Tag Archives: Antifungal Drug Treatment

Questions & Answers

Mental Health And Gut Health: The Foods You Need To Eat

Some foods offer particular benefits both for psychological well-being and gut health.

1. Complex carbohydrates: One of my concerns with paleo and keto diets is that people have taken too many carbs out of their diet. Fruit, many vegetables, starchy foods, legumes, and grains are stripped out of the fiber in favor of too much animal fat. Your body needs complex carbohydrates for emotional and gut health. When people skimp on dietary carbs, they become grumpy and have a higher incidence of mood disorders. Keep in mind that I’m talking about healthy carbs. The truth is that arbs like candy, ice cream, high-fructose corn syrup, and sugar can actually increase obesity and ramp up depression. It’s foods like whole grains, nuts, seeds, starchy and green leafy vegetables, and many different fruits that contain healthy carbs, fibers, and resistant starches that will improve gut function and psychological well-being.

2. Brightly colored foods with high levels of antioxidants are also good for your brain and your gut. Antioxidants help manage the oxidative stress that occurs in the body. If you want good levels of dopamine and serotonin, antioxidants will help protect those neurotransmitters. There’s a lot to be said for including brightly colored foods in your diet such as blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, aubergines, tomatoes, bell peppers, and zucchinis.

Further readings:

3. Omega-3 fatty acids are excellent for the brain and the GI tract. You can find Omega-3s in oily fish like salmon, walnuts, and chia seeds. Omega-3 fatty acids are a critical addition to our diet because your body can’t make them on its own. I’ve read many research papers that have demonstrated that Omega-3 fatty acids improve both mood and cognitive function.

4. B vitamins such as B6, B12, and folic acid are essential for your mental health. There’s a clear link between depression and low levels of B vitamins. B5 is a vitamin that is particularly important for keeping energy levels high.

5. Probiotics offer your brain and bowel ample benefits. You can take supplements, but other sources of probiotics include fermented and cultured foods. It’s helpful to have sufficient prebiotics in your diet to make the most of the probiotics. For example, vegetables from the brassica family, such as broccoli and cauliflower, are a great source of prebiotics. So are plants from the allium family such as onions and chives.

6. Trace elements such as iodine, molybdenum, manganese, zinc, and copper are all critical for proper brain and digestive function. Look for foods that are organic and locally grown as these tend to contain higher levels of minerals. Good sources of minerals include pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, Brazil nuts, almonds, walnuts, and sardines.

If you ensure your diet includes these six categories of food, your mind and body will thank you!

Sources:

Questions & Answers

High Protein Diets And Weight Loss: What You Should Know

Let’s talk about high-protein diets and weight loss.

There are several mechanisms by which protein actually allows you to maintain a good weight and even lose weight. That’s why so many people were excited about paleo and keto diets. These diets tend to help people feel better and burn off extra fat.

There are several reasons why protein helps people lose weight.

1. Protein helps reduce cravings for sugary, high-fat, high-calorie foods. Protein tends to generate satiety via hormonal and other mechanisms. There’s no doubt that people who eat a high-protein diet feel fuller, look better, and weigh less. When you eat protein, your satiety goes up, and your appetite goes down.

Further readings:

2. Protein has something called a thermic effect, which is greater than for carbs and fats. The thermic effect is the energy the body uses to metabolize or burn food. For protein, the thermic effect is 20 to 30%, if not higher. This means that the body increases its metabolic rate when digesting protein. Carbs have a much lower thermic effect, which makes it easier to gain weight from eating starchy food than from eating high-protein food. The same is true for high-fat foods.

3. A high protein diet ramps up the production of certain hormones and reduces the production of others. Ghrelin, the hunger hormone, is suppressed with high protein intake. Cholecystokinin, a pancreatic hormone, increases in response to protein-intake and also helps reduce appetite. Carbohydrates don’t cause the same hormonal response.

Remember, that even though protein is vital for weight loss, you also need carbohydrates and fiber in your diet. A high-protein diet doesn’t feed the beneficial gut bacteria the way carbs such as resistant starches do.

Sources:

Questions & Answers

Putting An End To Binge Eating: 10 Steps You Can Take

Binge eating is a source of great emotional and physical distress. Luckily, there are several steps you can take to reduce this habit.

1. Stop dieting: Dieting can lead to cravings that eventually become so strong they trigger binge-eating episodes.

2. Make sure you’re eating enough fiber. Eat regular amounts of fiber throughout the day – from fruit and vegetables in particular. Fiber slows down the digestive system and signals the brain, so you don’t feel the need to eat so frequently.

3. Get enough protein in your diet. It’s easy to feel ravenous and binge-y if you’re not eating enough protein. Protein is great for generating feelings of satiety and keeping your hunger hormone in check. Just as for fiber, protein also slows down digestion, keeping you feeling full for a longer period.

4. Don’t be a lazy eater. That means you should be prepared to put effort into making and cooking your meals rather than going to a fast-food drive-through.

5. Find some engaging distractions to fill your time when you have the urge to binge. It could be walking the dog, going for a stroll, talking to your neighbor, busying your hands with knitting, or anything else that gives you some enjoyment.

Further readings:

6. Identify the emotional triggers that trigger binge eating. Once you know your triggers, start taking steps to change them or to find healthy ways of responding. It could be a relationship issue, a job issue, or financial stress.

7. Get your stress levels under control. Do your best to mitigate your stressors to prevent the spikes of cortisol that can drive your appetite to very high levels.

8. Eat before you are overly hungry. Eating at regular times of the day is very important. You don’t have to be excessively rigid, but skipping meals can lead to all-out binge eating. Keep an eye out for the subtle symptoms of low blood sugar and hunger. It could be that your thinking is slowing down, or you’re feeling irritable, tired, and dizzy.

9. Make sure you drink enough water between meals. Getting overly thirsty can trigger overeating for some people. Water also contributes to a feeling of satiation, so you don’t get overly hungry between scheduled meals and snacks.

10. Learn to eat slowly. Eating slower is better for your stomach. Think of your stomach as a cement mixer; you can’t fill it up all at one time. Fill your stomach up gradually, give it time to process the food you are eating.

Sources:

Questions & Answers

Vitamin C And Weight Loss: What’s The Connection?

Can vitamin C help you lose weight?

A study from the mid-2000s demonstrated that vitamin C has a definite effect on burning fat (thermogenesis) in some people.

When people have adequate vitamin C stores, their ability to burn off body fat is 30% higher compared to people with low vitamin C stores.

The benefits of vitamin C aren’t new. Look at the work by Mathias Rath and Dr. Linus Pauling, who got two Nobel prizes, I believe. Dr. Pauling was ridiculed by scientists for many years, but one day his work on vitamin C will be vindicated.

Further readings:

Vitamin C has a profound effect on the adrenal system. One of the highest levels of ascorbic acid in the human body is found in the adrenal cortex. An expert once told me that vitamin C used to be measured in the body by measuring the levels in the adrenal gland.

The body needs sufficient ascorbic acid levels to produce adrenal hormones such as the stress hormone, cortisol. You can extrapolate from that that low vitamin c levels might contribute to adrenal exhaustion. The fatigue associated with adrenal dysfunction can promote weight gain as it interferes with normal physical activity and can lead to snacking on high-calorie foods.

Vitamin C has a role in immune function, energy levels, skin integrity, and thermogenesis. That’s why I recommend people keep their vitamin C intake high. Make sure you include ample vitamin-C rich foods in your diet.

Sources:

Questions & Answers

How Do Low-Carb Diets Impact The Gut?

Does eating a low carb diet affect your gut health?

The ketogenic diet has become a worldwide trend. It involves eating more animal-based proteins, more fat, and fewer carbohydrates. A lot of people have taken nearly all grains out of their diet. Not just wheat, but all sorts of carbohydrates.

I’m noticing an alarming trend that so many people are diving headfirst into a ketogenic diet. They are consuming more fresh and processed meats, more fat, more butter, and more coconut oil. They’re also eating large amounts of eggs, chicken, and fish. They might be losing weight, but is it sustainable? Is it healthy? What’s going to happen to their gut over the long term?

Further readings:

I’m worried about the impact on the gut. By reducing the intact of carbs and fiber, you can starve your colon of the short-chain fatty acids that it needs. SCFA’s are the byproducts of bacterial fermentation.

A ketogenic diet may also be low in antioxidants. A person may lose weight but end up with major gut problems instead due to imbalances in the GI tract. Some doctors respond to this concern by suggesting people follow a “healthy” keto diet. My concern with a healthy keto diet is people are still going to eat far too much meat.

By 2050, it’s predicted that there’ll be over 10 billion people on this planet, and meat consumption is completely unsustainable at that level of population. It’s even unsustainable today. We’re seeing what’s happening around the world with fires and with how much land an animal needs to produce a couple of hamburgers. It’s ridiculous. I’m not a vegan, and I’m not again saying you should not eat meat.

I think meat forms an important part of the diet, but I think it should make up a very small part of what we eat

A high-fat, high meat diet is not suitable for bowel health. It could even contribute to the acceleration of diseases like diabetes and heart disease.

What’s the solution? More plants in your diet. And you definitely don’t want to chop 100% of grains out of your diet. I suspect there are a lot of health complications after years of eating low-carb.

If you look at people living in the Mediterranean, they don’t cut out most of the grains in their diet. The Japanese haven’t taken rice out of their diet. Did they all die of heart disease at a young age? No, the opposite! They live long lifespans. They were skinny people; they weren’t fat people. They were balanced. They had balanced lifestyles, where they worked hard, and ate well.

These people make their own food and have a diet heavy in antioxidant-rich foods. They eat meat sparingly and have ample nuts, seeds, and vegetables. That, to me, is the basis of a healthy diet.

Some of the best carbs to include in your diet are quinoa, millet, oats, buckwheat, bananas, sweet potatoes, beetroots, blueberries and grapefruits, and brown rice.

Sources: