I MARRIED A NUTRITIONIST Inside Information for Men on Health and Nutrition

The other day, while reaching for seconds, I got into a conversation with my nutritionist about Calories… that mysterious measurement that we immediately link to weight gain.  Or, at least I did.  I had recently read that the term “calorie” is defined as a unit of heat which raises one kilogram of water one degree.  It’s a measurement that goes back a hundred years, but today the calorie is tied to your body’s chemical energy which is created by oxidation of fat, carbs and protein.

And the way you burn all those calories off is with exercise, right?   Well, let’s just say “some” of the calories.  My nutritionist is a big supporter of exercise, but she cautioned that no matter how much you work out, you’ll burn no more than 25-30% of your daily calories through all that huffing, puffing, grunting and groaning.

The majority of your daily calories burn, my nutritionist said, is from doing your everyday activities, such as standing, sitting, breathing, eating, farting, climbing stairs, even watching TV.  Score!  You can figure you’ll burn roughly 11 calories for every pound you weigh, so if you’re clocking 180, your everyday activities will burn roughly 1,880 calories.  Not bad, if you can keep your calorie intake at the recommended level.   The Mayo Clinic says the average male needs a maintenance level of 2,800 calories per day, depending on physical activity, age, weight, metabolism, and muscle mass.  Pile on more and you may win a trip to Chubbyville.

Even with all that burning going on, what you eat is an important piece of the puzzle.  Why?  Well, for one thing, you’ll burn more calories in the digestion process depending on what you eat.  Digesting carbs, for example, will earn you somewhere around 5-10% calorie burn simply because carbs break down easily, as does fat.  And as for protein?  Bingo.  You’ll burn between 20-30% of the calories simply because it takes more processing.

Finally, let’s talk fiber.  The reason why it’s so good is it hangs out in the digestive track longer, like your mother in law who extends her visit without asking.  And some complex carbs, like veggies and whole grains, can even block the absorption of other calories.

So, as you can see, calorie counting isn’t the end all.  What’s more important is the type of calories you put in your cake hole.  It’s good to have protein at every meal, a good source of fiber from your veggies first and whole-grains second.  And if you’re not good with fiber, here’s what I take and what my nutritionist highly recommends CLICK HERE.

And that’s the scoop from Healthy Spouse.  Calorie… Calorah!

My nutritionist and I recently moved to a new house and while packing the kitchen she turned to me and said, “We need to get rid of this microwave.”   Hmmm?   Looked perfectly good to me.  I mean, it’s not like we used it a lot, mainly quick heat ups and such.  Then it hit me.  She probably wants a new one to match our new refrigerator.  Women are like that sometimes.  Wrong.  Then she clarified  her statement saying we were getting rid of our microwave all together.   Gulp.

Like a skilled lawyer, my nutritionist began to present her case.  Conventional heating warms food from the outside in.  Think of your oven, or in caveman terms, think campfire.  Microwave ovens, on the other hand, heat food from inside out by creating a violent friction in the water molecules within food.  This friction deforms the structure of the water molecules and generates heat in the process.   As the molecules are literally blown apart, the molecular damage spreads beyond the water and into your food.

Microwave radiation destroys and deforms the food molecules and creates new compounds completely unknown to nature.  Recent research shows that microwaves significantly decrease the nutritional value of food.  All your good intentions in the supermarket to buy fresh and healthy can go out the window with microwaving.

Microwaves reduce levels of vitamin B 12… decrease flavonoids in food by 97% which eliminates anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and anti-microbial properties…. lower levels of sinapic acid derivatives which neutralize free radicals which cause cancer… and significantly alter levels of vitamins and nutrients in your food.  Whoa.

Oh, and if you have a baby at home and you’re heating breast milk in a microwave.  Slap yourself.  Microwaves break down bacteria-digesting enzymes in breast milk and decrease antibody levels.   Heat plastic baby bottles in the microwave and you may be leaching dangerous toxins into breast milk or formula.

Bottom line.  Microwaves impair the quality of the food.  Maybe the Russians knew something we didn’t when they banned the use of microwaves in 1976.   Or, maybe we knew but were more interested in how the new appliance would revolutionize the food industry.

So, back to the new house and life without a microwave.  Surprisingly, it hasn’t been nearly as life-altering as I thought.   Liquids heat within 2-3 minutes in a sauce pan on the stove, and stay hot longer.  We now heat left overs in a convection oven which take a bit longer than a microwave, but works perfectly fine if you plan ahead instead of rushing last minute.  As for frozen foods, pop it in and set the timer.  The good part is, I now know the food I’m heating is the quality of food I want to be eating.  Food is expensive, and so are illnesses.  It’s something to consider.

And that’s the heat on microwaves from Healthy Spouse.  Get cookin’.

Now, I’ve been drinking coffee first thing in the morning for more years than I care to admit.  Roll out of bed, stagger to the kitchen, and pour the Joe.  It’s a good morning kick-start that so many of us do.  Whether you brew your coffee in some cheap ass plastic machine you got for your wedding, or a nice one from Macy’s, or you go fancy on us with using a French press or drip filter, it all gets us to the same place… morning buzz pick-me-up before hitting the shower.

It wasn’t long ago that my nutritionist started leaving all the coffee to me, and using the boiled water to make Cocoa sweetened with Stevia.  Always smelled great but I wasn’t about to give up my morning  jolt.  No way.

Over conversation one morning with my nutritionist, I snagged some inside information about the effects of pouring all that coffee into an empty stomach first thing in the morning.  My nutritionist had been reading a book by Stephen Cherniske called “Caffeine Blues” that pointed out that caffeine, especially on an empty stomach, stimulates the adrenal glands to produce Cortisol… the body’s foremost stress hormone that also stores fat.  Uh-oh.  I sensed trouble ahead.  Chronic long-term exposure to stress hormones disrupts the body’s metabolism causing elevated blood sugar, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and increased fat levels due to increased appetite.  Ah, man.  I’m just looking to wake up!

Of course, without looking up from her cocoa, she casually added that stress makes you burn fewer calories and Cortisol can actually reduce the body’s ability to release fat from its fat stores to use for energy.   And there was plenty more but I zeroed in on the facts.  I was getting fat by drinking my morning coffee.

So the next morning my plan was to try the unsweetened, non-dairy Baker’s Cocoa, then chase it with a cup of coffee once I hit the office.  And, that’s what I did.  But, you know what?  That Cocoa was damn good.  And the amazing thing was, after a day or two I didn’t miss the jolt or that amped-up feeling that usually went along with it.  I also noticed the drive in to work was a little less stressful.  Hmmm.  Now, months later, I still sometimes have a cup of coffee at work but strangely enough, I don’t Jones for it any more.

Now, a bit about Cocoa.  Unlike coffee which can be fat-storing, chocolate is a fat-burning food (use only 100% cocoa powder, unsweetened kind).  The big benefit of cocoa is in its ability to directly affect the pleasure centers in the brain making you feel satisfied, motivated and energized.  And when you sweeten it with Stevia, the healthy sweetener, you’re good as gold.  Give it a try.  You might just be pleasantly surprised.

And that’s the scoop from Healthy Spouse.  Go pleasure yourself.

Two of the healthiest vegetables known to man, and women,  just happen to end in “ato.”  Coincidence?   I think not!  Regardless of their predestined sound-alike properties, Sweet Potatoes and Tomatoes are two amazing foods that need to be a regular part of your diet.  And, no… you can’t use this information to build your case for being a couch potato.  Good try.

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Okay, here’s one of those big picture tips I’ve learned from my nutritionist which can potentially extend your life in a major way.  Get to know Resveratrol.  It’s a phytonutrient found in the skin of grapes, wine (oh yeah, that’s good!), grape juice, peanuts, and berries, and it’s often been recommended for its life-extending properties.  Resveratrol is a powerful antioxidant that helps prevent cancer, cuts inflammation, lowers cholesterol, and may lower risk of colon cancer.  If you know of someone with Alzheimer’s disease, it may slow  its progression.

Pretty impressive, huh?  Well, new studies have shown that resveratrol also has the potential to help with weight-loss and can kick up your metabolism.  It even helps with blood flow through the body by opening blood vessels, and guys, you know what that means.  Can’t guarantee you’ll be walking down the hall at work with a binder in front of your belt buckle, but you may be pitching more tents… without going camping!

Oh, and gentlemen, if your wife is dealing with symptoms of menopause and you’re reeling from the effects, too, a new study revealed that resveratrol may be just as effective as HRT (hormone replacement therapy) in cutting symptoms of menopause (without the cancer risks!)

Now, if you drink a boat load of wine every day to get your resveratrol, well, you might feel good (except in the morning) but that’s counter productive.  And, it’s hard to down too much grape juice, peanuts and berries on a regular basis.

So… here’s my tip.  My nutritionist has me on something called Juice Plus+ Vineyard Blend.  It’s nothing but 9 varieties of berries and grapes in a capsule form.  Nothing but food in a capsule in highly concentrated powder form.  Couldn’t be simpler.  It’s made from all pesticide and chemical free fruit and there’s a boatload of primary research to back it up.

Check it out at www.allyourservings.com And that’s the scoop from Healthy Spouse.

Trim Your Toxic Intake with These Tips

Here’s a few simple ways you can help reduce your intake of toxins.

TIP 1 – Your car.  Ah, the smell of a new car.  It’s a daily reminder that you deserve a new car whether you can afford it or not.  Yes, that new car smell is certainly powerful…perhaps more than you think.  Did you know that your new car smell is simply plastic, leather and other man-made materials off-gassing?  Unlike human off-gassing, which can temporarily linger and if you’re good, clear a room for a short time, the materials in a new car pour toxic vapors 24/7 into your confined driving space for weeks or even months.  My nutritionist’s solution… Air out a new car as often as possible by leaving the windows open.  And whether you have a new or old car, ventilate it before you jump in and start sucking air.  Summer heat accelerates off-gassing.  One last note.  When you get your car washed, pass on the added fragrance.  It’s simply more toxins you’re pumping into your car.

TIP 2 – Your leftovers.  Never microwave left-overs in plastic storage containers. The heat generated by a microwave causes chemicals in the plastic to leach into your food.  My nutritionist’s solution… go with glass storage containers and put a paper towel over the top when heating.

TIP 3 – Your shower.  Plastic shower curtains, especially new ones, off-gas big time, especially with the heat of a hot shower.  While you’re soap’in and a suds’in and having a bang up time behind the plastic curtain, you’re sucking in some pretty nasty stuff.  My nutritionist’s solution… purchase a polyester fabric shower curtain which is water repellant, non toxic and emit no off-gases like vinyl products.

TIP 4 – Take-out coffee.  When you buy a cup of take-out coffee, beware of coated paper cups and their plastic lids which often leach chemicals into your coffee.  It’s that heat thing again.  Just imagine how hot it gets inside a freshly poured coffee cup.  My nutritionist’s solution… buy a stainless-steel coffee mug and take it into Starbucks or any other coffee house and they’ll be glad to fill it up… and, the coffee will be cheaper too!

And that’s the scoop from Healthy Spouse.

Okay, look.  Thanksgiving is a long way off but I want to talk to you about Cranberries, nature’s little floating berry that packs a punch when it comes to health benefits.  My nutritionist tells me that cranberries contain 5 times the antioxidants of broccoli, may prevent kidney stones and urinary tract infections, and the phytonutrients may protect against macular degeneration…gotta protect the eyes.  Check this out.  Phytonutrients actually convince cancer cells to kill themselves off and shut down their ability to multiply.  How about them apples?… I mean cranberries.  Heart issues are a main topic of conversation these days.  Drinking cranberry juice or eating the whole cranberry benefits the heart because solid research shows that it lowers LDL cholesterol while kicking up the good HDL.

Now before you run down to the store to load up on Cranberry Juice Cocktail, my nutritionist says to stick with 100% pure cranberry juice to reap the most benefits and avoid the extra sugar from the juices added, like grape juice, to sweeten up the drink.

There are lots of juices to choose from, including Ocean Spray 100% juice, no sugar added or 100% cranberry juice from Trader Joe’s.  But don’t get fooled by “light” or “sugar free” labeling because they usually include artificial sweeteners.  Again, you want 100% juice, no sugar added.  If that’s not sweet enough for you, you can always add a touch of Stevia or Xylitol.  By the way, did you know that Xylitol, which looks and tastes just like sugar, is great for your teeth and has other health benefits as well?  But that’s another blog.

Finally, a little trivia about how they harvest cranberries.  Now, I’ve been down in the bogs of Massachusetts where Ocean Spray is headquartered.  They flood the cranberry fields at harvest, drive a machine through the water that shakes the bushes below, and the cranberries float to the top.  That’s why you see Justin and Henry (photo) standing in waders surrounded by floating cranberries.  Each little cranberry has four air chambers inside which cause the cranberries to float, like a kid farting in his bathing suit.

So go enjoy a nice glass of 100% pure cranberry juice.  And if you need to splash in a shot of vodka for your health, I’m not telling… (research shows two shots of alcohol a day may reduce heart attack risk… but that’s another blog!)

And that’s the scoop on Cranberries from Healthy Spouse.  Glug. Glug.

Welcome to the first blog of… I Married A Nutritionist!

Let’s talk Coconut Water.   My nutritionist tells me that Coconut Water is not only low in calories, but it’s low in fat and doesn’t have nearly the sugar that most juices do.  It’s an amazing, natural drink that does the body wonders.  But, before you go buying Coconut Water, which is available in cans and small cartons, check the ingredients and make sure you’re getting the pure stuff, without added sugar and other ingredients.

Coconut Water is also an amazing rehydrater.   Skip the sports drink  next time you’re exercising and replace it with Coconut Water.  Most sports drinks contain sugar and artificial colors which are hell on your body.

Now, as you may know, hangovers are mainly caused by dehydration from drinking too much beer, wine or cocktails and not enough water intake.  Reach that mode and then your body has a hard time absorbing water.   Coconut Water, which is loaded with pure and natural electrolytes, puts you on the road to recovery fast so you can stare down the hair-of-the-dog when your buddies come over for that Sunday morning NFL start.

And if you want to go au naturale, be adventurous and buy a whole coconut at the store.  Poke out the soft hole on the end (one of the three divots is soft), and drain out the pure juice.  Then, break out the hammer and smash the sucker open.  Wedge a straight edge screwdriver (hopefully a clean one) between the white meat and shell and you’ve got a fantastic snack!

That’s the scoop from Healthy Spouse.