Low-fat diets
Is less really more?
For the longest time, diet gurus and nutritional companies have sworn by low-fat diets, saying they can decrease your risk of heart disease and cancer. But a recent study has shown that the successes of low fat dieting are very conditional, and if you're a woman past menopause who's been eating poorly all her life, you may have missed the boat.
In an eight-year study, government researchers monitored the eating habits of 48,835 post-menopausal women -- most in their late 60s -- who were instructed to dramatically decrease their fat intake and increase the numbers of fruits and veggies that they ate.
The end results were disappointing. Researchers found little evidence that a low-fat diet -- especially one started later in life -- decreases a woman's risk for cancer or heart disease, though the results were slightly better among the women who cut out the most fat.
Of course, it's always better to get started on disease prevention early in life. But let's face it: For some people it's just too late to get a head start.
But don't get discouraged. It's never too late to start eating healthy and getting all of the vitamins and minerals that you need to lessen your risk of disease. At the very least, you'll be preventing further damage.
As for me, well, I've never been one of those doctors who preach about low-fat diets to my patients. The fact is, you need fats -- too little fat can actually cause fatigue, emotional imbalance, and illness. And any study ever done has shown that the pounds come right back by the end of the year if the diet is not permanently maintained.
Instead, what I believe in is getting the right fats, and a haphazard approach to low-fat dieting isn't going to help you with that at all. You see, what those diet commercials and magazines don't always tell you is that there are bad fats and good fats.
Try foods with natural fats from plants, fish, and other animals that haven't been injected with hormones and antibiotics. I recommend eating fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, herring, or sardines once or twice each week. Nuts like almonds and walnuts are also healthy sources of good fats, and so are olive oil and butter when they're used sparingly. Eat animal fats like beef and poultry in moderation, and aim for free range or pasture fed beef and poultry.
Meanwhile, avoid the man-made trans fats found in packaged baked goods and margarines, which are unhealthy. You can tell if a product contains trans fats if you see the word "hydrogenated" or "partially hydrogenated" anywhere on the label.
Most nutrition experts do allow for 10 percent of your fat intake to be from saturated fats from animal sources, so you actually can have butter and beef if you like it. Overall, fat should account for about 25 to 30 percent of your daily calorie intake.
Controlling those cravings by eating less more often
So now that you know which fats are good fats, it's time to weed the bad ones out of your diet. One way to do this is to learn how to control your cravings.
Those cravings aren't necessarily as rooted in your appetite as you may think. Research has shown that many of our cravings are mental, which means your brain might want those French fries more than your stomach does.
One way to tell the difference between a physical craving and an emotional one is by how quickly or slowly the craving hit. If it came on gradually, than you probably are truly hungry. But if a craving comes quickly and out of nowhere, it's probably mental. Also, a mental craving is usually for a specific food -- you don't want anything else. If you're truly hungry, you'll be open to different options.
When your cravings actually are physical, it could mean your fat intake or your blood sugar is too low. The solution for avoiding this is simple: Avoid getting too hungry.
Don't wait until you just can't help but eat -- that's when you're most likely to indulge in the pizza and fries that stick around your thighs and waste. Instead, have a healthy midmorning snack -- like a small piece of cheese and some fruit -- and then another in the mid-afternoon. When dinner rolls around, you'll be much less likely to reach for that extra serving of mashed potatoes drenched in butter.
Then, of course, there are those mental food cravings. Those can be tough to beat. But here are a few tips you can use when cravings strike:
1. Brush your teeth and use mouthwash. Most foods don't taste so good after you douse your mouth with scope or Listerine.
2. Choose a healthy substitute for the food you're actually craving. Instead of ice cream, try frozen yogurt. Instead of potato chips, try baked tortilla chips with a little guacamole.
3. Find a distraction, whether it's exercise, calling a friend on the phone, or cleaning your house. You can't eat too easily while you're doing anything that requires physical exertion.
4. Drink at least 64 ounces of water daily. Water suppresses your appetite, especially when our appetite is really just our mind tricking us into thinking that we want food, when we really don't.
5. One more trick you might try is having a dozen almonds with a glass of water about 30 minutes before a meal. The water will swell the fiber from the almonds, helping to satisfy your stomach and cutting your appetite down.
Relax, don't binge
As hectic and harried as we all get these days with work and family and bills to juggle, it's no wonder so many American's are obese. After all, our stress levels can play a direct role in our eating habits.
In a recent study, researchers observed a group of rats after injecting them with the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) hormone, which is the hormone responsible for triggering our desire for a reward -- like food -- either during or after a stressful situation. Like humans, the rats with higher levels of CFR showed a stronger craving for a reward (in the test it was a piece of sugar).
I'm not going to tell you how to relax -- you have a much better sense of what calms you down than I do. All I ask is that you avoid using food to unwind. Instead, think about other positive activities that you enjoy, like riding your bike or hiking, listening to music, playing with your dog, or shopping -- whatever you like, so long as it keeps you calm, fit, and healthy.
