Food

[Nepenthe]

Started a diet after gaining 20 kilos in ~8 months. Blood pressure's probably also gone through the roof, so I really need to stay motivated with this.

 

My blood pressure is a problem too. This getting older stuff is messed up.

 

I made some pretty good burgers last night, 1/4 pound Angus steak with a bit of Worcestershire Sauce and Steak magic seasoning. I cooked some Ore-Ida fries in the oven and served it with carrots.

 

Looking at your last night's cooking, I'd say blood pressure's the result, not the problem

 

So far not starving, but history points tomorrow to being the worst day in the affair. Let's see how I manage.

[Hurlshort]

I don't make burgers every night

 

It's probably more genetic than anything else, my mom is very healthy and she has to take medication for it.

[LadyCrimson]

The males in my family have history of heart disease and my twin cousins have to be very careful. Sometimes genetics kinda sucks. Getting older too.

 

I find the video game diet works wonders, and it's a lot more fun than eating carrots. But yeah, I've done that...carrots, yogurt, fruit. Sigh. Last night I indulged in a fast food burger, which I haven't had in a long time. My mouth nearly exploded from all the grease and stuff. Tasty tho.

[Oblarg]

Why the hate for fast food?

 

The only "dieting" that works is controlling calorie intake and exercising regularly. We don't understand the biochemistry behind digestion and metabolism yet.

 

To prove the point, someone should make Supersize Me-type a movie of someone surviving off of McDonalds and vitamin supplements. I'm quite sure you could do it, as long as you didn't eat too much.

Edited December 7, 2010 by Oblarg

[Hurlshort]

Ugh, fast food makes me feel like total crap. I don't need a PhD in biochemistry to know that.

 

As for metabolism, I think we are getting into another old vs. young argument territory. I know how my own metabolism works, and it has changed quite a bit in the last few years.

 

edit: Time to head to the gym and work on that burger from last night :D

Edited December 8, 2010 by Hurlshot

[LadyCrimson]

Did I say I hated fast food? No. Depending on the place/personal taste, some of them can be tasty. My objection stems from the usually ginormous amount of calories (mostly of the 'bad fat' sort) for amount of food eaten and their general lack of nutrition value. Even the so-called 'healthy' options on most of their menus pack 700-900 calories for one shot. I'm a tiny person who doesn't spend 2 hours a day working out...I can't eat like that 2-3 times a day without gaining weight.

 

Edit: I forgot..the other issue is massive sodium. Massive. I find this more objectionable as I become older...the entire food industry is horrible about sodium. Plus I agree with Hurl...eat such too often and you start to feel rather terrible.

Edited December 8, 2010 by LadyCrimson

[Gorgon]

Plus the US has no limit on trans fat content, best described as tasty man made food industry industrial waste, personal choice and all that. It's bad for you, and it's worse for you in the states.

[Walsingham]

Super Size me fell down because McD's have enver told me to eat there all the time. I liked the guy, and enjoyed the film, but no sale.

 

He should have done a sequel in Baskin Robbins.

[Gorgon]

Yeah, didn't seem like a big scoop to me. The doctor warned him in the beginning, but I guess there would have been no movie if he had done the sensible thing.

[LadyCrimson]

Heh yeah, SuperSize me fails because it tried to target "McD's/fast food" when what it was really doing was just showing what a high-fat, high-sodium, high-carb, low nutrition diet can do to someone if that's all they eat all the time. Nothing new there. Someone who eats nothing but sausage & pepperoni pizza 3 times a day, or a pint or two of ice cream a day...or eats a Chili's/Applebees platters twice a day...same thing.

 

Basically, restaurant food should typically be restricted as your twice or thrice a month eating out treat, maybe once a week. Using it as your staple daily diet is not good for most people, no matter the venue.

[Oblarg]

Plus the US has no limit on trans fat content, best described as tasty man made food industry industrial waste, personal choice and all that. It's bad for you, and it's worse for you in the states.

 

You see, here's the thing - we don't know why trans fat is "bad," or even if it is "bad." We don't understand the biochemistry.

 

Current nutrition is based on some very shoddy science with large, poorly-controlled correlative studies.

 

I'm quite sure that someone can get their daily limit of calories from McDonalds (let's say, 2000 kcal/day), and with a bit of vitamin supplements, be completely fine. The only real problem might be sodium.

Edited December 8, 2010 by Oblarg

[Tigranes]

The point of supersize me was just to turn that knowledge everybody has in the back of their mind to a shocking and memorable image that sort of zooms around over their eyelids as they contemplate a fast food lunch. Which, as a one-off, was not the worst thing to do to the situation, really.

[Oblarg]

The point of supersize me was just to turn that knowledge everybody has in the back of their mind to a shocking and memorable image that sort of zooms around over their eyelids as they contemplate a fast food lunch. Which, as a one-off, was not the worst thing to do to the situation, really.

 

Really? All it did for me was reaffirm what was already obvious - if you eat 5000 Calories a day, you will get fat.

[mkreku]

McDonald's (in Sweden at least) are marketing themselves as real food. Super Size Me only showed that it's not.

[Humodour]

Ugh, fast food makes me feel like total crap. I don't need a PhD in biochemistry to know that.

 

As for metabolism, I think we are getting into another old vs. young argument territory. I know how my own metabolism works, and it has changed quite a bit in the last few years.

 

edit: Time to head to the gym and work on that burger from last night :D

 

Indeed!

[Gorgon]

Plus the US has no limit on trans fat content, best described as tasty man made food industry industrial waste, personal choice and all that. It's bad for you, and it's worse for you in the states.

 

You see, here's the thing - we don't know why trans fat is "bad," or even if it is "bad." We don't understand the biochemistry.

 

Current nutrition is based on some very shoddy science with large, poorly-controlled correlative studies.

 

I'm quite sure that someone can get their daily limit of calories from McDonalds (let's say, 2000 kcal/day), and with a bit of vitamin supplements, be completely fine. The only real problem might be sodium.

 

 

You know they couldn't technically prove that asbestos was bad for you for several years after the connection with cancer and respiratory illnesses was made, a lot more people died as a result. Do I want to chance it ? Not particularly.

 

Trans fat is linked with heart disease according to Wikipedia (that's not scientific, I know) but it does say that most governments recommend a cap just for that reason. I'll take their word for it.

[Nepenthe]

Plus the US has no limit on trans fat content, best described as tasty man made food industry industrial waste, personal choice and all that. It's bad for you, and it's worse for you in the states.

 

You see, here's the thing - we don't know why trans fat is "bad," or even if it is "bad." We don't understand the biochemistry.

 

Current nutrition is based on some very shoddy science with large, poorly-controlled correlative studies.

 

I'm quite sure that someone can get their daily limit of calories from McDonalds (let's say, 2000 kcal/day), and with a bit of vitamin supplements, be completely fine. The only real problem might be sodium.

 

 

You know they couldn't technically prove that asbestos was bad for you for several years after the connection with cancer and respiratory illnesses was made, a lot more people died as a result. Do I want to chance it ? Not particularly.

 

Trans fat is linked with heart disease according to Wikipedia (that's not scientific, I know) but it does say that most governments recommend a cap just for that reason. I'll take their word for it.

 

Yeah, just like it hasn't been scientifically proven that there's a human-caused global warming. Of course, by the time that such a thing could be scientifically proven, it'd in all likelyhood be so late rowboats would be the major form of transport in Manhattan.

[Malcador]

What is it with people and Asian food. Coworkers all seem to worship sushi or Thai food (hence the office always goes to pricey Asian places) and the "Thai" and "Chinese" places in the food courts always do the biggest business.

[Morgoth]

Asian food rocks. As does Italian, Greek and Turkish.

 

Actually, I'm fond of pretty much any cuisine.

[mkreku]

I like Indian food..

[Nepenthe]

I'm quite fond of vegetarian sushi as an uber-light alternative lunch, at the moment. Helps that the best sushi joint in town is one block away from the office (Zen @ K

[Malcador]

Italian food is nice. But I just make it at home, the dip in quality is made up by the savings ($18 for spaghetti bolognese ?!)

[Gfted1]

The only "dieting" that works is controlling calorie intake and exercising regularly.

 

Bingo.

 

An interesting "study" that drives home that point:

 

Twinkie diet helps nutrition professor lose 27 pounds

By Madison Park, CNN

November 8, 2010 8:40 a.m. EST

 

(CNN) -- Twinkies. Nutty bars. Powdered donuts.

 

For 10 weeks, Mark Haub, a professor of human nutrition at Kansas State University, ate one of these sugary cakelets every three hours, instead of meals. To add variety in his steady stream of Hostess and Little Debbie snacks, Haub munched on Doritos chips, sugary cereals and Oreos, too.

 

His premise: That in weight loss, pure calorie counting is what matters most -- not the nutritional value of the food.

 

The premise held up: On his "convenience store diet," he shed 27 pounds in two months.

 

For a class project, Haub limited himself to less than 1,800 calories a day. A man of Haub's pre-dieting size usually consumes about 2,600 calories daily. So he followed a basic principle of weight loss: He consumed significantly fewer calories than he burned.

 

His body mass index went from 28.8, considered overweight, to 24.9, which is normal. He now weighs 174 pounds.

 

But you might expect other indicators of health would have suffered. Not so.

 

Haub's "bad" cholesterol, or LDL, dropped 20 percent and his "good" cholesterol, or HDL, increased by 20 percent. He reduced the level of triglycerides, which are a form of fat, by 39 percent.

 

"That's where the head scratching comes," Haub said. "What does that mean? Does that mean I'm healthier? Or does it mean how we define health from a biology standpoint, that we're missing something?"

 

Haub's sample day:

 

Espresso, Double: 6 calories; 0 grams of fat

 

Hostess Twinkies Golden Sponge Cake: 150 calories; 5 grams of fat

 

Centrum Advanced Formula From A To Zinc: 0 calories; 0 grams of fat

 

Little Debbie Star Crunch: 150 calories; 6 grams of fat

 

Hostess Twinkies Golden Sponge Cake: 150 calories; 5 grams of fat

 

Diet Mountain Dew: 0 calories; 0 grams of fat

 

Doritos Cool Ranch: 75 calories; 4 grams of fat

 

Kellogg's Corn Pops: 220 calories; 0 grams of fat

 

whole milk: 150 calories; 8 grams of fat

 

baby carrots: 18 calories; 0 grams of fat

 

Duncan Hines Family Style Brownie Chewy Fudge: 270 calories; 14 grams of fat

 

Little Debbie Zebra Cake: 160 calories; 8 grams of fat

 

Muscle Milk Protein Shake: 240 calories; 9 grams of fat

 

Totals: 1,589 calories and 59 grams of fat Despite his temporary success, Haub does not recommend replicating his snack-centric diet.

 

"I'm not geared to say this is a good thing to do," he said. "I'm stuck in the middle. I guess that's the frustrating part. I can't give a concrete answer. There's not enough information to do that."

 

Two-thirds of his total intake came from junk food. He also took a multivitamin pill and drank a protein shake daily. And he ate vegetables, typically a can of green beans or three to four celery stalks.

 

Families who live in food deserts have limited access to fresh fruits and vegetables, so they often rely on the kind of food Haub was eating.

 

"These foods are consumed by lots of people," he said. "It may be an issue of portion size and moderation rather than total removal. I just think it's unrealistic to expect people to totally drop these foods for vegetables and fruits. It may be healthy, but not realistic."

 

Haub's body fat dropped from 33.4 to 24.9 percent. This posed the question: What matters more for weight loss, the quantity or quality of calories?

 

His success is probably a result of caloric reduction, said Dawn Jackson Blatner, a dietitian in Chicago, Illinois.

 

"It's a great reminder for weight loss that calories count," she said. "Is that the bottom line to being healthy? That's another story."

 

Blatner, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association, said she's not surprised to hear Haub's health markers improved even when he loaded up on processed snack cakes.

 

Being overweight is the central problem that leads to complications like high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol, she said.

 

How well are you managing your diabetes?

 

"When you lose weight, regardless of how you're doing it -- even if it's with packaged foods, generally you will see these markers improve when weight loss has improved," she said.

 

Before jumping on the Ding Dong bandwagon, Blatner warned of health concerns.

 

"There are things we can't measure," said Blatner, questioning how the lack of fruits and vegetables could affect long-term health. "How much does that affect the risk for cancer? We can't measure how diet changes affect our health."

 

I was eating healthier, but I wasn't healthy. I was eating too much.

 

On August 25, Haub, 41, started his cake diet focusing on portion control.

 

"I'm eating to the point of need and pushing the plate or wrapper away," he said.

 

He intended the trial to last a month as a teaching tool for his class. As he lost weight, Haub continued the diet until he reached a normal body mass index.

 

Before his Twinkie diet, he tried to eat a healthy diet that included whole grains, dietary fiber, berries and bananas, vegetables and occasional treats like pizza.

 

"There seems to be a disconnect between eating healthy and being healthy," Haub said. "It may not be the same. I was eating healthier, but I wasn't healthy. I was eating too much."

 

He maintained the same level of moderate physical activity as before going on the diet. (Haub does not have any ties to the snack cake companies.)

 

To avoid setting a bad example for his kids, Haub ate vegetables in front of his family. Away from the dinner table, he usually unwrapped his meals.

 

Haub monitored his body composition, blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose, and updated his progress on his Facebook page, Professor Haub's diet experiment.

 

To curb calories, he avoided meat, whole grains and fruits. Once he started adding meat into the diet four weeks ago, his cholesterol level increased.

 

Haub plans to add about 300 calories to his daily intake now that he's done with the diet. But he's not ditching snack cakes altogether. Despite his weight loss, Haub feels ambivalence.

 

"I wish I could say the outcomes are unhealthy. I wish I could say it's healthy. I'm not confident enough in doing that. That frustrates a lot of people. One side says it's irresponsible. It is unhealthy, but the data doesn't say that."

[Gorgon]

Eat meat and stay off the carbs, that's what will make the weight stay off. Starving yourself won't work, and it will also decrease your energy levels.

[Hurlshort]

I like Indian food..

 

Seconded.

 

I also wouldn't put Thai in the same sentence as Chinese. They are very different. At least in America, for the most part Chinese food is fairly unhealthy. Not fast food unhealthy, but it tends to be high in sodium and all that jazz.