Appetite

Is appetite a matter of will power or a biochemical deficiency. Research shows the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin not only play a role in mood regulation, they are also important in appetite control. They tell you when you are hungry and what you are hungry for. They also tell you when you are full so if your levels are low, you will find yourself wanting to eat more.

"Cravings for caffeine, chocolate, sweets, fried foods, or salty foods indicate low or depleted dopamine levels, while cravings for breads and pasta signal low serotonin levels."

Physical and emotional stress, lack of sleep, restricting nutrients, environment toxins and even some medications can all deplete the amount of these important mood and appetite neurotransmitters. What happens then is we set ourselves for a downward spiral: stress lowers dopamine and serotonin which can sadden us and make us hungry, we overeat unhealthy food (no one seems to crave broccoli when they are stressed), we feel depressed, we crave unhealthy foods, and on and on.

One of your first lines of defense is to eat healthy to keep stress manageable. Nutrition plays a crucial role in our overall physical and mental health which in turn affects our hunger and satiety!

Hart, C. R. & Grossman, M. K. 2001. The Isulin Resistance Diet. McGraw Hill. 

Nutrition and Modern Psychiatry

As a mental health counselor I have always discussed the role nutrition and physical activity plays on a persons' mental and physical health (Sleep is an important factor too). I became a personal trainer and fitness nutrition specialist so I could further help people incorporate these "therapies" into their treatment planning. So many of my clients are reluctant to use anti-depressants and they are finding success in recovery through the use of counseling, exercise and changing to whole food and mindful eating. 

I'm relieved to finally find more research being conducted to explore further the role nutrition has on not just physical health but also mental health. Hopefully we will start seeing medical schools teaching more about the role of nutrition on patients' overall health. I also hope this will lead to policy changes that will ensure nutrition counseling and personal training are covered by health insurance.

The following is an excerpt from an article titled: International Society for Nutritional Psychiatry Research consensus position statement: nutritional medicine in modern psychiatry.

Robust associations have been established between nutritional quality and mental health, with the bulk of this evidence indicating a protective effect of healthy diets on depressed mood, and the newest research supporting a detrimental impact of unhealthy diets on the mental health of young people and adults.

Diet and nutrition offer key modifiable targets for the prevention of mental disorders and have a fundamental role in the promotion of mental health.....we advocate that evidence-based nutritional change should be regarded as an efficacious and cost-effective means to improve mental health. 

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/wps.20223/full 

Start your Engines: Fuel Grade

What grade of fuel do you choose when you go to the pump to fill up your car: ethanol or no ethanol? Did you know that in the long run it can cost you more money in terms of gas mileage and maintenance if you use ethanol? In some cities, you really don't have a choice as the only option is ethanol and you have to go out of your way to get non ethanol gas. Fuel is expensive so most people just buy the cheapest and don't think about the long term consequences. Many consumers don't realize that buying the wrong octane for your vehicle or using ethanol may be a good way to save on a car's running costs, but the short-term savings won't come close to offsetting the cost of repairs to a damaged engine.

I'm not an automobile or fuel expert and this article is not about debating the pros and cons of ethanol. I've been told by others who are experts that using ethanol can lead to long term problems with the fuel system due to the way it is manufactured and yes, you do get less miles per gallon, so I'm using this as illustrative purposes only.

People who really care about their cars choose to pay for the higher premium, ethanol free fuel because they do look at the long term cost. When you spend tens of thousands of dollars on a new vehicle (or even a used vehicle) you spend the money on changing the oil, filters, other fluids, tires because you want to take care of your investment. It's cheaper to maintain than to replace.

Your body can be compared to your vehicle - you get out of it what you put into it. Are you eating more fiber fortified or vitamin enriched foods than the natural product? There has been a growing awareness of how much processed foods we eat and how this may affect our long term health.

Food companies enrich foods by adding nutrients in order to replace vitamins or minerals that have been lost during the manufacturing process. For example, refining wheat to make white flour removes several B-complex vitamins and iron that are contained in the part of the grain that's removed. Flour becomes enriched when those nutrients are added back in before it's packaged. Food manufacturers can claim their product is enriched if it "contains at least 10 percent more of the Daily Value of that nutrient than a food of the same type that is not enriched."*

There are also more and more fiber-enriched food products appearing on store shelves. You can find fiber-enhanced yogurt, toaster pastries and muffin mix.** But are these foods as good for you as  naturally occurring fiber and vitamin sources? There is still debate and neither side of the issue is unbiased. I have to ask though how is eating fiber enhanced toaster pastry better for you than eating an apple or any other natural high-fiber food source?

Let's look at the apple. It has 4.4 grams of fiber (with skin), vitamins and antioxidants while Metamucil, a fiber supplement, has 3.4 grams of fiber and added dyes. Is taking Metamucil really any easier than eating an apple?

One of the biggest complaints from people I hear is, "I want to eat healthy but I can't afford to." Processed and fast food is cheap and may seem to be easier but in the long run it will cost you. It will cost you in time that you have to take to see doctors, money you will spend on medication and other costs associated with later health issues. Sadly, people are being diagnosed at younger ages than in the past with serious health conditions like diabetes, heart disease, cholesterol issues, blood pressure problems.

You can take the time and money now to prevent later health issues or you can take the time and money later to deal with the health issues. So are you going to take the long view or the short one?





* http://nutrition.about.com/od/askyournutritionist/f/enriched.htm

** http://www.dietsinreview.com/diet_column/10/are-fiber-fortified-foods-as-good-as-the-real-deal/#HEshwx5FrVirLkAR.99

Start your engines: the Importance of Fuel

When I work with people who have diet-related health issues or other issues with food, I will  compare their body to a car to illustrate what they are doing to their body when they fail to fuel it properly. This is the first in a series of posts on the various ways are bodies are like an car. Today we will look at fuel in general.

How do you get going in the morning? Are you like so many who reluctantly get out of bed, shower, dress, and run out the door stopping only long enough to get grab a cup of coffee (Or stop at the Starbucks on your way to work)? The coffee is your only fuel until you are so hungry mid-morning you grab the easiest thing available, typically from the vending machine. Or do you have a stash of granola bars or candy bars because you know you will need them to get through the day? This begins a never ending spiral into more fatigue, loss of energy and, if the cycle continues long enough, eventual weight gain and health issues including Type II diabetes.

This is insanity! Why do you keep doing the same thing over and over expecting different results? Let's look at your car; imagine you noticed you were really low on gas when you were driving home from work. You plan to fill up the tank but are distracted by a phone call. You are still on the phone when you park and go into the house. The car is no longer on your mind. The next morning, you start your daily routine and dash out the door, running late and start driving to work on fumes. You get halfway there and the car stops; the tank is empty.

What do you think you will do in the future? Do you think you will forget to put fuel in your car again. Probably not. You learned a painful lesson. What we don't realize is though, is that our body is no different than our car when it comes to needing fuel. We leave our homes in the morning running on fumes and wonder why we run out of energy.

To get going in the morning, both you and the car needs fuel, and coffee (just like gas fumes) is not adequate fuel. I know you've heard over and over that breakfast is the most important meal of the day - so eat breakfast! Coffee does not count. Does that mean you can't have coffee? No. I love my morning cup of joe, but that is not what I depend on to get moving. Neither should you.

Next up: Fuel Additives

Behavior Change and Physical Health

The following is an article from Ace Fitness. Feel free to weigh in on this important health issue:

Our Position

Because research shows that instilling sustainable healthy behavior patterns, including regular physical activity and sound nutrition, is key to addressing the obesity epidemic ( 1 ) ( 2 ), ACE seeks public policies that make highly qualified, science-based, interdisciplinary coaching, counseling, and support for sustainable behavioral change a functional, integral component of the nation’s healthcare continuum.

Discussion

Behavioral-change facilitation needs to be integral to the healthcare system, reimbursable by insurers, highly accessible, and culturally appropriate for the communities in which it is provided.Our nation’s traditional approach to healthcare—sick patients visit doctors for medical treatments—will not halt nor even slow the obesity epidemic( 3 ) ( 4 ). Obesity results from a complex mix of physiological, psychological, environmental, cultural and socioeconomic factors. Today, the healthcare system sends individuals at risk for obesity away from the system to manage those risk factors on their own. This approach is simply not working. While treating the consequences of obesity is costing the system billions of dollars annually and compromising quality of life on a grand scale, the system is still investing almost no money in primary prevention of the disease ( 3 ) ( 4 )( 5 ).

Interventions that establish healthy patterns of behavior will help reverse obesity trends ( 5 ) ( 6 ) ( 7 ). The healthcare system must invest in sustainable behavioral change at the individual, family and community levels ( 5 ) ( 6 ). Individuals at risk for obesity need ongoing, engaged support by professionals who are well trained in weight management and who specialize in sustainable behavioral change for the large and growing segment of the population at risk for obesity and its co-morbidities ( 6 ) ( 7 ) ( 8 ). Behavioral-change facilitation needs to be integral to the healthcare system, reimbursable by insurers, highly accessible and culturally appropriate for the communities in which it is provided ( 5 ) ( 6 ) ( 7 ) ( 8 ).

Public Policy Priorities

ACE urges federal and state government officials to advance public policies that effectively move obesity prevention and intervention into the healthcare system, including the payment system. Specifically, ACE calls for policies that:

• Ensure that obesity intervention and prevention is supported and paid for.
• Recognize and utilize NCCA-accredited health coaches , fitness professionals and other weight-management and behavior change experts in communities as part of the healthcare continuum.
• Incentivize medical professionals to utilize behavior-change facilitation by well-qualified health and fitness professionals for the large and growing segment of the population at- risk for obesity and its co-morbidities.
• Increase physical activity among youth at home, at school, and in the early care and education (ECE) setting.

Behavior-Change Facilitation and Addressing the Obesity Epidemic

Fitness for the Soul: Serving is Different From Helping and Fixing

“Serving is Different From Helping and Fixing"

Service…is an experience of mystery, surrender and awe…Service rests on the basic premise that the nature of life is sacred, that life is a holy mystery which has an unknown purpose. When we serve, we know that we belong to life and to that purpose. Fundamentally, helping, fixing, and service are ways of seeing life. When you help, you see life as weak; when you fix, you see life as broken. When you serve, you see life as whole. From the perspective of service, we are all connected. All suffering and all joy is like my joy. The impulse to serve emerges naturally and inevitably from this way of seeing.”

- Rachel Naomi Remen

Perseverance

“The greatest oak was once a little nut who held its ground.”

-Author Unknown

3 Strategies for Sticking to Your Health and Fitness Goals

3 Strategies for Sticking to Your Health and Fitness Goals

Remember that New Year’s resolution you made back in January? If you’re like 35 percent of people, that goal has been broken for well over a month and you’ve returned to your old habits. While it’s natural for this to make you feel discouraged, it’s important to remember that no one is perfect and there’s no reason you can’t start working toward those goals again. To give you the best possible chance at achieving your resolutions, here are three fool-proof strategies that will help you stick to your health and fitness goals.

1. Ditch the “all-or-nothing” attitude.

When you think it’s “all or nothing,” you will surely end up with nothing. You’re waging a war of will power versus habits, which is a recipe for disaster. Will power is a limited resource. Habits require no energy at all. They are effortless, which is bad for bad habits, but great for implementing new positive ones. Focus on making incremental sustainable positive changes. Think better, not perfect, and you are already on your way.

2. Make SMART Goals.

Make sure your goals are: 

Specific: Instead of “I want my fitness to improve,” try, “I want to run a 12-minute mile.”

Measurable: Take note of your starting point (e.g., your energy level, how your clothes fit and feel), so you can celebrate your progress.

Attainable: Aim for your best YOU, not something you saw in a magazine.

Relevant: Choose goals that fit YOUR lifestyle. Focus on sustainable changes, not a hiatus from your everyday life.

Time-bound: Create short-term checkpoints—weekly or monthly, for example—to monitor your progress.

3. Start NOW.

Don’t let one off-goal choice derail your entire path, or a certain day of the week dictate when you’ll “start.” Start this moment with positive perspective. Each hour, each meal, each day is a new opportunity to make on-goal choices. You are not going to be on-point every time, but as long as you are making positive moves MOST of the time you will eventually hit your goal. You deserve to be YOUR personal best and that is 100 percent in YOUR control. Look in the mirror and ask yourself what you want and why you want it. Find that intrinsic motivation to encourage you and get back on track. Bad choices are only minor detours that allow you to learn, refocus, and reinforce your commitment to pursuing your goals. Celebrate that you are in this empowering position to realize your own dreams. 

You are exactly where you are supposed to be, but there is always have room for a little tune-up. Now is the time to bring you’re A game. Just make sure you enjoy the process while we make this New Year your happiest yet. 

https://www.acefitness.org/acefit/healthy-living-article/60/5338/3-strategies-for-sticking-to-your-health-and/

Weight loss = Happiness?

No matter what brings a women into counseling, I have found one consistent issue - the vast majority maintain the belief that if only they could lose weight, they would be happy.

This is true no matter what size a woman is - she can be overweight, underweight or at the so called "ideal weight" put forth by our culture.

Even women who fit the "ideal" still worry about the scale and want to ensure they do not gain weight!

I counsel women that happiness is not found in a dress size, jean size or numbers on the scale. Of course clothing manufacturers tap in to this belief with the use of vanity sizing. (For more on this, see blog post, Vanity Sizing). So many women who believe in the power and magic of a number are disappointed. If they manage to lose the weight, they discover they are still not happy.

Instead of spending money on weight loss tools and products (a billion dollar industry), use the money to take attend seminars or see a counselor to better understand what is really missing in your life. You do not have to have a mental illness to benefit from talking to an person trained to help you uncover what really contributes to your unhappiness.

A study was done that looks at the issue of weight and happiness (link available below). I encourage you to read it.

Weight Loss Doesn't Always Lead to Happiness

Remember happiness is not found on the scale!

Vanity Sizing

I hate shopping for clothes! Not because of body image issues but because I cannot go into a store and buy an article of clothing without trying it on first. Why? Because there does not seem to be a standard any more for sizing. 

To make matters worse, clothing designers and manufacturers are playing into our insecurities with vanity sizing!

So, why do clothing brands do this? It makes shopping for clothes more difficult when manufacturers don’t use the same standards for labeling, and no doubt increases return rates when products don’t fit as expected. The simple answer is that the downsized labels make customers feel good. 1

My first experience with vanity sizing occurred when shopping at a popular women's clothing store. I grabbed the size pants I knew I was typically at in most stores and found the jeans way too big. I had to go down 4 sizes! I asked the clerk what the deal was. She said something about changing the sizing for self esteem reasons. I was angry and told her I did not support that strategy, pointed out it only made the self esteem issue worse and walked out without buying the jeans.

Want to know more about vanity sizing, check out the following articles from Forbes and the Huffington Post.

Book Review: Strong is the new Skinny

As a counselor specializing in eating disorders, anytime I see a book promising it will be the “last diet book you will ever read,” it catches my attention. Part of my job is simply educating people on why the myriad diets advertised do not work. Strong is the New Skinny: How to eat, live and move is one of those new books out there promising a solution to the obesity problem - but this one takes a different approach.

Strong is the New Skinny: How to eat, live and move to maximize your power by Jennifer Cohen and Stacey Colino was a quick read. This was in part because the information presented is not new. When a person is trying to lose weight there is always information on what they should or should not eat, how much they should eat and how often. The need to exercise is also emphasized – calories in versus calories out.

So what makes this book different? The authors Cohen and Colino emphasized the need to work on the mental aspect of weight loss. You’ve heard the saying, “you are what you eat,” well when it comes to weight loss, “you are what you think” is just as important (this is true about most everything). What you think about yourself: how you look, self-worth, motivations for losing weight, etc., is what you need to look at first. Your thinking will determine why you eat and whether it is for fuel or to cope or out of boredom. Your thinking determines whether you chose to exercise and if you are going to stick with it. What we think about ourselves, what we tell ourselves plays a huge role in how we treat ourselves.

The book also played on the concept of strong versus skinny which was refreshing and the authors point out that we all have different body shapes and sizes and not everyone can be “skinny.” The book also promotes strength training as an important component of a weight loss program and includes information on the newest cardio trend – HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training).

The book included exercise with sample workout plans. This was good but some of them seemed difficult for a beginner. Also I would have liked to see more than one picture to demonstrate an exercise move. They provided two images for some but not all of the exercises. They did provide a description of how to move, but a picture really helps.

The diet section had good, neutral advice; promoting whole foods and not processed foods and did not push one specific diet. An example meal plan was included but no recipes. There were a few meal plan suggestions that sounded good but no idea how to make it!

Overall the book did not have new information but it does encourage the readers to think about their body in a new way - not just about being thin but the strength and functionality of our body. It seems to be easy enough to follow the suggestions for regaining strength and health and I liked the suggested exercises.

·         More Info 

·         Author Bio 

I received this book from Blogging for Books  for this honest review.

Obesity is the symptom, not the problem

I was very excited when I first read about the ACE's study-Adverse Childhood Experiences. My first thought was, "duh, I could have told you that your childhood has a role on who you are as an adult." I was shocked that this was actually news. I knew this was true, both from personal experience from my own childhood, and from my professional experience working as a counselor; I would see childhood trauma play out in my adult clients all the time. 

For those of you who have not yet heard of the ACE's study, the following is a brief overview:

"The research found that significant stress that occurs during a child’s first 18 years has a profound and long-lasting impact, not only on issues like obesity, but on their overall life expectancy, the risk of diabetes and other chronic health conditions, the likelihood that they will become involved in drugs, alcohol and crime, success in marriage and relationships and even their risk of suicide.  What they found was that children who experience more serious stress (“adverse childhood experiences”) in their childhood face substantially greater health challenges as adults.  In fact, children who face high levels of stress, such as child abuse, or a parent with a mental illness, may face a shorter life expectancy of almost 20 years!  A child who experiences extremely high levels of stress was found to be 460 times more likely than others to become an IV drug user. 

The study found that almost 4 in 10 adults have an “ACE index” of 2 or more – meaning the child faced a combination of more than one major stress event, a level which begins to greatly increase the risk of future health risks and problems.  Given this surprising prevalence, individuals with high ACE scores are our neighbors, our fellow employees, our friends and our families.  Many individuals may be resilient and successful in one or more parts of their lives, but struggle behind the scenes from the lasting impact dating to their childhood." *

Dr. Robert Anda and Dr. Vincent Felitti are the co-founders of the study. This 10 year study began when Dr. Felitti wanted to know why half of the clients of the obesity clinic he worked dropped out of the program even though they were losing weight. 

By interviewing the clients who dropped out, he discovered they all had one thing in common: an adverse childhood experience. Basically what he discovered was that most of the obese people in his program had experienced some kind of trauma in childhood. Dr. Felitti realized that obesity, which is what brings people in for treatment, was not the problem - it was the symptom.

What is the point of this? For so many people, their weight is not what they eat or do not eat or how much they eat. It is not about how active they are. It is about the thinking and beliefs they have about themselves. It is about what they do to manage trauma and abuse from the past. 

I believe that no weight loss program is successful without addressing the thinking behind the desire to lose weight, what the person believes about self, coping skills, etc. Some people become addicted to drugs, alcohol, gambling, or shopping. Some people are addicted to food. Food becomes the way to cope with stressors, with the negative thinking about who they are. Weight becomes a protective barrier. 

This is not necessarily true for every single person who is overweight, but it is something to seriously consider. I'll use myself as an example. I'm currently overweight because I decided to punish my body when I was diagnosed with mild emphysema. It was my own fault that I had it; after all, I did smoke for nearly 20 years. When I was diagnosed I had already quit smoking. Logic says I would have been motivated to continue to be active and eat healthy, but that's not what I did. Humans are, as we know, not always logical. 

As I continue my journey to be healthy mind, body and soul, I find information like that in the ACE study to be helpful. I do not use the facts from this study as an excuse to continue to be unhealthy. This is not about using abuse to stay stuck in the past. Instead, it can be powerful to know that what you do today can be traced back to an event in the past. Of course, once you have this knowledge, you need to use the information to change your current choices, thoughts and behaviors. Knowing how your past effects who you are today is not an excuse to continue to make poor choices!

Click here to learn more about the ACE's study.

Click here to learn more about the connection between ACE's and obesity. 

*http://preventchildabusenj.org/blog/2014/03/19/adverse-childhood-experience-ace-study-findings-by-rush-russell/