Category Archives: Diet And Food

I kept repeating myself to the man behind the counter. The scent of fresh bagels and nova salmon wafted past me, the search "are bagels vegan?" open on my phone's browser in my right hand. We were both frustrated. "Tofu cream cheese. Do you have tofu cream cheese?" On the fifth ask, he seemed to finally recognize what I was getting at, turned away, and proceeded to throw a warm multigrain in the conveyor belt toaster. I shuffled toward the cashier, and repeated myself for the sixth time. "We don't have tofu cream cheese," she said, puzzled. "Well then I can't take this because I'm vegan!" I blurted out as I handed her my debit card, paid for a black iced coffee, turned around, and got my stomach-rumbling self on the train.

Truth is, I'm not really vegan. But a few weeks ago I heard about What the Health, a documentary that says there's only one way to eat healthy, and that's by avoiding all animal productsincluding meat, fish, poultry, and dairy. According to the film's codirector (and star), Kip Andersen, these are the items that are making us fat and giving us cancer and diabetes. Though this documentary has created some controversy (more on that later), the question came to mind: Was I capable of being vegan? Would I feel any different if I ditched the animal products from my diet? While it can be tricky to get B12, calcium, iron, and zinc from a vegan diet, I was willing to put in the extra effort (and throw a multivitamin into the mix) to give it a whirl. (Psst...avoid thesecommon nutrition mistakes vegansmake.)

Despite this avoidance of all animal products sounding like my own version of hell, I was up for the challenge. For one week, I'd eat a strictly vegan diet. No cheese. No meat. Ditch the eggs. Black coffee. No catches. Here are the biggest lessons I learned:

1. There are a lot of things that vegans can't eat. I knew that coming into it, but man. MAN. Breakfast was one of the hardest and most frustrating, hands-down. Eliminating eggs from my diet meant eliminating one of my regular morning staples: a scramble loaded with sauted vegetables. I've been brought up to think that eggs are such an amazing source of protein, rich in good-for-your-eyes lutein and zeaxanthin and choline, good for the brain and nerves. Luckily, I had time to make oatmeal or my go-to smoothie. It had me thinking, though: If I didn't have the time, my options were much more limited for grab-and-go. A piece of fruit wouldn't cut it, and I wouldn't want bagels (hello, carbs) on the regular.

On my last and final day, a girlfriend invited me out for brunch and I suggested we do coffee instead because I wasn't sure how to navigate an all-vegan brunch unless I was in a safe vegan restaurant, as a lot of the classics (egg dishes, pancakes, French toast) were off-limits. Lunches and dinners were a whole other story. I found that my midday meals were easy to tweak to vegan: A salad of some sort, topped with quinoa, tomato, cucumber, black beans, andinstead of chickena meat alternative. Come dinner time, I had some more space to breathe and get creative. On day five, I made the most unbelievable "meat sauce" using crumbled tofu and Beyond Meat complete burgers, which could've fooled a meat eater and would've made my Italian grandmother proud, pairing it with Banza chickpea pasta (also, yum).

2. Holy WOW there are a lot of vegan-friendly meat alternatives. Without a doubt, Beyond Meat's products are my best discovery from my week of vegan eating. (They're the best thing to everhappen to vegans.)With 20 grams of pea protein and 22 grams of fat, they're filling and actually look like a thick homemade patty. I've always been a fan of tofu, which meant adding it to salads and stuff was enjoyable for me. The issue with tofu, at least for me, is that no matter how long it's marinated or how it's seasoned, it's hard to get that flavor all the way through a whole slice from a standard block. On day three I tried sriracha tofu from Trader Joe's, and it had good flavorbut a bland center. Also, props for Trader Joe's soy chorizo. It tastes almost identical to the seitan that completes my favorite quinoa taco salad at by CHLOE. My fix for the occasional bland tofu situation? Crumble it. It easily pairs with anything (I've been adding tofu to egg scrambles for years) without altering the taste, as long as you really pat it dry before preparing. (Try this spicy tofu quinoa bowl.)

3. People feel VERY strong about vegan and vegetarian eating. I have just over 5,000 followers on Instagram. As a certified trainer, run coach, and Spin instructor, I'm constantly interacting with total strangers about my habits, answering health and fitness questions. This week, showing off different parts of my vegan journey in my Instagram story prompted, without a doubt, the most DMs I've ever received. Like me, people everywhere are obsessed with soy chorizo and Beyond Meat burgers. Every single food item I posted prompted some sort of response. While some DM-ers sent me recipes to complement what was already on my menu (like faux-Caesar dressing for all those lunch salads), others there totally random eats to add to my routine (cauliflower "fried rice") and even vegan app suggestionswhich we'll get to shortly.

4. Eating out is very, very difficult. I live in a city where almost everyone has some sort of dietary restriction. I learned quickly that while a lot of restaurants can tell you what vegetarian options they have, vegan is a whole other ballgame. Some spots couldn't be certain of the dishes that were in the clear, and others verified that menu items were safe when I had my doubts (most everything is cooked in butter these days). On day five I took a Jell-O shot with my boyfriend before dinner (because that's totally normal date behavior) at New York City favorite the Meatball Shop, only to ask immediately upon licking the cosmo-flavored goodness from my lips: "Wait, was that vegan?" It wasn't. This would be something that would become a lot more second nature with time, I'm sure.

5. Grocery shopping is hella difficult. Especially if you're trying to do it at a normal grocery store. Whole Foods, where the vegans often roam, may be user-friendly, packed with items labeled "V" for "vegan" that my local C-Town store certainly doesn't carry. While I generally eat a diet rich in fruits in vegetables, I didn't know exactly what to look for on something like a bottle of ketchup. Lucky for me (and likely you, too) there's an app for that. Is it Vegan? allows users to scan UPC barcodes to see if they're vegan-friendly. As if I weren't already obsessed with my iPhone 7+, this app glued it to my hand throughout the grocery aisles. This is something, again, that I'm sure would get a lot easier with time.

So Will I Stick to Veganism?

As you saw, I slipped up a few times. Looking back on it, I'd say I did my week at about 95 percent success rate of sticking to a vegan diet. I was hoping that I'd feel like I had extra energy or like my stomach was super flat at the end of my stretch. The truth is that although I did noticeably feel high-energy the morning of day three, I didn't notice any big changes or elevations in my mood. There were days I felt hungrier than usual soon after meals, and that became a bit frustrating. I'm sure that would change with time when I learned what to add to my meals to make them more satisfying and in the "OK" zone.

Truth be told, I don't think I could stick to a total vegan diet. I wouldn't really want to. I missed fish, and I definitely missed eggs (steak, ground turkey, chickennot as much). I did finally watch What the Health on a riveting Friday night in, and was a tad shaken. Even though there are loads of articles combating the legitimacy of the film, going vegan for a week made me want to incorporate more vegan-friendly meals regardless. In our society where nearly three-quarters of Americans don't manage to eat enough fruit and 87 percent fail to eat enough vegetables, I'm more focused on adding produce to my diet instead of taking away other healthy options like yogurt and eggs. It's about finding a balance that works for you, and for me, that balance involves a little bit of everythingwhether or not it has a "V" on the label.

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I Followed a Vegan Diet for a Week and Discovered a New Appreciation for These Foods - Shape Magazine

To the editor: Im a serious cyclist. Im glad Mar Vista reversed its decision creating separate bike lanes. (Re L.A. reverses course on unpopular lane reduction, July 28)

The new design was one of the most dangerous Ive ever seen: Drivers and passengers parking their cars ignore oncoming cyclists as they walk to the sidewalk.

And cars pulling out of driveways or past stop signs protrude fully into the bike lane, leaving no room for cyclists to maneuver.

If cyclists go onto the main road, there is no space for cars to pass.

Well all be safer when again allowed to ride with traffic. But its incumbent on drivers to give cyclists the life-saving space they need.

Ari Rubin, Venice

::

To the editor: A victory for the people. Let us hope this is the beginning of a rollback of L.A.'s ill-conceived attempt to turn our streets into bike paths.

Yes, I understand that we all would like less-polluting vehicles on the road. Yes, bikes provide healthy exercise for those who can handle them. But trying to replace automobiles with bikes is stupid.

Bikes are inherently dangerous, not appropriate for commuting for more than short trips, physically too demanding for a good portion of our aging population. Worse, they do not mix at all well with vehicular traffic.

L.A. is not China of the 1950s. We need more light rail, not bike lanes.

Erica Hahn, Monrovia

::

To the editor: I read with interest your story on the road diet in Vista Del Mar. I've been paying close attention because of restriping on Venice Boulevard near me in Venice. This has caused problems, with cars slowing down, gridlock and more traffic from the beach.

Although officials do hold informative outreach sessions, nothing can really prepare you for the reality when these lanes are reduced.

Mindy Taylor-Ross, Venice

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook

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LA's traffic 'diet' fad definitely isn't healthy for anyone - Los Angeles Times

Redskins third-year linebacker Preston Smith changed up some of his eating habits this offseason to keep his body prepared for an important season ahead.

Entering his third season with the Washington Redskins, linebacker Preston Smith is hoping to be a more consistent contributor, particularly in the pass rush.

A second-round pick out of Mississippi State in the 2015 NFL Draft, Smith came on strong during the end of his rookie season, recording five sacks in Washingtons final three games including three against the Philadelphia Eagles in an NFC East-clinching victory. His 8.5 sacks total on the year led all rookies.

While Smith flashed the same potential during his sophomore campaign, his sack total dipped to 4.5.

Two of those sacks along with his lone interception on the season came in a Week 10 victory over the Minnesota Vikings.

In an effort to get his numbers closer or even better to those he set as a rookie, Smith altered his diet this offseason.

Smith decided to cut out candy and other sweets and even bread while opting to consume more lean meats and vegetables.

I was kind of winging a lot of stuff and now its like this offseason is just a lot of just baked and grilled no fried foods, cut out all the sweets, no bread, Smith told reporters. Just keep your diet like that and stay straight to that diet.

Smith believes theres a direct correlation between healthy eating and on-field performance. He said he finished last season weighing 270 pounds.

Hes listed on the roster now at 265 pounds but believes hes closer to 262 pounds at training camp.

You want to put the right stuff in your body so you get a good result, Smith said. I didnt feel like, you know, I was doing bad or I didnt feel like sluggish or nothing but in this league, you always want to be a step better each year. You always want to improve on something. So I feel like if my diet can help me improve on my play, then it can improve on my output on the field and Im willing to sacrifice you know anything for my place.

Smith enters the 2017 on an outside linebackers corps that is as deep as it has been in years. With Ryan Kerrigan, Ryan Anderson, Junior Galette, Trent Murphy and Lynden Trail on the 90-man roster along with Smith, Washingtons pass rush will create problems for opposing passers this season.

But for Smith exclusively, Redskins head coach Jay Gruden wants to see steady improvement over the coming weeks before the regular season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sept. 10.

He looks like hes worked hard in the offseason which is a big plus, Gruden said. Again, Preston and Junior, and Ryan and Trent obviously although hes going to miss four games with the addition of Ryan and Lynden Trails done some good things So we have got good stable of outside linebackers there that we hope can all benefit from the competition but also from experience that they have in the system.

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With Altered Diet, Preston Smith Seeking More Consistency - Redskins.com

Have you ever scarfed down a buttery slab of toast without feeling guilty? Or knocked back a brewski for the health benefits? This may sound like an alternate diet universe, but new science is revealing that some of our most-feared foods and drinks actually arent so bad for us and can even do a body good.

The truth is, there are very few truly bad foods out there, says Karen Ansel, a NY-based, registered dietitian. You can eat the vast majority in moderation and still have a really healthy diet.

From stronger bones to better weight control, heres a closer look at the surprising virtues of our biggest dietary vices.

Those creamy yellow centers have long been feared as a cause of clogged arteries. Theyre among natures richest sources of dietary cholesterol, packed with about 200 milligrams apiece. Newer research, however, has found that the cholesterol we eat doesnt have much effect on the cholesterol that ends up clinging to blood-vessel walls.

We now know that its actually saturated fat not cholesterol in foods that raises levels of blood cholesterol, says Ansel, nutritionist and author of Healing Superfoods for Anti-Aging.

An egg yolk contains about 1.6 grams of saturated fat a mere 10th of what most people can safely consume in a day. Not to mention, yolks are loaded with nutrients such as vitamins D and B-12.

That likely explains why a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association of roughly 40,000 men and 80,000 women showed that even people who ate a whole egg every single day had no increased risk of heart disease. So you can skip the whites-only omelet, unless you really love the taste.

Theres no question that overdoing the booze can have harmful effects on health, whether from accidental injuries or liver disease. But emerging evidence suggests that an occasional pint of beer may do a body good. In an analysis of 100 commercial brews, scientists at the University of California, Davis discovered that beer (especially hoppy varieties, like IPAs) is surprisingly high in silicon a key contributor to bone strength. In a separate 6-year-long study, published in 2016, researchers at Penn State found that light to moderate beer drinkers retained higher levels of heart-healthy HDL cholesterol over time than teetotalers did.

To reap the benefits (and avoid a harmful buzz), Ansel advises women to cap their intake at one 12-ounce bottle per day, while men should stop after a second round. Either way, bottoms up.

This decadent condiment became public enemy No. 1 way back in the 1960s, when a large preliminary study seemed to uncover a link between overall fat intake and poor health. What the public didnt realize, however, was that shady bigwigs in the sugar industry were secretly paying researchers to cast fat in an unflattering light downplaying the negative effects of sugar on the heart, says NY nutritionist Keri Glassman, founder of Nutritious Life.

To be clear, butter will never be a health food, per se. But experts now say its not a bad way to dress up your steamed veggies. A 2016 study at Tufts University officially declared butter a neutral food neither nutritious nor evil with no discernible link to stroke, heart disease or diabetes. That makes it way better for you (and better-tasting) than man-made margarine, which traditionally has more harmful trans fats.

As with butter, weight-conscious eaters have long avoided full-fat versions of milk, yogurt and cheese in hopes of avoiding extra pounds. After all, the whole-milk versions are way higher in calories than their skim-based cousins. But heres tasty news for cheddar fiends: Adults who regularly nosh on whole-milk dairy are actually less likely to battle obesity than folks who skip the creamy stuff, according to a recent study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. This builds on a 2013 meta-study in the European Journal of Nutrition that searched for weight-gain effects of dairy fat and came up empty.

Some scientists speculate that bioactive substances in milk fat keep human metabolism humming, despite the higher calorie count. And compared with skinny versions of dairy, the fatty stuff unquestionably is more satiating, Glassman says. In short, you feel fuller on less and for longer. For reassurance, read nutrition labels to ensure you enjoy just a single serving (and not the whole pint) of your favorite Ben & Jerrys.

Wake up and smell the health perks: Once denounced as a drink that could dehydrate the body, strain the heart and stunt growth, coffee is enjoying well-deserved redemption among wellness pros. Those old myths simply arent supported by modern science, says Bob Arnot, M.D., author of The Coffee Lovers Diet (William Morrow, out now).

In fact, people in one 2012 study who guzzled up to six cups a day were less likely than coffee skippers to die of coronary artery disease. That same year, the New England Journal of Medicine followed up with a study of nearly 905,000 adults and found that regular coffee drinkers were less likely to die due to any cause whatsoever.

One possible explanation is that java delivers a mother lode of inflammation-soothing antioxidants, especially the disease-fighting plant compounds known as polyphenols, according to a 2004 study published in the American Journal for Clinical Nutrition.

The most antioxidant-rich beans are lighter roasts grown in high-altitude equatorial regions such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Colombia and Brazil, Arnot says. For optimal extraction of coffees healthy compounds and better flavor he recommends the pour-over brew method using water thats just shy of boiling.

Conventional wisdom once held that too much salt in the diet triggers hypertension and ratchets up the risk of strokes and heart attacks by ballooning blood vessels with retained water. Luckily for potato chip lovers, sodium really doesnt work that way.

Were starting to understand that we probably had it wrong about salt 40 years ago, when federal intake guidelines first took shape, says cardiovascular researcher James DiNicolantonio, Pharm.D., author of The Salt Fix (Harmony Books). Since then researchers have learned that sodiums action is buffered by other nutrients, such as the potassium found in bananas, watermelon, sweet potatoes and black beans. No wonder a large Canadian Journal of Cardiology study concluded in 2014 that the dangers of excess sodium are exaggerated.

In general, adults can safely have up to 6,000 milligrams of sodium a day with no ill effects, DiNicolantonio says more than the 3,000 to 4,500 mg most Americans now consume. But if you have a medical condition that necessitates slashing salt, such as kidney disease, the most efficient way to cut back is to simply cook and salt your own meals, as overseasoned restaurant and packaged fare accounts for a whopping 71 percent of sodium in the American diet.

Tough to believe theres anything good to say about this stuff. In 2015, the World Health Organization declared red meat a probable carcinogen, generating a fearful wave of vegetarians in its wake.

What the headlines didnt say is that the report had major limitations. In the fine print, its authors admitted that they had limited evidence and couldnt rule out bias or chance to explain their conclusions. In addition, they lumped together all red meat, putting lean cuts such as pork tenderloin in the same category as additive-filled beef jerky and baloney.

Red meat can be part of a healthy diet.

Well, the science is finally catching up and offering tasty reassurance for anyone craving a burger right now. In 2016, scientists at Purdue University crunched the numbers from two dozen clinical studies and found that eating up to three 3-ounce servings a week of minimally processed red meat does not affect short-term cardiovascular disease risk factors such as blood pressure and cholesterol.

Packed with protein and niacin, red meat can be part of a healthy diet, says Lisa Young, Ph.D., a registered dietitian and nutrition instructor at New York University. Iron is another big perk: To get the same amount of iron in one 6-ounce burger of 85-percent lean beef, youd have to choke down more than 4 cups of kale.

For maximum benefit, opt for red meat that doesnt contain extra ingredients. Grass-fed varieties tend to be more nutritious, research shows. And dont leave your steak on the grill too long compounds in blackened meat may be harmful to health (and dont taste good anyway).

Originally posted here:
These 'unhealthy' foods don't deserve their bad rep - New York Post

Health and Fitness

By Helen TurnbullPublished on 31 July 2017

There's nothing worse than counting down the hours until you're safely tucked up in your bed only for you to be tossing and turning, unable to drift off, when you finally get there. As if the inevitable tiredness and resultant bad mood aren't enough to contend with, a new study has discovered a bad night's sleep could lead to weight gain.

The reason you're gaining weight could be down to a lack of beauty sleep and not the daily post-lunch, desk-snack binges we're all guilty of. According to new research, people who regular get less than nine hours of solid sleep at night can (so that's basically all of us) can gain up to 3cm on their waists.

Dr Laura Hardie, Reader in Molecular Epidemiology at the University of Leeds, headed up the research which questioned 1,615 adults about their lifestyle habits, including how long they slept each night as well as what their diet entails. Researchers also assessed the participants' overall metabolic health - blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar and thyroid function in order to inform the connection between sleep and weight.

The results revealed that those who slept for roughly six hours per night had waist sizes approximately 3cm wider than those fortunate enough to kip for nine solid hours. More worryingly was the fact that accidental night owls were found to be 'heavier' than both sets of participants. But researchers are keen to point out that no direct link between lack of sleep and bad diet was discovered. However, it does support previous evidence that less sleep can lead to metabolic conditions, such as diabetes.

If you need a valid reason to give up that habit of scrolling through Instagram for hours before bedtime, this is it.

What do you think of these findings? Let us know

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Read the original here:
A Bad Night's Sleep Could Be The Reason You're Gaining Weight - soFeminine.co.uk

I heard someone recently refer to sugar as a drug. Is that true?

The technical definition of a drug is a non-food substance that alters physiology. Sugar (table sugar, sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup, and a plethora of other names) could be considered a food, but I think it is also important to consider that it is a highly refined and purified substance that does not occur in nature.

This purified substance could in many ways be considered to be a drug, or at least drug-like. It has an impact in the same area of the midbrain as do drugs of addiction. Its highly rewarding properties, beyond that of taste, signal our brains to consume more, which is what many of us do. When consumed, sugar also causes an increase in insulin levels and triggers many other physiologic signaling pathways.

In the body, sugar is broken down into two different simple sugars. Overconsumption of refined sugar has been linked to obesity, diabetes, heart disease, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and inflammatory diseases. Unfortunately, it is added to an estimated 75 percent to 90 percent of all processed foods, and is also widely available and offered to us in an unrelenting fashion in almost all retail stores. You will notice that it is strategically placed in the checkout aisle!

There is a raging argument about how much sugar we can safely consume, but almost everyone agrees that it is now widely overconsumed by most people.

So yes, sugar is drug-like, and it is best to limit consumption, and be mindful of its omnipresence in our modern diet.

See the article here:
Sugar Addiction? - Pacific Northwest Inlander

Robert Bennett of Resource Development Associates, a consultancy for public and non-profits social justice advocates, was walking his dog in the crossing at Harrison Street and 23rd on Friday, June 2 when he was fatally struck by a motorist.

And now, finally, construction is underway to improve this crossing.

The crosswalk was a known danger spot. Not only was there no curb-cut on the eastern side of the crosswalk, but it dead-ends into a tree. Visibility is poor, motoring speeds are typically high, and its not accessible to people with disabilities. For some time, advocates had been pushing the City of Oakland to fix the situation.

From a statement from Walk Oakland Bike Oakland:

We were founded in 2007 advocating for safety improvements one block away. Now, ten years later, no improvements have been made to Harrison Street north of Grand Avenue, a far too dangerous street as currently designed as a freeway connection between downtown Oakland and 580. It needs to be fixed right away.

The situation is made more acute by the proximity of the Downtown Oakland Senior Center. The pedestrian crosswalk over Harrison Street at 23rd Street is missing any curb ramp on the east side along with a complete connection to the sidewalk, and needs an upgraded/modern curb ramp on the west side, wrote Robert Prinz, Education Director, Bike East Bay, in his own letter to Oakland DOT staff. He added that it needs to at the very least be made accessible via the curb improvements, and ideally safer via crosswalk pavement lights and preferably a road diet on Harrison Street.

Improving this crossing is nowNicole Ferraras joband her first project since leaving her position as executive director at Walk San Francisco to join Oaklands newly formed Department of Transportation as its Vision Zero coordinator. Streetsblog met up with her at 23rd and Harrison late last week. This will start with a painted median, blubouts and posts, and hopefully planters, she said of efforts to calm this stretch of Harrison and improve the crossing. It will also be Oaklands first trapezoidal crossing (see diagram below) which will allow pedestrians to get across safely without forcing the city to remove the tree. In addition, all u-turns or left turns will be eliminated. She also hopes planters may be used instead of plastic posts.

This is what can happen when you actually have a Department of Transportation, she said of Oaklands newly formed department. She also praised the DOTs new head, Ryan Russo. You have someone who wants to get things done and done in a responsible and responsive way for the community.

More will be coming. And Oakland was already in the middle of a series of safety improvements for the streets surrounding Lake Merritt. Anyone whose passed by Lakeside, Harrison and Grand has seen the construction. We just adopted the citys pedestrian plan, with priority projects and lots of work planned for East Oakland, repaving 98th, Fruitvale Avenue, and others, she explained. The push will be on to get things done quickly. In fact, Ferrara came to the site with a can of paint and a small roller to try out some samples on asphalt.

All of this, of course, is too little, too late for Bennett, who is survived by a wife and five children. But lets hope due to the tireless work of advocates, and more improvements to come under Oaklands new DOT regime, future tragedies will be prevented and known danger spots will be fixed before, instead of after, someone is hurt or killed.

Read the original:
New Oakland DOT Tackles Pedestrian Safety Fix - Streetsblog San Francisco (blog)

Tom Brady's diet might not be glamorous, but it's slowly winning over some New England Patriots teammates.

For example, take Rob Gronkowski. After watching the 39-year-old Brady play through the entire 2016 season without missing a game to injury -- Gronk missed eight games -- Gronkowski decided that he wanted to emulate Brady's lifestyle, so he could be as healthy as possible.

"Just looking at Tom, seeing what he does every day, what he eats, talking to him, personally one-on-one, just learning about the body with him, just seeing how flexible he is, how pliable he is, how loose he is all the time, every day and ready to go," Gronkowski said in arecent interview with the Boston Herald. "I just felt like it was the time in my career where I needed to devote myself at all levels,"

So what does that mean?

It means that Gronk has spent the past three months working with Brady's body coach (Alex Guerrero) and eating the same type of food that Brady eats.

Since Gronk's career started in 2010, Brady has missed zero games due to injury while Gronkowski has missed 24 out of 112 regular-season games. For Gronk, the hope is that by implementing Brady's way of life into his life, there will be less injuries down the road.

"I just felt like I had to add on to what I was doing. Find a way that my body will respond so I can perform every day. Be in prevention mode for injuries happening," Gronkowski said. "I definitely feel like a brand new guy just being able to do exercises here [at the TB12 center]."

Since most of Brady's meals are plant-based, it means that Gronk has had to mostly give up on meat, which seems to be working out for him so far, thanks in large part to Brady's cooking skills.

"Tom's my chef. I told him I'm only eating them if you have them ready for me," Gronkowski said. "And he said, 'Deal.'"

Brady might not be much of a cook, but we do know that he can make a mean beluga lentil taco, so I'm guessing that's what he eats with Gronk every night.

Although it seems that Gronk has been willing to mostly give up meat, there's one thing he hasn't necessarily been willing to give up: Alcohol.

Unlike Brady, who isn't really known to ever drink, Gronk still has the occasional adult beverage. Under Guerrero's watch, Gronk is allowed to drink alcohol, there's just one catch: He has to clean out his body afterward.

For every one drink of alcohol, Gronk is expected to drink three glasses of water to offset the damage he's doing to his body. The three glasses of water rule also applies if Gronk were to drink coffee.

So far, Guerrero has been impressed with his new client. "Rob has been really committed," Guerrero told the Herald. "He's done a great job. The foundation has been set. Certainly, we're not done."

If you want to eat like Brady, all you need to do is shell out $78 a week and joinhis at-home food delivery service. If $78 is too steep of a price for you, then you can buy something cheaper: Bradyalso sells a $50 bag of nuts.

I'm not sure if $50 is a good price for nuts, but it must be, because those things always seem to sell out just seconds after they get more stock.

Finally, if you're looking to embrace the entire Brady diet and you have $200 to spare, youcan buy his cookbook, which isn't actually a cookbook, because it's a "Nutrition manual," according to Brady. If you follow Brady's diet plan, there's no guarantee that you'll also marry a supermodel and win five Super Bowls, but it seems like it could be worth a try.

The rest is here:
Rob Gronkowski is trying Tom Brady's diet plan, but skipping one key part - CBSSports.com

The Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, yet only people with higher incomes or more education, or a combination of the two, experience this benefit, found a study published Monday in the International Journal of Epidemiology.

The Mediterranean diet emphasizes eating plant-based foods, including vegetables, nuts, fruits and whole grains, in addition to fish and poultry. The diet also recommends that you limit red meat, replace butter with olive oil, and exercise. Red wine in moderation is optional on the diet, which past scientific research proves to be heart-healthy.

Marialaura Bonaccio, lead author of the new study and a researcher at IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed, an Italian Clinical Research Institute, said in an email that this same problem in which people from different income levels get different results from the same diet may also be true for other diets.

The reason? Diets focus on quantity, rather than on quality of the food, she said.

Diet data

Bonaccio and her co-authors randomly recruited over 18,000 people living in the Molise region of southern Italy between March 2005 and April 2010. The Pfizer Foundation, which helped fund enrollment costs, did not influence the analysis or interpretation of results, Bonaccio noted.

She and her team calculated total physical activity, body mass index (BMI), smoking status and health history, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer. The data available for each participant also included education, household income and marital status.

Using the Mediterranean Diet Score, Bonaccio and her colleagues assessed participants food intake, examining the variety of fruits and vegetables, meat and fish consumed. They scored participants cooking methods, detailing whether theyre using healthy methods such as boiling and stewing or less healthy methods such as frying, roasting and grilling. Vegetables were categorized as organic or not, bread as whole-grain or not.

Over an average followup period of about four years, participants experienced a total of 5,256 cardiovascular disease events, including incidents of heart failure, diagnoses of coronary heart disease (a buildup of plaque in the arteries) and strokes.

Analyzing the data, the researchers found that a Mediterranean diet effectively reduced cardiovascular disease risk, but only among a select group of participants: those with higher income or more education.

We found heart advantages were limited to high socioeconomic status groups, even if groups showed the same adherence to the Mediterranean diet, Bonaccio wrote. No benefits occurred for participants in the low income and low education group.

Differences in food quality

Surprised by this result, the researchers dug into the data more deeply and unearthed a possible reason for the difference: The same Mediterranean diet adherence score still included slight differences in food consumption.

For example, as compared to less advantaged counterparts, people with high socioeconomic status tended to consume fish more frequently, Bonaccio wrote. She added that, beyond diet adherence, participants in the most advantaged category reported a higher quality diet, which included higher consumption of organic products and whole grain foods.

Lets give that two persons follow the same diet, that is equal amounts of vegetables, fruits, fish, olive oil etc. every day so that they report the same adherence score to Mediterranean diet, Bonaccio said. It might be that, beyond quantity, differences in quality may exist. For example, in olive oil.

She said its unlikely that a bottle of extra virgin olive oil with a price tag of 2 to 3 euros has the same nutritional properties as one costing 10 euros. Given that it is reasonable to assume higher-income participants are more likely to buy the 10-euro bottle compared with lower-income participants, our hypothesis is that differences in the price may yield differences in healthy components and future health outcomes, Bonaccio said.

How the food is cooked or prepared might also contribute to differences in results, according to Bonaccio, though she said the differences in cooking procedures a kind of marker of the numerous differences still persisting across socioeconomic groups probably did not substantially account for the disparities in cardiovascular risk.

Similar results in US?

Mercedes Sotos-Prieto, an assistant professor and visiting scientist at Harvard Chan School of Public Health, said evidence, including from her own research, shows that a Mediterranean diet is one of the best choices to improve health.

Sotos-Prieto, who was not involved in the new research, wrote in an email that the new study, which relied on self-reported data, does not prove that socioeconomic status caused the health benefits seen; it shows only a relationship between income and/or education and health outcomes.

Previous studies have already showed a socioeconomic gradient regarding adherence to diet quality, Sotos-Prieto wrote. Because of this, a similar difference in health results depending on socioeconomic status may also be occurring in the United States among those who follow a Mediterranean diet, she said.

Dr. Barbara Berkeley, who specializes in weight management and practices medicine in Beachwood, Ohio, said one caveat in interpreting studies like this is that they are based on diet recall. It is generally very difficult for people to keep accurate food records and there is a tendency for participants to record their diets in the best possible light.

Berkeley, who was not involved in this research, agreed with the hypothesis of the authors.

A good diet is undoubtedly more than just a shopping list, she said. Quality, freshness, variety and purity of production may truly differentiate diets even when they appear to be the same.

Berkeley noted that food deserts in lower-income areas means both quality and variety of fresh foods may be limited, while organic produce may be unavailable or too expensive.

A healthy diet is likely not the sum of its parts but the quality of its elements, Berkeley said.

Maria Korre, a research fellow at Harvard Chan School of Public Health, noted that among the most important perceived barriers to healthy eating are the time and cost of shopping. Korre, who did not contribute to the new study, added that we need to work toward identifying ways to overcome these barriers.

As a result of the worldwide epidemics of obesity and diabetes, we witness a strong and renewed interest in the traditional Mediterranean diet, Korre said. Yet the appeal of this diet extends well beyond proven health benefits.

With its wide range of colorful foods, the diet provides delicious meals and because of its emphasis on limited consumption, rather than abstention from red meat and sweets plus its inclusion of moderate drinking of alcoholic beverages, the Mediterranean diet represents a healthy yet indulgent and appealing lifestyle that can be sustained over long periods of time, Korre said.

According to the study authors, people of high socioeconomic status may actually be selecting foods that are higher in both polyphenols (plant-based micronutrients) and antioxidants (a nutrient found in fruits and vegetables that helps repair damage in our bodies). Such daily choices could result in health advantages unseen by those who make different selections.

This hypothesis could be only tested by a direct measure of such natural compounds in biological samples, e.g., blood levels or urinary polyphenol excretion, Bonaccio said. She said her groups future research and analysis will test this theory.

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The Mediterranean diet doesn't benefit everyone, study says - wtvr.com

Hoping you won't order a Diet Coke.withGod/Shutterstock

There are plenty of things passengers can do to drive flight attendants crazy, although ordering a certain diet soda might be an inconvenience you've never thought about.

Diet Coke's carbonation makes it hard to pour without overflowing the cup with bubbles. As a result, it takes flight attendants significantly longer to pour Diet Coke than other beverages, including other sodas.

"Of all the drinks we serve, Diet Coke takes the most time to pour the fizz takes forever to settle at 35,000 feet. In the time it takes me to pour a single cup of Diet Coke, I can serve three passengers a different beverage," Heather Poole, a flight attendant, wrote on her blog.

The reason why Diet Coke takes so long to pour can partly be attributed to its ingredients, which make it more carbonated than non-diet sodas, according to the HuffPost.

There is, however, a way around the inconvenience of pouring Diet Coke, according to another flight attendant blog, These Gold Wings.

While your flight attendant might not be thrilled about taking extra time to pour your Diet Coke, that won't stop them from serving the particularly fizzy beverage.

"For the record, I drink Diet Coke both as a flight attendant and as a passenger," Poole wrote.

See more here:
Ordering a Diet Coke is the worst thing you can do to your flight attendant here's why - INSIDER