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Personal Nutrition: Take a Close Look

By Nancy Mehlert, MS.

When it comes to personal nutrition, seasonal changes offer a great opportunity to pause and examine what our diet looks like.

When it comes to personal nutrition, seasonal changes offer a great opportunity to pause and examine what our diet looks like at this point in time.  As we move into Spring, here are three simple examinations you can put your personal nutrition under the magnifying glass:

  • When is the last time you tried a new food or changed up your food routine?

Since there are not 15-25 foods that can offer all of the macro and micro nutrients we need, it is important to rotate foods often, expand the number of foods we eat, and increase our variety for good health. This is especially true of vegetables, nuts, seeds, and even meat choices.

  • Have you slid down the slippery slope?

It happens to the best of us! Too many sweets, too much fruit, eating gluten again, too many nights a week with alcohol, eating out a lot more, buying more packaged food, over eating, eating before bed, not drinking enough water…. Whatever your slippery slopes are, is it time to get back on track?

  • When is the last time you stopped your routine for a detoxification of some sort?

It is a toxic world, and everyone benefits by scheduling some routine detoxification efforts a couple times a year at least.  Consider some fasting, a detoxification diet, a Health Reset Program, ONDAMED, or HCG to promote cleansing, weight loss, or healing.

Visit our webiste TWIHW.com or call 281.298.6742 for more information.

 

By |2022-11-01T15:24:26-05:00April 28th, 2021|General, NANCY’S NUTRITIONAL NUGGET|

Various Diets Explained Series: Vegan and Vegetarian

This is the final article in this series on various diets.  This article explains the Vegan and Vegetarian diets.  Because there are formalized societies for both, we will quote directly from the Vegan Society and the Vegetarian Society to provide definition and clarification of what is included, and not included, in these diets. Then we’ll conclude with some important thoughts from a nutrition perspective.

Veganism (content directly quoted from www.vegansociety.com)

The Vegan Society (www.vegansociety.com) defines veganism as “A philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude—as far as is possible and practicable—all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment. In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals. A vegan diet is richly diverse and comprises all kinds of fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains, seeds, beans and pulses.

One thing all vegans have in common is a plant-based diet, avoiding all animal foods such as meat (including fish, shellfish and insects), dairy, eggs and honey – as well as products such as leather and any products tested on animals.”

 

Vegetarianism (content directly quoted from www.vegsoc.org)

The Vegetarian Society defines a vegetarian as someone who lives on a diet of grains, pulses, legumes, nuts, seeds, vegetables, fruits, fungi, algae, yeast and/or some other non-animal-based foods (e.g. salt) with, or without, dairy products, honey and/or eggs. A vegetarian does not eat foods that consist of, or have been produced with, the aid of products consisting of or created from, any part of the body of a living or dead animal. This includes meat, poultry, fish, shellfish (sea animals covered with a shell including crustaceans and mollusks), insects, by-products of slaughter (such as gelatin, isinglass and animal rennet) or any food made with processing aids created from these.

There are different degrees of vegetarianism which may be what causes confusion for many people. The four most common forms of vegetarianism are:

  • Lacto-ovo-vegetarian. Eats both dairy products and eggs. This is the most common type of vegetarian diet.
  • Lacto-vegetarian. Eats dairy products but not eggs.
  • Ovo-vegetarian. Eats eggs but not dairy products.
  • Vegan. Does not eat dairy products, eggs, or any other animal product.

Eggs: Many lacto-ovo vegetarians will only eat free-range eggs. This is because of welfare objections to the intensive farming of hens. Through its Vegetarian Society Approved trade mark, the Vegetarian Society only endorses products containing free-range eggs.

Protein: Sources in the vegetarian diet can come from a range of different sources including:

  • Pulses, such as peas, beans, lentils and – botanically speaking – peanuts, are excellent inexpensive sources of protein and also contain minerals such as iron, zinc and calcium.
  • Soya products and QuornTM, a form of ‘myco-protein’ available as mince, burgers, fillets, sausages and so on are also good sources of protein, popular and convenient to use.
  • Free range eggs and dairy products such as milk, cheese, yoghurt as well as nuts and seeds contribute to protein and also to zinc, calcium and iron intake.
  • Vegan options such as non dairy soya milk and vegan ‘cheese’ are valuable sources of protein and are often additionally fortified with calcium.

Important Thoughts:

  • As can happen with the Standard American Diet (Omnivore), it is very easy to be attracted to highly processed, man-made vegan and vegetarian convenience foods. While we have confidence that some people can be healthy eating a vegan or vegetarian diet, it cannot be done in healthy ways any better than an omnivore’s diet if it is done on fake, highly processed or sugary options. There are many vegan and vegetarian junk food options from cheese and meat imitations as well as highly processed, fast digesting, genetically modified grains, flours and grain products.  All of these can result in a highly inflammatory diet.
  • It is important to understand that the primary purpose for vegetables in anyone’s diet is to cleanse and detoxify the human body. While it is true that carbohydrates can provide some energy, too many carbohydrates result in fat storage.  It is the nutrients and plant fibers that help us cleanse and detoxify and thus the reason many people feel so good when they initiate a vegan or vegetarian diet.  However, only protein and fat can be used to replace our cells routinely and repair damage.  No carbohydrate can be used to make new cells.  Carbohydrates cannot be used to heal bones, repair injuries or conquer disease.  This is the primary reason we emphasize the importance of responsible veganism or vegetarianism because carelessly done, it can become very difficult to have young healthy skin, maintain a healthy weight and heal from disease or illness unless you have ensured adequate and quality sources of protein and fats.
  • The ideal candidate for a vegan or vegetarian diet is a person who prefers and loves a wide variety of vegetables, nuts and seeds as well as healthy fats and is accountable to themselves to be educated and wise in ensuring optimal nutrition, and when necessary, optimal supplementation. A talent and joy for cooking and food preparation is also a good candidate since there are few vegan or vegetarian eateries. Finally, a person with a healthy digestive tract who does not suffer from food sensitivities or allergies to many of the foods in a vegetarian diet such as grains, dairy, soy, eggs and nuts – some of the highest allergenic foods in America today.
  • As we wrap this series up, please note that the same remarks can be made about any diet that is made up of processed, man-made food. Sugar, genetic modification, pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, chemicals and excessive animal foods, especially those raised in confined animal feeding operations (CAFO) cannot lead anyone to good health. We all need to take care and responsibility in determining the best diet for our unique being, by listening to our body, seeking medical assistance to carefully assess food allergies and food intolerance, nutrient status, gut health, and other sources of ill-health, inflammation and congestion.  We, as human beings, will all be best served through eating a wide variety of whole, real foods.

 

 

 

 

 

By |2018-03-25T12:09:58-05:00March 25th, 2018|Articles, General|

Various Diets Explained: Part 2

Confused? Overview and Distinctions Between Paleo and Ketogenic Diets

The Paleo Diet was proposed as early as 1975 but was popularized in 2002 by Loren Cordain, PhD in his book The Paleo Diet. Based on the idea that our genes are well adapted to a world in which all the food eaten daily is hunted, fished or gathered from the natural environment, Dr. Cordain recommended a whole food diet containing meat, eggs, nuts, seeds, vegetables, and fruit.   He proposed that the core staples of our diet in this century – cereals, dairy products, refined sugars, fatty meats, and salted processed foods- were destroying our body’s metabolic machinery. He argues convincingly, that we have strayed from the path designed for us by nature.  He proposes that “The Paleo Diet is the key to speedy weight loss, effective weight control and above all, lifelong health”, (p.11).  Dr. Cordain’s original Paleo Diet has been substantially reinterpreted by many different nutritionists and practitioners so be aware that there is more than one “paleo” diet in the marketplace with wide variations on what is included and excluded and the recommended mix of macronutrients.  Below are Dr. Cordain’s original recommendations. Main Features include:

  • Low Carbohydrate – Recommends about 22-40 % of calories come from carbohydrates, specifically non-starchy vegetables and all fruits, all nuts and all seeds. Starchy tubers like potatoes, yams and sweet potatoes are not allowed as well as all legumes (including peanuts and soy), all grains, all grain-like seeds (amaranth, buckwheat and quinoa), high sodium foods and fatty meats.  Dairy products and butter are excluded as well.  Cordain does not allow honey, though he believes it was a natural source of sugar obtained by early man, understandably, on rare occasion. He does allow dried fruit in limited portion. However, it is important to be aware that many recently published Paleo diets and cookbooks use a considerable amount of dried fruits in addition to sugar, maple syrup, fruit juices, molasses and honey as sweeteners and some versions include potato, sweet potato, yams, cassava, taro and plantains, which collectively can easily drive this to a moderate or even high carbohydrate diet depending on how the consumer makes food choices.
  • Low to Moderate Fat – Recommends about 28-47% of calories come from fats. Saturated fats are for the most part discouraged including butter, meat fat, and cholesterol found in meats and fats. (At the time Dr. Cordain published in 2002, the world of research had yet to establish this error, but it has since been clearly validated over and over that we do need cholesterol. More updated versions of The Paleo Diet do allow butter and fattier cuts of quality meats though they tend emphasize a low to moderate fat intake and point to protein as the most important fuel.) Monounsaturated fats such as olive oil, nuts and avocados are recommended as well as polyunsaturated Omega 3 fats from fish oils, while Omega 6 sources in processed foods are discouraged.
  • Moderate Protein – Recommends 19-35% of caloric intake come from protein. Cordain’s book recommends lean cuts of meat and poultry and encourages wild sourced meats such as wild game and seafood. Newer Paleo diets include bison and other wild meats, and often are perceived and described as High Protein diets so be aware there can be variations in protein recommendations.
  • Recommendations: Paleo diets in general are sensitive to the importance of food quality, animal care and feed, and concerns about toxicity from pesticides, and genetic modification. Be aware however of the wide variations in quantity of protein, quality and quantity of fats and the collective possibility of high sugar/carbohydrate recipes in the marketplace.

 

 

Ketogenic Diet is the newest catch word in the market place and will likely continue to be in the new year to come. Dr. Adkins was the first to launch this concept in 1972, which was to suggest that lowering carbohydrates was essential to weight loss, however, his program even today still supports the use of artificial sweeteners, soy and damaged fats in his products and he did not adopt the high fat concept that is better understood today. Additionally, Adkins did not account for the damage associated with too much protein.   A Ketogenic diet is designed to address insulin and leptin resistance from consuming too many net carbohydrates (total carbs minus fiber) and too much protein.  It does this by taking away glucose as the primary fuel for the body, force the body into nutritional ketosis (not to be confused with ketoacidosis) in which the body burns fat as its primary fuel rather than glucose.  Dr. Ron Rosedale (www.drrosedale.com) and Dr. Joseph Mercola (www.mercola.com), are both proponents of this kind of diet for healing and good health. According to their websites and books, this kind of diet can be very healing and restorative to lose weight, lower inflammation, reduce risk of cancer and help with treating cancer as well as increasing muscle mass, normalizing appetite, improving mental clarity and reducing sugar and junk food cravings.  Once the body is “fat adapted”, meaning able to burn fats efficiently, then recommendations are to cycle in and out of nutritional ketosis by feasting on higher carbohydrate vegetables and fruits once or twice a week to maintain metabolic flexibility. Main Features include:

  • Low Net Carbohydrate (Determined by subtracting fiber grams from carbohydrate gram to get net carbs). Ketogenic diets are usually in the range of less than 50 grams of net carbohydrate a day and are very specific about the source of the carbohydrates.  The diet excludes grains, sugar, milk, yogurts, beans and legumes as well as all processed foods such as chips and fries. It focuses on low carbohydrate vegetables, some nuts and seeds and sprouts. Caution should be used in reaching this level, if reduction in carbohydrates has never been done before, by slowly reducing carbohydrate intake over several weeks to avoid dramatic low blood sugar, until the body becomes efficient with sourcing and burning fat.
  • High Fat –Emphasis is placed on the quality of the fat and is clearly defined by a group of foods and sources which provide it. Strong emphasis on avoiding refined oils, trans fat and fats high in Omega 6 inflammatory oils. Recommendations are for fats to be anywhere from 50-80 % of total caloric intake (e.g. 1200 calorie diet in which 600-960 calories come from healthful sources of fat). Caution should be used in reaching these levels of fats, accomplishing this by slowly increasing fat intake over several weeks to allow the pancreas and gallbladder time to adjust to a higher fat diet.
  • Adequate Protein –An important nuance of the ketogenic diet, protein needs are determined by mathematical formula, personal health and activity level. The concept is to get adequate protein but not too little or too much.  Most people will need between 30-70 grams of protein a day, spread throughout the day.  This includes protein from plant and animal sources. According to Dr. Mercola, in his new book Fat for Fuel, excess protein can stimulate a regulatory pathway in the body which can promote inflammation, growth of cancer cells and can convert to glucose, thus negatively impacting blood sugar and insulin levels (pp. 47-48).  As with carbohydrates and fat, source matters and quality matters.
  • Recommendation: This diet encourages intermittent fasting and optimally clean, unprocessed and undamaged foods. To minimize side effects and benefit from the ketogenic diet, we would recommend seeking guidance from a nutrition consultant knowledgeable about this diet and reading a book to ensure good understanding and proper implementation.

 

By |2018-01-17T14:33:10-05:00January 17th, 2018|Articles, General|