Complimentary Issue: Quest for Healthy Living Newsletter

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Complimentary Issue:

 

Quest for Healthy Living Newsletter – November 15, 2002

 

 

In This Issue:

 

Diet Issues: To Carb or Not to Carb?

GREAT RECIPE: VEGETABLE CAKES WITH RED PEPPER COULIS

Fat Gene: It Really Exists

 

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To Carb, or Not to Carb?

By John Casey

 

Dietitians just plain don't like low-carb or high-protein diets.

Whether it's The Atkins Diet, The Stillman Diet, The Scarsdale Diet or Eat

Yourself Thin Like I Did by Nancy Moshier -- a popular, new book that

recommends a low-carb regimen -- medical experts say these diets are not

part of long-term weight maintenance.

 

" All of these diets, they are warmed-over versions of The Atkins Diet, "

says Heather Holden, RD, LDN, clinical dietitian at Vanderbilt University

Medical Center in Nashville. " Low-carb, high-protein, it doesn't matter

what you call them, they don't work in the long run. "

 

 

How Many Calories Do You Need?

First thing is to calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate. " That's the number

of calories your body needs every day to maintain a constant weight. The

number is different for everyone. "

 

Next, establish your ideal body weight and then multiply that number by 10

to arrive at the daily calorie intake. For example, if your ideal body

weight was 130 pounds, you would multiply that 130 by 10 to get 1,300

calories per day.

 

" That is a very rough estimate of what you need to eat each day at your

ideal weight, " says Holden. " So that gives you a place to start. If you

weigh 160 pounds, and your ideal weight is 130 pounds, then you start a

calorie diary to see how much you're eating each day. Then you can get a

better idea of how much you can eat every day to start working off weight

to get closer to your ideal weight. "

 

That much, she says, is useful. But the book goes on to tout the wonders

of low-carb eating as the best way to maximize loss of body fat.

 

" That's the part you want to avoid, " says Holden. " Low-carb diets provide

quick weight loss but do not help you maintain weight loss. "

 

The American Dietetic Association (ADA) says that both low-carb and

high-protein diets are bad.

 

" These diets are not safe, they are not healthy, and they are not a good

way to try to get healthy, " says Leslie Bonci, RD, nutritionist with the

University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Sports Complex and a spokesperson

for the ADA. " They provide short-term, rapid weight loss by causing the

body to shed water weight and muscle. But that is no way to keep weight

off for very long, and it's dangerous to your body chemistry. "

 

Dangerous Process

According to the ADA, low-carb diets and others like it trigger short-term

weight loss through a process called ketosis. This process kicks in when

your body is in short supply of carbohydrates, a prime source of energy

for the entire body, but especially for the brain, which operates

exclusively on carbohydrates.

 

During ketosis, your carbohydrate-depleted body grabs other sources,

including ketones from stored fat or protein, to satisfy daily energy

needs. This leads to ketoacidosis, a state similar to that seen with type

1 diabetes. This type of diet can have a negative long-term impact on

health.

 

" Next time you talk to someone on one of these diets, pay attention to

their mental state, how alert they seem, " says Holden. " The lack of

carbohydrates tends to make them seem a bit fuzzy mentally because the

brain is not getting enough fuel. Is that any way to diet? "

 

New Research Supports It

 

But a study in the July 2002 issue of the American Journal of Medicine

showed that the most famous of low-carb diets -- the Atkins diet -- does

work.

 

Study participants lost an average of 20 pounds while on the Atkins diet

for six months, but they were not followed longer to see if they kept the

weight off. Most people also had improved cholesterol levels at the end of

the study, even though the eating plan permits unlimited quantities of

cholesterol-rich foods such as eggs and meat.

 

The study was funded by a grant from the Robert Atkins Center for

Complementary Medicine. Duke researcher Eric Westman, MD, says he became

interested in studying the Atkins diet after several of his patients lost

large amounts of weight on it.

 

But though researchers were impressed by the weight loss, they say more

study is needed to pronounce the carbohydrate-restricting diet safe.

 

Safe Dieting

 

Here's how the American Heart Association says to take weight off -- and

keep it off.

· Be active -- try walking 30 minutes a day most days of the week.

· To lose weight, most women should eat 1,200-1,500 calories per day.

· To lose weight, most men should eat 1,500-1,800 calories a day.

· A loss of one to two pounds per week is considered a healthy weight loss.

· People who lose weight gradually are more likely to keep the weight off.

· Eat no more than 30% of your total calories from fat.

· Include at least five servings of fruit and vegetables in your diet each

day.

· Examine your eating habits -- keep a written journal of what and when

you eat.

· Weigh yourself only once a week.

· Eat breakfast to curb binge eating.

" There are still a lot of things we don't know about food and nutrition, "

says Holden. " Nutrition is a relatively young science, but we do know that

you can trick the body's mechanisms in the short run. In the long run,

however, those short cuts catch up with you in the form of weight gain. "

 

 

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GREAT RECIPE: VEGETABLE CAKES WITH RED PEPPER COULIS

 

Yield: 12 cakes (6 servings) by Wolfgang Puck

 

1 pound (2 medium) baking potatoes

1 cup diced celery

1 cup diced carrots

1 cup diced onion

1 medium peeled, seeded and diced tomato

Vegetable stock, if necessary

1 cup fresh peas

3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

Pinch of red pepper flakes

3 large egg whites

3 tablespoons nonfat milk

About 1 cup dried bread crumbs

Red Pepper Coulis

 

Bake the potatoes until tender. In a large nonstick skillet, slowly sauté

the celery, carrots, onion and tomato until the vegetables are tender, 10

to 15 minutes. If the tomatoes are not juicy, add a little vegetable

stock. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and add the peas, basil, cumin,

turmeric and red pepper flakes. Set aside to cool. Scrape the potato from

the shell into a mixing bowl and mash. In a small bowl whisk together the

egg whites and the milk. Stir into the mashed potatoes until smooth. Add

to the vegetables and combine thoroughly. Form into 12 patties, about 2

ounces each.

 

Pour the dried bread crumbs onto a large plate and lightly coat both sides

of each patty. For firmer patties stir the crumbs into the potato-milk mix

until distributed evenly.

 

Spray 1 or 2 large skillets with a vegetable oil spray and sauté the

patties until browned, about 5 minutes per side.

 

Presentation:

Nap each of 6 plates with the red pepper coulis and set 2 vegetable cakes

on the sauce. Serve immediately.

 

Serving size:

2 vegetable cakes with 1/4 cup Red Pepper Coulis

 

145 calories

1.3 grams total fat

0.1 gram saturated fat

0 milligrams cholesterol

 

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Fat Gene: It Really Exists

 

Finally, there's proof -- those love handles and saddlebags may not be

your fault. Researchers have identified a gene that directly causes

obesity. They've christened it HOB1, for Human Obesity 1.

 

" It's very clear that obesity is [inheritable], " says Steven Stone, PhD,

senior scientist at Myriad Genetics Inc. " This is the very first example

of a gene that is involved in that process in humans. "

 

In fact, the HOB1 discovery is likely the first baby step to the ultimate

weight-loss pill -- one that could benefit those who are severely

overweight, Stone tells WebMD. " It's not unreasonable that people who are

less obese could get some benefit, too. "

 

Researchers have long told us that the propensity for weight gain lies in

our genes. Studies of twins and families have provided ample evidence of

this. But until now, scientists have not isolated the gene or genes

involved in that vulnerability.

" Obesity carries a social stigma, " Stone tells WebMD. " But here is more

evidence that it is a medical condition, not always a case of

overindulgence. "

 

In their study, Stone and colleagues focused on thousands of Utah

families, all with two or more close relatives (siblings, parents, or

children) who were more than 100 pounds overweight.

Through a complex process, the researchers discovered a region of the

human DNA that contained highly significant evidence for a gene that

predisposed to obesity, writes Stone in his report, published in the April

15 issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics.

 

In fact, the same gene may be linked with diabetes, too, he tells WebMD.

Shortly after his discovery, another research group at Myriad " discovered "

the same gene when investigating genetic causes of diabetes. The

researchers think the gene may be involved in diabetes, but there is no

evidence that it's a direct cause.

 

Curiously, the gene was strongly linked with women in the study group,

Stone says. It could be that the gene may have an effect on men, but one

that's simply weaker than in women.

Unfortunately, obesity is more complex than one little gene, Stone says.

Coming up with that ultimate diet pill is going to take a lot more

research.

 

HOB1 is a very significant contributor to the disease, but it's not the

only gene involved, he tells WebMD. " Obviously, the goal of this work is

to identify genes involved in predisposition then initiate a drug

discovery. If you identify the genes involved, then you can try to

modulate the activity with molecules as a way of treating the disease.

That's our goal. "

 

It's taken his group six years to isolate HOB1, he says. " The whole

process can take 12 years on average, unless you get lucky. "

 

For some perspective, WebMD turned to Aubrey Milunsky, MD, director of the

human genetics center at Boston University School of Medicine. Milunsky is

author of the book Your Genetic Destiny: Know Your Genes, Secure Your

Health, Save Your Life.

 

When news broke last year about the discovery of leptin (a protein

directly linked with obesity), " it was a big finding, but it applied to 1%

of people who were morbidly obese, " Milunsky tells WebMD. " There was a lot

of initial hype, but then we finally saw the reality that leptin accounts

for obesity in the very occasional person, not the average overweight

individual. "

 

HOB1 could likely be the same scenario, he says. " It's been discovered in

a very select set of families -- and particularly confined to females.

That's kind of curious. It means there are other factors at work in

concert with the gene. "

 

The study of such complex disorders -- that result from the interaction of

a handful of genes and some environmental factors -- is moving along at

breakneck speed, Milunsky tells WebMD. " The general purpose [of this

research] is undoubtedly financial. "

 

Case in point: " If one was able to recognize at birth whether little

Johnny was susceptible to high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, heart

disease, and so on, there might be ... medications that could intercede

and change all that. There could be medications taken once daily that

would prevent them. "

 

Don't look for that ultimate magic " obesity bullet " any time soon,

Milunsky says. " The public in general is spending millions on diet books,

methods for weight loss. But it's complex territory that is not going be

solved easily. We're a long way from an 'obesity pill.' You can't suppress

appetite in very simple ways until you know precisely what the trigger is. "

 

In the meantime: " Watch your calories and exercise.”

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