Protein is believed to be the most satiating of all the macronutrients. An intense satiety may last for 2-3 hours after a meal. Therefore if eating occurs during this period, the food intake may be reduced. From an appetite perspective, it can be easily seen why the chronic over-consumption of dietary fat occurs with relative [...]
Physical examination If the patient’s primary physician hasn’t already done so, I order a detailed medical workup, including complete blood count, blood chemistries, thyroid-function tests, urinalysis, and electrocardiogram. Even though a problem may appear to be psychological in origin, I have to rule out potentially treatable physical causes, such as a brain tumor. For example, [...]
Dolly Higgin’s slow-speed life—and her metabolism—cranked up several notches once she started chasing Alisha. When 70-year-old Dolly retired, her lifestyle took a turn for the worse. The Boston grandmother found herself sleeping and eating a lot. Soon, she weighed 170 pounds, far too much for her 5-foot-2-inch frame. The excess weight pressed on a herniated [...]
3-4 servings—Vitamin C is the biggest contribution made by the fruit group, but fruits also contain good amounts of fiber and other nutrients. Many contain beta carotene, as well as other carotenes. One fruit serving equals 1 medium fruit, a half cup juice, or 1 cup chopped fruit. Once again, only half a cup of [...]
If you’re over 40 or you have any illnesses or ailments, see your physician first. Look for an exercise that’s enjoyable; you’re more likely to stick with it. Be sure to stretch and warm up appropriately, and never overdo it. Let me repeat that. It’s just as important as a sensible, unthreatening eating program. Don’t [...]
Generally speaking you want your total cholesterol (TC) to be 150 or less—ideally, it should be 100 plus your age. Your HDL should be 50 or more. But don’t despair if your cholesterol rises or your HDL drops, for a more important measure is the ratio between the two. Divide your TC by your HDL [...]
In medical school we learned a simple formula: Blood Pressure = Cardiac Output x Peripheral Resistance. This means that blood pressure will increase if the heart works harder to keep the blood flowing through the body, or if the blood vessels put up more resistance to the flow of blood by becoming, for example, more [...]
Americans spend more than $30 billion every year on weight loss foods, clinics, books, pills, surgeries, exercise plans, diet sodas, and gimmicks, but we’re still an obese nation. What we’ve been doing is clearly not working. The statistics show—as most of us have observed for ourselves—that weight gain over time is almost inevitable. Fad diets [...]