Feast, fast, or something else? Low Carb Nugget 63 A study out of Australia suggests that breaking up a calorie-restricted diet with periods of increased eating (relative feasts) could produce better results for weight loss. Researchers at the University of Tasmania reported their findings in the International Journal of Obesity. What exactly were the findings and what might they mean for those of us on a low carb, high fat diet? … [Read more ...]
Low-carb diets and dental health
Examining the relationship between low-carb diets and dental health Last updated: April 2017 When you eat a healthier diet and lose weight, you can reasonably expect good news from a medical exam. I've gotten such good news in the past few months: lower blood pressure and improved blood lipid numbers. But I wasn't expecting diet-related good news from my semi-annual dental cleaning and exam. I got some anyway. My teeth were fine. I have a bunch of fillings from years ago, and sometimes one needs replacing, but new cavities have been relatively rare in recent years. Even before going … [Read more ...]
Why we snack
Do we eat more because we eat more often? Yes, says a study that claims Americans eat 570 more calories per day now than they did 30 years ago because they are eating all of the time. The study's lead author, Professor Barry Popkin of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, told CNN Health that "the real reason we seem to be eating more (calories) is we're eating often." But is eating frequency all there is to it, or does what a person eats make a difference? To say we are eating more because we eat more often simply raises the question of why we indulge between meals. Is it just … [Read more ...]
A low-carb dieter’s blood test results (updated)
When I first began eating my low-carb, high-fat (LCHF) diet, and losing pounds and inches around the middle, I encountered the occasional nay-sayer -- someone who was sure all that fat in my food was going to clog up my arteries and kill me dead, sooner rather than later. I've escaped that fate for six years. Indeed, within a few months of starting my low-carb diet, I had significantly reduced my belly-fat, and my blood-pressure. Those were powerful indicators that I was improving my odds of avoiding cardio-vascular disease and a heart-attack. But a skeptic might say, "What about the … [Read more ...]
Baked, broiled or deep-fried: how do you like your variables?
Study: Baked, Broiled — But Not Fried — Fish Is Good for the Heart – TIME Healthland, May 26, 2011. Want a healthier heart? Try adding fish to your diet. But be careful how it's cooked, a new study warns: baked or broiled fish will boost heart health, but fried fish is probably better left uneaten. Heart failure risk lower in women who often eat baked/broiled fish--American Heart Association, Press Release, May 24, 2011. This study showed that the type of fish and cooking method may affect heart failure risk. The researchers found that dark fish (salmon, mackerel and bluefish) were … [Read more ...]
Chia: yet another low-carb seed
The stereotypical low-carb diet is heavy on meat, eggs, butter and cream. To be sure, I've eaten my share of such animal-based fare, but the most notable newcomers to my diet have been plant-based foods such as nuts and seeds. I've always eaten peanuts (which technically are not a nut), pistachios and the occasional cashew. But on my low-carb diet, I've become a big fan of almonds, walnuts, sunflower kernels and flax seed meal. Now I have added chia seeds, the Aztec staple. … [Read more ...]
DNA, diet, and weight
Can spitting into a test-tube tell you which diet is best for you? Earlier this year, Anita and I each sent in a sample of our saliva to 23 and Me, a company that does commercial genetic testing. I'm not plugging the service, and this is not intended to be a full-scale review. But some of our DNA test results are relevant to the topic of diet. We both opted to receive ancestry and health-related reports of our DNA. At first, I was only going to get the ancestry report, but changed my mind after getting that report and seeing Anita's full set of reports. (Note: Anita has agreed that I may … [Read more ...]
Low-carb snacks to keep the munchies at bay
Yes, there are great low-carb snacks -- quite a few of them, in fact -- but standard munchables such as potato chips and corn chips aren't among them. No, neither are little powdered donuts. Admittedly, anyone trying to lose weight, via a low-carb diet or otherwise, ought to avoid snacking as much as possible. The whole idea is to encourage your body to burn its fat, and constantly eating is poor strategy in that regard. However, if you're like me (that is, human), you like to eat and eat often. In my first year of eating a low-carb, high-fat diet, I snacked my way to a 50+ pound weight … [Read more ...]
First, cut the carbs
Early weight loss I'm five days in to my Keto Diet Reboot, and feeling fine. The pounds are melting away -- two of them, so far. At my weigh-in this morning, I tipped the scales at 225.6 pounds. That's about what I weighed in May of this year, so I'm not too excited. In fact, for the next 20 pounds, I'm just going to be losing fat pounds that I've already lost one or two times over my years of LCHF living. That's how it is in the real world. But I've never come close to regaining ALL the weight I lost, and my waist circumference today is five or six inches less than in early 2011. Protein … [Read more ...]
Weight gain, weight loss in two short periods
Last weekend, Anita and I celebrated our 34th wedding anniversary with a short trip and a stay in an historic bed-and-breakfast. I did my best to be true to both my wife and my diet. The B & B provided me with eggs, meat, and coffee in the morning. I ignored the platter of chocolate-chip cookies available 24 hours a day. (Anita did not.) We picked restaurants where I could put together tasty low-carb meals. All in all, things went fine, until I weighed myself the morning after our return. Did I discover that romance was an aid to weight loss? … [Read more ...]
High-carb, low-fat diets associated with increased risk of early death
A major new study has found an association between low-fat diets and an increased risk of premature death. The large epidemiological cohort study, published in The Lancet, followed more than 135,000 people in 18 countries around the world to uncover the relationship between dietary macro-nutrients and cardiovascular disease and mortality. High, middle, and low-income groups were included. The researchers documented nearly 5,800 deaths and 4,800 major cardiovascular disease events in the cohort during the follow-up period. … [Read more ...]