Hydroxytyrosol – Part 3 of 10

Hydroxytyrosol is a polyphenol found primarily in olive oil, and also in red and white wine. Animal studies have shown that hydroxytyrosol improves blood lipids, prevents the growth of atherosclerotic plaque and reduces damage to tissue caused by cigarette smoke. A multicenter clinical trial investigating the effects of olive oil on blood lipids found that consumption of extra-virgin olive oil was linked to higher levels of HDL cholesterol and lower levels of LDL cholesterol. Hydroxytyrosol may also protect against breast cancer. Although it is difficult to quantify the amounts of hydroxytyrosol in different types of olive oil, the virgin and extra-virgin varieties generally contain much higher levels than refined oils.

Naringenin – Part 2 of 10

Naringenin is a bioflavonoid found mostly in the juice of grapefruit, oranges and other citrus fruits.

Laboratory studies have shown that it blocks damage to DNA in cells, may help regulate blood sugar levels and appears to block glucose production by the liver.

Rutin – Part 1 of 10

Rutin, a bioflavonoid with potent anti-inflammatory properties, is primarily found in buckwheat and is also present in varying amounts in asparagus, citrus fruit and tea.

Because it has been shown to prevent bruising and swelling and appears to strengthen blood capillaries, rutin shows promise in the prevention and treatment of venous leg disease. Rutin may also lock the production of histamine, the substance responsible for allergic reactions in the body.

The beneficial effects of rutin appear to be strengthened when it is consumed with foods that are high in vitamin C.

It’s been a sucky-ass few days. Not for me personally—in fact, I’ve had quite a few real moments of total happiness. See, I moved, and while there is zero joy in actually moving, I didn’t hate it too much considering where I was moving to. I can now watch sunset from my couch while sipping white wine…all this in a rodent, bug free apartment.

But it has not been such a stellar week for Just Eat Smart, my demanding blog is always begging for posts. But I’ve been relatively uninspired in my posting, and feeling like I’m just retreading old ground and even I’m tired of it. And I have a confession. Sometimes I search the internet, looking for irritating things, ideally fitness-related. In other words, my rants aren’t always, “hey, I just happened upon this little tidbit and thought I’d spew bile” but “aw yeah, I found something on the money to bitch-off at.”

Courtesy of Dave Zinczenko and Matt Goulding, Men’s Health
13 Secrets the Food Industry Doesn’t Want You to Know

But what I found this time perked my ears and opened my eyes, then made me vomit in my mouth.

Food manufacturers think you’re stupid. And their marketing strategies rely on it. Take candy products, such as Swedish Fish, Mike and Ike, and Good & Plenty, for example. Their packages boast the claim “Fat Free.” It’s completely true, however—these empty-calorie junk foods are made almost entirely of sugar and processed carbs.

See, the makers of the aforementioned candies may be hoping you’ll equate “fat-free” with “healthy” or “non-fattening,” so you’ll forget about all the sugar their products contain. It’s a distraction device; Food companies advertise what they want you to notice—and the candy aisle is just the start.

That’s why the authors of the new book Eat This, Not That! The Best and Worst Foods in America! scoured grocery-store shelves to expose the secrets that food-industry insiders don’t want you to know. The ones they use to prey on your expectations, your wallet, and, most important, your well-being. Use our crib sheet, though, and you can beat Big Food at its own game.

Secret No. 1: The fuzzy numbers

Keebler doesn’t want you to know that numbers can be deceiving. On the front of a box of reduced-fat Club Crackers—in large, yellow letters—you’ll find the claim, “33percent Less Fat Than Original Club Crackers.” The math is accurate: The original product contains 3 grams of fat per serving, while the reduced-fat version has 2 grams. So statistically, it’s a 33 percent difference. But is it meaningful? And why doesn’t Keebler tout that its reduced fat cracker has 33 percent more carbs than the original? Maybe the company simply doesn’t want you to know that when it removes 1 gram of fat, it replaces it with 3 grams of refined flour and sugar—hardly a healthy trade-off. Check out our list of the 18 worst packaged food lies to see what other claims the food companies are fudging.

Secret No. 2:  The undeserved reputation

More Healthy Eating Advice
* America’s Healthiest Supermarket Foods
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Beverage makers don’t want you to know that the bottled green tea you’re drinking may not be as healthy as you think it is. Last year, we commissioned ChromaDex Laboratories to analyze 14 different bottled green teas for their levels of catechins, the healthful antioxidants in tea that are thought to fight disease. The finding: Catechin content varied widely among brands. While Honest Tea Organic Honey Green Tea topped the charts with an impressive 215 milligrams of total catechins, some products hardly even registered on the antioxidant scale. For instance, Republic of Tea Pomegranate Green Tea had just 9 milligrams and Ito En Tea’s Tea Lemongrass Green had just 28 milligrams.

Secret No. 3: The maggot allowance

Food companies don’t want you to know that your food can legally contain maggots. Sure, the FDA limits the amount of these and other appetite killers in your food, that but limit isn’t zero. The following allowances aren’t harmful to your health—but we can’t promise that the thought of them won’t make you sick.
Food Can contain up to…
Canned Pineapples - 20 percent positive mold tests
Canned Tomatoes - 5 fly eggs and 1 maggot per 500 grams
Frozen Broccoli - 60 mites per 100 grams
Ground Cinnamon - 400 insect fragments and 11 rodent hairs per 50 grams
Peanut Butter - 30 insect fragments and 1 rodent hair per 100 grams
Popcorn - 20 gnawed grains or 2 rodent hairs per pound
Potato Chips - 6 percent rotten chips

Secret No. 4: The carbo-loaded Corn Flakes

Kellogg’s doesn’t want you to know that its Corn Flakes aren’t as diabetes-friendly as the “Diabetes Friendly” logo on the box’s side panel suggests. Australian researchers have shown that carb-loaded cornflakes raise blood glucose faster and to a greater extent than straight table sugar does. (High blood glucose is the primary indicator of diabetes—if you suffer from diabetes or pre-diabetes, be sure to avoid any of the items on our list of the 20 most sugar-packed foods in America.) Beneath the logo, the cereal maker does provide a link to its Web site where general nutrition recommendations are provided for people with diabetes. But those recommendations are simply “based on” the guidelines of the American Dietetic Association and the American Diabetes Association, not endorsed by those organizations.

Secret No. 5: The sugar-packed “healthy” cereal

Quaker doesn’t want you to know that some of its “heart healthy” hot cereals have more sugar than a bowl of Froot Loops. One example:Quaker Instant Oatmeal Maple & Brown Sugar. Sure, the company proudly displays the American Heart Association logo on the product’s box. However, the fine print below the logo reads that the product simply meets the AHA’s “food criteria for saturated fat and cholesterol.” So it could contain a pound of sugar and still qualify. But guess what? Froot Loops meets the AHA’s criteria, too, only no logo is displayed. That’s because …

Secret No. 6: The “pay to play” rules

The food industry doesn’t want you to know that companies must pay for a product to be an American Heart Association-certified food. That’s why the AHA check mark might appear on one product but not on another, even when both meet the guidelines.

Secret No. 7: The checkout line wallet trap

Supermarkets don’t want you to know that long checkout lines can make you buy more. If you’re stuck in a line, you’ll be up to 25 percent more likely to buy the candy and sodas around you, according to research from the University or Arizona. The authors found that the more exposure people have to temptation, the more likely they are to succumb to it. This may also help explain why supermarkets place common staples likes milk, bread, and eggs at the rear of the store, forcing you to run the gauntlet of culinary temptation.

Secret No. 8: The food additive–ADHD link

The food industry doesn’t want you to know that food additives may make your kids misbehave. U.K. researchers found that some artificial food colorings and preservatives are linked to hyperactivity in children. The additives included Yellow No. 5, Yellow No. 6, Red No. 40, and sodium benzoate, all of which are commonly found in packaged foods in the United States. While the researchers don’t know whether a combination of the chemicals is to blame or there’s a single primary culprit, you can find Red No. 40, yellow No. 5, and Yellow No. 6 in Skittles, and sodium benzoate in some soft drinks. Check out our list of the 11 most controversial food additives to learn what else is lurking in your meals.

Secret No. 9: The fat-free fakeout

Land O’Lakes doesn’t want you to know that there’s no such thing as fat-free half-and-half. That’s because, by definition, half-and-half contains between 10.5 percent and 18 percent butterfat. So what exactly is the product that Land O’Lakes calls “Fat Free Half & Half”? Skim milk—to which a thickening agent and an artificial cream flavor have been added. You may be disappointed in the payoff; One tablespoon of traditional half-and-half contains 20 calories; the fat-free version has 20. And after all, how much are you really going to consume?

Secret No. 10: The truth about lean meat

The meat industry doesn’t want you to know that the leanest cuts may have the highest sodium levels. The reason: When you remove fat, you lose juiciness. To counteract this dried-out effect, some manufacturers “enhance” poultry, pork, and beef products by pumping them full of a solution that contains water, salt, and other nutrients that help give them flavor. This practice can dramatically boost the meat’s sodium level. Consuming excess sodium is a real problem for people who have high blood pressure—if your sodium intake is substantially greater than your potassium intake, your blood pressure could skyrocket.

To put it in perspective: A 4-ounce serving of Shady Brook Farms Fresh Boneless Turkey Tenderloin that hasn’t been enhanced contains 55 milligrams of sodium. But the same size serving of Jennie-O Turkey Breast Tenderloin Roast Turkey, which is enhanced by up to 30 percent, packs 840 milligrams.

Secret No. 11: The not-so-”good source”

Food companies don’t want you to know what the phrase “good source” actually means. No doubt you’ve seen the claim on labels in every section of your supermarket that a product is a “good source” of one or more vitamins or minerals. But here’s what you need to know: To be considered a good source of a specific vitamin or mineral, a serving must contain only 10 percent of the recommended daily value for that nutrient. For perspective, take Nabisco Honey Teddy Grahams, which, the label says, are a “Good Source of Calcium.” But you’d have to eat 10 servings—the entire box and then some—to hit the amount of calcium you need for the day. Now think about it: Is that really a good source?

Secret No. 12: The 100-calorie pack cost

Chex doesn’t want you to know that its 100-calorie pack may be a rip-off. In a 2007 study, Brown University researchers found that people at the same amount of cookies and chips regardless of whether they ate from a large, multi-serving bag or single-serving packs. The key factor: The actual amount of cookies or chips people kept in their homes. Sure, self-control is still your responsibility, but here’s the bigger secret: Companies often charge you double for snack-size portions. Take Chex Mix Cheddar, for example, which costs 2.13 times more per gram when packages in 100-calorie packs than when sold in a normal 8.75-ounce bag.

Secret No. 13: The calorie under-count

Food companies don’t want you to know that their calorie counts may be wrong. That’s because in order to make sure you’re getting at least as much as you pay for, the FDA is more likely to penalize a food manufacturer for overstating the net weight of a product than for understating it. As a result, it seems that manufacturers often either “generously” package more food than the stated net weight or make servings heavier than the stated serving-size weight. That means you may be eating more calories than you think. Case in point: Using an ordinary food scale, we found that based on the actual weight of a serving, Back to Nature classic granola contained 244 calories—64 more calories than the number listed. Yet another reason to eat with caution.

It’s a funny thing when one starts exercising…they get sooo annoying.  Take me for example, I get super annoying. I do 20 jumping jacks and immediately start asking people if  they see results, if I look any fitter or thinner.  Then I continue to pest them everyday until they acknowledge change. Ugh.

It’s so frustrating when you make an effort to lose weight — an honest-to-goodness, try-your-heart-out effort — and it goes nowhere. (Of course, who doesn’t feel a smidge of impatience right from the get-go? There’s always a little part of you that expects to be transformed after just one workout.) My clients often cite lack of results as one of the top reasons for giving up on an exercise. So, for those who have ever felt like they’ve been left at the starting gate when trying to lose weight by exercising, here are a few tips that may help.

Work Harder. When you first begin an exercise program, even a leisurely stroll can leave you sucking wind. After a few weeks, you’ll notice that the same amount of exercise won’t leave you quite as breathless, and your heart won’t thump quite as loudly. That’s a sure sign of progress, but it’s also a sure sign you need to kick into a higher gear. In fact, there’s some scientific evidence to suggest that doing one or two hard-hitting workout sessions a week can rev up weight loss; when you push yourself, you burn a greater number of calories per hour and can pump up your resting calorie burn rate for several hours — or even several days — afterwards. For stalled weight-loss efforts, add one to two weekly “interval training” workouts (that’s where you mix speedy, high-intensity intervals lasting one to five minutes with slower recovery intervals lasting an equal amount of time).

Go Longer: There is no question that some exercise is better than none at all. However, when you’re attempting to downsize, 20 minutes here or there probably isn’t going to cut it. According to many expert organizations, there’s a certain calorie burning threshold you need to hit to begin making a dent in excess body fat. For example, the American College of Sports Medicine proposes shooting for 300 calories worth of exercise daily. The National Weight Control Registry recommends burning 2,800 calories per week through exercise, which translates into four to seven hours of movement depending on your mode of exercise, how intense your workouts are and how much you weigh.

Balance it: A combination of aerobics, weights and mind-body activities will help you get there faster. Aerobic pursuits, such as running, cycling and swimming, burn tons of calories but don’t do much for your metabolism. Weight training burns some calories, but its main purpose is to build and preserve fast metabolizing muscle. Stretching, whether it’s traditional, Yogic or Pilates-based, burns more calories still and keeps your muscles supple and injury free so you’re less likely to miss a workout.

Diet matters: It takes about 14 minutes of moderately-paced walking to burn off 100 calories and about a millisecond to scarf down 100 calories worth of chocolate. Even though research indicates that exercise is the most important health habit you can cultivate for both losing and maintaining weight loss, all the treadmill sessions in the world won’t do you any good if the majority of your meals consist of super-sized portions of junk food. That doesn’t mean jumping on the latest fad diet bandwagon. However, you’re probably going to have to limit calories to some extent, even if you’re religious about working out.

Bad news, pill poppers: Hydroxycut is killing people.

The FDA has published a list of dangerous side effects and why you should avoid taking them — not little-time bad like “oooh, upset tummy!” but big-time bad as in “kidney transplant”. Or, oh crap, I have jaundice. A lot of these diet pills such as hydroxycut also have major warnings posted on their labels, like tremors and heart problems. But of course, we all know that’s unlikely to deter people desperate to get thin.

So here’s my honest take on diet pills and supplements as a whole: I think it’s a real shame that this industry is unregulated – The supplement makers won the right to sell any old crap and call it whatever they wanted with almost no oversight. In fact, if you buy the same supplement from two different companies, you could be getting two very different things. And if you buy two bottles of the same supplement from one company, um, you could also be getting two very different things.

This is all really unfortunate because some of the ingredients in these herbs and pills are the real deal. They actually work well for certain things. And there are reputable companies and herbalists out there who are forced to compete with random-powder peddlers. And on the flip side, some of these herbs do real things to your body–real BAD things.

This may come as a surprise to my audience, and while I can’t tout diet and exercise enough, I can understand why overweight people would take diet pills.  While I often spend time mocking the claims of diet supplements, I am guilty of popping a few Hydroxycut myself. And when I say a few, I mean two. Which brings me to: personal responsibility and common sense.  Is taking six to eight pills a day a really a sensible thing to do because it said so on some bottle recommended by a company unregulated by the FDA? I mean, even if my doctor told me to take six advil a day for pain, I would question the quantity.

If you plan on taking diet pills, please look at the list and decide if the benefits of your weight loss, special detoxifying-memory-enhancing-chi-rebalancing-remedy are worth the “hazardous” risk.

By the way, if you take supplements, please check them out on the Wellness Letter Guide to Dietary Supplements. It’s written by good, objective people who actually read the research and who just want to keep the public safe and healthy. Really.

Why is my favorite meal anything that contains sugar? I am totally addicted to sweets, and I am not alone: The average American consumes an astounding 2-3 pounds of sugar each week, which is not surprising considering that highly refined sugars in the forms of sucrose (table sugar), dextrose (corn sugar), and high-fructose corn syrup are being processed into so many foods such as bread, cereal, peanut butter, ketchup and a plethora of microwave meals.

My weakness is probably chocolate. And wine. And cupcakes. Perhaps I can add strawberry cake as well? The really fake, bright pink kind. Even the lighter pink one is good too and it smells deliciously fake. Moving on.

In the last 20 years, sugar consumption in the U.S. has increased from 26 pounds to 135 lbs. of sugar per person per year. But I’m a sugar addict, so I totally understand the need for sugar, especially when that mid-afternoon sleepiness kicks in and you just have to have a fix.

There are 4 classes of simple sugars which are regarded as “harmful” to optimal health: sucrose, fructose, honey, and malts. (I say harmful because refined dietary sugars lack minerals and vitamins, so they must draw upon the body’s micro-nutrient stores in order to be metabolized into the system).

Surprised to find honey on the list? Although honey is a natural sweetener, it is considered a refined sugar because it’s 96% simple sugars: fructose, glucose and sucrose. Also, that cute honey bear is the only animal found in nature with a problem with tooth-decay (honey decays teeth faster than table sugar). Honey has the highest calorie content of all sugars with 65 calories/tablespoon, compared to the 48 calories/tablespoon found in table sugar.

Also, sugar in general, is devoid of minerals, vitamins and fiber, and has such a deteriorating effect on the endocrine system, that major researchers and major health organizations agree that sugar consumption in America is one of the 3 major causes of degenerative disease.

One would think that after writing that sugar makes you old that I would put away this piece of chocolate that I enjoy while writing, that I would just stop sinking my teeth into this delicious substance, that I would just discard it, but discard it I will not. I am having a good time, and is there anything wrong with having a good time?

And is there anything really wrong with eating a lot of sugar?
The answer makes me sad: yes.

One of sugar’s major drawbacks is that it raises the insulin level, which inhibits the release of growth hormones, which in turn depresses the immune system. This is not something you want to take place if you want to avoid disease.

An influx of sugar into the bloodstream upsets the body’s blood-sugar balance, triggering the release of insulin, which the body uses to keep blood-sugar at a constant and safe level. Insulin also promotes the storage of fat, so that when you eat sweets high in sugar, you’re making way for rapid weight gain and elevated triglyceride levels, both of which have been linked to cardiovascular disease. Complex carbohydrates tend to be absorbed more slowly, lessening the impact on blood-sugar levels.

Sugar depresses the immune system. We know that glucose and vitamin C have similar chemical structures, so what happens when the sugar levels go up? They compete with one another upon entering the cells. And the thing that mediates the entry of glucose into the cells is the same thing that mediates the entry of vitamin C into the cells. If there is more glucose around, there is going to be less vitamin C allowed into the cell.

So when you eat sugar, think of your immune system slowing down to a crawl.

Simple sugars have been observed to aggravate asthma, move mood swings, provoke personality changes (this has happened to me without the sugar), muster mental illness, nourish nervous disorders, deliver diabetes, hurry heart disease, grow gallstones, hasten hypertension, and add arthritis.

I won’t stop eating sugar, but I will certainly cut back.

I don’t mind discussing diets, but I absolutely abhor it when people talk to me about their diets as though one size fits all.

“You know I’m a diet. Today was asparagus, I ate asparagus for every meal.”

Or,

“I’m on the lemonade diet. I drank lemonade all day.”

Ridiculous yes, but I’m open minded and I will try anything once. Except that. Food is delicious, it is meant to be nutritious and enjoyable, especially when shared with first-class company. The Journal of Clinical Investigation states “ghrelin triggers the same neurons as delicious food, sexual experience, and many recreational drugs; that is, neurons that provide the sensation of pleasure and the expectation of reward.”

So forget dieting, because, like pencil arms, diets are so yesterday. It’s about moderation and just eating smart.

However, regardless of your situation, goals, and personality, there are a few things you can do to help eat this, and not that.

1. Add lots of vegetables to every meal, not the kind that is slathered in butter or other fats, but the green and leafy steamed kind is good. If you love rice like I do, add corn, carrot and peas to it so you are eating more veggies than rice. And don’t fry it up people, boil it.

2. Read labels on packaged foods. Know what they mean by serving size, how much sugar is added, and if they use chicken feet as an ingredient. Some people eat chicken feet by choice, just read the label to make sure you’re not, you know, inadvertently eating it.

3. Do not follow any long-term eating plan that requires you to feel hungry most of the time. By hungry I mean both physically (growling stomach, weak and dizzy) and emotionally (overwhelming sense of deprivation, feeling like you can ‘never’ have your favorite foods). Too much physical hunger is also called starving yourself like an idiot, or, I prefer the term anorexia, because isn’t that what starving yourself is? Too much emotional hunger and you’ll probably get into that crappy all-or-nothing cycle that involves monk-like abstinence broken by serious binges.

4. Cut out any foods that 1) you don’t care about (i.e. not among your favorites) and 2) are on the not-helpful side of the nutritional wall. My example is potato chips. I’m a sugar, not a salt person, and I want to spend every calorie I can on cookies and cakes and pies. Therefore I don’t eat chips, because why waste time with something that is not even in my top ten foods? Easy sacrifices, that’s what I’m all about.

5. Think ahead about your week when you make food choices. It’s much easier to forgo office doughnuts if you know you are going to eat out that evening at a place with killer cheesecake, or pie, or cake…See, I also like the idea of stripping as much guilt as possible away from eating, and I hate wasting time with mindless consumption when I could be savoring.

Lastly, check out this book by Michael Pollan. It’s about the rise of ‘nutrients’ instead of foods, and how the food lobbies have been instrumental in shaping that. This is a big part of why nobody knows what to eat anymore.

Recommended: Highly likely.

Welcome to the first giveaway at Just Eat Smart! Yes, free stuff is lovely, but isn’t it nice to be a part of this noteworthy moment? Go ahead; mark this date on your date on your calendar.

Win a copy of Eat This, Not That.

That being said, let me request that you ignore the thematically semi-relevant introduction to the book’s subject (ok, I will tell you this, it’s a pretty awesome and handy guide to have).

How do you win? Leave a comment! What you say in your comment will, in every way, affect your chances of winning this random drawing. Pretty cloudy rules, eh?

See, the more you talk about how wonderful this site is, the higher your chances are of winning. I love sharing!

Meet me right here on Wednesday, March 18th to see if you’ve won—let’s say afternoonish, but I could be late and that of course totally depends on how many glasses of wine accompanies lunch.

Good luck!

Q: Should I eat protein before or after my workout?

You should consume protein before AND after your workouts. Always eat a small pre-workout meal consisting of some low glycemic carbs and a quality protein. A good meal is a half cup of rolled oats and a scoop of whey protein. This provides you with a sustained carb source to provide energy through your workout and a quality protein source to support muscle repair and growth.

Post-workout meal should consist of a high quality protein and a high glycemic carbohydrate. After your workout is the ideal time to spike your insulin levels and re-supply your body with glycogen. Liquid meals are great after your workout because you don’t have to deal with the heavy digestion which real foods takes. I like Isagenix alot, it’s everything my body needs after a hard workout.The goal for post workout is to maintain a prompt digestion rate so nutrients can transport swiftly and efficiently to our muscles.