Mushrooms... and no, I don't mean the magic ones... or maybe I do...

There seems to be a new "fad" diet on the rise.  The mushroom-rich diet or M-Plan has celebrity support from the likes of Katy Perry and Kelly Osbourne.  Now, as you know from all my previous posts, I'm not a supporter of "fad" diets, preferring a healthy eating plan which will keep you at your ideal weight all year round - every dat of your life.  But there is a lot to be said for the humble mushroom - it is packed full of healthy nutrients that can only do wonders for the human body - unless you are allergic or intolerant to them!

1.  Mushrooms are high in dietary fibre which helps promote good bowel function, they will also leave you feeling fuller for longer and therefore prevent snacking between meals.

2.  They are extremely rich in protein but low in calories.

3.  They are high in B-vitamins, zinc and iron helping to keep your hair, skin and nails healthy and shiny.

The mushroom-rich diet advocates that eating one regular lunchtime meal or dinner with a mushroom inspired dish (preferably raw and organic) over a 14 day period will help you to lose weight from stubborn areas such as thighs, buttocks, waist and upper arms.

But there are plenty more health benefits that have been studied recently on the humble mushroom.  The Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) has recently published nine studies on mushrooms which detailed a wide variety of health benefits such as:

1.  Weight management:  One study found that substituting red meat with white button mushrooms can help enhance weight loss.  Obese participants in the study had an average age of 48 years, ate approximately 1 cup of mushrooms a day instead of red meat.  The control group ate a standard diet without mushrooms.

The study ran for 12 months and at the end, the mushroom eating group of participants had lost an average of 3.6% of their starting weight, about 7 pounds.  However, they also showed improvements in body composition, such as reduced waist circumference and better ability to maintain weight loss in comparison to the control group.

2.  Improved Nutrition:  A dietary analysis found that mushroom consumption was linked to a better quality dieta and better nutrition.

3.  Increasing Vitamin D levels through diet:  Consumption of dried white button mushroom extract was found to be as effective as taking vitamin D2 or D3 supplements to increase overall Vitamin D levels.

4.  Improved immune system function:  Long chain polysaccharides, especially alpha and beta glucan molecules, are primarily responsible for the beneficial effect that mushrooms have on your immune system.  One study showed that adding one or two servings of dried shitake mushrooms had a beneficial, modulating effect on immune system function.

Button mushrooms are an excellent low-calorie food, especially good for diabetics.  They contain a

number of valuable nutrients, including protein, enzymes, B-vitamins (especially Niacin), and Vitamin D2.  Mushrooms in general are an excellent source of antioxidants as they contain polyphenols and selenium.  However, they also contain antioxidants that are specific only to mushrooms such as ergothioneine, which is now recognized by scientists as a "master antioxidant".  It is an amino acid that contains sulfur, this appears to have a specific role in protecting DNA from oxidative damage.  But there are 140.000 species of mushroom forming fungi and science is familiar with only 10% according to mycologist Paul Stamets.  There are also a lot of poisonous varieties which you must steer clear of, so which ones should you incorporate into your diet?

1.  Shiitake (Lentinula edodes): These contain a number of health-stimulating agents, including lentinan a polysaccharide that gives it it's name.  Lentinan has been used to treat stomach and other cancers due to its antitumor properties, and it has also been found to protect the liver, relieve other stomach problems (hyperacidity, gallstones, ulcers), anemia, ascites, and pleural effusion.  They have also shown antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal effects; blood sugar stabilization; reduced platelet aggregation; and reduced atherosclerosis.  They also contain eritadenine which has strong cholesterol-lowering properties.

2.  Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum):  One of its most powerful compounds is

ganoderic acid which is currently being used to treat lung cancer, leukemia, and other cancers.  But the health benefits of Reishi don't stop there, the list goes on to include:  Antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal properties that help with Herpes, Epstein-Barr and Candida among others; Anti-inflammatory properties which help to reduce symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, immune system up-regulation, normalization of blood cholesterol levels and blood pressure; and reduction of prostate-related urinary symptoms in men.

3.  Cloud mushroom (Trametes versicolor):  These contain 2 polysaccharide complexes; PSK and PSP, which are drawing a lot of scientific attention lately.  A seven-year $2 million NIH-funded clinical study in 2011 found that this variety improves immune function when given daily to women with stage I - III breast cancer.  PSP has been shown to significantly enhance immune status in 70-97% of cancer patients.  It is also used to treat different infections such as aspergillus niger, candida albicans, E.Coli, HIV, Herpes and streptococcus pneumonia - it also protects the liver and may be useful for chronic fatigue.

4.  Himematsutake (Agaricus blazei):  also known as Royal San Agaricul is part of the common button

mushroom family.  This variety has anti-cancer properties related to six special polysaccharides and can also protect against the damaging effects of radiation and chemotherapy.  It may also decrease insulin resistance in diabetics, normalize your cholesterol, improve hair and skin and treat polio.

So, as you can see, the "humble" mushroom is not so humble after all and should be incorporated into your diet as staple for good health and not just as garnish to your main dish!



Social Nutrition:
You can make an appointment to improve your health with Social Nutrition either in person (Madrid) or online (Skype).  Just send an email to lucycarr@socialnutrition.com

Does eating too much sugar affect your brain?

I have often talked about the dangers of too much added sugar in the Western World's diet, it is in everything from bread to sausages and packed into processed foods.  Unfortunately, a lot of the available data refers to the Standard American Diet (SAD for short, and it certainly is that!).  However, the rest of us in other first world countries are not far behind.





Basic Stats:

• In 1822 the average American consumed 45g of sugar every 5 days.  45g of sugar is the amount found today in one 12 ounce can of soda.  In 2012, Americans are now consuming a stagering 765g of sugar every 5 days.
• US sugar consumption has risen from 20lbs per year in 1820 to 130lbs per year in 2012.
• The average American consumes 3lbs of sugar each week or 3,550 lbs in a lifetime (that's enough to fill a dumpster).
• The American Heart Association recommends NO MORE THAN 9.5 teaspoons of sugar per day.  The average adult consumes 22 teaspoons per day and the average CHILD consumes an alarming 32 teaspoons per day.
• 1 standard 12 ounce can of Coke contains 10 teaspoons of sugar - that's more than 2 frosted pop tarts and a Twinkie combined.
• The average American drinks 53 gallons of soda per year.
• In the American diet, added sugar alone accounts for nearly 500 calories every day, that is equivalent in calories to 10 strips of bacon.
• Americans consume 10 times more sugar than any other food additives (except salt).
• Refined sugar is linked to:
• Obesity
• Nervous Tension
• Hypertension
• Aching limbs
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Hypoglycemia
• Acne
• Depression
• Skin irritation
• Headaches
• Stiffening of arteries
• Fatigue
• Violent behavior
• Refined sugar has no nutritional value, otherwise known as empty calories:
• 0 vitamins
• 0 minerals
• 0 enzymes
• 0 fiber
• According to brain scans, sugar is as addictive as cocaine.

Source: www.OnlineNursingPrograms.com

Those stats are the blatant truth.  Now, we have to remember that we are talking about ADDED SUGAR.  A normal healthy diet contains naturally occurring sugars found in fruits and grains.  However, we must understand that our diet has changed considerably and we consume far more processed foods which contain large amounts of added sugar.

This is very important to understand - naturally occurring sugars are present in a healthy diet and that is necessary as our brains need sugar on a daily basis to function normally.  Our brain cells need twice as much energy as that needed by the other cells in the body, about 10% of our total daily energy requirements.  This is obtained from glucose (blood sugar), sugar is not the brain's enemy - added sugar is.

Our brains produce a chemical called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), without this chemical our brains cannot form new memories and we can't learn new things or remember others.  Research has found that a diet high in added sugar reduces the production of BDNF.  Levels of BDNF are found to be particularly low in people with impaired glucose metabolism such as pre-diabetics and diabetics, it has also been found that as the amount of BDNF decreases, sugar metabolism worsens.

So, what does all this really mean?

Well it basically means that consuming large amounts of added sugar reduces BDNF, and the decreased levels of BDNF begin to contribute to insulin resistance, which leads to type II diabetes and metabolic syndrome which, in turn, provokes a whole load of other health problems.  Once all this happens, our bodies enter into a destructive cycle that is extremely difficult to reverse.

It is also believed that consuming too much sugar provokes over eating.  Research has shown that the chronic consumption of added sugar impairs the brain's mechanism for signaling when we have eaten enough.  Reduced activity in the brain's anorexigenic oxytocin system, which is responsible for telling us when we are full to stop us from gorging.  The oxytocin cells in the brain become sluggish from too much sugar and the signal service stops working correctly which means we end up having another slice of cake or midnight binges.  The conclusion of these studies is that we are seriously damaging our brains - and the rest of our bodies by eating too much added sugar and processed foods and what is most frightening is that we are only just now seeing the effects of what sugar does to our bodies.


Social Nutrition:
You can make an appointment to improve your health with Social Nutrition either in person (Madrid) or online (Skype).  Just send an email to lucycarr@socialnutrition.com

Diet Pill Dangers

Let's face it, dieting is hard work.  Not only do you have to cut out lots of the foods you love, but you also have to contend with temptation provided by those around you who aren't on a diet, and in lots of people a state of anxiety and stress which, only makes dieting all the more difficult.

Many have tried taking diet pills to help them lose weight, however, I am yet to meet someone who has tried them and had success.  Most diet pill adverts promise an easy, no diet way to lose excess weight, and an easy way to achieve a filmstar's body without the hassle.  Unfortunately, the majority of these products are sold over the counter, no prescription needed and are highly unregulated, untested and their claims unproven.

There are a few newer prescription diet pills that have shown to aid dieters during a doctor controlled weight loss program, such as: Meridia and Xenical.  However, even the most effective diet pills should only be taken for a limited time, 6 months at most and controlled by a doctor.  Over this 6 mnth period, doctor prescribed diet pills can help the dieter to lose anything from 5-22 pounds, or up to 10% of body weight.  But after continuous use, the body becomes immune to the effects of the drug and the weight loss hits a plateau.  Also, if you don't follow a healthy eating plan and take regular exercise, once you stop taking the pills the weight will creep back on - and then some!

Also, most of these types of pills come with a list of side effects; different pills contain different
ingredients so these side effects vary widely:

1. The fat blocker variety such as Orlistat (Xenical) remove excess fats via the intestines, essentially blocking the absorption of some of the fat ingested in food.  This may cause cramping, gas and diarrhea.  Also, because they stop your body absorbing some of the fat you eat, they also stop you absorbing fat soluble vitamins such as Vitamins A, D, E & K and other essential nutrients.  People who take Xenical are advised to take a daily multivitamin supplement because of this problem.
2. Another variety are the ones that surpress appetite by stimulating the sympathetic nervous system, such as Sibutramine (Meredia).  This type can raise blood pressure which, increases the risk of heart attack and cardiac arrest, especially if the person already suffers from high blood pressure, irregular heart beat or heart disease.  The sad truth is that the FDA received notification of 49 deaths related to Sibutramine between February 1998 and March 2003.  Other side effects include headache, insomnia, constipation and dry mouth.
3. The herbal variety.  These tend to have far fewer side effects and simply don't tend to do anything at all.  These claim to be 100% natural, but they can have potentially dangerous side effects depending on the ingredients used.  Just because they are herbal it doesn't necessarily mean they are safe.  Different to the prescription variety, they are considered "food" and therefore, are regulated differently by the FDA and there is no guarantee they are able to provide the results they claim to provide in advertising.  Many of the herbal type contain large doses of caffeine which can cause nervousness, headache and sleep problems.  Many of them used to contain ephedra until it was banned by the FDA in 2003.

My advice is to learn to eat properly for your body - each body is different and reacts to food and lifestyle in a different way.  What I have seen over the years is that if you want to lose weight follow three rules:

1. Don't mix your carbohydrates and your proteins... so no steak and fries, or pasta with a meat sauce.
2. Eat lean protein and limit your carb intake to just 2 meals a week.   
3. Eat as much fruit and vegetables as you like.  However, fruit must be kept separate from other foods, so for breakfast, or in between meals but NEVER AS DESSERT.

Social Nutrition:
You can make an appointment to improve your health with Social Nutrition either in person (Madrid) or online (Skype).  Just send an email to lucycarr@socialnutrition.com

NASA's take on exercise.

I have written before about how sitting for most of the day is damaging to health.  Just to recap; our lives have become extremely sedentary.  Our jobs have the majority of us sitting infront of a computer screen for most of the day.  This increase in sedentary lifestyle has meant an increase in a a number of health problems such as:

• Obesity
• Diabetes
• Heart Disease
• Osteoporosis
• Muscle Wasting

Until recently, these illnesses were associated with the inevitable aging process.  However, they are now affecting increasing numbers of people well before what is considered "middle age", and even children are being diagnosed with them.  Obviously our change in diet over the years also plays an important role in this as well as the sedentary lifestyle we have fallen victims to.  It has also come to light that going to the gym 3-5 times a week doesn't do enough to combat how long we are sitting still for every day.

Recently, researchers have investigated the effects of inactivity, they have discovered that not moving or using a very limited range of movements for extended periods of time has a profoundly negative impact on our health and longevity.

Dr. Joan Vernikos, former director of NASA's Life Sciences Division and author of Sitting Kills, Moving Heals, she was one of the primary doctors assigned to keep the astronauts from deteriorating in space.  Dr. Vernikos has explained why sitting has such a dramatic impact on our health, and what we can do about it.  In order to discover why regular exercise does not appear to compensate for the negative effects of prolonged sitting, some of her research focused on finding out what type of movement is withdrawn by sitting.

What she discovered was nothing short of amazing:

"Standing was more effective than walking," she says.

But it didn't matter how long you stood for, but how many times you stood up that made the real difference.  Her conclusion was that the change in posture is the most powerful, in terms of having a beneficial impact on our health.  You can see Dr. Vernikos explain it here: Vernikos Perpetual Motion

Our bodies need PERPETUAL MOTION to function optimally, and the good news is that we have plenty of opportunities for movement throughout the day.

"The key for life long health is more than just traditional gym exercise once a day, 3-5 times a week," she says.  "The answer is to rediscover a lifestyle of constant, natural low-intensity non-exercise movement that uses the gravity vector throughout the day."

Some examples of the type of movement she is talking about are: housework, gardening, dancing,

hanging clothes out to dry, rolling dough or stirring a pot of sauce... the list goes on and on, because it covers the entire spectrum of movements that we carry out during daily life.  However, our dependence on technology has made us lazy.  We have stopped walking to talk to the neighbors or family members under the same roof, we send a text or an email instead!  All movement subjects our bodies to the force of gravity and this is what is important.

We tend to understand that going to the gym, running, playing tennis or walking is considered exercise - and it is!  Don't get me wrong, by all means do all that, but in between we need to move more and we need to flip that mental switch to understand that all movement - be it ironing, vacuuming, dusting, cooking, etc are also exercise and beneficial for our bodies, instead of considering it the "daily drudge", think positively - your housework and daily chores are keeping you healthy.

I heard a conference given by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer on his book Excuses Begone!  He was talking about changing the way you think in order to stop yourself from getting stuck in a rut.  He says that believing is everything and you should only believe what you think and not take on other peoples beliefs.  He is talking about typical thoughts such as; "Oh I can't do that!  My mother told me I was hopeless at doing that!" During the conference he talked about a study that was carried out on the power of belief - belief as in believing in what you are doing is beneficial to you - changing your mindset, in other words.  They study controllers took two groups of hotel chamber maids from 2 different hotels in New York.  One group was given coaching to perceive their work as physical exercise and as such was beneficial to their health.  The other group just carried on as usual, neither group changed their diet.  Over time, the study showed that the group that had received coaching to see their job in a different way, had lost weight, the other group remained the same.

So, what we need to do is to use our bodies in the way they were designed to be used?  We need to avoid sitting for long periods of time.  So stand up at regular intervals as often as possible.  Set an alarm on your phone and, while at work, stand up every 10 minutes and stretch, or take a brief walk to the bathroom and back, or go and drink a glass of water, etc..  Dr. Vernikos states that standing up every 10 - 15 minutes could easily compensate for the majority of the damage caused from sitting.  Dr. Vernikos' research is strong evidence that many of the health problems people suffer today are connected to modern lifestyle modifications, and these modifications are incompatible with optimal biological functioning.  The answer is easy; we simply need to go back to a lifestyle that incorporates NATURAL MOVEMENT.

I find it very difficult to see Coca Cola as an advocate for healthy living - especially when their products are so full of either sugar or aspartame - both of which are seriously damaging to health, however, their latest advertisement encouraging people to stand up is, at least, a step in the right direction.  So, it is now in your hands... or should I say in your feet?  Stand up to disease and stand up for good health!

Social Nutrition:
You can make an appointment to improve your health with Social Nutrition either in person (Madrid) or online (Skype).  Just send an email to lucycarr@socialnutrition.com

The honest truth about our diet.

There are so many different diets out there that I wouldn't know where to start...

10 Pounds in 10 Days
100 Calorie Diet
180 Degree Metabolism
4 Week Detox Plan
3 Hour Diet
3 Day Diet
5 Factor Diet
18 Pounds in 4 Days
7 Day Diet
7 Day Fat Blast Diet
28 Pounds in 28 Days
Acai Berry Diet
Atkins Diet
Dukan Diet
Bernstein Diet
Apple Cider Vinegar Diet
Cabbage Soup Diet
Low Carb Diet
Carb Lovers Diet...

And the list is endless, it just goes on and on and on, full of diets promising to transform your body into something close to Halle Berry or Brad Pitt.

But the main problem is that there is a serious health issue going on that isn't just how we look on the outside.

Just go for a walk around any city in the Western World and you will see people who are overweight and people who are obese.  And, at the same time, there is immense pressure on us all to be gorgeous, skinny film stars or super models or no one will love us.  But first we should love ourselves.

The stark truth is that:

• Worldwide obesity has nearly doubled since 1980.
• In 2008, more than 1.4 BILLION ADULTS, of 20 years of age and older, were overweight.  Of those, over 200 million men and nearly 300 million women were obese.
• 35% of adults aged 20 and over were overweight in 2008, and 11% were obese.
• 65% of the world's population live in countries where overweight and obesity kills more people than underweight.
• More than 40 MILLION CHILDREN under the age of 5 were overweight in 2011.
• Obesity is preventable.

The common health problems associated with being overweight or obese are:

• Cardiovascular disease (mainly heart disease and stroke), which was the leading cause of death in 2008;
• Diabetes;
• Musculoskeletal disorders such as osteoarthritis;
• Some cancers such as endometrial, breast and colon.

Childhood obesity is associated with a high risk of obesity, premature death and disability in later life (Adulthood).  However, the problems for obese children do not just appear in adulthood, during childhood they experience breathing difficulties, increased risk of fractures, hypertension, early markers of cardiovascular disease, insuline resistance and psychological effects.

Source: World Health Organization Fact Sheet Nº 311 Updated March 2013.

In the western world we are constantly being bombarded with advertising from huge companies such as Burger King, McDonalds, KFC, Pepsi, Coca Cola, etc to consume their products.  Products which are far from healthy, packed full of artificial flavorings, salt, sugar and preservatives - none of which are going to nourish our human bodies.  In fact, it has been shown that our bodies are not decomposing at the same rate as before after death, our bodies are taking LONGER to decompose due to the amount of preservatives in our diets.  

Our meat often comes packed full of antibiotics and hormones and our fruit and vegetables often come covered in pesticides, and cows milk full of puss, hormones and antibiotics too.  We are constantly told that these do not effect our health, but we now know that this is not entirely true.  The people that are telling us our food is safe are the big corporations, the ones I mentioned before and Monsanto who are heavily into genetically modified foods which are dangerous to our health.

The truth is that most of us are unhealthy, many are overweight or obese and lots of us are undernourished even though we may be overweight.  We tend to associate being undernourished with famine riddled countries where people are dying from starvation.  But you can be overweight and under nourished simply because the type of foods you are eating are not nourishing your body, they do not provide the proper nutrients that your body needs to flourish.

So what can we do?  Well the answer is not to try any of the fad diets listed above.  We need to LEARN to eat properly and we need to TEACH the younger generations how to eat properly.  Nowadays in our fast food culture, many children and adults rarely eat a meal prepared from scratch with fresh ingredients.  Many families where both parents work out of necessity, rely on ready made meals or take outs and rarely do families sit down and eat together.

This western world culture that we now live in, where how much money you make, where you live, and which car you drive seems to be far more important than planning a healthy life and a healthy old age.  If we all looked after ourselves more, ate properly and took regular exercise, a lot of serious diseases wouldn't effect us.  We would be healthier, and the burden on our health organizations would be eased.

If we ate properly; lots of fruit and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, a small amount of animal protein and no trans fats, our weight would normalise itself.  There would be no need to go on any crash diet to get

into great shape for the summer as you would be in great shape all year round.  You would have more energy and stress would be easier to cope with.  Exercise has been proven to be the best stress buster, and you don't have to join and expensive gym to do it.  You can go for walks, cycle, roller blading, skate boarding, swimming, etc - all of which you can do alone or with your family or friends, if you get the whole family involved it will be better for you all on a health level and also as family bonding time. There is nothing to be said against a healthy lifestyle which can only bring you happiness and keep ill health at bay.

So, what are you waiting for?

Social Nutrition:
You can make an appointment to improve your health with Social Nutrition either in person (Madrid) or online (Skype).  Just send an email to lucycarr@socialnutrition.com