DIET COLUMN

We guys often let our testosterone get the best of us, leading to crazy macho expectations of ourselves. I won’t get into the specific character traits too much here, but you know the usual suspects. If you’re the type who needs to prove the girth of a certain body part via violent confrontation, large and loud motor vehicles, or playing loose with the facts of your sexual resume, maybe you should reconsider your views of dieting.

Formal dieting is largely a female endeavor. I figure this has something to do with the male psyche, as if watching what you eat may make you less of a man. But if your belly is expanding, you may have a particularly masculine issue to deal with: your sexual prowess.

In a new study, researchers found that obese men had lower levels of testosterone in their blood than their thinner counterparts. Researchers found that among 87 healthy men, ages 19 to 48, those who were obese were less likely to have ever fathered a child

In May of 2008, the FDA finally added brown rice to its list of whole grain products, which allowed it the right to bear the Whole Grain Health Claim. This claim states that the food contains at least 51% whole grains and can specifically say, “Diets rich in whole grain foods and other plant foods and low in total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease and some cancers.”

Since there is no lab test to determine “the whole grain content,” the FDA decided in order to use the whole grain claim the product must be able to prove that the product meets or exceeds the fiber level of wheat. Originally, brown rice could not prove this claim and therefore was delayed from being added to the approved list and could not use the Whole Grain Health Claim.

Now, however, the FDA has clarified, that a compliance test is not necessary for brown rice or other single-ingredient whole grain foods. If the ingredients list shows that a product contains whole grain and nothing but whole grain, then it’s obvious that the package contains 100% whole grain and clearly exceeds the 51% requirement.

There are now numerous brown rice products out on the market, some in which all you have to do is throw it in the microwave. I encourage you to venture out and eat brown rice in place of white rice. You will never know if you like it or not until you try it…and if it’s better for your health then why wouldn’t you give it a taste?

I’ve been doing a lot of driving the last few weeks. With my brother visiting from out of town, I’ve taken a couple of road trips to show him around Northern California. And when the eyes started to get heavy after a few hours on the highway, I made a B-line for the next gas station to pick up an energy drink or coffee.

I usually prefer the perks of coffee, but once in a while when I need a little pick-me-up to avoid nodding off behind the wheel, I’ll hit the energy drink section of the gas station’s freezers to peruse the colorfully packaged legalized uppers.

While energy drinks are largely unregulated and safe for most people, that doesn’t mean they are harmless.

A study by the American Heart Association found that healthy participants who drank two energy drinks daily experienced blood pressure and heart rate increases. That alone isn’t necessarily alarming, as healthy adults can usually handle a momentary spike in blood pressure. But, for people with cardiac issues, or if normally healthy people drink too much, there could be dangers.

A moderate amount of caffeine, about 2-3 cups of coffee a day, isn’t dangerous for healthy adults. But when you start creeping up to about 500-600 mg of caffeine, or between 4-7 cups, you run the risk of side effects such as anxiety, irritability, sleeplessness, headaches, gastrointestinal problems, and abnormal heart rhythms.

So, experts at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine are calling for regulations requiring energy drink makers to label their products with a list of its caffeine levels, and to warn of the potential for caffeine intoxication.

The American Beverage Association objects, stating that a 16oz. brewed cup of coffee contains 320 mg of caffeine, compared to 160 mg for a “mainstream energy drink.”

The key sticking point is that energy drinks are marketed as supplements, which don’t have caffeine limits enforced by the FDA. Experts would like to at least have the drinks labeled to show how much caffeine people are going to ingest if they purchase the product.

“It is a striking inconsistency that, in the U.S., an over-the-counter stimulant medication containing 100 mg. of caffeine per tablet must include [labeling]… whereas a 500 mg. energy drink can be marketed with no such warnings and no information on caffeine dose amount in the product,” wrote researchers.

“What we’d like to see is a label clearly stating how much caffeine is in fact in one of these energy drinks, perhaps a warning label,” said Dr. Chad Reissig of Johns Hopkins.

Chocoholics should rejoice, just in moderation! I know that sounds like a bit of a contradiction (since addicts by definition don’t take part with self-restraint), but if you realize that you don’t have to demonize your favorite sweet, you can enjoy it on a daily basis.

One piece of dark chocolate each day can be valuable to your heart health. Unfortunately for me, the benefits aren’t found in milk chocolate.

An Italian study has shown that dark chocolate can significantly reduce the inflammation that leads to cardiovascular disease.

The caveat is that you only see these benefits if you eat it in very small amounts. The ideal amount is about .25 ounces. That means you need to spread a typical Hershey chocolate bar out over about seven days.

People who eat dark chocolate regularly in the aforementioned servings have significantly lower levels of C-reactive protein. Research shows that people who have a low amount of C-reactive protein in their blood have lower levels of inflammation.

Greece is smack dab in the middle of the Mediterranean region that is famous for its healthy diet. Cuisine rich in omega 3s, fresh fruit and vegetables is all about supporting optimal heart health. But now its citizens are ironically dealing with increased cases of high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart problems. That’s because, like the U.S., they are also dealing with the unhealthy creep of soda machines and fast food restaurants in their neighborhoods.

Here’s an interesting and curious predicament: Greece, Italy, Spain and Morocco have actually asked UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) to designate their diet as an “intangible piece of cultural heritage.” They are actually worried that their dietary heritage could be near extinction!

“This is a place where you’d see people who lived to 100, where people were all fit and trim,” Dr. Stagourakis said. “Now you see kids whose longevity is less than their parents’. That’s really scaring people.”

In Greece, three-quarters of the adult population is overweight or obese, the worst rate in Europe “by far,” according to the United Nations. Here’s more on the issue from The New York Times.

Today I was in my car listening to the radio when a commercial came on for some detox diet, claiming that our bodies are full of toxins and it is important to rid them.  The commercial claimed that by following their diet you drop those last 10-20 pounds.  I found myself laughing at this commercial… fad diets are everywhere! Don’t fall victim to them. Of course on a detox diet you will lose weight, because most of them are highly calorie restrictive and you are primarily drinking your meals.

Any diet that claims great success in a short period of time, or if the diet asks you to totally cut out food groups or overly emphasizes one food, then you are following a fad diet. Any success that comes from a fad diet will be short lived.  If you drop those pounds quickly, as soon as you get off the diet you will quickly gain those pounds back and sometimes more!

It is important to make healthy eating part of your lifestyle, that way you don’t even have to think about it because it has become a routine.  Many times you have to retrain your taste buds into liking food (i.e. cutting back on butter may not taste good at first, but the more you do it the more you become accustomed to the taste).  Also, by having healthy eating habits now, you are potentially saving yourself a lot of money later.  By eating healthier, you will have less doctor visits, you will be sick less often, you won’t have to rely on medications to make you healthy/better, and if you do have to go to the hospital your visits will be shorter then a person who eats mainly fast food.

What you do today impacts how you will live tomorrow… be good to yourself and eat for your health!

Thinking may make us eat more. Can it get much more depressing than that? Well, it appears that “food for thought” actually has some practical meaning…

A study, published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, split 14 college students into three groups for a 45-minute session of either relaxing in a sitting position, reading and summarizing a text, or completing a series of memory, attention, and vigilance tests on the computer.

Even though the study involved a small sample size, the results were pretty dramatic. The students who did the computer tests downed 253 more calories, or 29.4 percent more than the couch potatoes. Those who had summarized a text consumed 203 more calories than the resting group.

Blood samples revealed that the intellectual work made glucose levels fluctuate more, possibly because the body demands food to restore glucose, a sugar used as fuel for the brain.

It’s not exactly a license to act like a vacuous blob. This doesn’t actually imply that dumb and lazy people have a better chance of being skinny… even if sometimes we may think that about certain people (wink wink). You need look at the big picture. Even if you happen to consume extra calories, you still are expected to eat healthy foods, and maybe consider a little extra emphasis on exercise to counter that overworked cranium of yours.

While most people’s memory of keeping a diary is probably during their teen years as they documented the trials and tribulations of puberty, it’s proven to be a very useful tool in winning the war against obesity as an adult. That’s why many of the online weight loss programs that have sprung up over the last decade advocate it and offer it as a part of their programs.

A paper published in the August issue of American Journal of Preventive Medicine has cemented the importance of journaling. Scientists at several research centers in the U.S. have found that dieters who keep a food diary lose twice as much weight as those who don’t.

It’s not just the act of writing down what you eat. It’s about the fact that you are committing what you eat to memory. Dr. Sanjay Gupta talks about how the journaling experiment worked for him.

Some popular food/diet journal products and services include:
FitDay
Spark People
Weight by Date
Diet Power
Calorie Balance Diet

This headline drew much attention after Wake Forest University conducted a study and concluded, “the inflammatory potential of hamburger or pork bacon is lower than the average serving of farmed tilapia.” Well first off, this does not make me want to jump up and start consuming bacon in place of fish because bacon is incredibly high in sodium, fat, and calories.  However, the information in this study did bring up a good point… that not all fish is created equal in terms of being the most nutritious choice.

Basically what this study did was look at different types of fish and examine the amount of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids present.  Omega-3, which is present in most fish, has been proven to have very beneficial effects on heart health (showing anti-inflammatory effects), and where as omega-6 is needed in certain proportion to omega-3, too much omega-6 has been linked to being a pro-inflammatory (inflammation/pro-inflammatory is not good for your heart!).

Fish such as salmon, bronzini, and farmed trout are very high in omega-3 whereas tuna, grouper, and snapper do not provide a significant source.  Certain fish, including farmed catfish, tilapia, and salmon are rich in omega-6; more importantly are high in arachidonic acid (pro-inflammatory omega-6).  Tuna, farmed tilapia, and farmed catfish, three of the most commonly eaten fish, actually contain more omega-6 than omega-3 fatty acids.

While conducting this study, the researchers found that some of the tilapia sampled contained more arachidonic acid and less omega-3 than bacon or hamburger.  The biggest thing to pull from these findings is being skeptic about buying farm raised fish; it is very likely that their feed could be responsible for the increased omega-6 occurrence.  From all my readings and research, I highly recommend buying “wild” fish and avoiding all “farm-raised” fish.

Although bacon may be lower in arachidonic acid, it is definitely higher in sodium, fat, and calories versus fish/tilapia.  I have said before and it has been clearly proven time and time again, that a high calorie and fat intake directly correlate to heart problems and disease (with an increase in inflammation).

So, I recommend sticking with fish, because it is a great source of high quality protein and fewer calories then bacon, but try to buy “wild” fish.  If you want to eat bacon, please limit the amount you eat and try to only eat it on occasion.

Most of us have heard about the uber popular diet book called “French Women Don’t Get Fat.” Following suit with over preoccupation with body image, food and beauty, the famous and culture-this very specific guide is going to be made into a movie. Hilary Swank’s production company, 2S Films has just secured the rights to make this book into a movie.

For those of you who may not know, “French Women Don’t Get Fat” chronicles the eating, exercising and overall lifestyle of the always well-manicured and perfectly size-4 French women. Written by Mirielle Guiliano, the main message to all of us, um rounder, Americans is to enjoy the foods that we love, but do so only in small quantities. In addition, French women walk more while most of us here on the other side of the ocean lead a much more sedentary life. This additional lifestyle tip encourages us to simply move more with walking being just fine as a quality source of daily exercise.