Why Should I Avoid Sugary Beverages?

The link between sugary beverage consumption and obesity in children is so strong, that researchers at Pennsylvania State University say just knowing a child drinks one or more of these beverages is enough to predict future weight gain. Those same beverages - whether they are soft drinks or bottled energy, coffee, sports, or tea drinks - raise blood pressure, while the fructose in these beverages plays a role in the development of obesity and diabetes, according to a study from the University of Colorado. These are just two additions to an ocean of studies prompting some nutrition and obesity experts to call for a tax on sugary beverages. (New England Journal of Medicine 2009;September 16th) Consumption of beverages that contain high fructose corn syrup, fruit juice concentrates, or sucrose is linked to escalating risks of obesity in a variety of studies, especially when the studies are not funded by the beverage industry. Those links are found in all age groups, genders, and ethnicities. One study that looked at middle-school students over the course of two years found the risk of becoming obese increased by 60% for every additional serving of sugary beverage consumed in a day. Women gain weight in direct proportion to how many soft drinks they consume and lose weight as they cut back. Even replacing sugary beverages with more nutritious beverages, such as milk, results in significant weight loss. Repeatedly, studies show that diabetes and heart disease risk increases with increasing intake of sugary beverages. In the Nurses’ Health Study, an ongoing study at Harvard, the risk for diabetes in women who consumed one or more servings of sugary beverages each day was nearly double the risk among women who consumed less than one serving a month (about half the excess was due to greater body weight). In the same study, heart disease risk increased by 23% for women consuming one and 35% for those consuming two soft drinks a day. While weight gain is the most obvious result of consuming these junk drinks, other mechanisms elevating disease risk also play a role. For example, sugar raises blood triglyceride levels and blood pressure, while lowering the good cholesterol - HDLs, thus raising heart disease risk. Some studies also show that sugar-sweetened beverages increase markers for insulin resistance, a risk factor for diabetes. Liquid calories do not register on the body’s satiation gauge, so they become calories added to rather than calories replacing other energy-containing foods, which leads to overconsumption and weight gain. Sugary beverages may alter taste preferences and food acceptance, are used to quench thirst or for social reasons other than nourishment, and replace more nutritious foods in the diet, such as vegetables, legumes, and fruits, which contributes to malnutrition in the face of overnutrition. Taxation is being proposed by a growing body of nutrition experts as a means of reducing the intake of these beverages and thus, lowering health care costs, much in the same way that legislation taxes tobacco. Revenues generated from this income could be allocated for use in health or obesity-prevention programs. Currently, 33 states have sales taxes on soft drinks (averaging about 5.2%), but the taxes are too small to affect consumption and the revenues are not earmarked for programs related to health. Experts are calling for a change, one that could have a profound influence on this nation’s outof-
control obesity epidemic.

-Elizabeth Somer, M.A.,R.D.

Holiday Parties

Holiday Parties are happening and it's a lot of fun! It's also tough to turn down the unhealthy foods without ThinStick though. It's the perfect time of the year for ThinStick! Add a couple packets to your water and you'll be in control all night long!

Tips from JJ Virgin's LeanZine:

Don't Be a Dip About Dip. If it is a choice between hummus and spinach-artichoke dip, choose heart-healthy, high-fiber hummus rather than the latter which is loaded down with cheese and mayo. Dipping with crudites rather than crackers is a nice way to up your veggie quotient as well, and it will also help fill you up.


Yes, I'm Calling You Shrimp. The shrimp cocktail gets high marks, as does the smoked salmon. Instead of the high sugar cocktail sauce try dipping into some spicy salsa or even going without the dip. If there is some guacamole on hand, try a bit as a nice dip or even mix it with a tiny bit of salsa for some zip.

No Piggy. Another no-no is your standard party fare of pigs-in-a-blanket. I don't know about you, but I don't like to eat anything that has the word pigs in it. You can try a bacon wrapped scallop because of the relatively small amount of bacon provides loads of flavor, while the scallop is a high quality protein source that also contains omega three fats.

Aunt Jenny’s Famous Meatballs. No offense to your relatives, but those meatballs are probably loaded with bread and eggs. Eat them in small doses. Tell Aunt Jenny they're delicious and you've had five of them already. It's a small white lie that won't get you in trouble unless she's keeping count.

Mini Quiche. There is nothing really mini about this food and I'd say to skip it. Plus, who even knows what the heck is in these tiny pies? My rule is if I can't figure out what's in it then I'm not eating it.

Not So Nuts. Go nuts for a quick grab food because nuts have protein, fiber and good fats. However, you can't graze on nuts all night long because too much of a good thing is...too much. Try just eating 10 nuts and don't lose count by standing by the nuts and turbo loading them into your mouth as you talk. Those 10 nuts will fill you up and are a nice tasty treat.

Step Away. It's always helpful to step away from the buffet table. Is there a nice patio area where you can go outside and talk? Can you go into the den and find some old friends? Consciously make a decision that you've eaten enough and amuse yourself by talking, dancing, catching up or even playing DJ. You're not there to just eat, but to greet old chums.
 
Picture found @ http://www.lingeyhouseprimary.org/Christmas%20Party.jpg

Evening Snacking

If you are like me at all, you've heard that you shouldn't eat passed a certain time, say 8 p.m. or you will gain more weight. Then you've also heard it doesn't matter what time of day you eat, but what matters is the amount of calories you consume through out your entire day. What is the truth???

"When and What you Eat"
By: Elizabeth Somer, M.A., R.D.

We all know that our weights are a direct reflection of calories in versus calories out. However, researchers at Northwestern University’s Center for Sleep and Circadian Biology report that calories

consumed at night are more fattening than those eaten at other times of the day. In this study, mice fed high-fat diets during their normal sleeping time gained 48% more weight, while mice eating the same high-fat diet during their typical waking hours gained less than half as much, or 20% more weight. The researchers speculate that circadian rhythm has something to do with the weight gain. This internal clock regulates energy use, which implies that the timing of meals might make a difference when balancing calories in with calories out. In addition, the animals fed during their normal waking hours also moved more, thus burned off more

calories, compared to the ones fed closer to “bedtime.” The researchers emphasize that total calorie intake is still the most important determinant of body weight.

Arble D, Bass J, Laposky A, et al: Circadian timing of

food intake contributes to weight gain. Obesity 2009;September

3rd, on line.

Let ThinStick break your evening snacking habits and help control calorie intake!

What do health professionals say about ThinStick???

“As the leading authority in Weight Loss Resistance, I am always looking for natural ways to give my clients an edge over their appetite. ThinStick appeals to me as it is all natural, food based and scientifically founded. More importantly, it works—it really works! I use ThinStick myself everyday and I have been amazed to find that my mid-morning and mid-afternoon hunger pangs have completely vanished. ThinStick is my secret weapon for overcoming weight loss resistance!”
JJ Virgin, Celebrity Health and Nutrition Expert, and the creator of the Weight Loss Resistance Revolution ™.

"Thin stick is the best supplement I have used to decrease patient's hunger I have seen nothing work better to stop night-time snacking. For patients who snack, Thin Stick is the answer. It stops hunger, period. My patients have the hardest time after dinner, sitting in front of the TV, snacking on bad food in the house. Thin Stick STOPS these cravings. Diet and exercise must be used in any weight loss protocol, and Thin Stick must be used for anyone who has snack cravings. If you don't want to be hungry for 4 hours, take a Thin Stick!"

-Jared Skowron, N.D.

See you next year Summer, Hello Fall!

Although Summer isn't technically over and Fall does not start until the 22nd of September..it never feels like Summer anymore when school has started, the days are shorter and the weather turns a bit colder. Guess what though, the tasty food is never over! You can find yummy receipes in every season!

Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins

2 Cups Sugar

2 Eggs

1 T. Vanilla Extract

1 Cup Pumpkin Puree

2/3 Cup Vegetable Oil

2 1/4 Cup Flour

2 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 tsp Cinnamon

1 tsp Baking Soda

2 Cups Finely Chopped Cranberries

Glaze: 1 1/2 Cups Powdered Sugar & 2-3 T. Milk

Mix all dry ingredients in a medium size bowl.

Combine sugar, eggs, vanilla, pumpkin and vegetable oil in a separate bowl. Beat until combined. Add dry mixture to wet mixture. Fold in cranberries.

*Use non stick spray pans

Cool completely and top with glaze if desired.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 min or until done. Makes 2 loafs or about 12 muffins.

*May not be the healthiest muffin..but trust me, they are worth the calories! :)

5 Truths about Exercise

Exercise and Weight Loss: 5 Truths
By Miranda Hitti WebMD Feature
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

"You've heard it time and again -- to lose weight, you need to exercise and watch your diet, so that your calories burned exceed your calories consumed.
But if you've been working out and your extra pounds won't budge, you may be wondering why that seemingly simple strategy isn't working.
Don't hang up your sneakers and throw in the towel. If you do, you're going to miss out on the biggest weight perk exercise has to offer, experts tell WebMD.
First, you may need a reality check about what to expect from exercise. Here are five truths about exercise and your weight."

1. Exercise is only part of the weight loss story.
2. Exercise is a must for weight maintenance.
3. Food splurges may undo your efforts.
4. Exercise machines may not tell the whole calorie story.
5. One daily workout may not be enough.


READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN DEPTH: http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/exercise-and-weight-loss-five-truths

MSG in a Bottle ( From JJ Virgin)

MSG in a Bottle - The Hidden Danger of this Ubiquitous Food Flavoring

"Before you dive face first into your Peking duck, listen up. A recent study out of the University of North Carolina cites what animal studies have hinted at for years: MSG (aka monosodium glutamate) could be a factor in weight gain. The study focused on 750 Chinese men and women, ages 40-59, living in 3 rural villages in north and south China. Those participants who used the highest amounts of MSG had nearly 3 times the incidence of overweight as those who did not use MSG, even when physical activity, total caloric intake, and other possible explanations for body mass differences were taken into account.

We all know of someone who has had a bad reaction to MSG; in fact it's suggested that 25- 30% of all Americans suffer some sort of effect from MSG (e.g., palpitations and migraine headaches), and as many as 30 percent are extra sensitive to it if they consume more than 5 grams at one sitting! Unfortunately, these facts haven't seemed to slow down the food industry one bit. Americans consumed about 1 million pounds of MSG in 1950, and today that number has increased by a factor of 300!

So what exactly is monosodium glutamate? MSG is a flavor enhancer in foods--some believe it may even provide a fifth basic taste sensation (in addition to sweet, sour, salt, and bitter), what the Japanese call "umami" (roughly translated as "tastiness"). It is considered an "excitotoxin," since its action in the body is to excite neurotransmitters (important brain chemicals), causing nerve cells to discharge and also exciting nerves related to taste. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) describes MSG as "naturally occurring," and has it on the GRAS (generally regarded as safe) list. However, studies have shown that when MSG was ingested by lab rats, the hypothalamic regulation of the appetite was damaged by MSG, causing them to double their intake of food and triple their intake of fluids! Given these studies, as well as the prevalence of side effects reported, no amount of MSG appears to be a safe amount.

Eliminating MSG from the diet is much easier said than done, since there's no list of MSG-safe foods in existence. Start by reading the ingredient list; but understand that there will still be many foods that have MSG hidden inside other ingredients in the list (even products labeled "no MSG added" can still contain these hidden sources). Likely culprits include seasonings, flavor packets that you add to tacos, stews, soups, gravies, roasts, dips, etc., and canned soups and noodle packets. Anything that is expected to have a long shelf life is likely to include MSG in it.

Your best bet is to go organic and make things from scratch. Stick with whole foods that look pretty much the way they do when you pluck them from the ground. Avoid canned, boxed, bottled and frozen ANYTHING. Unless you are packaging your own foods, you have no clue what's in there!"

© 2009 JJ Virgin & Associates, Inc. JJ Virgin, PHD, CNS is a celebrity health and nutrition expert, author, public speaker and media personality. She is internationally recognized as the creator of the Weight Loss Resistance Revolution™ and trains other health care professionals in her program. She is the president of the National Association of Nutrition Professionals, http://www.nanp.org/.If you are frustrated with your body and feel like nothing you are doing is working, take her free quiz "Are You Weight Loss Resistant?" at http://www.jjvirgin.com/ and receive her monthly LEANzine loaded with insider information on fighting fat and getting lean for life!

Please be aware that processed organic food-can in fact contain MSG.

http://www.truthinlabeling.org./

Walk it out on a Wednesday

Walking is healthy way to exercise and is great for those who don't enjoy running or are not in the condition to run. There are many benefits to walking such as, it helps maintain weight, keeps blood pressure level down, reduces LDL (bad) cholesterol and lowers stress levels. A person of any age can walk and the chance of injury is quite lower than running since it's not as intense. You can always speed up to burn more calories.


Pedometer: Clip it to your pants and it will count the number of steps you take. It detects the motion of hips.


Ways to increase your daily steps:
Take a walk with your spouse, child, friend, or family member
Walk the dog
Use the stairs instead of the elevator
Park farther from the store, better yet, walk to the store
Get up to change the channel
Walk to your co-workers desk
Walk over to visit a neighbor
Go outside to walk around the garden or do a little weeding
Go on a mild hike
Walk on the treadmill

5 Surprising Reasons You're Gaining Weight

5 Surprising Reasons You're Gaining Weight
Extra calories may not be the only cause of weight gain.
By Kathleen M. Zelman, MPH

It's no mystery that a diet full of fried foods, giant portions, decadent desserts, alcohol, and sugary soft drinks will lead to weight gain. And there's little question why the pounds pile up when you take in more calories than you burn in physical activity. But how do you explain weight gain when your lifestyle includes regular exercise and a healthy diet that is controlled in calories? Gaining weight is absolutely maddening, especially when you really don't understand why the needle on the scale keeps going up.

Several things should be considered if you are gaining weight while watching calories and being physically active. More than likely, it's a variety of things working together that have resulted in the weight gain.

"Weight gain is so complicated; there are so many factors that can impact your weight. It is more likely a combination of things more than just one factor," explains Michelle May, MD, author of Am I Hungry? What to Do When Diets Don't Work.

Here are five factors that can cause the scale to creep up when you least expect it.


1. You Might Be Gaining Weight Because of Lack of Sleep
The body functions best when well rested. "When you don't get enough sleep, your body experiences physiological stress and, biochemically, you store fat more efficiently," says May.

When you're tired, you also don't handle stress as well, so you may reach for food as a coping mechanism. Further, you may be taking in extra calories from late-night snacking. Some people think eating might help them get back to sleep, but all it really does is add more calories to their daily total.

Symptoms that you may not be getting enough rest include fatigue, low energy levels, nodding off easily, and feeling irritable.

Strive to get eight hours of sleep each night.

"Add about 15 minutes to your bedtime and see how you feel," suggests May. "Continue to experiment with additional 15-minute increments until you find the ... amount of sleep that is right for you."

When you develop good sleeping rituals and get regular exercise, you sleep better, she adds.

2. You May Be Gaining Weight Because of Stress
We live in a society that demands we do more, be more, and achieve more. Stress moves us forward and helps cope with life's demands, but it also affects our mood and emotions.

"Stress response, whether it is 'fight-or-flight,' juggling too many responsibilities, or coping with financial pressures, triggers a biochemical process where our bodies go into survival mode," explains May. "Our bodies store fuel, slow down metabolism, and dump out chemicals [cortisol, leptin, and other hormones] which are more likely to cause ... obesity in the abdominal region."
The most common medical condition that causes weight gain is hypothyroidism. A deficiency of thyroid hormone can decrease metabolism, causing appetite loss and weight gain.

"If you are feeling fatigued, lethargic, swelling, hoarse voice, intolerance to cold, sleeping too much, or headaches, you should see your doctor for an easy test to determine if you have hypothyroidism," says May.

Much rarer is a condition known as Cushing's syndrome -- a disorder caused by an excess of the hormone cortisol -- that can also result in weight gain.

5. You May Be Gaining Weight Because of Menopause
Women reach menopause at a range of ages, but most are in midlife and are often less physically active than when they were younger. Along with aging comes a natural slowing of metabolism. At the same time, hormonal changes can trigger hunger, depression, and poor sleep.

"It is multifactoral. When women go through menopause, they lose estrogen, causing their shapes to change -- usually a loss of hip and thigh weight. And they start to gain more in the middle," says Bowerman. She explains that estrogen favors fat deposition in the lower body, and when you lose this hormone, fat is more likely to be deposited in the midsection (much like men). This spare tire around the middle has been not so affectionately called the "menopot."

The key to avoiding this extra belly fat is to maintain and increase the amount of lean body mass, which will, in turn, increase your metabolism or calorie burn rate.

"Women need to understand how critically important weight lifting and strength training is to their health," says Bowerman. And don't worry, doing strength training won't make women muscle-bound, experts say.

Exercise also helps offset bone loss that can come with menopause. A combination of exercise and a healthy, calorie-controlled diet rich in calcium and vitamin D is the answer to thwarting menopausal weight gain