Book Review: Wheat Belly by Dr. William Davis, M.D.

Posted on September 10, 2011 by

I am now back to work, starting up a new school year at a brand new school here in the Research Triangle Park area of NC. It has always been a dream for me to start a brand new school library from scratch. So far it is keeping me busy, but not too busy where I can tell all of you about a new book that is out titled Wheat Belly. If you have a weight problem, suffer from celiac disease, have diabetes, or have heart disease this book is a must read.

Since I lost weight eating a low carb diet, I knew that carbohydrates were the cause of my excess weight. However, I would notice that when I ate wheat, I wanted more wheat. I knew I had a gluten sensitivity and would try to stay away from the stuff, but sometimes I would slip up, just like an alcoholic, not understanding why I would want to eat the stuff knowing it was bad for me. After reading Wheat Belly, I now understand why. Basically, the wheat we eat today is not the same stuff we ate 50, 60, or 100 years ago. The wheat of today has been genetically modified and hybridized to create larger yields and to withstand insect and fungi damage. Therefore it contains more gluten then the wheat my parents or grandparents ate. Have you heard of Celiac Disease? It seems that more and more people are being diagnosed with this painful disorder and it is due this GMO wheat that is in our food supply.

But get this. I never understood why wheat raises a person’s blood glucose level say higher than popcorn or oatmeal and it has absolutely nothing to do with the fiber content of these foods. This book finally explains it. As Dr. Davis says, wheat is a “super carbohydrate” because it contains  amylopectin A which digest in the human body really, really, really fast, which in turn raises your blood glucose levels sky-high. This is why bread raises blood sugar to a greater degree than any other carbohydrate, and that includes sugar (and please do not go out and start eating sugar and think it is an okay food, because it’s not.) So really, eating two slices of bread, white or whole wheat, is no different from drinking a can of sugar sweetened pop or fruit juice.

Dr. Davis also does not give a free pass to other carbohydrates. Even though carbs such as rice, corn, potatoes and beans do not raise blood sugar levels as high as wheat, he does say they do cause blood glucose problems and suggest that they are eaten in very small portions, between 1/4-1/2 cup serving.

So yet again, we Americans have been duped. We were duped about how dietary fat makes us fat and have heart attacks. Now we have been duped about “healthy whole grains.” It is kind of like what my Grandmother Sadie said years ago, “Don’t eat a lot of starch it will fatten you up.” She did not know how starchy foods fatten one up, she just knew these foods did.

I totally recommend you go out and get the book and read it for yourself. Here are a couple of reviews about the book here and here.

Posted in Book Recommendations, gluten, Wheat | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Why African-American Women Must Lose Weight

Posted on August 7, 2011 by

Since starting my blog in 2009, the one post that I has gotten the most hits is the one dealing with African-American women and obesity. It has reached over  800 hits thus far.

As a Black female who has struggled with her weight all of her life and has now kept a significant amount of weight off, I am more aware of the problem of African-American women being extremely heavy. When I was 60 pounds heavier I was not truly cognizant of the situation. I guess I thought it was normal. However, I see so many young African-American women overweight, it is very disturbing and to me a crisis that no one in the African-American community or the health community at large is addressing.

Health is important. Health equals wealth. The healthy you are, the longer you can generate income and live a long productive life. Now that I am “middle-age” (I turned 41 in April) I realize that going to the doctor is not cheap and I want to do as much preventative care as possible. I recently went to my physician in July for a physical and got a clean bill of health. My blood glucose level was 77 and all of my blood chemistry panels were normal. Here is a link to my results if you want to read them. Being sick is expensive and I am very grateful that I have health insurance because if I didn’t I would have paid close to $1,000.00 out of my own pocket for my doctor’s visit. Yes, this $1,000.00 tab included the doctor’s visit, the physical, the lab tests and the radiologist visit because my doctor ordered an ultrasound of my uterus.

No, Black females are not lazy because I know many of you reading this are thinking that. I did not see myself as lazy and slothful. My weight was always in the back of my mind because I did not know what to do to get it off. At one point in the 1990′s I was literally killing myself at the gym trying to drop weight. People would always say, “just don’t eat so much” and to be honest I did not. Once I figured out that my body did not tolerate carbs well, especially wheat, that I finally got that I had to watch my carbs, sugar, wheat intake etc. to keep my body in check.

I know what I am going to say is going to offend some people, however these are my observations of what I see, not necessarily steeped in fact. So here it is: From what I observe there is strong cultural pressure for White women to stay thin and for whatever reason Black females do not “feel” this cultural pressure to stay thin. One thing I know for sure is that for most Black women, their self-esteem is not necessarily tied to how much they weigh. With that being said I feel that Black women need to have a paradigm shift immediately and put more emphasis on staying at a healthy weight. Being “fat and fine” is not cool. It causes so many health problems down the road. And to be honest it also affects income.

Again, all of this is my observation, nothing steeped in scientific research. I really notice this while attending a retreat this past week. The lunch that was served was the traditional southern style food: fried chicken, barbecue, hush puppies, sweet tea, fried fish, salisbury steak, you all get the drift. Anyway, me always in observing mode , I notice how the black women ate and the white women ate. African-American women ate the food as what I would call “normal.” They enjoyed it. They did not pile their plates with food mind you, but they were not as discriminating with what they ate. In other words nothing was off-limits. If they wanted fried chicken, they ate fried chicken. If they wanted banana pudding, they ate banana pudding. The food was there to be enjoyed and savored. As a matter of fact, there was so much food left, participants at the retreat were encouraged to take food home so it would not be wasted. I observed a couple of black women getting take out containers to take food home with them. No White female did this.

The White females were a little different. I would say they were much more discriminating. There were a couple who did not get any meat. The portions that White females as a whole  were small and none went back for seconds, unless it was for something to drink. As a matter of fact while I was standing in line there was one White female who was not eating any meat and she was getting some other items and a Black female across from her looked at her is a disapproving eye and said, “What, that is all you are going to eat?” The young White female responded with a smile, “I am a very picky eater.”

Also as an aside, I observed the men as well. During the retreat, women, both Black and White brought snacks and were constantly eating throughout the retreat. Men of both races did not bring or eat any snacks. Could this be why men lose weight faster than women, because they do not snack as much? Yet, I digress. That topic is for another blog post.

Now, why am I saying all of this? This obesity issue with Black females is going to kill us and it already is. Am I saying we should be more like White females? No. What I am saying we can not down play this obesity thing by saying I am a “fat and fine” and I am a BBW. Nor should we go to the other extreme and have eating disorders. We have to be to be more discriminate about what we put in our mouths. There is a difference between being Toccarra Jones big (who by the way is 5’9 and weighs 170 pounds) and Gaby Sidibe big (300 plus pounds.) And speaking of income, Gaby Sidibe’s roles are limited due to her size. Anna Wintour said she did not want her on the cover of Vogue, which is a huge career move for anyone in Hollywood. Look, it is already difficult for Black actors and actresses to get roles in Hollywood. That is just the reality of the situation. But if you are 300 plus pounds it is even more difficult. I believe that is why Jennifer Hudson lost so much weight. Jennifer knew if she did not drop the pounds, acting gigs were going to dry up quick and she would not be considered for a lot of terrific roles. It was a career and income move for her, period, and I am proud of Jennifer for dropping the weight and looking terrific. There were a lot of African-American women who are angry with Jennifer for losing weight because she was not going to be a part of the “Big Girls Club.” Look guys, it was a career and income move. A woman has to make a living and if their are millions of dollars on the line, you would lose weight, too.

And by the way, Jennifer Hudson was on the cover of Vogue. So was our First Lady, Michelle Obama. So race had nothing to do with Gaby getting on the cover of Vogue. Gaby’s weight was her downfall for not getting that coveted honor. Yeah, sure, she was on the cover of Elle. But Elle magazine is not Vogue.

I do not know how to solve this problem. The only thing I know to do is to continue to change myself and be an inspiration to others. But I would like to hear from you all. Why do you think this obesity issue is a problem with Black females? How can this problem be solved. You can leave comments on my blog or you can email me at thelibraryteacer@gmail.com. I love to read your comments and ideas.

Posted in Weight Loss-general | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Saturated Fat and Low Cholesterol

Posted on August 6, 2011 by

I must share a secret: I don’t really enjoy going to doctors. They always poke and prod you. I truly hate the whole experience.

Yet, I had my physical during my time off of work this summer and I would say my numbers were pretty good.

Cholesterol 157 (total)
HDL 61
LDL 96
Glucose 77
Blood Pressure 110/80

My “blood Chemistry” such as uric acid, triglycerides, etc. were all in the normal range. My doctor did not tell me those numbers because I got a postcard in the mail with a check off saying they were good. My vitamin d level was low, 31.7. Ideal levels are between 45-55.

I eat two eggs a day, with the yolk. I scramble my eggs in coconut oil. I use butter in my vegetables. I put mayonnaise in my tuna fish. I love some rib eye steak. Pork chops, too. I always eat dark meat chicken with the skin on it. In other words, I eat a lot of saturated fat. And my total cholesterol is 157. Based on what the scientist say, my cholesterol should be sky-high especially with all the saturated fat that I eat.

When the nurse at Duke saw these numbers, man she was more excited than I was. I guess she was not used to seeing numbers like these and immediately asked me what was I doing. I did not tell her I try to follow a low-carb lifestyle, I just told her I stopped eating pizza, Chinese food, fast food, all the usual suspects. Then I proceeded to describe my typical daily food intake and the Duke nurse said, “Oh that sounds like you are following the Dukan Diet.” Maybe it is, maybe it ain’t. Who knows.

So clearly, with regards to myself, saturated fat does not cause high cholesterol. And it sure does not cause high glucose levels. I am beginning to think those high falutin researchers lied about saturated fat and heart disease and weight gain. And then they spread these lies to the doctors and nurses. What a shame, what a shame, what a shame!

Has this all been a sham? Have Americans been avoiding eating fat for absolutely no reason? Have we been torturing ourselves with low-fat diets and end up fat in the process because we eat too many refine carbs?

Yes, folks. We were lied to.

Posted in Cholesterol | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Obesity Continues to Rise in the United States

Posted on July 7, 2011 by

A new report has come out from the Robert Wood Foundation and Trust for America’s Health about the state of obesity in the United States.

Obesity rates have now increased in 16 states and 12 states now have obesity rates over 30 percent. North Carolina, the state where I live, is the 14th most obese state in the union. Mississippi is still number 1.

The poorest among us are the heaviest. 33 percent of Americans earning less than $15,000.00 per year are obese and 24.6 percent of Americans earning $50,000.00 per year are obese.

Black Americans, especially black females, have a serious problem with weight, according to this report. So do Latinos.

So what do the so-called experts suggest in the report to combat the problem? More physical activity in the schools, more healthy school lunches, more grocery stores in low-income neighborhoods, blah, blah, blah, blah ,blah.

I get so tired of these experts telling us this dumb advice. You know why? Because that is not the problem. The problem is all the crappy, junk carbs that Americans are eating. Carbs are cheap, plan and simple. My grandparents knew this, your grandparents or great-grand parents knew this.

I was talking to my neighbor who is 68 years old the other day. She wants to go walking with me and I told her about my weight loss, and of course I get the question, “How did you do it?” I say, I really watch my carbs, stay away from bread and you know what she said to me? “My mother always said bread makes you fat.” I kid you not, those were her exact words.

And I do not need to do a $10 million study to figure this out. Just go to any grocery store and look in an obese person’s grocery cart. I always go to the Super Wal-Mart to do my grocery shopping because it is 2 miles from my house and walking through the store and watching what people buy you can clearly see why so many people, especially African-Americans and Latinos, are obese. Here is a list of what I see in shopper’s shopping carts:

Pizza
Hot Pockets
Tostinos Pizza Rolls
Ramen Noodles (people buy these by the case load)
Chips
Processed Meat such as bologna and hot dogs
Breakfast Cereals
White Bread (you can buy the Wal-Mart brand $1.00)
Soda, Fruit Punch
cookies

These foods are cheap and carb heavy. If you are trying to feed a family and have limited dollars this is what one would gravitate to.

If I was before these so-called experts I would say one thing: It’s the carbs, stupid. Now stop spending all this money on these expensive studies.

Here is a link to the full report. You can click on where you live and find out how your state stands in this obesity crisis.

Posted in junk food, Obesity, Uncategorized, Weight Loss-general | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Four Weight Loss Tools to Help You Shed and Keep the Weight Off

Posted on June 28, 2011 by

Since being on my weight loss journey for 4 years now, I have come to the realization that there are some foods, tricks and supplements that have helped me to keep the weight off. I decided to share with my readers the foods that have assisted me due to the fact that there is so much information out there about nutrition and diet. I got this idea from Dr.Oz after watching one of his shows online about people who lost over 100 pounds or more. He asked each of his guest to list 4 foods, nutrients, exercises, etc. that helped them to shed the pounds and keep them off.

Here are Michelle’s 4 tools that have helped me to keep weight off now for 4 years:

1. Eggs-I can’t say enough about eggs. Eggs are high in protein, approximately 6 to 7 grams per egg and they are very filling. I eat the entire egg because the yolk is high in choline which is good for brain health. Typically, I eat 2 eggs a day, sometimes scrambled, sometimes boiled, depending on my mood.

2. Whey Protein-I use to drink whey protein drinks back in the late nineties, but did not realize this power house food was keeping me slim and retaining my lean muscle. Now I realize how important whey protein really is. One scoop of high quality whey protein has between 18 and 24 grams of protein. It has a high biological value (bv) meaning it will promote lean muscle gain. Since I have been supplementing my diet with whey protein, I have notice my clothes are fitting way better than usual. Also, my appetite is not as strong. I typically drink two whey protein shakes a day, which gives me an extra 50 grams of protein .

3. Green Tea-I do not know how this stuff works, I just know it does.  There is something in green tea that speeds up your metabolism called EGCG and when I take it before exercise, I can keep going forever. I take a green tea supplement daily and drink a cup a day and boy do I feel good. The caffeine in green tea probably helps with keeping my energy elevated as well.

4. Exercise-I find that exercise keeps me lean and elevates my mood. It also cuts my appetite to the point where I do not want to eat at all. I have the will power to stay away from carbs and sugar and all the stuff I know will get me fatter. For example, today, I walked/jogged for 45 minutes around 9:30 am. The only thing I have eaten today is eggs, cottage cheese, orange, whey protein drink and lots of water. I know I need to eat something else, I am just not hungry and it is 3:00 in the afternoon.

4.5 Okay, just one more tip. Weighing myself once a day, first thing in the morning has been tremendously successful for me. Some people think this is excessive, but you know what? IT WORKS! Why does weighing yourself once a day, first thing in the morning work? You catch weight creep! Most people can’t go by how their clothes fit. I can’t. Only really skinny people can do that. If you weigh yourself regularly and the scale goes up a couple of pounds, you can decide was it something you ate, is it your monthly cycle, did you eat too late, etc. So if you can catch it at 2 to 5 pounds, you won’t be shocked and depressed when the scale gets to over 100 pounds overweight. And it is easier to lose 5 pounds than it is to lose 100 pounds. If you do this one trick, you will completely transform your weight loss, I guarantee it.

There you have it. The 4 1/2 tools that have help me to keep the weight off. I hope you find these tips useful.

Posted in Exercise, Weight Loss-general, Whey Protein | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Potato Chips Make You Fat After All-Do Ya Think?

Posted on June 23, 2011 by

In the news: another multi-million dollar study has come out to tell us what our grandparents or great-grandparents told us a gazillion times-JUNK FOOD MAKES US FAT!

I always had issues with weight loss companies or individuals when they say you can eat anything in moderation. You know what? That is a bunch of bull. If you want to lose weight, you can’t eat anything you want. Period. I had to learn that the hard way. Those are lies weight loss companies tell people to make them feel better.

So to all of my family and friends who think they can still eat junk food and snack all of the time and still lose weight, you are lying to yourselves.

It’s all over the news. Health researchers have pinpointed the top foods and behaviors that are linked to insidious weight gain. The number one food is potato chips. Right behind it are potatoes, specifically french fries. Sweetened beverages such as soda pop and fruit juices round out the top three.

What do all of these top foods have in common? They are all highly refined, starchy carbohydrates. Why can’t people admit Dr. Atkins was right?

I am surprised that pizza did not make it in there because Americans chow down a lot of this crappy food. All it is dough, miniscule cheese, and tomato sauce, with some meat. To me, pizza does a lot of damage to a person’s waist line.

Red meat is culprit in weight gain as well. However, I wondered if it is mostly hamburger meat that people are consuming that is causing this. I need to read the study to find out. I seriously doubt people are consuming rib-eye or new york strip steaks everyday. That is too expensive.

Anyway, here is a link to the article if you want to read it for yourself.

 

Posted in junk food | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Exercise: Why I Am More of an Advocate

Posted on June 23, 2011 by

I know it has been a while since I have posted on my blog. I have been quite busy with the ending of school, but now that I am out for my summer vacation, I can get back to writing. My goal is to write one blog post a week.

As far as my weight goes, my weight is stable at 213 pounds. I am staying below 220, but still far from my goal of 180. At one point I reached 209.8 through strict dieting. What I realize though, strict dieting  is not sustainable, at least not for me. I still believe in a low carbohydrate diet, but there are times when my diet will not always be “perfect.” Therefore, I am following my low-carb diet respectfully and rigorously, not rigidly because I know I will slip up from time.

That is why I have changed my opinion on exercise. I have become more of an advocate of it and feel it is important. I wrote a blog post a while back that exercise does not help with weight loss. The reason? Most people rationalize eating a 500 calorie muffin because they jogged 3 miles. Well, the truth be told, the average person burns about 100 calories per mile, so exercise does not excuse us for over indulging. Unfortunately, the human body does not work like check book, our bodies are more like chemistry experiments. Everything we eat reacts chemically in our bodies. That is why some people can eat a whole lot of carbohydrates and others can’t.  Since I have been off from work, I have been exercising on  a daily basis and this is what I have noticed: my appetite totally vanishes when I exercise. As a matter of fact, I have to make myself eat on days that I exercise because I have a lack of desire for food.

Now the question is, why is that? Well I have my opinions as to why, but I would like to know from my readers, what are your opinions on this exercise thing?  Now Gary Taubes, whose book, Good Calories, Bad Calories, changed my life, says that exercise makes us hungry, but I get the opposite effect. So Gary, I do not agree with you on the exercise makes us hungry theory. I believe it truly depends on the individual.

My official stance on exercise is this: exercise is a great way to keep weight off. Exercise keeps insulin levels low, which in turn burns body fat. Exercise decreases appetite in some people. Shoot for 5 hours of exercise a week if you are trying to drop body fat. However, if you want to drop body fat, you must watch what you eat. I am sorry, you can’t eat whatever you want and still lose body fat. If you hear a weight loss plan that says that you can eat whatever you want and still lose weight they are lying to you! You can’t exercise your way out of a bad diet.

Posted in Exercise, Gary Taubes, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 2 Comments