Every Day Health Clinic: Slim

Showing posts with label Slim. Show all posts

Sunday, 8 March 2015

Fat chance of being slim

There’s a new Krispy Kreme milkshake which contains the same calories as a (modest) Sunday roast.

There’s a reason why treats are called treats – because they’re not designed to be consumed every day.

And Krispy Kreme Doughnuts certainly fall into this bracket. Not only have their wares become the go-to treat for office leaving-dos (weighing in at as much as 474 calories, for a Chocolate Praline Fudge Cake one), but Krispy Kreme are now also subjecting us to a range of milkshakes, containing as many as 612 calories each.

This is apparently the same as a whole Sunday roast of chicken, veg and potatoes (although this obviously depends on how high you pile up your plate, and whether you add stuffing and Yorkshire puds to proceedings).

So yes, we all know the maths – calories in = calories out (with exercise), or you’re in danger of piling on the pounds.

But with a Kripy Kreme lurking on every corner, and these other calorie-groaning treats out to tempt us, what hope do our waistlines have?

:: CHEESEBURGER PIZZA

Currently available to order for home delivery from Pizza Hut, is the calorie-crammed Meat Machine Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza, with 10 beef burgers, crispy bacon and, of course, mozzarella cheese, all stuffed into the crust. It has 332 calories per slice and with 10 slices, that’s 3,320 for the whole pizza – or 700 calories more than a man’s recommended daily intake in just one meal.

:: DEEP-FRIED MARS BAR

The stuff of myth and legend, this delicacy originated in Scotland, where a couple called the Watsons started selling it at their Carron Fish Bar in Stonehaven, back in 1992. With 1,200 calories, compared to just 260 in a regular Mars Bar, it attracted the attention of Mars’ lawyers, who asked the Watsons to tell customers they didn’t condone the deep-frying, as it counteracted their ‘healthy’ branding message.

:: DOUGHNUT BURGERS

The newest addition to the menu at Paige’s Pig-Casso Cafe in Folkestone split opinions when it was launched in June – local punters loved it, obesity experts hated it. This Canadian invention is a bacon-topped cheeseburger, wedged between a doughnut and, at 2,000 calories, it makes a McDonald’s Big Mac (490 cals) sound like the healthy alternative.

:: STARBUCKS HOT CHOCOLATE

Whereas lattes are often seen to be the baddie of the hot drinks world, with 299 calories for a Starbucks Venti with whole milk, it’s the Venti Signature Hot Chocolate, with whipped cream, that’s the true demon – it’ll blow a 690-calorie-sized hole in your recommended daily allowance. Ouch!

:: MUFFINS

When these first became a thing, who didn’t think they were actually a health food? Now, we all know though, that’s not quite the case… A Pret Double Berry Muffin (so far, so super-foody sounding), has a whopping 498 calories. So that’s your lunch right there.

:: CHEESE SANDWICH

Not so much a treat as an everyday staple, the humble cheese and pickle sarnie surely can’t be too calorie-laden? Well, it obviously depends how much of a doorstop of bread you cut yourself and how much cheese you pop in, but take the quite-healthily-looking chain Eat’s Cheese & Pickle Sandwich as a guide, which is 566 calories for 100g.

:: PEANUT BUTTER

Packed with protein, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants it may be, but peanut butter is also laden with calories, as it contains 598 per 100g, which is about six tablespoons of the stuff. You may not spread that much on toast in one go, but you get the point… (And let’s not even think about Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups…).

http://www.silversurfers.com/health/diet-exercise/fat-chance-slim/

Tuesday, 6 January 2015

Have We Discovered The Obesity Hormone? And Will Blocking It Keep Us Slim?

We're always looking for ways to cheat the system, when it comes to obesity and weightloss.

For those of us who aren't so sold on the traditional - and let's be honest, much safer and more straightforward - technique of using diet and exercise as a method of weight management, we're often looking around for an easy way out.

Global obesity is a real issue, but is this the answer? [Associated Press]

Well, if easy ways out are your cup of tea, this new research could be all your prayers answered.

By blocking a particular enzyme, which in turn blocks a particular hormone we can trick the human body into metabolising everything that it digests, with much more efficiency.

So basically, you will literally be able to have your cake and eat it.

You too could be Gwyneth Paltrow eating a burger [Goop]

The Break Down

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter or hormone. It's the one that helps you to feel elated.

There is something called "peripheral serotonin" though, which can also be present in the body.

Scientists at McMaster University have discovered that the presence of this peripheral serotonin may be directly related to the efficiency with which your body metabolises the food you put in it.

The serotonin regulates how our bodies burn calories.

Watching a control group of mice, as scientists often do, they observed that lighter mice had less of this brand of serotonin than the heavier mice.

Showing that this serotonin may hinder the body's ability to properly process food intake.

Taking the lighter group of mice aside, the ones which had developed an enzyme mutation inhibiting serotonin production, they then fed them a diet of high fat, to immitate the consumption of the average American.

They found that these mice still managed to remain light.

The Next Step

Is this the key to weight management? REALLY? [REX]

Gregory Steinberg, one of the scientists involved in the study, has said: “What we discovered is that if we remove this enzyme either genetically or if we inhibit its activity using a chemical, a drug, the mice have low levels of serotonin and they didn't develop diabetes, obesity, or fatty liver disease,” Steinberg said.

The implication is that this process may be replicable among human beings.

And we'll be able to eat all the fatty fry up breakfasts we please!

What's The Problem?

If we think about this seriously for a minute, it becomes incredibly difficult to imagine any sensible doctor or nutritionist sanctioning the use of chemical inhibitors in order to allow people to stay slim while still eating unhealthy foods.

While this research may be used in part or even in full, in order to help treat and prevent cases of heart disease and obesity, we highly doubt it will be a "miracle drug" available to every Tom, Dick and Harry.

Also, as this is such new research, we have no grasp of the longer term implications for the human body.

Sorry to say it folks, but a healthy nutritional intake and regular exercise is still our doctrine of preference.

https://uk.lifestyle.yahoo.com/have-we-discovered-the-obesity-hormone--and-will-blocking-it-keep-us-slim-121812408.html

Saturday, 1 November 2014

The 10 Week Wedding Body Challenge: Week Four - DIET & NUTRITION

If you've been ramping up the exercise, adding weight training and fat burning workouts to your regime and generally being active and healthy, there's one more thing to think about, and it's a big one.

Diet.Food: The other half of your wedding dress plan (REX)
But we're not advocating the famous 'wedding diet' or anything remotely crash-diet like. If you're aiming to transform your body to look its best (which we are), this will only have the opposite effect.
So PT Scott Laidler explains what you actually have to do to achieve the right kind of weight loss - and not be miserable in the run up to your big day.

Scott Laidler
"It’s easy to ‘lose weight’ by being overly restrictive with your calories, but being overly restrictive, cutting calories and avoiding carbs will leave you feeling lethargic, irritable, even foggy - not great when you need to be on the ball for final wedding planning," he explains.
"Even more importantly, drastic ‘weight loss’ usually involves losing a lot of water and muscle, which may mean you fit into your dress but your muscles will feel depleted, and soft to the touch - not particularly healthy-looking and hardly ideal for the honeymoon.

Jennifer Aniston's incredible bod is built on healthy eating and hard work (REX)
Strong not skinny
"You want to achieve a firm, toned and defined figure, not a skinny one. This looks best in your wedding dress and on the beach, and will keep your energy levels soaring and you feeling great."
Plus you need enough energy to actually get through your workouts.

Scott's 'right way' to slim down
"Let’s throw the scales out and aim for positive composition change (losing fat rather than muscle and water) through a balanced and healthy approach to nutrition. Here’s how…"

1) Get the right macronutrient balance
I recommend the following split:
Protein 40-50 per cent
Fat 30-40 per cent
Carbs 10-20 per cent
"This is not what you will see in most recommendations. I have kept the carbs quite low because fat loss is our goal, but with the right type of carbs in your diet you will still be able to keep your blood sugar level and experience abundant energy."

Processed foods are out. As delicious as they look... (Flickr/lifeontheedge)
2) Avoid all processed foods
That means no processed foods, microwave meals, crisps, cookies, sweets, soda drinks, anything that contains trans-fats.
3) Eat lots of leafy green vegetables
These are packed with nutrients and you can eat as much as you like of these with absolutely no fat gain.
4) Choose the ‘right’ carbs
Select carbohydrates that will give you energy without affecting your blood sugar levels. (E.g. sweet potatoes, brown rice, wholegrain oats and quinoa.)
"Remember, your real enemy is always sugar or, in other words, poor quality carbohydrates.
"I’m highlighting this to reassert the importance of healthy fats in your diet. Healthy fats are absolutely essential for healthy hormones, they are also heavily involved in maintaining skin and hair health. So it makes sense that we don’t lose them in the run up to your wedding."

5) AVOID
• Never go too low with calories, it will drain you of your energy and lead to poor quality weight-loss.
• Never try to exercise your way out of a poor diet - you can't. Exercise and healthy eating are a synergistic combination
6) Don't 'diet'
"Losing weight through healthy eating isn’t the same as dieting," explains Scott. "Dieting is temporary by nature but really sustained lean living comes from consistently eating the types of foods that create the best environment for your body.

If you're not sure what this shakes down to, take a look at this two-day meal plan to get an idea of the nutrient balance:

To begin with, knocking out your go-to comfort foods such as cakes, biscuits, crisps and takeaways can be tricky and the idea of cooking everything yourself can seem time consuming but 'eating clean' is actually not as hard as you'd think.

https://uk.lifestyle.yahoo.com/blogs/health-blog/the-10-week-wedding-body-challenge--week-four---diet---nutrition-134909128.html

Tuesday, 10 June 2014

A record two in three women have dieted in past year, while 44% of men were among the 29million Britons trying to slim

A record-breaking two out of three women tried to lose weight in the past year – and more men than ever are trying to slim down, figures have shown.

This means that last year a total of 29million Britons decided to exercise or diet to ward off problems associated with weight gain.

The proportion of women who tried to shed some weight went up last year from 63 per cent to an all-time high of 65 per cent.

More than half (55 per cent) of Brits having tried to lose weight in the past year

And the percentage of men who attempted to cut down the size of their paunch rose from 42 to 44 per cent in 2013, according to an annual survey by retail analyst Mintel.

The figures come after Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence spoke out against the pressure on women to look thin, calling on Hollywood to drop its obsession with unrealistically skinny body images.

More...

Official statistics show 61 per cent of the UK population are still overweight. Of these, more than 13million are clinically obese – with the cost of NHS treatment for associated health problems such as heart disease and diabetes running to billions of pounds every year.

Encouragingly, the survey showed that exercise seemed to be more popular with slimmers than faddy diets, with around 60 per cent of people choosing to get a bit more active when they wanted to manage their weight.

The 5:2 diet is now the nation's favourite, followed by Atkins and Dukan

However many of the 29million who tried to lose weight last year used a combination of exercise and healthy eating. Just under half said they tried to cut back on fatty foods and 48 per cent limited themselves to smaller portions and consumed less sugar.

In 2013, 2.32million took up fashionable diet crazes – with around a million trying the 5:2 regime, which involves reducing calorie intake on two days a week.

The programme’s part-time approach led to it coming out on top of the list of the year’s popular diets. The regime is particularly effective at reducing belly fat and lowering the cholesterol levels associated with blocked arteries.

Coming in second place was the low carbohydrate Atkins diet – and 25 per cent of dieters opted for high protein and low fat weight loss regimes such as the Dukan diet.

But while millions see the New Year as a good time to try and get healthy, with a host of celebrity weight loss DVDs cashing in on the trend, the figures revealed that many slimmers’ efforts are doomed to failure.

Mintel found that out of everyone who tried dieting last year, one in five said their good intentions had soon fallen by the wayside thanks to a lack of willpower.

More than a third found it hard to count calories when dining out and around one in ten said their lives were so busy that it was too hard to stick to a diet.

Despite struggling to eat healthily, many people said they still viewed food aimed specifically at dieters with suspicion. Diet food sales dipped by 1 per cent in 2012 and then went on to increase by a marginal 2 per cent in 2013. The survey found most people didn’t trust the products’ ingredients, such as artificial sweeteners.

They also tended to resent the small portion sizes and questioned whether any of the meals were actually lower in calories than standard products.

Mintel’s senior food analyst Emma Clifford said: ‘Sales of diet meals are struggling, which is at odds with the huge consumer interest in losing weight, framed by rising levels of obesity.

‘There is a myriad of other routes towards weight loss that consumers prefer over buying “light” or “diet” food, with exercising more being the most popular. Furthermore, the market is hampered by negative perceptions in terms of healthiness and portion sizes.’