationship with food, they would not share the same thoughts about food that you have. I asked a friend about social events and she said she usually never gets to the food because she is so busy enjoying other people, relationships and learning new things! It is possible to give and receive love, get to know other people, celebrate success, and even feel hurt or abandoned without using food. Whether you use food, or use alcohol, or use people, these are self-destructive patterns that are not sustainable for a healthy life.

Step Four: Resolve the triggers themselves. This is the crux of the matter. If we don’t face ourselves, our emotions, and their sources and work through them, we will continue to find ways to escape them and won’t be successful disconnecting eating from our emotions. Let’s face it. Life is hard and food is terribly easy. We live in a culture where our stressful and busy lives have disconnected us from our inner selves. When was the last time you sat in quiet solitude? When was the last time you worshiped or gave thanks or spent time alone to ponder life? Are you so busy being a “human-doing” that you never stop to be a “human-being”? Do you take adequate time for self-care? What do you do with all of the hurt and failure that has piled up in your life? Do you “stuff it”? Or do you wade into it, wallow in it, work through it, let yourself experience the emotions and come to a healthy understanding of them? The second one takes more work but leaves your soul and mind in a much healthier state.

In Health and Wellness, we see very clearly that while diet and exercise and other lifestyle choices are essential to getting well, there is no question that if your soul does not feel “safe” releasing fat, weight loss often will not come. Psychologically, our “baggage”, left unattended, will prevent your body from feeling safe enough to release fat. Fat in its very purpose on the body is protective in function. It protects the organ systems from impact but it also is stored on the body in case of stress/food shortage/famine. In our society today, where most of us don’t suffer from food shortage, fat storage can occur as a protective measure for the spirit or soul. Emotional healing is both freeing for the mind but also for the body. Underlying emotions, beliefs and traumas play with our weight and our health, and also our confidence levels with our body.

We started the article with the truth. This is not an easy topic! Having four steps to follow does not offer mastery over your emotions in a day. We want to encourage you to take steps on a journey to a healthier emotional life. There are many resources, including books to read, websites to explore, counselors and step programs. The important thing is to take the first step. Here are a few easy first steps and resources:

Go to this link and take the free test to determine if you are an emotional eater (for a very small fee you can get a more detailed and helpful analysis): http://psychologytoday.tests.psychtests.com/take_test.php?idRegTest=1599

Check out books and DVD’s by Brene Brown, a local Houston Doctor of Social Work and professor at The University of Houston who has studied worthiness, and whole hearted living and discovered shame and guilt on the journey. She is funny, very human, and very helpful. You can listen to her on TED talks as well. Her DVD called Men, Women and Worthiness is very helpful.
Consider reading:

o The Taming of the Chew by Denise Lamothe, PSY.D., H.H.D. , 1998

o The Gabriel Method by Jon Gabriel, 2008

o Life is Hard, Food is Easy by Linda Spangle, RN, MA, 2003

o Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst, 2010 (written in a Biblical/Christian context)

Look into Emotional Freedom Technique, also called EFT. This is a tapping technique that allows you to work through each emotion and eating scenario to release it. It is easy enough to learn and do for yourself.
Consider getting help from a professional counselor or a step program or a support group. Consider forming your own support group and using the books listed above for group study and discussion.

By Mila McManus MD|2015-09-02T06:44:02-06:00September 1st, 2015|Articles, General|

Ten Strategies to Help Overcome Emotional Eating

By Nancy Mehlert, MS

Stop eating long enough to truly experience hunger. Think about it, feel it and listen to it so that you know what real hunger feels like. Begin trying to ask yourself if you are truly hungry before you eat. Sometimes thirst is mistaken for hunger.
Remove unhealthy foods from your home and replace them with healthy choices. Remember that fiber, healthy/undamaged fats, and protein can help to give satiation and make you less likely to have carbohydrate cravings. Remember that the quality of the food matters. Food products, sugary products, processed food, packaged and fast foods are designed by producers to stimulate your pleasure centers and make you crave more of them.
Make self-loving, self-respecting choices most of the time. Perfection is not the goal. Avoiding and minimizing the frequency of self-abuse more of the time is the goal. Be gentle with yourself and remember there are really no mistakes, only lessons.
When you derail, take time to consider what happened and how you were feeling when you resorted to emotional eating. It is helpful to put this in a journal and reflect.
Consider having some boundaries in place, such as never eating in bed, while watching TV, working on the computer, or while in the car, or anywhere in the house except the kitchen table. Learning to restrict where we eat can disconnect food from other activities.
Practice meeting up with friends for activities that do not include eating.
Cravings generally last for 20 minutes so if you can recognize the trap about to happen and distract yourself for 20 minutes, you can be successful at avoiding the eating. Good distractions include calling a friend to talk, drinking 16 ounces of water, going on a walk, reading a book, taking a bath, playing with your children, or journaling your thoughts and feelings.
Be mindful about what you are eating. According to a study by London researchers, the only difference between emotional eaters and non-emotional eaters isn’t the quantity of food they eat – it’s the quality. Emotional eaters are more likely to eat fattening, high calorie food. If you feel a hunger urge coming on, reach for a healthy alternative instead. You’ll cut the fat and the guilt.
Consider professional help. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness- it actually takes a lot of courage.
Find ways to better manage stress, such as exercise, meditation, journaling, and deep breathing exercises.

By Mila McManus MD|2015-09-01T12:56:56-06:00September 1st, 2015|Articles, General, NANCY’S NUTRITIONAL NUGGET|

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