A major study found that low-fat diets are correlated to a shorter lifespan of 25 percent of the time. However, it is important to note that correlation does not necessarily point to a causal effect between both variables.

The Study According to the Lancet study, which analyzed 135,000 adults, people who follow low-fat diets had much lower lifespans than their higher-fat diet counterparts.

The researchers say that this is why they are so much more likely to eat foods that are too much of a staple for rice, pasta and bread- rather than foods with vital nutrients.

The participants in the study with the highest intake of carbohydrates- especially refined sugars from processed foods and fizzy drinks- showed 28 percent higher risk of a shortened lifespan.

Comments On the Findings

According to Dr Andrew Mente, a researcher at McMaster University: “Our data suggests that low fat diets may cause increased cardiovascular disease.

“Loosening the restriction on total fat and saturated fat and imposing limits on carbohydrates when high to reduce intake to moderate levels would be optimal.”

Dr Mahshid Dehghan, the lead researcher, said: “A high carbohydrate diet – greater than 60 per cent of energy – is associated with a higher risk of mortality.”

“Higher intake of fats, including saturated fats, associated with lower risk of mortality.”

Dr Aseem Malhotra, a consultant cardiologist, said that it is time for “a complete U-turn” in the UK’s diet approach, and “demonization of fat.”

“The sooner we do that the sooner we reverse the epidemic in obesity and diabetes and the sooner the improving health.”

Jeremy Pearson, from the “British Heart Foundation” said: “This study suggests that we should pay more attention to the amount of carbohydrate in our diet than we have in the past and we need to revise the guidelines.”

“I do not think people should do as much as I like.”

Some nutritionists give some broad advice on saving money while on a vegan, paleo, or celiac diet. This includes buying in bulk, exploring the frozen foods section, ignoring “Gluten-Free” or “Low-Calorie” labels and much more.

The Downside To Dieting

Although deciding to fix your diet can be a great way to take control of your own health, one major downside is that doing so can be quite time consuming and also quite costly. When you’re not focusing on your diet, you can just buy the cheapest option without taking too much time to think about it.

The nature of healthier foods can also be less instant than the unhealthier options- cooking versus microwaving hot pockets etc, growing your own produce versus buying packaged foods etc.

Let’s focus on how to reduce the costs of being on a vegan, Paleolithic or celiac diet.

Save Your Money

A few nutritionists recommend a few tips on how to cut costs.  First is Jules Aron, a holistic health coach and writer of “Vegan Cheese: Simple, Delicious Plant-Based Recipes.”

One no-brainer is buying in bulk.  “Many foods are available in bulk for less money. They keep for a long time in air-tight containers, and can be used to create healthy, inexpensive meals,” she says.

Another is to cook in batches. “Plan, prep and cook larger portions ahead  to save both time and money. Even if you live alone, cooking in batches, helps you prep your food for the whole week reusing some of the same ingredients,” she says.

Kelly Haws, a Vanderbilt University marketing professor, also recommends exploring the frozen foods aisle. “Generally, options such as frozenfruits and vegetables come at a better value. Of course, buying in season and in bulk also helps, so more people might need to think about freezing in season fruits and vegetables themselves in order to avoid wasting and allowing their dollar to stretch farther.”

She also explains that the common misconception that “more expensive foods are more nutritious” is simply not true.

Another recommendation is not to fall for “Gluten-Free” or “Low Calorie” labels. A n Austrian study in 2015 found that gluten-free labeled products were around “200 percent more expensive” than regular products. Unnecessary price-hikes can also be seen in many “low calorie” labeled foods.

Another recommendation is to create your own “favorites” list” to follow, rather than trying to chase variety. Haw said: “Finding a ew ;staple meals’ that meet one’s dietary restrictions, are nutritious, are cost-effective, and one enjoys eating can form the basis of one’s diet.”

Hollistic Health Coach “Lyn-Genet Recitas,” recommends a 3-day detox plan to help cure our gut from inflammation, a step commonly missed when people go on regular diets.

Gut Inflammation

People commonly decide to go on a healthy diet and switch to regular and clean meals rich in vegetables, fruits and lean meat. However, Lyn-Genet Recitas, a holistic nutritionist, says that there is one missing factor with that plan.

“There’s a reason our healthy intentions and diets are not always yielding the results they should. That reason is called inflammation.”

“My own practice treating thousands of clients has shown that even healthy foods can cause inflammation, which can pose serious problems, not only for weight loss but for short- and long-term health.”

Recitas points out that it is pretty difficult to point out which foods you’re eating that are causing inflammation. The way she recommends you do so is by paying close attention to your body’s reactions to your meals. You should look out for symptoms such as bloatedness, constipation, 3pm energy dips, irritability, depression, hormonal issues and body aches.

Recitas says that any of these reactions is your body saying: “Please don’t feed this to me!”

Her 3-day detox plan will help your body against gut inflammation.

The Detox Plan

Recitas points out that this plan will be difficult to follow.

Day one:

For breakfast, she recommends 1 cup of flax granola, along with either half a cup of blueberries or half a pear, and “Silk” coconut milk.

For lunch, have some carrot ginger soup sprinkled with sunflower seeds, 2 cups of steamed or sautéed broccoli, and baby romaine topped with olive oil (preferable extra virgin) and a squeeze of lemon.

For dinner, some sautéed kale, 3-4 carrots, zuchhini, shiitakes, onions, and broccoli, topped with spicy coco sauce. Along with that, you can have a salad comprised of grated carrots, raw grated beets and some pumpkin seeds.

Between any of those meals, have an apple.

Day two:

You can have the same breakfast as day one, and a similar lunch, but with a small twist. With your baby romane, add ¼ of an avocado. For your snack, have 1oz of raw almonds rather than an apple.

For dinner, have any leftovers of sautéed kale or veggies, 1 cup of basmati rice topped with pumpkin seeds, and another carrot/beet salad like in day one.

Day three:

The breakfast is the same, but without the silk coconut milk.

For lunch, have the baby romaine salad with ¼ of an avocado as well as a cream of broccoli soup.

For dinner, have a chicken spiced with orange zest and Italian herbs, along with baby romaine side salad.

Along with that, have a plate of oven-roasted  zucchini, carrots, onions, broccoli, garlic, a blend of Italian herbs, orange oil and black pepper.

Your snack for your final day is 12-15 almonds.

You can share your thoughts on this detox plan on MindBodyGreen.com

A new major study has found that “metabolically healthy obese people” are still largely correlated to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. This comes following the recent awareness movement that “healthy comes in many sizes.”

The New Study

A new major study at Birmingham University has found that “metabolically healthy obese people” are still not all that healthy, as they remain at risk of cardiovascular disease. This follows the recent awareness movement that “healthy comes in many sizes.”

Researchers at the university’s “Institute of Applied Health Research” analyzed the health records of 3.5m Britons over the last 2 decades, comparing their weight, metabolic status and their risk of cardiovascular disease.

“Metabolically healthy obese” people are those who are categorized as obese, but do not suffer from health conditions like diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, etc.

Three metabolic abnormalities were taken into consideration during the study — diabetes, hypertension [high blood pressure] and hyperlipidaemia [high cholesterol]. A metabolically healthy person was classified as having no metabolic abnormalities,” the study said.

The study found that people in the MHO category, in comparison to those of “normal” weight, were linked to a 49 percent increased risk of cardiovascular disease, 7 percent increased risk of having a stroke, and 96 percent increased risk of heart failure.

Comments On the Study

Dr Rishi Caleyachetty, the lead researcher of the study and epidemiologist at Birmingham University, commented on the findings.

“Obese individuals with no metabolic risk factors are still at a higher risk of coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease and heart failure than normal weight metabolically healthy individuals,” Caleyachetty said.

“So-called ‘metabolically healthy’ obesity is clearly not a harmless condition and the term should no longer be used in order to prevent misleading individuals that obesity can be healthy.”

It is still important to note that although this was corroborated, it is still possible to find people of normal weight that are relatively healthier than “metabolically healthy obese” people in other aspects- such as anemia, nutrient deficiency, fitness etc.

It’s no secret that sticking to diets can be physically difficult, and definitely more difficult for some than others. But how do our own personalities and emotional dynamics play into it? CSIRO scientists weigh in.

Personal Triggers And Your Diet

Dieting can be a pretty difficult task, both for trying to gain or lose weight. And we all know that it can be much harder for some of us in comparison to others. Other than our different physical makeup, does our psyche and our intricate personalities have anything to do with it? The answer to that is yes. Everything is inextricably linked when it comes to your health.

Several “CSIRO Research Group” weigh in on the role your personality plays in how easy it is to control your diet. Sinead Golley, the lead scientist, said that “people wanting to diet successfully must understand their personality and the “triggers” that derail their efforts.”

The group analyzed 90,000 Australian participants’ eating habits, and characterized five of the most common diet personality traits in the country that tend to wean people off of their diets.

The Five Personality Traits

An important thing to note is that this particular study happened to focus on “weight loss.” However, with a grain of salt, you try to relate to those traits, if your focus is weight gain, weight maintenance or even just health maintenance.

The most common “personality” in the group was called “The Thinker.” This “personality” covers around 37 percent of the Australian population, and is particularly common among women. This trait describes the tendency to over-analyze your progress, have unrealistic expectations, which may ultimately lead to stress, mood swings and feelings of being a failure.

The second most common personality is “The Craver,” which constitutes about 25 percent of the population. This describes the inability to resist temptations and the predisposition to overeat.

“One in five Cravers have tried to lose weight more than 25 times and they say that chocolate and confectionery are the biggest problem foods to resist,” said Dr Golley. “On the other hand … the ‘Thinkers’ … tend to have high expectations and tend to be perfectionists, giving up when things get challenging.”

Third on the list is “The Socializer,” which constitutes about 17 percent of the population. This describes the tendency to heavily link alcohol and food in your social life, and so finding it hard to limit or control your food choices because of it.

Fourth is “The Foodie,” just 16 percent of the population. Those with a high tendency for this trait are usually the most likely to have a healthy weight.

Finally, there is “The Freewheeler,” which accounts for only 4 percent of the population. This describes the tendency to be impulsive and spontaneous with food, without an inclination to plan out their meals. This trait creates the poorest diet qualities.

A couple of important notes: This particular study focused on diets aimed at losing weight, but can still be applied to those trying to gain weight. Another important note is that, although many of gender differences were found throughout the study, the gender difference could be linked to a larger societal pressure on women to focus on their image than men, and not necessarily an indicator of innate personality traits in the female gender.

“(This suggests) lifestyle and social connections influence a person’s eating patterns at different stages of life — while millennials and Gen X were more likely to be Cravers, Thinkers and Freewheelers,” Golley said.

Your brain has a “mind of its own” when you go on a diet to lose weight, and nutritionists say that it’s important to keep note of it in order to avoid relapsing.

Your Brain’s Reaction To Your Diet

Although many nutritionists must have given you several “simple secrets”” to losing weight, such as avoiding certain foods, looking for certain foods, or “controlling your calories going in and calories going out,” many of us have noticed at some point that it is much harder than it sounds. So are we actually missing something? Why is it so hard to stick to a diet?

“The Hungry Brain” author, Stephan Guyenet, contends that this is because of your brain, and something called your “set point weight.” “Body weight is regulated by the brain. If you don’t know that, you’re going to be surprised when your brain and body start fighting back against weight loss,” he said.

Sandra Aamodt, who wrote “Why Diets Make Us Fat,” agrees that this is the route of the problem. “Whenever your weight changes too much, your brain will intervene to push it back to what it thinks is the correct weight for you. And you might not prefer the same weight your brain prefers. Many of us don’t,” she said.

“Your hypothalamus will activate physiologic and behavioral responses to maintain your body temperature. For instance, if you’re cold, you may shiver or put on a sweater,” he explained.  He said it’s the same with regards to your body weight.

But That’s Not All

Guyenet also points out that your brain also regulates your body fat, not just your body weight.  “Your brain measures the level of body fat using leptin, a hormone that’s secreted in your bloodstream in proportion to the amount of fat you carry,” says Guyenet. Higher amounts of blood leptin means you have more body fat, and therefore serves to decrease your hunger.

Your brain has a set point in terms of the amount of body fat it’s happiest with. Your brain will defend this amount just like it defends your body temperature,” Guyenet said.

So How Do We Fix This?

Many nutritionists have found that a good way to reduce what is called your brain’s “famine reaction,” is a diet with plenty of “breaks.” One study found that a “two-week on, two-week off,” diet not only helped people lose more weight than those who diet straight through, but also made them gain less weight back once they’ve stopped their diet.

Aamodt said that the risk of continuous dieting is that: “you become more at risk of emotional eating, eating out of boredom, and are more vulnerable to environmental cues that tell you to eat more than your body actually wants.” Intermittent diet might trick your brain out of this.

Nuala Nyrne, a health professor at Tasmania University, said: “There is a growing body of research which has shown diets which use one to seven day periods of complete or partial fasting alternated with ad libitum food intake, are not more effective for weight loss than conventional continuous dieting.”

“It seems that the ‘breaks’ from dieting we have used in this study may be critical to the success of this approach,” she said.

We all know that the types and amounts of food we eat affect our energy levels, our mood and much more. But what are some of the specific links between your diet and how productive you are throughout your day?

“You Are What You Eat”

We’ve definitely heard the term “you are what you eat” before, but are you aware how true it actually is? In this day and age our productivity is pretty important to us, especially those of us who are particularly career-oriented.

So here are some pointers about the specific ways your diet affects your ability to do what you want to do throughout your day.

Energy Levels

First is a pretty straightforward one. Energy. Your body uses energy everyday, and it even uses energy to digest what you eat. So if you undersupply it, you might feel a bit weaker and it’ll affect your productivity. Your body only has so much energy to go around, so if you give it too little, it’ll only distribute it to the absolutely necessary parts. And you might find yourself feeling particularly lazy.

It’s not that simple, though, if you eat too much, you can also feel tired, because it’s a lot for your body to digest. On top of that, if you eat the wrong things, you can feel tired too. So how do you pick and choose?

Pick & Choose Your Food

One tip is to make sure you’re not eating too many carbs. High-carb diets have been associated with increased levels of “tryptophan,” also known as the “nap” hormone. High carbohydrate meals trigger insulin release, causing proteins to move into your muscle and fat cells- all except tryptophan. Tryptophan gets transported to the brain, which makes you a little drowsy. An important note, though, is that tryptophan is also the precursor to serotonin- the hormone that makes you happy. So a good balance of how many carbs you eat can get you a mood boost without making you too sleepy!

Another tip is to make sure you have enough blood sugar. We all know how much low blood sugar can create a drop in our mood and liveliness, but what you may not know is that it has also been associated with “self-control” in recent research. One study even said: “…glucose provides energy for nearly all of the brain’s activities, and it is plausible that self-control, as a particularly expensive process in terms of complex brain activity, is especially dependent on glucose.”

Another pointer is to remember how much food and sleep are linked. As we just discussed, eating certain foods or not having enough of certain foods can cause you to feel tired and sleepy. And if you nap at the wrong times, it can seriously mess with your body’s biological clock. And when you don’t sleep well or properly, it can seriously affect your ability to focus during the day.

A recent study has found that lower income people are correlated with a higher risk of developing heart diseases, as they have less ability to afford healthier food choices.

The Study

According to a recent study in Atlanta, people with lower annual incomes are linked to a higher risk of heart disease development, as they have a limited access to healthier food options.

The study analyzed people who lived in what they called “food deserts.”  “Food deserts are defined as areas that have below average income together with poor access to healthy foods, ie. lack of grocery stores (within 1 mile in urban and 10 miles in rural communities),” Dr. Arshed Quyyumi, the lead author and cariolodist from “Emory University School”, said to Reuters Health.

The study examined over 1,400 adults aged around 50 and living in the metropolitan region of Atlanta. Around 40 percent of them were men, and 37 were African Americans. The researchers surveyed them for economic and personal information and also performed tests in order to detect any possible inflammation, elevation of blood pressure or blood sugar, and arterial stiffness.

Around 13 percent lived in food deserts, and also had higher numbers of people who smoked, and were more commonly found to be obese or overweight, and have hardened arteries and high blood pressure.

When analyzing the results, they found that people who lived in low-income neighborhoods in food deserts had the same risks of heart disease as their counterparts in low-income neighborhoods with good access to food.

Comments From the Researchers

“We found that area income, and even more importantly, personal income was associated with higher cardiovascular risk, and that access to food was not that important a risk,” said Quyyumi.

He also added that scientists had previously known that various neighborhood factors played an important social role in determining the outcomes of diseases.

“People not having access to healthy food choices is a possible cause for poor health. However, our study shows the greater impact of lower socio-economic status as a stronger risk factor.”

Keith Ferdinand, another researcher in the study, also pointed out the racial disadvantages at play here.  “African Americans have higher rates of hypertension, stroke, heart attack deaths and heart failure than other groups in the U.S.,” Ferdinand said. “Those racial disparities are caused by multiple factors.”

“Food desserts may contribute to higher heart disease and strokes, with many black neighbourhoods reportedly having more fast food restaurants, fewer supermarkets with healthy options, and there being less availability of safe places for outdoor physical activity.” he said.

What’s Wrong With Strict Diets?

There have been quite a few research studies that have shown physical and psychological reasons why strict diets don’t work. We usually tend to blame this on lack of will power or self-control, but it turns out it really isn’t necessarily that.

According to Stephan Guyenet, who authored “The Hungry Brain,” your brain gets used to your body being at a certain weight, which he calls your “set point weight.” Remember, the biological world is culture-free. It doesn’t necessarily understand that weight loss is better on the long run or that it’s better aesthetically.

So when you suddenly don’t eat as much as you used to, your body will go into what is called “famine reaction” to “start fighting back against weight loss.” But that’s not because your body actually needs the nutrition, but because that was the set weight your body was used to. This could include a lot of what is called “emotional eating.”

Your brain also has a set point for your body’s fat content, which your body controles with a hormone called “leptin.” According to Dr. Steven Hendrick, “when the leptin levels decrease, the brain senses that more energy needs to be brought in. Feelings of hunger increase to initiate food intake in order to replenish the energy the body senses it needs.”

Intuitive Eating

One scientifically backed way to break your brain’s idea of what your set weight point should be is by taking frequent breaks in your diet. That way you can reprogram your brain into not freaking out when you go on a diet. Not only does it help people stick through their diets, it also helps them gain less weight back once they stop.

One other way some experts recommend is “intuitive eating.” This means listening closely to your body and nourishing yourself accordingly. But doesn’t that mean you’ll just be eating unhealthy things you usually eat everyday? Don’t we gain weight because we usually listen to our bodies, and we should stop? No. You have to listen to your body’s fullness cues, experts say.

“Studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of intuitive eating,” Dr. Hendrick said. “I would agree with respecting your fullness—eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re not. Eating to refuel versus eating when there’s food around is, I think, a very important distinction we should all consider.”

By listening to your body more, you would also be able to be more honest with yourself, when you realize that even though you ate that entire McDonalds meal, you don’t quite feel as full as you would have on a nutritious meal that is equally large. You can begin to design what you eat based on your body’s true signals.

This does not mean you won’t still need to control how much you eat. But when you do diet, you’d be able to listen to your body’s cues a lot more to know what to eat when you find yourself wanting to binge eat.

Choosing to avoid gluten can deprive your body of necessary nutrients and lead to adding more sugar and fat to your diet

The gluten-free movement has become increasingly popular in recent years, with individuals who are not allergic to gluten choosing to cut it out of their diets to lose weight.

Peter Green, director of the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University, said: “There’s very little evidence to support the benefit of a gluten-free diet in anything except celiac disease.”

“We actually think that a gluten-free diet is not a very healthy diet, and that’s for a whole bunch of reasons. On a gluten-free diet, individuals have to avoid wheat, rye, and barley, and anything that’s derived from them.”

Dietitian Anar Allidina also criticized gluten-free diets, saying: “It is not a smart idea to follow a gluten-free diet to lose weight since gluten-free packaged foods have more sugar and fat to make up for the gluten that is being removed.”

“The problem comes when people rely on gluten-free products. If people rely on packaged gluten-free foods this can actually end up with weight gain.”

Dietitians state the gluten-free diet is the latest food to be stigmatized in the media

Dietitian Andy De Santis stated: “We are always looking for a villain or a scapegoat instead of focusing on the bigger picture.”

“The problem is, once you’ve heard something overwhelmingly negative about a food or food component, it can be very difficult to reverse your perception.”

“At the end of the day, if going gluten-free will make you happy, do it. Just make sure you do it in a proper, balanced way,” De Santis cautioned.