Green Light Program | Shape NOT Weight

Sugar – It’s NOT Toxic

admin — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 19:01:13 +0000

Recent media was full of face wrinkling ‘news’ that sugar is toxic. That left many people who have always believed a spoonful of sugar makes a lot of things better – suffering. Unnecessarily we should add, so let’s get a little perspective.

Lead is toxic, which surprises no one. So is water – in the right quantities. Yes, water. In the last couple of decades of ultra endurance events – triathlons, ‘double-century’ bike rides and ultra marathons – we found that athletes consuming only water during these events diluted their sodium balance in the blood so much that they became seriously ill. By contrast, athletes who consume fluids containing sugar actually perform longer and better.

One important oversight is what exactly do we mean by ‘sugar’. All fruits and vegetables that grow above the ground in their natural state – apples, oranges, tomatoes, for instance – have sugars bound up with fiber, minerals, vitamins and antioxidants. Eating lots of these ‘sugars’ has been shown in thousands of studies from all over the world to be really good for you!

The sugars in pastries, sodas and lots of other stuff that comes in brightly colored packages just isn’t the same stuff, and it’s hardly news that too much of that is not good for health. The sugars in fruits and veggies are complex, unrefined and healthy; the sugars in pastries and sodas are simple, refined and less healthy – but not toxic.

But that’s not the biggest problem, anyway. Few people will be aware that most of the calories in a seemingly wholesome bran muffin are fat calories. Or that it takes a lot more fat calories to leave you feeling ‘satisfied’; that’s why you don’t stop with just a few potato chips. Or that one rounded tablespoon of peanut butter has the same number of calories – nearly all fat – as about three apples.

Apples, full of all those sugars [the complex ones] keep the doctor away!

Hip Replacement Do-Overs

admin — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 20:05:28 +0000

The prestigious British Journal, The Lancet recently published follow-up data on more than 400,000 total hip replacements done between 2003 and 2011. ‘Failure rate’, defined as need for revision, was nearly 4 times as likely in the 7% of patients who had metal on metal implants, versus those with ceramic on ceramic. Interestingly, ‘failure’ rates in the US are 2 to 3 times greater than in Sweden. The reasons for this large disparity are unclear but may include medical/legal/political issues.

There are currently about 500,000 people in the US with metal on metal prostheses, so the potential cost associated with revising all of them is staggering. However, what should be pointed out is that more than 93% of the metal on metal arthroplasties did not require revision in the British study.

Copper Deficiency After Gastric Bypass

admin — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 02:09:42 +0000

Copper deficiency is rare in the US, we don’t need very much of it – less than 1mg per day – and it’s found in lots of the foods we normally eat, such as whole grains, beans, nuts, leafy greens and various meats. Copper absorption occurs primarily in the duodenum, the part ‘bypassed’ in the RYGP surgery. In 178 patients followed for up to 2 years after bypass surgery, researchers found 19% with copper deficiency.
Anemia and various neuropathies – muscle weakness, fatigue, numbness in extremities are seen in patients with copper deficiency. In general medicine, this is often attributed to iron or vitamin B12 deficiencies. For those having bypass surgery, the recommendation is to check copper status as well.

Eat Healthy

admin — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 19:58:01 +0000

You should eat healthy everyday