Carbohydrates !!!!

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In my experience, many people find a food program consisting of 55 percent carbohydrates an intimidating amount. This is because many of the popular diet books out there have caused people to shift their dietary fears from fats to carbohydrates. The key is not to be afraid to eat carbohydrates, but to learn how to manage your intake of carbs relative to your activity level. We all know of people who have lost a great deal of scale weight on low-carbohydrate diets, but it’s a sure thing that they felt irritable, headachy, and fatigued while on that diet. To maintain the brain and central nervous system, the body needs a certain amount of glucose, which it gets from sugars and starches, the byproducts of carbohydrates after digestion. The body stores this glucose in the liver and in the muscles. When you do not ingest a sufficient amount of carbohydrates in your daily diet, the body has to get its supply from somewhere. At that point, the body will begin breaking down its own muscle protein to synthesize glucose to provide your vital organs with an adequate supply. The weight you will lose on a low-carbohydrate diet will be muscle tissue, not fat, because your body cannot break down its fat stores into glucose.
The goal of any good weight loss program should always be to lose as little muscle as possible in comparison to fat loss. For every gram of muscle tissue you lose, you lose 4 grams of water. For every gram of fat lost, you lose only 1 gram of water. Water weight is not true long-term weight loss, because water is the easiest thing in the world to gain back. If, after losing weight on a diet, you start eating a larger amount of carbohydrates during times of stress, the body will quickly regain its lost muscle tissue and its associated water weight.
Remember, the goal of any nutrition program should be to spare lean muscle tissue at the expense of excess body fat. Keep in mind also that a pound of fat is four times the volume of a pound of lean muscle, so losing pounds of fat will create the greatest transformation in your physical appearance. So don’t be afraid of carbohydrates. This does not mean, however, that you can eat all the carbohydrates you want. A recent study at Stanford University School of Medicine showed that eating a diet extremely high in carbohydrates caused triglycerides (bad fats) to go up. It is possible to have too much of a good thing. The key is balance.
Remember, all carbohydrates are not created equal. Complex carbohydrates such as sweet potatoes, yams, brown rice, and whole grains will be utilized more efficiently by the body than simple sugars such as candy and cakes. I’m not saying that you can never again indulge your sweet tooth, but it is important to eat desserts in moderation. Make them a special treat, not a daily occurrence.
Another factor to consider when choosing appropriate carbohydrates is their rating on the Glycemic Index. Foods with a high glycemic rating stimulate a higher than normal production of insulin in the body and tend to stimulate fat storage. Foods that have a low glycemic rating do not significantly elevate insulin or stimulate fat storage. High glycemic foods should be avoided or eaten in moderation.

Fiber Is Important !!!

Fiber is simply plant food that passes undigested through the small intestine. There are two basic types of fiber, insoluble and soluble. Insoluble fibers hold less water and include foods such as vegetables, most bran products, and whole grains. These types of foods provide bulk and help to normalize bowel movements. Soluble fibers hold up to forty times their weight in water, and include such foods as oats, any type of legume, beans, and psyllium. These kinds of foods provide the primary food source for friendly bacteria in the intestinal track. Not getting enough soluble fiber in your daily diet can lead to reduced growth of friendly bacteria, increased growth of unfriendly bacteria, constipation, and increased risk for colorectal cancer. Citrus fruits and apples, the most soluble fibers, hold 100 times their weight in water.
While the average person eats 16 to 17 grams of fiber per day, the National Cancer Institute recommends an average of 25 grams daily. A recent study by the American Dietetic Association, however, has caused the American Dietary Association to begin increasing its dietary recommendations of fiber. This study indicated that people with diabetes could significantly reduce their blood sugar by eating up to 50 grams of fiber per day. Other benefits of this high-fiber diet were an improved cholesterol level, lowering the participants’ risk of heart disease, which is a major cause of death among people with diabetes.
A long-term study published recently in the Journal of the American Medical Association stated that eating a high-fiber diet also helps to fight obesity. On average, young adults who ate at least 21 grams of fiber per day gained eight pounds less over a ten-year period than those who ate the least amount of fiber. When you consider that a bowl of high-fiber cereal can contain up to 25 grams of fiber, it is not difficult to get sufficient fiber in your daily diet.
High-fiber foods include the following:
• Raw or lightly cooked vegetables.
• Cereals, rolls, and bread made from whole grain flour.
• Nuts, beans, peas, lentils, potatoes, and yams (with the skins on).
• Whole grains, such as whole wheat, brown rice, whole or rolled oats, buckwheat, amaranth.
• Raw fruits such as apples (with the skins on).
• Dried fruits such as raisins, apricots, dates, and prunes. (Buy organic dried fruits, since the drying process concentrates the level of fungicides and pesticides already present in nonorganic
fruits.)
When you increase your daily intake of fiber, do it slowly to avoid discomfort and flatulence. Make sure to take a multivitamin, since fiber speeds digestion and might deplete the body of certain vitamins.
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Chemical Changes That Occur during Stress

When you find yourself in a situation that your body perceives as stressful, a number of chemical reactions occur that push certain body systems into higher gear by shutting down or cutting off energy to others.

1. Stress affects the cardiovascular system. The first to be affected is the cardiovascular system. In the presence of danger, much of the blood in your outer extremities is shunted to organs that need more oxygen, such as the brain (the decision maker), the heart, and your other vital organs, such as the lungs and the liver. The constricting of the blood supply to your hands, arms, feet, and legs has another role—it decreases your blood loss should you be injured. Your body also increases its production of endorphins and other pain-reducing chemicals so that you won’t feel the injury as keenly as you normally would. When these changes happen, your blood pressure rises, your pulse races, and your heart must beat faster and harder to handle the strain. Adrenaline causes glucose and fat to be released from your tissues to give your body a much-needed energy surge in case you must fight or flee.
2. Some systems shut down. This enormous surge of energy comes at a price, however. Certain other bodily systems must be shut down somewhat in order to compensate. Your reproductive system, which is normally very energy intensive, is suspended so that its energies can be directed elsewhere. In the short term, this isn’t a bad thing, since you would never think about fighting off the cave bear and making love to your mate at the same time. But you can see how living in a constant state of stress would erode your libido over the long term.
3. How cortisol affects the body. Another chemical downside following the release of stress hormones is that cortisol accumulates in your body. As the adrenaline rush that released fat and glucose as an energy source subsides, the stress hormone cortisol becomes active, causing insulin to be released to stimulate your appetite so that you can replenish your fat stores. Since most of us don’t reach for an apple or a piece of swordfish when we are ravenous, this usually leads to craving a quick carbohydrate snack such as candy, pizza, cookies, ice cream, or high-carbohydrate fast foods. Unfortunately, living with a high level of daily stress causes the body to produce a consistently high level of cortisol, leading to overeating and weight gain, especially in the all-important abdominal area in men.
   
4. The immune system is weakened. One of the more serious effects of stress is the redirecting of energy away from the immune system. A tremendous amount of energy is necessary to operate the complex cells, hormones, and organs that make up this system. Fifteen minutes of danger and a return to normal isn’t going to compromise your immune system, but living with constant stress will surely make you more susceptible to illness.
   

Food Programming versus Dieting

I am often amazed at how little understanding people have of the roles played by all three food groups—carbohydrates, proteins, and fats—in the maintenance of physical health. Popular diet books only add to this confusion. Some diet authors advocate an almost total avoidance of carbohydrates and a large intake of protein. Some give readers the idea that all fats are bad. Others downplay the importance of choosing unsaturated fats such as olive oil and soy butter, over saturated fats such as dairy butter and cheese, by including recipes with heavy, creamy sauces in their food plans. You could probably lose weight on any of these diets, since most people eat so inconsistently that almost any routine food program will have a positive effect on the body’s metabolic processes. But no one can stay on an extreme or unbalanced food program for long and expect to remain healthy.
The key to maintaining weight loss, eliminating health risks, increasing energy levels, maintaining performance, improving your moods, and increasing your longevity is to follow a food program that can become a lifestyle. This type of food program must have several basic characteristics:

• It must be intelligently balanced among carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, based on the evidence presented by nutritional science.
• It must adequately satisfy your body’s daily caloric requirements.
• If you need to lose weight initially, it should never put your daily caloric intake so low that you will feel undue hunger, physical or emotional stress, or loss of energy.
• It should provide you with three balanced meals and at least two snacks per day to keep your energy levels consistent.
• It should have a certain amount of flexibility built into it to allow for your individual nutritional needs, since we are all a bit different from one another. For example, a man or woman who is very athletic will require more protein than your average person.

Generally, I have found that the percentages that work best for most people are 55 percent low-glycemic carbohydrates, 20 percent lean protein, and 25 percent acceptable fat. Allowing for individual differences, Dr. E. C. Henley, Ph.D., R.D., executive vice president and director of nutritional sciences for Physicians Pharmaceuticals, the experienced nutrition researcher and counselor who has designed the food program in this chapter, has built a bit of flexibility into that range. I guarantee that every reader who follows this food program will experience, in as few as thirty days, significant fat loss, an increase in lean muscle, lowered cholesterol, decreased
health risks, and a marked increase in energy levels. But I also encourage you to listen to your body and observe its performance levels. For example, you might find that as you increase your level of exercise, you may need a somewhat higher percentage of lean protein. Or you may discover that you are an individual who is at his or her most energetic when you stick with 55 percent acceptable carbohydrates— or maybe even a bit more.
Let’s take a look at the three food groups and the role each nutrient plays in the body.

Healthy Lifestyle Eating Habits

You need to learn not only what to keep out of your diet, but also, just as importantly, what you should put into it. You will find that you can nourish your body without sacrificing meal-time enjoyment once you understand the basic principles of proper nourishment. These principles will supply you with the knowledge your body needs to build, develop and live healthy, as it was meant to do naturally. Healthful organic foods packed with vital nutrients are abundant worldwide.
The first step, of course, is to get into the habit of eating for health. Such a habit is not difficult to form. Our instinctive natural sense of food selection has been overwhelmed by all of the advertising of popular, fast, junk foods, etc. You have to be strong minded! Like any other ability or skill, Only by using this natural health instinct and desire can we revive and strengthen our health!
America’s former Surgeon General, said this in his famous 1988 landmark report on nutrition and health in America. People don’t die of infectious conditions as such, but of malnutrition that allows the germs to get a foothold in sickly bodies. Also, bad nutrition is usually the main cause of noninfectious, fatal or degenerative conditions. When the body has its full vitamin and mineral quota, including precious potassium, it’s almost impossible for germs to get a foothold in a healthy, powerful bloodstream and tissues!

Millions Suffer Vitamin B-Complex Deficiency

People of every age go about their daily business with their vital energies barely above the point of exhaustion. Watch carefully what they eat and you will find they are not eating foods that help to build Nerve Force. As is typical of a deficiency, the body signals its need for nutrients with cravings. In the case of B-Complex vitamin deficiency, the body signals its craving for food.
Through ignorance, however, people often seek to supply this need with incorrect material by stuffing it with the so-called “quick energy” concoctions that contain refined white sugar; such as candy, chewing gum, cakes, cookies, cola drinks, ice cream, pies and other rich, sugary desserts.
These may give an apparent temporary “lift,” but this false energy is quickly consumed by the body, leaving the real deficiency even greater than before. So whenever you feel what you interpret as a “craving for sweets” look to your nerves and reach for the B-Complex vitamin supplements instead of the sugar bowl! A B-Complex vitamin deficiency is insidious and difficult to detect. Apparently, the troubles seem to be minor – occasional headaches, some colds and joint and stomach pains, or a clogged bowel which has to be whiplashed with a powerful drug laxative. Ask most people suffering from this eficiency, “How are you feeling today?” Since the trouble seems to be minor, their reply will usually be, I feel great! They have had the ailment so long that they have learned to live with it and think nothing of it. So many people have not the slightest idea what “feeling great” really means! They go on their merry way until Mother Nature finally will not take any more abuses, and then they have a complete nervous breakdown.

You are Exactly What You Eat and Drink

Of all the various causes of nervous exhaustion and the entire ensemble of conditions that arise with it, incorrect diet probably leads the group. If there is any one thing that must be changed before the body can respond with vigorous health and unlimited Nerve Force, it is the average American diet. To help relieve the strain, stress and tensions that threaten our lives, we must eat adequate amounts of natural, healthy foods to supply the body with the important nutrients for building an active brain in a strong, healthy body.
The Central Nervous System is made and maintained by the food you eat. How can you build a strong Nervous. System and maintain it on hot dogs, washed down with caffeine-filled coffee or colas? How can greasy french fried potatoes supply the nervous system with the valuable nutrients that it needs? It cannot!
As we have devitaminized and demineralized our daily foods we have weakened our Central Nervous System. We are surrounded by an avalanche of chemicals which are poisonous and injurious to our health. Our foods are sprayed with poisonous insecticides. Then the food
processors incorporate hundreds of food additives and chemicals which may make their products have longer shelf life, but will ultimately also shorten human life.
The awful price we pay for our destruction of the BComplex vitamins in our “civilized” foods is evident in the confusion, discouragement and desire for suicide – combined with the ervousness and excessive fatigue – so common in our lives and world today. In our opinion the excessive use of tobacco, alcohol, coffee, tea, cola drinks and drugs is directly related to a deficiency in BComplex vitamins. We have carefully studied the dietary habits of people who use these powerful stimulants and drugs and found in every case that these people are suffering from B-Complex vitamin deficiency.