Tag: diet

Do You Know Your Phytonutrients? You should!

Wallace Bishop BC-FNC, BC-HHP, INHC4 Comments
Phytonutrient Rich Foods
Phytonutrient Rich Foods

Have you seen those two guys on TV in the pond filled with cranberries promoting the antioxidant power of cranberries? We all assume they must be good for us. Most people under-estimate the power of not only antioxidants, but phytonutrients in general.

The new buzz in health news is the power of a class of phytonutrients known as antioxidants. Every time I turn on the tube or check out the web,  I see adds  about phytonutrients known as antioxidants.  Did you know that antioxidants are just one type of phytonutrient?

What are Phytonutrients?

Phytonutrients are not vitamins or minerals.  Phytonutrients are certain organic components or compounds found in plants, and these components or compounds are believed  to provide protective benefits that promote human health.

There are many different types of phytonutrients such as anthocyanidins ( a type of antioxidant found in blue and purple foods), glycoproteins, polysaccharides,  ( essential sugars that protect the myelin sheath of our nerves and promote health in our digestive and immune systems),  phytosterols (heart and arterial protecting compounds) and polyphenols ( a very powerful class of antioxidants) found in a variety of foods including brans, nuts, seeds, dried spices, fruits and vegetables .

Phytonutrients may

· serve as antioxidants  ( they protect cells from free radicals that cause aging and illness)

· enhance immune response ( they help elevate our ability to produce more immune cells such as Killer Cells and antibodies)

· enhance cell-to-cell communication

· alter estrogen metabolism

· convert beta-carotene to vitamin A

· cause cancer cells to die (apoptosis)

· repair DNA damage caused by smoking and other toxic exposures

· detoxify some carcinogens

Source USDA http://www.ars.usda.gov/Aboutus/docs.htm?docid=4142#top

So what does all of this mean to you and me?

It reinforces what our grandmothers have told us for years. Eating fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds and whole grains are good for us and can offer many health benefits.

Getting your phytonutrients from foods  has a much more powerful effect than taking isolated phytonutrient or antioxidant supplements. Our bodies are designed to get nutrients from natural unprocessed foods. Antioxidants that exist together in their natural form, for example in rice bran, blueberries or spinach, have synergies that make them much more powerful than when consumed in supplement form.

Fruits, vegetables, beans, whole grains, nuts and seeds also provide vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and fiber in addition to carbohydrates, proteins and heart healthy fats and oils.

If you are not eating at least 2 servings of fruits, 3 servings of vegetables, 4 servings of whole grains and 1 ounces of nuts and seeds daily you are robbing your body of essential nutrients required for vibrant health. The SAD (Standard American Diet) has made Americans one of the least healthy populations of all industrialized nations, yet we spend over twice the money per person on health care.

Make veggies, fruits, grains, beans, nuts and seeds a part of your daily diet.  Your body will love you for it!

Healthy Wishes

Wally’s Daily Dose

Weight Loss Essentials- Understanding Your Energy Balance

Wallace Bishop BC-FNC, BC-HHP, INHC14 Comments

Have you been on a quest to lose those extra pounds? It’s fairly easy to lose weight if you are 30 or more pounds over weight.  Its not as easy as the amount you want to lose becomes smaller.  Put this information in use today to start your journey to better health!

I hated to make today’s blog so lengthy, however this information is vital for healthy, long-term weight loss.

I will be using the terms below in this blog, get familiar with them.

Glucose= carbohydrates converted into blood sugar

Glycogen=glucose that is stored in muscle cells and the liver for later energy needs

Triglycerides=excess glucose, dietary fats and unused proteins converted into body fat

BMR= basal metabolic rate

EER= estimated energy requirements

TER= total energy required

One principle many people overlook is their calories in/calories burned factor.  If you do not know how many calories you need to consume per day to maintain your weight or more importantly how many calories you should consume to lose weight, it would be like driving your car on a long trip to a place you have never been with your gas gauge and odometer broken.  The gas gauge represents your calories needed and the odometer represents how many calories you are burning.  Without these facts you are totally relying on luck and a guess to not end up stranded on the roadside. With your body it can mean unhealthy weight loss or even weight gain.

Calories are very important ( so are the type, another blog). They provide energy and valuable nutrients. Our bodies depend on nutrients to turn the fuel (food we eat) into energy. Carbohydrates, fats and to a lesser degree proteins are used as fuel. The body really loves carbohydrates and fat for fuel. Our brains will only use glucose or glycogen (glucose that is stored in the liver and muscle cells) for fuel. Most people will need approximately 100 grams of carbohydrate each day to meet the brains demands.  The blend of fuel type our cells use depends on the demands at that given moment.  Muscle cells will use primarily glucose and glycogen for anaerobic activity and primarily dietary and triglyceride fats for aerobic activity.  During both aerobic and anaerobic metabolism the muscle cells will always burn a ratio of all three fuel types.  The intensity of the physical activity dictates the ratio of  glucose, fat and protein. It is important to maintain a good dietary ratio between your carbohydrate, fat and protein intake for your particular lifestyle.  If you do not consume enough carbohydrate the body will burn the protein for brain fuel robbing your body of protein needed to make and repair tissues, enzymes, white blood cells, red blood cells, hormones, hair,  finger nails and antibodies.  If you continue to under consume carbohydrates the body will also break apart muscle and organs to convert the protein into glucose. This is highly inefficient and causes ketones ( COMPOUNDS THAT HARM THE BODY)to be released into the blood. The over consumption of protein is also harmful for the body.
To determine your protein requirements refer to the previous document.
So lets say you need to lose 30 pounds. Where do you start? I am going to assume you know that 1 pound of body weight represents 3500 calories.   If you want to lose 1 pound per week, then you would need to burn 3500 more calories than you consumed that week.  Are you still with me?  To know how many calories you body needs daily, we need to calculate your basal metabolic rate (BMR), the amount of energy your body uses at rest.  We then apply the Harris Benedict equation to determine your estimated energy requirement (EER) based on the your daily activity level.  We then add the two together to get the estimated actual number of calories you burn per day. Thankfully there are calculators on the web that will estimate these numbers for you.  These are estimates.  I have found most of them to overstate the number of calories actually needed by approximately 10%.   I have two links for you at the end of this blog that will do the math for you.  I think you will find them helpful.
Now that you can determine the number of calories you need daily to meet your energy requirements, you need to be able to track the number of calories per day you are consuming. There are a number of web-sites that offer free food journals. For the first 90 to 120 days you should count your calories, fat grams, protein grams, sugar grams, sodium grams and fiber grams every day.
Studies have shown that people who use food journals on a daily basis lose weight and keep it off a higher percentage of the time.
You can load a tool bar calorie counter and online food journal at www.fatsecret.com it is very easy to use.  I really like it because  it is very convenient to access from my toolbar. It will also allow you to add custom foods to the data base. This means that if you like a certain food that is not in their database you can add it to the database for everyone to use as well.
I recommend, never losing more than two pounds per week unless under the supervision of an appropriate health professional.  Studies show that losing weight quicker than two pounds per week increases your chance of  is regaining the weight.  It also means you are consuming less nutrients that are present in those calories. This can cause bodily harm due to a lack of nutrients.
Guidelines
  • shoot for consuming 500 calories less per day, try eating 250 calories less and exercising away 250 extra calories.
  • never consume less that 1200 calories per day unless under the supervision of a health professional.  This will put the body in starvation mode forcing your body to conserve energy and actually store extra fat. Not only will it stop the weight loss it can cause you to gain weight.  Let’s say your BMR is 1500 calories, then you will need to exercise the extra 200 calories so you do not drop your calories under 1200 but still bank those 500 calories per day towards your 1 pound per week of weight loss. I have many clients that ask for my help that are consuming 600 to 1000 calories per day and can’t seem to lose weight.  They just don’t understand that just like you have a household budget to maintain a certain lifestyle.  Your body also has a calorie budget to meet the demands you place on it.  If your income is reduced  by 30 percent, you must start to reduce your spending by 30%. Your body’s total energy requirements (TER) represent your household budget, Your income represents your calorie intake.  When consuming fewer calories than the body needs,  the body has no choice but to reduce its internal processes. Life support functions and processes are the priority. Extra energy and fat metabolism are reduced.  Like wise if your body gets accustomed to getting plenty of calories to meet its daily calorie budget it will begin to spend those extra calories towards energy for mental and physical activity, immune and hormonal processes, the repair and building of muscle and organs etc….  Like wise, if you believed your bank account had plenty of money, you are naturally going to spend more right? By meeting your BMR you body knows it can satisfy its basic needs and does not have to conserve energy or store fat for life support when the famine arrives. Your behavior of cutting calories too much makes your body think starvation is near. Feed your body a generous amount of nutrient dense foods and your body will be happy to spend extra calories in the form of stored fat.
  • Drink plenty of water,  fat metabolism is dependent on hydrolysis, which is the breaking down of fatty acids for use in the body.
  • Exercise often, if you are just starting, begin with walking. Start slow then when you are able include resistance training to build muscle and interval training to build a stronger lungs and heart. This increases fitness.
  • make sure you are getting at least  30 or more grams of fiber per day.  Fiber is very filling, keeps our intestines clean and absorbs some fat. Refer to this list for high fiber foods.
  • limit the intake of processed and refined foods, not only are they poor sources of nutrients they actually rob our bodies of nutrients
  • eat highly nutritious foods,  check out www.whfoods.com
  • cut your salt intake, it makes your body retain fluids
  • eliminate foods with added sugars
  • eliminate refined grains and flours, use only whole grains
  • reduce your intake of saturated fats, they should provide no more than 10% of your daily calories
  • use the tools below to determine your calorie needs

Advanced BMR/EER Calculator

http://www.google.com/ig/adde?moduleurl=www.bizcalcs.com/GG/Daily-Metabolism.xml

Simple BMR/EER calculator

http://www.google.com/ig/adde?moduleurl=www.bizcalcs.com/GG/Daily-Metabolism.xml

Body Analysis Calculator

http://www.google.com/ig/adde?moduleurl=www.bizcalcs.com/GG/Full-Body-Analysis.xml

Calories Burned by Activity Type

I hope you now understand how to determine your calorie needs and the way to monitor your calorie intake and the calories you burn daily.

Wally’s Daily Dose

The information contained in this blog is not medical advice. Never stop taking prescriptions or stop following the advice and directions of your doctor. Always seek the advice of your doctor when making diet or health related changes to your lifestyle particularly if you have health challenges.When beginning a diet or exercise routine always consult with your doctor first. The information contained in this document is not intended to be and should not be considered medical advice.

Obesity, You Can Beat It

Wallace Bishop BC-FNC, BC-HHP, INHC2 Comments
obesity-epidemic rates 2004
obesity-epidemic rates 2004

I was once a morbidly obese person.  Thank you God, the bonds of my obesity were literally eaten and walked off.  If you are obese or overweight, I am urging you to take a step today to change your life.  If you don’t, I can promise you that it will shorten your life by years.  Sure 15 or 20 extra pounds  isn’t going to impact your health as much as 100 pounds of extra fat will. However, that extra 20 pounds will, if you are consuming a nutrient poor diet and not getting enough exercise.

This week, I watched Losing it with Jillian Michaels. I try to watch it every week as well as the biggest loser when it is on. I am cheering hard for their success.  Jillian’s show gets down to the dynamics of family life and the effect obesity has on everyone; spouses, children, aunts and uncles, even neighbors and friends.  I will tell you, playing with my grand children is the greatest reward I could receive.  Before the weight loss I could only sit and watch them play.  People that know me will tell you I am not the type of person to sit and watch. My weight loss has given me my life back.  Obesity is a type of imprisonment within your own body.  I f you are overweight or obese, I want to empower you with the knowledge to lose all the weight you want to lose and be healthy!

Do you know what the number one killer in America is? How about lifestyle choices which include diet and activity . This includes heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes and high blood pressure.

If you are overweight I want you to know that you can lose that weight and keep it off. I know you are shaking your head saying I have tried and tried and tried again and I lose some weight and then life bucks me off the diet and I gain it back. I went though those thoughts too and tried a lot of diets. I literally dieted my way to almost 450 pounds. I have walked in your shoes and I have succeeded at losing over 200 pounds and kept it off.  I must tell you, I enjoy eating today more that ever.

Please listen to me, believe me,  you can lose the extra weight you are carrying. A lot of my clients use the same excuses I did.  I blamed my genes, my ex-wife,  my schedule, stress from work even bad luck.  Genetics only go so far. Science has shown repeatedly  that our lifestyle choices can trump genetics a majority of the time.  We all have people, schedules and jobs that stress us. There are no acceptable excuses to neglect our health.

There is no shortcut or pill for weight loss.  If there was, I would have found it.  Surgery should always be the last option. You will have to make huge sacrifices once you have your stomach stabled or banded. The answer is to discovery why you have gained the weight and then to correct it.  You must learn how to eat and live a healthy lifestyle.

How to get started, read this document and understand that just reading a manual or word document isn’t the answer. We must tailor the information in this document for your unique situation. I promise, you will not be hungry or deprived any foods.

It requires a warriors attitude! You must declare war on your fat! You must make slow gradual changes and understand it takes time. We want you to lose no more than 2 pounds per week.

If you want my help just ask .

Healthy Wishes

Wally’s Daily Dose

Vegetables, Fresh or Frozen?

Wallace Bishop BC-FNC, BC-HHP, INHCLeave a comment

Fresh vs. Frozen

As we get into spring and summer, we know a bounty of scrumptious and nutritious fresh vegetables and fruits will soon be available to tantalize our taste buds. Many times I get asked “which is better, fresh or frozen”? That’s not a simple question.

Many variables affect the nutritional values in a vegetable or fruit. For example, how mature was the plant when harvested, what type of environmental stress was it grown under, how rich was the soil, what chemicals was it exposed to, how much water did it receive? All of these are factors that influence the nutritional value of a plant. Another set of factors that you must consider, how long has it been from harvest to your plate, was it refrigerated or not? The longer a fresh vegetable or fruits goes before consumption the more nutrients are lost. In fact, the USDA says that vegetables and fruits can lose up to half of their nutritional value in only two days of room temperature storage. These facts are very important, however, in most cases impossible for you to know.

So how do you decide between fresh and frozen? With these facts to consider, lets take a logical look at this question. If we know that the longer a vegetable or fruit sits, the more nutritional value is lost; we should focus on local fresh veggies and fruits. Local means they have been in storage the shortest amount of time from harvest, in most cases. Look for grocers that advertise produce from local growers. Organic veggies and fruits may have a slightly higher nutritional content. The studies are not conclusive but do indicate that trend. One thing for sure is you limit your exposure to harmful chemicals when buying organic.

If the produce you are seeking is out of season or not from local growers, buy frozen. Many stores now identify produce that is from local farms. Frozen veggies and fruits are cleaned, prepared and quickly frozen after harvest locking in the nutritional values that nature provided. However avoid those in a sauce or syrup. Read the ingredient label and make sure it contains just the vegetables or fruit and maybe a little salt.

Both are great choices! Choose fresh if it’s locally grown and frozen if local is not available.

Wally’s Daily Dose

http://www.webnd.com