So: You Want To Lose Weight?

Calories

Why does it seem that losing weight is difficult?  The answer may be based on the fact that losing weight usually involves behavioral changes that can be unpleasant.  The simple fact is that calories taken in need to be balanced with calories burned, and losing weight means more calories burned than taken in.  There are some tried and true ways to do it, though.

Metabolism

It is still possible to feel like you've eaten your fill when you eat larger amounts of fruit and vegetables.  They are filling without the excessive calories.  The other calorie trick is to avoid fat, which has the highest caloric content (9 calories/gram), compared to carbohydrates and protein (4 calories/gram).  The best way to burn more calories is to increase your metabolism with regular increased activity.  Burning an extra 3,500 calories a week is the equivalent to the loss of a pound of body fat.  Finding the combination of dietary changes and increased activity levels is an individual thing, but is possible for everyone.


Robert G. Tupac, DDS, FACP, Inc., Diplomate, American Board of Prosthodontics (661) 325-1275 | www.drtupac.com 5060 California Ave., #170, Bakersfield, CA 93309

A Study Referenced by The Endocrine Society on Dieting

A study referenced by

The Endocrine Society reported a comparison of three groups of mice followed throughout their life span. The mice stayed on their respective diets and measures of health, including body weight, body fat and blood glucose (sugar) levels, were obtained.

High fat group: mice that stayed on the high fat diet became obese.

Low fat group: mice on a low fat diet longer than those on the high fat diet. Yo-yo group: this group were on a high fat diet for four weeks, followed by a low fat diet for four weeks, back and forth, for their lifetime. This diet resulted in large fluctuations in the health measures, decreasing during the low fat cycle and increasing to a diabetic state during the high fat diet.  Surprisingly, the mice on the yo-yo diet had a similar life span to that of the low fat group.

Edward List, principle investigator, stated: "From our study, it appears that it is better to continue to encourage weight loss regardless of the number of attempts and failures."

Source: a-health-blog.com

Robert G. Tupac, DDS, FACP, Inc., Diplomate, American Board of Prosthodontics (661) 325-1275 | www.drtupac.com 5060 California Ave., #170, Bakersfield, CA 93309

Power Smoothies

How to get your fruits and vegetables all in one day!

The recommended dietary requirements of at least five servings of fruits and vegetables every day is something we don't always fulfill.

Our daughter came home one time and described a smoothie she had that she said was delicious.  It combined almond milk, berries and spinach!

It turns out that combining fruits such as berries and apples, nuts, vegetables such as spinach, cucumber, celery and carrots, and wheat germ and non-fat yogurt, with honey can create a tasty and nutritious meal and help meet your dietary requirements! Who said nutrition had to be difficult?

Robert G. Tupac, DDS, FACP, Inc., 
Diplomate, American Board of Prosthodontics
(661) 325-1275 | www.drtupac.com
5060 California Ave., #170, Bakersfield, CA 93309 (map)

How to Lower the Risk of Repeat Heart Attacks

The diet's role in heart disease

There was a terrific article by Jennifer Corbett Dooren in the Wall Street Journal about this subject. She correctly states that patients with heart disease frequently assume that medication is enough to reduce the risk of a repeat heart attack of stroke, but details a large new  five-year study of 32,000 people in 40 countries that shows the preventive power of a healthy diet.

How a healthy diet leads to a healthy heart

That study found that people with the healthiest diets--fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and fish-- were 35% less likely to die from a repeat heart attack or stroke.  They were also 28% less likely to develop congestive heart failure, 14% less likely to have an additional heart attack and 19% less likely to have a stroke. Since heart disease is the top killer of Americans, according to the American Heart Association, the article details of the diet recommendations of the researchers.

The complete article is available at online.wsj.com/ health and wellness, Dec. 3, 2012.


Robert G. Tupac, DDS, FACP, Inc.,
Diplomate, American Board of Prosthodontics
(661) 325-1275 | www.drtupac.com
5060 California Ave., #170, Bakersfield, CA 93309