SEE Your Eating Pattern

The government produces Dietary Guidelines every 5 year.  The most recent update was in 2015 and extends through 2020.  This set of guidelines focuses on SHIFTing from refined, processed foods to nutrient dense foods and beverages.

• high calorie, non-nutritious snacks→ nutrient dense snacks

• fruit products with added sugar→ whole Fruit

• Refined Grains → whole grains

• snacks with added sugar → unsalted snacks

• solid, saturated fats→oils

• beverages with added sugars → No sugar-added beverages

Of note, these guidelines:

• removed cholesterol limits in foods, which added eggs and shellfish as approved source of food

• No longer advocates low -fat eating pattern

• Specifies limiting added sugar to 10% of daily diet (10-12 teaspoons of sugar),

• Offered The Mediterranean Diet and Vegetarian Diet as Healthy Alternative Eating Patterns.

Their overall 5 recommendations for a healthy eating pattern include:

1. Follow a healthy eating pattern across the lifespan. All food and beverage choices matter. Choose a healthy eating pattern at an appropriate calorie level to help achieve and maintain a healthy body weight, support nutrient adequacy, and reduce the risk of chronic disease.
2. Focus on variety, nutrient density, and amount. To meet nutrient needs within calorie limits, choose a variety of nutrient-dense foods across and within all food groups in recommended amounts.
3. Limit calories from added sugars and saturated fats and reduce sodium intake. Consume an eating pattern low in added sugars, saturated fats, and sodium. Cut back on foods and beverages higher in these components to amounts that fit within healthy eating patterns.
4. Shift to healthier food and beverage choices. Choose nutrient-dense foods and beverages across and within all food groups in place of less healthy choices. Consider cultural and personal preferences to make these shifts easier to accomplish and maintain.
5. Support healthy eating patterns for all. Everyone has a role in helping to create and support healthy eating patterns in multiple settings nationwide, from home to school to work to communities.

What is your relationship to food and eating?  Is it a nourishing relationship?  A love-hate relationship?  An adversarial relationship?  An addictive relationship?   One of convenience or comfort?  Does it seem strange to even be talking about our relationship with food at all?

After all food is intended to nourish the body, to provide the nutrients it needs to repair and replenish the cells for optimal functioning.  Yet for many of us, food represents so much more.  Some may have developed an emotional connection with our food!  The food we eat may be a status symbol!  It may be a way of connecting or disconnecting with others!  Meals are often a gathering place for friends and family!  We have food for festive events:  birthdays, weddings, Thanksgiving, religious holidays.

Do you have comfort foods that make you happy? Do you ever find yourself reaching for this comfort food when you feel stressed, anxious and even excited? Have you ever used comfort food as a way NOT to feel stress, freedom, anxiety or joy?  If so, what types of food are comfort foods for you?  We crave certain types of foods because they can cause a release of hormones in the brain and body that causes feelings of happiness and euphoria.   This can become a habitual, even addictive pattern!

This country is blessed with an abundance of food.  We learn from an early age how to relate to food whether it be through our parents, our culture, TV, etc. What were you taught about food as a child or as a teenage girl or young adult?  Were you taught as a child to eat all that was on your plate?  Can you relate to the humorous message by Weird Al Yankovic “Eat It”?  

How do we fit in meals when our schedules are so full?  Can you relate to any of the following behaviors?

• Fitting meals in quickly between or during other tasks.

• Scarfing down a meal before going to an appointment because you know you will be hungry soon and won’t be able to wait until the appointment is over.

• Relying on convenient prepackaged food that can be prepared quickly or relying on fast food.

• Eating out because you don’t want to add another chore to your to do list.

Did you know that it takes our stomachs 20 minutes to communicate to our brains that we are full? So if we’re eating in a hurry, we may be eating more than our body needs and we may not be digesting the food well. This can lead to putting on extra pounds and in some cases obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure.

We receive lots of messages about food.  We see commercials on TV that are designed to make us want food.  We read labels and articles on foods that tell what is healthy and unhealthy.  Many of the messages are contradictory and confusing!  We rarely listen to our bodies when it comes to food and eating!  We invite you to start becoming aware of the relationship you have with food. Begin to notice any judgments you have about yourself and food. By building awareness, we can gradually begin to identify what no longer works for us and begin new action that will bring us closer to our goals!  We will work on this more in the Live & Create the Alternatives section of this module!

We have been taught for several decades that our genes determine what our bodies will look like, what diseases we will have, and that we have little to no control over that.  But science is evolving and demonstrating that that is only partly true.  We are learning that genes are turned on and off by things in the environment.  This is a field called epigenetics.

Food is one of the most impactful environmental component that turns genes on and off.  Food is information that the body uses to determine what response the body should have inwardly and outwardly. This is the study of nutrigenomics.

Our genetics have evolved little since our times as hunter-gatherers, several thousand years ago.  Our bodies are designed to eat what the earth provided at that time, an abundance of plants, some meat and fish.  We walked regularly, with higher intensity activities in short bursts.  Our genetics simply has not caught up with the significant changes in our lifestyles, especially the changes in our food supply!  A diet of mostly plants with healthy proteins and fats turns on genes for optimal health, while the SAD of processed foods turns on the genes for obesity, diabetes, hypertension, auto-immune disease, cancer, and more.

We genetically evolved to crave sugar, fat and salt because there was a scarcity of those nutrients during that time.  Our bodies have amazing mechanisms for processing these nutrients when they are provided in balance.  We now have an over-abundance of foods that contain sugar, fat, and salt – and the more out body has these the more it craves, leading to addictive behaviors.

Knowledge and awareness are powerful!  Food can be medicine, or it can be poison that leads to disease!  In the last section, we talked about our relationship with food – how our minds and hearts use food for comfort, pleasure, fulfillment, and many others.  In this section, we learned that our bodies are programmed for a different lifestyle than the one most of us live.  As you proceed through the next sections, begin to adopt the mindset Food is fuel and medicine for the body.  If this was the mindset that was the basis of your food choices, what food choices would you make?

All carbohydrates break down into sugar.  What foods contain carbohydrates? Vegetables, fruits, grains, breads, chips, cookies, French fries.  Some of these foods have complex carbohydrates and starches that are broken down into simple sugars by the body.  80% of processed foods have added sugar, particularly those described as low-fat.  Sugar is everywhere and it is making us very sick, fat, and hungry.

Anytime we eat a food that contains carbohydrates or protein (or a combination of the two), our body releases insulin.  Insulin is a hormone released by an organ called the pancreas.  Insulin is like a gate-keeper that allow the cells to use the glucose and amino acids (from protein) that are now floating in the blood stream.  Insulin activates the gate that allows glucose and amino acids into the cells, especially muscle cells.

When there is more glucose in the blood than the cells can use, insulin activates the liver to store it as starch and fat.  When there is no space in the liver to store the extra fat, it then is transported and stored in fat cells around the abdominal organs, then other areas of the body (hips, butt, and breasts).  This is a genetic survival mechanism that was created when food was scarce and we may go long periods without food.  Now we have an abundance of food, especially foods containing carbohydrates.

When blood sugar levels “crash” cortisol is also released to support the body in raising the blood sugar again.  This ongoing cycle may result in fatigue, brain fog, difficulty sleeping, appetite dysregulation, hormonal imbalances, and irritability.

Over time, with an abundance of sugar floating in the system, our bodies become resistant to insulin.  The pancreas releases more and more insulin, and the body becomes more and more resistant to insulin.  We begin to store even more sugar as fat.  This becomes a vicious cycle that, if continued, will result in Metabolic Syndrome and Type II diabetes.

To complicate things further, foods that contain predominately refined carbohydrates may not signal the hormone that stops us from eating!

There are over 100 names for sugar in processed foods.  A brief list is below.  Use this list to identify more!

• Any name ending in “ose” or “ol” or “syrup”
• Sucrose – refined crystalized sugar of glucose and fructose combined; table sugar
• Fructose – simple sugar found in fruits
• Glucose/Dextrose – fruits, vegetables, honey
• Lactose – simple sugar found in milk and dairy products
• Maltose – simple sugar from grains, often found in malted drinks/beer
• Brown sugar – refined sugar coated with molasses or colored with caramel
• Corn syrup – manufactured syrp of corn starch, containing glucose, maltose, and dextrose
• High-fructose corn syrup – highly concentrated syrup of predominately fructose
• Maltodextrin – a manufactured sugar from maltose and dextrose

Sugar, Hyperpalatable Foods are ADDICTIVE

Our brains LOVE sugar!  We have evolved to crave sugar, as it is relatively rare in nature.  Our brains use a large amount of glucose.  Having an over-abundance of sugar can lead to addictive qualities.  Dopamine and opioids are chemicals naturally produced int he body that are associated with reward and pleasure, and ultimately addictions!  The image above shows the dopamine response in the brain when exposed to sugar and cocaine!  More dopamine is released with sugar than cocaine!  Watch this video [Confessions of a Sugar Addict] to learn more (10 minutes)!

One study evaluated people’s perceptions of foods as addictive or not.  92% indicated they experienced addictive-like behavior with certain foods.  They reported experiencing that they wanted to and “should” stop eating the foods.

Hyperpalatable foodstuff has been engineered to produce pleasure in the consumer and drive him/her to eat more than they wanted to and seek the food in the future!  The most foods that have been rated as most addictive have flour, fat, sugar, salt, & chemical additives (caffeine, MSG, apartame):

1. Pizza
2. Chocolate
3. Chips
4. Cookies
5. Ice Cream
6. French fries
7. Cheeseburgers
8. Soda
9. Cake
10. Cheese
11. Bacon
12. Fried Chicken
13. White Bread
14. Donuts
15. Candy

Other resources you might be interested in:
Sugar-the elephant in the kitchen
Reversing Type 2 diabetes starts with ignoring the guidelines
The Addiction Potential of Hyperpalatable Foods

Following a healthy eating pattern is simple, but not necessarily easy.  Here is a healthy eating pattern:

• Eat real food. Not too much. Mostly Plants.

• Non-Starchy Vegetables as 50-75% of your plate

• Eat Protein, healthy fat, and healthy carbohydrates at each meal

• Eat when hungry. Stop when full.

• Choose Nutrient Dense Foods over nutrient poor, processed foods.

• Aim for a variety of colors of vegetables in each week. Not just green, but green, red, orange, purple, blue.

• Eat Mindfully

We provide additional information about these topics in the remainder of this module.  We provide you with tools and support in making this eating pattern YOUR lifestyle in the Creating & Living the Alternatives section of this module.

We start with healthy fats for a reason.  We live in a culture where fat has been vilified as the cause of heart disease. For decades, the US government recommended a low-fat diet.  Thus, healthcare providers across the nation followed suit.  Our obesity and diabetes rates skyrocketed!  Increasingly research is proving that a low-fat diet is detrimental to our health.  In its 2015 recommendations, the US government quietly removed the recommendation to follow a low-fat diet, as you learned earlier in this module.

When the fat is removed from our foods and diet, it is often replaced with carbohydrate based food.  The unintended consequence of the low-fat diet, was the advent of added sugar in our foods.   When the fat is removed from food, other additives are added to make the foods more palatable – especially sugar and salt.

Not all fats are created equally.  There are fats that make you sick!!!  Processed oils, like those found in packaged foods, margarine, cooking oils/sprays, and many vegetable oils are not as healthy as we once thought!  How the oils are produced is a huge part of what makes them healthy or not.  Look for extra virgin or expeller pressed versions of oils.  These oils are not treated with heat, leaving the healthy oil intact!

In this section, we will discuss how fat is important for the optimal functioning of our bodies and what fats are considered healthy.

Why is Fat important in our diet?

• Fat is necessary to create the hormones that maintain normal function throughout the body, including:

  • cortisol to manage stress

  • thyroid hormone to manage metabolism

  • Serotonin/Dopamine to manage mood and neurological function

  • estrogen/testosterone to manage menstrual cycles and libido.

• Fat is required to absorb fat soluble vitamins.

• Fats influence our risk of heart disease by influencing our lipid and cholesterol levels

• Fat is satiating! Fat tastes good and we feel full longer with foods that contain fat.  Fat makes food more rich and pleasurable leading to more satiation.

Improving omega 6:3 ratio

Omega 6 and Omega 3 fatty acids are essential fatty acids that influence our health and well-being.  Learn more in this video!

Olive and Avocado Oil

Oleic Acid is an Omega9 essential fatty acid found in Olive Oil and Avocado Oil.  Olive oil is a large component of the highly recommended Mediterranean Eating Pattern, where those following this eat upwards of 1 quart of Olive Oil each WEEK.

Health benefits:

• Improved cholesterol

• Reducing triglycerides and LDL

• Improving HDL

• Lower BP

• Lower risk of cancer

• Improvement of autoimmune and inflammatory disease

• Improved circulatory function

• Improve hormone balance

• Supports the immune system

• Anti-inflammatory actions

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Simple ways to add these oils to your diet:

• Add a tablespoon to a smoothie.

• Drizzle over a salad.

• Use it as a marinade for grilling meat.

• Include it when baking.

• Use it in homemade mayo.

• Drizzle it over vegetables before roasting.

• Top hummus off with it.

• Drizzle it over cold soups, such as gazpacho.

Healthy Saturated Fat

Saturated fats have been the most vilified of the fats.  These fats are generally solid at room temperature.  Saturated fats are found in plant and animal sources.  Consumption of saturated fat has been associated with heart disease.  What research is finding is that refined carbohydrates and sugar have a larger impact on this than saturated fats.

Not all saturated fats are created equal!  Saturated fats from grass fed animals have a different effect on the body than those fed grains and corn.  Unrefined saturated fats from plant sources, like coconut and palm , have been shown to have tremendous health benefits.

Here is some information on Extra Virgin or Expeller Pressed Coconut Oil.  Coconut oil contains medium-chain fatty acids which are metabolized differently than other fats in the body.  The benefits of Coconut oil are:

• Easier to digest

• Not readily stored as fat, readily used by the body as fuel

• Anti-microbial and Anti-fungal

• Supports gut health when substituted for sugar and processed foods

• Improved hormone balance (testosterone, cortisone, human growth hormone)

• Balance Lipid levels – Increase HDL (“good” cholesterol) and Reduce LDL (“bad” cholesterol)

• Improves memory and brain function

• Improves energy and endurance

• Increases calcium and fat soluble vitamin absorption

• Improves Weight Loss, builds muscle and reduces body fat

• Increases collagen production in skin and bones, improves cellulite

Diseases that Coconut Oil has been proven to improve or prevent:

• Alzheimer’s Disease

• Heart Disease/High Blood Pressure

• Type II Diabetes

• Urinary Tract & Kidney infections

• Arthritis

• Cancer

• Candidal (yeast) infections

• Gallbladder disease

• Pancreatitis

• Eczema/dermatitis/psoriasis

• Osteoporosis

Simple ways to add Coconut Oil to your diet:

• Add it to your Coffee or Tea

• Use coconut MILK (has coconut oil in it) in smoothies [oil itself difficult in cold smoothies because stays solid – consider melting oil or using MCT oil which is made from coconut oil]

• Use it in place of oils for cooking, frying, broiling and baking

• Coconut flakes in trail mix

• Add to broths/soups

It can also be used as a lotion!  It is great for dry skin and preventing exacerbations of eczema, dermatitis, and skin infections!  It is great for wound healing!

50-75% of your plate should be from vegetables and other low glycemic carbohydrates.  The healthiest forms of carbohydrates are found in low glycemic vegetables and fruits.  Beyond providing carbohydrates, these foods offer a variety of vitamins and minerals that support the optimal functioning of the body.  Avoid processed, refined carbohydrates.

Guess what?  Our bodies don’t need sugar from an external source.  Our bodies evolved to deal with relatively small amounts of sugar that are found naturally in the wild.  Sugar is not an essential nutrient.  Our bodies make glucose all the time through a process called gluconeogenesis.  A hormone called glucagon is released by the pancreas to break down starches stored in the liver.  We are also able to make sugar from protein.  We can also fuel our bodies on fat.

Tips for selection of optimal carbohydrates:

• Choose Whole, fresh vegetables and fruits that are in season are whenever possible.

• Choose a rainbow of vegetables and fruits each WEEK to maximize your vitamin/mineral intake. Yellow/Orange, Green, Purple/Blue, Red, White.  The vitamins and minerals are what makes the food the colors they are!

• Store-bought frozen are healthy options when they have no added sauces, sugar, preservatives, etc. These are often frozen at peak ripeness when they are most nutritious

• Only purchase canned as a last choice. These are usually heat processed resulting in less vitamins/minerals.

• Note that tropical fruits and grapes are

The video below discusses glycemic index and glycemic load, which support you in choosing the vegetables and fruits that are healthiest for you!

Proteins are broken down by the body to make amino acids and used in every cell in the body!    Amino acids help keep our blood sugar stable, are essential components of hormones, enzymes, and anti-bodies, and are used to make MUSCLE! Protein in our diet helps us feel full and keeps us from over-eating.  Some amino acids are ESSENTIAL, meaning that the body cannot produce them.  They must be obtained from our diet, ideally from a variety of plant and animal sources.

25-30% of your plate should be your protein source.  In America, protein (ie meat) is often the largest portion of the meal, upwards of 50% of the meal!  We eat a lot of protein, but it is often not healthy protein.  Much of our meat and dairy is produced in a factory style environment that leads to reduced health of the animal, requiring added hormones and antibiotics to optimize production.  An unhealthy animal does not produce optimal meat and may not have the components in its diet to create the amino acids we need. Healthy proteins also contain healthy fat!

Water

Water is essential for life. Without it, within 3 days, death occurs.  Water makes up 50-65% of our body.  Many of the fluids we drink are dehydrating, including coffee, tea, soda, and alcohol.  Mild dehydration may show up as fatigue/tiredness, constipation, hunger (that is really thirst), headache.

Benefits of water on health/wellbeing

• Supports detoxification of toxins in skin, digestive system, and kidneys

• Supports digestion and regular bowel movements

• Keeps skin supple and smooth

• Supports circulation and blood flow

• Supports cellular metabolism

How much water

How much water should I drink?  We are used to the recommendation to drink 8 – 8 oz glasses of water.  Some recommend up to 2 liters a day!  But there is no concrete science behind this.  Your water intake depends on many factors, including your diet and environment.  If you eat lots of water containing foods [veggies, fruits, broth (in soups or by itself), etc.] you may need less water than someone who drinks a lot of caffeinated beverages and eats few water-containing foods.

Let thirst and urine be your guides.  You become thirsty when your blood has lost 2% of its volume.  Your urine should be a very pale yellow.  [Note:  if you are taking B vitamins, your urine will be bright yellow for a couple of hours following consumption]. If you are urinating constantly, with clear output, you may be drinking more than you need.

Make water fun and practical

• Lemon Water – improves the skin and detox benefits, while adding Vitamin C and acids that support optimal digestion.

• Mineral Water-helpful for transition from soda; mix with lemon juice or splash of fruit juice; minerals vary – Calcium, Magnesium, Sodium, Sulfer, Potassium

• Infuse with fruit

Coffee & Tea
Green tea – Contains powerful antioxidants, reduces inflammation, lowers blood pressure, reduces cholesterol.  It has a small amount of caffeine.

Coffee & Black Tea – both have antioxidants that are beneficial for health and well-being.  Be mindful they also contain variable amounts of caffeine.

A note on Caffeine:
Caffeine occurs naturally in coffee, tea, and chocolate; and is added to drinks such as soda and energy drinks. Caffeine functions in the body as a stimulant, causing the release of adrenaline, which causes the experience of higher energy and alertness.  It is a mild diuretic (causes release of water from the body through urine) and may lead to mild dehydration if not balanced with non-caffeinated fluids.    The caffeine content varies widely, as does the health benefits of the drinks.  Coffee and tea have some health benefits, whereas soda and energy drinks have no health benefit and, in many cases, are harmful.  There are some people who metabolize caffeine slower than others, leading to extended effects.

Coconut Water
Coconut water is a low-calorie, low-sugar alternative to soda and electrolyte drinks.  It is the clear liquid that is inside a green coconut.  The coconuts are harvested before the water is replaced with “meat”. Coconut contains vitamins, minerals, and electrolytes, including potassium, sodium, calcium, and magnesium, among others. [Caution:  people with kidney disease should consult their health care providers before consuming.]

A calorie is not a calorie!  You will notice that we do not recommend counting calories.  Our goal is for you to get a balance of nutrient dense foods that provide minerals, vitamins, protein, fat, fiber, and water for your body.  Eating nutrient dense foods may provide more calories, while causing you to burn more calories.  Nutrient poor, processed foods provide the calories, while stimulating your hunger, driving you to eat more.

To support you in determining how much of foods to eat, we recommend using serving sizes based on your hand.  The smaller you are, the smaller your hand.  The larger you are the larger your hand.  Your hand goes everywhere with you.  It is a valuable way to judge your serving sizes.

Palm for protein/meat
Fist for veggies
Cupped hand of carb
Thumb of fat

We love this infographic from Precision Nutrition:

You have learned a lot about food, nutrition, and eating patterns in this module.  Now is the time to choose if you are ready and willing to make any changes!  It really is your choice!  You may have simply wanted to learn more and are not ready to do something OR you may be all in and ready to go OR somewhere in between. This video discusses readiness for change and supports you in evaluating where you really are in the cycle.

Be really honest with yourself to determine where you are on the spectrum and what you are ready and willing to change, if anything.  The next section of the module is designed to support you in creating SUSTAINABLE lifestyle modifications around your eating pattern! When YOU are ready, please proceed to the next section to begin creating and living the alternatives section !!!