SAD vs Whole Foods

admin — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:40:43 +0000

Along the lines of evolution we regressed from eating the Paleolithic diet of meat, vegetables, occasional fruits, seeds, and nuts to eating the Standard American Diet (SAD) of processed convenience foods filled with chemicals and sugar. Is it any wonder that our medical system here in the U.S. is the most advanced in the world, yet disease rates are higher than ever? Diabetes, most cancers, and heart disease take root as a result of poor diet. Let’s take a look at the typical SAD vs a day of eating healthful whole foods. How does your diet stack up?

Standard American Diet (SAD)

nothing green in this meal.

Breakfast: coffee with pasteurized cream and refined sugar, pastry or muffin
Lunch: roast beef deli sandwich on white bread with mayo, potato chips, diet coke
snack: roasted almond snack pack, twizzlers
Dinner: pasta with meat sauce, baguette, iceberg lettuce salad with ranch dressing, 2 glasses white wine
dessert: chips ahoy chocolate chip cookies

The above day’s diet plan is comprised of nearly all processed foods, from the processed deli meat and mayo to the breads and pasta made with refined white flour. Many folks think they’re making a good choice in drinking diet sodas, but the aspartame is as harmful as corn syrup! And iceberg lettuce is not salad – it’s devoid of nutrients and is basically a carrier for pesticides. Roasting nuts destroys their natural oils, and cottonseed oil is a toxic, cheap oil often used in processed foods and snacks. This diet is low in essential fatty acids, antioxidants, and minerals and is high in sugar and chemicals that actually leach nutrients from the body.

Let’s see how a nutrient-rich diet stacks up.

this is actually salmon, but you get the picture.

Breakfast: fruit smoothie with unpasteurized whey protein powder, ground flax, green tea
snack: handful raw almonds, small plain yogurt with cinnamon
Lunch: kale and white beans sauteed in coconut oil, herb-roasted chicken breast over brown rice or red potatoes, kombucha or hot tea
Dinner: large mixed green salad with seasonal roasted vegetables, cod roasted with sesame oil, cultured vegetables, 1 glass of red wine (optional)
dessert: date or sesame cookies

Here’s the thing: the SAD is filled with skeletonized foods that actually leave you feeling unsatisfied or craving more, as they do not have the nutrients or fiber your body needs to feel sated. The above meal plan maintains stable blood sugar, has probiotics and fiber for gut health, minerals, antioxidants, good quality proteins and fatty acids. Plus, you’ll consume less calories and get more bang for your buck. Expect a stable mood and good energy. Yes, feeling irritable and having energy crashes throughout the day results from your diet.

If you’re consuming a lot of processed foods, start by adding in whole foods one meal at a time until you’ve made over your whole day. You’ll notice a difference!

Avoiding the Big D

admin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 05:05:02 +0000

Blood sugar. It may not mean as much to you as, say, diabetes, but learn to manage your blood sugar properly and you’ll stay healthy and avoid diabetes. Or if you have type 2 diabetes and take a medication such as Metformin, you can control your glucose levels through diet and possibly cut down on your meds.

First, a little physiology. Type 2 diabetes is a relatively new disease, first discovered in the 1930s and now rising to epidemic proportions. We are seeing cases of type 2 diabetes in children as young as 7 or 8 (!) years old. Why? The good ole Standard American Diet of excess–the Western refined diet of soda, processed foods, and SUGAR.

When you eat sugar and it is broken down and released to your blood stream, your pancreas releases insulin, a hormone that helps usher the sugar (glucose) from your blood stream and into your cells. When you eat too much sugar, your body must produce more and more insulin to prevent high blood sugar. After you eat too much sugar for a long period of time, your cells decide they have enough glucose and don’t want any more. When glucose is no longer allowed into the cells, insulin levels build up, and the person is called “insulin resistant.” Blood sugar levels continue to rise until the person is called diabetic.

High insulin levels along the way to diabetes are very detrimental: insulin causes obesity because it tells the body to store fat; it contributes to hardening of the arteries and high blood pressure, making the person more susceptible to heart disease. The deadly trio of belly fat, high blood pressure, and high blood sugar is known as “metabolic syndrome,” or syndrome X, and is a warning sign that you are at high risk for diabetes or heart disease.

Thing about diabetes and high insulin is that they are PREVENTABLE. Diabetes is a disease of prolonged mismanaged blood sugar and poor diet. A diet of excess sugar. Here are my recommendations for eating your blood sugar levels down and managing your diabetes through diet:
*diabetics and pre-diabetics respond very well to a low carbohydrate diet with moderate to high levels of good fats and proteins.

*eliminate man-made foods from your diet: NOTHING that comes from a box or a package; no refined foods; no refined sugar; no baked goods, cookies, candy, fruit juice, sweets, soda. Absolutely no man-made fats such as hydrogenated oils or trans fatty acids. Time for a whole foods diet!

Eat for health.

*increase trace minerals that help regulate blood sugar: chromium, vanadium, magnesium, zinc. Green vegetables such as chard, spinach, kale, and collards are high in minerals. Sea vegetables are excellent sources of trace minerals. Try nopales – prickly pear cactus pads- grilled, with olive oil. They contain a substance that is remarkably close to the drug Metformin, and can be very useful for blood sugar regulation. Use Celtic sea salt and sip on mineral broths (for my recipe see http://tinyurl.com/kr9czk)

*eat organic, nutrient-rich meats and fats: grass fed beef, lamb, organic chicken and fatty fish such as wild salmon and cod. Use olive and coconut and flax oils. Take a fish oil supplement.

*remove grains from diet. No gluten, no wheat, no white flour, no white rice, no cereal, no pasta, no bread or buns or rolls. The majority of your diet should consist of meats, leafy green vegetables and other non-starchy vegetables, seeds, nuts, and good fats. Brown rice and quinoa may be introduced once levels begin dropping. No fruit and absolutely NO fruit juice. Vegetables provide plenty of nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants. I highly recommend a spirulina and chlorella-based green food powder for additional nutrient support.

There are many blood sugar stabilizing products on the market. The one I use contains chromium, gymnema leaf, biotin, trace minerals, and cinnamon bark. Cinnamon is great for blood sugar balance!

Reduce stress levels – high cortisol (the “stress hormone”) levels contribute to high blood sugar levels, so it’s critical that you address your stress level. Consider adrenal hormone testing so you know and correct your stress hormone levels, and begin a gentle exercise program. Try meditation and deep breathing.

Do not reduce any medication without your doctor’s advice. But following a whole foods diet filled with nutrient-dense, unrefined foods, you can regulate your blood sugar levels naturally!

Holistic Nutrition Bytes » standard america diet

SAD vs Whole Foods

Avoiding the Big D