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My dog-walking circuit takes me past several restaurants. Often, in the late afternoon or early evening, I will see people scanning the menus posted on doors or windows. If the dog has stopped to sniff something, I watch the menu readers and wonder what will make them decide to go inside or walk away. It is tempting to go up to a couple and ask, “So, what do you think? Anything on the menu appeal to you?” Since I am usually propelled down the street by the dog before I can ask these questions, I decided to ask my friends and relatives instead. I sent an e-mail to a random assortment of friends and neighbors asking them what goes through their minds when they scan a menu and decide on the dishes they will order. The people who responded tend to eat out two or three times a week because work obligations or social schedules make it more convenient to do so then eating at home. But the restaurants they go to are likely to be modest neighborhood places rather than expensive restaurants one goes to for a special occasion. The answers were not likely to lift the spirits of chefs or restaurant owners as the respondents focused less on the unique qualities of the dishes than on whether the menu options met their criteria for portion size, healthy ingredients and absence of ingredients likely to cause indigestion or taste bud distress (like very hot spices). One respondent said that she always ordered one of the specials described by the waitperson but then admitted it was because she hated to put on her reading glasses in order to read the menu. Here is what they think when they pick up the menu: 1. I always assume that the entrée will be too large so I look for an appetizer and a salad that looks interesting. 2. Seasonal and local foods are apt to be fresher so I look for those dishes first. 3. I never eat red meat so I look for fish or poultry dishes. 4. Fried, creamy and spicy foods are on my “don’t order” list so I never even look at those items. 5. The desserts appeal to me more than the main course. If I see a dessert I want to eat, then I will order a small appetizer and save my calories so I can eat dessert without guilt. 6. I love to cook so I search for new dishes and try to reproduce them later on at home. 7. I try to remember what I ate the day before so I don’t repeat myself. 8. It depends on the type of restaurant. I won’t order steak in a seafood restaurant or pasta in steak house. 9. It depends on who is paying. When I go out with my friends, we all order inexpensive items because we split the bill. 10. If I haven’t eaten lunch, and if I have exercised that day, I allow myself to order something that may be high in calories. Otherwise I will eat fish and a salad without dressing. The answers reflected in large measure the lifestyles of many of the respondents who took eating healthily and exercising frequently very seriously. Price was mentioned only once but that may be because the restaurants they tended to eat in were moderately priced. Those who said they avoided creamy, high-fat foods or ate appetizer-size portions referred to calories only indirectly. Several mentioned that what they ate out reflected in large measure what they tended to eat at home. In other words, restaurant eating was not an opportunity for culinary indulgence; rather it was simply a convenient way to eat without having to prepare the food oneself. Watching as I do a Food Network program called Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, I suspect that my respondents are not at all typical in their thinking when they look at a menu. This program has the host traveling around the country tasting dining specialties and going into the kitchens to see how they are made. Often the program will focus on the biggest hamburger or the most decadent French toast or highest deli sandwich. The patrons are interviewed as they sink their teeth into food dripping with calories and in such large portions that it is hard for some to get their mouths around the fork or sandwich. It would be interesting to get the two groups to switch places when it comes to reading menus and ordering. I suspect that my group would go into the diners, drive-ins or dives and those patrons go into the local restaurants where my friends eat and both would say: “There is nothing on the menu that I want.” Menus in New York now include calories if the restaurant meets certain criteria for size or number of franchises. It was assumed that knowledge of the calorie content of the menu items would keep people from ordering fattening foods but, alas, that has not happened. It seems that some people feel that they want to get their money’s worth in calories when they eat out. Clearly these people are not saying to themselves “If I eat this and gain more weight, then I may be paying more for my health insurance. Plus I just paid for an expensive weight- loss program so why am I allowing myself to gain back my weight?” Given the immense health and economic cost of obesity, is there any way that menus can direct customers to making healthy choices? Or as the results of my mini-survey suggest, is the first step to make the eater healthy and then the healthy menu choices will soon follow? | permalink | related link |   ( 3 / 10 )Last Sunday morning in the dog park, people were gathered around one of the park benches. It was a dog’s first birthday and the owner brought coffee, bagels and cream cheese for the other dog owners. (The dogs had to be content with only smelling the food and each other.) I gratefully accepted a cup of coffee; it was cold and the warm liquid was really welcome. One of the guys asked me if I wanted a bagel. “They are fresh and still warm,” he said, holding out the bag. “No thanks,” I said. “ I am not hungry.” “Oh, all you women say that,” he retorted. “I bet you really are hungry but you are afraid to eat anything.” “No,” I answered, “I really am not hungry. I ate breakfast. The bagel would probably taste better than what I ate but I have no desire to eat anything now.” He looked skeptical and told me that not being hungry had never kept him from eating. This looked like an endless argument so I decided my dog needed me and walked away. As I left the dog park it occurred to me that what my fellow dog walker had said summarized what was wrong with weight-loss programs. If hunger or not being hungry was irrelevant to whether someone ate or not, what was the point of telling a dieter that a particular program would take away hunger? If a dieter was like the dog-walking bagel eater, he would eat whether he was hungry, full or somewhere in-between. None of the weight-loss programs currently available understands how to make the dieter disinterested in continuing to eat once the initial hunger as been satisfied. Many years ago, researchers in England discovered that lab animals would stop eating before they consumed their normal amount of food when injected with drugs that increased the activity of the brain chemical, serotonin. The studies suggested that serotonin acted like a thermostat that automatically turned off the heat or air conditioning when the set temperature has been reached. Serotonin seemed to be turning off eating, so even though the animals ate less than they would eat ordinarily, they lost interest in their food. If such drugs existed for the dieter, then losing weight would be easy. No will power would be needed because the brain would tell the dieter to stop before too much food was consumed. When antidepressants that prolong serotonin’s mood- regulating activity were first introduced, scientists thought that that they might also be good for weight loss. Prozac, for instance, was tested for its weight-loss potential in a national study. It failed. Not only did the volunteers not lose weight, many of them started to gain weight while taking the drug. And as each new antidepressant became available, the same disappointing effects on weight were found. Worse yet, not only were the drugs not turning off the appetite; they seemed to be doing the opposite and making people feel permanently hungry. It was as if the serotonin thermostat had been broken. There is no explanation as to how these antidepressants interfere with appetite control. What is known is that the serotonin system regulating appetite is different from the one involved in mood regulation. But that doesn’t explain how drugs that help serotonin improve mood prevent serotonin from acting as an appetite thermostat. And while we are waiting for an explanation, people are taking these drugs and getting fat. When we started treating patients whose weight gain was due to these drugs, we were not certain how to help them feel satisfied and comfortable eating normal amounts of food. But we figured that if we could get that serotonin-appetite thermostat to start working again, then the patients would lose weight. The solution turned out to be simple and natural. The dieters were given a special carbohydrate drink that promoted the manufacture of serotonin in the brain. They consumed the drink twice daily and almost instantly felt a change in their appetite. The drink was so effective in getting the serotonin-appetite thermostat to work again that one patient insisted that we had put a drug in the drink. (We showed her that it was consisted only of a combination of different carbohydrates.) Our weight-loss program turned out to be effective for everyone, not only those whose weight was gained as a result of his or her medications. Moreover, even though the carbohydrate drink was a convenient way to turn on the serotonin- appetite thermostat, we found that any non-fruit containing carbohydrate snack worked also. The key was to get tryptophan into the brain. Tryptophan is an amino acid that enters the brain only after insulin is released, and this occurs when small amounts of starchy or sweet carbohydrates are eaten. Most significantly, this effect is not gone once the diet is over. In fact, the effect of eating carbohydrates on turning off the appetite becomes more intense as weight is lost. Too bad I did not tell all of this to my fellow dog walker. But if I see him tomorrow, I will. | permalink | related link |  ( 2.9 / 14 )Hi All, Judy and I have enjoyed sharing our Serotonin Power Diet blogging with you. We want to make it as easy and fruitful as possible to get the support, practical tips, and inspiration you need for your weight loss success. To that end, we invite you all to join our Facebook Serotonin Power Diet fan page if you haven't done so already. There Judy and I are available to answer questions and help fine-tune the program for you to get your best results. We gladly welcome any and all feedback. On our facebook page, we also post tips, client stories, and news about our diet. We hope that this more interactive format will result in an active dialogue among its members - not only with us but amongst yourselves. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Boston-MA ... 809?ref=ts We welcome your stories, questions, and comments - chances are, if you're experiencing something as you follow The Serotonin Power Diet, chances are there is at least one other person who is, too - there's no need to feel alone out there on your journey. We wish you success in all areas of your life! - Nina & Judy | permalink | related link | ( 3 / 80 )A few days ago I was in the health club using the rowing machine. Usually I can tolerate only about 10 to 15 minutes on this machine as I find it particularly boring. However, about a minute before I was going to stop, my iPod started playing an unfamiliar song that a relative had downloaded for me. The beat was strong and fast, and as I listened my rowing became faster and smoother. I closed my eyes and let myself row to the rhythm of the song. By the time it stopped, I had done three minutes more than I had planned. I felt so good I played the song again and kept rowing. By the time I hauled myself off the machine, I had rowed twenty minutes longer than I thought I could and felt invigorated. As I walked to the locker room, I realized that I now had my own antidote against exercise boredom. People who exercise regularly don’t have to be told how important it is for their health. They can recite all the benefits that include improved weight, stronger bones, better balance, decreased bad cholesterol and improved good cholesterol, more energy, and less stress. But knowing all these benefits doesn’t always make it less of a struggle to get to a gym, or on your home treadmill or out the door for an early morning run or walk. In addition to the predictable obstacles such as lack of time, bad weather, sickness, travel and work conflicts, the regular exerciser occasionally has to contend with simple boredom. Even a variety of health club options can become boring and predictable if done over and over again. And those who stick with only one type of exercise such as running or biking are likely to get bored even sooner. Although the regular exerciser will not stop working out because of boredom, the workouts may become shorter and less intense. The owners of health clubs know well the impact of boredom on their members and offer television, movies, magazines, and newspapers so people have something to do on the cardiovascular machines besides moving. Also new types of classes are always being offered for those who prefer to exercise in groups. I asked my friends and family members what they do to fight the boredom that comes with regular workouts. Here are some of their suggestions with relevant caveats. 1. Listen to music. Caution: Be sure that the beat is appropriate for your exercise level. If you are a slow runner don’t listen to something that will make you sprint. You might get injured. 2. Listen to books on tape or radio podcasts. Caution: The spoken word is a great way to relieve boredom but may be distracting and prevent you from paying attention to your posture and form. 3. Talk and exercise with a friend. Caution: Exercising with a friend or a group of companions works well unless and until talking takes precedence over the exercise. Make sure the rhythm and speed of your walk or moving on a machine is not slowed down or becomes erratic because of the topic you are discussing. 4. Watch movies borrowed from the library when you are on the treadmill or exercycle. Caution: Don’t watch a tearjerker. It is hard to run and cry at the same time. 5. Change your routine. This is a simple solution that takes away boredom immediately. There is nothing like trying to figure out the different moves of the instructor in a class or how to move on a new machine to stimulate you. Caution: New exercise routines may mean new muscle activity. Be prepared to be a bit achy the next day. 6. Become competitive with yourself. When you notice that you are becoming stronger, gaining stamina, improving balance and increasing flexibility, you become motivated to do even more. Caution: Be patient about the rate of improvement to prevent injury. 7. Train for an event. Check your local newspaper for lists of upcoming races, charity bike rides or walks, or even a mini-triathlon. Caution: If you are not sure how to train for an event, ask a trainer to help you. 8. Flattery. It is amazing how quickly boredom vanishes when someone tells you “you are looking really good.” Check it out yourself and notice how fit, toned, and slim you look from all those boring workouts. Caution: Use it or lose it, which means you better keep on with that exercise. 9. Make your exercise seasonal. Take advantage of seasonal sports to bring change to your exercise routine. Snowshoe or cross-country ski in the winter, hike in the warmer months after the mud dries, do water sports in the summer and go for long bike rides in the fall. Caution: Exercise the muscles needed for the seasonal workouts at least a month before you begin; otherwise you may find your stamina and muscle strength giving out too soon. 10. Visual stimulation. Not everyone can reproduce the experience of a friend when he went to his first yoga class. As the only male in a class of 40 or so women, he reported achieving inner and outer harmony instantly and signed up for a 12-week course. Caution: Not every yoga class can reproduce his experience; women may want to try kick boxing instead. | permalink | related link | ( 3 / 80 )Eating when you feel down, stressed, underappreciated, overwhelmed, frustrated or anxious is so common that it is often the basis of advertisements. Every so often we see, in a TV ad, a lovely looking normal weight woman who falls into a comfortable chair, sighs deeply and then slowly unwraps a luscious- looking chocolate. “This is for me,” she says biting into the confection. “This is my time to relax and I deserve this treat.” Is she an emotional eater? I doubt that the advertisers want you to think that, since being an emotional eater has such negative connotations. But of course that is exactly what she is. We are meant to believe that she has spent most of the day dealing with problems and meeting the needs of others. Now, finally, she is letting the stress of the day melt away as the chocolate melts on her tongue. Her rapturous smile and relaxed posture after she takes that first bite comes supposedly from the delight her taste buds are experiencing. Now picture this alternate scenario advertising a piece of chocolate. The woman is frazzled, her hair a mess, and there is a run in her panty hose. Meanwhile, a child is whining in a corner, the dog is scratching to go outside, and her cell phone is ringing. She grabs the same box of chocolates and frantically tears off the wrapper of a piece. Popping the candy in her mouth, she sighs. “Boy did I need that,“ she says. Both scenarios show the same thing, which is a person using food to make herself feel better. The only real difference is that woman number one seems to be in control of her eating and we know that she will stop after one chocolate. Woman number two we are not so sure of; we suspect she might eat the entire box. If we could ask the first woman whether she considers herself an emotional eater, she would arch her lovely eyebrows and look shocked. “Of course not,” she would answer. “ I just wanted to treat myself after a long day.” If we asked the second woman the same question, she would say, “ Of course, I am so ashamed but what can I do? When I feel overwhelmed, I look for something sweet to stuff into my mouth.” Both women are emotional eaters. The only difference is the context in which the eating is done. In the advertisement, the woman is already relaxing, leaving the daily stress behind her as she reaches for her chocolate indulgence. The woman in my scenario regards the candy as something that will get her through the next 15 minutes of potential catastrophes. She can’t leave the stress behind her; she is in the middle of it. But she wants to be able to cope, to become calm enough to figure out in what order to attend to the dog, the whining child and the cell phone. Years ago we discovered that many people use carbohydrate foods as “edible tranquilizers.” The discovery was made accidentally when volunteers in one of our studies on eating behavior told us that they had to eat a sweet or starchy carbohydrate when their moods were low or they felt anxious, irritable or restless. After eating crackers or pretzels or gumdrops, they felt better within 15 to 20 minutes. Turning their anecdotes into science took some time but eventually we found that the serotonin, a calming brain chemical, was produced after carbohydrates were eaten. Serotonin soothed away stress, increased energy, improved concentration and focus and dampened anger. Carbohydrates were the only food that did this because non-fruit carbohydrates stimulated the production of serotonin. Proteins had no effect because protein foods prevented serotonin from being made. Emotional eating is not provoked only by the stresses encountered from work, family, social life, community concerns and after reading the newspaper. Winter darkness propels people toward pasta dinners. Women with premenstrual syndrome or PMS have walked through blizzards to get chocolate. People going through smoking withdrawal use candy not only to occupy their mouth but also to take away the restlessness and inability to concentrate caused by lack of nicotine. And it works. Carbohydrates are called comfort foods because they make our emotional state more manageable. So what is wrong with emotional eating? Nothing. Eating carbohydrates to make more serotonin is nature’s way of helping us cope with the stresses of daily life. And if the eating to quiet emotional turmoil is done correctly, it will never turn into overeating. Only small amounts of a starchy food like a potato or sweet food such as jelly beans are necessary to start the process of making serotonin. The key is to get the body to release insulin after the carbohydrate is eaten. The insulin allows an amino acid, tryptophan, to get into the brain. Once there it is converted to serotonin, which blunts the effect of stress on our emotional state, thereby making it possible to cope and concentrate. And as a ‘value-added’ feature, serotonin also shuts off the need to eat. Why then do people overeat out of emotional need? The answer is that they choose the wrong foods, eat more than the correct dose needed to make serotonin and eat them at the wrong time. High-fat foods are the wrong foods for two reasons: 1) They add unnecessary calories 2) They delay digestion Chocolate, for example, may taste better than a fat-free rice cake but it does contain, per bite, more calories because it is high in fat. And because it takes longer to bring about relief, due to delayed digestion, the stressed eater, like the mom in the second anecdote, may continue eating until she feels better. Carbohydrates that contain more than tiny amounts of protein prevent serotonin from being made. The prescription for emotional eating is this: Eat about 25 to 30 grams of a sweet or starchy carbohydrate (not fruit, which doesn’t allow serotonin to be made). For best results, eat the carbohydrate on a couple of hours after your last meal. Wait. Do not continue eating. If you had a headache you would wait after taking a pain-reliever. Do the same with this emotional pain reliever. You will feel better in about 20 minutes. Do not feel guilty. You are doing exactly what Mother Nature wants you to do when you are stressed. Finally, enjoy your good mood. | permalink | related link | ( 3 / 102 )Next |
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