Danger of Overeating

Binge Eating Disorder

Binge eating is very serious and has an impact on both physical and mental health. Left untreated, binge eating can lead to severe medical problems including high cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, and depression.

What is Binge Eating?

Binge eating can affect women or men, though it appears twice as often among women. People with binge eating disorder suffer from episodes of uncontrolled eating or bingeing followed by periods of guilt and depression. Binge eating is marked by the consumption of large amounts of food, sometimes accompanied by a pressured, "frenzied" feeling. Binge eating disorder may cause a person to continue to eat even after she or he becomes uncomfortably full.

Binge Eating Warning Signs

There are many warning signs which indicate that someone may be suffering from binge eating disorder. A person with binge eating disorder may exhibit one, all, or any combination of these warning signs. Becoming aware of these warning signs is the first step in helping someone suffering from binge eating.

Common binge eating warning signs:

• Eating large amounts of food when not physically hungry is a sign of binge eating.
  
• Eating much more rapidly than normal is a sign of binge eating.
  
• Eating until the point of feeling uncomfortably full is a sign of binge eating.
  
• A person with binge eating disorder may often eat alone because of shame or embarrassment.
  
• A person with binge eating disorder has feelings of depression, disgust, or guilt after eating.
  
• A person with binge eating disorder has a history of marked weight fluctuations.
  

How can you help someone with binge eating disorder?

You may know someone suffering from binge eating disorder. You may suspect that someone you know has binge eating disorder but are not certain. You may feel that you are beginning to exhibit some warning signs for binge eating. What should you do?
If you feel that you or someone you know may be suffering from binge eating disorder, it is important to seek professional counseling as quickly as possible. If untreated, binge eating will become part of a destructive cycle which can continue for years and cause significant health problems.

Artificial Sweeteners: what do we know about them?

Most of Americans eat the equivalent of 20 teaspoons of sugar a day. True, you're probably not sucking on sugar cubes throughout the day, but you are probably downing more than your fair share of sugary cereals, snacks, sodas, ice cream.. and the list goes on and on.
For the average person, there's nothing wrong with sugar per se, unless all the sweet foods in your daily diet are keeping you from eating and drinking the nutritious foods you need. But for people who are trying to lose weight, or have to watch their blood sugar because of diabetes, too much sugar can be a problem. That's where artificial sweeteners can come in handy. These low-calorie sweeteners, reports the International Food Information Council, are safe to use, provide sweetness without calories, and provide a choice of sweet foods.
A 1998 survey conducted by the Calorie Control Council reported that 144 million American adults routinely eat and drink low-calorie, sugar-free products such as desserts and artificially sweetened sodas. The FDA has approved five artificial sweeteners:

• Acesulfame potassium (Sunett)
  
• Aspartame (NutraSweet or Equal)
  
• Sucralose (Splenda)
  
• D-Tagatose (Sugaree)
  
• Saccharin (Sweet 'N Low)
  

You may be surprised to see saccharin on that list. Discovered in 1879, saccharin which is 300 times sweeter than sugar was used during World War I and World War II to make up for sugar shortages and rationing. In the 1970s, the FDA was going to ban saccharin based on the reports of a Canadian study that showed that saccharin was causing bladder cancer in rats. A public outcry kept saccharin on the shelves (there were no other sugar substitutes at that time), but with a warning label that read, "Use of this product may be hazardous to your health. This product contains saccharin which has been determined to cause cancer in laboratory animals."
That warning label is no longer needed. Further research has shown that male rats have a particular pH factor that predisposes them to bladder cancer. What may be true for male rats does not necessarily hold true for humans (or even for female rats); hence, no more warning labels for saccharin. A lot of things that cause harm in animals don't always cause harm in humans.
Like saccharin, aspartame is another sweetener that, though thoroughly tested by the FDA and deemed safe for the general population, has had its share of critics who blame the sweetener for causing everything from brain tumors to chronic fatigue syndrome. Not so much. The only people for whom aspartame is a medical problem are those with the genetic condition known as phenylkenoturia (PKU), a disorder of amino acid metabolism. Those with PKU need to keep the levels of phenylalanine in the blood low to prevent mental retardation as well as neurological, behavioral, and dermatological problems. Since phenylalanine is one of the two amino acids in aspartame, people who suffer from PKU are advised not to use it.

If you need to control your sugar and caloric intake, artificial sweeteners are a safe, effective way to do that.

Some people can be sensitive to sweeteners and experience symptoms such as headaches and upset stomach, but otherwise, there is no credible information that aspartame, or any other artificial sweetener causes brain tumors, or any other illness.

Another sweetener receiving much publicity of late is stevia, an herbal sweetening ingredient used in food and beverages by South American natives for many centuries and in Japan since the mid-1970s. Because stevia is not FDA-approved, it cannot be sold as an artificial sweetener; however, it can be and is sold as a dietary supplement.

Though there are any number of people quick to point out what they believe are the dangers of artificial sweeteners, others think that they may actually have beneficial properties apart from reducing calorie intake and managing diabetes. Researchers at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, for example, have found in several preliminary studies that aspartame is "especially effective in relieving pain associated with osteoarthritis, multiple sclerosis, and sickle cell anemia."

If you don't need to watch your calories or your blood sugar, there is no real reason to use the sweeteners unless you just happen to like the taste. But if you need to control your sugar and caloric intake, artificial sweeteners are a safe, effective way to do that.

8 tips to help you in losing your weight

The 2 Most Important Facts about Successful Weight Loss
Before beginning any diet, it’s important that you understand these two important facts:

• Weight loss depends on energy balance.

To lose weight, your energy intake must be less than your energy expenditure. This will always be true. There are no foods, pills, or potions that will magically melt the pounds off. The only approach that works is eating less and/or exercising more.

• Permanent weight loss requires permanent change.

Don’t assume that you can spend six weeks on a diet and then return to your old eating habits. Short term diets only produce short term results. The only successful way to keep the weight off is to make small but permanent changes in your lifestyle. Coincidentally, this is also the best way to improve your health.

The 6 Most Important Principles for Enabling Weight Loss
Although many different weight loss techniques exist, nearly all are variations of just six basic principles. Study these principles, and make them part of your action plan:

• Maintain or improve your health.

If you don’t take care of your body, it won’t take care of you. So, as a first step, make sure that your diet supplies adequate amounts of vitamins and minerals, that you’re drinking plenty of water and getting enough sleep and fresh air, and aren’t under too much unhealthy stress. Everything that you do to improve your overall health will help make weight loss more likely to occur.

• Reduce your total Caloric intake.

To lose weight, you have to change your energy balance. (See Fact #1 above.) There are just two ways to do this – either consume less energy (Calories) or expend more energy (via exercise). The easiest way to reduce your consumption is simply to cut back on the size of your meals and/or the amount of high-Calorie foods that you consume. This doesn’t mean that you have to give up any particular food. In fact, completely avoiding a food can lead to strong cravings that derail your diet. A smarter approach is to just eat less of those high-Calorie foods.

To get a good perspective of how many Calories that you consume, it’s important that you keep a food diary. You don’t have to keep your diary going forever, but do track your daily intake for at least one week. The Running Total function of ND’s Pantry make this Calorie counting exercise especially easy to do, and also provides you with totals of all other nutrients as well.Also beware of foods containing "hidden" Calories. For example:

1. Watch what you drink. What you drink during the day can have a major impact on the number of Calories that you consume. There is very little difference between the satiating effects of different drinks, so this is one of the easiest places to improve your diet. Water is almost always your best choice, but coffee, tea, and diet drinks can also help cut Calories.
2. Be smart about condiments and toppings. Butter, mayonnaise, and a lot of the "special sauces" used by restaurants are very concentrated sources of Calories. If you want to add flavor to your food, try using lemon juice, soy sauce, salsa or different spices instead.
   

• Maintain or increase your metabolism.

One of the most common mistakes that dieters make is to get excited or impatient with their diet, and reduce their Caloric intake too far. If you do that, your body will respond by lowering your metabolism and slowing your weight loss. To prevent this downward adjustment of your metabolism, make smaller changes to your eating habits. Your patience will pay off in terms of more consistent weight loss, more energy, and fewer cravings.For the best results, add exercise to your plan. Regular exercise not only expends energy as you’re doing it, but can also lead to increases in your basal metabolic rate, so you’ll burn more Calories even at rest. High-intensity exercises burn the most Calories, but don’t select exercises solely on their fat-burning potential. Instead, pick exercises (i.e. sports activities) that you enjoy, and want to incorporate into your daily routine.

• Avoid hunger.

Hunger is one of your body’s strongest stimuli, and can be an evil challenger to your will power. Hunger is also relatively slow to subside, and can cause you to eat more than you intended. To break this unproductive hunger-overeating habit, always try to eat before you get hungry. This may seem counter intuitive to someone who’s trying to limit their Calories, but it’s a very effective concept. Two different techniques can help make this easier to accomplish:

1. Eat smaller, more frequent meals. Instead of three meals per day, try eating five or six smaller meals. By eating more frequently, there will be less time between your meals, and less chance of you experiencing such intense hunger. As an extra benefit, there is some evidence that suggests that eating more frequently can also help raise your metabolism.
   
2. Include more slow-to-digest foods in your meals. When it’s not possible to eat more frequently, make sure that your meals contain a mix of nutrients. In particular, fats and protein are much slower to digest than carbohydrates. While most carbohydrates leave your stomach within about two hours, protein takes approximately four hours to digest, and fat takes as long as six hours.
   Note: The slower digestion of fats is one of the primary reasons that people on low-carb diets (like Atkins's diet or South Beach diet) experience less hunger than those on low-fat diets. It’s not necessary to completely eliminate carbohydrates from your meals, though. Most people on balanced-nutrient plans (like the Zobe Diet) also experience better hunger control.
   

• Correct bad eating habits.

We eat not only for nourishment, but also as part of our social interactions. However, many people develop unhealthy habits that encourage overeating. Here are a few examples of bad eating habits that you should try to avoid:

1. Mixing food and entertainment. It’s easy to mindlessly eat a tub of popcorn, a whole bag of chips, or a carton of ice cream while you’re watching TV. Make eating a separate activity, and you’ll consume less.
   
2. Eating to relieve stress. There’s nothing wrong with taking pleasure from eating, but try not to use food as your primary stress reliever. Find other ways to dissipate stress (such as exercising, listening to music, or meditating) before eating.
   
3. Eating on the run. With the abundant availability of convenience foods, it’s easy to grab something from a vending machine and eat your meals in your car. But try not to make this a regular daily habit. Plan your schedule to include enough time to prepare and eat your meals in a quiet place, without the rush.

No one eats perfectly. However, if you continuously have trouble controlling what you eat, realize that correction of your eating problems may be beyond your own abilities. Please consult a psychologist or weight loss professional for additional help.

• Make a record of everything you eat.

When making changes to your diet, it's very easy to lapse back into your old eating habits. Keeping a food diary is a great way to help prevent that from happening. Buy an inexpensive spiral notebook, and simply write down everything that you eat during the day. If possible, keep your food diary with you, and make your entries soon after you've eaten. For maximum benefit, keep making entries for at least three weeks. Keeping a food diary forces you to give conscious thought to everything that you eat. It may be a tedious task at first, but it will help you more quickly develop better eating habits. Your food diary will also be a tremendous asset if you later consult a dietician or health care provider for assistance with your diet. When keeping a food diary, it's also a good idea to take the time to add up the total Calories and nutrients that you consume each day. For your diet to be successful, your total Calories will need to decrease from their original level, but your nutrient intake must at least meet your minimum needs. One of the easiest ways to determine this is with the Running Total feature of ND's Pantry.

Some secrets of low-fat meal

Bread, Cereal, Rice and Pasta
Whole-grain breads are low in fat; they're also high in fiber and complex carbohydrates. Choose these breads for sandwiches and as additions to meals.
Avoid rich bakery foods such as donuts, sweet rolls and muffins. These foods can contain more than 50% fat calories. Snacks such as angel food cake and gingersnap cookies can satisfy your sweet tooth without adding fat to your diet.
Hot and cold cereals are usually low in fat. But instant cereals with cream may contain high-fat oils or butterfat. Granola cereals may also contain high-fat oils and extra sugars.
Avoid fried snacks such as potato chips and tortilla chips. Try the low-fat or baked versions instead.
Vegetables and Fruits
Fruits and vegetables are naturally low in fat. They add flavor and variety to your diet. They also contain fiber, vitamins and minerals.
Margarine, butter, mayonnaise and sour cream add fat to vegetables and fruits. Try using herbs and yogurt as seasonings instead.
Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs and Nuts
Beef, Pork, Veal and LambBaking, broiling and roasting are the healthiest ways to prepare meat. Lean cuts can be pan-broiled or stir-fried. Use either a nonstick pan or nonstick spray coating instead of oil.
Trim outside fat before cooking. Trim any inside, separable fat before eating. Select low-fat, lean cuts of meat. Lean beef and veal cuts have the word "loin" or "round" in their names. Lean pork cuts have the word "loin" or "leg" in their names.
Use herbs, spices, fresh vegetables and nonfat marinades to season meat. Avoid high-fat sauces and gravies.
PoultryBaking, broiling and roasting are the healthiest ways to prepare poultry. Skinless poultry can be pan-broiled or stir-fried. Use either a nonstick pan or nonstick spray coating instead of oil.
Remove skin and visible fat before cooking. Chicken breasts are a good choice because they are low in fat. Use domestic goose and duck only once in a while because both are high in fat.
FishPoaching, steaming, baking and broiling are the healthiest ways to prepare fish. Fresh fish should have a clear color, a moist look, a clean smell and firm, springy flesh. If good-quality fresh fish isn't available, buy frozen fish.
Most seafood is low in saturated fat. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in some fatty fish, such as salmon and cold water trout. They may help lower the risk of heart disease in some people.
Cross-over FoodsDry beans, peas and lentils offer protein and fiber without the cholesterol and fat that meats have. Once in a while, try substituting beans for meat in a favorite recipe, such as lasagna or chili.
TVP, or textured vegetable protein, is widely available in many foods. Vegetarian "hot dogs," "hamburger" and "chicken nuggets" are low-fat, cholesterol-free alternatives to meat.
Milk, Yogurt and Cheese
Choose skim milk or low-fat buttermilk. Substitute evaporated skim milk for cream in recipes for soups and sauces.
Try low-fat cheeses. Skim ricotta can replace cream cheese on a bagel or in a vegetable dip. Use part-skim cheeses in recipes. Use 1% cottage cheese for salads and cooking. Eat string cheese as a low-fat, high-calcium snack.
Plain nonfat yogurt can replace sour cream in many recipes. (To maintain texture, stir 1 tablespoon of cornstarch into each cup of yogurt that you use in cooking.) Try frozen nonfat or low-fat yogurt for dessert.
Skim sherbet is an alternative to ice cream. Soft-serve and regular ice creams are also lower in fat than premium styles.

What you wanted to know about calories...

Basic Calorie Facts
A calorie is a unit of energy that we get from food (technically, the amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water 1 degree centigrade). We all need calories – to give us the energy to do everything from surfing the net to breathing to digesting more food. How many calories we actually need depends on several factors like height, activity level, and age. Doctors recommend that women eat at least 1,200 calories a day, though your calorie requirement is probably a good bit higher.

If calories are so good for us, how did they get such a bad reputation? Because when we eat more calories than we spend (which is too easy to do in modern life!) we end up gaining weight. As long as calories in = calories out, we’re okay. In theory, we could get away with eating large fries and a milkshake every day – if we ate nothing else. But in reality, this is far from a good idea because calories don’t all come in the same package.

Some foods are packed with empty calories – calories that have no nutritional value. Anything that is mostly fat or mostly added sugar (like high fructose corn syrup) falls into this category. Candy, regular sodas, most desserts, and junk food obviously fall into this category. But a lot of foods that aren’t necessarily bad are also not particularly nutritious – like white bread, white rice, or anything that’s been heavily refined. Yes, it’s definitely preferable to eat white bread than say, a buttery croissant. But calorie for calorie, you will get more health benefits from eating wheat bread than white.Good calories are packed with the things that our bodies need to stay healthy. Things like vitamins, minerals, complex carbs (including dietary fiber), protein and certain types of fats. Experts (and particularly diet books!) may not agree how much we need of each, but the reality is that too little or too much of any is bad. Any diet plan that says otherwise might help you lose weight short-term, but probably won’t make a difference in your weight long-term, and will almost definitely make a negative difference to your health in the long run.

What are the most harmful ingredients in frozen food?

90% of Americans' household food budget is spent on processed foods, the majority of which are filled with additives and stripped of nutrients. Discover which common ingredients in the foods you eat pose the greatest risk to your health.
Grab the broccoli with cheese sauce from the freezer, the box of instant rice pilaf from the pantry, or the hot dogs from your fridge and squint at the ingredient list's fine print. You'll likely find food additives in every one. Is this healthy? Compared to the foods our bodies were built to eat, definitely not. Processed, packaged foods have almost completely taken over the diet of Americans.

In fact, nearly 90 percent of our household food budget is spent on processed foods, according to industry estimates.Unfortunately, most processed foods are laden with sweeteners, salts, artificial flavors, factory-created fats, colorings, chemicals that alter texture, and preservatives. But the trouble is not just what's been added, but what's been taken away. Processed foods are often stripped of nutrients designed by nature to protect your heart, such as soluble fiber, antioxidants, and "good" fats. Combine that with additives, and you have a recipe for disaster. Here are the big four ingredients in processed foods you should look out for:
TRANS FATS
Trans fats are in moist bakery muffins and crispy crackers, microwave popcorn and fast-food French fries, even the stick margarine you may rely on as a "heart-healthy" alternative to saturated-fat-laden butter. Once hailed as a cheap, heart-friendly replacement for butter, lard, and coconut oil, trans fats have, in recent times, been denounced by one Harvard nutrition expert as "the biggest food-processing disaster in U.S. history." Why? Research now reveals trans fats are twice as dangerous for your heart as saturated fat, and cause an estimated 30,000 to 100,000 premature heart disease deaths each year.

Trans fats are worse for your heart than saturated fats because they boost your levels of "bad" LDL cholesterol and decrease "good" HDL cholesterol. That's double trouble for your arteries. And unlike saturated fats, trans fats also raise your levels of artery-clogging lipoprotein and triglycerides.Trans fats will be listed on the "Nutrition Facts" panel on food beginning in 2006. Until then, check the ingredient list for any of these words: "partially hydrogenated," "fractionated," or "hydrogenated" (fully hydrogenated fats are not a heart threat, but some trans fats are mislabeled as "hydrogenated"). The higher up the phrase "partially hydrogenated oil" is on the list of ingredients, the more trans fat the product contains.Replacing trans fats with good fats could cut your heart attack risk by a whopping 53 percent.
REFINED GRAINS
Choosing refined grains such as white bread, rolls, sugary low-fiber cereal, white rice, or white pasta over whole grains can boost your heart attack risk by up to 30 percent. You've got to be a savvy shopper. Don't be fooled by deceptive label claims such as "made with wheat flour" or "seven grain." Or by white-flour breads topped with a sprinkling of oats, or colored brown with molasses. Often, they're just the same old refined stuff that raises risk for high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart attacks, insulin resistance, diabetes, and belly fat. At least seven major studies show that women and men who eat more whole grains (including dark bread, whole-grain breakfast cereals, popcorn, cooked oatmeal, brown rice, bran, and other grains like bulgur or kasha) have 20 to 30 percent less heart disease. In contrast, those who opt for refined grains have more heart attacks, insulin resistance, and high blood pressure.

Read the ingredient list on packaged grain products. If the product is one of those that are best for you, the first ingredients should be whole wheat or another whole grain, such as oats. The fiber content should be at least 3 grams per serving.
SALT
Three-quarters of the sodium in our diets isn't from the saltshaker. It's hidden in processed foods, such as canned vegetables and soups, condiments like soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce, fast-food burgers (and fries, of course), and cured or preserved meats like bacon, ham, and deli turkey.Some sodium occurs naturally in unprocessed edibles, including milk, beets, celery, even some drinking water. And that's a good thing: Sodium is necessary for life. It helps regulate blood pressure, maintains the body's fluid balance, transmits nerve impulses, makes muscles -- including your heart -- contract, and keeps your senses of taste, smell, and touch working properly. Y

ou need a little every day to replace what's lost to sweat, tears, and other excretions. But what happens when you eat more salt than your body needs? Your body retains fluid simply to dilute the extra sodium in your bloodstream. This raises blood volume, forcing your heart to work harder; at the same time, it makes veins and arteries constrict. The combination raises blood pressure.Your limit should be 1,500 milligrams of sodium per day, about the amount in three-fourths of a teaspoon of salt. (Table salt, by the way, is 40 percent sodium, 60 percent chloride.) Older people should eat even less, to counteract the natural rise in blood pressure that comes with age. People over 50 should strive for 1,300 mg; those over 70 should aim for 1,200 mg.Only the "Nutrition Facts" panel on a food package will give you the real sodium count. Don't believe claims on the package front such as "sodium-free" (foods can still have 5 mg per serving); "reduced sodium" (it only means 25 percent less than usual); or "light in sodium" (half the amount you'd normally find).
HIGH-FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP
Compared to traditional sweeteners, high-fructose corn syrup costs less to make, is sweeter to the taste, and mixes more easily with other ingredients. Today, we consume nearly 63 pounds of it per person per year in drinks and sweets, as well as in other products. High-fructose corn syrup is in many frozen foods. It gives bread an inviting, brown color and soft texture, so it's also in whole-wheat bread, hamburger buns, and English muffins. It is in beer, bacon, spaghetti sauce, soft drinks, and even ketchup. Research is beginning to suggest that this liquid sweetener may upset the human metabolism, raising the risk for heart disease and diabetes. Researchers say that high-fructose corn syrup's chemical structure encourages overeating. It also seems to force the liver to pump more heart-threatening triglycerides into the bloodstream. In addition, fructose may zap your body's reserves of chromium, a mineral important for healthy levels of cholesterol, insulin, and blood sugar. To spot fructose on a food label, look for the words "corn sweetener," "corn syrup," or "corn syrup solids" as well as "high-fructose corn syrup."
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Determine your body shape

This is an article for those who made up their minds to lose weight. Be careful! Sometimes we can't appreciate our figure objectively. The Ashwell's chart helps to determine the need of losing and gaining weight and the possible risk for your health.

Brown 'Take care' area
This means you will probably have a tall thin 'chilli' type of shape. This isn't desirable for good health so you need to take care. You may need to gain weight.

Green 'OK' area
This means you will probably have a healthy 'pear' shape, which is a healthy shape. With this type of body shape, any excess fat is stored under the skin around the bottom, hips and thighs, which is less harmful to health than having an apple shape.

Amber 'Take care' area
This means you will probably have a 'pear-apple' shape, which means you should take care. Make sure you don't put on any more weight, especially if your measurements fall towards the upper end of the area.

Red 'Action' area
This means you will probably have an 'apple' shape. With this body shape excess fat is stored deep below the skin in the stomach area, which will increase your risk of serious conditions such as heart disease, raised blood pressure, Type II diabetes and some types of cancer. Your health is likely to be at risk so speak to your GP about losing weight.


Source: http://www.eatwell.gov.uk/

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