Ever notice how easy it is to eat everything in sight when you’re feeling sleep deprived?
I have.
It’s not just in your mind. Lack of sleep is a big stressor and does damage to our bodies and health in a myriad of ways. And a recent study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition confirms that sleep restriction could be one of the environmental factors contributing to the obesity epidemic. (more…)
The following is a guest article by Dr. Joyce Nettleton, a highly respected published researcher
Diets high in omega-6 fatty acids are associated with greater body weight and fat compared with diets having less omega-6 fat and more omega-3 fat.
Several studies presented at the recent ISSFAL conference seem to support prior research results. (more…)
Get ready for a warning label on the “miracle weight loss drug”, Alli.
The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a revised label for “miracle weight loss drug” Xenical and it’s over-the-counter cousin, Alli.
Severe liver injury has been reported with the use of both these drugs, and the new FDA label will include revised safety information that reflects that fact.
Patients should stop using these drugs and contact their doctor if they develop signs of liver injury which include: (more…)
What are the best exercises to reduce fat on thighs and stomach?
Well, here’s the bad news. Unfortunately, exercises for a specific area of the body are pretty ineffective for reducing fat in that specific area.
Despite what late night commercials may calim, the only fat that things like Thighmasters separate you from is any excess fat in your wallet. “Spot reducing”—the idea that you can get rid of fat by working the specific area of the body in which frat accumulates—just doesn’t work. Fat won’t come off the belly by doing crunches, no matter how many of them you do. (more…)
It took me three years of playing tennis to learn the lesson I’m about to share with you, and another two to realize that it was the perfect metaphor for weight loss.
Let me explain.
(And by the way- you don’t need to know a thing about tennis to get this.)
For years, I’d hit what’s called a “short ball” to my opponent and then watch in frustration as he’d put the ball away. A “short ball” is an easy ball to hit- it lands close to the net and basically puts your opponent in control. I’d sit and watch where my short, easy ball landed, hoping my opponent wouldn’t get to it (they usually did). Then I’d try to anticipate where he was going to put it. (more…)
Ever hear of Dr. Judith Horvath?
Well, neither did I. But I can tell you that I was pretty blown away by what she had to say about the psychological dimensions of losing weight.
Horvath believes- as I do- that losing weight and keeping it off is as much about psychological struggles as it is physical changes. “Food can be used as emotional nourishment, and to calm anxieties”, she says. (more…)
Coconut oil has long been demonized for being high in saturated fats, and therefore inherently “unhealthy”. People in the integrative medicine community have long known how great coconut oil is recently its reputation is starting to catch up with the mainstream. (I gave it a “star” in “The 150 Healthiest Foods On Earth”!)
Now researchers are investigating the potential effects of coconut oil on weight loss.
Is there anything to this? (more…)
Consuming carbohydrates with a high glycemic index increases the risk of coronary heart disease in women, according to a new study in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
If you’ve read my book “Living Low Carb: Controlled Carbohydrate Eating for Long-Term Weight Loss” then you probably understand the meaning of glycemic index. If you haven’t read the book, here’s the executive summary on glycemic index: it’s a measure of how quickly food affects your blood sugar. (more…)
A new study from the University of Alabama appears to be setting conventional wisdom on its ear. The study, published online in the March 30 International Journal of Obesity, shows that eating a high fat breakfast actually may prevent many of the dangerous symptoms of Metabolic Syndrome.
Metabolic syndrome- also known as “pre-diabetes”- is a constellation of symptoms that includes abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, insulin resistance and high triglycerides. It frequently leads to full-blown diabetes, and even when it doesn’t, it puts you at significant risk for heart disease. (more…)
I am not now, and have never been, a vegetarian.
OK, that’s not entirely true, I flirted with vegetarianism briefly a few decades ago, right around the time I was also experimenting with sideburns and dashikis. But for most of my adult life- and certainly for all the time I’ve been a nutritionist- I’ve been an unrepentant consumer of animal products.
It’s not that I’m not sympathetic to the animal welfare folks- in fact, I count myself among them (it’s a big tent, folks!) I belong to just about every animal activist group on the planet and care deeply about animal welfare. But while I share with my vegan friends a deep concern for all sentient beings, I happen to believe that we humans do better with some animal products in our diet. (more…)