Diet and Nutrition

Will Power vs. Won’t Power

My uncle has always been a large man, the kind that has to duck to go through many doorways. He is used to respect and likes being in control. He is also full of advice, wanting to share with people the things that he has learned throughout his life. I am sure when he was diagnosed with diabetes a few years ago, it took some time for him to adjust because this was uncharted territory, not something he knew already or knew how to control. He has learned how to manage his diet and glucose levels. He has even learned how to indulge in small portions of favorite desserts without causing any health issues. As a result his disease is not at a severe level.
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Posted on September 27, 2024 by Brooke Randolph

Fat Controls Your Brain, Eating Impulses

If you’ve ever thought that your favorite food was “calling your name,” irresistibly drawing you to the refrigerator, it’s not just all in your head. Well, actually it is in your head. But, it’s very real. Let me explain…

A study at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas has found that fat from certain foods goes to the brain and triggers the brain to send messages to the cells in the body, telling them to ignore the appetite-suppressing signals from leptin and insulin.

The interference with the leptin and insulin hormones, which are involved in regulating your weight, goes on for up to three days. (more…)

Posted on September 27, 2024 by Jason

How to Survive an Ultra Marathon

Because completing my first Olympic distance triathlon was not enough, I decided to follow up a week later with my first ultra marathon – a 50K (31 mile) trail race in The North Face Endurance Challenge series! If you’re surprised, trust me, I was too! I actually thought I was competing in a 20-miler! But, you know what, when it came down to it, I trusted myself and my nutrition fueling plan. I just committed to having fun.

Here’s how I survived my ultra marathon:

Carb-load – Carbs are gasoline for the body and you can’t attempt a 50K without putting gas in the tank. I had two cups of whole wheat pasta with marinara sauce and some salted steak fries the night before my run.

Early riser breakfast – I woke at 4 a.m. for a 7 a.m. start and I noshed on a toasted plain bagel with almond butter, a banana, and water. (more…)

Posted on September 25, 2024 by Rebecca

Using the Gluten, Casein and Soy-Free Diet for Children with Autism

The week of September 20 is Autism Awareness Week at DietsInReview.com.

Guest Blogger Holly Bortfeld is a work-at-home mom to two children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), ages 14 and 16. She home-schools her son and writes content for the Talk About Curing Autism (TACA ) site, including the popular series, “Autism-On-A-Budget.” Follow Holly on Twitter @TACAnow.

My son has been on the GFCF diet since 1998. Back then, there was little available as far as information, research or foods that didn’t taste like cardboard. Happily, you can now find an extensive array of mixes and pre-packaged foods now in grocery and health food stores, as well as online grocers.

Why should you do the diet? Because it works! According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, at least 70% of children with ASD have gastroenterological problems and both published and anecdotal research shows diet to be the single-most effective treatment used with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) kids. (more…)

Posted on September 25, 2024 by GuestBlogger

Live Happy iPhone App Keeps You Happy and Healthy

According to the background information provided, Live Happy is a positive psychology iPhone app based on the happiness research of psychology professor and author of The How of Happiness, Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky. The app includes personalization based on short quizzes and research-based activities that can increase happiness. These activities include:

Goal Setting/Evaluating/Tracking
Expressing Gratitude Directly
Keeping a Gratitude Journal
Replaying Happy Days
Keeping a Savoring Album
Envisioning Your Best Possible Self
Nurturing Relationships
and Remembering Acts of Kindness (more…)

Posted on September 24, 2024 by Brooke Randolph

Feeding a Finicky Autistic Child

The week of September 20 is Autism Awareness Week at DietsInReview.com.

Guest blogger Jean is a mom to three young sons, one of whom is on the autism spectrum. She has spent many years trying to find ways to entice her autistic son to eat healthy food. She writes about her life and her kids on her blog, Stimeyland.

“C’mon, Jack, just take one bite. Please?”

You hear this a lot at my house. Jack is my autistic son, and he does not care for new food. Nor does he care for familiar food, especially if it is a fruit or vegetable. He has about 15 foods he will happily eat, and he is usually unwilling to stray outside that list.

We’ve tried many things to get him to eat: Fruit in smoothies! Vegetables hidden in spaghetti sauce! Raisins hidden in cookies! But he just takes one tiny sip of the smoothie and walks off. He cleans the sauce off of his pasta with his cup of milk. And if he finds a raisin in his cookie, he will spit it out. In fact, he’s started to avoid cookies because of the unwelcome surprises he’s found in them. (more…)

Posted on September 24, 2024 by GuestBlogger

Learning to Love the Casein-Free Diet for Autism

The week of September 20 is Autism Awareness Week at DietsInReview.com.

Janice Wright's son's favorite food: Oyster cracker & cream cheese

Guest blogger Janice Ellen Wright blogs about her experiences with her son’s school program for students with high-functioning autism and how this experience got her sent to the principal’s office for the first time in her life. Feel free to search for controversy at Autism and Public Schools.

When my son was about four-years old, and struggling with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD), a behavioral disorder of autism, I bought a book titled Unraveling the Mystery of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorder: A Mother’s Story of Research and Recovery, by Karyn Seroussi.

I had no idea what the GFCF diet was, nor did I want to know. But Seroussi was such a thoughtful writer, I kept on reading. When she wrote something like, “How can you not try removing dairy, for your child’s sake?” I knew I had to try. (more…)

Posted on September 23, 2024 by GuestBlogger

Tune In: Curtis Stone on Biggest Loser

He’s back at the ranch and sure to bring even more healthy cooking knowledge! Tune in tonight, September 22, to the second episode of Biggest Loser to see what this attractive chef is serving. Curtis Stone is the Aussie chef who first showed up at Biggest Loser during season 7 with recipes so good it was hard to believe they were good for us. Now he’s back to help the newest cast of Biggest Loser contestants overcome their old habits in the kitchen by introducing healthier tips and tricks that anyone can use to make delicious, healthy meals.

Tonight Curtis also has a pop quiz prepared for the contestants, sure to test their nutrition knowledge. It might only be week two, but we’re hoping to see nothing but right answers.

If you missed his season seven appearance, then you must try these recipes: (more…)

Posted on September 22, 2024 by Natalie K

Recommended Daily Protein Intake

“How much protein should I eat?” Have you found yourself asking this question? Well, the recommended daily value for protein is 50 grams. For those of us that exercise and push the body to the extreme, we need a few more grams per day. If you are exercising at a moderate to high intensity level, I recommend consuming 0.8 grams of protein for every pound of your body weight.

For example: if you weigh 150 pounds, then you should be consuming 150 x 0.8, which is 120 grams of protein per day. Be careful and don’t over-do it though; protein is broken down into amino acids and excess amino acids are converted to fats and sugars and then stored in the body. Below are a few examples of the best sources of protein! (more…)

Posted on September 22, 2024 by Matt

The Feingold Diet for Autism

The week of September 20 is Autism Awareness Week at DietsInReview.com.

Guest Blogger Karianna writes at The Karianna Spectrum. Her oldest son was diagnosed with PDD-nos when he was in pre-school.

Food is sustenance, but it also has sensory and social components. All three of these come into play for individuals on the autistic spectrum.

Many kids with autism are affected by food in ways that neurotypical children are not. My son is on the Feingold Program, a diet that avoids certain salicylates and petroleum-based additives. Other children have found success with gluten-free/ casein-free diets, particularly when they also have celiac disease. Some autistic kids might have lots of food sensitivities, while others may have none.

Even without a specific food concern, kids on the spectrum typically have more pronounced reactions to food, so eating healthfully is even more crucial than for a typical kid who might be “off” after lots of junk food or without a well-rounded diet. (more…)

Posted on September 22, 2024 by GuestBlogger

A Biggest Loser Family Fights Autism with a Healthy Lifestyle

The week of September 20 is Autism Awareness Week at DietsInReview.com. The Parhams join us to share their story.

Phillip and Amy Parham were contestants on season six of The Biggest Loser where they lost a combined total of 256 pounds. They have three children: Austin, (14), Pearson (12), and Rhett (9). They continue to inspire people through their website and social network PhilAndAmyFitness.com and through “90 day fitness challenges” that they conduct across the country. In June 2024 they will release a book entitled “Dream Again: Phil and Amy’s 90 Day Fitness Challenge” and a companion DVD.

When it was first suggested to me that my son Rhett might have autism I instantly thought about Raymond on the movie “Rain Man.” Suddenly my life became about trying to “fix” Rhett. So I went out in search of every therapy, diet, and program I could find to do this. I soon learned the reason that they call autism a “spectrum” disorder. (more…)

Posted on September 21, 2024 by GuestBlogger

Diet and Nutrition

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