Search Results for: healthy eating

The holidays are a time for family, friends – and food! For many people, the many celebrations and holiday meals can severely disrupt the digestive system, causing intestinal discomfort, acid reflux, indigestion, heartburn and more. Neha Sahni, MD, gastroenterologist with Rush Copley Medical Group, provided tips at a recent health talk to keep digestive health in check this holiday season.

Avoid weight gain

Holidays and weight gain often go hand in hand. To avoid gaining weight, caloric intake and energy expenditure should balance. Typically, individuals should consume between 2,000 and 2,500 calories a day, and Dr. Sahni suggests keeping a food diary to calculate intake. To make good choices, be aware of what constitutes a healthy diet. Macronutrients are foods our bodies need in large amounts. She says a healthy diet consists of three primary macronutrients: carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Fiber may also be considered a macronutrient.

Carbohydrates provide your body with energy and should account for 45 to 65 percent of total calorie intake, Dr. Sahni says, noting the type of carbohydrate is important. Whole grains are preferred over refined grains, and high glycemic index foods, such as white rice and pancakes, should be replaced with low glycemic index foods, such as fruits and vegetables. She explains that foods with a high glycemic index are quickly digested and absorbed, causing a rapid rise in blood sugar. Beverages and processed foods which have added sugars should make up less than 10 percent of total calories.

Make healthy choices

Proteins help build and repair tissue, bone, muscle, cartilage, blood, and skin and should comprise 10 to 35 percent of a person’s total caloric intake. Dr. Sahni recommends eating a variety of protein: fish, lean meat, poultry, eggs, beans, peas, nuts and seeds.

Fats should make up 20 to 35 percent of caloric intake, and the type of fat is important. Trans fats – found in margarines, processed foods, crackers, cookies and fast foods – are associated with coronary artery disease and should be kept to less than 10 percent of calories. Unsaturated fats are better choices as they reduce cholesterol, protect against illness and help maintain body temperature. These include avocado, peanut butter, nuts and seeds, fish oil and omega 3 fatty acids.

A daily diet should include 25 to 36 grams per day of fiber as it helps decrease coronary artery disease, stroke and colon cancer. Whole grains found in barley, oatmeal, brown rice, whole wheat breads and pastas are preferred over refined fibers, which include pasta and white breads and white rice.  

Alcohol and sweetened beverages

What’s a holiday celebration without a toast? Alcohol should be consumed in moderation, and Dr. Sahni advises no more than one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men. Moderate consumption may decrease risk of coronary artery disease but increase the risk of breast and colon cancers. Soft drinks and sweetened beverages – including fruit drinks, sports drinks and energy drinks – should be limited as they contain added refined sugar and calories, contribute to weight gain and increase coronary artery disease, diabetes and hypertension.  Moderate consumption of coffee – three cups a day – may lower liver or uterine cancers. When drinking juices, Dr. Sahni recommends the kind with pulp for the fiber. Water is always a good choice.

Irritable bowel syndrome and the holidays

Irritable bowel syndrome, or IBS, affects 10 to 15 percent of Americans, but less than half are diagnosed. Symptoms include recurring gut pain or discomfort with diarrhea or constipation or both.  IBS is worse over the holidays because of unhealthy foods and stress. Cookies and pies contain artificial sugars which are not good for IBS and cause bloating. Stress increases cortisol which worsens symptoms and doesn’t allow food to digest properly.

Dr. Sahni recommends trying to stick to a routine over the holidays and asking about ingredients in cooked foods.  She also suggests people identify triggers for their symptoms. “If meatballs are a trigger, eat smaller portions or avoid them altogether,” she says. “If you are lactose intolerant, keep Lactaid tablets with you. Stay hydrated to prevent constipation. Know your body and don’t overdo it.” Her other recommendations:  stay away from caffeine and carbonated beverages (they cause gas and heartburn); drink herbal teas; don’t overeat (it takes four to five hours for food to go through the small intestine); use MiraLAX for constipation and Imodium for diarrhea. Diets low in FODMAPS are an effective therapy for IBS. This FODMAP list recommends which foods to eat and which to avoid if you suffer from IBS.

Avoid acid reflux

Acid reflux symptoms include a burning in the chest or upper abdomen, sore throat, belching, hoarseness and difficulty swallowing.  Large meals exacerbate symptoms so she recommends eating four to five smaller meals rather than two to three large ones. Other tips include losing weight and avoiding smoking and trigger foods like spicy and fatty foods, citrus, alcohol, onion, chocolate and caffeine. Do not wear tight clothes or lie down for three hours after eating. When going to bed, use pillows to elevate your head by four to six inches.

Do not use Zantac

Zantac, a drug commonly used to relieve and prevent heartburn, has been recalled and should not be used. Instead, Dr. Sahni says Tums or Pepcid can be used as needed. For more severe cases, Prilosec is available over the counter, but should be taken continuously for at least two weeks, rather than as needed.

Celiac disease

Holiday gatherings can be challenging for people with Celiac disease. Those with this immune disease cannot eat gluten – a protein found in wheat, rye and barley – because it damages the small intestine. Dr. Sahni recommends discussing needs with relatives beforehand and suggests that gluten-free guests should go through buffets first to avoid cross-contamination, take a dish to share with others, and bring a snack or eat before going to a party.

Helpful holiday tips

In general, Dr. Sahni recommends the following tips.

• Be active, get plenty of sleep and control stress.
• Snack wisely.
• Watch portion sizes, use a smaller plate and practice mindful eating.
• Bring a healthy dish to a potluck.
• Limit desserts.
• Weigh yourself daily.

With a little forethought and wise eating, you and your digestive system can enjoy the holidays!

The human body is a wonder in its design, a complex machine capable of everything from rational thought to fending off disease. It’s also capable of some pretty strange things – some of them forewarning disease, while others are just plain involuntary oddities with no conceivable purpose (except to leave us scratching our heads). Rush Copley Medical Group physicians explain a few of them.

Hiccups
Hiccups are common and usually temporary. Very rarely are they so persistent and intractable that they lead to health issues. By definition, a hiccup is an involuntary and intermittent spasmodic contraction of the diaphragm and rib muscles, which leads to the sudden intake of air and abrupt closure of the glottis. Hiccup bouts can occur due to gastric distension from overeating, carbonated beverages, chewing gum (swallowing too much air), smoking, endoscopy due to air insufflation, sudden change in gastrointestinal temperature or excess alcohol intake. It is the more persistent and intractable hiccups, which generally occur due to a serious underlying disease, that needs further examination. Some of these issues include vascular diseases, central nervous system diseases, intracranial neoplasms, GERD, duodenal ulcer and malignancy. Treating bouts of hiccups involves first trying physical maneuvers, including holding ones breath, gargling, sipping cold water, swallowing dry sugar (to stimulate the uvula), pressing the eyes (to increase vagal stimulation), pulling knees to the chest or leaning forward (to contract the irritated diaphragm). If none of these tactics work, medications can then be prescribed.
– Neha Sahni, MD, Gastroenterology

Brain Freeze
There’s nothing worse than having a refreshing cool snack to quench your hunger and having it be followed by brain freeze. Brain freeze is that intensely painful but usually brief head pain that happens after you eat or drink something cold – ice cold drinks, ice cream, and popsicles are common culprits. While we aren’t completely sure what happens, we’re pretty sure it has to do with a cold snack hitting the roof of the mouth and causing blood vessels to constrict and expand rapidly. These blood vessels trigger pain receptors in the roof of the mouth to send a signal to the nearby brain and cause that discomfort. It is usually after consuming a cold food item particularly quickly and having it hit the roof of your mouth before it can get warmed by the tongue.

To help stop or prevent the pain you can try a couple things:

• Allow cold food and drink to warm briefly on your tongue before they hit the roof of your mouth
• Consume cold foods/drinks slowly in small bites/sips
• Place your warm tongue on the roof of your mouth to help the pain
• Tilt your head backwards for 10 to 15 seconds once the pain starts
• Consume something warmer than the cold item after the pain begins (to warm the area)

For the most part, brain freeze is painful and annoying, but, it isn’t harmful and won’t leave any lasting effects. People who get migraines might find them more bothersome as they may trigger headaches to come on. If you have a brain freezes that last longer than 5 to 10 minutes or is associated with other headache symptoms, making an appointment with your doctor might be wise.
– Nicole Keller, DO, Pediatrics

Snoring
People with healthy sleep patterns spend about a third of their lives sleeping. However, those of us who suffer from common sleep disorders might spend significantly less – or more – time sleeping. In other cases, your sleep could be disrupted by your partner’s sleep disorder.

Over 90 million people in the U.S. are impacted by snoring, an ailment that prevents a proper night’s rest and, in many cases, causes friction with loved ones. Snoring occurs as a result of a narrowing or obstruction of the airway during sleep. When we sleep, the muscles of the airway – including the mouth, nose and throat—relax, and the passages may become smaller. Breath moving through these narrowed passages causes the soft tissues of the airway to vibrate, which creates the sounds of snoring.

Of all sleep disorders, snoring is likely the most common. The underlying causes of snoring range from benign issues such as sleep position to more serious problems such as obesity. Allergens can also induce snoring by causing irritation and swelling in your throat and nose. Statistics indicate that about 20 to 30 percent of women snore, compared to about 40 to 50 percent of men. If you’re not sure whether you snore or not, ask your partner, as they are likely aware. The most important step to stopping snoring is to identify its cause. The resulting sleep disruption doesn’t just affect you – it can keep your family awake, as well. If your family is complaining about your snoring, or if you experience unexplained fatigue and sleepiness, it’s possible your body isn’t getting the kind of deep sleep it truly needs. If simple fixes such as changing sleep position or cutting down on alcohol don’t help, you may need to visit a sleep specialist.
– Sujay Bangarulingam, MD, Pulmonology

Fingers Prune
It is a hot summer day in Chicago and you have decided to plop yourself in the local community swimming pool. Everything looks perfect; the summer hat you’re wearing, the new swimsuit you picked up on sale at Marshalls, and the new manicure you spent $30 on and was worth every penny. You lift your hand to admire the new OPI color on your nails (perfectly titled- A Good Man-darin is Hard to Find) when you notice your beautiful manicured hands are ruined by the shriveled up, prune like appearance of your fingers! Why, why why?

There might actually be a purpose for why the skin of our fingers and toes tend to wrinkle when submerged in water for a period of time. One theory is that this increases our grip on objects that are wet. A study published in Biology Letters showed that participants were faster at picking up wet objects when they had submerged their hands in water for 30 minutes, compared to when their hands were dry. Unfortunately we still don’t completely understand the mechanism of how this occurs but a theory that is becoming more popular is something called “digital vasoconstriction.”  This means our blood vessels in our fingers and toes narrow when submerged in water causing the upper layer of our skin to wrinkle.  All of this is thought to be triggered by an involuntary nervous system reaction. That manicure doesn’t look all that bad now, does it?
– Sarah Ahmed, MD, Family Medicine

Have you ever asked your doctor, what should I eat?  For example, many patients want to know what they should eat to lose weight: High fat, low fat?  Are carbs good for you or bad for you?  I think this exact question represents the dilemma that physicians face when advising their patients about diet. Generally, dietary advice needs to be tailored to the specific needs and goals of each individual patient.

But what if we focused more on the broader principles of a healthy diet which decrease inflammation and can benefit everyone? By doing this we can make general recommendations that most people can try to follow relatively easily and may offer secondary benefits like weight loss, lowered cancer, and heart/brain disease risk.

By emphasizing a wide variety of whole, unprocessed foods and minimizing the intake of refined sugars, trans fatty acids, food additives (and if possible, grown without pesticides , herbicides or other agricultural chemicals) we can decrease inflammation and oxidative stress, greatly reducing free radicals that are often at the cornerstone of disease.

Many of the drugs we use today to treat disease originally were developed using botanicals or natural plants.  Why don’t we go back to basics and simply start eating a less processed diet to harness some of the inherent nutritional benefits that a natural diet can provide?

Here are some suggestions to help you get started:

Increase fiber in the diet: a high-fiber diet normalizes bowel movements, which helps you better absorb nutrients and decreases your risk of developing hemorrhoids and small pouches in your colon that can become infected (diverticular disease). It lowers cholesterol levels and helps control blood sugar levels. It also tends to be more filling and can help with weight-loss than lower fiber foods. We are now starting to understand how fiber can improve immunity and help people fight off infections!

• Increase whole grains. Refined “white bread” type products are typically whole wheat that have been stripped of their fiber content. For example, they lack a chemical called Betaine which reduces homocysteine levels. We know that elevated homocysteine levels can increase heart disease risk. For those of you who have Celiac Disease or are gluten-intolerant, there are many whole grains that are gluten-free. Try Amaranth, buckwheat, quinoa, oats and rice.
• Beans and other legumes are also an excellent source of fiber. Eating beans like lentils, whole soy products (tofu, soy milk, edamame), and other legumes have been shown to help maintain good blood sugar and lower cholesterol levels.  Fun fact—did you know peanuts are legumes?
• Incorporating more fruits and vegetables in the diet. Fruits and vegetables have large amounts of dietary fiber, not to mention a lot of other good stuff (see more on this below).
• Don’t forget about seeds and nuts! Nuts and seeds are also a good source of fiber, protein, and essential fatty acids. Eating a variety of nuts can reduce cholesterol levels and lower risk of heart disease.  The healthiest form of nuts are raw and unsalted. They should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator so their healthy fats do not oxidize.

Make your plate colorful!  Fruits and vegetables are full of vitamins, minerals, and “phytochemicals” that can help reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke, some cancers, hypertension, osteoporosis and other diseases.

• Specifically cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale and cauliflower contain chemicals substances which have demonstrated anticancer effects
• Onions and tomato help your blood to be less likely to clot and can reduce blood pressure.
• Mushrooms are immunity enhancers
• Fruits: berries are particularly plentiful of antioxidant pigments that help fight cancer and due to the fiber they can help keep blood sugar stable. Get frozen berries when not in season!

Avoid refined sugars!

• They can lead to intestinal upset
• Associated with weight gain, impaired blood sugar and increased diabetes risk
• Associated with Increased cardiovascular risk; worsens cholesterol and actually makes your blood more sticky and more likely to clot in your arteries
• Impaired immunity (25 teaspoons or 100g of sugar in healthy volunteers was shown in one particular study to decrease the body’s immune cells to engulf bacteria)
• They are empty calories that contain virtually no vitamins, minerals, other micronutrients or fiber.
• It takes more of these calories to feel full!

Eat breakfast!

Several studies have shown that food consumed in the morning was associated with lower total daily calorie intake, which can promote weight loss. Eating breakfast can reduce total and bad cholesterol levels, improve blood sugar and possible improvement in performing mental tasks.

Meat on the side!

• Try to make plant-based proteins, vegetables, and fruits the star of your meal and let meat be the side-dish or the flavor enhancer.
• Pesticides and chemicals tend to accumulate in animal tissue since they are at the top of the food chain.
• Compared to omnivores, vegetarians have lower incidence of a number of chronic diseases
• Eating less meat is better for the environment
• High-quality, sustainably produced eggs, fish, other meats and dairy products in moderation can provide heme-iron, essential fatty acids and vitamins.

Healthy fats

• Avoid margarine and vegetable shortening and anything with trans fats (also known as partially hydrogenated fats). These fats increase cardiovascular and cancer risk.
• Most fats should be monounsaturated (olive oils, avocado, nuts).
• Consume saturated and polyunsaturated fats in moderation.

Gaby AR. Nutritional Medicine, 2011.

ABIHM Curriculum Study Guide 2013

Mayoclinic.org/health-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “An apple a day? Study shows soluble fiber boosts immune system.” Science Daily. ScienceDaily, 17 March 2010.

Dr. Weil’s anti-inflammatory diet pyramid