Eating For Health

 How many of us say we are going to get healthier?   We will start going to the gym, we will start eating healthier.   But then it never happens.   The September 2015 issue of the Berkeley Wellness Letter has some suggestions for not only changing habits, but changing them for good.   The article is based on James Prochaska, Ph.D., professor of psychology at the University of Rhode Island.   Over 30 years ago, he proposed stages of changing our habits.   If you follow these stages, suggestions, you should have better success in changing bad habits to good habits.   Studies have found that changing behavior doesn’t happen overnight but it is a process and we can improve our odds of making changes permanent and a “habit” that lasts.        What are the 5 stages?    Precontemplation – yes, you have to decide to change a habit – to get off the couch, to cut back or eliminate the sugared sodas, to go for a walk ...

If you listen to the commercials, high fructose corn syrup is the same as white table sugar and has no adverse health consequences.   But is that true?   For years now, I just avoided foods that had high fructose corn syrup as an ingredient.   Not easy to do as manufacturers love to sneak this sugar into everything from bread to catsup.   Many manufacturers know there are consumers that are like me and try to avoid high fructose corn syrup so they make a catsup without it then charge more. Why high fructose corn syrup?   Manufacturers love it as it is easy to ship, has a long shelf life and is cheaper than sugar.    It improves the texture of cookies, and browns better in breads.      What is HCFS?   It is comprised of fructose and glucose and manufacturers use it in place of sugar.   It has the same caloric value of sugar, 4 calories per gram. Is HCFS Bad for our Health?   Many researchers would say no but more...

Sugar was in the news this week.    California is proposing sugary drinks come with a warning label.   A state senator in the California legislature proposed a bill that all beverages containing 75 calories of added sugar per 12 ounces be labeled:    State of California Safety Warning:   Drinking beverages with added sugar(s) contributes to obesity, diabetes, and tooth decay. Why did Senator Monning introduce this bill?   He notes that research has shown a link between sugary drinks and health problems.     The California branch of the American Beverage Association is not apparently in support of the proposed legislation.   They note sugar drinks account for only 6% of our calories.   However, medical groups counter this by saying sugary drinks are a large share of our added sugar calories.    According to medical groups, one soda a day boosts an adult’s changes of being overweight by 27% and a child’s by 55%...

SODAS AND OBESITY:     Last week we noted that New York City banned large sugary drinks.   Mayor Bloomberg is banning super-sized sugary drinks in containers larger than 16 ounces.   Is there a link between sugary drinks and obesity?   Well, the news this week indicates there may be.      Could the obesity epidemic in this country be linked to all the sugary sodas and other sugary drinks we partake of every day? New Research: Research released this week at an obesity conference in San Antonio, Texas indicates that sugary beverages somehow interacts with our genes to promote weight gain.     What did the studies find? ·           Sugar Study One :   33,000 Americans were studied by Lu Qi an assistant professor of nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health.  His study found the more sugary drinks you had, the higher your risk of obesity.  If you drink one sugar...