Archive for January, 2010

Carbs, carbs, carbs. That’s what everyone seems to want to talk about. How do I avoid carbs?

Well, what you should be talking about instead is, “How do I get more lean Protein into my eating plan?”

More and more research is coming out showing that protein is a major player in your weight loss success. One way it does this is through the “thermic effect” of food.  Some of you may have heard of this term, but don’t really understand what it means.

The definition of the thermic effect of food is the increase in energy expenditure (calories burned) above your resting metabolic rate due to the cost of digesting your food for storage and use.

Every time you consume food your body burns calories to digest that food.  The interesting thing with this is your body does not require as many calories to digest carbohydrates and fat as it does protein.

For every 100 calories of carbohydrates or fat you consume your body only requires about 3-7 calories to digest those carbs and fat.  If you consumed 100 calories of protein your body requires around 24-28 calories to digest that protein.

So roughly your body burns potentially up to 30% of the protein calories you consume just to digest that protein and only 3-7% of the carbs and fat you eat and digest.

This can be significant when it comes to successfully losing weight as you can see from this research study.

In 2005 a study conducted at the University of Illinois studied the interaction of 2 diets (high protein, reduced carbohydrates vs low protein, high carbohydrates) with exercise on body composition and blood lipids in women during weight loss.

The study was a 4-month weight loss trial and the diets were equal in total energy, but differed in protein content and the ratio of carbohydrates to protein.

The exercise comparisons were lifestyle activities which was the control vs a supervised exercise program of cardio and resistance training.

Subjects in the Protein and the Protein + Exercise groups lost more total weight and fat mass than the Carbohydrate and Carbohydrate + Exercise groups.  They also tended to lose less lean body muscle as well.

The exercise increased the loss of body fat and preserved lean muscle.

This study demonstrated that a healthy diet plan with higher protein and reduced carbohydrates combined with exercise improved body composition during weight loss.

Other studies have replicated these results and have shown that a higher protein diet of at least 1.5 grams per kilogram of bodyweight and reduced carbohydrates of 120-200 grams per day appear to enhance and improve weight loss due to a higher loss of body fat and reduced loss of lean body mass.

Short-term studies report beneficial effects that include:

1. Satiety (fullness)
2. Increased thermogenesis (faster metabolism through the thermic effect of food)
3. Sparing of muscle protein loss (less lean muscle loss)
4. Improved glycemic control (your body uses the sugars more for energy instead of storing them as fat)

These results are likely occurring from lower carbohydrates, which result in lower blood glucose levels as well as higher protein providing increased Branched Chain Amino Acid Leucine levels.

Increased protein intake also triggers the hormone glucagon, which is the counteracting hormone to insulin and helps to keep your insulin from spiking.  This minimizes your chances of storing blood sugars as fat.

A key element in a higher protein diet appears to be the higher levels of the Branched Chain Amino Acid Leucine and its regulatory actions on muscle protein synthesis, controlling your insulin signal and the ability to use glucose for energy rather than fat storage.

If you are like many weight loss seekers you do not eat enough protein in your healthy diet plans and especially not enough protein that contains the key Branched Chain Amino Acid Leucine.

Saying you are going to eat a high protein diet for the next 3 months is great, but that isn’t going to help you with long-term weight loss.  Essentially you need to maintain a higher protein diet long-term and the research studies are showing that long-term weight maintenance is better when following a higher protein diet compared to a moderate to high carbohydrate diet.

Now the biggest obstacle is consuming enough protein.  Some are not big meat eaters and that is fine, but it does make it harder to get in the suggested amount of lean protein required to maximize your fat loss and long-term weight maintenance.

This is where a protein shake can be beneficial to your overall success.

A cold-processed protein powder that also contains plenty of Branched Chain Amino Acids particularly Leucine is what you want to look for so that you can benefit from the lean muscle growth, increased metabolism, and accelerated fat loss.  Make sure it is cold-processed protein because many cheaper protein powders use heat in their processing methods.  What this does is damage the fragile protein molecule and make the protein molecule less active and functional.  Essentially you get protein that is not as effective as it could be.

Resources:

Layman DK, Evans EM, Erickson D, Seyler J, Weber J, Bagshaw D, Griel A, Psota T, Kris-Etherton P.  A moderate-protein diet produces sustained weight loss and long-term changes in body composition and blood lipids in obese adults.  J Nutr. 2009 Mar;139(3):514-21. Epub 2009 Jan 21.

Layman DK, Evans E, Baum JI, Seyler J, Erickson DJ, Boileau RA.  Dietary protein and exercise have additive effects on body composition during weight loss in adult women.  J Nutr. 2005 Aug;135(8):1903-10.

Layman DK, Boileau RA, Erickson DJ, Painter JE, Shiue H, Sather C, Christou DD.  A reduced ratio of dietary carbohydrate to protein improves body composition and blood lipid profiles during weight loss in adult women.  J Nutr. 2003 Feb;133(2):411-7.

Researchers at Columbia University and The City College of New York analyzed 1993-2008 data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System that included interviews with more than 3.5 million adults. The results showed that the quality-adjusted life years lost to obesity are equal to, or greater than, those lost because of smoking.

From 1993 to 2008, the number of adult smokers decreased 18.5% and smoking-related quality-adjusted life years lost remained relatively stable at 0.0438 quality-adjusted life years lost per population. Over that same time, the proportion of obese Americans increased 85%, resulting in 0.0464 quality-adjusted life years lost. Obesity had a larger effect on disease, while smoking had a greater impact on deaths, the researchers found.

“Although life expectancy and quality-adjusted life expectancy have increased over time, the increase in the contribution of mortality to QALYs lost from obesity may result in a decline in future life expectancy. Such data are essential in setting targets for reducing modifiable health risks and eliminating health disparities,” the researchers wrote.

The study is published in the February issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Another recent study concluded that if both smoking and obesity rates in the United States remain unchanged, life expectancy in the nation will be reduced by almost nine months. That study was published in the Dec. 3 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

By Robert Preidt, HealthDay

UVA rays pose a threat to skiers, snowboarders, experts say

(HealthDay News) — If you’re like many people, you slather on sunscreen during hot summer days, then in winter, not so much. Short, cold days make it easy to forget that the sun doesn’t go into hibernation. While the intensity of ultraviolet B (UVB) rays diminishes in the winter, ultraviolet A (UVA) rays remain constant all year, said Dr. Perry Robins, president of the Skin Cancer Foundation. And UVA rays are about 30 to 50 times more prevalent than UVB rays. Too much of either isn’t good for your skin, but UVA rays pose particular dangers to your skin. Though UVA rays are less likely than UVB rays to cause sunburn, UVA rays do contribute to skin cancer. And the longer wavelength UVA rays penetrate deeper into the skin than shorter wavelength UVB rays.

The damage causes skin to lose its elasticity, leading to the classic signs of aging: wrinkles, sagging and brown spots. “Our knowledge of the dangers associated with UVA rays has grown significantly over the last few decades. We now know that UVA plays a significant role in skin cancer,” Robins said. “Therefore, consumers need to educate themselves on how to protect against these damaging rays and remember that sun protection is an all-year-round concern.” Cloud cover won’t protect you. Even on gray winter days, about 80 percent of both UVA and UVB rays penetrate clouds. And 100 percent of UVA rays penetrate glass.

To protect your exposed skin from UVA and UVB rays, put on “broad spectrum” sunscreen daily. Look for ingredients such as avobenzone, oxybenzone, mexoryl, zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide. You can make sunscreen a part of your daily routine even in winter by choosing a facial and hand moisturizer with an SPF of 15 or higher. Many cosmetics, such as foundation, lipsticks and powder, contain an SPF. And don’t forget the sunscreen on your nose and cheeks when you’re frolicking in the snow. Many a skier has learned the painful lesson that snow acts as a powerful reflector, radiating about 80 percent of UV rays back up to your nose and face.

When applying sunscreen, don’t forget to apply it under the nose and chin where those rays will hit, and wear goggles or sunglasses with UV protection. And just like you do at the beach, reapply sunscreen every two hours. More information The American Academy of Dermatology has more about sunscreen.

– Jennifer Thomas

SOURCE: Skin Care Foundation, news release, Dec. 8, 2009

Obesity now poses as great a threat to Americans’ quality of life as smoking, a new study shows.

By Robert Preidt, HealthDay

Researchers at Columbia University and The City College of New York analyzed 1993-2008 data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System that included interviews with more than 3.5 million adults. The results showed that the quality-adjusted life years lost to obesity are equal to, or greater than, those lost because of smoking.

From 1993 to 2008, the number of adult smokers decreased 18.5% and smoking-related quality-adjusted life years lost remained relatively stable at 0.0438 quality-adjusted life years lost per population. Over that same time, the proportion of obese Americans increased 85%, resulting in 0.0464 quality-adjusted life years lost. Obesity had a larger effect on disease, while smoking had a greater impact on deaths, the researchers found.

“Although life expectancy and quality-adjusted life expectancy have increased over time, the increase in the contribution of mortality to QALYs lost from obesity may result in a decline in future life expectancy. Such data are essential in setting targets for reducing modifiable health risks and eliminating health disparities,” the researchers wrote.

The study is published in the February issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Another recent study concluded that if both smoking and obesity rates in the United States remain unchanged, life expectancy in the nation will be reduced by almost nine months. That study was published in the Dec. 3 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Diet shocker: Food calorie counts are often off

Actual calories were up to 18 percent higher than listed, study found

A new study says food at popular chain restaurants and in the frozen food aisles can be more fattening than advertised.

A study of meals from 10 restaurant chains including Ruby Tuesday and Wendy’s found calorie counts averaging 18 percent more than the values listed by the restaurants.

Diet meals made by Lean Cuisine, Weight Watchers, Healthy Choice and others averaged 8 percent higher than the numbers on the label.

The study was led by Susan Roberts, a professor of nutrition at Tufts University, and published in the January issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

Roberts says the study “raises a big issue” and that posting calories for consumers is only useful if the numbers are right.

While a few extra calories per meal may not wreck a diet, over a longer period of time, they can have a significant effect on a person’s weight, says nutritionist Bonnie Taub-Dix, R.D. At a time when more states are requiring chain restaurants to post calorie counts on menus, the labels need more scrutiny, she says.

“There can be a lot of inaccuracies, especially for smaller food companies,” says Taub-Dix, msnbc.com contributor and author of “Read It Before You Eat It” (Plume, Summer 2010). “Consumers should read labels carefully, and if they suspect that a product has an inaccurate label, they should not be afraid to complain — only squeaky wheels get greased.”

-Associated Press

Too few heart patients make use of all 36 Medicare-funded sessions, researchers say

(HealthDay News) — Cardiac rehabilitation sessions for elderly people with heart disease can lower their risk of heart attack and help them live longer, new research finds, but fewer than one in five eligible patients bothers to go.

Researchers looked at medical records of more than 30,000 Medicare patients aged 65 and older who attended at least one cardiac rehabilitation session from 2000 to 2005. The findings: More sessions are better.

“We were not surprised that patients who attended more rehabilitation had better outcomes,” sstudy author Bradley G. Hammill said in a statement. “We need to encourage physicians to recommend cardiac rehabilitation to eligible patients, and we need to encourage those patients to attend and stay with it.”

But while Medicare will pay for 36 cardiac rehabilitation sessions, about half of those in the study only attended 24 or fewer, said Hammill, senior biostatistician at the Center for Clinical and Genetic Economics at Duke Clinical Research Institute, in Durham, N.C.

Those who attended all 36 sessions had a 12 percent lower risk of heart attack and 14 percent lower risk of death than those who went to 24. The gap was even greater when compared to those who attended 12 sessions or only one.

The rehab programs emphasize education about heart disease, exercise, stress, nutrition and medication use, among other things.

“Unfortunately, use of cardiac rehab is very low,” Hammill said. “Under 20 percent of those eligible ever go, and women and minorities go less often than white men. We need to promote cardiac rehab for everyone.”

The findings were published in the Dec. 22 issue of Circulation.

More information

Learn more about cardiac rehab from the American Heart Association.
– Randy Dotinga

SOURCE: American Heart Association, press release, Dec. 21, 2009.

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Study points to self-consciousness as biggest factor standing in people’s way

(HealthDay News) — Another New Year’s Day looms, and millions of Americans will resolve that this year, they’ll exercise and get fit, so why by the end of January are so many of those resolutions broken?

New research may shed some light on the problem.

It’s not that people don’t know that exercise is good for them and can improve their self-image. Obese and overweight people, in fact, are even stronger believers in the importance of exercise than those of normal weight, according to a survey of more than 1,500 men and women conducted by researchers at George Washington University Medical Center.

But many overweight and obese people loathe the idea of huffing and puffing in front of younger, thinner gym-goers, the poll found. They also feel embarrassed about sweating it out in front of those svelte, muscular health club staffers.

That kind of self-consciousness may affect females more than males. Compared to men of all sizes, women are more likely to feel intimidated about using complicated equipment, to feel pressure to exercise in trendy clothes and to fret about exercising in front of the opposite sex.

So in the end it’s emotions, not a lack of determination, that may keep people from regular exercise.

“Overweight people have received the message from their physicians and all the publicity about the importance of exercise,” said study author Wayne Miller, a professor of exercise science at George Washington University Medical Center. “Most of the negativism or barriers that are associated with not participating in exercise are emotional, and there are differences between men and women.”

The study, to be published in the January/February issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, was funded by the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association.

Two-thirds of U.S. residents are now overweight or obese, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obesity rates have doubled for adults and tripled for children since 1980.

Yet, only about 30 percent of those trying to lose weight meet the National Institutes of Health exercise recommendations to get five hours per week of moderate aerobic activity, according to background information in the study.

Though several recent studies have called into question how much exercise helps with losing weight, exercise does reduce obesity-related diseases and has been shown to help people who have lost weight keep it off, according to the study.

In the study, about 18 percent of respondents belonged to a health club while 82 percent did not. About two-thirds were overweight or obese. The more someone weighed, the lower their assessment of their own health. Yet despite being well aware that they need to exercise, negative feelings about the health club environment kept them from doing so.

“Both overweight men and women were intimidated by the health club itself, the environment and the staff. They were both uncomfortable about exercising around fit people,” Miller said. “The message to health clubs is they need to do more to make overweight people feel unself-conscious and comfortable.”

But overweight people can’t wait for health clubs to change, said Gregory Florez, a spokesman for the American Council on Exercise.

“It’s the ultimate conundrum, or Catch-22,” Florez said. “Obese people certainly know they are obese and they need to lose weight, and in many cases are quite motivated. However, they almost universally have a history of failure. They have tried every bestseller diet. They have tried every diet pill, legal and semi-legal. They have watched every infomercial.”

The key may be to avoid an all-or-nothing approach. Instead of committing to daily spinning classes at the local health club, obese people may choose to start by making smaller, incremental changes, such as taking the stairs or walking for a few extra minutes a day.

When it comes to diet, small changes can also add up to big weight loss, from using mustard instead of mayo on a sandwich to trying to eat just a bit less each day.

If a glitzy gym makes you uncomfortable, try a specialty gym that caters to women only, or an online or community-based weight loss support group. And people can head to their community parks for a brisk walk and some fresh air, he noted, since exercise is not the sole domain of health clubs.

“You can’t say, ‘I’m going to go to the gym and exercise around a bunch of beautiful people, or ‘I’m going to have to cut all this stuff out of my diet,’” Florez said. “You have to look at it as a gradual and loving process for yourself.”

By Jennifer Thomas HealthDay Reporter

More information

The U.S. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases offers tips on getting fit.
SOURCES: Wayne Miller, Ph.D., professor, exercise science, George Washington University Medical Center, Washington, D.C.; Gregory Florez, spokesman, American Council on Exercise, and CEO, FitAdvisor.com, Salt Lake City; January/February 2010 Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior

More Medicinal Uses for Pomegranate

Ointment made with fruit rind fights drug-resistant infections, researchers say

(HealthDay News) — Pomegranate rind can be turned into an ointment to treat common hospital infections, including those caused by highly dangerous methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria, English researchers report.

In a series of experiments, the team at Kingston University in London found that the infection-fighting power of pomegranate rind was boosted by combining it with vitamin C and metal salts.

“We have developed a topical ointment that can successfully attack a range of drug-resistant microbes. It’s a breakthrough and a striking example of the effectiveness of adding more components to create a more active product,” team leader Declan Naughton said in a university news release.

Their tests showed that pomegranate rind plus metal salts was the most effective combination for treating MRSA, while adding vitamin C to those two components was most effective against other common hospital infections.

“The increase in drug-resistant infections found in hospitals has made our research topical and pressing. The idea of using a foodstuff is unusual and means that the body should be able to cope more easily with its application; patients are less likely to experience any major side effects,” Naughton said.

The findings were recently published in the journals British Journal of Biomedical Science and BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

More information

The U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has more about MRSA.
– Robert Preidt

Could Omega-3s Boost Blood Fat Levels?

Study finds short-term effect may not be beneficial

By Ed Edelson
HealthDay Reporter

(HealthDay News) — In a surprise finding, Canadian researchers report that the immediate effect of the fish oil fatty acids that are good for the heart is a short-term increase in blood fats and the molecules that help them form clots.

“We were surprised to find that the acute response has some potentially negative effects in comparison to what you might expect from chronic, long-term intake,” said Lindsay E. Robinson, an associate professor of nutrition at the University of Guelph, and leader of the group reporting the finding in the January issue of the Journal of Nutrition.

However, the study results shouldn’t affect the current recommendation for eating more oily fish to get the omega-3 polyunsaturated acids that reduce the risk of blood clots that can cause heart attacks and stroke, Robinson said.

“The recommendation to increase intake is very well-studied, and this doesn’t change it,” she said.

And the effects were seen in a selected group of middle-aged men with metabolic syndrome, a combination of high blood pressure, obesity and elevated blood fat levels, Robinson noted.

“We don’t have any reference to a healthy control group, which the study didn’t have,” she said. “It’s possible that in these individuals, there may be a different response to omega-3 fatty acids.”

Still, it does indicate that further study is warranted of the effects of omega-3 fatty acids in the postprandial period, the hours immediately following a meal, Robinson said.

“We spend up to 18 hours a day in the postprandial period,” she said.

In the study, eight men had controlled intake of three regimens: high doses of omega-3 fatty acids, low doses of them and just plain water. Robinson and her colleagues measured several blood components involved in clotting, including fats and clotting factors such as plasminogen-activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) for the following eight hours.

PAI-1 inhibits the destruction of blood clots, so high levels of it in the blood increase the risk of artery-blocking clots.

The researchers found that both omega-3 fatty acid regimens increased blood fat and clotting factor activity. But the increase in clotting factor was greater for the higher doses of omega-3 fatty acids than for the lower intakes.

Robinson said her group hopes to do further studies of the immediate effects of omega-3 fatty acid intake. “We need to look at the mechanisms, why blood lipid levels go up,” she said. It’s possible that there are important differences between the short-term and long-term responses to many dietary fats, she said.

“My quick read on it is that they are looking at a one-time treatment of these patients,” said Donald B. Jump, a professor of nutrition at Oregon State University.

“This may be a reflection on the experiment design,” Jump said. “From a clinical perspective, most patients take these compounds over periods of weeks or months. There is probably some adaption that occurs. That metabolic adaption probably requires some time. If they treated the patients for a couple of weeks and did the experiment again, they might get a different response.”

More information

Learn about the benefits of oily fish and omega-3 fatty acids from the American Heart Association.
SOURCES: Lindsay E. Robinson, Ph.D, associate professor, nutrition, University of Guelph, Canada; Donald B. Jump, professor, nutrition, Oregon State University; January 2010 Journal of Nutrition