Gluten-Free Myths: Dispelling Misconceptions About the Latest Dietary Scapegoat

Gluten-Free Myths: Dispelling Misconceptions About the Latest Dietary Scapegoat

By Kurtis Bright

The Gluten-Free Fad Doesn’t Seem to Be Going Away, So Here Are Some Facts

If you’re like millions of Americans, you might be thinking about hopping on the gluten-free bandwagon.

Perhaps you’ve read one too many stories about celebrities who have lost dramatic weight by cutting carbs. Or perhaps you’ve simply given up on living a normal life because you have an annoying co-worker who won’t shut up about being gluten-free themselves, and you figure, hey, if you can’t beat them, join them.

Well, before you drink the (gluten-free!) Kool-Aid, here are a few myths surrounding gluten. 

• Myth #1: Gluten is terrible and it must stamped out before it kills again - It is considered received knowledge among the trendy and the gullible that gluten is a newly discovered deadly substance that ruthlessly seeks to make you fat and possibly stab you to death in your sleep. This is only a slight exaggeration. While gluten can have a negative effect on people with Celiac disease as well as on people with other levels of gluten intolerance, the truth is that the vast majority of people have no such sensitivity. We’re talking less than one percent of Americans. However that isn’t stopping people from self-diagnosing with something that has been termed “non-celiac gluten sensitivity,” which, to all appearances, seems to be little more than a cry for attention from those who have more money than sense. But the dubious nature of the "diagnosis" isn't stopping the marketing behemoth that is the gluten-free sector of the food industry from cashing in. However, here’s the simple truth: gluten is a naturally occurring protein that is found in wheat and other grains like barley and rye that is not threatening at all to 99 percent of people--neither in terms of causing illness, nor in terms of making you fat. As always, weight loss comes with no magic bullet: reducing caloric intake and increasing calories burned is how it works, folks. Always has, always will. Those with Celiac disease experience stomach pain and bloating if they eat even trace amounts of it, but for the rest of us, it’s just another component of food.
• Myth #2: Gluten-free is not the same as wheat-free - Often people think that by giving up white bread and flour and replacing it with whole-grain versions they have successfully turned away the scourge of gluten. No. Once again, gluten is found in not only wheat and spelt, but also rye and barley. And to review, these grains in their whole, organic form are not inherently bad dietary choices. Whole grains contain more fiber and usually have a lower glycemic index than the refined version, so they help you feel fuller for longer. Switching to whole grains may even contribute to weight loss, in tandem with other dietary changes like reducing caloric intake and getting more exercise. But cutting out wheat products is not the same as “going gluten-free.” And while we’re on the topic:
• Myth #3: A gluten-free diet alone will lead to dramatic weight loss - The trend-setters and their minions like to tout tales of Hollywood stars who lost eye-popping amounts of weight for upcoming film roles by switching to a gluten-free diet, but there are almost always other factors involved. For starters, you have to keep in mind the collateral effects of giving up gluten: in a gluten-free diet, highly refined carb items like bagels, donuts, crackers, pasta, etc. are gone too. And these are foods that we already recognize are detrimental to maintaining a healthy body weight. By substituting whole grains for refined flour products, along with introducing more vegetables and high protein foods, you automatically reduce the amount of high-glycemic foods you’re eating. Keep in mind too that going on any kind of serious diet--such as those that film stars adopt in pursuit of multi-million dollar roles--automatically implies that you are restricting calories, or at least keeping a strict count of calories consumed. Studies show that simply by being aware of the number of calories in the foods we eat, we tend to reduce how much we eat. A kitchen scale is your best friend in the battle of the bulge, not a pyre made of everything wheat. Thirdly, when we are assessing the miracle weight loss programs of the glitterati, don’t forget that every one of them has at least one dietician if not more, along with at least one personal trainer if not a whole stable of them. High-dollar movie stars also have the luxury of embarking on a three to six-month weight loss and exercise program prior to shooting in which the entirety of their JOB consists of getting in shape. It’s just silly and frankly irresponsible for these folks to go on talk shows and tout fad diets like gluten-free eating when they’ve also been working out with a professional trainer six hours a day, six days a week for three months or more prior to shooting their films, and enjoying meals prepared for them by professional chefs under the auspices of dieticians. It is equally foolish for us to think there is some short cut.

So for people who don’t have Celiac disease or other gluten sensitivity, feel free to eat all the expensive gluten-free products you want--or however much you can afford. But let’s not fool ourselves: eating sensible portions of natural, unrefined, whole foods without a lot of added sugar, along with taking up a sensible exercise program is the only real path to weight loss and health.

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What You Eat Could Be Affecting Your Mood

What You Eat Could Be Affecting Your Mood

By Kurtis Bright

Avoiding Sugar Crashes Is Only Half The Battle--Food Strategies That Can Boost Your Mood

At some point or another, everyone has experienced “stress eating,” that is to say, eating from a place of emotional need. Crying into a pint of Ben and Jerry’s after a breakup is a common rom-com trope for good reason.

But the fact is, grabbing a candy bar or other sweet snack when we feel stressed is actually natural on some level, and even based on biological imperatives. The simple truth is that foods like these make us feel good because our ancient wiring has built-in rewards for us for taking in (formerly) desperately needed fats and sugars.

However, that taste of sugar and sense of well-being comes with a price: the inevitable sugar crash. Following the elation of the sugar high comes the morass of low energy, crankiness and even depression--an ugly vicious circle that leads many to seek a quick fix for their low mood in the form of another candy bar, then another and another. So little wonder that people in many developed countries are so depressed, obese and suffering from diabetes.

Lucky for us, there are foods that are better at giving us better moods--moods that last--along with higher energy. Over the long term, foods like these will keep you in a better, more productive mood.

• Caffeine - Much is made of the notion of coffee addiction, both teasing and periodic alarm. However, the energy and buzz of elation you get following your morning cup of joe is not a joke: a study at Harvard in 2011 showed that women who drank at least two daily cups of coffee showed a 15 percent lower chance of depression than their coffee-deprived counterparts. And depression risk decreased by 20 percent for those who consumed four cups a day. Because caffeine triggers the release of dopamine, it helps you focus and improves outlook. In moderation, virtually all modern studies show that coffee is a fairly benign drug of choice. Just be aware that if you drink coffee too late in the day it can and will affect your sleep, and if you are a coffee-drinker who experiences anxiety--a very real possible result according to studies--you should probably cut back a bit.
• Fat - We crave fat at a biological, animal level, simple as that. Back when our ancestors were still scavenging on the savannah while trying to avoid lions and other predators, to find a food source containing a lot of fat was something like striking biological gold. The reward centers in our brains are hardwired to release dopamine and other feel-good chemicals when we absorb fat for this reason. Fat slows digestion and our bodies can store it for later use, so when you and your body don’t know where your next meal is coming from, you tend to crave it. What's more, your body is designed to hang onto every molecule you take in, banking that valuable fat for later. It is perhaps because of this physical need that the body has for fat that we experience a calming sense of satisfaction when we eat it. When studies examine people with mood disorders, they find that eating two seafood meals per week high in omega-3 fatty acids is strongly correlated to lower rates of depression. Researchers think this is because these fats help maintain brain function in regions responsible for mood and emotion.
• Afternoon Carbs - Despite what you’ve been told by your trendy, gluten-free neighbor, carbohydrates are not the devil. The fact of the matter is carbs are vital to our energy levels and brain function. If you are one of the many people who experience a dreaded late afternoon decline in mood and energy, it might well be due to the fact that your brain is running low on serotonin. Have a small serving of carbohydrates, say 25 to 30 grams or so, for instance, three-quarters of a cup of Cheerios or other unsweetened cereal. Even that small amount can give you a surprising boost without a huge caloric cost or a massive sugar crash after.

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Tryptophan And Happiness: Here Are Some Great Foods That Boost Your Serotonin Levels

Tryptophan And Happiness: Here Are Some Great Foods That Boost Your Serotonin Levels

By Kurtis Bright

Long Considered the Scourge of Thanksgiving, Tryptophan Can Actually Help Regulate Your Serotonin

It’s tough to shake a bad reputation. Just ask Tryptophan. The relatively common amino acid, which is found in turkey and numerous other foods, was long thought to be the primary cause of a sleepiness that strikes after eating the traditional meal on the U.S.’s annual Thanksgiving Day.

Every year, Thanksgiving would come around again, and all people would talk about the tryptophan in turkey, so much that your Uncle Ralph was perfectly justified in falling asleep on the couch while watching football.

Like may myths surrounding food, the reality is both more simple and more complicated than that. Yes, tryptophan does indeed help boost your serotonin levels, which is a neurotransmitter that regulates mood, a sense of well-being and is partly responsible for helping us to sleep soundly.

But the thing is there are many foods that contain much higher levels of tryptophan than turkey. A more likely culprit for Uncle Ralph’s snoring and drooling on his sweater by halftime of the Detroit Lions game is perhaps simply because he ate so much high starch, high glycemic index food at one sitting and thus suffered a massive sugar crash. A couple of atypical afternoon beers never hurt either.

However, when considering trying to avoid tryptophan, it is important to keep in mind that, as mentioned above, it not only helps us sleep, it is also essential for keeping our moods stable, helping us produce niacin, and for promoting growth and development. Tryptophan comes with a recommended daily dose of 4 mg per kilogram of body weight, or 1.8 mg per pound, meaning that a person weighing 70 kilograms or 154 pounds should consume 280 mg of tryptophan per day.

But you don’t have to wait for Thanksgiving to roll around again to get your tryptophan fix. Start with these:

• Pumpkin seeds - One unassuming little ounce of these guys contains a whopping 50 percent of the U.S. recommended daily allowance for tryptophan. Other seed sources include chia seeds, sesame seeds, pistachios and sunflower seeds.
• Soya-based foods - Edamame, which is simply the Japanese name for roasted or blanched soybeans are also a great source for tryptophan. Products made from soya like tofu and soybean sprouts are also loaded with tryptophan.
• Cheese - One cheese stands out, good old mozzarella, which is remarkably high in tryptophan, ringing up 160 mg per ounce, or over 56 percent of the U.S. RDA.
• Lamb - You know how you feel so at peace and satisfied after a big meaty meal? There’s a reason for that. All meat, but lamb especially contains a lot of tryptophan, up to 228 mg in a 55 gram serving, or 81 percent of the U.S. RDA.
• Chicken and Turkey - This may fall under the “duh” list. But what you might not have known is that chicken breast is actually higher in tryptophan than turkey, bringing home 343 mg per three-ounce serving to light up your inner happy place.
• Tuna - Tuna is another over-achiever in the tryptophan wars, with 95 mg per one-ounce serving. That may not be quite as high as chicken or turkey, but it makes a nice change. And there are other great tryptophan-containing fish including halibut, salmon and trout.

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Breakthrough Study Shows Reduced Recurrence Of Breast Cancer In Women On Mediterranean Diet

Breakthrough Study Shows Reduced Recurrence Of Breast Cancer In Women On Mediterranean Diet

By Kurtis Bright

Surprise, Surprise: A Diet Heavy In Fresh Fruit And Veg, Nuts, Fish And Whole Grains Is Better For You

Even with so many negatives in the world, it is undeniable that this is a great time to be alive--at least when it comes to the cornucopia of medical paradigm shifts that are taking place right before our eyes.

We seem to have new revelations on the benefits of marijuana every day, for example. And these days kratom is joining venerable marijuana as a widely accepted aid to humans suffering a variety of ailments.

But one healthy choice that has been known for decades now in the West, and much longer in Europe continues to produce amazing results: the Mediterranean diet.

In case you’ve been living under a rock for the past 40 years, the Mediterranean meal plan leans heavily on fresh plant-based foods like fruits and vegetables, as well as whole grains and nuts. It also replaces butter with olive oil and limits red meat while emphasizing fish, and it has long been a staple of the diet section in bookstores, as well as fodder for celebrity chat shows.

And the latest study seems to show that there may well be a connection between eating a Mediterranean diet and reducing your chances of the recurrence of breast cancer.

Presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the researchers’ study followed 307 women who had previously faced early-stage breast cancer but who were then in remission. The study split the women into two groups, one of which was given a regular western diet (199 women); the other group was given a Mediterranean diet (108 women).

The women were tracked for three years, and what they found was stunning: all 11 women who had a relapse were eating a Western diet, none of them were on the Mediterranean diet.

Of course, this is a very small sample size. The study must be replicated in order to prove the results conclusive. But if nothing else, it is an undeniably promising first step, providing further evidence that a diet heavy in red meat, refined grains and sugar is not as healthy as a Mediterranean diet.

“The preliminary results of this small study suggest that a Mediterranean diet could lower the risk of breast cancer returning,” said Professor Amie Purushotham, senior clinical adviser for Cancer Research UK. “We'd need much longer follow-up than three years to confirm the diet’s impact.”

But yet further evidence that they are on the right track is a similar study that was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine. This study included 4,000 women, and it produced similar results: those participants who followed the Mediterranean diet and switched to olive oil had a 68 percent reduced risk of breast cancer.

The latest work should be taken as something promising if not certain, another building block in the edifice of evidence showing that diet and lifestyle choices can and do have a powerful impact on everything that happens to our bodies--including cancer. This effect, we’re seeing more and more, is not just limited to direct cause and effect linkages like obesity and type 2 diabetes.

The Mediterranean diet is just one more way we can take control of our health and change long-term outcomes for ourselves.

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Link Between Red Meat and Cancer Finally Isolated

Link Between Red Meat and Cancer Finally Isolated

By Kurtis Bright

New Evidence Shows It Is Akin To An Immune Response

It has long been known cancer is linked to red meat consumption. Decades of this knowledge haven’t brought us any closer to understanding how this works, and even with medical professionals and dieticians urging people to cut down on the amount of red meat they eat at a sitting, and/or to limit the number of times per week they eat it, neither are we any closer to eliminating it as a cancer cause.

The red meat and cancer connection even led to the dubious but effective “Pork: it’s the other white meat” campaign, as well as surely contributing to an increase in sales of chicken and turkey--although for the record, pork and lamb have also been found in recent studies to contribute to increased chances of developing cancer.

But yet another new study seems to show that the mechanism for the body’s toxic reaction to red meat is very strange indeed: it seems that the human body views red meat as a foreign invader, and this triggers an immune response.

Despite what the local meatheads will tell you, humans did not in fact evolve to eat a diet primarily made up of meat. This has been proven time and again, despite the presence of prominent canines in our mouths.

There is a certain vanity and machismo at work in these claims, but as much as we would like to see ourselves as lions or wolves, we are much closer in a dietary sense to chimps, who subsist largely on vegetation, with the occasional tidbit of colobus monkey thrown in every few days. We’re talking a small handful of meat, no more than a few bites, every third day or so--that’s what our closest relatives eat.

But scientists now think they know why other mammals can eat a diet much higher in red meat without the cancerous consequences humans face. Studies have isolated a sugar in beef, pork and lamb that, while naturally occurring in carnivores, isn’t manufactured by the human animal. 

So, sorry uber-masculine frat-bro types, but we are definitely designed to be omnivores.

Hate to break it to you, but you are more monkey than lion.

So what is going on then, when people eat red meat? Scientists now think that the body sends signals indicating that the corpus is under attack from the foreign sugar found in meat, and then triggers an immune response. What follows, as in any immune response, is inflammation. Given enough repetitions of this cycle, you are eventually facing cancer.

This sugar--called Neu5Gc--naturally occurs in strict carnivores like big cats and wolves. Thus their bodies don’t react adversely when Neu5Gc is introduced in the form of a big meaty meal. Scientists at the University of California San Diego found that when they engineered mice that don’t produce Neu5Gc, they would also develop tumors when fed a diet rich in red meat.

“This is the first time we have directly shown that mimicking the exact situation in humans increases spontaneous cancers in mice,” said Dr Ajit Varki of UCSD.

Dr. Varki however was also quick to point out that this is just a very small step in better understanding the cancer/red meat connection.

“The final proof in humans will be much harder to come by,” he said.

Nonetheless, it is a mighty leap of a first step. Perhaps coming to the table armed with a factual understanding of a direct link between cancer and red meat in the form of Neu5Gc, medical professionals and dieticians can take a more assertive role in convincing people of the need to reduce red meat consumption--for health reasons if nothing else.

Forget about the environmental issues involved with factory farming, the horrific overuse of antibiotics and other drugs, the disease produced in these conditions, and the cruelty of the way we do meat: we now know not only that red meat causes cancer, we also know how.

If that's not reason enough to consider another approach to how we do food, I don't know what is,

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I Can't Believe I Ate The Whole Thing: How To Ease Your Suffering After A Binge

I Can't Believe I Ate The Whole Thing: How To Ease Your Suffering After A Binge

By Kurtis Bright

Here Are a Four Foods You Can Eat After a Binge To Get You Back To Your Old Self

 

It’s common knowledge that we shouldn't binge eat and drink.

It’s also common to ignore our wiser angels on this front, especially when it comes to the holiday season; the spirit is willing but the flesh is so often very weak.

There are no doubt dozens more clichés to describe the difficulties we humans have with following through on our good intentions; this road we’re on seems to be paved with them after all.

Although we are surely all intelligent people who realize that binge eating and binge drinking are not advisable, perhaps we are also self-aware enough to understand that these things do happen--and perhaps we can mitigate the results. 

First, let's all do our best to minimize those binges, what do you say? Just because it’s the holiday season doesn’t mean you have to eat ALL the cookies at one sitting. But if and when a binge does occur--note the use of the passive voice there; binges just happen, like saying “mistakes were made”--these foods can help ease your discomfort and help you heal your body.

• Yogurt - Probiotics have long been the rage among health-food store types and other natural supplementers, although they are spreading to the mainstream. Especially the day after a binge when you are suffering stomach distress, all you need to know is that probiotics are proven to keep gas, diarrhea and other stomach issues in check. What’s more, if you are feeling bad enough that keeping a full, more challenging meal down doesn’t seem likely, Greek yogurt in particular has lots of protein so it can help keep your body going until things settle down.
• Bananas - For many of us, binging often means going to town on the salty snacks. Why do horrible processed snack foods taste so wonderful when you're drinking too much or on an eating jag? Whatever the reason, bananas are your friend after such a fall from dietary grace. The potassium in bananas helps to even out sodium spikes in your blood stream. It may even aid in the reduction of blood pressure. 
• Oatmeal - This breakfast staple is easy on the stomach in all but the very worst of times. It also has high levels of fiber to help get your digestive system back on track after being thrashed with bad food or too much drink. Studies even hint at oatmeal lowering your cholesterol.
• Green tea - An ancient beverage that can help lower your levels of LDL or bad cholesterol and can also help reduce blood pressure, green tea is packed with antioxidants that can help speed your body on the road to recovery. It also comes with a small amount of caffeine, helping to fire up a sluggish brain and allow you to function better as you recover.

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Feed Your Head: How Eating Healthy Isn’t Just For Your Body Anymore

Feed Your Head: How Eating Healthy Isn’t Just For Your Body Anymore

By Kurtis Bright

Eating For Your Mental Well-Being Is Just As Important As Eating For Your Physical Health

When it comes to the notion of “eating healthy,” most of us think about fats, proteins and carbs, and the resulting physical shape we end up with when we alter their ratios in our diet.

What goes in has a bearing on what results, of course: if the machine receives only soda, potato chips and deep-fried meat, you’re probably going to end up with a machine that doesn’t run optimally.

But there is a vital part of the machine that we often don’t think about, and it is one of the most important parts--at least it tells us it is: the brain.

If you consider the fact that our brains account for 20 percent of our daily energy expenditure, it is almost unfathomable that we don’t think more carefully about the ways various foods affect our mental functioning. Especially considering how much we now know about nutrition, you would think we would work harder to fine-tune our mental functioning through diet, at least to the same degree as we attempt fine-tune our physical functioning in the same way.

So how can we use our diet to push our mental health and brain function ever higher? Here’s a few proven ways:

• Something Fishy - They say that “fish is brain food” and it really is true. No single source provides so much in the way of omega-3 essential fatty acids, one of the most important nutrients for brain health. When it comes to mental health, having a deficiency in one of these omega-3s like DHA has been linked to depression, biopolar disorder and even schizophrenia. You can also use DHA to helps stave off age-related mental decline, and it lowers the risk for developing dementia and Alzheimer’s.
• Careful With That Coffee, Eugene - Recent studies have gone a long way to lighten the bad reputation of coffee, conferring on our favorite morning beverage health benefits such as reducing your risk of contracting type 2 diabetes. However sip your morning brew with a grain of salt: its caffeine is a double-edged sword. While its energy-enhancing properties are well-documented--and appreciated by millions on a daily basis--there is a proven and equally well-documented link between anxiety and caffeine. This association is so strong, in fact that the American Psychiatry Association recognizes “caffeine-induced anxiety disorder” in its standard guide. Studies have found that in inpatient settings, caffeine increased not only anxiety, but also hostility and psychotic symptoms, so go easy and know when to say when.
• Always B Closing - Deficiency in Vitamin B12 is still surprisingly common, affecting 40 percent of adults even in the 21^st century when anything and everything has had supplements added. It shows itself as anxiety, depression, brain fog, memory loss and mental confusion. Left unchecked, vitamin B12 deficiency even progress to schizophrenia, so its nothing to scoff at. Since B12 is only found in animal sources, vegetarians and especially vegans are at risk of developing a deficiency. However, take care if you start popping vitamin supplements: sometimes simply upping your B12 intake isn’t enough--there can be absorption issues as well. Somewhere between 10 and 30 percent of adults over 50 have trouble absorbing B12 from food. The good news is that if you take a bit more than you need, you’ll just excrete in your urine.

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Yes, You Can Eat Right Before Bed And Still Lose Weight--Just Stick To These Foods

Yes, You Can Eat Right Before Bed And Still Lose Weight--Just Stick To These Foods

By Kurtis Bright

Some Great Bedtime Snacks That Actually Help You Lose Weight

Do you know what a typical sumo wrester’s training regimen consists of? They may look like oversized, pudgy infants, but in reality they train to be incredibly strong.

What you really won’t believe is their diet: do a quick image search, it will blow your mind. Massive cauldrons of stew, endless plates of meat, fish, rice, and dozens of egg rolls--no matter how hungry you are, it is enough to make you slightly ill to contemplate.

And traditionally, these already huge men would typically lie down for a nap after a meal like this, working off the theory that as the metabolism slows down to sleep mode, the body will retain as much of that weight as it can, a desirable outcome if your job is to be heavy and solid enough to push another giant man out of the wrestling ring.

Which is pretty much standard thinking in all diet programs: try not to eat too soon before bed. Some intermittent fasting schemes suggest you forgo food for six to eight hours before bed.

But despite the wisdom of the sumo, there are actually some foods that are good to eat before going to bed, foods that will actually help you lose weight. Here’s a sample tray:

• Cheese - Cheese comes loaded with protein and healthy fats, delivering a filling, satiating punch without overloading you with too many calories. The fact that cheese contains tryptophan will also help you toddle off to dreamland more readily.
• Greek yogurt - A modest serving of unsweetened Greek yogurt (if not unsweetened, at least go with unflavored; they use way too much sugar in the flavored ones) packs in plenty of protein at a relatively low caloric trade-off, usually only about 100 to 150 calories depending on the brand and how much sweetener is used. Add a sliced banana or some pineapple or berries for a tasty, healthy snack. Yogurt can also help with indigestion or heartburn, helping you sleep easier.
• White-meat turkey - Hello, Mr. Tryptophan! Turkey is also low in fat and full of high-quality protein, so even a couple of slices will leave you satisfied and sleepy.
• An apple with peanut butter - Apples are a surprisingly dense food that is rich in fiber and not too high in calories. Ad a spoonful of peanut butter with its protein-rich nutritional profile, and you’ve got a healthy snack that will leave you satisfied and feeling full without weighing you down like a sumo.
• Carrots - Bugs Bunny’s favorite snack is an amazing diet food that you can eat practically as much as you want virtually anytime. Try this: weigh out a handful of carrot sticks on a kitchen scale. Now add a few more. And a few more. Now check a diet app to see how many calories that is costing you--you will be floored at your mound of carrots only coming in at double digits in the calorie count. And you will also be floored by how full this fiber-rich food leaves you feeling.
• Bananas - A banana weights in at a modest 100 calories, and they also contain satiating fiber and sleep-inducing tryptophan--not to mention much-needed potassium. And for us lazy, busy types, the fact that they are self-contained is a big plus too: no dishes to do!

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How Bugs Can Help You Feel Better And Be Healthier: Probiotics And The Benefits Of ‘Good Bacteria’

How Bugs Can Help You Feel Better: Probiotics And The Benefits Of ‘Good Bacteria’

By Kurtis Bright

Good Bacteria/Bad Bacteria: How Probiotics Might Be The Missing Ingredient In A Healthier Life

It's hard to quantify just how much time, energy and money is spent in the U.S. and the rest of the world fighting against bacteria.

Anti-bacterial soap, mouthwash, hand sanitizer, sheets, underwear--the list anti-bacterial products you can buy goes on.

However, not all bacteria is created equal. As a matter of fact, without bacteria we wouldn’t last too long; bacteria is what allows us to process our food and keep sour skin clean and free of disease. You could even go so far as to say we ARE bacteria, in a way: for every cell of your body that is you, there are ten bacteria cells on or in you.

Who's the parasite here, again? 

And what does that make us, exactly? Especially in light of our obsession with killing bacteria--suicidal?

Anyway, by now you’ve probably heard of probiotics--they’re commonly known as the ‘good bacteria’ that help keep the trains running on time in your gut. 

But here's the thing: you’re probably not eating enough of them. Here’s why--and a few of the many benefits you can get from increasing your probiotic intake.

·        Decreased inflammation - Getting plenty of fiber in your diet is a well-known health need. But did you know that the fact that we can process fiber at all is likely due to the presence of bacteria in our gut biome? When we eat fiber, our gut bacteria devour it, producing higher levels of a fatty acid called butyrate, which not only helps keep us regular, it reduces inflammation in the body.

·        Weight control - Many studies have shown that overweight and obese people have bacteria imbalances in the gut. An example: one UK study showed that when overweight women were given probiotics, they lost more weight than those who were given a placebo.

·        Healthy Skin - More and more health effects are being found to be linked directly or indirectly to gut health. For example, psoriasis, eczema, acne and other skin conditions have been linked to inflammation, which is linked to our immune system. That, we now know, is in turn linked to the gut. One study showed that people with healthy immune systems will end up with different types of microbes living on their skin than those with healthy immune systems. Thus a healthy gut biome can make for healthy skin.

·        Fends off depression - Another surprising result of a recent study was the revelation that the gut is in direct communication with the brain. Many are starting to believe that this connection may have far more to do with our cognitive health than we ever imagined. The important feel-good hormone serotonin is 95 percent produced stored in the gut.

So don’t worry, eat happy: by eating plenty of probiotics and keeping your gut health optimal, you can save yourself from a lot of other disease, systemic breakdowns, physical as well as mental health issues, and a score of other potential problems.

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It's The Sugar, Stupid: Some High Fat Foods That Are Actually Good For You

It's The Sugar, Stupid: Some High-Fat Foods That Are Actually Good For You

By Kurtis Bright

A Poorly Researched and Biased Study From Fifty Years Ago Continues to Sway the Debate Over Fat Versus Sugar

Almost 50 years ago, the sugar industry managed to forever tar fat with the overbroad brush of “bad for you” in a remarkable coup, powered by one industry-funded study. The authors, relying on dubious data from which they drew doubtful conclusions, were able to pin all manner of health threats on one of the main components of a healthy diet--while conveniently giving sugar a pass.

But as is becoming more apparent every day, we have much more to worry about with sugars, despite the effects of the lies of a corrupt industry paying off corrupt scientists continuing to linger today. 

But it's time we welcome back healthy fats from their long exile. To that end, here are a few foods that are high in fat but which are also very good for you. 

• Avocados - Although these ugly green guys contain an absurd amount of fat, they are still quite good for you. This apparent contradiction was too much for the geniuses behind recent changes in the U.S. FDA dietary guidelines to grasp: following the guidelines would put a Pop Tart in a healthier category than an avocado due mainly to the fat content of the fruit. Never mind the sugar in Pop Tarts. At any rate, avocados are nearly 77 percent fat by calories, higher in fat even than most animal-based foods. But it is largely a monounsaturated fat called oleic acid, the same fatty acid found in olive oil, which comes with great health effects. They also contain a high level of potassium, and one study showed that despite the fat content, people who ate avocados tend to weigh less and have less belly fat than those who eschew them.
• Cheese - Similarly, cheese is indeed high in fat, but largely the kind of fatty acids associated with reducing your risk of contracting type 2 diabetes. It also a great source of protein which comes with a relatively low caloric trade-off. Plus it is a great source of vitamin B12, calcium, phosphorus and other nutrients. Just because it contains fat don't shy away from cheese.
• Dark chocolate - This underappreciated dessert has nearly 65 percent of its calories coming from fat, but that's not all. It also contains 11 percent fiber, and over 50 percent of the U.S. RDA for iron, magnesium, copper and manganese. Dark chocolate also contains tons of antioxidants, even more than blueberries, and studies have shown that people who regularly eat dark chocolate can end up with a lower blood pressure and healthier LDL cholesterol count.
• Eggs - It’s high time we put aside another myth dating from the 1950s and 1960s, back when eggs were considered a bad guy, a beshelled demon eager to clog your arteries and send your cholesterol skyrocketing. More recent studies show that the cholesterol in eggs generally doesn’t have an effect on the cholesterol in the blood, at least not in most people. And despite being high in fat, eggs nonetheless have demonstrated that they are potent weight loss allies. They contain tons of protein at a relatively low calorie count, allowing you to use them to replace high glycemic refined grains and consume fewer calories while still feeling full.

Overall, it’s high time the U.S. FDA step up and make it crystal clear that sugars are much bigger culprits in the poor health of so many Americans that fat ever could be. Educate yourself on good fats versus bad fats, and eat a generous amount of the former while limiting yourself to a sensible amount of the latter.

And for God’s sake, cut down on refined sugars!

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