Diabetes, what not to eat.

Diabetes used to be a very rare disease.  Unfortunately, nowadays, it is all too common.  Type 2 diabetes is a lifestyle acquired disease - this means that unlike type 1 diabetes, type 2 is the direct result of your lifestyle (eating habits, exercise habits, etc..).  So, I am sure you will understand that if you have given yourself type 2 diabetes through your day to day choices, then you can change those choices and habits and improve your health.

Type 2 diabetes can lead to a whole host of serious diseases such as heart disease, blindness and even limb amputation due to the lack of circulation that causes gangrene.

For me, the scariest thing is that everyday more and more children are being diagnosed with diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is reversible, and in the very least controlable, it is up to you.

So, if you have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, if you are pre-diabetic or if there is a history of type 2 diabetes in your family, then you might want to start looking after yourself.

Here is what you SHOULDN'T eat:

A big problem for people with type 2 diabetes is carb intake.  Carbs severely affect the blood glucose level causing it to spike but the insulin response to the spike doesn't work.  So, if you have high glucose blood levels for sustained periods of time your body's nerves and blood vessels can be damaged which is the beginning of heart disease, kidney disease and other health conditions.  Keeping to a low carb diet is the best way to avoid any more serious health problems.

So, the first things you need to avoid are refined "white" carbs; white bread, pasta, and white rice.  Refined products have had all nutritional benefits removed during the refining process, leaving them with next to no nutritional value, but they will quickly spike your blood sugar levels.  This also goes for gluten-free products that were found to have the biggest effect on blood sugar levels, the rice-based products were the worst.

Another study found that the effect wasn't limited to raised blood sugar levels but also found that brain function was impaired in people with type 2 diabetes.

Fiber is an extremely important part of our diet.  It is the fiber in high sugar foods such as fruit that stop them being dangerous.  The fiber content means that the sugars are released slowly over a longer period of time.  Refined products like bread, pasta, etc, have very little fiber and so the sugars are released quickly.

Eat wholegrain foods whenever you need to have carbs, the less processed the better and high-fiber breads have been shown to reduce blood sugar levels in people with type 2 diabetes, and they also showed reduced levels of cholesterol and blood pressure.

Sugary drinks are another no, as I am sure you can imagine.  They are very high carb as each can of

330ml soda contains 38g of sugar - and what is more it is mainly fructose  that you might remember from last week's post.  Fructose is extremely hard for the body to process and can lead to metabolic changes that facilitate belly fat, high cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

But don't get excited about diet versions, they are just as bad for diabetes as regular soda.  A recent study posted in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition which followed 66,118 women over a period of 14 years and kept track of the drinks they consumed.  By the end of the study, both sugar sweetened drinks and diet drinks were linked to a higher risk of type 2 diabetes.

It's a much better idea to stick to water, sparkling water or unsweetened drinks.

Breakfast cereals are also right up there in the high carb section.  If you read the ingredients on a packet of commercial cereal  the second ingredient is usually sugar with the first being some kind of refined cereal, usually wheat.  These are highly processed and lacking in nutrients.  And don't be fooled by the supposedly healthy ones either, they also have high amounts of sugar - you'd be surprised as to how much.

Yogurts are generally deemed healthy, and if they are natural yogurts with no added fruit, sugar or flavoring then they generally are.

However, the minute you get into added fruit and flavoring then you are talking about large amounts of added sugar.  Just one 245g serving of fruit-flavored yogurt can contain a huge 47g of sugar - that's almost 81% of its total calories from sugar!

Stick to plain greek yogurt or kefir - your gut bacteria will love you for it too!

Avoid Starbucks and other such places like the plague.  Our brains do not process liquid or solid calories in the same way.  You don't consider a coffee to be food which means you will probably eat more later, putting your weight at risk.  If you are overweight, then this will only give you an even bigger problem.

Although coffee does have certain health benefits, adding milk and flavored syrups just means adding even more sugar - again.  Even the diet versions have enough carbs in them to raise blood sugar levels.  Just one caramel frappuccino from Starbucks (454ml) has 67g of carbs and the diet version as 30g of carbs...  Need I say more?

Stick to plain old black coffee or expresso and if you must, add some heavy cream.

Honey and spice and all things nice...  Some people believe that natural sweeteners such as honey, agave nectar and maple syrup are healthier versions of white sugar.  But in fact they are even worse.  The carb count for white sugar is 12.6g per tablespoon, so you might be surprised to find out that one tablespoon of honey has a carb count to 17g, Agave nectar comes in at 16g per tablespoon and Maple syrup has a carb count of 13g.  So as you can imagine these aren't going to do any good to your blood sugar levels.

While on the subject of "healthier" options, you should stay away from dried fruit too.  Fresh fruit is a good source to vitamins and minerals and when it is dried, the loss of water content means that these nutrients can be found in higher concentrations.  However, the down side is that its sugar content also becomes concentrated.

An example of this is grapes vs raisin...  One cup of grapes contains 27g of carbs of which 1g is fiber.  Now, one cup of raisins contains 115g of carbs, of which 5g are fiber.  So, if you do have diabetes then stick to low sugar fruits such as berries, small apples, etc., are good for you as their fiber content helps with a slower rate of absorption of the sugars.

Don't even think about juice.  Fruit juice is deemed healthy, but in fact all it is is fruit flavored sugar water.  When you make juice you remove all the fiber from the fruit, and if you remember it is the fiber that makes fruit healthy.  So eat the whole orange - fiber and all!

Potatoes in any form are high in carbs, but especially when fried.  Frying any foods has been shown to produce high amounts of AGEs and aldehydes, toxic compounds that promote inflammation and increase your risk of disease.  A better option is sweet potatoes but keep them to a limited amount.

So, remember which foods to stay away from and you will be helping yourself to stay healthy or get healthier - it's in your hands!

I can help you improve your health.  If you would like to make an appointment with me either in person or via Skype, just send me an email to lucycarr@socialnutrition.com

Whose fault is it that people are obese?

The amount of times I have heard that people who are over weight or obese only have themselves to blame.  But let's face it... is that true?  Obviously there is a certain responsibility we all have as to exactly what we put in our mouths, but maybe we can also blame others.

Nowadays, most people are spending eight hours a day stuck in an office where they are expected to stay at their desks at all times and get as much work done as possible.  Stress is high, and many eat lunch at their desks.  Then you have to get home - many stuck in traffic jams, others fighting through crowds to get on the next bus, metro, or train... or a combination of all three.  By the time you get home the last thing you want to have to deal with getting creative in the kitchen.  Take out, frozen pizza or a ready meal may seem far more appealing than actually having to check exactly what fresh ingredients you have in the fridge and kitchen cupboards and how can you turn what you have into a healthy nutritious meal for you and your family.

Also the high numbers of unemployed doesn't help either.  Lots of people are living on tight budgets and in countries like the USA where a McDonald's meal is cheaper and more filling than buying fresh ingredients at the supermarket don't make things any easier.  Also the amount of temptation we are faced with on a daily basis... delicious looking muffins, doughnuts, cakes and chocolate bars seem to be on every counter in every shop - not to mention the office vending machine.  Giving in to temptation seems to be all too easy.  I should know.  I have an incredible sweet tooth and even though my career means I have to practice what I preach, I find it hard to resist temptation and do give in every now and again.

So what if people are fat!  Well, I have to say there is a huge SO WHAT.  Obesity and being overweight leads to serious illness.  Very serious illnesses such as some forms of cancer, diabetes, metabolic syndrome and joint problems - all of which are costing the public health services huge amounts of money.

In the UK, thousands of people are being paid sickness benefits because they are too fat to work.  This is costing the taxpayer 54million GBP.  Almost 12,000 people received Disability Living Allowance last year because they have metabolic disease - this is the medical term for the combination of obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure - all caused by... obesity.

There is so much that each individual can do to either combat obesity or not put on weight to start with.  If we look after ourselves - eat healthily and take regular exercise, then our risk of developing a serious illness drops dramatically.  I agree with Tam Fry, spokesman for the National Obesity Forum:

"Successive governments have made life too easy for too many obese people.  If the obese have a legitimate cause for their fatness - and there may be medical or genetic reasons - benefits should not be denied to them.  But getting long-term benefits simply for overeating is an insult to society."

Official figures for the UK state that nearly one in five British secondary school pupils and a quarter of adults are obese.  Also health experts are predicting that by 2050 the annual bill for obesity-related illnesses will have risen to 50 BILLION GBP a year, with almost two thirds of the population obese.

This means that public health services such as the NHS in the UK will go bust.  There simply won't be enough money to help these people with their illnesses and this also means that people who are not overweight and have other serious illnesses such as cancer will not be able to get treatment either.  In most cases, being overweight or obese is a lifestyle choice, it is caused by the individual.  Yes, there is too much temptation and the governments aren't doing enough to make sure that the food industry helps by cutting calories in food and drink and to help people make healthier choices.

But as individuals we can take control of our own diets and make the right decisions as to what we eat - that way the food industry will have to make changes or it will start losing huge amounts of money.  We have the power - the power to make changes, it is time for the individual to take control and force the food industry into serving us and our needs - not us filling their bank accounts.

Remember:  YOU HAVE THE POWER!

I can help you improve your health.  If you would like to make an appointment with me either in person or via Skype, just send me an email to lucycarr@socialnutrition.com

Going nuts could save your life!

Nuts have had a slightly negative press for years as they are considered fattening.  They are fairly high in calories but have so many other benefits to offer that they should be an important part of your diet.

A recent article in the New England Journal of Medicine highlights the health benefits of nuts.  The good thing about this investigation into the benefits to nuts is that it followed 100.000 men and women over several decades, so not just a quick look on a small scale.  It concluded that eating nuts helped the participants to lead healthier lives, pushing back the inevitable conclusion we all face eventually in life... death.  Seven or more servings of nuts per week cut the risk of dying by A THIRD (one serving was defined as one ounce, which is about a handful of almonds).

Specifically it was found that the participants who ate nuts five or more times a week had a 29% reduction in death from heart disease; an 11% reduction in death from stroke; a 23% reduction in death from infection; a 24% reduction in death from respiratory diseases; a 29% reduction in death from kidney disease; and an 11% reduction in death from cancer.

Need I say more?

A famous study of Seventh-Day Adventists ( a religious movement in the United States) who consume a low-fat, plant-based diet, compared nut eaters with non nut eaters, anticipating that the nuts which are high in calories and fat, might just raise their risk of heart disease.  However, even though this group is on a heart healthy diet which is mostly vegetarian, those Adventists that ate nuts at least five times a week had a 48% lower risk of death from coronary heart disease and a 51% lower risk of non fatal heart attack compared to those who consumed nuts less than once a week.

The FDA isn't happy about nut manufacturers toting the health benefits of nuts to consumers.
 Recently, the FDA sent a letter to Diamond Food Inc., a producer of walnuts, ordering them to "cease and desist" from making medical claims about their products.  The FDA even threatened to confiscate the "misbranded" nuts as illegal contraband.

So why are nuts so good for us?

1. Nuts are a perfect VEGAN food.  The current fashion for plan based diets means that nuts provide essential protein and oils that balance a vegetarian diet that might otherwise be too carb-rich and lacking in beneficial fats and certain vitamins and minerals.
2. Nuts are PALEO.  This means that with the exception of peanuts, which are actually legumes.  Tree nuts and seeds are ancient staples of the human diet to which millions of years of evolution have made suitable for our human bodies.
3. Nuts are LOW-CARB and therefore low GI.  The Glycemic Index or GI, tells us how quickly the sugars in foods are digested, absorbed, and released into the blood stream.  High GI foods tend to overwhelm the body's sugar handling capacity, which leads to metabolic syndrome and diabetes.  Nuts are relatively low-carb to begin with, and the carbs they contain are released slowly after a meal so they don't cause a spike in blood glucose which causes the body to release insulin to normalize the blood glucose level.  They are also a great way of quashing a sugar-craving or hypoglycemia.
4. Nuts make you feel full.  Eating nuts promotes a feeling of being full, even though they are high in calories.  They actually stop your cravings for sugar laden, high-fat foods.  Some studies suggest that incorporating nuts into your diet will actually help you to lose weight - not put it on.
5. Nuts are high fiber.  Nuts are high in soluble fiber, the best kind of fiber for slashing your risk of cancer and heart disease.
6. Nuts are a great source of PHYTOSTEROLS.  These are plant sterols which are thought to bind to cholesterol and help to eliminate it from the body; the American Heart Association recognizes phytosterols as a natural form of reducing the risk of heart disease.
7. Nuts contain healthy fats and oils.  Nuts are rich in essential fatty acids such as linoleic acid and alpha linolenic acids.  Essential means that we need to get these from our foods as our bodies can not make it by themselves.  A lack of essential fatty acids can cause dry skin, inflammation, infertility, mood and memory problems and promote heart disease.
8. Nuts, as I have said before, are a great source of Vitamin E.  Vitamin E is a vital anti-aging vitamin and nuts are the best natural source of this critical antioxidant.
9. Nuts are high in B vitamins.  B vitamins are essential for a healthy mind and body, they ease stress, treat anxiety and depression, aid memory, relieve PMS and reduce heart disease risk, they can even help with migraines.  Nuts provide many vital B vitamins such as riboflavin, niacin, thiamin, pantothenic acid, vitamin B6 and folates.
10. Nuts are a great source of POLYPHENOLS.  These great antioxidants derived from plants protect the body against free radicals.  Nuts contain a wide range of polyphenols, including resveratrol (anti-aging), lutein, cryptoxanthin and many others.  Flaxseeds and sesame seeds are high in lignans, a specific subtype of polyphenols that may protect against reproductive cancers.
11. Nuts are rich in ZINC.  I love zinc, it is a great immune system booster and aids in reproductive function.  Some very strict vegetarians don't get enough of this mineral.  Zinc also helps in its immune capacity to ward of colds and flu.
12. Nuts are high in MAGNESIUM.  Magnesium is another critical mineral which aids in over 300 enzyme systems that regulate diverse biochemical reactions in the body including; protein synthesis, muscle and nerve function, blood glucose control, and blood pressure regulation.  Lack of Magnesium often manifests itself as fatigue or irritability and can cause and increase in risk of heart problems, diabetes and high blood pressure.
13. Nuts deliver COPPER.  This mineral is essential for brain development and maintenance, efficient communication between nerve cells, healthy skin and connective tissue, healing, structural integrity and function of heart and blood vessels, growth of new blood vessels, proper structure and function of circulating blood cells, formation of white blood cells (immune system), maintenance of a healthy and effective immune response, generation and storage of energy in cells and mitochondria.
14. Nuts deliver SELENIUM.  Selenium is a major immune booster and just three Brazil Nuts per day can provide all the selenium you need, especially if you are a vegan or vegetarian.
15. Nuts are user friendly.  If you spend a lot of time out of the house, and need to take food with you, a small packet of nuts is easy to carry, won't spill or make a mess.  It's much better to eat a handful of nuts than to snack on doughnuts or other sweets at work.

So, got nuts for nuts... they really will save your life!

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

NOT all calories are the same.

For as long as I can remember I have been hearing the age old theory that all calories are equal and that the only way to lose weight is to eat less and exercise more.  For as long as I can remember I have been saying that this isn't so.

Not all calories are equal.  It all depends on where you get your calories from e.g: protein, fat or carbs, and how your body uses those calories.  The body does not use protein in the same way it uses carbs, etc.  I am pleased to say I am not alone in my struggle to get people to understand that a low-fat high-carb diet is NOT THE WAY TO LOSE WEIGHT!  Yes, I have to admit I sometimes feel like screaming when I read yet another article in the medical or general press about the benefits of eating carbs or the food pyramid that governments in the Western world seem hell bent on stuffing down our throats!  Zoë Harcombe, an Obesity Researcher has been saying it for years too!  I highly recommend any of her books and once you've read one you'll be hooked for life - and at your natural weight should you choose to follow her advice!  Click on her name and it will take you to her books, I can honestly recommend The Obesity Epidemic and Stop Counting Calories and Start Losing Weight.

However, today I had one of those HALLELUJAH! moments today when I read about a personal trainer from East London, Sam Feltham, who has done is own diet experiment on himself.  This brought the results I would expect, and I am sure that Zoë Harcombe would also expect, but from the tone of the article the journalist seemed to be amazed.  Sam Feltham's doctor was also amazed at the negative effects the high-carb diet had on his health in just 21 days, remember this guy is a personal trainer and was fit to start off with.

What Sam did:

Sam decided that the only way to prove the theory that all calories are equal was to try out two different diets over a 21 day period each.  He ate a high-fat, low-carb diet for 21 days and followed a moderate exercise plan.  For the next 21 days he ate a high-carb, low-fat diet and carried out the same moderate exercise plan.  In both diets he ate a staggering 5000 calories a day.  Now, according to what we are told, if all calories are equal, the weight gain would be the same on both diets.  However, that was not what Sam discovered.

On the low-fat, high-carb diet Sam packed the weight on and gained more than a stone (7.25kg) and added 9.5 cm to his waist measurement.

However, on the high-fat, low-carb diet he gained just 2.5 lbs (1.33kg) and LOST 2.5 cm from his waist.

For the low-carb, high-fat diet Sam ate 5000 calories per day by eating the following foods: eggs, mackerel, steak, green vegetables, coconut oil, and snacked on three rounds of nuts - walnuts, pecans or almonds - all naturally high in fat.  Total daily intake: 72% from fats, 22% from protein and just 5.9% from carbs.  All meals were the same everyday.

For the high-carb, low-fat diet he ate 5000 calories from: garlic bread, low-fat lasagne, crumpets, low-fat yoghurts and rice pudding, chocolate muffins and wholemeal bread.  Total daily intake: 63% from carbs, 13% from protein and 22% from fat.

Sam says: "It was an experiment to test the idea that different foods affect your body's biochemistry differently.  If it is true that cutting calories is the key to weight loss, then excess calories should put on the same amount of weight whether they come from a healthy diet full of fat or a poor diet full of carbs."

As I said before, Sam's doctor was even more surprised.  His low-fat, high-carb diet had potentially devastating effects on his system even after only 21 days.  Dr. Aseem Malhotra, a cardiologist at the Royal Free Hospital in London said:

"The diet effectively gave him metabolic syndrome."

Metabolic syndrome is a precursor to heart disease and diabetes.  He then went on to explain that:

"Particularly worrying was that his triglycerides (fats in the blood) had gone up four times, while his so-called good cholesterol (HDL) had dropped.  That is not a good combination.  Add to that the increase in his waist measurement, and he was looking a lot less healthy than he had been.  What's more, the level of inflammation in his liver had doubled, which is also linked with diabetes and heart disease...

"...It is alarming to think that if a high-carb diet can have that effect on him in three weeks, what is it doing to people who don't exercise and eat like that for years?"

One country seems to be getting the message:

Swedish dietary experts have recently made a dramatic U-turn and are now recommending a low-carb, rather than low-fat diet for weight loss.  This came about thanks to the Council on Health Technology Assessment, advisor to the Swedish Government.  The Council reviewed 16,000 studies and came up with the theory that the best types of foods for losing weight were the likes of olive oil, double cream and bacon!

Why?

As I said previously it all depends on WHAT your body does with the different types of food it gets.  For example protein is used for growth and repair.  Carbohydrates are used for quickly accessible energy.

However, there is another important point to cover... hormones have a lot to do with weight loss or at least one crucial one... insulin.  Yes, I know, I have rattled on about insulin before but it is important.

Insulin is the hormone that controls FAT STORAGE.  A high-carb diet increases the amount of glucose in the bloodstream, which in turn means you produce more insulin.  The more insulin your body produces, the more fat gets stored, it really is that simple!  A low-carb diet means less insulin, making weight loss easier to achieve because the body uses the fat for energy and doesn't need to store as much.


Dr. Malhotra goes on to confirm that standard dietary advice is WRONG:

"This (Sam Feltham's experiment) is a vivid illustration of the fact that the conventional idea of what causes weight gain is back to front.  We've been told for years that eating fat will make you fat because it contains twice the calories that are in carbohydrates.  That is to misunderstand how fat storage works.

"Research has already shown that if you are eating a high-carb diet, and so have high levels of insulin, you are likely to have more fat in your blood than someone on a high-fat diet.  This is what happened to Sam." 

So, if you are looking to lose weight, and become healthier you know what you have to do.  Less carbs, more protein and fat and lots of vegetables!  It really is that simple!

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 hidden health risk

Under normal circumstances, inflammation is part of a healthy immune response, a biological automatic response to an injury sees cells and chemicals being sent to heal an infection or injury.  Which is what happens when you are, for example, bitten by a mosquito, the area around the bite becomes inflamed, red, itchy and often painful.  This swelling is actually to stop the poison from the mosquito bite circulating freely in the blood while other cells and histamines repair the area and eliminate the poison.

However, just like in many other areas of life, there is a dark side to this normally healing process.  Chronic "hidden" inflammation, that you can't necessarily feel or see can occur throughout the body when something kick-starts the immune system and turns off the shut-off button.  What sets off the alarm and kick-starts the immune systems differs in each person: repeated or prolonged infections, smoking, gum disease, obesity, etc all of which have the same end result: an endless trickle of immune cells that interferes with the body's healthy tissues, which set off genetic mutations that can lead to cancer, diabetes, depression, heart disease, stroke, Alzheimer's, and a long list of etc..

However, on the whole a person will not know they suffer from chronic inflammation until something more serious happens.  There isn't even a reliable medical test for it.  There is a test for an inflammatory marker called C-reactive protein (CRP), which is recommended for people at risk of heart disease, as high levels of CRP are associated with future heart attacks and strokes, but it is not used on a general level as researchers still don't fully understand the role CRP plays and whether it really is a sign of incremented risk of disease.  However, what has been clearly established is that people with poor health habits tend to have higher levels of inflammation.

"In recent years, we've come to accept that inflammation plays a role in many chronic diseases, but it's about an imbalance - too many pro-inflammatory chemicals and not enough anti-inflammatory ones," says Moise Desvarieux, an inflammation researcher at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health.

In a normal situation, hours after the alarm is set off kick-starting the immune system to fight and injury or infection, the body then sends out anti-inflammatory substances to restore equilibrium.  So in order to stay healthy, both systems have to be in good working order.

Lots of medications, such as Aspirin, can reduce inflammation.  However, there are healthier options to reduces inflammation other than popping pills, here are some tips:

While being overweight raises your risk of inflammation, what is more important is where your fat deposits are.  "It's where your body puts the fat, on your waist as opposed to your hips and thighs, that indicates a pro-inflammatory state," says Carol Shively, Professor of Pathology at Wake Forrest University School of Medicine who has studied fat distribution.  Fat stored around internal organs is far more dangerous than subcutaneous fat on the hips and thighs.  The fat surrounding internal organs leads to stress and the stress hormone cortisol, "appears to bind receptors on these fat cells, setting off a process that promotes the storage of fat and increases the number of fat cells," says Prof. Shively.  "These extra cells then produce more chemicals that increase inflammation."

Now this, as you are probably aware, takes us back to the apple or pear body shapes.  Having a large waist measurement (80cm or more in women and 94cm or more in men) means you are likely to have excess inflammation.  Other indicators are:

• high blood pressure (130/85 or above)
• raised glucose levels (100mg/dl after fasting)
• high triglyceride levels (150mg/dl)

According to the American Heart Association (AHA), these all point to an inflammatory condition called metabolic syndrome, a common precursor of diabetes and heart disease.

So what is the best way to reduce belly fat?

Now the good news is that belly fat is a lot easier to get rid of than the subcutaneous kind on hips and thighs.  So basically all you really need to do is to eat less and move more.  Adopting a mediterranean diet which is rich in fruit, vegetables, fish, nuts, seeds and olive oil has been proven to protect the heart, probably because it lowers the level of pro-inflammatory chemicals.  Another benefit of this type of diet is that it may protect against depression by raising levels of Omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants used by the body to manufacture anti-inflammatory chemicals that increase blood flow to the brain.

Don't over do the exercise to start off with.  Exercise has been proven to produce less inflammation as it protects against metabolic syndrome.  1 hour, 5 times a week is enough.  Just walking at a fast pace which makes conversation difficult is adequate.  If you want to run but never have, start slowly little by little.  Intersperse fast walking with bits of jogging and build up gradually.  There is a brilliant podcast called From Couch to 5K - free on the NHS website (Couch to 5K), is a great way to learn to run if you never have.

Surprising recent data shows that flossing and brushing your teeth twice a day reduces the risk of heart disease.  There is a well established link between gum disease and heart disease, researchers believe that the same bacteria that cause inflammation and swelling in the gums appear to be a source of inflammation and thickening of the arteries.

The top 10 ANTI-INFLAMMATORY foods you should include in your diet:

1. Wild Salmon
2. Kelp
3. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4. Cruciferous Vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, kale, and brussel sprouts
5. Blueberries
6. Turmeric
7. Ginger
8. Garlic
9. Green tea
10. Sweet potato

The top 5 INFLAMMATORY foods to avoid:

1. Sugars: sodas, fruit drinks, sweets, etc..
2. Common cooking oils: grape seed, cottonseed, sunflower, corn and safflower oils
3. Trans fats: deep fried foods, fast foods, commercially baked products, margarine, etc..
4. Dairy produce.
5. Factory farm animals.  Stick to grass fed animal produce.

So the key is to:

• Eat less
• Get Active
• Floss and brush twice a day.

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

Why you shouldn't trust Food Pyramids

Food pyramids have been around for decades.  The first pyramid was published in Sweden in 1974.  However, the most widely known food pyramid was introduced by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 1992 (pictured on the left), was updated in 2005 and then replaced in 2011 by "my plate", which is only a slightly bettered version of the food pyramid.

Many nutritional experts, such as Harvard nutritionist Dr. Walter Willett, believe the 1992 pyramid does not reflect the latest research in dietetics.  Technically the pyramid allowed dietary choices that have been linked to heart disease:  three cups of whole milk and one 230g hamburger daily - for example.

The fats group as a whole have been put at the tip of the pyramid with a warning to eat as little as possible, which is problematic in itself.  If you take the pyramid at face value you would believe that you should avoid the fats group as much as possible - this could lead to the health problems.  Fat is essential to maintain optimum health.  Research has found that unsaturated fats aid in weight loss, reduce heart disease risk, lower blood sugar and even lower cholesterol.  This type of fat can be found in olive oil, nuts, seafood, and avocados.  Also, they keep you feeling satisfied for longer, and help keep blood sugar at steady levels and help brain function.

However, one of the most worrying parts of the food pyramid released by the USDA is the widest section at the bottom suggests that what we should eat the most of is grains, pasta and breads despite the evidence showing that grains break down into sugar in your body and therefore promote fat accumulation and drives insulin resistance and related diseases including diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

So why grains?  They are cheap and easy to grow and they are also cheap and easy to buy, you can feed more people cheaply with grains than growing vegetables or raising cattle.

Saturated fat has always had a bad name too, but there is also mounting evidence that saturated fat is actually an incredibly healthy, nourishing, and all-natural fat that we humans have been thriving on for generations.  Saturated fats when included in the diet, give lots of energy and leave you feeling satisfied for longer therefore preventing you from eating too much.  They are also necessary for the absorption of fat soluble vitamins such as vitamins A, D, E and K and are also needed for mineral absorption and many biological precesses.  (For more information on this type of fats you can see my post The Truth About Saturated Fats).

Dr. Mercola has designed a food pyramid based on Nutritional Science - which would promote optimal

health.  He believes, and I am inclined to agree with him, that the USDA pyramid is based on agricultural subsidies and industry lobbying efforts.  His pyramid is almost like turning the USDA pyramid upside down.  He features healthful fats and vegetables on the bottom - the base for what we should all be eating.  50% of our daily calorie intake should come from healthful fats and vegetables such as, avocados, coconut oil, nuts and raw butter.  Vegetables should represent the main bulk of your daily intake, they are low in calories but high in a huge number of critical nutrients.

He then goes on to suggest high quality proteins, followed by a moderate amount of fruits.  Why so few fruits?  Well according to Mercola, lots of fruits are very high in fructose, the natural sugar found in fruit, and Mercola would really prefer we stay as far away from fructose as possible.  Here I am in two minds... yes, if you eat lots of fruits with a high fructose content it is possible that you will have to deal with health problems, however, Mercola's main problem seems to be with High Fructose Corn Syrup which has been highly processed and is completely different from the natural Fructose found in fruits.  The human body has ways of digesting the natural fruit fructose, as with everything - just don't over do it!  There are plenty of tables on the Internet which show the content of fructose in different fruits.  My advice would be to keep the high fructose fruits to a minimun and in the mornings to give you an energy boost through the day, and lower fructose fruits in the afternoon evening when you don't need so much energy.

Finally at the very top of Mercola's pyramid you'll find grains and sugars.  This top part could be eliminated entirely from your diet and he assures your health will benefit greatly is you chose to do so.

Apart from the fructose question, I totally agree with Mercola's pyramid.  I highly recommend you read his article in full, you can follow this link to read it: Dr Mercola's article.

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

Past brings health to the present...

We all know that our diets have changed beyond recognition over the years.  The incredible amounts of processed foods that find their way to our table is now, unfortunately, not even considered a worry.  It is something that has become "normal".  However, lots of us now feed our children things that we never had as children - now I say "things" because most of them can't be considered foods at all.  Processed meats in the form of hamburgers, sausages, chicken nuggets even ham - considered a health food by many dieters, cooked packaged ham in convenient slices often comes full of sugar, milk protein, potato starch... and so the ingredient list on a packet of ham goes on and on...

So maybe we really should dig back into history where cancer, obesity, type 2 diabetes, depression, and childhood obesity were rare and certainly didn't have the scarily fast rising rate all these health problems have nowadays.  Quite often, getting back to basics for health is the way to go.

So here are 6 ancient superfoods that will give your modern lifestyle a health kick:

1.  I have often written about the need for Omega 3 fatty acids found in fish such as Salmon to improve

brain function among other things.  Used in ancient Rome and Scandinavian cultures, Fermented Cod Liver Oil (FCLO) has been used for thousands of years, these fats are rich in essential fatty acids DHA and EPA and are essential for healthy weight management and for brain nerve health.  FCLO is also a good source of Vitamins A and D which are fat soluble vitamins and the fermentation process maintains these nutrients intact and vital.  If you can't find Fermented Col Liver Oil near you, try Krill Oil.  Krill Oil is water soluble making it far easier for the body to absorb the vitamins and essential fatty acids contained in it.

2.  Unfortunately for us humans, the majority of the meat we eat has been tortured instead of raised.  No, I'm not a vegetarian, I love a juicy steak every now and again but it really should be organic - as in grass-fed, roaming round green pastures and enjoying life before it ends up on my plate!  Most beef produced in the US (and most other countries too) have been dragged up on factory farms and packed full of hormones antibiotics and vaccines against disease.  It is far more difficult to find a healthy piece of meat nowadays.  Throughout history cows were allowed to roam free grazing on grass, this type of beef is naturally leaner than factory farmed animals and the fat it does have has great benefits for us humans: a standard 100g serving contains 35mg of those beneficial Omega 3 fatty acids I was talking about before, compared with only 10mg in factory produced meat.  Happy grass-fed animals also have twice the conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) per serving.  Higher CLA levels have been associated with a reduced risk of heart disease and cancer and easier weight loss.

3.  The ancient Chinese called this brew the "Immortal Health Elixir", Kombucha is a fermented tea
that has been around for over 2000 years.  This drink is very high in B Vitamins which help to increase energy levels and decrease inflammation in the body.  This fermented tea is packed full of probiotic cultures with help digestion and increase immunity.  Recent studies have shown that glucaric acid - found in high quantities in Kombucha - helps prevent cancer.  This is available in health food stores or you can make your own at home.

4.  There's nothing more appetizing than a heartwarming soup (at least it is in winter).  Stock, the base of all soups and many other dishes, has been considered and essential healing food by ancient populations on every continent.  The boiling of organic beef or chicken bones from 6 to 40 hours produces a stock packed full of minerales, antioxidants and vitamins, all of which are released from the bones during the boiling process and then easily absorbed by the body when ingested.  This is a great superfood and aids in weight loss resistance, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, Leaky Gut Syndrome, and autoimmune responses.

5.  Traditionally part of the Central American diet for thousands of years, the sweet potato eventually

made it's way to Europe thanks to Christopher Columbus on his return.  The sweet potato is extremely high in Vitamin A which is essential for healthy skin and eyes.  But it's benefits do not stop there, this vegetable are packed full of vitamin C, manganese, Vitamin B6, potassium, copper and very high in fiber.

6.  The ancient Koreans ate Kimchi in vast quantities and they considered it to have healing properties.  Kimchi is a blend of fermented vegetables and spices which has been associated with lowering of blood pressure and weight loss.  Studies have also shown Kimchi to have anti-cancer properties and a decrease in atherosclerosis and autoimmune responses.  You can make this at home or buy in a shop, but if you do buy it a a shop, be careful with the sugar and salt content used to prolong it's shelf life.

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

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

Good sleep is essential for health.

We all know that diet and exercise are essential for good health, but a good night's sleep is also high on the list - right up there at the top with exercise and diet.

A new study lead by sleep expert Professor Dirk-Jan Dijk from the University of Surrey and published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, states that:

"Insufficient sleep is increasingly recognized as contributing to a wide range of health problems.

"Multiple studies have shown self-reported short sleep duration - defined in most studies as less than six hours - is associated with negative health outcomes such as all-cause mortality, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and impaired vigilance and cognition."

During this small study, the researchers studied gene activity in 26 sleep deprived volunteers.  They discovered that insufficient sleep had an impact on more than 700 genes.  Some of those genes became sluggish in their activity while others became overactive.  The genes affected included those associated with the "body clock" cycle, metabolism, and immune and stress responses.

During the study, the volunteers were subjected to a period of sleep restriction - 1 week of less than six hours sleep per night.  At the end of this restriction period, they had to stay awake for around forty hours while RNA samples were collected every 3 hours.

RNA is the messenger chemical that delivers coded instructions from genes to cells.  RNA can be used as a tool to measure gene activity.

The volunteers were then allowed to sleep for up to ten hours per night for a week and again, at the end of the week, RNA samples were taken every 3 hours during a long period of wakefulness.  The results from the two different weeks of RNA samples were then compared.

The scientists noted that "Sleep obtained in the sleep-restriction condition was not sufficient to maintain alertness or performance."

Doesn't seem like much of a result after all the volunteers went through!

However, 1 in 3 Britons is managing on 5-6 hours sleep per night.  Almost half of Britons say stress or worry keeps them awake at night, according to a report published 1st March 2013 by The Sleep Council.

More than 5000 people were surveyed about their sleeping habits in The Great British Bedtime Report. The findings were that the average Briton achieves about 6 hours 35 minutes sleep per night.  Research suggests that for good health, seven and a half hours per night is necessary.

Scientists from Surrey University have stated that just seven days of poor sleep can disrupt hundreds of genes linked to stress, immunity and inflammation.

Dr. Chris Idzikowski, Director of the Edinburgh Sleep Centre, said that worsening sleep habits were a "significant" cause for concern.

"Disrupted sleep not only impacts on quality of life but there's an increased risk of higher blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes.  Many studies in recent years have concluded there is a higher death rate linked with less than five and a half hours sleep a night and more than nine and a half.

"It's still not clear why, but deterioration in people's thinking ability alone can occur after just one night of poor sleep."

He said that growing rates of obesity may be partly to blame with associated problems stopping those affected from sleeping properly and quite often their partners too.

According to a 2004 study, people who sleep less than six hours a night were almost 30% more likely to become obese than those who slept 7-9 hours.

There seems to be a link between sleep and the peptides that regulate appetite.  Ghrelin stimulates hunger and leptin signals satiety to the brain, which then suppresses appetite.  Less sleep is associated with decreases in leptin and increases in Ghrelin.  This means that lack of sleep appears to stimulate hunger and also a craving for high-fat, high-carbohydrate foods.

The current economic crisis doesn't help.  Our stress levels have shot up, with people who have lost their jobs not sleeping and others lie awake at night worrying about losing their jobs.  47% of those surveyed in The Sleep Council's report said that stress or worry was keeping them awake at night.  This figure was much higher for women at 54% and singles at 57%.  Men came in at 40%.

The study found that 22% of Britons weren't getting a good night's sleep most nights and that men seem to sleep better than women with 30% sleeping well compared with 22% of women.

Lack of sleep can also affect our interpretation of events, which leads to impaired judgement as we may not assess situations accurately and act on them wisely.

Sleep deprived people seem to be especially prone to poor judgement when it comes to evaluating what lack of sleep is doing to them.  Sleep specialists say that if you think you're doing ok on less sleep you're probably wrong.  Studies show that over time, people who are getting 6 hours of sleep as opposed to 7-8 hours, begin to feel that they've adapted to that lack of sleep, but tests on mental alertness and performance show that they are going downhill, this shows that there is a point in sleep deprivation when we lose touch with how impaired we really are.  So if your job depends on you being able to judge your level of functioning - this can be a real problem.

It has also been found that the type of light emitted from televisions, smartphones and tablets stop the brain from understanding it's time to go to sleep.  So it is advisable to keep these things out of the bedroom.   If you find yourself in bed and unable to sleep then experts advise you to get out of bed and sit in a chair and read a book or carry out some quiet activity and when you begin to feel sleepy go back to bed and use a relaxation technique to get to sleep.

Remember, sleep is very important on all levels.  How well are you sleeping?


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

Ever wonder why your diet isn't working?

The 6 mistakes we often make.

1. Skipping Breakfast. 
Most people think that skipping breakfast will encourage your body to use it's fat stores for energy instead.  And this is true to a certain extent.  Scientists have found that people who exercise before breakfast burn up to 20% more fat than those who exercise after breakfast (British Journal of Nutrition, Dr. Emma Stevenson and Javier González).  However, Dr. Marilyn Glenville, author of Fat Around the Middle, believes that skipping breakfast can make you hungrier later on during the day and can lead to night time bingeing as the body tries to make up for the lost calorie intake during the day.  The best form of breakfast for people wanting to lose weight is a high protein one; an omelette, smoked salmon, boiled eggs, raw muesli with nuts, etc.  "If you can't face breakfast, eating a handful of walnuts or almonds an hour after waking will be enough to stop you bingeing later," says Dr. John Briffa, author of Escape the Diet Trap.

2.  Falling off the diet wagon at weekends.
Many believe that if you eat healthily all week then you can treat yourself at the weekends.  However, just two days of carbicide a week will make you gain weight.

"They equate their working week with dieting and deprivation, which locks them in the mindset of 'good' and 'bad' eating.  If you feel compelled to overeat every weekend, it suggests that way you're eating most of the time ins't satisfying you," says Dr. Briffa, "You're waiting for the weekend when you can enjoy your diet.  But the healthy eating should be making you feel better, not be your penance."

To avoid the temptation of over eating at the weekend, pepper your working week with small amounts of what your fancy, such as a glass of wine, some cheese or a few squares of good quality plain chocolate.  If you love a fried breakfast on a Sunday morning, just make sure you go back to your healthy eating habits for the next meal.  The damage is really done when you start thinking; "Oh, I've been bad now, so I might as well continue all weekend."  It all about organization and planning, if you know you're going to a dinner party on Saturday night, then be strict with yourself all week, enjoy the dinner party, but get straight back to your healthy habits on Sunday morning.

3.  Diet drinks.
In general it is believed that diet drinks don't have any calories so do not affect weight.

However, a study from the University of Texas Health Science Center, found that people who drank 21 diet drinks a week were twice as likely to be overweight.  Another study that followed diet drinkers over a 10 year period found their waists grew a staggering 70% more than non-diet drinkers' waistlines.  Another study also found that a high intake of diet drinks could increase the risk of Type II Diabetes by 67%.

The problem is that on receiving the sweet taste of the diet drink, the body assumes it will also get the calories to match the taste.  When the calories don't arrive, it triggers sweet cravings that make you eat more.  Sweeteners have also been shown to have a similar effect to real sugar on blood glucose and insulin levels.  So, stick to sparkling or still water with fresh lime or lemon juice, or coconut water.

4.  You can eat as much "healthy food" as you like.
Quite often so called healthy foods such as hummus, pistachios, and peanuts contain healthy fats but also come packed full of calories and quite often "eating just one" is impossible.  Be careful of cereals proclaiming to be healthy, they are often high in sugar.  Read the labels, ingredients are listed by their quantity not alphabetically, so if sugar is first, second or third on the list then put it back on the shelf.  Many food manufacturers disguise the sugar content by using different names such as corn syrup, maltose, dextrose, sucrose, fructose or any other word ending in OSE.

So, no matter how healthy they are, don't keep or buy foods you find moreish.  It's all about choice, if you can't have just a teaspoon of hummus with your vegetables, then choose something different.  Raw almonds or brazil nuts are pretty difficult to binge on, for example.

5.  Fat does not make you fat.
Studies show that the small percentage of people (10%) who manage to lose weight and keep it off, actually eat moderate amounts of fat.

"Fat is highly satisfying," says Zoe Harcombe, "People who avoid it are invariably never satisfied by meals.  Dieters' obsession with low fat products merely fuels a craving for fatty foods, and that's why they end up bingeing on cakes, biscuits and ice-cream - all sources of fat their bodies need."

Low fat food is a waste of time for people wanting to lose weight because when real fat is removed so is taste and texture which then needs to be replaced, usually with sugar and flour, which are nutritionally poor.

The human body also needs dietary fat as certain vitamins are only fat-soluble.  Vitamins such as; A, D, E and K need the presence of fat to enable the body to absorb them.

So, add some butter to your steamed vegetables and make sure you are getting enough Omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish, coconut oil, walnuts, flaxseed, etc., there is some evidence that these fatty acids may help the body to burn fat.

6.  Diets don't work.
At least not for longterm weight loss.

Most people who go on a strict diet, lose weight initially but a strict diet is difficult to maintain, and soon the dieter has stopped and the weight goes back on - and then some!  This is repeated periodically over the years - each time a little more weight is gained.  This cycle gave birth to the name "yo-yo dieters".

On a very strict diet, the body thinks that it's starving so compensates by switching on all the mechanisms it possesses to store food.  "One of these [mechanisms] is hormones.  Last October, a University of Melbourne study of 50 overweight women and men showed that after dieting, our hormone levels start to work overtime and react as though our bodies are starving.  The study found that participants' levels of ghrelin, a hormone that stimulates appetite, was 20% higher than before they went on the diet, and their levels of leptin, a hormone that suppreses appetite and registers satisfaction after eating, were lower." (Professor Alexander Miras, a obesity researcher at University College London).

"The only diets that have been proven effective for longterm weight loss in randomized controlled studies are those that focus on higher amounts of protein and vegetables, and limit carbohydrates to those with a low glycaemic index (GI)," says Professor Miras.

Statistics:

• 98% of people who go on a diet, regain the weight within a year.
• The famous 10% who didn't regain the weight - keeping off anything from 13kg to 136kg for 5 years or more, did it by:
• 78% ate breakfast everyday
• 75% weighed themselves at least once a week
• 62% watched less than 10 hours of television a week
• 90% exercised moderately for an hour everyday - most walked as their chosen form of exercise.

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