Depression and Cravings: Understanding the Food-Mood Connection

When it comes to food, most of us would agree that what and when we eat can directly affect how we feel. After a heavy meal, we may feel tired and bloated. If we wait too long to eat, we may feel light headed and spacey or we may get angry and be easily agitated. But did you that it also works the other way, which how we feel about ourselves, our lives, the particular day, can also have a significant effect on what we choose to eat?

Nutrition 101- Learning About Macronutrients

With all the information and misinformation in the media about what to eat and what not to eat, it is easy to forget that true nutritional information is not just based on current opinions and slick marketing, but on scientific facts. When it comes to improving your health, I always start my clients with the basic information of what the different types of food are and what we need them for. When you understand what these different types of food do for your body, and begin to pay attention to how you feel when you eat them, it becomes much easier to make choices that support your metabolism and your health.

Each year as the school year begins, national attention shifts towards the topic of school lunches in particular, and childhood nutrition in general. The quality of food served in our nation's schools has been the focus of much attention recently, and if you have so much as walked through a school cafeteria in the last decade, you know why. Our kids deserve better, and I have great admiration for those who are working to reform the complicated system that is our national school lunch program.

According to the CDC, obesity now affects 17% of all children and adolescents in the United States – triple the rate from just one generation ago. Healthy People 2010 identified overweight and obesity as 1 of 10 leading health indicators and called for a reduction in the proportion of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese, but the United States has made little progress toward the target goal. Progress toward reducing the national prevalence of overweight and obesity is monitored using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Ask the average American what he or she believes is the most common risk associated with heart disease and you’ll likely hear, “high cholesterol.” We’ve heard it from doctors, we’ve read about it in newspapers and magazines, and we’ve seen all the commercials for cholesterol-lowering drugs. With each new study, the accepted safe blood cholesterol numbers are getting lower and lower. It used to be that a total cholesterol count under 300 was acceptable, then 250, and now the American Heart Association recommends it be under 200.

Managing Blood Pressure with a Heart-Healthy Diet

According to the American Heart Association, eating a heart-healthy diet is important for managing your blood pressure and reducing your risk of heart attack, heart disease, stroke and other diseases. Research has shown that following a healthy eating plan can both reduce the risk of developing high blood pressure and lower an already elevated blood pressure.

Your Diabetes Diet is simply a healthy-eating plan that will help you control your blood sugar. Here’s help getting started by learning what foods to include and what foods to avoid on your path to good health. A diabetes diet simply translates into eating a variety of nutritious foods in moderate amounts and sticking to regular mealtimes.

Education, Not Restriction

When it comes to weight loss, there’s no lack of fad diets promising fast results! But such diets limit your nutritional intake, are usually unhealthy, and tend to fail in the long run. The key to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight isn’t about short-term dietary changes. It is about becoming educated about different kinds of foods, your body, your mind, and how they all work together. When we choose our meals and snacks based on QUALITY ingredients, and our bodies becomes nourished and satisfied, we are no longer hungry beyond our bodies requirement for nutrients. When we understand what QUALITY foods are, and enjoy eating them, we no longer have to be concerned with QUANTITY- counting calories, carbs, and portions- as a way of “eating” healthy.