If you find the items below on food / drinks, I highly recommend you stay away!
1. Gluten: Gluten is a wheat protein, also found in barley and rye. Research is showing that many of us are highly intolerant to wheat and products that contain wheat, without the severe reactions. Some common symptoms are irritable bowel syndrome, chronic constipation and the constant feeling of being “bloated.” Besides overcoming those common symptoms mentioned above, I have found my clients and I effectively reducing the belly fat around our stomachs and hips, after removing gluten products. Additionally, you will have more energy and will feel healthier after eliminating gluten from your diet. Gluten is found in most available foods and drinks. There is finally a movement against gluten to which you are starting to see more “gluten” free menu choices and options at the grocery store. Just understand that “Gluten-free” or anything “____free” is not always healthy!
2. Refined or enriched “white” or “wheat” flour: Commonly found in most pastas, cookies, crackers, and bread. As flour is processed, it loses its fibrous content and nutritional values.
Foods high in starch, low in fiber will make you feel fatigued, malnourished, constipated, irritable, depressed, and susceptible to chronic illnesses and high blood pressure. High blood pressure leads to more insulin being released, leading to your body storing fat! The more insulin released, the hungrier you become, and the more calories you consume.
Insulin resistance and type 2 Diabetes are two common diseases that are usually caused by poor diets. As you eat more of these refined foods, your body has to produce more insulin to manage it. In addition, as mentioned above, insulin promotes the storage of fat – something we do not want!
We are all led to believe that eating wheat is healthful because it is a grain. However, eating wheat can make you feel lethargic and bloated, even leads to weight gain. Gluten (the protein of wheat, rye, and barley) is in almost ALL processed products, making it hard to avoid. Fortunately, there has been a “Gluten Sensitivity” movement as more people are beginning to realize the problems with gluten consumption, so now more than ever there are “gluten-free” sections at the grocery store. However, as mentioned above, even “gluten-free” products can be unhealthy.
3. High Fructose Corn Syrup: This low-cost sweetener is everywhere! This quick sugar-like substance will raise your insulin levels quickly, then immediately drop causing you to feel hungry and tired. You might expect this in soda but it is commonly found in things you would never think of such as “healthy” cereals, sauces / dressings or even peanuts.
High Fructose Corn Syrup is a chemically altered product, NOT natural! HFCS goes through an enzymatic process, which changes the compound from glucose (a simple sugar) to mostly fructose.
Glucose or table sugar enters the cells in the body through the action of insulin. Fructose enters in a completely different action that does not depend on insulin. Additionally, fructose does not provide a feeling of satiety. Because it does not transport to your brain, therefore, as you eat things higher in fructose, you never receive the signal of being full. Once inside your cells, fructose, which forms triglycerides more efficiently than glucose, turns to fatty compounds in the blood and are then stored as fat.
High Fructose corn syrup comes from genetically modified corn. Genetically modified corn has been proved to cause animals who consume it to be at risk for severe health problems thus making human beings at risk as well.
4. Splenda / sucralose, Nutri-sweet / aspartame, Saccharin or another artificial sweetener: There is an argument on whether artificial sweeteners make you fat, gain weight or actually help you lose weight; based on most research I have read these fake sugars actually increase your appetite, trick your body and stimulate insulin response. As you probably already know, sugar is also extremely addictive.
I promise, once you are “off” sugar, you will not even miss it!
What I have found happen with several clients, is when they give up sugar they automatically resort to artificial sweeteners or “diet” variations, full of artificial sweeteners and this is not the answer!
Let us think about it aloud. One thing that no one can debate is the benefits from natural food over processed food, why would the sugar we consume be any different? If you are going to use a sweetener (we will show you other healthful ways to add flavor later), why not use the real thing rather than a synthetic variety?
These artificial sweeteners mess up your natural hormonal balance, leading to weight again (among many other things).
Let us look at aspartame, zero calories but one of its ingredients is phenylalanine, which blocks serotonin production. Serotonin is a natural brain chemical that is known to promote happiness, but it also controls your food cravings. Therefore, when there is a shortage of serotonin in the brain, it will make your brain crave the foods that create more of this brain chemical. These foods are the high calorie, high carb snacks that ruin a diet.
It is difficult to ignore some of the well-documented side effects of aspartame:
- Vision problems
- Ringing or buzzing sounds
- Noise sensitivity or hearing impairment
- Epileptic seizures
- Headaches, migraines, dizziness
- Depression (blocking of serotonin)
- Irritability
- Aggression
- Anxiety, palpitations, tachycardia
- Stomach and abdominal pain
- Itching
- Rashes, hives
Research is also proving that these fake sweeteners trigger an insulin release, even when there is no food consumed. For insulin-sensitive people, these sweeteners confuse the brain. Your body thinks food has been eaten so insulin is released. However, your body discovers there is no food in your system so it creates strong cravings. These cravings can only be controlled by eating foods that raise blood sugar (high carb, high sugar!).
Remember, your body does not care what the label says. It is all just "sugar"!
Therefore, I highly recommend you stay away from:
- Splenda (sucralose)
- Sweet n Low (saccharin)
- Equal (aspartame)
- Diet Sodas
- Crystal Lite / Mixes
- Sugar-Free Kool-Aid
- Sugar-Free Drinks of all Kinds (even sports drinks)
- Sugar-Free Snacks and Desserts
- Sugar-Free Ice Cream
- Sugar-Free Syrups, Jams and Jellies
- Sugar-Free Gum
Sugar-Free Candy
Almost anything that says, “Sugar-Free” most probably contains one of the artificial sweeteners mentioned above.
Rule of Thumb for Meats and What to Look for
Stay away from any packaged processed meats like salami, bologna, hot dogs, sausage, frozen prepared meats, or “farm raised” fish. These meats have high levels of sodium, nitrates or nitrites, and preservatives. Farmed fish are fed genetically altered food in an effort to increase the “nutritional value,” size of fish and the size of the fish population within the farm – all done to make more money. This means that when you are consuming farmed fish you are probably exposing your body to antibiotics and concentrated pesticides. Farmed fish are even dyed to improve the look of the product.
Instead, look for:
1. Grass Fed: Much of the cattle in the US are corn fed as it is a cheap way to fatten the animals before slaughter. Against common perception, corn is actually a grain, not a vegetable. Additionally, corn is high in sugar (sugar = fat gain), inflammatory omega 6 fatty acids, and Phytate (a chemical that binds to iron, can lead to anemia), low in fiber, low in minerals and protein. Research has found that animals fed genetically modified corn developed extensive health problems, making human beings who eat genetically modified corn at risk too. Therefore, buy grass fed only!
2. Free-range / Cage-free: This means that the animals could move about naturally, rather than become restrained in a cage and bulked up through being injected with unnatural growth enhancers.
3. Wild Caught fish: Wild fish have higher levels of omega 3 fatty acids (essential in that your body cannot produce it and are less commonly found in American diets) and lower in levels of omega 6 fatty acids (a typical American has high levels of it).
Get Dress Ready is a program designed specifically for busy and budget minded brides looking to get in the best shape for their life for their wedding. Get Dress Ready is about showing brides how they can look beautiful in their dress without starving themselves and spending hours in the gym. Discover how you can own the moment and shine in the spot light on your wedding day, forever showing off your wedding photos. To check out Joe Carabase's bridal fitness blog, for more information on Joe Carabase's Bridal Bootcamps and Bridal Fitness, go http:www.getdressready.com.
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