The Mediterranean diet has gained popularity as a heart-healthy diet that is both enjoyable and satisfying. While many diets are restrictive, making certain food groups off-limits, following a Mediterranean eating plan allows for individuals to eat a variety of foods and doesnt encourage calorie restriction.

Often associated with olive oil and salmon, this is a diet that actually embraces many different kinds of foods while providing a shortlist of foods to avoid eating on a daily basis. Youve probably heard your friends and family, or maybe even your doctor talking about the Mediterranean diet. Whether your goal for changing the way you eat it lowering blood pressure, increasing energy, or losing weight, here is what you need to know about adopting a Mediterranean diet.

Our deep dive into the Mediterranean diet begins with a geography lesson. The name of the diet refers to its origin in the Mediterranean Basin, or the land that surrounds the Mediterranean Sea. Historically, this is an area of the world that has been associated with certain patterns of eating, which includes fish, bread, wine, and oil, and very little meat, according to the Iranian Journal of Public Health.While different eating patterns emerged, this basic diet of bread, wine, and oil spread throughout Europe thanks to its adoption by Christian monks.

Over time, this diet has evolved to include fruits and vegetables as major components. Even though it has ancient roots, it became the subject of research in the second half of the 20th century when Ancel Keys conducted a famous study of health habits and cardiovascular health on all seven continents.

Related: Michael Psilakis Busts Myths About Mediterranean Cooking in Live to Eat

Perhaps the most well-known health benefit of following a Mediterranean diet is reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. In 2015, researchers conducted a large study involving 7447 individuals who were considered to be at high risk for cardiovascular disease, according to Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases.Those who adopted a Mediterranean diet, some with the addition of extra nuts and others with the addition of extra virgin olive oil, all showed to experience fewer cardiovascular events over the course of the study when compared to their cohorts.

Additionally, the participants who adopted this diet were observed to have lower blood pressure, reduced insulin sensitivity, reduced inflammation, and reduced oxidative stress. All around, consistent use of this diet, without the restriction of calorie intake, has health benefits for the whole body.

The primary benefit of the Mediterranean diet is heart health. However, it does contain far less saturated fat and sugars than most Americans typical diet, and emphasizes fruits, vegetables and legumes over meat and dairy. If your diet is already fairly low in fat and sugar, you may not see as many weight loss benefits as someone who is making a more drastic change. The Mediterranean diet is a fantastic foundational eating plan, though, so if you use it for a starting point, then keep an eye on your overall calorie intake, it can be an excellent way to lose weight.

While some diets encourage restriction of calories or prohibit certain foods, this isnt the case with the Mediterranean Diet. Instead, it is a fairly well-rounded nutritional plan that is safe because of how it approaches healthy eating. Lowered calorie intake or extreme restriction can put individuals at risk for disorder eating patterns. The great thing about the Mediterranean diet is that is generally focused on what you can eat, not what you cant eat. It also doesnt require you to eat very little or count calories.

Additionally, this diet includes foods known to be associated with heart health. While a diet like keto encourages increased intake of fat, this is a diet the embraces all food groups in moderation but limits saturated fats, meats, and processed grains.

The only risk worth noting is associated with an increased intake of wine. Even though red wine is embraced by proponents of the Mediterranean diet, it generally isnt recommended that people increase their alcohol intake in hopes of improving their health. While many people might be able to safely navigate the addition of a daily glass of wine, others may not be able to practice moderation, as pointed out by Time.

If youre interested in giving the Mediterranean diet a try, here are the foods you want to stock up on before getting started:

Produce is central to any healthy diet, so it is no surprise that this eating plan encourages plenty of fruits and vegetables.

Carb lovers, we have good news for you. Grains like rice, pasta, oatmeal, and whole-grain bread are part of daily eating.

Olive oil is an iconic part of this diet because it is an unsaturated fat. It is encouraged in place of butter or other saturated fats. Nuts are another source of healthy fat encouraged on the Mediterranean diet.

This diet is limited in meat but encourages seafood twice a week as a source of lean protein and omega-3 fatty acids.

Followers of the Mediterranean diet are encouraged to drink a glass of red wine a day, but should proceed with caution.

As a diet that emphasizes treating plants as a major source of nutrients and calories, it may not be surprising the legumes are a big part of following the Mediterranean way of eating. Lentils, cannellini beans, and garbanzo beans are all great additions to your shopping cart.

Related: 15 Ways to Get Your Five Servings of Vegetables a Day

Heres a partial list of staple foods on the Mediterranean diet to get you started.

When it comes to the recommended foods to eat while on this diet, a good white bean or minestrone soup checks nearly all the boxes. Kale White Bean Soup includes lean protein from legumes and plenty of vegetables. Sub out the coconut oil for olive oil and youve adapted it into a Mediterranean diet approved meal.

A quick and easy recipe like Crunchy Hummus-Crusted Fish with Roasted Broccoli and Olives is just about as good as it gets when on the hunt for heart-healthy meals that you can make in half an hour. Salads can be jazzed up with fresh vegetables, an olive oil dressing, and beans. Eating fish at least twice a week doesnt have to be boring, bookmark plenty of inventive recipes, like these Cashew-Crusted Salmon Skewers.

The great thing about snacks on this diet is that they can be fairly simple. Keep roasted nuts on hand and youll always have an option you feel great about. Another simple option is whole grain bread with a little nut butter or mashed avocados.

Snack time is also a good time to increase your veggie intake, keep hummus on hand an cut up some fresh vegetables on the weekends to snack on all week long.

Breakfast on the Mediterranean diet is likely going to feel like a step away from traditional, American breakfasts. Eggs are encouraged on this eating plan, but only a few times a week. Other options include oatmeal topped with nuts, nut butters, or fruit. Greek yogurt also makes for a great breakfast that provides lean protein and can be sweetened with fresh fruit and a drizzle of honey.

Generally, the Mediterranean diet is a low-sugar diet. Processed carbs and sweets arent encouraged as part of everyday eating. That being said, there is definitely room for nutritious desserts. Many of them include fruit, like these goat cheese stuffed figs, drizzled with honey and topped with walnuts. Delish!

While certainly not as indulgent, sprinkling apples with cinnamon is a good way to satisfy a craving for after-dinner sweets without changing your commitment to tenants of the Mediterranean diet.

Regular consumption of red meat is discouraged on the Mediterranean diet, but not prohibited. Generally, it is recommended that red meat be reserved as the occasional treat. Additionally, processed carbohydrates and saturated fats are not a part of daily eating when following the Mediterranean diet.

Find out about Noom, the weight-loss app taking social media by storm.

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What is the Mediterranean Diet? Plan, Food List, and Using It for Weight Loss - Parade

It was a year of diet donts.

Last week, Google released a list of the most searched-for diets in 2019 andwhile some have solid scientific backing, many were pseudoscientific BS.

Among the decent was intermittent fasting, which topped the list as the most-Googled diet. Research suggests that the regimen, which only allows you to eat during certain times of the day, can promote a healthy lifestyle and lead to weight loss. People also searched for Noom, an app that teaches healthy eating habits, and the J.Lo diet, which, sure who wouldnt want to know how to get a body like J.Lo? (To shape up for Hustlers, Lopez tackled a 10-day sugar-and-carbs fast.)

But other searches were real head-scratchers. Here, Manhattan-based registered dietitian Martha McKittrick breaks down some of the weirder queries.

The Dr. Sebi diet

The late Dr. Sebi (real name Alfredo Bowman) wasnt actually a doctor at all, but a self-proclaimed healer. His diet is essentially a mashup of veganism, supplements and the alkaline diet, which encourages eating food that makes your bodys pH less acidic, for health reasons.

Dr. Sebi, who died in 2016, claimed that his diet the No.2 most-searched-for on Google last year could cure diseases such as AIDS and leukemia. Surprise: It couldnt. He was successfully sued in 1993 and ordered to stop making these assertions. Still, he garnered a spate of celebrity fans such as the late Nipsey Hussle and Lisa Left Eye Lopes.

Although Dr. Sebis wild claims are terrifying, eating an alkaline-rich diet isnt the worst thing for your body, says McKittrick. This diet is based on eating whole, unprocessed foods and shunning animal products . . . [which] can be a good thing. But if you get healthier on it, its probably just because youre eating more veggies than before. All that alkaline, supplement stuff doesnt have any scientific proof behind it, she says.

The Golo diet

The Golo diet, which ranked fifth among diet-conscious Googlers queries this year, is based on a low-glycemic diet. That means eating foods that dont raise blood sugar. That parts all good blood-sugar spikes can lead to hunger pangs, and low-glycemic foods include lots of healthy staples, including vegetables, legumes, whole grains, yogurt and fruit.

If that were it, the plan would be pretty reasonable, says McKittrick. But the Golo diet takes things a step further: It purports that the key to weight loss is hormonal balance, and for that, it hawks supplements. To nutrition experts, thats a red flag.

Id step away from anything that tries to sell you supplements, she says of the diet. Do we know whats in the supplements? Eating healthy food and exercising is going to balance hormones.

The Dubrow diet

Reality TV for the win! The Dubrow Diet, the sixth most-Googled diet of 2019, is a book written by Terry Dubrow, M.D., who stars on E!s cosmetic surgery disasters show Botched, and his wife, Heather, a former cast member of Bravos The Real Housewives of Orange County. They might not sound like the most reputable sources in the world, but this diets actually OK, says McKittrick. It centers on interval eating, which entails fasting for 12 to 16 hours a day. Basically, its just a riff on intermittent fasting.

This is nothing new, says McKittrick. Its just a repackaged a diet based on time-restricted eating, but with cutesy titles added like get hot for the summer and the red carpet diet. Seems like its just good marketing to me.

The sirtfood diet

Created by UK celebrity nutritionists, Googles No.7 most-searched-for diet in 2019 focuses on sirtuins, proteins that help regulate cellular health. They propose that sirtfoods foods that may help the body produce more sirtuins can activate your skinny genes, mimicking the effects of diet and exercise without all the hassle. Sirtfoods include kale, strawberries, red wine and dark chocolate.

I had never heard of it; its so bizarre, McKittrick says of the diet, which reportedly counts Adele and Pippa Middleton as fans and promises a slew of benefits, including weight loss and increased energy. It claims you will lose seven pounds in seven days? Sketchy.

If they really found a way to activate skinny genes, she says, sounds like theyd be up for the Nobel Prize.

Continued here:
The top trending diets on Google in 2019 were fads, bad science - New York Post

Celebrity nutritionist Kimberly Snyder offers tips for creating a healthier diet and lifestyle.

OKGoogle, what should I eat?

The search engine released its annual list of the most-searched trends for 2019, with intermittent fasting and the J. Lodiet topping the top 10.

Common themes in this years most-searched diet list include meatless, plant-based meal plans, cutting out sugar and carbs and setting a strict time frame of when to eat during the day. But doctors say one diet does not suit alland stress the importance of practicing moderationand eating a variety of heart-healthy foods.

Google ranked the most-searched diets of 2019.

The key is to select a diet that works for you one that meets your goals for maintaining your lifestyle and supplying you with adequate energy throughout the day, Dr. Robert Glatter, an emergency physician at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, told FOX Business. The net effect is to control appetite and reduce cravings by stabilizing blood sugar.

OPENTABLE NAMES 100 BEST RESTAURANTS IN AMERICA FOR 2019

Here are some of the highlights from this years list:

One of the worlds most-searched health and fitness trends this year was intermittent fasting, taking the No. 1 spot. While most diets tell you what to eat, intermittent fasting is all about when. There are three popular methods: The 16:8 method, which involves skipping breakfast and only eating during an eight-hour window (like 1 p.m. until 9 p.m.) and then fasting for 16 hours in between; the 5:2, fasting for 24 hours once or twice per week; or consuming only 500 to 600 calories on two non-consecutive days of the weekand eating regularly for the rest of the five, according to Healthline.com. The eating pattern is said to cause weight loss.

Similarly, the Dubrow Diet, the sixth most-Googled diet of the year, based ona book by Dr. Terry Dubrow, the star of the reality show Botched, and his wife, Heather Dubrow of Real Housewives fame, focuses on fasting for up to 16 hours a day.

The singer, actress and dancer vowed to shun sugar and carbs in January for a 10-day challenge she and finance, Alex Rodriguez, took together. The 50-year-old Hustlers star refrained from eating starchy veggies like potatoes, dairy, grains and fruits, and also cut out candy and sweets. Her meal plan consisted of veggies like broccoli and leafy greens, along with protein, seeds, seafood, eggs and nuts. And she challenged her social media followers to join in. Her influence catapulted The J. Lo Diet to be the No. 10 most-searched diet on the list. And the search trend no carbs and no sugar ranked No. 8 on the list.

Glatter does not recommend avoiding all carbs for an extended period of time.

THE HOTTEST FOOD, DRINK AND WELLNESS TRENDS FOR 2020

Slow-digesting, complex carbs are healthy and contain fiber to help stabilize blood sugar and reduce cravings, he says, adding that the complex carbs come from foods like quinoa, brown rice, sweet potatoes and oatmeal.

Plant-based eating is the basis for the Dr. Sebi diet, inspired by the late Honduran herbalist named Alfredo Darrington Bowman. The diet, which was the second most-searched of 2019, focuses on cutting out wheat, animal products and alcohol and drinking a gallon of water per day. Celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Beyonce have praised plant-based diet plans.

And more Americans have been adopting a meatless diet. Retail sales of plant-based foods like alternative meats and dairy products made sans animal products from ingredients like vegetables, grains and nuts have grown 11 percent in the past year, bringing the total plant-based market value to more than $4.5 billion, according to the Plant Based Foods Association.

Glatter, meanwhile, promotes the Mediterranean diet (which was not in Googles top 10 list) as an ideal diet for life, touting the benefits of a balanced diet of poultry, eggs, yogurt and cheese in moderation, coupled with some sweets and red meat on occasion.

Another dieton the list is the Sirtfood Diet, Googles No. 7 most-searched meal plan, which suggests that sirtfoods, or foods that help the body make more proteins (classified as sirtuins) such as kale, blueberries, strawberries and dark chocolate.The foods are said to boost the metabolism similarly to exercising, however, its unclear if the diet has been scientifically proven as effective.

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For those embarking on a new diet plan in 2020, Glatter says to ease into it gradually.

"Drastic changes often don't work over the long term. Diets should incorporate flexibility since strict rules are not realistic," Glatter said.

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Googles most-searched diets of 2019 - Fox Business

With the holidays upon us and the good cheer flowing, I thought it would be a nice time to talk about one of our favorite food groups this winter season: alcohol.

I often get asked if alcohol can be incorporated into a healthy diet. The answer is ... it depends. If your goal is weight loss, then its best to steer clear and heres why:

Alcohol is processed through the liver, and for four to eight hours after downing a single shot, the liver will stop fat burn in order to process the alcohol. While the liver is preoccupied, the carbs from carb-heavy beverages like beer; sweetened drinks such as cosmos, margaritas or mojitos; or hard liquor with mixers (including tonic water) are building up with nowhere to go but into your fat stores.

Keep in mind that alcohol is calorie dense and, unfortunately for us, has no nutritional value. It is the first fuel source to burn when ingested, which means that fat will not be used as long as alcohol is in the system. Depending on your body size, one shot typically takes about four to eight hours to process through the liver, but every subsequent shot adds on exponentially. Be aware that one night of heavy drinking, even if youre drinking low carbohydrate beverages, could lead to one to two days of no fat burn.

Here in Colorado, we like our beer. Sad to say that one beer is equivalent to about two to three slices of bread. Consider beer liquid bread and do not have beer (including the low-carb ones) more than once a week; it will make you gain weight, especially if you are struggling with excess body fat.

The best choices of alcohol to drink while attempting to maintain your weight are hard liquors, but be aware that no matter the type you choose, they will all cause the same reduction in fat burn. Tequila is really the cleanest alcohol, but vodka, gin, whiskey and scotch are also lower carbohydrate options. Wine can be a good choice with around 4 to 5 grams of carbs per 5 ounce glass. However, if you are really sensitive to carbs, even this can knock you out of fat burn.

Sweet drinks like lemon drops, margaritas, fruit wine and other sugary adult beverages are loaded with carbs that will make you store fat. As an alternative, mix your vodka with club soda and a squeeze of lemon (skip the cranberry juice), or make your own sugar-free margarita with a shot or two of tequila, some lime juice and club soda.

It might take some time to determine what alcoholic beverage is right for you. I can tell you straight up, it probably isnt the spiked eggnog!

No matter what you choose, be sure to enjoy responsibly.

Ashley Lucas has a doctorate in sports nutrition and chronic disease. She is also a registered dietitian nutritionist. She is the founder and owner of PHD Weight Loss and Nutrition, offering weight management and wellness services in the Four Corners. She can be reached at 764-4133.

Originally posted here:
Can alcohol be part of a healthy diet? - The Durango Herald

Photo by Kinga Cichewicz on Unsplash

One in four American adults experiences acute insomnia.

The study found that older women who ate the highest amount of refined carbohydrates were most likely to report having difficulty getting a good nights sleep.

Women who ate the highest amount of whole fruit, vegetables and fiber, on the other, were least likely to report problems with insomnia.

Because of the way foods interact with the human body, these findings are likely applicable to other people, the studys authors add.

Insomnia is often treated with cognitive behavioral therapy or medications, but these can be expensive or carry side effects, says James Gangwisch, the studys senior author and an assistant professor of clinical psychology at Columbia University, in a released statement.

By identifying other factors that lead to insomnia, we may find straightforward and low-cost interventions with fewer potential side effects, he adds.

Insomnia is a widespread health problem in the United States. One in four American adults experiences acute insomnia (difficulty falling or staying asleep for at least three nights a week) each year, researchers have found. About a quarter of those individuals have recurring bouts of insomnia or go on to develop chronic insomnia (when the problem continues for more than three months).

As Ive noted herebefore,getting less than the recommended seven hours of sleep each night is harmful to our health. Insufficient sleep has been linked to obesity and a variety of negative health outcomes, including heart disease, diabetes and depression. Insufficient sleep also increases the risk of injuries from accidents and mental errors, both on and off the job.

Several previous studies have examined a possible link between a high-carb diet and insomnia. The results of those studies were inconsistent, however. Nor were the studies able to clearly determine if a high-carb diet led to insomnia, or whether insomnia caused individuals to crave and eat more sugary foods.

For the current study, Gangswich and his colleagues decided to look at the development of insomnia over time in people with different types of diets. To do this, they used data collected from more than 50,000 women who were recruited into a large research project known as the Womens Health Initiative during the 1990s, when the women were between the ages of 50 and 79.

The women filled out detailed questionnaires when they entered the study. The questions included ones about their diets and their sleep habits. Three years later, they filled out a second sleep assessment.

From the original questionnaire, the researchers determined each womans dietary glycemic index how likely the foods she ate would cause her blood sugar to rise quickly. Highly processed and/or sugar-sweetened foods (such as white bread, white rice, refined pasta, French fries, soft drinks and candies) have a high glycemic index, while minimally processed foods (such as whole-wheat bread and pasta, brown rice, legumes, vegetables and whole fruit) have a lower one.

The women were divided into five groups (quintiles) based on their dietary glycemic index. The researchers then compared those rankings to the womens sleep assessments. They wanted to see if there was any link between the womens dietary glycemic index and their risk of reporting insomnia three years later. (Almost 10,000 of the women reported insomnia at the second sleep assessment.)

After adjusting for a variety of other factors associated with insomnia (including age, weight, caffeine consumption, stressful life events, hypertension and an overactive thyroid), the researchers found that the higher the womens dietary glycemic index, the greater their risk of developing insomnia.

They also found that women who consumed high amounts of fiber, whole grains, vegetables and whole fruit were significantly less likely to report problems with insomnia three years later.

Why would diet make a difference?

When blood sugar is raised quickly, your body reacts by releasing insulin, and the resulting drop in blood sugar can lead to the release of hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, which can interfere with sleep, explains Gangwisch.

And, yes, fruits contain sugar. But the fiber in them slows the rate of absorption to help prevent spikes in blood sugar, says Gangwisch. This suggests that the dietary culprit triggering the womens insomnia was the highly processed foods that contain larger amounts of refined sugars that arent found naturally in food.

This was an observational study, so it cant prove a direct cause-and-effect relationship between diet and insomnia. Also, the women in the study self-reported the foods they ate and their sleep habits. Those reports may or may not have been accurate.

Still, the studys findings are interesting. They also appear to be the most robust to date on this topic, for the study observed people over several years rather than at one single point in time to see if diet could be linked to the development of insomnia.

If high-[glycemic index] diets increase the risk of insomnia then dietary interventions that promote the consumption of whole unprocessed carbohydrates that are high in fiber and have low [glycemic index numbers] could serve as potential treatments of, and primary preventive measure for, insomnia, conclude Gangswich and his colleagues in their paper.

Potential is the key word there. Its not yet known if eating more fruits, veggies, whole grains and other healthful foods would actually help people sleep better.

Based on our findings, we would need randomized clinical trials to determine if a dietary intervention, focused on increasing the consumption of whole foods and complex carbohydrates, could be used to prevent and treat insomnia, says Gingwisch.

FMI: Youll find an abstract of the study on the American Journal of Clinical Nutritions website, but the full study is behind a paywall.

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Study links a carb-heavy diet to an increased risk of insomnia - MinnPost

The world doesnt need another diet book, another volume of empty promises thats at odds with the fact that no matter how someone loses weight, they will likely regain much or all of that weight sometimes even ending up heavier than their starting weight within about five years.

So if youve been gearing up to embark on yet another diet, protocol, reset or reboot come Jan. 1, I have a different suggestion: Hit the pause button on that plan and read Christy Harrisons new book, Anti-Diet: Reclaim Your Time, Money, Well-Being and Happiness Through Intuitive Eating, available Dec. 24.

Harrison, a registered dietitian and journalist, thoroughly and elegantly lays out the strange origins of modern diet culture a system of beliefs that labels some bodies as better, promotes changing body size and shape, demonizes certain foods and oppresses people who dont match a certain picture of health then presents a path to truly holistic health thats based on self-care, not self-control.

Host of the popular Food Psych podcast (I was her guest on episode 194), Harrison digs deep into the roots of diet culture including its science, myths and morality to uncover exactly how we became the weight-obsessed society we live in today. She weaves in experiences from clients and podcast guests, as well as her own path, from a normal eater relatively who was untouched by diet culture to a food writer struggling with disordered eating (she worked for the now-defunct Gourmet magazine) and eventually to recovery.

It was those experiences that prompted Harrison to launch Food Psych in 2013, and ultimately to write Anti-Diet.

It felt important for me to write this book because diet culture harms all of us, she said, adding that this is true no matter someones size or gender identification. Ive seen my clients hurt by it; its hurt me. I wanted to call out this harm, I wanted to save people from this harm.

Given that Harrison was no stranger to the topics in her book, I was curious if anything surprised her while doing her research. When I delved into the research before writing, I was looking into things I had heard about, but wanted to clarify, she said. What surprised her most was the deep vein of racism and classism in the history of diet culture, specifically how anti-blackness is at the root of anti-fatness. Also surprising? That our cultural weight bias and desire for thinness started long before any health arguments about body size. I was stunned by the fabrication of the obesity epidemic, she said.

One through line in Anti-Diet is the impact of social determinants of health which include weight stigma, racism, economic disparities and environment, as well as lack of access to health care on our health. These are distinct from behavioral determinants of health, which include nutrition and physical activity as well as tobacco, drug and alcohol use, seat-belt use, sexual activity and whether we use sun protection. The way diet culture paints it is that food and exercise will influence 100% of your health, Harrison said, pointing out that only about 25 to 30% of health is attributable to our behaviors, with 10% coming down to food and movement habits. Excluding genetics, the rest is due to social determinants of health. Its shocking to me how little that is understood, she said.

The Life Thief

Harrison presents diet culture as The Life Thief whether in the guise of weight-loss dieting or wellness dieting and lays out how it steals not just time and money, but well-being and happiness, too. As one example of this, Harrison recountsa personal story, one relatable to many people especially this time of year. In the most restrictive days of her disordered eating, she was so chronically deprived of food that at parties she would stand by the snack table for hours, compulsively eating and beating herself up for it, unable to fully connect with her friends, because the food felt more important.

Shes been attending the same holiday party at a friends house off and on for almost two decades, and her post-recovery experiences are very different. I cant really remember the food from the party last year, but the party from almost 16 years ago? I can remember in detail what I ate, mostly things like cookies and cupcakes, she said. Now I know that dieters brains are more primed and wired to respond to food cues than people who are not dieting.

Unfolding a better road map

Harrison could have laid out the evidence for why we need to burn diet culture to the ground, done a mic drop and left the room (metaphorically speaking), leaving readers to figure out how to fill the void once filled by dieting but she doesnt. The second section of the book starts with guidance on how to deal with emotions that come up when it finally sinks in how much people have lost because of diet culture. Then she gives readers a road map for how to care for their physical and mental health without trying to control body size and shape. This includes relearning how to eat intuitively, practicing self-compassion, setting boundaries and looking at physical activity in a new way.

Ive been illuminated by a lot of books that present cultural problems, yet dont offer any solutions. While I like those books as a reader, as a clinician, Ive seen people have sadness come up and anger come up, she said. Its really natural for people to have these feelings, and its important for me to be able to answer their questions and assure them that these emotions are part of the process. Ive tried to convey some of the messiness of healing, and that there is this other path thats available to you.

_____

Anti-Diet: Reclaim Your Time, Money, Well-Being and Happiness Through Intuitive Eatingby Christy Harrison, Little, Brown Spark, 336 pp., $28

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Anti-Diet is the diet book you need to read headed into 2020 - Seattle Times

The low-carbohydrate, high-fat ketogenic diet has become hugely popular over the last few years. For many people, the keto diet including variations such as keto cycling or the less restrictive lazy keto has become the go-to eating plan for weight loss and fighting disease.

Two years ago, I interviewed cancer specialist Dr. Patrick Hwu of MD Anderson in Houston about his research into what he calls the fat-burning metabolism diet, or fat-burning diet. Hwu, a tumor immunologist, has been following the ketogenic diet himself for six years, long before it was trending on social media.

As a leading cancer doctor, he has many patients asking him for the ideal diet while they go through treatment and he often suggests keto.

Hwu emphasizes that more research is needed to determine the ideal diet for cancer patients, but as he has seen in himself, the keto diet has been shown to improve biomarkers associated with heart health.

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Keto is a diet that was developed decades ago and originally used for patients with severe epilepsy, some of whom were on the diet for life with no evidence of harm. It consists of low carb, high fat and only moderate protein intake, as opposed to the Atkins diet. Keto isnt as meat-heavy as commonly believed. Hwu relies on certain go to foods like full-fat regular cream cheese, sour cream and avocados as staples. He also consumes a lot of green vegetables and cauliflower.

Since starting the keto diet, Hwu has dropped 25 pounds and has maintained the weight loss. His blood pressure, triglycerides and sugar levels have all decreased, which are healthy signs. His biomarkers, including lipid profile and blood pressure have been excellent, he said.

There have been a number of studies that show the connection between obesity and certain cancers. Hwu feels that keto makes sense because his patients are not hungry on it, it manages their weight and blood sugar levels and keeps insulin and IGF-1 levels low two proteins that have been shown to drive some cancers.

I feel that fat intake has been overly emphasized as a negative factor and that a high intake of carbs and the subsequent spikes in insulin and IGF-1 (an insulin-like hormone in the blood) that they cause are more harmful to health overall, Hwu said.

Hwus colleague, Dr. Jennifer McQuade, an assistant professor and physician scientist in Melanoma Medical Oncology at MD Anderson says they are currently conducting both human and animal studies of the effects of diet, including the ketogenic diet, on cancer. In addition, they are testing a plant-based high-fiber diet aimed at the gut microbiome, which has been shown to impact response to immunotherapy, a type of cancer treatment that utilizes the patients own immune system to fight the disease. They expect results from the studies early next year.

Recent work from the laboratory of Lew Cantley at Cornell has shown that the ketogenic diet can improve cancer control in mice treated with a type of targeted therapy that can cause elevated levels of insulin.

The MD Anderson researchers will test the ketogenic diet in cancer survivors to see if it lowers insulin and IGF-1, they will then move on to combining with targeted therapy.

The keto diet research will be prepared in an MD Anderson kitchen and provided to the patients in a controlled setting.

Meanwhile, Hwu would like to see a greater variety of keto-friendly offerings in grocery stores because the key to sticking with keto is having enough substitutes, so you never feel deprived.

You can bake almost anything with almond flour," said Hwu, "and stevia, erythritol and monk fruit are all safe sweeteners.

Kristin Kirkpatrick

Kristin Kirkpatrick is the lead dietitian at Cleveland Clinic Wellness & Preventive Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio. She is a best-selling author and an award winning dietitian.

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Is the keto diet healthy? Cancer researchers study effects of keto - TODAY