Diets and health for Christians

[Butterfly]

Hey, I was also wondering about using alternatives to sugar or artificial sweetners. I use stevia in my tea but I doubt it would work well in many recipes. Any other ideas? I used splenda before but I was trying to avoid it because I get so many headaches and I suspect the splenda might be one cause. Would agave nectar work on low carb? I know it has a lot of carbs but it is low on the glycemic index. What do you think?

Butterfly

[WhiteH2OWoman]

Land, I used to run a personal fitness training business and have ghostwritten several books on losing weight.

I think the broccoli would be fine, and recommend it because it will probably give you a little more energy. Careful not to overcook it--lightly steamed just until it's bright green is best. You can season it with some lemon or lime juice and a dash of salt.

[FreeInHim]

Wow, I'm just seeing this thread now. Can't believe it was started just today, and it's already on page two. Talk about hot topics!

I tried the low carb diet a few years ago, and lost 18 pounds in a month which was fantastic. The problem was that while the diet promised I'd be amazed at all the energy I'd have, just the opposite happened. I became extremely lethargic and irritable. I also have IBS, and it seemed to exacerbate the problem. I'm curious if anyone else went through, or is going through, this problem on the low carb diet? My poor husband actually asked me to get off the diet because it was making me so ill and tempermental.

[grace2all]

I did Atkins years ago..The weight loss was great, but couldn't stick to the diet.

I'm low carbing now, but not specifically the Atkins diet. I've been able to find a balance that works for me. I cut out pretty much all junk food and sugary drinks. I eat whatever fruits and veggies I desire.

I allow myself to have a slice of cake or some other naughty food whenever I go to parties/family gatherings. I've found this works for me and has caused me to stick to a relatively low carb diet and have it become part of a lifestyle for me.

I also incorporate mild exercise to help with the weight loss and overall health.

The weight loss has been gradual (rather than a strict Aktins approach), but I've loss 16 pounds in the last 4 months and feel that I can stick to what I'm doing. I also don't feel like my energy has been zapped.

Let's keep it up everyone!

Great thread.

[Lookfortruth]

Well, I have gotten off the soda, and I am drinkng lemon water instead. I have stayed at the same weight for years. I do not understand what has changed, but I am ready to do what it takes to get this "belly" to move on!
I very much appreciate all the tips and recipes I have seen here!

[kloo]

No I'm not diabetic, my wife is though. She's just started insulin and they've got her on a high carb diet

Thanks Skipper; do you think the glycemic diet may be better than this?

1,000 posts whew lol

I was diagnosed Type 2 last year and I have found that without medication I can keep my blood glucose at acceptable levels by severely limiting total carbohydrates. The basic Atkins approach works excellent. We live in a low-fat for diet culture but finding low carb alternatives can be challenging.

I am more afraid of carbs than I am of fats (excluding trans-fats).

A well-known diabetes doctor/author (Bernstein) with Type 1 Diabetes
firmly believed that the recommended high-carb diets were slowly killing him.

I am grateful to God for sending me a wake-up call in the form of a stroke before I totally ruined myself.

[Land Of Hope And Glory]

Oh crud

That's makes me feel a whole lot better.

[CarolinaCJ]

I'm glad I found this thread....I had quit the low carb diet (that was working) because in my mind I could not see giving up a whole group of foods forever. But since I've been eating carbs again it just seems like there's a ravenous monster inside begging for more carbs....I have gained every pound back and can't seem to get it under control. I gave up diet coke about 4 weeks ago because I was having 5-6 a day, and I knew that wasn't good for me either....but now I seem to have replaced that with carbs and food in general.

I haven't even been able to pray about this because I feel like such a "glutton".

[lahalbo]

I also never felt the "boost" of energy like others talk about but I feel even worse when I do eat starchy carbs, especially around 1:30pm (after lunch). I think I might have an allergy to wheat because when I eat a lot of it I get puffy. And I can eat oranges and tomatoes and foods like that without it affecting me but as soon as I eat them with something made from wheat I get whelps. I really have to be careful. They aren't life threatening but they usually end up on my face, and it doesn't look so good. I woke up once with a swollen upper lip. Many people would have paid to have that look. haha

I eat A LOT of veggies. Tons of broccoli, spinach etc. I fell off the wagon and started eating bread and pasta etc. and am now working to get back into my clothes comfortably. Somethings I cannot even wear because they are too tight. I work out with weights and jump rope for cardio. Any little bit helps!!

[bchandler]

All,

I'm glad this thread started... I am a type 2 diabetic... and I can tell you from personal experience that the ADA recommended diet will only make your diabetes worse.

The FDA and ADA recommendations are a diet high in complex carbs and low in fat.

How do you fatten cattle for slaughter? feed them lots of complex carbs...(grain)... why? because it raises insuline and that causes them to put on fat... Why in the world would we then believe that a diet high in complex carbs would be healthy for us?

But it gets even worse... A diet that raises insuline levels (high carbs) also effects cellular enzymes which causes the body to produce more of a very bad kind of fat called Arachadonic Acid (AA). This fat is one of the main driving factors behind metabolic syndrom-x. Which includes a whole host of diseases... including diabetes.

But wait it gets worse... This combined with trans-fats (margarine, crisco, kraft food products in general, all those yummy creamy sauces and mayo) means your bodies fat metabolism is just completely out of whack. And you don't have the good fats in your diet to repair cells properly... so your body uses the bad fats.... but they don't make insuline receptors very well... etc...

How do you fix this?

Well 2 doctors IMO have found the real answer. Dr. Atkins and Dr. Sears.

Almost everyone knows who Atkins is... because his diet carries his name. His concept was an extremely high protein diet to kick the body into ketosis... which causes the body to burn fat. Unfortunately Dr. Atkins failed to use completely sound judgement in protein selection in his diet and allowed people to eat just any high protien source without taking into consideration the bad fats contained in those protein sources.

Fewer people know about Dr. Sears... but have likely heard of his diet called "Zone Nutrition" or 40-30-30 Nutrition or "Balance".

Zone nutrition doesn't go to the extremes atkins does... and it encourages the use of higher quality protien sources... and the avoidance of foods loaded with the bad fat AA. Something to note is that "The Zone" is not a diet you go on and then stop when you lose the weight... it is a life long nutritional program to change the way you are eating to be more healthy... and the quantities of food you will eat on this diet will amaze you... I am a 6'1" 250 pound guy... and I could hardly eat it all.

You will NOT go hungry on zone nutrition.

Dr. Sears in his latest research has found great benefit to adding supplemental omega 3 fats... especially EPA and DHA to the diet.

Now.. that being said... some people will find they plateu in their weight loss and and they need to re-ignite the fat burning process... and kick it up a notch.

The South-Beach diet basically does this by combining atkins and zone...

It starts off with atkins for 2 weeks, then switches to zone nutrition... after which.. any time you plateu and weight loss slows... you can kick back over to atkins for a week or so... just to get you over that hump... then switch back to zone nutrition.


So... here in a nutshell are the basics of zone nutrition:

1. It takes fat to burn fat... You must eat the right kinds of fats to stoke the cellular furnaces and activate and grow the enzyme pathways that burn fat in your cells. This means NO TRANS-FATS... AND NO FATS THAT CAN SIT OUT IN A CLEAR BOTTLE AND NOT GO RANCID.

The best fat sources are:

a. Extra Virgin "cold pressed" olive oil... for no and low temp cooking.
b. Light olive oil (not heat processed) for low to med temp cooking.
c. Macadamia or peanut oil for high temp cooking.
d. Flax seed oil (with lignans) for cold uses like salads... (keep in fridge as can go rancid in as little as 30 min)
e. Supplelmental Omega 3 fats (fish or sea algea based oil pills where at least 50% of the fat content is a combination of DHA and EPA.)
f. Grass/vegetable fed (non-grain) animal products... meat, eggs, milk, cheese, etc... (health food store)
g. non-holstein dairy products... raw if you can get them that way in your state. (health food store)
h. Coconut Oil also called Coco Butter... A Medium Chain Fat that makes a good replacement for things like shortening or lard in baking/cooking.
i. Fatty sea fishes (wild caught, not farmed) like salmon, tuna, mackerel, sardines, anchovies, etc...

2. A proper balance of protien, fat and carbs at every meal and snack will cause the body to go into "The Zone" where it burns fat for fuel instead of sugar.

3. It's important to eat the right kind of carbs to avoid insuline spikes. Essentially what this means is the lower the food is on a Glycemic Index chart, the longer it will take to be converted to blood sugar... The more even your insuline profile will be... The more fat your body will burn.

Note: lots of people expressed concerns about kidney damage due to long term ketosis... And if you were eating straight atkins and eating lousy protein sources like lots of grain fed bacon, and rib-eye and eggs it could be a problem... or actually lots of problems... to many to go into here...

However, If you are eating good solid protien sources without all the extra AA (bad fat) found in most commercially farmed animal produce... The simple truth is... if your body is burning fat... it is producing ketones... even if your not technically in ketosis. When the body goes into ketosis it basically becomes impossible for non-nerve cells to burn sugar for fuel.

Zone nutrition basically rides that balance between opening the fat burning enzyme pathways and allowing the cells to make use of both energy sources while burning more fat... and pushing to the extreme of ketosis.

As with most things in life... extremes are usually only useful for a short period of time... after which a more balanced approach is required.

I think this is true for nutrition as well... while the extremes of high carb or high protein may be useful at various times... the best approach seems to be a more balanced one.

Lastly, I wanted to point out that the FDA's idea of a balanced diet has nothing to do with your health... and has far more to do with the FTC trying to federally mandate support for certain portions of our food industry. The FDA is so wrong about so much... I stopped believing anything they say long ago...

Disclaimer:

I am not a doctor or a nutritionist... just a lay person who bothered to study and learn some basic truths about the way God designed us... Everything I have stated here is my personal opinion... protected by the first amendment... and should not be construed as medical advice.

[lahalbo]

Great post BC!!

[bchandler]

If you want a good snack food that you can feel good about... Target carries the Hershy's "Smart Zone" nutrition bars... and they taste great... and can be a good way to replace bad carb habits.

[CarolinaCJ]

If you want a good snack food that you can feel good about... Target carries the Hershy's "Smart Zone" nutrition bars... and they taste great... and can be a good way to replace bad carb habits.

Thanks bd...that's good to know. You never know what those protein bars are going to taste like.

[bchandler]

Recommended Reading:

The Makers Diet - Forget the author...
Entering The Zone - Dr. Barry Sears
The Omega Rx Zone - Dr. Barry Sears
Death by Diet - Robert Barefoot (Research Chemist)
The Calcium Factor - Robert Barefoot (Research Chemist)

Audio tape... if you can find it...

Dead Doctors don't Lie

[lahalbo]

We have The Maker's Diet book. The author is a Messianic Jew. It was an interesting read.

He has a drink that he drinks everyday I think, and it sounds really gross, but it is supposed to be very healthy. I believe all the ingredients have to be purchased at a health food store. I never got the nerve up to make it. I don't know if he describes it as green or that's just my mental image of what the ingredients would look like all blended together.

[WhiteH2OWoman]

I second BChandler's resounding endorsement of the Zone diet. It's how I eat, and I am a highly competitve athlete who's about to make a national team, despite being age 48 and having an artificial knee.

The biggies that kill me, in terms of gaining weight and low energy, are too much starches, too much sugar, and too much alcohol.

Here's an athlete's tip for getting better sleep and releasing more of your body's natural growth hormone (which burns fat and builds muscle, even in older folks, especially when you're asleep): right before you go to bed, drink 1 scoop of whey protein isolate protein powder in 4-6 ounces of plain water. Not milk, not juice...just plain water.

[WhiteH2OWoman]

Hey, I was also wondering about using alternatives to sugar or artificial sweetners. I use stevia in my tea but I doubt it would work well in many recipes. Any other ideas? I used splenda before but I was trying to avoid it because I get so many headaches and I suspect the splenda might be one cause. Would agave nectar work on low carb? I know it has a lot of carbs but it is low on the glycemic index. What do you think?

Stevia is good, as is Xylitol since it promotes oral (teeth and mouth) health. Agave nectar is fine for low carb, and interestingly enough, is used at several Austin bars in "low carb margaritas."

[lahalbo]

Here's an athlete's tip for getting better sleep and releasing more of your body's natural growth hormone (which burns fat and builds muscle, even in older folks, especially when you're asleep): right before you go to bed, drink 1 scoop of whey protein isolate protein powder in 4-6 ounces of plain water. Not milk, not juice...just plain water.

Does that taste bad? Do you put stevia in it or anything?? I use "natural" whey protein and add my flavorings. Do you use flavored protein?

I make a breakfast shake out of powdered milk, whey protein, sweetner (Stevia most of the time) and cocoa powder. It's easy to transport if needed.

I need to visit the health food store and get some more stevia packages for my breakfast and yogurt (I also get the plain and fix it up myself).

[kids]

one of my favorite "treats" is a bowl of frozen berries with 1-2 packets of splenda sprinkled on it, crushed nuts (almonds or pecans) and pour 1/2 and 1/2 on top of it. It's a low carb frozen treat :) very good tasting and good for you too.

Sister in Christ,
Nancy

[Land Of Hope And Glory]

Wouldn't the berries have a high fructose content?

[Salty Skipper]

I believe on the Atkins diet, after 2 weeks, you can have strawberries. Protein Power allows for several low-sugar fruits I believe...peaches, berries, cantaloupe...if memory serves me right.

[Passion]

There's another good thread (w/lots of good posts from bchandler! ) along these lines:

http://fulfilledprophecy.com/bb/viewtop ... highlight=

[kids]

Depends on the berries I have raspberry/blueberry blend probably 1/2 of a cup so the sugar content isn't very high on the glycemic scale. This treat works for me and doesn't knock me out of ketosis. Each of our bodies is differnt and some bodies are much more sensitive when it comes to sugars. It does matters if you are in the weightloss phase or maintance phase. I'm maintaning my weight and this kind of a treat is healthy, good tasting and lower carb which is all good for me


Sister in Christ,
Nancy

[kloo]

Oh crud

That's makes me feel a whole lot better.

I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to be a mood inhibitor.

If your wife uses a BG meter she can verify for herself what hurts or helps her the the most.

I read Dr. Bernstein's book last year and got a lot out of it. You can check out the following website if you have a mind to.

http://www.diabetes-normalsugars.com/

[Land Of Hope And Glory]

Oh crud

That's makes me feel a whole lot better.

I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to be a mood inhibitor.

If your wife uses a BG meter she can verify for herself what hurts or helps her the the most.

I read Dr. Bernstein's book last year and got a lot out of it. You can check out the following website if you have a mind to.

http://www.diabetes-normalsugars.com/

Thanks, I was only kidding.

[IamtheWalrus]

http://www.hacres.com

If you want to really be zealous

I am a chef and I whole heartedly agree with this direction.
Remember, carnivores have very short intestines. Vegetarians have very long intestines, like ourselves, and eating meat, since it has so may toxins in it, are extracted fully because of our long intestines. Cranivores get what they need from the meat and then extracts it out. Vegetarians need their long intestines to break down all the vitamins and minerals from raw foods.

Gen 1:29 ¶ And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which [is] upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which [is] the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

Gen 1:30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein [there is] life, [I have given] every green herb for meat: and it was so.

We aren't supposed to eat the things we eat

[Passion]

But God later said that we could eat meat. He even basically ordered it in the OT.

[daffodyllady]

My son, who is 20, just lost 100 lbs over the last 14 months, by sticking to the Atkins diet. He feels wonderful now. He used to complain constantly about how tired he was, how he couldn't handle being on his feet all day at work...
Now, he comes home, runs into the house, changes and runs back out to the car to go play ball!

His asthma doesn't bother him nearly as much, either. Only rarely, and this is spring!

[daffodyllady]

Actually, all berries are allowed, as long as you watch the amount. Gluttony is still a sin, even on a diet!

[bchandler]

I wouldn't go so far as to say God ordered us to eat meat... but... after the flood, God did tell man that he would use certain kinds of animals for food.

Obviously something changed within our environment and it became necessary for man to use animal protein in his diet.

Today, we have gained much knowledge regarding human biochemistry, and it is possible to follow a healthy vegetarian diet without suffering from protein malnutrition as was common among vegetarians in the past.

I am not a vegetarian... I love salmon far to much to ever go totally vegan. But I agree that we can vastly reduce our intake of animal flesh proteins and exchange them for vegan, ovo, and lacto sources of protein.

The main issue with vegan sources is to have a good mix of both WHOLE grains, and legumes (beans).

The main issue with ovo (egg) and lacto (milk) sources is the quality of the food source and the quality of the feed given to the animals that produce the eggs and milk.

For milk products... raw, non-holstein, Jersey or Gurnsey sources are best, from free ranging grass fed cattle. Or your very own goat's milk if u can keep a goat... I find clover fed goats-milk tastes best... as the flavor of their feed tends to come through in their milk more than with cows.

For egg products, free range eggs from sources supplemented with good non-grain vegetable feeds are best.

In our modern world it is possible to live as a vegetarian, provided we maintain good quality, adequate protein sources.

[bchandler]

The main issue i have found with most vegetarian diets is they are way to heavy on grains, IMO

[Lookfortruth]

bchandler, you have so much important information to share I love reading the thorough and informative things you have to tell us, we may really need to rely on it someday soon. I do not think it will be long before meat will not be an option for any of us. It seems between the health scares that continue to plague us, and the animal rights agenda's....well we may need to understand how to stay healthy without it. Thanks for the post!

[stand4truth]

I think that we should take care of our bodies the best we can. Try to find an exercise routine that works for you. The same with a diet. I like to change things up a bit. It is hard to know what is the right program. People will sell anything!

[Passion]

Or your very own goat's milk if u can keep a goat... I find clover fed goats-milk tastes best... as the flavor of their feed tends to come through in their milk more than with cows.

Aha! That totally explains it! I suspected it had something to do with the feed, but I was also wondering if the breed of goat had anything to do with the taste of the milk. I don't remember if I've already posted this (it's been so long since I've been on this thread!), but I used to buy goat's milk from a store in a town 45 minutes from where I live, that was so good even I could almost drink it--and I hate milk! I do like it on cereal, and of course I cook with it, though. But my husband also thought it was the best tasting milk he'd ever had....until he found out it was goat milk. But the problem with buying it at that store was not only the long, expensive drive to get there, but once you get there you never know whether they'll have any--more often than not, they don't, because it comes from one tiny, local, dairy and they have a limited supply. It doesn't do much good to call ahead either, because it's so popular it'll probably be gone before you make the drive!

So I tried goat milk bought at a local big chain store, and it smelled like filthy gym socks that had been left in a moldy heap for a year.....unbelievably, I tried a tiny taste.....and nearly threw up.

Obviously they didn't feed their goats clover. But at least now I know to look for that on the label.

[Lookfortruth]

Stand4Truth!

[stand4truth]

Thank you

[Be still]

A diet that works for me is called the God diet. If it doesn't fall off of a tree, grow out of the ground, walk on all fours, swim in the ocean/lake or have feathers, don't eat it. If God didn't make it, don't eat it.

Because I think I'm carb sensitive (get puffy) I avoid anything white. No potatoes, rice, flour or sugar (unless I'm cheating.)

[Passion]

Sensible advice!

Can you eat brown rice, or whole grain bread? Or eat quinoa?

[Be still]

The lighter you go on the starches (carbs) the more weight you'll lose. I plan on eating the brown rice and whole grain bread as part of my maintenance plan. I'm laying off the sugary fruit for now and eating the not so sweet ones like apples and kiwi for now.

[bchandler]

Be still,

As for fruits and vegies... the best approch IMO is to get as recently updated a copy of a Glycemic index food chart as you can find, and focus on the low GI foods.

You will be surprised at how many wonderful fruits and berries are actually low GI.

Basically the longer a foods GI, the longer it takes to process it's sugars... which lowers your insuline profile and automatically switches the body into fat burning mode.

most GI charts are set up so that the lower the number... the faster it enters your blood as sugar. The higher the GI number over 100, the slower it enters your blood as sugar. 100 is usually the representative number for either table sugar, or white bread... both of which are FAST sugars. White breads suggars in many cases enter your blood as fast or FASTER than if u ate the sugar right outa the bowl.

[Be still]

Berries ... I forgot about berries Chandler. Thanks for the reminder.

If you have time, would you look for a good chart online and give me the link. I will look too but I wouldn't know a good one if I saw one.

As for now, I'm trying hard not to eat anything white.

[Be still]

Chandler, one more thing ... what do you think about the Atkins diet?

[bchandler]

Go back in the thread a bit Bestill.

We discussed atkins, zone, and south beach.

IMO atkins is an extreeme, Zone is ideal.

Atkins is a diet to help lose weight.

Zone nutrition is a life-long way of eating to stay in optimal health, and as a benefit you will also lose weight quickly.

Southbeach starts out atkins, then switches to zone for maintenence, and switches back to atkins when you hit plateus and slow down your weightloss while in the zone.

These plateus happen naturally, and even in zone nutrition... a slight increase in protein intake percentage is all that is required to overcome the plateu.

I highly recammend zone nutrition for it's sound science and medical value.

[Be still]

Yes, I joined this thread a little late. I will go back and read. Thanks!

And, I agree ... Atkins is extreme and the food is very limited. Also, I'm either very tired on it or have lots of energy.

[Be still]

Nancy, do you have any more recipes?

[Be still]

lahalbo, your broccoli recipe was delicious!

[jln]

Have any of you found that you do better eating little during a day if you eat certain foods? I recently realized that I can be quite satisfied with not much to eat if I just have some unsweetened tea and maybe some peanut butter or something with garlic in it!!! (I have a recipe for a Greek yogurt dip with garlic, and that's what I like for the something with garlic.)

I also found that it's almost impossible for me to keep from eating much if I eat carbs early in the day or eat a lot of carbs the day before. Yet, I don't do well losing weight on a low-carb diet.

It's nice to learn some of these little cues that are peculiar to my body to help avoid things that used to trip me up when trying to lose weight, and I wonder if you guys have found some things like this.

[jln]

Just wondering~
Does anyone fast to lose weight and maintain weight loss? Done with God's direction, I find it much more effective FOR ME these days than any diet.

[Passion]

lahalbo, your broccoli recipe was delicious!

Where were these recipes? Maybe I'm blind, but I missed them.....

Which reminds me. Many times we talk about food/nutrition/recipes. I've often thought that, if the Mods wouldn't mind, it would be so cool to have a "Recipe" thread! If we wanted to get really crazy, we could even do it like the "Alphabet Game" thread; someone starts by saying "salads" for instance, then posts a recipe for say, avacado salad; then going there, each participant posts a recipe beginning with whatever letter is next. Then when we've reached Z, someone else can chime in and say "main dish" (or entree); or "dessert", or "vegetable dish" or whatever, and it goes all over again. Not only would this be fun, it would also be helpful for those of us who just can't think of what to fix for dinner tonight! And with the added bonus of being able to go to a particular category of food, rather than having to scroll through page after page after page of hundreds of recipes looking for one re., say, chicken!

Or we could just do a plain ole' recipe thread (although the more I think about it, the more I like thte game format.... )

What do you guys think?

[Be still]

There's some good recipes on page 1 of this thread.