Is Having a High Fat Breakfast As Bad As You Think?

Is it really such a bad thing having a high-fat breakfast because we are constantly told to steer clear of high-fat foods and is the old saying eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and tea like a pauper or supper as some people call it depending where you live.

In order to avoid getting metabolic syndrome, which encompasses quite a few diseases such as diabetes high cholesterol levels and heart disease, etc. It might be a wise move to take notice of the saying above and put it into practice.

Some recent research which has been conducted finds this is the case as regards what time you eat foods and when as to whether or not you gain weight. This has been a point that has been argued for a long time now by the industry as a whole so perhaps what is being written here may finally put that to rest hopefully.

The study which was published in the International Journal of Obesity looked at what type of foods people eat at what time and to see if there was any reasons as to why people may get metabolic syndrome because of the time and type of foods they ate.

The research found that mice fed high fat meal when they had woken up had a normal metabolic function and were far less likely to contract metabolic syndrome. Compared to mice who had a high carbohydrate breakfast and a high fat evening meal they tended to have increased weight gain and all the things that encompass a changed metabolic function.

A lot of studies in the past cite the amount of food that people eat and the types but nobody has really looked in depth whether it matters at what time you eat your food and what type of food it is you eat. The researchers found that when the animals were fed a high-fat breakfast this created a metabolic effect, whereas compared to a high carbohydrate breakfast they stayed in what is called a carbohydrate metabolism.

Which doesn’t work effectively as regards using energy within your body as fuel, so it seems that it’s quite important the breakfast that you eat and how it affects your metabolism throughout the day does matter.

Another thing that they found from the study was that eating a low calorie dense food at night seems to work just as well. This is yet another fascinating piece of research that just goes to show and prove.

That it matters what time you eat food and what type of food you eat, can make a big difference to whether or not you will lose weight. It certainly does seem to turn a lot of things on their head, which may have been said previously about what you eat at breakfast.

What does anybody else think about this research does it hold water from what you have found yourself? Have you put weight on because you eat high carbohydrate breakfasts and fatty foods in the evening?

Source http://www.sciencedaily.com

Is Fast Food Really As Addictive As Heroin and Cocaine?

Have you ever often wondered when you’re trying to change your eating habits either to become more healthier or lose some weight? That weaning yourself off some foods can be extremely difficult. And have you wondered why?

A lot of our habits tend to revolve around repetition so after a while they become automatic it’s a bit like learning to do anything the more you do it the less you have to think about it, and it becomes automatic behaviour. So it could be quite easy to believe that the reason that you’re having

trouble controlling what you’re eating is purely down to learned behaviour or is that necessarily the case?

We often don’t tend to think that there may be some other mechanism at work causing us to eat foods that don’t necessarily do us any good. There have been various studies that have cited how foods affect our moods when we eat them.

Just recently, however, a new study has been put together, which sways the argument to that way of thinking more so now than ever before.  They say that once and for all that the biological mechanisms that are present within the brain work the same as in people who are addicted to heroin and cocaine and any other highly addictive drugs.

It focuses on the fact that what a lot of people who are obese have been saying for a long time now that it is extremely hard to kick certain type of food habits purely because of the addictive nature. Of these types of particular foods. They used rats in their research and found conclusive proof that after a while of eating such foods, they clearly were some cognitive changes happening in their brains, which were causing them to eat in an addictive manner. As with any kind of addiction, whether it be drugs or any other addictive substance once you repeatedly do it your brain becomes so used to the reward that you get from it that after a while.

In order to keep that reward mechanism working you have to eat or consume more of what it is that’s causing it to happen the same thing happens in the brains of people who are alcoholics after a while your brain becomes so used to the chemical high that you get from doing it that you have to consume more in order to get the same kind of high.

The exact same changes that happen in drug addicts happen in people who eat food they have to keep eating more and more in order to get the same result so as a consequence of this. They become overweight. Probably, without even realising what mechanisms are working inside their minds.

One of the scientists who was involved in the research whose name was Kenny spent three years looking at the addictive nature of junk food and its effects on people. In the actual study they say that the actual animals used to do the research lost total control of what they were doing and just kept eating and eating.

They also tried an experiment where they gave electric shocks to them in the hope that would deter them from overheating but even that wasn’t enough to stop them. They were still highly motivated and determined to do it. The scientists used a model of eating, which would cause the animal subjects to become obese very quickly by feeding them things like high fat sausages, cheesecake and any other high calorie foods. They even tried switching them to things like salads and more healthier foods, but once they tried this, they refused to eat.

And took it even further by starving themselves for two weeks by refusing to eat healthier foods. The head research scientist Kenny said that because the reward system had been overstimulated that much, your brain more or less turns on itself and forces you to give it the pleasure that it so desires.

This probably explains why so many people have difficulties giving up food that is bad for them because of their highly addictiveness.

They found that it’s a typical type of dopamine that is stimulated in the brain when you eat or consume types of drugs it gives you such a pleasurable high the same sort that you get when you have sex or any other kind of pleasurable experience that you have to keep doing it in order to get the same high over and over again.

Speaking from a personal point of view I had an addiction at one time and I can say without doubt that no matter what I always had to get my fix no matter what it becomes the main focus of your life and you do anything to get it, I would be out in all sorts of weather, whether it be freezing cold or raining heavily.

And when I was getting my fix I could never understand why I was willing to put up with being so cold in order to feed my addiction. But I did you don’t realise how motivated you can become by what is going on in your brain, and whilst you are constantly feeding it with pleasurable feelings all the time it expects it all the time.

So it’s no great surprise to me of the findings within this article. Have you yourself noticed how hard it can be to give up certain types of food? I know I certainly can, and I do know of other people who have had the same types of problems giving up certain foods when they are trying to lose weight one in particular that springs to mind is chocolate without a doubt.

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com

Which Foods Cause the Most Flatulence?

This may be a digression from what is normally posted on this blog but saying that this can be somewhat of a bit of a embarrassing problem for some people. And when I saw this list on another blog it seemed like a good idea to write it up as well. Plus it adds a bit of light entertainment which we can all do within today’s economic doom and gloom which we hear so much about in the media.

So in traditional DJ style “food pickers” as Alan Freeman would say. Here is the top 10 gas producing foods in order of flatulence power:

In at number one is:

Pickled eggs, so just be weary when you’re buying your eggs to avoid pickled ones. If you want to avoid blowing off then hard-boiled eggs are probably a safe option or boiled eggs.

In at number two it’s:

Green Bean casserole, this particular dish is something I have never heard of before so if you are concerned about what is in it I suggest looking on Google if you think it may give you problems.

In at number three it’s:

Smoked fish, I was quite surprised when I saw this was number three even though fish is good for you better watch out as you may not want any fishy flatulence.

In at number four:

Is a stuffed boiled cabbage, people do say that vegetables do tend to make you blow off. I know when I changed my eating habits it did cause a few problems in that area but as of recent things have been much quieter.

In at number five:

And halfway there is the good old traditional curry or as one of my friends used to call them “bum burners” now myself, I am partial to a curry every now and again, as far as blowing off is concerned. I haven’t noticed how it affects me. It may be because specific ingredients cause more flatulence than others.

In at number six:

Brazilian Rodizio or Churrascaria, this is probably one of those things that I will never eat, unless I go to Brazil but according to what it says on the source article it can be steak wrapped in bacon or turkey wrapped in bacon or finally bacon wrapped in bacon.

In at number seven:

Is biscuits and gravy, it doesn’t actually say what type of biscuits or gravy but to me that sounds revolting obviously it might be some kind of delicacy somewhere but where I don’t exactly know as it doesn’t say in the source article.

In at number eight:

Is collard greens ham hocks and bacon, this sounds like another horrendous concoction of food apparently from what it says according to the source, collards are some sort of high fibre food and very green.

In at number nine:

Smoked oysters that you buy in a can or tin, and they are coated in cotton seed oil sounds like another strange food delicacy. And one to be avoided by the sounds of it.

And finally at number 10 it’s:

All types of French food, whether it be a cheesy onion French soup or frogs legs, and a multitude of other foods that French people tend to eat.

My grateful thanks for the originating blog that compiled this list it was a joy to write.

Disclaimer: Now that you have this information, I cannot accept any responsibility as to what you do with it, if you are plotting revenge on one of your friends in some sort of way and this is your way at getting back at them. Please don’t tell them where you got this information from.

I do hope you enjoyed reading this post, and perhaps you could add your own experience in the comments below as to what causes you to blow off more than you should do.

And just so you know it did take me quite a while to write this post in between laughing I really do hope you enjoy it as much as I did writing it.

Article source and references:

Originating source: http://www.diet-blog.com

Main source: http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com

Does Food Taste Differently When You’re Skinny or Fat?

You could probably say that people do have variable palates when it comes to food but does it make a difference whether you’re fat or skinny and how the food tastes well according to the Daily Mail it does.

This might be one of the reasons why people struggle to stay away from foods like take-away’s like fish and chips and any other high calorie fatty food which isn’t good for you.

In a groundbreaking new study researchers found that people who are overweight don’t tend to taste the fat in their food in comparison to those who are not overweight

This could explain why some people do eat more of these foods than they should do because they cannot actually tell when they are eating them.  And so their bodies are telling them that they haven’t eaten enough of the food so therefore they continue to eat it. What the researchers did was test 30 people and put a variety of fatty acids in a plain milk type drink to see if they could tell it was in it.

Next the scientists tried it on 50 participants to see which of them could tell if the drink had fat in it or not, and it was found that the people who were overweight were far less likely to taste it in comparison to those who weren’t. One of the reasons the researchers came up for this was that most modern foods which we eat are high in fat, so we become desensitised to them.

And our bodies don’t recognize when we have had enough clearly there must be some kind of mechanism in overweight people that causes this to happen. Nonetheless, yet another fascinating piece of overeating research have you yourself noticed that you have become desensitised to eating fat? And are you overweight?

And if anybody who is not overweight can you tell when you have had enough fat? And finally does it really make a difference to the taste of your food, whether you’re overweight or not I would be interested to get your feedback because to me this seems a groundbreaking piece of research as far as over eating is concerned.

Source

http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/

Could a DNA Test Be the Best Indicator for Your Diet?

The researchers found from their small study, which revolved around 101 women that when they tested their DNA , which was an indicator of which diet was best for them. They found that the ones that matched up with their DNA were far more likely to lose weight in comparison to those who weren’t matched up properly.

This new technology is called nutrigenomics which, in a nutshell, means it’s the analysis of how our food reacts with our genes. The actual study itself revolved around how well people react with their food and genes together. The women were put on three different diets for a period of a year and were split into three diet groups diets low carbohydrate, low carbohydrate and high protein, and low fat and lower.

They were also split into three genenome groups, which were called low carbohydrate diet responsive, low-fat diet responsive and balanced diet responsive. The overall outcome of the study found that those that matched theirDNA and ate the right foods for their gene type losttwo to three times more weight in comparison to their counterparts who ate the wrong foods for their gene type.

The researchers said that more needs to be done to prove this technology before it would be possible to use it in a commercial setting. Some British experts commented on the study saying it was a fairly small study and the genes weren’t mentioned, which were tested, but nonetheless, they said that it was very intriguing to say the least. Even so, though if this does prove to be successful it may help a lot of people of whom may be trying to lose weight and can’t understand why they are having problems. So in summary it could be simply how your food is interacting with your genes.

Source and references

http://news.bbc.co.uk

Can a Long-Standing British Tradition Make You Happy

A lot of the time we get bombarded with images and information telling us do not eat certain foods because if we do we will gain weight and become unhealthy this largely applies to things like processed food and the majority of take-away foods.

In this country, we have a long-standing tradition of eating fish and chips although it is quite expensive these days but that is not what this post is about. Today the Daily Mail wrote a news story about how eating chips can alter your mood.

It is believed that the carbohydrates contained with within them may be responsible or they reminde usof happier times when we were younger, that certainly could be the case when I was younger when I was in the Scouts, and it had finished, we used to go to the fish and chip shop.

A Dr Mike Green who is interested in the association of food and its psychology asked some 60 people to watch a short film which showed the Hiroshima bomb being dropped one group was given a magazine to take their mind off things.

While the other group had some chips to eat, and also they were given a questionnaire to fill in before they watched the film and afterwards to see how it affected their mood. After they had read the data that came back the group that ate the chips said they had a better mood compared to the other group who read a magazine.

Dr Green had this to say “In fact, calmness was restored after 20 minutes. “It may be down to the biological effects of the nutritional components on brain chemistry or simple a pleasurable sensation, triggered, by the way, chips taste”.

So next time you’re feeling down or depressed don’t make an appointment to see your doctor instead go to the chip shop, there is nothing wrong with eating these types of foods as long as you do it in moderation if you can manage that then you will be fine. Doesn’t that picture just make you want to eat some?

Source: http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk

Which Are the Best and Worst British Bangers?

One of the great British traditions that we tend to have in this country is the good old British banger or (sausage) as it otherwise known as. However, over the years our sausages have been getting sloppy I can remember watching a programme a long time ago which had the chef Jamie Oliver presenting it, and they were talking about sausages and at the same time.

Where putting one through a mincer what they said was that sausages now contain more fat than they used to years ago so exactly, which are the best sausages to eat if you are inclined that way. In a report by the Daily Mail, they say that a good percentage of supermarket sausages contained up to a third of fat.

And some sausages contain only 32 percent of meat the other parts of the sausages are made up of something called wheat rusk, which is used just to bulk the sausage up this particular ingredient is used to keep costs down. Some researchers decided to look at how healthy our sausages are that we buy from supermarkets.

And then did a side-by-side comparison of each of the sausages by examining the labels. They came to the conclusion that people might not be reading them and fully understand what exactly is in the sausages.

Unfortunately, the study did not actually name brands but the Daily Mail did their own research and found that two particular brands had low meat content. These these were found to be sausages by Asda’s smart brand, which had 32 percent of pork.

And Sainsbury’s own brand of chipolatas which contained 32 percent of the same. The fat content varied greatly between the different types of sausages in the healthy bracket of sausages they had 2.1 grams of fat per hundred and further up the scale Marks & Spencer’s own brand of pork sausages at 30 percent fat, nonetheless.

So the quality of sausages that you buy these days can vary greatly depending upon the brand and quite a lot of those in the majority don’t tend to read the labels as regards the amount of calories and saturated fat which the products can contain.

I have actually tried vegetarian sausages one particular type was Linda McCartney’s sausages and Quorn sausages and found them okay to eat what are your experiences with sausages do you think they don’t taste as good as they used to years ago is the quality poorer now than it used to be I be interested to get your feedback.

Source and references:

http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/

Is Taking Fish Oil or Eating Fish the Key to a Longer Life?

Omega three oils which are found in fish are one of the more beneficial things you can eat in your diet the essential fatty oils in fish are very beneficial to our health. However, a study which revolved around fish oil and heart patients and their recovery has uncovered more substantial findings as regarding Omega three fish oil.

The researchers have said that they believe that now taking fish oil can prolong your life. As well as the other health benefits which we all know about.

What they have said is the fish oil expends the lifespan of ourselves, behaving like an antioxidant, antioxidants prematurely age our cells. This is the first study that has been conducted that proves that these particular oils prevent premature ageing.

The information came to light when heart patients were told to consume more fish, so they didn’t have heart attacks in the future. Based at the University ofCalifornia , San Francisco scientists observed the effect of Omega three oils and their effects on 608 outpatients whom had heart disease.

They found that the Omega three oils decreased the damage toDNA , which would normally occur, in something called telomeres these have tiny end caps on them, which become inflamed overtime. As you get older these tend to get shorter and shorter, which makes us prone to disease over time.

The scientists seem to think that this is one of the reasons why we get more diseases as we get older and is what actually shortens our overall lifespan. When they began the study, they actually measured the length of the telomeres after five years they had blood samples taken again and the scientists found that people consuming hardly any Omega three oils the shortening was still going on.

Compared to those who were taking larger amounts of Omega three oils their shortening was greatly reduced, a leading researcher has backed up his claims also saying that rodents given a mega three fatty acid enriched diet do, in fact, live longer. People in Britain still fail to eat two portions of food such as fish which contain the all important Omega three oils. So at least now I have an excuse to eat fish and chips twice a week.

Source and references:

http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/

The Cost of Christmas In Calories

Yes it’s that time of year again the festive period of cramming our faces full of food is nearly here, of course there is nothing wrong with the festive period whatsoever. We need to have a good time at some time of the year, relax and eat some food

But for those of us who may be watching what we are eating, or maybe you’re just interested in knowing how many calories there are in our festive munch. Here are a few items so you have some idea of what you may be eating.

Perhaps on your wish list you may need to get a treadmill or exercise bike. So here we go with a rundown of Christmas food and how many calories they contain. Christmas is coming the goose is getting fat and are we ourselves going to get fatter?

So to kick things off we have a tin of KP Jumbo salted peanuts. Nuts are quite good for you but it depends on the type that you eat let’s have a look and see what they contain.

KP Jumbo Salted Peanuts tin of 550 grams

They contain

Calories Per 100g

590 calories

Saturates

8.9 grams

These are quite a heavy hitter as you can see this is based on a tin of 550 grams so if you eat the whole tin within a day then you’re looking at a rough average of 2950 calories in that one tin of peanuts which is quite a lot.

Black Magic Classic Favourites

This is a box of chocolates 188 grams

They contain

Calories per 100g

459 calories

Saturates

10.4 grams

If you were to eat the whole box you will be looking in the region of 600 calories total quite a whammy in calories

Sainsbury’s Deep Mince Pies x6

Per pie this is

258 calories

Saturates

4.7 grams

the whole box in total is 1548

Fully Iced Rich Fruit Xmas Cake 907g

Per slice is

273 calories

Saturates

1.7 grams

If you ate the whole cake it would be 2457 calories roughly

Christmas Pudding 454g

One serving provides

343 calories

Saturates

5.0 grams

if you ate the whole thing it would be 1208 roughly

Blue Stilton Wedge 454g (Cheese)

Per 30 gram serving

Calories 123

Saturates

6.9 grams

If you ate the whole piece of it would be 1640 calories

This list is by no means exhaustive but just a small selection of food you can buy at Christmas, so be good if your watching your waistline at Chrimbo. And if not well expect a bit of weight gain it’s all about moderation and being sensible and it is only once a year, so a bit here and there won’t hurt anyone.

Have a great Christmas and enjoy yourself see you in the new year.

What Does a Western Diet Do to Your Fat Genes?

It’s not too far off from the festive season, and as we all know one of the things that we tend to do at Christmas, is indulge in eating probably more food than we should do.

There is nothing wrong with that of course as it’s only once a year, but what exactly does eating like this do to our bodies? particularly our fat genes. Well according to a new recent report, foods that contain a lot of fat and sugar have the ability to turn on the fat storage genes on within our body.

So what tends to happen is you have a bit of a double effect, not only is it is harder for your body to deal with these type of foods.

They turn your body into a turbocharged fat storage system, mentioned in the actual report scientists discuss something called kappa opioid receptor. Which is something that tends to be switched, on when you eat foods high in fat and sugar

One of the researchers involved with the particular paper, said that when you over activate this particular receptor it tends to accelerate the onset of obesity. How they found that this actual mechanism worked was, by doing initial tests on mice, they had one group of mice where they turned the gene off. To see what the initial effect would be.

And they had a comparison group where the gene had not been turned off. They fed both groups of mice with a high sucrose diet. The group who had the gene not turned off started to gain weight, compared with the other group where it had been knocked off they stayed quite lean. And another aspect of this was their nutrition storage wasn’t as effective.

Conclusion

More research needs to be done in this particular field, but in years gone past when food would have been very scarce this sort of mechanism would probably have saved your life.

Now it’s probably working against you. Have you noticed that if you eat more sugary and fatty foods you fight like crazy to lose weight? well perhaps now we have an answer to this as to why it can be so difficult for people to lose weight if they are biologically turning their genes on to keep storing fat

Source http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091130121433.htm