Notes

What You Eat And Drink
Can Affect How You
Look And Feel
In an age where food really
matters, there are specific
kinds of foods that contain
specific kinds of ingredients
that will do your body only
harm should you continue
to consume them on daily
basis.
We can no longer ignore
what we eat as it endangers
our health and ages us
faster than we can blink.
By eliminating these foods
or bringing the intake to a
minimum we will be able
to not only see the
waistlines shrinking but
also find ourselves looking
and feeling a whole lot
better overall.
What is the secret to
staying “Forever young”?
Let’s get to it and see what
needs to be altered from
our daily diet.
1. Hydrogenated Oils or
Trans Fats
Seriously, these
components have
swallowed up America
whole with practically
contaminating everything
from cookies to fried foods
to “healthy” snacks, you
name it—it’s probably
there.
These oils turn into an
unhealthy fat storage, or
trans fats, and have been
long linked as a direct
contributor to heart disease
and obesity rates in this
country. Nonetheless,
people continue to choose
foods that they are used to
because old habits die-
hard, it is comforting, and
most, cost less.
So how many potato chips
can you eat or baked goods,
or your favorite snacks?
Well turns out that if you
read the label and the trans
fat IN A SERVING is less
than 0.5 grams, the actual
food label will read ZERO
trans fat, according with
the Mayo Clinic.
Therefore, if the ingredient
states partially
hydrogenated or
hydrogenated-anything-oil
you should know to either
not eat it or limit the
intake.
Hello cholesterol hike!
Remember Margarine
verses Butter?
We have been fed with
nonsense for over forty
years, and if you cannot do
without a taste of butter
always choose butter over
margarine.
Assistant Professor of
medicine Timothy Harlan,
M.D. at Tulane University
School of Medicine said
that trans fat cases
inflammation, and he
explained that aging a
“chronic inflammatory
state” in itself, and
reassured that one can look
older by consuming trans
fats regularly.
Back to butter–trans fat
intake is 3.3 g verses 15 g
that is in margarine. The
“bad” fats will cause
obesity, spikes in
cholesterol and high blood
pressure.
Through these health
problems alone a person is
bound to age faster. The
FDA had finally recognized
that hydrogenated oils are
not safe for consumption…
Really? Thanks, it’s been a
while, let me get my
arteries cleaned up here…
Bottom line is–read your
labels, and change your
habits or it will not be the
only thing that will be
dying pretty hard here…
2. High fructose corn
syrup or HFCS
We ARE going here! This
GMO (Generically Modified
Organism) ingredient is
literally pushed in to
everything that we eat.
The heavy consumption of
HFCS causes obesity, liver
failure, heart disease, tooth
decay…shall I keep going?
Listen, if you want more
sugar I’d rather have you
eat apples all day long and
dark chocolate. The HFCS is
toxic to your body, there is
really zero benefits in it
but gazillion damages.
Sodas, and all kinds of non-
organic drinks contain it,
so do your cookies, jams
and almost anything out
there that is why reading
your labels is essential.
Dr. George Bray (North
American Association for
the Study of Obesity) had
long called for dangers of
obesity from the HFCS,
especially from the soft
drinks. A 20-ounce Pepsi
bottle equates to 17
teaspoons of sugar in
accordance with the
Chicago Tribune.
The HFCS has clear and
present dangers due to the
amount of fructose it
contains—average of 80
percent in comparison to
table sugar that has 50
percent of fructose. It’s
easy—since there’s more
fructose in HFCS, it goes
straight to your liver,
causing liver damage called
“fatty liver” that is
affecting over 70 million
people.
In addition to the health
issues that are mentioned
earlier, the rising amount
of sugar intake has been
also associated with
hypertension, metabolic
syndromes and insulin
resistance in type 2
diabetes, among the few.
Daily high amounts can
lead to “accelerated aging”
as well, states Dr. Mark
Hayman, a Director of
Cleveland Clinic Center for
Functional Medicine. Not
convinced still? Listen, you
don’t have to be an expert
in this field to read about
all the negative things the
HFCS brings to you.
Too much sugar is not good
period, but HFCS brings
you a quadruple dosage of
what you should not have,
and it has been called a
“silent killer” for a reason.
Yes, healthier foods are
more expensive, but the
price you pay today for
them will be the price you
will not have to pay for
your health tomorrow.
3. Refined Salt
By now it is common
knowledge that salt adds to
water retention in your
body, but this is not the
only problem here. The
Russians call salt the
ultimate “white death”.
This is because salt is a
contributor to hypertension
or a raised blood pressure,
which directly causes:
heart failure, kidney
stones, water retention, a
link to stomach cancer
among the few. Excess salt
leads to skin puffiness and
swelling says Dr. Gillian
McKeith in her book “You
Are What You Eat”.
However, how much salt
you should have is
dependent on how healthy
you are and your diet.
If you are under 50, says
the Harvard Medical
School, and you are in a
great health and have no
high blood pressure then
you do not have to worry
about salt intake’s dangers.
What you must do is to
avoid high salt and
processed foods.
The HMS also says that the
folks with high blood
pressure and diabetes
should not have more than
2300 mg of sodium, or 1
teaspoon a day.
Perfect example of foods to
completely avoid is the Top
Ramen, which alone has
over 700 mg of sodium in
one soup, in ONE!!! PS: The
chicken flavored one has
890 to 910 mg…Yes, you
heard this right! Therefore,
please choose wisely, salt
only if necessary, and salt
less!
4. Processed Meats
Your daily lunchmeats such
as deli, prosciutto, bacon
(YES, sorry!) and sausages
usually contain various but
heavy amounts of
preservatives which can
cause skin irritations and
inflammation.
Eating more of red meat
also is able to interrupt
your body’s ability to
produce collagen, states
Health.com, so this alone
can age your appearance
greatly, since collagen is
what keeps our skin
looking younger, firmer,
and healthier.
Hefty consumption of red
meats can also lead
towards a heart disease, as
they are high in saturated
fat.
The lead author Dr. An Pan
of the Harvard School of
Public Health study on red
meat and mortality rates
had concluded a direct
association and evidence of
eating high amounts of red
meat with the coronary
heart disease, stroke and
some cancers (NIH.org—
National Institute of
Health). Hence, limit on
deli meats and substitute
with fish or turkey breast
pieces instead. While bacon
may be good for your soul
it certainly is not good for
your body or arteries. Stay
heavy on veggies and you
will never age faster than
you need to.
5. Alcohol
As much as we all love a
little cocktail here and
there, we must not forget
that alcohol is processed
through the liver. The
healthier the liver is the
longer we will live, and the
better we shall look.
We are not talking about
having a glass of wine a
day. We are talking about
having several drinks a day
or more. Our liver
processes toxins when we
drink alcohol but it needs
time to repair. Whatever
contaminants your liver
had not time to process will
come out on to your skin.
Acne, possibly of rosacea
and wrinkles are all skin-
aging results from the built
up toxins from the liver,
and since alcohol is
considered a toxin, these
are the possible side effects,
explains Dr. Ariel Ostad
from the American
Academy of Dermatology.
Alcohol even makes salty
and fatty foods taste better
and triggers the urge for
more, so we are back at
eating foods that age us
faster. Lastly, frequent
alcohol consumption will
dehydrate the body, and
can lead to a more serious
and deadly liver disease
such as Cirrhosis.
So how much is “safe” to
drink? The Harvard School
of Public Health tells us no
more than one drink per
day for women and two for
men (not hard liquor).
With all that said, choose
carefully, read the labels,
avoid heavy indulging into
the above foods and
ingredients. Always choose
veggies and fruits to satisfy
your hunger, sugar and
soul. Be well.