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This month's newsletter discusses:
  • Everything in moderation
  • Brazilian superfoods
  • Productivity & health
  • Homemade bread recipes
  • Radio interview with Livia Ly
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Why 'everything in moderation' does not work?

 

I know you've heard this before. Maybe a health professional told you that you can eat 'everything in moderation' to be healthy.

Many people use this statement as an excuse to eat an unhealthy food or meal regularly. What does moderation even mean, anyway? A candy bar once a day or once a month? This statement makes people believe that they are finding a solution for everyone’s health. But it is broad and it leaves room for interpretation. What is eating 'everything in moderation' for you?

There are some people who should not eat unhealthy food in moderation because they have an uncontrolled reward system of their brain that causes a food addiction. But even if you do not have this predisposition to be addicted to a certain type of food, eating 'everything in moderation' is not a good goal to have.  

If you are eating an unhealthy food, let’s say, once a day, then it’s not a treat, it’s already a habit. We are creatures of habit. We buy the same foods from the same grocery stores and make the same recipes every day, and this dictates our lifestyle. 

What are unhealthy foods? I can say that the majority of processed and ultra-processed foods are not so healthy. These foods can have harmful chemicals, excess sugars, saturated fats, and salt that all contribute to creating an imbalance of our body functions, which disrupt our physiology. This imbalance initially brings us signs and symptoms of conditions, excess inflammation and toxicity, and consequently a possible onset of chronic diseases. Also, processed foods can lack many nutrients that we need daily.

Some will say, "But I exercise every day, so it’s OK for me to eat my daily lunch fries". The concept of "calories in versus calories out" is not completely correct because it's not simply about calories – our bodies are far more complex than that. The quality of food is much more important than the quantity of food. So, do not count your calories!  

Everything that you eat can affect your body, even at the genetic level. This is called epigenetics. The food you eat affects your protein structure and genes long after it has passed out of your body. These changes in gene expression are associated with physiologic and diseases processes, including aging and development of cancer. In addition, what you eat alters your metabolic health in the long run.

A study published at the end of October 2015 was designed to investigate the association between diet diversity ('everything in moderation') and belly fat five years after the beginning of the study with the development of type 2 diabetes 10 years later. These researchers used data from almost 7000 adult participants of another study, the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis. Food intake and diet quality were measured and at five years, diet quality was not associated with a change in waist circumference, but at ten years, higher diet quality was associated with about a 25% lower risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. Also, participants who ate less healthy foods and more unhealthy foods (such as processed meats, desserts, and soda), experienced more abdominal weight gain, with a 120% greater increase in waist circumference than participants with the lowest food dissimilarity. These results suggest that in modern diets, eating 'everything in moderation' is actually worse than eating a smaller number of healthy foods.

But we also can’t be excessively restrictive. Overly restricting the foods that you eat can increase your risk of developing an eating disorder. So, the key is to learn how to change your habits, plan to buy adequate foods, and to create better meals and snacks that are minimally processed. It’s also crucial to focus on specific ingredients or foods that will help you reach a goal or address a need, and of course, maintain your overall health and wellness.


Too complicated? I can help you, <<First Name>>. Check out my services here and get a free 30-minute consultation.

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December Nutrition Tips 

5 Brazilian superfoods that you can find in the U.S.A.


Congrats to ISSN for their nice, resourceful and successful conference in Brasilia, Brazil. Great if you were able to attend! But if you couldn’t, we can get together in beautiful Clearwater Beach FL, June 9-11, 2016 to meet with the world’s leading experts in sports nutrition! I hope that those of you that were able to go to this conference had the opportunity to eat some Brazilian local food. Otherwise, you can still purchase some Brazilian superfoods right here in the U.S.A. 


Here is my list of 5 amazingly powerful Brazilian superfoods that you can buy in the USA.


Guaraná

Guaraná (Paullinia
cupana Mart. Var. Sorbilis) belongs to the Sapindaceae family, a shrub originating in the Amazon region. The seed of the guaraná fruit is very rich in caffeine, representing about 3 to 6% of its weight, more than the double compared with coffee beans, which have 1 to 2%. Therefore, guaraná is known for its stimulant properties, such as reduced fatigue, increased agility, and as an ergogenic aid in
sport activities.

A 2014 randomized double-blind crossover design study with 56 people found that the ingestion of guaraná improved their decision-making performance. Other RCT studies found guaraná’s benefits also to be related to cognitive performance.

Also, because of guaraná’s high concentration of caffeine it works as a thermogenic, which means that it helps speed up your metabolism, affecting appetite and consequently promoting weight loss. 

Guaraná also contains some theobromine, and in 2013 an RCT double blind placebo study with 152 people showed significant increases in HDL cholesterol with theobromine supplementation. Theobromine physiologically also acts as a vasodilator. And finally guaraná has an antioxidant function because of its flavonoid content.

You may buy it here...

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Productivity & Health

 

How Healthy Eating and Smart Planning Can Free Up Your Time and Increase Your Energy 



The end of the year is here, and most of us are starting to think about what changes we want to make for 2016.  Many of us want to make a difference in how we eat, but think that it takes too much time to prepare fresh meals rather than popping “whatever” into the microwave. You can actually transform your meal prep habits, so you can eat healthy while saving time. And for those doubters out there, still not sure if “eating right” should be at the top of their resolution list, let me start with a story:
 
A professor stood in front of his class with an empty jar and a bag of rocks. After getting the students’ attention, the professor poured the rocks into the jar. Then, he asked the students if the jar was full. All students said yes. So, he picked up another bag of smaller rocks and throw them into the same jar. The small rocks rolled into the open areas between the bigger rocks. The students laughed, and the professor asked if the jar was now full (for sure). The students agreed that yes, the jar was finally full. Next, the professor picked up a bag of sand and poured it into the jar, where it seeped in between the small and large rocks, while saying: “I want you to recognize that this is your life. The larger rocks are your important things in life – things that are so important, in fact — like your family and your health — that if you lost them you would be affected in a major way.  The smaller rocks and the sand are the other small things, like your job and your car. If you try to put the sand or the smaller rocks into the jar first, there is no room for the large rocks.”

In this tale, the professor is basically talking about our priorities in life. In a previous article on SharpHeels, we learned that to change our habits, we need to focus on our energy levels (or health, analogous to the big rocks), rather than specifically on time management (i.e. analogous to the smaller rocks and sand). And in order to get that great energy level, it’s crucial to zero in on healthy eating.

Health should be a priority for everybody. Without health, we live poorly and miserably. With planning and simple tasks, you can actually save hours each day.  This will leave you time to savor delicious, nutritious food that also provides you with all-important stamina.

Plan Your Meals in 4 Easy Steps

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December Recipes

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What's New: Interview

The Superlative 7: Seven Power-Packed Foods Everyone Should Eat


Dr. Dave talks with registered dietitian and nutritionist, Livia Ly, about some of the most nutritious foods known to man and explore the science behind these power-packed foods. Sponsored by WebMD. Click here to listen!

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<<First Name>>, may this holiday season and the New Year bring you good health! See you in 2016!
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Thank you for reading, <<First Name>>!
This newsletter was created and designed by Livia Ly, MS, RD, LDN
 

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