As I noted in my previous post, I am starting a new series on this blog pertaining to our health and how to optimize it through understanding what we eat. If you missed my last post, you can view it here. In order to fully understand some of the other important concepts relative to nutrition, we must first understand how different diets are generally broken down. The are three macro-nutrients commonly referred to in most diets- carbohydrates, protein, and fat. In general, 100% of your daily intake of food is a combination of these three things. The percentage of each that a person eats can vary depending on his/her diet. One thing that I consider to be crucial to understanding how to be healthy, is the role of our metabolism, and how different variations of the macro-nutrients can effect how our metabolism operates. Here is the nitty-gritty science of it all- most of which I have grabbed from handy sites such as Wikipedia (no sense in re-inventing the wheel here).
- In food science and in many informal contexts, the term carbohydrate often means any food that is particularly rich in starch (such as cereals, bread and pasta) or sugar (such as candy, jams and desserts). There are simple carbohydrates such as white bread, pasta, and candy and there are complex carbs which are generally whole-grain products and things like vegetables. Carbohydrates are a superior short-term fuel for organisms because they are simpler to metabolize than fats or those amino acid portions of proteins that are used for fuel. The most important carbohydrate for animals is glucose; so much so, that the level of glucose is used as the main control for the central metabolic hormone, insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is central to regulating energy and glucose metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle. See Wikipedia if you want to learn more about this. Note: while insulin comes into play during times when our blood sugar is raised, Glucagon performs the opposite function: it will raise our blood sugar levels when they are too low. Insulin stops the use of fat as an energy source (and therefore during times of Glucagon use, our bodies utilize fat as an energy source). It stands to reason then, that too many carbohydrates equates to a constant elevated level of blood sugar, which in turn tells the body to provide a constant supply of insulin. If we are always utilizing insulin, then we are never using fat as our energy source. However, when insulin is absent, glucose is not taken up by body cells and the body begins to use fat as an energy source, for example, by transfer of lipids from adipose tissue to the liver for mobilization as an energy source. There are 4 calories in one gram of carbohydrate. Based on the effects on risk of heart disease and obesity, the Institute of Medicine recommends that American and Canadian adults get between 45–65% of dietary energy from carbohydrates. The Food and Agriculture Organization and World Health Organization jointly recommend that national dietary guidelines set a goal of 55–75% of total energy from carbohydrates, but only 10% directly from sugars (their term for simple carbohydrates).
- Protein is essential to the human body, providing the building blocks of muscle and tissue synthesis. Proteins are broken down in the stomach during digestion by enzymes known as proteases into smaller polypeptides to provide amino acids for the organism, including the essential amino acids that the organism cannot biosynthesize itself. The indispensable amino acids are leucine, isoleucine, valine, lysine, threonine, tryptophan, methionine, phenylalanine and histidine. Most animal sources and certain vegetable sources have the complete complement of all the essential amino acids in adequate proportions. Unlike carbohydrates, protein has almost no effect on blood sugar levels, therefore, it does not contribute to elevated insulin levels in the body like carbohydrate do. There are 4 calories in one gram of protein. According to US & Canadian Dietary Reference Intake guidelines, women aged 19–70 need to consume 46 grams of protein per day, while men aged 19–70 need to consume 56 grams of protein per day to avoid a deficiency. Several studies have concluded that active people and athletes may require elevated protein intake- as much as 1-2 grams per pound of lean body mass (muscle).
- Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and largely insoluble in water. Chemically, fats are generally triesters of glycerol and fatty acids. Fats may be either solid or liquid at room temperature, depending on their structure and composition. Although the words “oils”, “fats”, and “lipids” are all used to refer to fats, “oils” is usually used to refer to fats that are liquids at normal room temperature, while “fats” is usually used to refer to fats that are solids at normal room temperature. “Lipids” is used to refer to both liquid and solid fats, along with other related substances. Fats form a category of lipid, distinguished from other lipids by their chemical structure and physical properties. This category of molecules is important for many forms of life, serving both structural and metabolic functions. They are an important part of the diet for humans. Fats or lipids are broken down in the body by enzymes called lipases produced in the pancreas. Vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat-soluble, meaning they can only be digested, absorbed, and transported in conjunction with fats. Fats are also sources of essential fatty acids, an important dietary requirement. Fats play a vital role in maintaining healthy skin and hair, insulating body organs against shock, maintaining body temperature, and promoting healthy cell function. Fats also serve as energy stores for the body, containing about 9 Calories per gram of fat. They are broken down in the body to release glycerol and free fatty acids. The glycerol can be converted to glucose by the liver and thus used as a source of energy. In general, it recommended that fat not exceed 30% of your daily calories. Often, less than 25% is recommended. Remember there are good and bad fats… generally speaking just stay away from anything that is saturated fat or contains trans-fatty acids and you’ll be okay.
Now that we have that out of the way, one important take away from this is that carbohydrates are the primary effectors of the insulin levels in your bloodstream. The more of them you eat, the more insulin your body needs. Note: there are ways to keep this in check, such as eating fat or protein along with your carbs). The other important message here is that carbs are not essential nutrients in humans: the body can obtain all its energy from protein and fats. The brain and neurons generally cannot burn fat for energy, but can use glucose or ketones; the body can also synthesize some glucose from a few of the amino acids in protein and also from the glycerol backbone in triglycerides. Current guidelines for food sources suggest that carbohydrates make up the majority of our diet… while that works for some, it doesn’t work for everyone. If this macro-nutrient is not essential, then we can control how much we consume without any threat to our health (and likely the opposite will occur- improved health). I happen to believe that the modern-day carbohydrate recommendations are too high. Americans eat too many of them, keeping their blood sugar continuously elevated. We end up with continually elevated levels of insulin in the bloodstream to bring glucose levels down, and ultimately storing, rather than burning, fat.
Insulin levels in the body cause more problems than just diabetes. Too much insulin in the body will result in insulin resistance (a precursor to diabetes), a physiological condition where insulin becomes less effective at lowering blood sugars. The resulting increase in blood glucose may raise levels outside the normal range and cause adverse health effects. In an insulin-resistant person, normal levels of insulin do not have the same effect in controlling blood glucose levels. During the compensated phase on insulin resistance insulin levels are higher, and blood glucose levels are still maintained. The elevated insulin levels have additional effects that cause further abnormal biological effects throughout the body including high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, excess fluid retention, elevated blood fats, and other degenerative diseases.
The first thing each of us should look at is how much of each macro-nutrient do we eat each day? Are we carb junkies? If so, what kind of carbs are we eating- simple or complex? How much protein are we getting, and is it all coming from animal products, or does some of it come from healthy vegetable, nuts, and seeds? Ask yourself the same question about the fats in your diet. One of the biggest fallacies in the American diet is that fat is bad. The fat that is clogging your arteries is not coming from the fat in your diet. It’s coming from the excess glucose being stored as fat because insulin levels are too high.
Most of us eat too much sugar. When I say sugar, I don’t just mean candy and cookies. I am talking about the sugars in your bread, your baked beans, your fruit salad, your salad dressing, crackers, and everything else. Keep track, and look at the carton/box of everything you eat. You’ll be surprised at how much hidden sugar there is in the food we eat. I would say that most Americans are likely consuming too much carbohydrates, too many of the bad fats, and too little protein.
Macro-nutrient breakdowns are going to be specific for everyone. I typically consider a healthy range of carbohydrates to around 30%, protein around 40% and fat around 30%. More than 30% carbohydrates and I believe the body is robbed of protein it needs and flooded with insulin it doesn’t. The trick is knowing what to get your carbs, protein, and fats from! They are not all created equal. We will dive into this in the next post, Organic vs. Conventional foods, and Grain-fed vs. Grass finished. Here are some links to additional resources for understanding macro-nutrients.
- Wikipedia has a list of macro-nutrients further broken down for additional information.
- Here’s a great calculator which shows many different schools of thought for macro-nutrient percentages.
- Here’s another macro-nutrient summary.
Health and Fitness has been one of my primary research areas. I am continually finding new information relative to nutrition and constantly working towards improving and changing up my fitness routines. That said, I also am not what you would consider a “natural” at being healthy. My body and mind gravitate towards the sugary-fatty-carb-heavy foods and I also lack the natural ability to stop myself. So, for me, health is constant work. I have to stay conscious about what I’m eating and why. Because this has become such a passion for me, I have decided to blog about nutrition in a multi-part series. I will first address some important basics about nutrition and and then we’ll discuss some different theories on nutrition and how we should be eating to maximize our health and vitality. There are a wealth of different opinions on the subject. After using myself as a guinea pig for many years, I have definitely formed my own opinion about what I believe to be best for my body. This is the first part of the series, an introduction if you will about what I will be writing about in the coming weeks. As an added incentive for change for myself, I am also going to share with my readers my journey on my newest health and nutrition experiment. 
Among some of the most important nutrition concepts for me is natural, organic and unprocessed foods. I was a vegetarian for many years because I could not come to terms with what they were doing to (and putting in) the factory farm animals we ate. However, after many years of additional nutrition eduction I believe that we as humans need to consume meat (although the caveat to this is that we do NOT need to eat as much as we think). Now I choose to buy only grass-finished beef, fully organic and farm-raised chickens, eggs, etc. I will not eat an animal or animal product that has come from the factory-farming system. While there is a definite increase in price for choosing to eat this way, if you eat less animal products than the current American each day, it will balance out fairly well. Natural and organic eating includes fruits and vegetables as well.
Another important aspect of nutrition is balancing the macro-nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, and fat), and staying aware of the nutrient density of your food choices. Nutrient density is a function of the quantity nutrients (micro-nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, amino acids, etc.) contained in the food per calorie. A good example would be to compare something like spinach which has one of the highest food densities to a Twinkie, which has basically nothing (I wouldn’t even consider it a food to be hones). In a cup of spinach is 10 calories and a multitude of vitamins and minerals. Twinkies have 15 times as many calories and no nutrients. Americans tend to eat too many calories… this is a fact that is most obvious to everyone at this point. In addition to our weight problem, we also suffer from malnutrition problems that cause everything from cancer to kidney and liver disease, poor immune system function, to diabetes. Americans eat high-calorie, low-nutrient dense foods.
There are many thoughts about what we should be eating. The macro-nutrient breakdown has been changed and modified and depending on the school of thought can be anywhere from 60% carbs, 15% fat, and 15% protein to 0% carbs, 40% fat and 60% protein. Generally there is some scientific study or book to back up the breakdown percentages. We will discuss these differences and how these macro-nutrient breakdowns can effect people differently. There are also many things that we eat everyday that I think we’re only recently beginning to realize are bad for us. Things like gluten, dairy, and refined sugar. We’ll also talk about how these food-types effect the body and why they may be worth cutting out of your diet.
Finally, I am going to discuss some of the mainstream diets out there that people tend to follow, the pros and cons of each, and then I will discuss some that are not yet mainstream, but are beginning to pick up speed. My next “experiment” with nutrition will be taking one of these newer theories for 30 days and blogging about how it is working.
Too many of us blindly put things in our mouths without stopping to consider how it contributes to our health problems. I think everyone is aware of the connection between diet and diabetes and heart-disease; however, I am a believer that the majority of our health problems in modern society our a function of what we eat. Here is a list of the upcoming posts in the series:
- Macro-nutrients: carbs, protein, and fat and their role in regulating metabolic hormones
- Organic vs. conventional; grain fed vs. grass finished
- Nutrient density; learning how to shop healthy
- Gluten, Dairy, and Refined Sugar- what you should know
- Acid-Alkaline factors- why its important and how you can improve your balance
- Common diets- the good, the bad, and the ugly
- Another perspective- new and different ideas about eating
- A weekly update post about my new health experiment
I hope people will participate in this series. Feel free to ask questions and add to these posts. While I spend much of my free time reading and researching these topics, I am by no means an expert. I welcome other ideas and perspectives! Happy reading.
This is the time of year where I get a reality check on just how much I have going on and just how badly I manage it sometimes. My two boys have just started their football season, school starts in a week, and of course there is work, the house, the puppy, etc. In the end, I
feel like I am so busy that I can’t attend to any of my responsibilities the way I should; that I’m simply running around like crazy just trying to maintain the status quo.
To me, I feel like I’m on a high-speed train and I can’t get off. While I realize that we live the life we choose, I do sometimes need to slow things down- just for a bit- to catch my breath and find a moment of sanity. If there is anyone out there feeling a little overwhelmed, here are some ideas to slowing down your train and getting some much-needed recharge time.
- Absolutely make NO plans on one weekend day. Don’t tell anyone where you are, and don’t make yourself available that day to anyone but yourself. Then, do your most favorite thing (hiking, baking, running, sleeping, etc.).
- Turn your bathroom into a “mini-getaway”. Decorate with candles, add some music, etc. Find your favorite aromatherapy scents and oils and draw yourself a bath. Take your time, listen to the music, read a book… but most importantly be in the moment.
- Go for a walk. Don’t think about what you have to do, what you didn’t do… those are all past and future thoughts. Be in the PRESENT. Only think about what is happening to you in that moment. What do you see? What do you smell? What does the sky look like? Give yourself a break from worrying about everything else and just enjoy the walk.
- Call up a friend that you haven’t seen in ages because you’re too busy and get together. Go see a movie, go play golf- whatever it is that the two of your most enjoy.
- Do something spontaneous. Get in your car and just drive (or get on the bus). Just go. Don’t have a plan, just drive and let things happen however they happen. You might be surprised what your day will turn into if you let it develop on its own.
There are endless possibilities for taking the time to slow down and just… breathe. The main point here is to make sure that you do it. If you never stop to enjoy the present, then what exactly is the point of all that we do? Enjoy the present, worry less about the future and worry NOT about the past.
Sometimes the hardest part of my day is reminding myself of the present. Probably the most important thing any of us can do is be present in our lives. But that proves always to be easier said than done.
I suspect in simpler times, it was much easier; everything we did had a direct effect on our survival. Everything we did was effecting the present. Now, we don’t hunt for our food, run from predators, or find emergency shelter during a storm. We go to work, sit in cubes, surf the internet. There is little reason for our minds to stay present; after all, we know that we’ll be sitting in that space for the next eight hours and that nothing of any consequence is likely to happen. Now, our minds are free to wander. Free to think about what we’ll do tomorrow. Encouraged to think about what we want for our lives in the next five years, ten years, after retirement.
But, if we’re living in our thoughts of tomorrow, then who is taking charge of our lives right now? Who is driving? Unconsciousness is driving. Unconsciousness in drivers seat of the present means that choices get made (or don’t get made) at a time when they actually matter, but you’re not there to oversee the changes that are (or aren’t) occurring.
The choices we make in the present, effect what happens to us tomorrow. Our ability to effect and change tomorrow depends on what we do in the present. It is simply a matter of seeing that tomorrow and five years from now does not exist. Yesterday does not exist. They are simply concepts and moments of present that have already passed us by or have yet to occur. When tomorrow comes, will we not see that we are living in it? Will we be sitting around thinking about the next tomorrow?
Living in the present means accepting the current moment just as it is. Making the best of the moment, regardless of where it is or what you’re doing. Sometimes, it may bring us to the realization that the present is not making us happy, but that gives us the chance to actually effect what our tomorrow will be, right?
If we are unconscious in the present, then when the tomorrow we are planning for becomes the present, we will be no more conscious than we were yesterday, for we will still be thinking about tomorrow. The present is the only place to make change a reality. Tomorrow will always be a concept in our minds of which we cannot impact unless we turn our attention to now.
So, take a moment every day to practice recognizing the moment. Remind yourself this it is real and tomorrow is not! It is a difficult practice, very difficult because we are all so well versed in thinking ahead.
As an environmental scientist by trade, climate change is something I spent many years learning about in college. I read about it often, and I am always astounded by how many people choose to believe that it is a farce; a ridiculous concept. The comment thread at the end of articles astound me. Really? I mean… really? How can it be that so many people do not understand the issues and challenges that our Earth faces today? How can it be that not every citizen of this Earth doesn’t understand what they are contributing to?
I suppose that very thought brought me to today, where I am choosing to write more about getting informed about the problem than I am about any one specific issue surrounding our climate change crisis. Take exhibit A below (compliments of the Nature Conservancy website).
Everything on Earth is cyclic in nature, including the patterns of weather and climate change. The graph above details every carbon dioxide spike in Earth’s history, as records in ice cores on the planet. The current level of carbon dioxide far exceeds all previous levels ever recorded. I find it hard to believe that there can be an argument to explain how the spike we see on the graph representing today could be a result of anything except us!
If you are willing to accept the possibility that these measurements taken by scientists from around the world might hold some truth… some intrinsic value, then inform yourself about how this happened and why. Only once you accept and understand the problem can you find the motivation for change. Here are some great places to start:
- The Environmental Protection Agency has some great information on how our human development has spurred the recent climate change; if you’re not quite sure about what greenhouse gases are, the EPA has information for that too.
- Need a beginner’s guide to climate change? Here’s a great place to start.
- Check out the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change. Here you can get worldwide information and view points that go beyond America.
- The National Resources Defense Council has additional information regarding the many effects of climate change.
There is a wealth of information on the internet about climate change. Take advantage of it and refuse to ignore the situation. It is exactly that ignorance that has brought us to where we are today. It’s a funny thing that people cannot seem to make serious change unless faced with life-or-death situations. This truly is life-and-death; it’s just not life-or-death right now, it’s later or someday or sometime non-descript moment in time that we all choose to ignore as important.
We’ve all hear about the need to reduce our carbon footprints, donate to organizations who are working to find new clean energy technologies and to correspond with our governments to promote effective change. But how many of us really do our part? Does society just decide that it won’t effect them, so who cares? Do they lack the ability and foresight to make the connection between our lifestyles and the spike at the end of that chart?
What stops us from saving ourselves and the rest of the creatures on this planet? That’s really what we would be doing it for after all, right? It’s not about saving the Earth. The Earth will effectively “save itself” from us if we continue on our present course. The Earth will heal. We don’t have that options. Our race cannot survive our poor choices.
Here are some additional resources to help inspire action.
- Find out what your carbon footprint is.
- Here is some information on what you can do at home, work, and at school. Every little bit we can do will help in the long run.
- Checkout these organizations who are working for us to spur change in government policies.
No one is going to be able to stand up and say that they have done everything they can to effect climate change. I happen to recycle, work actively to reduce my carbon footprint, use environmentally friendly products at home, and participate in websites devoted to trying to save the planet. But I could do so much more. We all could. So, the question to ask yourself is not if you’re doing EVERYTHING you can, but can you do just one more thing? Can you donate? Can you educate? Can you reduce your driving? Every single, little, minute step each one of us takes towards correcting the climate change crisis we currently face, will go a long way when multiplied by one billion, or two… or three or four. We are all in this together- so inform yourself. Inform others. In this case, ignorance will definitely not lead to bliss.
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