Junk food side effects...

Our diets have changed radically in the past 50 years.  In fact if you compare a typical diet 50 years ago to a typical diet today, many people would struggle to find any similarities.

Part of this major dietary change is due to the appearance of junk food in our lives.  Also, long working hours, stress and family obligations mean that it is often easier to reach for the telephone and order a take-away than it is to cook a meal from scratch.

We all know that the general population's fast food addiction is largely to blame for the obesity epidemic that is putting huge pressure on healthcare.

But is it just obesity that is being fueled by junk food, or is there something far more sinister?

Dr. Julia Rucklidge, University of Canterbury, New Zealand, has said that eating processed foods might actually cause mental illness as well as weight gain.  Dr. Ricklidge believes that the spiraling rates of mental illness, and the use of anti-depressants is due to the change from eating foods made from whole ingredients to junk food.

Dr. Rucklidge is investigating the link between nutrition and disorders such as depression, ADHD, anxiety, pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS) and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).  She says that diet has changed so much and so quickly over the past 50 years that it is hard not to believe that it's having some impact on mental health.

Last year, in an interview with the New Zealand Listener, she said her team was studying whether multivitamin formulas can help with mental health disorders.  Her study specifically used formulas by Nutra Tex and Truehope.

"My work shows that, because we show an impact of using vitamins and minerals on mental health, it simply proves the point that the diet these people are eating is simply not adequately meeting their nutritional needs."

According to her research, overall between 60-80% of people in these trials responded to treatment with a micronutrient formulae.  The supplements included vitamins A, C, D, E, B vitamins, thiamin, riboflavin, magnesium, calcium, iron, phosphorus, iodine, zinc, selenium, copper, manganese, chromium, molybdenum, potassium and some amino acids.

She also spoke about how previous research has shown that high-quality fish oil can help create new brain cells and reduce inflammation in the body.  S-adenosyl methionine (SAMe), a sulphur containing compound, can help regulate mood.  N-acetylcysteine (NAC) an amino acid, has been shown to help people with bipolar depression, schizophrenia and compulsive and addictive behaviors. A Mediterranean diet has been found to lower the risk of depression and anxiety.

However, what she has not been able to find so far, is exactly which mechanism the nutrients use to lower symptoms of mental illness.

"It might be (the micronutrients) are assisting the mitochondria, the powerhouses of the cell, to work more effectively," she said, "Or we are giving the body nutrients to help reduce inflammation or oxidative stress.  Or we are just providing the body with what it needs in order for it to function effectively.  Micronutrients do seem to work on so many different levels."

Dr. Rucklidge's investigations have found that 64% of people with ADHD receiving supplements showed fewer symptoms over 8 weeks compared to 37% given a placebo.

After the Christchurch, New Zealand earthquake in 2011, she found that people suffering from PTSD had their symptoms reduced from 65% to 19% among people receiving extra vitamins and minerals.  It is her belief that governments should consider giving out vitamin and mineral tablets after a disaster has struck.

But how does all this relate to junk food?  It's quite simple, junk food does not provide the vitamins and minerals necessary for good health that whole foods cooked from scratch do.  So, cook whole fresh foods instead of reaching for the take-away menu, and you might just be doing you and your family one huge favor.

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

How to stick to a diet

How many times have you grabbed a sandwich while on the run between meetings, or eaten a chocolate bar on the way to pick the kids up from school?  Most of us are on such tight schedules nowadays that food isn't even thought about, but is left to an automatic response to what ever is put in front of us at the precise moment we have a few minutes available to eat something.  More often than not we don't even think about what we are eating when swallowing it.

If we payed as much attention to our food as we do to other things in our lives, lots of people wouldn't have weight issues or health problems.  I often hear that someone has gained weight during pregnancy and then found they put even more weight on after giving birth, because they were running around after the kids all the time, and snacking on the kids' leftovers before going on to eat an evening meal with their husbands.  Or you meet up for coffee with a friend who orders a coffee and cake, and you automatically order the same.

A lot of people with weight issues just aren't designating enough time to thinking about what they are doing to themselves.  And, this isn't just happening to people with weight issues but to most of us.  We don't stop and think and most of the time we don't even remember what we've eaten afterwards.

Mindfulness is something I have read a lot about applied in many areas to life.  According to the Wikipedia:

Mindfulness or awareness is a spiritual or psychological facility that, according to the teaching of the Buddha , is considered to be of great importance in the path to enlightenment.  It is one of the seven factors of enlightenment.

 Mindfulness when eating means that you are truly aware of what you are doing and what you are eating.  You should focus on your food and only your food and when chewing, really savor the flavors and textures and even imagine how the food's nutrition content is going to favor your mind and body.  For example, focus on the vitamins and minerals in fruits and vegetables that will benefit your immune system.

Anyone on a diet knows how difficult it is to stick to a restrictive regime, and how easy it is to be lead astray even by one's self, you need to start thinking about what you are eating and the consequences:

1. What are your triggers?  We all have moments or temptations that lead us to break a diet.  As I said before, you meet a friend for coffee and have cake just because she's ordered some.  Those tempting chocolate bars at the check out in the supermarket when you're rushing to do the shopping before picking the kids up from school and you haven't had time for lunch.  Relax time in front of the TV in the evening when the kids are in bed are a real killer.  However, it isn't just the temptations around us all day, we also eat to be polite, sociable and to keep others company and to show our appreciation.  We also eat differently depending on who we are eating with; if your companion is a fast eater, you will tend to eat quicker too.  This is a real danger as eating quickly does not give your gut the chance to send the correct messages to the brain that you are full, so you tend to eat more than you would if you were with someone who eats slowly.  Over the next week, take stock and write down every situation when you eat without thinking or aren't even hungry.
2. Be aware of your eating patterns.  There are several questions you can ask yourself and the answers will give you guiding information as to how you can change from mindless to mindful eating.

• Are you a grazer?  Do you snack or nibble without being hungry or even deciding to eat?  That sliver of left over pizza, the handful of peanuts, the children's leftover dinner all contribute to many people's weight gain or regain after a diet.  The constant stream of 50 calories here, 100 calories there over months and years will make you gain weight.  You only need an extra 100 calories a day (that's a chocolate biscuit or a sliver of cheese) to gain 10 lbs in a year.
• Do you eat until hunger disappears or until you are full and can't eat any more?  There is a huge difference between the two, however, many of us have lost the ability to distinguish between being "satisfied" and "full up".
• Do you clean your plate or leave food on it?  Lots of us were educated to eat everything on our plate even though we had already had enough.  It is quite hard to switch off something that has been taught from childhood and we may also teach our children the same way.
• Do you taste each mouthful or do you "inhale" it?  There are lots of people out there that literally inhale their food at high velocity!  If you rush food you aren't being mindful and you won't enjoy it as much, and undoubtedly you will eat more than you need.
3. Stock your kitchen according to your goals.  This is a very important one, especially if you have small children in the house.  If you are on a diet to lose weight and still need to buy some biscuits, puddings, etc because of the little ones in the house, then hide them from view.  I love chocolate and have little ones at home.  I don't need to lose weight, but I do try to eat healthily on a daily basis, I also try to teach my children the basics of healthy eating.  However, my youngest goes to a school where his mid morning snack is dictated by the school: Monday = biscuits, Tuesday = Dairy, Wednesday = sandwich, Thursday = fruit, and Friday = what ever he wants.  I keep the children's biscuits, etc as far out of reach as possible for the whole family.  In my case I leave them in the store room in the basement.  If I'm hungry at night and fancy a nibble on something, the basement is cold and two floors down from my bedroom.  The kitchen is closer, and I always make sure there are strawberries or melon in the fridge for a late night snack.
4. Downsize your portion sizes and avoid leftovers.  
• Don't leave open packets on the kitchen counter or within easy reach in the fridge.
• Use smaller packets and plates; a serving that looks lost on a large plate will fill a smaller one and mean that you will feel satisfied but eat less.
• Choose tall, thin glasses.  Research shows that people pour more into short, fat glasses than into taller, slimmer ones.
• Cook the right amount for the number of people attending the meal.  Try and not have leftovers to tempt you later on - especially if dessert is involved!
5. Learn how to eat mindfully.

• Stop and think before you eat and rate just how hungry you are on a scale of 1-10 to give you a sense of what your body really needs.
• Be aware of what is on your plate, read the ingredient list and the fat, sugar and calorie content before deciding whether or not to eat it.  Better still, make all meals from scratch using fresh produce - that way, you'll know exactly what you are eating.
• Always sit at a table to eat.  Take time to smell and savor your food.  Take small bites, chew it well and put your fork down between mouthfuls to give yourself time to appreciate what your are eating and how it makes you feel.
• If you are at a dinner party, find the slowest eater and sit next to them, their slow eating habits will make you slow down too.
• Don't read or watch TV when eating.  Distractions take your mind off the task at hand and you will inevitably eat more.
• Only eat when you are truly hungry, if you fancy eating something, stop and think if you are really hungry, if you are, then choose something healthy, a piece of fruit or a small handful of raw almonds.
• Make meals that are fresh and colorful and appetizing to the eye, brain and digestive system.

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