by Gary Pepper M.D. | Jun 7, 2021 | NUTRITIONAL-HEALTH
Professional chefs understand how important food presentation is for the success of a meal. One element of the eating experience that can be under estimated however, is the effect of color. Scientific studies have shown that the color of the food and the eating environment effect appetite, often in a significant way. (more…)
by Dr. G. Pepper | Jul 8, 2010 | diet, diet and weight loss, fitness, general health & nutrition, health
A member of metabolism.com, Louise Infante, is a great enthusiast of the vegetarian life style. Louise submitted this blog to metabolism.com so we could help her get the word out. I found the article extremely informative and hope you do too. Thanks Louise for your effort.
Here is what Louise has to say:
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Give me five minutes and I’ll give you 1 very good reason for being vegetarian.
While fish is the most important dietary way to obtain the long-chain omega-3s eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid, which has been shown to be essential in supporting brain health, low intake of eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid in vegetarians does not adversely affect mood, reported by a new study (Nutr J. 2010;9:26. DOI:10.1186/1475-2891-9-26).
A research team from Arizona State University conducted a cross-sectional study to compare the mood of vegetarians who never eat fish with the mood of healthy omnivorous adults.
An overall total of 138 healthy Seventh Day Adventist adults residing in Arizona and California (64 vegetarians and 79 non-vegetarians) were enrolled in the study and completed a health history questionnaire, food frequency questionnaire and 2 psychometric tests, the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale and also the Profile of Mood States..
Vegetarians had significantly lower mean intakes of eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid and the omega-6 arachidonic acid; they had higher intakes of the omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid and the omega-6 linoleic acid.
“Seed oils are the richest sources of α-linolenic acid, notably those of rapeseed (canola), soybeans, walnuts, flaxseed (Linseed oil), clary sage seeds, perilla, chia, and hemp.”
However, the vegetarians also reported significantly less negative emotion than omnivores in both psychometric tests. Mean total psychometric scores were positively linked to the mean intakes of eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid and arachidonic acid , and inversely related to alpha-linolenic acid and linolenic acid intake.
The study team noted there is also the possibility that vegetarians may make better dietary choices and could generally be healthier and happier.
If you want to give it a try, here is an example of vegetarian recipe based on Italian cuisine
Italian Spaghetti with Zucchini
Ingredients:
* 17 oz. Spaghetti
* 24 oz. Of thin sliced zucchini
* 1 / 2 cup walnuts oil
* A few basil leaves
* 2 tablespoons of yeast flakes
* Salt and pepper
In a skillet or frying pan heat the oil and when hot, add garlic and zucchini. Raise heat and stir often to complete their cooking. They need to be golden and crispy outside and tender inside. Cook the pasta, drain and sauté in pan with zucchini, basil and yeast. Serve immediately.
Zucchini contain fewer calories and possess no fat. But they are a good source of potassium, e vitamin, ascorbic acid, folate, lutein and zeaxanthin.
These types of nutrients are extremely sensitive to heat and to enjoy their benefits you should find a quick solution to cook or even eat raw in salads.
From the therapeutic perspective, zucchini have laxative, refreshing, anti-inflammatory, diuretic and detoxifying action.
About the Author – Louise Infante writes for vegetarian menu blog, her personal hobby blog centered on vegetarian cooking tips to help people live better.
http://www.vegetarianmenu.net/1_great_reason_to_become_vegetarian_224.doc
by Clinical Nutritionist | May 17, 2010 | diet, diet and weight loss, general health & nutrition, metabolism, nutrition, thyroid, Uncategorized, weight gain, weight loss
What exactly is a Nutrition Consultation? That is Question Number One from the public! Well, a nutrition consultation is something that takes into account someone’s medical and weight history; blood work/laboratory values; activity; habits; Calorie, protein, carbohydrate, fat and fluid needs; nutrition support needs and personal goals. A good nutrition assessment will take all of this into account in order to get a full picture of a client and what their specific needs and recommendations are.
A very common issue is that people think they are eating way too much at night and want to cut down on their intake a night. Most of the time, these folks aren’t eating enough during the day and find themselves so hungry at night that they make up for missed meals and more! In this case, I teach that food is the best appetite suppressant around! If you eat good, solid, healthy meals and snacks, you won’t feel so hungry later on in the night.
Of course, sometimes people experience “emotional eating” where they are counting on food to meet an emotional need that they have. At first it may feel like the need is fulfilled. Food is comforting, nurturing, it can seem like a “companion”. HOWEVER, food is fuel, not emotional support. When we mistake food for emotional support, we stop looking for the real, underlying emotional issues that need our attention. That is when food becomes a distraction, a past time, even an addiction. I urge clients to look at food as food and not an emotional crutch or distraction.
On the other end of the spectrum are the folks who need to gain weight and can’t seem to gain no matter what they do. A nutrition consultation will provide an assessment of exactly how many Calories they need to maintain and to gain weight. It will provide guidance for consuming healthy foods and not empty Calories, as well as recommendations for maintaining lean body mass.
Some folks need nutrition support, especially if they are on medications that deplete nutrients. My professional opinion is that the majority of people in this country do not even meet the RDA’s for many nutrients and I believe that the RDA’s need to be updated to reflect current knowledge and research in the science of nutrition.
A Nutrition Consultation will also help dispel the numerous misleading concept about nutrition that are out there floating around on the internet and in the media. I teach people some very basic concepts so that when they look at the latest headlines or listen to what other people have to say about nutrition, they will be armed with knowledge that will help them to judge what it truly best for themselves. So that is a Nutrition Consultation in a NUTshell.
And as always,
Consider having an individualized consultation!
Beth Ellen DiLuglio
Beth Ellen DiLuglio, MS, RD, CNSD, CCN, LD/N
In regards to this reply please read the our terms of service at:https://www.metabolism.com/legal_disclaimer/
by Dr. G. Pepper | Jun 3, 2009 | diet, diet and weight loss, fitness, general health & nutrition, health, metabolism, nutrition, thyroid, weight gain, weight loss
Another gift from the sea bringing balance to your body
Did you know that yourthyroid and parathyroid,located in the base of thethroat is responsible for a number of important bodily functions including: balancing your weight, regulating your sleep and absorbing key nutrients like calcium?
It’s true! We’re so concerned in our culture about the size and shape of our hips, waists and more, but we need to take a closer look at the pit of our lower throat, because that’s where the thyroid is located. The thyroid requires iodine to function normally, and the best way to supply this nutrient is NOT through iodized table salt, but through a natural source: Sea Kelp.
Kelp is a seaweed naturally rich in minerals like calcium and iron, but also iodine. It is used in many Japanese and Macrobiotic recipes. The good thing about taking kelp is that the nutrients will balance your thyroid, but will not overload the system like taking an artificial source of these supplements could.
You can find sea kelp supplements in any health store, I suggest you take a 650mg tablet once or twice a day with a meal for a month, careful not to take too much and see if you notice any changes.
Kimberly, counselor since 1998 and founder of www.RedAppleYoga.com, holds a Masters in Health & Healing as a Certified Nutritional Counselor, a Masters in Education and is an internationally trained advanced  Yoga and Yoga Therapy instructor that has worked and studied in New York, Spain and in Southern India. Her practice is based in New York City. She believes in showing her clients how to combine time-tested ancient theories with modern knowledge to get the best benefits from both worlds.
by Dr. G. Pepper | May 27, 2009 | diet and weight loss, general health & nutrition, misc, nutrition, stress, weight gain, weight loss
Over eating and emotional eating is just another sign that you are in fact human.
knowing why is more than half the battle
You’ll see a lot of articles about how to fight the occasional eat-fest, in fact I dare you to find one woman’s or man’s magazine near the holidays and at the beginning of summer that doesn’t address this issue.
In these magazines, and even on weight loss forums all over the net, you’ll see suggestions with how to beat it: eat this food, don’t eat that food. Go for a walk, take a bath. But let’s be honest, if these things worked, we’d all be prunes from taking all of those bubble baths and ben and jerry’s would be out of business….well, okay, they’d have to at least sell the summer home in Buenos Aires.
So here’s some more practical advice on discovering your reasons for binging and how to heal from them:
There are only 2 possibilities for eating past hunger:
1) you’re not getting enough nutrients from the foods you eat.
If this is true, your cravings will be for very particular food groups and will often come with other health problems like light headedness, cranky moodswings, headaches, muscle cramps, etc.
For example, someone that does not get enough protein or is getting too much protein will crave sugary foods because both proteins and sugars will show up in your blood sugar insulin levels, keeping the right amount of proteins in your diet will keep sugar cravings at bay. If this is you, you may feel fatigued in your workouts, have irregular periods or feel sluggish.
People on over restrictive diets low on calories will crave carbohydrates and sugars because these are the sources more quickly turned into energy in the body.
If you know that you’re not eating well or are on a ___diet (fill the blank in with any one food item and you KNOW it’s a bad idea), this could be your reason. Do you feel hungry constantly, do you have trouble sleeping? These could be signs of imbalanced carbohydrates in your diet.
2)you’re not getting enough emotional outlets in your life.
Look, we’re emotional beings. We eat for hunger, yes, but we also eat because we’re stressed, tired, lonely, bored, celebrating. And we’re not the only ones. I’ve watched my cat eat until she puked (and then eat the puke, and then puke the puked food and eat it again) because she was lonely, so why should we expect more from ourselves? Okay, fine, don’t eat what you’ve puked.
If you know this is why you over eat, I ask you to think of one question: What feeling am I seeking when I eat too much?
This one question will get you a lot more than you may think. If you eat until you feel happy, what happened today or earlier that made you UNhappy? If you eat until you feel calm, what made you irritated? Generally, emotional eating form their own kind of food groups:
Crunchy salty foods = aggravation, irritation.
Sweet, soft doughy,creamy foods = sadness, need for consolation.
Soft, salty foods = boredom, loneliness.
Fatty, fried foods = feeling spacy, ungrounded, unsure.
Now of course there’s no science book that’s going to break down these parallels in what you eat, when and why. You could be ready to punch your boss in the face and reach for ice cream, not chips, but hey, don’t you want someone to console you after you punch him?
In the end, if you can start with knowing why YOU eat too much, that’s more than half the battle.
So I’m not saying the next time you go shopping to distract yourself from the Dorito aisle because it’s “bad”, but just think, what do I want to feel after I eat this? and see if that changes anything.
Kimberly, counselor since 1998 and founder of www.RedAppleYoga.com, holds a Masters in Health & Healing as a Certified Nutritional Counselor, a Masters in Education and is an internationally trained advanced  Yoga and Yoga Therapy instructor that has worked and studied in New York, Spain and in Southern India. Her practice is based in New York City. She believes in showing her clients how to combine time-tested ancient theories with modern knowledge to get the best benefits from both worlds.
