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| Escape the Monday Madness | November 22, 2010 | |
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Quick tips to keep YOU healthy, sane, and productive all week long.
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 Greetings!
My daughter, a junior in college, is taking a health class as an elective. Because I tried to teach her about healthy lifestyle by example rather than preaching, I find it amusing when she calls to share some interesting fact about nutrition.
Every week she has health "labs" in which she has to monitor her heart rate during exercise or keep a food diary or describe her other health habits. She called me the other day, befuddled, not knowing how to complete one of her labs. It included many questions about the "diets" she had been on and what she had learned from them. She was shocked to find out that most of the other students had been on diets - many diets, while she herself had never been, nor had she ever observed me on a diet. I was proud that I helped my daughter learn how to trust her body without counting calories. If you have kids, you might want to read the article below about kids...as young as three...that don't want to become fat.
Have a fabulously fun week,
Dr. Jo
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Eat In:
Will Drinking Water Before Meals Help You Lose Weight?
Thirst is often disguised as hunger. So, I've  always encouraged people to drink water before meals. Others say "no." A recent New York Times article researched the claim.
Published in the February 2010 journal of Obesity, scientists at Virginia Tech followed a group of overweight subjects age 55 and up on a low calorie diet. In this random trial, half the group were instructed to drink two cups of water before every meal. After three months on the diet, the water group lost 15.5 pounds, compared to 11 pounds in the other group.
A 2008 study found a 13 percent reduction in calorie intake in overweight individuals who consumed water before breakfast.
And, back in 2007, older adults said that drinking water before a meal reduced hunger...but had little effect on subjects under 35.
Since the average person gains a pound between Thanksgiving and New Years Day (the one pound a year that most people never take off), perhaps drinking water before a meal might be a easy habit for you to start. |
Food Addiction:
Continuing Education Opportunity Two days a month I contract with INR to present full-day continuing education programs for health professionals. Next month I'll be close to home presenting "Food Addiction": - Dec 9 in Gainesville
- Dec 10 in Orlando
If you're interested in learning more about this program, call INR directly at 1-925-609-2820. | |
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Focus On:
Developing Healthy Kids
I just read some disturbing evidence that children, as young as three, want to be thin. I'm concerned because a pressure to be thin from a very early age doesn't just drive people to take on healthy lifestyle habits...it could increase their risk of an eating disorder. I got into this nutrition field after suffering for many years from an eating disorder. And, I've raised a now 20 year old daughter who still has never been on a diet. And, not because she's naturally thin...she has a lot of great healthy habits....but because she trusts her body to tell her how much to eat. To prevent eating disorders, I encourage parents to:
- Refrain from making comments about overweight individuals...including themselves. No FAT jokes!
- Adopt healthy eating habits themselves (not a "diet") that the kids will model
- Stock the kitchen with healthy foods for the kids to enjoy
- Establish an atmosphere which encourages new experiences. Don't just encourage them to taste new foods, but also try new sports, read different books, and respect people with different perspectives. Remember they will never learn how to enjoy broccoli, if they never see broccoli or taste it.
- Serve three meals a day, and healthy snacks in between - and discourage grazing
- Make mealtime a pleasurable experience of conversation - not squabbling.
- Encourage their kids to listen to their hunger. Let them stop eating when they've had enough. This allows children to trust their own internal cues of hunger and fullness
- If they get hungry, because they didn't eat enough at that meal, let them know there's fruit in the fruit bowl and that snack time is in a few hours - no grazing.
- Turn off the TV and computer during meals so kids (and parents) can enjoy the flavors and textures of the food...focusing on the food helps our brain register fullness
It's ok to plan healthy meals, to read the labels so you know what you're eating...but following a strict diet of "does and don'ts" never works in the long run. And, when kids observe their parents go on diets...then off...you end up teaching them that this is normal behavior. |
Dr. Jo's Books
Plan for the Holidays
If you enjoy my presentations and my weekly newsletters, you'll definately enjoy reading my books...or buying them for your loved ones for the holiday. Check them out here.
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Each of the above articles are designed to educate you about research or what I or others do to stay healthy, sane, and productive. Always check with your medical doctor and other health professionals (including a registered dietitian) before starting any new diet or exercise program.
Thanks for inviting me into your life this Monday morning. If you enjoyed this newsletter, please forward it onto a friend.
Sincerely,
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