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Questions & Answers

Will Lemon Tea Help You Lose Weight?

Is lemon tea good for weight loss?

Lemon tea is healthy, but it’s not that effective for weight loss. If you want to drink tea known to increase metabolism and fat burning, you should reach for a cup of good quality green tea.

Lemon tea may stimulate digestion and help with the stomach and small intestine function. I also like lemon, lemon juice, and lemon tea is because research tells us that they all inhibit bacteria. Lemon has a nice cleansing effect on the small intestine as well.

A 2010 study published in the American nutrition journal involved giving obese people four cups of green tea per day for eight weeks. The researchers compared the weight loss results of the tea drinkers to people who were drinkings four cups of water per day. The tea drinkers lost five pounds, and the water drinkers remained the same.

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It is thought that green tea helps with weight loss through its caffeine and polyphenol content. Lemon tea, in contrast, doesn’t contain caffeine.

I’m not opposed to including caffeine in your diet. Just don’t drink twenty-five cups of coffee per day. But one good cup of espresso in the morning is a delight.

Even though lemon tea doesn’t seem to facilitate weight loss, I still highly recommend including lemon in any form in your diet. Both lemon and lime improve gallbladder function. Lemon can also help with bowel movements and with oily skin. There’s probably a hundred and one uses for lemon, but rapid weight loss isn’t one of them.

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Questions & Answers

What is The Impact Of The Ketogenic Diet On Heart And Brain Health?

Before you go on any diet, its important to understand the pros and cons. That includes knowing the impact of ketogenic or high-protein diets on the risk of heart disease and stroke.

There are people out there who advocate a healthy variant of the ketogenic diet, but the diet is still high in fat, high in animal protein, and low in resistant starch. A lot of different foods are missing from the ketogenic diet. I’m particularly concerned about the lack of starchy vegetables in that kind of diet.

The European Journal of Nutrition published a study that demonstrated a dramatic increase in trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), a toxic compound produced in the gut by a specific bacteria called Hungatella. Hungatella produces higher amounts of TMAO in the presence of a high-protein diet. TMAO is associated with a 62% increased risk of heart disease.

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This study was focused on the paleo rather than the ketogenic diet. But I’m pretty sure that the findings would be the same for the keto diet.

Restricting resistant starch and eating lots of dietary fat and protein alters the gut microbiome. This alteration can trigger different disease processes in humans.

Don’t stay on the ketogenic or paleo diet for the long-term. If you want to keep off weight permanently, focus on lifestyle, stress, sleep, and a generally healthy diet, rather than a fad like paleo or keto.

The ketogenic diet will stabilize your blood sugars and reduce body fat, but I’d hate to see what the arteries are going to be like in the brain and around the heart if you stay on that diet for a long time.

Remember, my concerns don’t refer to the keto or paleo type diets that also include fruit and resistant starch. I think those foods should never have been taken out in the first place.

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Questions & Answers

Flavonoids And Weight Loss: What You Should Know

Can flavonoids help you lose weight? And if so, what’s a safe amount for somebody to consume daily?

Firstly, it’s important to know that flavonoids are protective factors found in plants, including vegetables and fruits. Flavonoids act to protect and strengthen plants, increase cell-to-cell communication, and stop sun damage. The bottom line is that flavonoids make plants strong and healthy.

Weight issues have been around for a long, long time. But they’ve exploded in recent years.
Flavonoids also have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.

I read a fascinating study in the British Medical Journal published in 2016, involving over 124,000 people. The study followed men and women for up to 24 years. This study found that people who each a flavonoid-rich diet found it easier to maintain a healthy weight. This was true even after the study was adjusted for smoking and exercise habits. Even sedentary people were found to better maintain a healthy weight when eating a diet rich in flavonoids.

Flavonoids are found in a variety of foods, including vegetables like onions, fruit like pears, and tea. The top flavonoid in this research was the anthocyanin.

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Anthocyanins are found in strawberries, cherries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, radishes, black currants, and grapes. These foods are what I called “pinnacle” foods because of their high nutrient content.

I encourage people to eat berries every day to their beneficial effects on health.

Quercetin is a very beneficial flavonoid found in onions. That’s one of the reasons I eat onions every day. Red wine and chocolate also contain flavonoids. It’s easy to overeat chocolate, so be very careful and only have small amounts of high-quality dark chocolate.

The more flavonoids you eat, the less you’ll crave processed foods. These foods taste delicious and also have powerful positive effects on your immune and digestive systems.

Most people between the ages of 18 and 49 will gain one to two pounds per year. If you do the math, that can be a lot of extra weight by the time you’re sixty. By maintain muscle mass and eating healthy foods, including flavonoid-rich fruits and vegetables, you can buck the trend of gradual weight gain.

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Questions & Answers

The Ins And Outs Of Gastric Surgery

What are my thoughts on gastric surgery?

Gastric surgery is a drastic solution to a big problem.

Over the years, I’ve had clients who’ve had lap band surgery as well as ones who had their stomachs made smaller. In two cases, in particular, the results were outstanding for my clients.

One of the patients was so obese that it was difficult for her to even walk to my clinic. She was in her late forties and near death. In cases like that, when there aren’t any other options, then gastric surgery can be a lifesaver.

Several months later, the patient came back, and I didn’t even recognize her. It was a fantastic outcome for her, but it did leave her with massive amounts of excess skin that had to be managed surgically.

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Still, I don’t think gastric surgery is the right fix for most people.

Is it a fix for many people? No, it’s not. I don’t think gastric surgery is a good option for 95% of people. Gastric surgery doesn’t cure the cause of obesity; it’s just fixing the end result of certain behaviors.

Should you consider gastric surgery? Look at your situation determine it’s severity. Are all other avenues shut for you? Is it impossible for you to lose weight? Are you physically at such a point where you can’t exercise anymore?

If at all possible, I recommend going for reversible gastric surgery over the irreversible options. Of course, the surgeon will have the final say on that matter.

If you can find a non-surgical way to manage your way, take the route. Reserve the surgical solution for when all other options have failed.

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Questions & Answers

Will Omega-3 Fatty Acids Help You Lose Weight?

Let’s talk about omega-3 fatty acids and weight loss.

Essential fatty acids include alpha-linoleic acid (ALA). ALA is found in flax seeds, chia seeds, hemp seeds, and walnuts. In the body, ALA convents to long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). The EPA and DHA aren’t as essential because they can be generated from ALA, but the conversion rate is only 2 to 10% depending on your nutritional status.

A common supplement is a blend of 180 milligrams of EPA and 120 milligrams of DHA. Be careful with fish oil supplements because there are a lot of poor quality products out there.

There are a lot of conflicting studies when it comes to omega-3 fatty acids and weight loss. Some studies seem to show that omega-3 fatty acids improve your metabolism, others say there is no impact.

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Nevertheless, omega-3 fatty acids are definitely a supplement worth taking regularly. Omega-3s have a positive effect on the immune system and the nervous system. There was a study that demonstrated the higher the DHA content of a child’s diet, the higher the IQ.

Fish is a fantastic food that I feel should be consumed twice a week, if not more. It’s an excellent food protein to include in your diet.

I think that eating fish once or twice a week helps with weight management. If you can’t eat fish, then supplement with omega-3s. Norwegian omega-3 fatty acids are often a bit better quality than other ones on the market. I suggest taking one to two thousand milligrams per day of omega-3 fatty acids to boost brain and heart health.

If you want something to give you a little bit more boost cognitively look for the DHA, and if you are looking something more for the immune pathway or the heart pathway, I’d be going for the higher EPA. For children and older people, I suggest emphasizing DHA.

If it’s weight loss you’re after, I’d got for the 180/120 mix that is usually available. Take one to three thousand milligrams per day for the long term. Remember, combine supplements with physical activity and a healthy diet for optimal weight loss results. Research has shown that the combination of exercise and omega-3 fatty acids tricks the body into burning more fat than carbohydrates. I suggest exercising at least three to four times a week while taking omega-3 fatty acids and see what happens to your weight.

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