Starting up again

What a year this has been. We had houseguests for 11 months. It was nearly impossible for us to stick with any plan. That being said, we were totally derailed. I totally understand that everyone in the household needs to be on the same eating plan. I learned that our bodies have been biochemically changed because of the American diet. We are at the mercy of our food industry. Wheat, corn and soy have been so modified that they no longer have any nutritional value. All three genetically include pesticides in the seeds themselves. Wheat has become addictive and spikes glucose in the system. It is worse than eating a bowl of sugar. Eating or 4 servings of wheat a day will assuredly result in diabetes. Corn is not much better. Soy has estrogen hormones that totally mess up your system. The next hurray is processed food. Basically anything with a label on it probably has sugar in some form or another. I never realized how bad sugar was for the system. I knew sugar was "sinful", had a lot of calories and that desserts needed to be kept to a minimum or you would gain weight. Well it is much worse than that. Sugar completely shuts down the ability for the body to burn fat. Sugar turns on all of the bodies hormones to STORE fat and to make you hungry. Basically you get biological changes in your brain that tells your body you are starving. Your body goes into store mode and you get unbelieveable cravings for fat and sugar. Sugar is both fat and a carb. Eating sugar will result in weight gain, insulin resistance, diabetes, fatty liver and a host of health problems that go along with obesity. You end up with a metabolic illness and your hormones stop working as they should. The only way to get around it is to cut out wheat, corn, soy, and sugar. You already know to give up all of the bad fats so through that in too. You also know to give up artificial flavors and dyes because they are toxic to the system. That means no processed foods. No breads, cakes, cookies, pies, cupcakes. No sodas of any kind! No junk food. After all, what can you buy that doesn't have a bun or bread at a fast food place. Easier to say what it DOES leave in the diet. This is what we strive to do 95% of the time. Our diet consists of vegetables and fruits, beans, nuts and seeds. We have all of the tea we want. About twice a week we might have fish. We limited our dairy consumption considerably. We might have a little sprinkle of goat cheese with our food from time to time. I am also looking into Kefir and yogurt made from hormone free goat milk at the suggestion of a detox book I am following. We have a smoothie every morning made with spinach, vegetables and fruits. We had a raw salad for lunch and steamed vegetables or vegetable soup for dinner. Sometimes we have a salad for dinner as well, epecially if it is late. Beans are our main source of protein. Quinioa, steel cut oats or black rice are some of the grains we eat but rather sparingly. I make salad dressing everyday with fresh lemon juice and olive oil. We use himalayan salt. I cook with grape seed oil if I saute my food. I use every kind of seasoning there is. We drink herbal teas and Yerba mate which is a type of tea. We cut out coffee a long time ago. I would say we do this 100% of the time but we slide when we go to dinner with our friends. We only know of 2 or 3 restaurants that we can eat at without completely going off the plan. When we do go out, we strive for a salad or maybe grilled fish. We do a detox and liver cleanse one a month. We started in September but skipped December and January because of social constraints. The detox really takes a full weekend and we cannot compromise or diet. We are losing weight. Slowly, but it is coming off. The program is really not about weightloss but to regain our health. Books I am reading: The Amazing Gallbladder Flush by Andeas Moritz Natural Medicine Third Edition by Michael Murray M.D. and Joseph Pizzorno M.D. Warning, this is a 46,901 page encyclopedia on health. A really dry read. Detox and Revitalize by Susanne Belen Most recently, FAT CHANCE - Beating the odds against sugar, processed food, obesity and disease by Robert Lustig M.D. This book was really an eye opener. It doesn't tell you how to lose weight but tells you why you cannot. We don't have a chance of losing weight unless something is done about the American diet. The government will not do anything until the American citizen's vote is proved o be more important than the lobbiest.

A recipe I have to share

This was a casserole I made that was so good I had to share it. I made it with the intention that we could eat on it all week and we polished it off in two days. You can do this three ways, one for meat eater, one for vegetarians and one for vegans.

Italian vegetable "lazagna" casserole

Vegetable layers
1 medium eggplant washed and sliced very thin (about 1/8" with skin).
Slice these first and set in a tub of salted water while prepping
the rest of the dish
1 red bell pepper, sliced into 1/4" rounds
1 lb package baby portobello mushrooms, roughly chopped
2 Zucchini squash sliced into 1/4' slices
1 small onion (about 1/2 cup chopped fine)
1 handful of fresh basil
1/2 lb spinach, washed with stems removed. Leave whole.
1 tsbp olive oil

Filling
Vegetarian version (this is the version I made):
1 can white canelli beans, rinsed and drained
1 pint ricotta cheese
2 tbsp milk or cream
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt

For the Vegan version
substitute the ricotta cheese and milk for pureed cauliflower

Sauce
1 large can tomatoe sauce
2 tbsp Italian seasoning
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tbsp red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 375
Make this in a 9X12 covered baking dish that is 4" deep
If you have no cover, aluminum foil will do.

For the filling:
If you are making this with cauliflower, Chop the cauliflower fine and boil in water until soft. Drain, but reserve about 2 tbsp or so of the water to use instead of cream.
Put all filling ingredients in the blender and blend until very smooth. This should be thick like a pudding.

For the tomatoe sauce:
Empty the tomatoe sauce into a bowl, add the seasonings and stir to blend.

For the dish:
Rub bottom and sides of baking dish with olive oil
Arrange spinach leaves to cover the bottom of the dish
Sprinkle on onion
Arrange one layer of eggplant, followed by one layer of zucchini.
Arrange layer of red bell pepper
Layer on all of the filling to form a solid layer
Layer on 1/2 of tomatoe sauce mixture
Add 1 layer of basil, try to cover entire dish with basil
Add the remaining eggplant and zucchini
Add chopped mushrooms
Finish with remaining tomato sauce.

Sprinkle on Parmesan cheese if desired, or nutritional yeast.
Cover and back for 50 minutes.
Serve with salad and garlic bread.

For the meat version
Add 1lb each of cooked italian sausage before the first layer of eggplant and 1 1lb cooked ground beef before the second layer of eggplant.

Do you read tags?

There are tags and labels on everything these days.
Do you still have the tags on your pillows? The ones that say it is illegal to remove the tags unless you are the consumer? What do you thing of those stickers they put on your produce? I usually end up cutting them off because I can't remove them otherwise. When I do, I can see the glue where the sticker was.
What about electric cords? There are so many warning labels and tags on Christmas lights that we have come to see the silvery labels as "bonus Christmas decor".

Then I looked at the warning on the visor in my car about airbags. Man those things can kill a child in the front seat. No calling dibbs on the passenger seat anymore.

Warnings on food wrappers, cans, beverages, alcohol. They are all there. We see them every day.

When is the last time you read one?

I have a waterpick that I got from my Dentist some time in November. I read the instructions, used it daily. I had to unplug it recently and went I plugged it in again, I read the label.
This cord is coated with LEAD. Lead has been shown to cause illness and birth defects. Wash hands thoroughly after handling.
Oh and this... made in China.

Later in the day I read where a product called brown rice syrup (supposedly a healthier alternative to corn syrup) has 5 times the amount of arsenic than the FDA will allow in our water. Arsenic never leaves your system. It just accumulates. The FDA has to allow arsenic in the water or we would not be able to drink it.

Yet again, the same day, I read where some turkey jerkey dog snacks (from China)caused several dogs to die from liver failure just hours after eating the treats.

I remembered when my grandson had on pj's so tight he could barely breathe. The label said, not fire retardant. Clothing meant to fit tight to reduce hazard. So rather than make the product fire safe, my grandson has to sleep in over tight pjs?

I could launch into how unfair it is that other countries can import unsafe products into our country. People or animals have to die before we notice or do anything about it. I could say it is unfair that the USA has to adhere to much higher standards which makes it difficult to compete with other countries. Well I DO think it is appauling that we let countires import their poison into our country and we take it because we want the cheaper product. We are literally destroying our own country by continuing to support foreign countries and not our own people. I am glad we have the standards, or we would start producing products like China all in the name of the greenbacks.

Ok, off the soap box. What the heck do we do?

Well for starters, i am going to wash my hands after using my waterpik.

I am going to read labels better and go for the more expensive product if there is an unacceptable warning label on the cheaper one. For that matter, I am going to make sure that at least 1 in 5 things I buy are made in the USA. I know I can't buy exclusively items made in the USA. For one I am in the market for a flat screen and none are made in the USA!

I will pay more attention to those annoying labels and tags and take heed. I will start readin about the ingredients in food and be wary when I can't pronounce it or know what it is.

I read the labels on some beans when I was at the store today. One can had about 15 products that I could not pronounce. The other said "beans, water, salt". I bought those.

I am going to pay attention to the little stickers on the produce. That is not necessarily a good thing. We know that California has had their share of E Coli in produce the last few months. Lets not forget the Catalope fiasco. However I am going to be more prudent about washing produce before cutting. I bought some vegetable spray just for cleaning vegetables. I bough a colander that sits in a bowl. I can give my herbs a bath then let them drain several times.

As for the pets, I plan to find some recipes and learn to make my own dog treats.

There is a product called Charcoal that one can take to reduce the heavy metals and poisons in the body. The amount to take for a few weeks is about 5 times the recommended dosage. I don't recommend this for pets because I really don't know if it is safe. However if my dog turned ill with liver failure, I might give it a shot.

Revelation and Resolutions

My brother and son have both been living with us for the last few months. We let this derail us considerably. Our predominately vegan diet is somewhat time consuming as I will use my Sunday to prepare flax crackers, salads, beans, soups and the like for the week. We don't have much time during the week as we get home from work just a few hours before we need to retire for the next day. We now spend that time preparing meals and cleaning the kitchen. I have no time on Sunday to prepare things ahead for more than a day or two I suppose all of this sounds familiar to everyone as it is likely the norm for a family. However Harry and I are often content to come home and eat a can of beans with some fresh tomatoes and onions for dinner. I can't expect my brother and son to eat like that. They are truckers and used to more hearty fare.
My truckers finally went out on a run and we had three days to think about things. We have both gained back all the weight we lost, Harry doesn't feel well and I have constant headaches. Now that my headaches are on the road, we decided to renew our diet and continue it even when they are here. When they return, they are going to be surprised to find a diet of 95% fruits and vegetables, mostly raw. Why? Outside of us both wanting to resume getting our health back, my truckers both found they have high blood pressure. My brother actually went to the VA hospital to get his blood pressure checked out and they admitted him because it was so high. 170 over 105. Before I went on the detox diet, mine reached 200/100. Now it is mostly normal but sometimes it registers pre-hypertension. No telling what their cholesterol is.
Well this revelation frightened my brother. Having high blood pressure or even taking medication for it could affect his job. This made my son take notice as his high blood pressure was almost as high as my brothers. Before now, my son didn't pay any attention to his blood pressure much less know the risks.
My son also ratted on my brother and told me that every meal my brother eats on the road is at McDonalds! Every meal! I need to find the movie "Super Size Me" for him to watch. He explained that stopping on the road cost time and money.In addition, McDonalds is cheap while truck stop meals open run $15 to $20. Well now more than ever, both of these guys need to be on our diet. So be it.

I got a Kindle Fire for Christmas. What a wonderful device. Well I found a book call EAT TO LIVE by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. This has been a good read and I learned a few things. For example, even lean animal protein contributes to high cholesterol, even more so than saturated fat. Another that just bought me some time is that vegetables, especially lettuce and greens have protein! I don't need to create a protien combination with every meal, the vegetables are sufficient! I may have to supplement B12, but I should get all of my protein, carbohydrates and fats from vegetables and fruits! I have not finished reading the book and I'm already putting it to good use. You can read more about his program at http://www.drfuhrman.com/default.aspx. Dr. Fuhran recommends eating two HUGE salads a day making salad the mainstay of the diet. And while this is not a diet but a lifestyle change, weight loss will come quite naturally with it.

So our New Year's resolution, 15 days late, is to make the lifestyle change as though there is no choice. It should be much easier now that I know I can grab a bag of pre-made salad for a quick meal when I don't have time. I am not a slave to the extensive food prep anymore. For the record, my husband is back up to 230 and I weigh 205. I am excited to start seeing weight loss again but I am also looking forward to regaining our energy and health. The added benefit of course is lowering our chances of getting cancer, heart disease, diabetes, stroke, dementia and a myriad of other life threatening diseases.

Until next time.

Happy new Year

I am ashamed to say I have not written since October 18th. Part of my New Year's resolution is to not let that happen again. I will at the very least post once a week.

In October, I suddenly had a rush of house guests. Since then I have had anywhere from 1 to 9 persons in my home at one time. Needless to say, our program was completely derailed. It is impossible to plan meals when I don't even know how many to cook for and I am working a full time job. Just before this happened, I had some wonderful soups already made that simply went to waste. Servings for two just can't stretch that far.
Of course Thanksgiving and Christmas were in the middle of this. I still made all of our favorites and the detox program seemed like a far away dream.

My trucker stayed on her program about a month then simply stopped without a word. Her world was turned upside down as the employment situation changed for her husband, my son and house guest. She was suddenly driving a truck alone and did not have the option to have someone circle the grocery store while she opted for healthier fare than the truck stops had to offer. She is looking for local work now and I think that will offer her a life where she has more control over the situation.

It is a crying shame in this country that it is exceptionally easy to get something eat that is full of grease and toxins and totally devoid of any nutritional value but it takes time and planning to eat right.

Vegetables,fruits, nuts and grains are generally cheaper than meats and cheeses but the later is expected at every meal in one form or another. You can't go through a drive through and get steamed veggies in a cup. At least we have our brewers yeast shakes and our Juice Plus supplements.

So should my guests continue to stay, they will learn how to prepare vegetables for the tagine or put together some salads or soups. We can really tell a difference when we eat that way and it is our resolution to get back to it.

I will start posting again on a regular basis with a progress report.
Here is to a prosperous and healthy new year.

Worth a try, a more concrete plan

First, a progress report on my trucker. She has lost 5 pounds so far. She finally hit the 25 point mark. She was averaging about 15 points a day and it wasn't because of the food she was eating. It was because she simply was not eating enough of the food that would give her points.
We have been doing the plan as well. I make an all vegetable soup or a salad with beans and barley, a tagine full of vegetables or a mixed grill. This is like my detox plan except we are allowing ourselves a bit of dairy and eggs, plus we can have limited amounts of lean meat, poultry or fish. On the plan, each half cup of vegetables is one serving or one point, so the vegetable soup or salad can rack up some points. Animal protein is 1 point for 1-6 oz but starts going negative after that. The aim is to keep the portions small.
I am letting my trucker eat unlimited fruit because I would rather have her eat some than hold out for what not may be available on the road. I think there should be a rule to not eat ANY thing three hours before bed that can convert to sugar. That is really hard for us because we get home fairly late and usually eat about an hour or two before bed. So that means no fruit in the evening, or at least very sparing and low suagr fruit, like a few apple slices in a salad.
All of that being said, this modified detox is not working as well as the detox diet. I had to start rethinking my supplements.
During the detox and Perricone diets, we were taking supplements. Too many in my opinion and not sustainable at $200 per month each. However I ran across something recently that was touting Alpha Lipoic acid as a weight loss supplement. Well we were taking that on both plans. The other items were garlic extract, green tea and sugar cane extract. According to the article, sugarcane extract can lower cholesterol by 24% without any other change to the diet.
Another article I read might help my trucker. If she can maintain the points and stay below 1200 calories every other day, this should allow the fat to burn twice as fast.
So, stick with the 25 point plan - stay under 1200 calories every other day, add supplements: Garlic extract 200 mg before breakfast, lunch and dinner and at bed time. Alpha Lipoic Acid 100-300mg and a cup of green tea or 325 mg green tea flavanoids before breakfast, lunch and dinner, then the sugarcane extract or Policosano 20-25 mg before bedtime. We are also taking our Juice Plus capsules and Evening Primrose. We have a shake every day with brewers yeast, protein powder and lecithin made with 1 banana, almond milk and cinnamon.
An example of a daily plan:

Breakfast:
Juice Plus capsules (2 pts)
Alpha Lipoic Acid 100-300 mg
Green Tea Flavanoids 325mg
Garlic Extract 200mg
Evening Primrose (or Omega 3) 1000 mg
Breakfast shake with banana (described above - 4 pts)
Coffee (may use stevia and fat free milk: 0 pts)
12 oz water (1 pt)

On higher calorie days, add 2 eggs and 1 slice multi grain toast with almond
butter. (3pt)
Citrus fruit or 6 oz natural unsweetened orange juice (1 pt)

Lunch
Alpha Lipoic Acid 100-300 mg
Green Tea Flavanoids 325mg
Garlic Extract 200mg
12 oz water (before meal) 1 point

2 cups salad with mixed greens, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, red cabbage, yellow
bell peppers, parsley, olives, (4 pts for veggies), kidney beans or
chick peas, prepared bulgar wheat,quinoa, or pearl couscous,
(3 points for complex carb), feta cheese, lemon vinegarette (1 point)


On higher calorie days add
1-6 oz chicken breast or fish (1 pt)
with lemon (1)
Sliced apple with 12 almonds or walnuts (2 pt)
(Or 1 cup watermelon, also 2 pts)
Iced green tea (1 pt)


Snack
12 oz water (before meal) 1 point

Raw carrots and celery (2)
1 wedge laughing cow cheese

On higher calorie days, may add
4 walnut halves (1)
1 apple (1)

Dinner
Alpha Lipoic Acid 100-300 mg
Green Tea Flavanoids 325mg
Garlic Extract 200mg
12 oz water (1)

3-6 oz chicken breast, 3 oz lean steak or 6 oz broiled/baked fish (1 pt)
1/2 cup sauteed mushrooms (1)
1 cup grilled vegetables (2)
1/2 cup brown rice and black beans (3)

On high calorie days, add 6 or red wine (-3)
Additional cup grilled vegetables (2)

Bedtime
Alpha Lipoic Acid 100-300 mg
Garlic Extract 200mg
Policosanal 20-25 mg
12 oz water (1)

Total points on low days: 26
Total points on high days: 36

We can incorporate this immediately, except for the sugar cane extract. I am off to the Internet to find that!

Progress on the point plan

My trucker is trying the point plan and doing good. She is doing pretty darn well considering what is available on the road. However she is not getting enough points. It is not because she is eating stuff that bad either.

I think the problem is the lack of availability of fruits and veggies on the road. The very thing that gives her points are the fruits, veggies and water. Fruits and veggies are hard to come by on the road. She limits her water because she doesn't want to have to stop on the road.

She is managing to find chicken breast to eat which is 1 point until it exceeds 6 ounces. Some chicken breasts are huge and could make two meals. My husband and I often share a chicken breast because they are so large. I told her to save some for later if she can. Disperse the protein.

She was using artificial cream in her coffee. I would rather see her use real cream than anything artificial in spite of the fat content. So she is using half and half. I haven't gotten her buy-in on fat free milk yet. I have noticed though that most convenience stores carry whole or low fat milk, but rarely fat free.

I looked at some yogurt she was eating. The yogurt had 28 carbs from the sugar, it high frutose corn syrup. artificial flavor and at least a dozen ingredients I could not pronounce. This is a very popular yogurt and is usually the one they sell in convenience stores or truck stops. Another example of the marketing of food that is no better than a toxic waste dump in the body. There is no nutritional value in that food at all and it would cause her blood sugar to spike. It goes straight to belly fat. It is a shame that an otherwise good food can be rendered so unhealthy. We see commercials all the time that say, eat yogurt because it is good for the body. Well there is yogurt, which is milk and fruit, then there is the yogurt like this one that bears little resemblance to anything natural. Canned peaches with cottage cheese would be better than this stuff.

She asked about cheerios. Well cheerios are oats. I have none in my cupboard, but it is probably one of the healthier of the cereals that are readily available. She wanted to eat it as a snack. I told her to add nuts which would make it a complex carb instead of a simple carb. A simple carb turns quickly into sugar.

As for me, it is the weekend. I intend to roast some lovely vegetables, put on some greens, have a nice salad.... maybe I will bake some fish. I will easily have 15 points just from dinner. Glad I am not on the road.

The 25 point plan

It is day five of my 25 point plan. My trucker guinea pig is trying to do this on the road and it has to be the ultimate test. If you have ever been to a truck stop, it is kind of like an over priced convenience store with the addition of hamburgers, hot dogs, deli sandwiches and the like. If they have a restaurant, it is usually a buffet with a lot of "home style" cooking where everything is fried or covered with gravy.
I have asked her to avoid bread, sugar, fried foods, sodas and bagged snacks (like chips and candy) like the plague. All of those are negative points. The more offensive, the more negative the points. Every vegetable or fruit is one point each. Lean meats are one point, not to exceed 6 oz. Dairy products are all pretty much negative but I will give 1 pt for skim milk, 1 oz of cheese or a laughing cow cheese. Nuts are 1 point. Water is 1 point for every 8 ounces.
Basically the whole thing about the point system is to strive for 25 points a day. If you do 20 one day and 30 the next, that works. It literally forces you to do veggies, fruits and water to get your points.
You can get points for lean meats, fish and chicken - or for something like rice and beans. Everything sugar, artificial, fried, preserved, cured (like bacon) or otherwise full of fat pulls you the other way.
Since this is a totally new approach, I am having to make decisions of the points on some things as we go.
A real challenge for my trucker is to eliminate the bread as bread is the main ingredient in every sandwich, hamburger, burrito, etc. She can't eliminate it completely the way we did on our detox, but she can cut back as much as possible. She got a grilled chicken sandwich and threw away the bun. I was proud of her.
Her other challenge is to have fresh produce. She has a tiny mini fridge, about big enough for 8 cans of soda. Also, 18 wheelers are not welcome to park anywhere other than a truck stop - so it is difficult for her to even go to a regular market. So she lets her husband drop her off to shop and he drives around until she is done. So she buys produce that does not have to be refrigerated, and washes them in a plastic tub and eats them when she can. She is eating an apple three times a day as instructed. The pectin in the apple will offset the fat in the trucker food somewhat and she gets a point for each.
Really Walmart... and you other big stores. Can't truckers park long enough to shop in your stores?

New plan

Harry and I recently went to Florida for a nice vacation. During that time we were on a c-seafood diet. We ate all of the seafood we could see. Old joke, but people do it every day. We went to the grocery store the first day there and bought some fruit, cheese, nuts, water and healthy snacks. We had a fridge in the room and we kept it full the whole time. The hotel served breakfast everyday. We went out to eat every day during the heat of the day. We enjoyed the beach in the late afternoon and ate our goodies in the hotel in the evening as we watched the ocean from our balcony.
We were there to rest and take in the beauty of the ocean.
At the end of it all, we both gained about 8 pounds. We know we cannot eat with wild abandon like that but it was vacation after all! Now that we are back, we are HUNGRY all the time. Eating like we did proved my point that additives are applied to restaurant and take out food to add to the flavor. We probably ate a LOT of MSG. I think it is addictive.
It proved my final point, that the more you eat out, the more you want to eat.
In spite of it all, we are still taking our brewers yeast-lecithin-protein shake every day as well as our Juice-Plus supplements. We still feel pretty darn good from a diet we were only on for 6 weeks.
We have been crazy busy since that 6 weeks. While we have not completely dropped our new lifestyle of eating healthy, we have challenged it more than we would like. As I said before, healthy eating takes planning and preparation! The first thing that upsets your routine completely unravels the diet. We have so little time at home during the week that we have to spend time on the weekend getting prepared. If we don't, then we go through the whole week trying to eat as good as we can from what is available.
I have to admit, if I cannot follow the plan then it is not a good plan. Everyone else is as busy as we are. I have my grandsons over twice a week and they totally disrupt our routine. So what about the people who have their children all the time? My plan has to work for them too. This has been something I have been thinking about for awhile. How to make it all work!
We have so many things stacked against us. You cannot even buy a sandwich in America without it being made with white flour. Even if it is called wheat, it is just dyed white flour. Exceptions like bread made with sprouted wheat germ and stone ground wheat would certainly be an exception but not available at a sandwich shop. So basically, take out is a negative strike on the diet with very little exception. Any convenience food is a negative strike. Restaurant food may be a rise above, but the food is loaded with extra fat and additives. It is a sure bet that any thing fried was fried in the cheapest oil the restaurant can buy. Even olive oil turns carcinegenic at the normal frying temp of 350, so you know the fried food is not a good thing. That was something we thought about quite a bit in Florida as we munched our fried fish and chips. (Yes, I can hear you!)
Again, I say in spite of our transgressions, we are STILL a lot healthier because of the 6 weeks that we were totally dedicated to the plan. So, even if we cannot do it ALL the time, it is important to strive to do it as much as possible.
I have a challenger. My first guinea pig who approached me with a challenge is going to start on my new plan. Harry and I will start it on 10/3 and I may tweak it here and there, but I think it will work. Guinea, so I don't use her real name, basically lives on the road. She has to be the ultimate challenge because she certainly does not have a kitchen in the truck. She is at the mercy of convenience foods and restaurants. The idea of the plan is to give yourself a fighting chance and then "do it right" as much as you can.

Rule 1 - Have a health shake in the morning. Mix one serving each of Brewer's Yeast, Lecithin granules and protein powder with almond milk, stevia, cinnamon, and a banana. The protein powder should be one without a lot of additives or sugar. A protein shake is 3 points.
Rule 2 - With every meal, eat the protein first. If that is not possible, then take a carb blocker like white bean extract. Try to take it at least 15 minutes before the meal. A carb blocker is 1 point.
Rule 3 - With every meal, END it with a piece of fresh fruit or vegetable. Eating the "bad stuff" raised your pleasure center. So you associate your pleasure to the meal. If the last thing you taste is a bite of crisp apple, then that apple will be connected to your sense of pleasure as well. Furthermore, an apple has pectin which will offset the fat from the meal. My guinea pig is going to eat a small apple after every meal because it will be the easiest to get. Every fruit or vegetable is 1 point.
Rule 4 - I am not ruling out meat, chicken or poultry. However limit the portions to 3 to 6 oz and select from the leanest cuts available. It is best to choose from broiled, poached, grilled or baked and go light on the sauces that accompany them. A 3 to 6 oz portion as described is 1 point. More than 6 oz is -3.
Fried ANYTHING is -5. Count 1 eggs as one serving of lean protein. 1 point.
Rule 5 - Limit cheese to 1 oz a serving. I am still not advocating dairy, but use skim milk and the lower fat varieties. Use butter rather than margarine. Check out almond milk as a terrific alternative. I don't really want to give plus points for this, but I will say -3 for every serving over 3 oz a day total, -2 for margarine. -3 for any high fat serving of dairy.
Rule 6 - Ok, you really have to stick with this one. Limit sugar! Try even to omit it! Looks at the sugar in your dairy products, it is very high which is probably the reason that dairy is not a good choice. -5 for any serving of sugar. Give Stevia a try!
Rule 7 - When you eat simple carbs like pasta and bread, try to turn it into a complex carb by eating beans or nuts with it. Remember to eat it last and protein first. Simple carbs are -3 points per serving. Complex are 1 point per serving.
Rule 8 - Incorporate as many fruits and vegetables as you can. Try every day to eat every color of the rainbow. The color is indicative of the kind of nutrients you are eating. Shouldn't be all green. Each fruit or vegetable is one point.
Rule 9 - Drink water. Every 8 oz is 1 point!

So what is this point system? You want to hit 25 points a day or average 175 a week.

So what does this look like?

Health shake 3
8 8oz glasses of water 8
Breakfast:
2 eggs (poached or boiled) 1
1 slice wheat toast with butter -3
(if this was almond butter,
it would be complex and then
count as 1 point.
1 fresh orange 1

Lunch
Grilled chicken breast 4 oz 1
Green salad with tomato, cucumber,
bell pepper, red cabbage,
radishes and celery 7
Vinegarette dressing with lemon 1
(I will always give 1 point
for vinegar, lemon or lime).
1 apple 1
Iced tea with no sugar 0

Dinner
6 oz grilled salmon fillet 1
Lemon on the side for the fish 1
Steamed brocolli & cauliflower 2
Rice pilaf with almonds, 4
cannelli beans, spinach, 1oz
grated cheese.
1 slice french bread with garlic -3
1 wedge of honeydew melon 1
Total 26 points

I will add more examples as we gear up on this. I am sure there will be questions on the way. I am not including high fat snacks, cokes, etc because I simply don't use them but I am sure guinea will. Probably -5 a pop, but we will see.

What added hormones can do

I was thinking the other day about the added hormones that are used to fatten the animals we eat. We all know that estrogen is added to the beef and chicken but is that all? I was thinking about that. If estrogen is the only hormone added to make an animal fat before it's time, then every woman in the world would be obese. While that might be true in America where 80% of the population is obese, we are not the only country that eats meat. (Maybe we ARE the only country that eats meat tainted with hormones).
Anyway, I was thinking about other hormones like that secreted from the pituitary gland. That hormone dictates growth of our bodies (among other things). So what if they are using that too?
Every cell in the body has a spot for each hormone the body needs. Estrogen is one and the pituitary hormone would have to be another. There are things we eat or ingest that mimic the hormone. The thyroid, another hormone that dictates growth, can be replaced easily by synthetic estrogen, soy or hormones in the amimal protein we eat. As a result, our body does not actually get the thyroid hormone, but this other imposter. What it does to our bodies is hard to tell.
This is not theory (except for my idea about the pituitary gland). I think it is no coincidence that 1 in 5 people have thyroid disease by the time they hit 40 in this country. I think there is a definite link between obesity and the hormones in the animal protein we eat. Couple that with the useless over abundance of white flour products, sugar, corn and corn syrup products and we are a fat nation that is quite literally starving to death.
How can a fat person be starving? The nutritional value in our food is sorely lacking. Taking vitamins is really not an answer because we should get a complex of vitamins in our food. When you see lettuce with rust stains or celery with huge cracks, you are looking at food that is lacking in the nutrients that otherwise make it healthy.
I read a chapter out of Adelle Davis's book, Let's Eat To Keep Fit. It was published in the late 60's. She talked about how food grown in healthy soil is disease resistant as well as pest resistant. Basically what she is saying is that if the industries paid more attention to putting compost back into the soil to enrich the quality, they could cut back on pesticides and produce crops that enrich our bodies. Instead, we have our food grown in poor soil, bathed in insecticides that get into the soil and basically become part of everything we eat. Insecticides are KNOWN carginegens.
So in addition to adding hormones to our food which affects us in ways we can't comprehend, our produce is basically carcinegenic. What's left are over processed foods that are full of preservatives and chemically engineered to have a shelf life for several months or even years.
Nothing I am writing about is news to anyone. It is not something you can't find on the internet. I think people just do not think about it much. We have become complacent about our food. You can eat better in this country if you have the money to do so, but organically grown or hormone free food costs quite a bit more. Short of growing your own, it is tough to know for sure what you are getting.
The lobby system in this country is broken. Basically the giant industries own our government and dictate our country. We have congressmen and senators that are paid millions by these industries (regardless what they say and that it is illegal). The government has not been interested in the health and welfare of the American people for decades. The only way for the people to have a voice is to unite and have their own group that can lobby along with the big boys. The only other way is to uniformly boycott products and force them to change to meet demand.
I should start such a group called Pursuit of a New America. Members should unite in causes that benefit our food and our health in this ocuntry. I would love to hear from anyone who thinks this is a good idea.

So quick to fall back

We have too many things going on to get back on track. Last night at least I threw some vegetables in a Tagine and we had a healthy dinner. I started taking my Juice-Plus supplements this morning. I am very excited about them because they are made from the entire fruits and vegetables and they are not just a vitamin. Check out my web page at http://www.pursuitofanewme.com on the products tab.
Anyway, trying to do even a few things right when there is no time is better than just giving in and eating what ever is available. Yesterday I had a lot of pain again like the pain I was in 24-7 before the detox. It literally feels like me upper body is badly bruised and tender. It hurt to even laugh. I had almost forgotten about this pain until it was back again with a vengence. After the detox diet, it was completely GONE!
So what may have spurred this on? I mean besides the fact that are kitchen is out of commission and every meal has been take out of some sort for the last several weeks? Well the first meal I made when my kitchen was somewhat in order was a nice salad with pickled Italian vegetables. Then I made lasagna! I used the fresh tomatoes that I had canned, fresh oregano, thyme and basil from the garden, zucchini, eggplant, mushrooms and onions. I aslo had some lean ground turkey and some turkey pepperoni slices. Then I threw caution to the wind and added 7 kinds of Italian cheese and used regular lasagna pasta. I made some fresh garlic infused olive oil and toasted a loaf of Italian bread. So what did it? What threw me back into this pain cycle?
The meal had a lot of wheat product. White flour to be exact. Something we had not eaten in months. It also had a lot of cheese. And finally, I just have not been drinking as much water. We had a few white bread products in the last week but this was a lot in one sitting. I have no doubt the white flour was the culprit.
I am still in pain today but not like I was yesterday. The difference? Several plates of vegetables, fresh fruits, beans, and absolutely NO white flour. It is distressing that white flour is in just about everything. It is impossible to get any kind of prepared food that does not have white flour. Hamburgers, subs, pasta, even salads have those bread croutons on them. If the family can't cook at home, they will fail on nearly any diet they try.
Not telling you anything you don't know? I don't want to take anything away from The Biggest Loser, or spokes-persons for diet centers. Anyone in the lime light who has lost weight has my respect because it is difficult. However, they have one thing we don't. A consistent environment with the proper foods and support.
It makes all the difference in the world if I have time to throw together some salads, make my flax crackers, prepare some grains and then have things in the fridge we can just pull out and nosh on. I will be glad when I get my kitchen back. It might be another week.

What to eat when you cannot prep

When we were on the detox diet, I spent several hours every Sunday preparing food for the next week. I made sure I had fresh fruit washed and readily available. I made salad ingredients like my kidney beans with umeboshi plum, marinated artichokes, pickled asparagus, spicy orange beets. I cooked up some kind of grain like barley or quinoa, then started some sprouts to go with the salads. I also made my flax "crackers" that we never seemed to get tired of. I prepared our vitamin ritual for a few days at a time - then we were ready for the work week.
For breakfast, we had a blender concoction of 1 banana, 1 cup of almond milk, 1/2 tbsp of cinnamon, 3 spoonfuls of Brewer's Yeast, one spoon of lecithin granules, two scoops of rice protein powder, 2 tbsp stevia and 12 ounces of ice. I would blend until very smooth and add dark chocolate once in awhile to mix it up.
Lunch was some sort of a salad with at least 6 vegetables. I made sure to include some sort of whole grain and some type of bean, nuts or seed combinations. Did you know Quinoa is a complete protein by itself? I always finished the salad with olives or avocado. Dressing was always a vinegarette with lemon juice as a base. I changed up the spice depending on the type of salad.
I would include a snack of fruit or vegetable as well as my flax crackers. Dinner was interesting to do meatless but I found that bulgar wheat and/or mushrooms makes a great substitute taste wise. Harry enjoyed my bulgar wheat and portobello tacos the best but he was a big fan of the cream soups too.
We also enjoyed the fermented drinks like Kombacha. They were fizzy and refreshing but with a slight vinegar taste.

With this "diet", we did not have any problem following it and were even more exciting when our body's responded so well. My intent was to add a little dairy back in (because there are too many wonderful cheeses out there to never eat them again). I like my greek yogurt with fresh fruit as well. I wanted to be able to eat out on occasion and enjoy meat, chicken or fish without guilt.
This last few weeks we have had so much going on that we could not prep any food at all. In the middle of a kitchen re-do, I had to can 10 pounds of tomatos before they went bad and it was all I could do to fit it in.
So what is my point? Of COURSE you know having a special diet is difficult. It is much more than the will-power to do it, it is the preparation involved. If food is not readily available and you reach that point that you would eat nearly anything, then it has gone too far. There is no way you are going to go home and steam some vegetables for dinner when you are starving. Especially if you have to prep the veggies first.
Even on my diet, with prep, there were many times we did not eat until 9PM. Those diets that say don't eat after 5 or 6 PM are impossible for us. We do not get off work until 5 and we are often not home until 6:30 or 7. My Tagine works wonders but it is at least 30 minutes before I have it on the stove. The vegetables can take awhile to steam. Guess I could try stir-fry.
Without prep, it is nearly impossible to eat at a decent time.
Dr Oz did a show where he ate take out for every meal. He went to McDonalds, Subway and another place that I am not familiar with and basically had them make him a healthy meal. He showed that with the right choices, a person could literally eat fast food at every meal and keep the calories and fat low.
It CAN be done.
Well for two weeks now, we have had take out for just about every meal. We have skipped breakfast altogether. I did manage to make some flax crackers for one of those weeks. I discovered that Mexican restaurants do have grilled items including salmon. Chinese restaurants can make steamed vegetables with just a smidge of white wine sauce. Most Thai, Indian and Mediterranean food can be eaten without guilt. Wendy's, McDonald's and Subway has salads. Most deli's have a salad bar but it is a trick to find one with a lot of vegetables and not so much pasta or mayonaise based salads. Margarita pizza is a lower calorie choice for Italian.
It amazes me that when we were on the Perricone diet, our Cholesterol went back up past where it was before and we both gained back half of our weight loss. The Perricone prescribed animal protein at every meal. The portions were about twice or three times what we were used to. So now I cringe after eating all of this take-out but surprisingly - I actually lost back down a few pounds. Stunned.
This weekend, we should be able to get back on track but I will keep in mind looking for healthy alternatives for when I am not prepared.

Can you afford $3500 a week to live?

I have some friends that are in their late seventies. They get around quite well but they are suffering from various health problems. One has been battling cancer for several years. He had a clean bill of health last year but now it is back.
He was stunned to find his insurance no longer covers chemo. Medicaid does not cover it either. He has to have chemo once a month and it costs $3500 each time. I learned there is a drug people can take now as an alternative to chemo. It runs $2500 - $3500 a month. Insurance does not cover it.

His wife had problems with her eyes. She was treated by an injection in the eye that costs $2500 each. The doctor recommended a series of 8 shots but wanted to see how well the first one worked. Luckily she has only had the one shot but she is dreading the possibility of another.

If you are like millions of American's, you don't have an extra $3500 a month laying around. If you do, then you probably have something else you would prefer to use it on. If you don't, then your alternative is to deny yourself treatment that could save your life. Read that last sentence again. In the case of my friends, they are shelling out $6000 a month out of pocket for medical expenses to stay alive, and not go blind.

We can only expect this to get worse as more and more baby boomers reach retirement age. Politicians are already talking about cutting off medicare and social security. The health plan that Obama signed into law will never happen. Granted there are some things about the law we don't like but the things we did like will never take hold. The insurance companies won't have it! As much as I could go on about how our insurance companies and other big companies own the American legislation, that is not my point.

It feels like a conspiracy that our food industry continues to churn out products that are unhealthy for us to eat. We fight an onslaught of chemicals, pesticides and pollutants every single day that weaken our immunity system. We cannot even eat healthy without paying a much higher price for organic or natural foods that are free of pesticides, antibiotics, hormones and food additives that are known carcinegens. Eating the food that is readily available makes us fat and unhealthy. However we can prolong our "health" by taking prescription drugs to combat the various diseases we get from our food and environment.

More often than not, our doctors prescribe the drugs but make no suggestions about lifestyle changes that may change improve your condition.

On the detox plan I proved I could drop my cholesterol tremendously by diet alone. I also proved that eating animal protien can push the cholesterol back up as fast as it came down.

I can't think of a better wake up call than to look into the future and see that if I don't take care of my health now, I may not have choices later on. I think retirement is going to be a challenge for most of us. Many people now have to make a choice between medicine and food. People are starting to find they will have no choice but to die a slow and painful death because they cannot pay for the medicine to keep them alive.

This last few weeks, we have had so much going on that we have all but reverted back to unhealthly eating habits. It takes time and planning to prepare healthy food. The alternative is for take out, dining out or fast food which are rarely healthy. We have seen the strides we made on our detox diet slowly go away. We are STILL much better off than we were before that detox diet, but we can see and feel the difference. I would like to note that we felt fantastic after a few short weeks on the detox plan. We have been off of it for nearly three months now and still are enjoying the benefits of that diet. This tells me that we can stay healthy even if we eat better food just part of the time.

It is my mission to find a diet that can be part of my lifestyle, easier to maintain and with more readily available choices for the hectic days.

Health assessment after Perricone

I can't beleive I have not written since May 28th. Sorry about that. We had our health assessments done the first week of June. This is after having one week off of the Detox diet then 3 weeks of the Perricone diet. Now during that week off, we somewhat continued the detox diet with some animal protein mixed in. We also had a few meals of splurges as we had planned over Memorial Day weekend. The Perricone diet was different than our usual life style diet in that we had animal protein 3 to 4 times a day.
Back to the health assessments. We were shocked to find our Cholesterol jumped up to where it was before we started. For the first time, Harry's cholesterol was up over 200! We thought about it and realized that before the Perricone diet, we had several meatless meals a week and seldom ate animal protein more than once a day.
I have to mention also that we were used to eating 2 to 4 ounces of protein in a meal and Perricone doubled that. Not to mention the liberal does of olive oil.
So this week we are starting back on the detox plan again less the juicing. Tonight Harry is grilling some baby Bok Choy with some onions and mushrooms. I may cook some bulgar wheat to go with it.
Will keep you posted.

Dr Perricone diet, summation

Tomorrow is the last day of our Perricone diet. We have taken a truck load of supplements, eaten more seafood than we have in years and basically just maintained where we are. The diet should have been easier than the detox diet but it was actually more difficult. I think it was TOO close to our normal diet for one thing. We never felt like we were actually on a diet. It was difficult to follow from another sense. We are not used to eating a big breakfast. We simply do not have the time. We stuck with out power shake for breakfast on the weekdays then Dr Perricone's suggestions for the weekends. The meals prescribed were actually more food than what we are used to eating. The combinations were a little strange as well. Having Salmon and yogurt together for a meal as an example. I ended up making a curry flavored yogurt and using it as a sauce for the salmon. It turned out well but I had to think outside of the box. Finally, there was nothing convenient about the diet. Every meal required advance planning. Several times we ended up buying a roasted chicken and salad to make a quick meal. We did not have fruit at every meal and snack as suggested. The diet was all about having a protein, good fat, a low sugar vegetable and then a fruit five times a day.
All of that being said, I saw another 14 day diet in a Clean Living magazine. It actually had the entire 14 days complete with the entire menu, broken down by calories, fat, carbs, etc., as well as a complete shopping list. I scanned the menu's and quickly realized it was more of the same. A very strict combination of ingredients regardless of how well they went together. I don't know when I would ever want to put a kiwi, maple syrup, oatmeal, cottage cheese and pistacio's together in one meal except in an episode of chopped. Snacks need to be something you can grab and go... not something you have to prepare. Now I figured I could have toasted the oatmeal and pistacios together and make a parfait from the ingredients, but that is beside the point.
Another issue we had was when to take the supplements. It was suggested to take the supplements with meals. We have breakfast around 7:30 every morning and lunch at noon. We don't eat dinner until about 8 PM. So we have one or two snacks in the afternoon. Taking a round of supplements with the afternoon snack didn't seem like it would help much. Often we skipped at least one round of the supplements.
At the end of this diet, we did not feel better like we had with the detox diet. Our health dramatically improved with the detox diet. With Dr Perricone's diet, our blood pressure continued to impreve but we were reverting back to some of our previous health issues. Harry's tinitus returned. We both started having congestion and sinus issues the last week of the diet. Finally, my daily headaches returned. We contribute this to the dairy that we introduced back into our diets. I saw an ad that made me laugh. It is known that dairy is not consumed in Japan and Japan has the lowest rate of cancers. The ad was of a japanese woman holding a huge piece of cheese. The caption was, full fat cheese may prevent diabetes! Well the dairy association has to come up with something! While I can say, I don't miss milk that much, I do like my cheese. Dr Perricone allows cheese on his diet, but sparingly. I should be in a CAA group. Cheese-aholics anonymous. I can't just eat a few crumbs of cheese.
I can't say if Dr Perricone's diet would have worked or not because there were too many things we were not able to follow as he mapped it out. Our diet has to fit our schedule and our schedule is built around our jobs like everyone else! While I am looking for a diet to lose weight with, I ultimately want that same diet to maintain my weight when I reach my goal. Kind of like Weight Watcher's. With Weight Watcher's, you continually reduce the number of food points you can consume as your weight goes down. Weight Watcher's was very successful for me and I lost 55 pounds in 4 months on that diet. However I finally reached a target of 20 points a day and it was difficult to maintain, much less continue dropping weight. 20 points is not much food.
This next week, we plan to take our supplements but maybe twice a day instead of three. We will "coast" for the week as we have several parties to attend and Memorial weekend to enjoy. Starting June 5, we will revert back to a slightly modified detox diet. We don't plan to do the juice fast again, but we may incorporate juicing for a snack or something. I also plan to take white bean extract before every meal or snack. White bean extract does not allow carbohydrates to convert to sugar. Basically it is a natural carb blocker.
I will keep you posted!

Safe cosmetics

I just ran across this website and want to share it.

www.safecosmeics.org is a website all about what is in your cosmetics, bath products, etc.

I learned that my lipstick has lead which was very frightening. Any amount of lead is dangerous. Many of the other products I use every day are carcingenic and the companies that sell them KNOW this. The FDA won't do anything either.

Check out the site and join the fight. It is bad enough the food we eat is riddled with hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, arsenic, toxins and chemicals. And food is "regulated" by the FDA!.

I guess it should not be surprising that since cosmetics and personal products have NO regulation that it would be a free for all!

My daughter won the contest

Chris was in a contest to lose weight over an 8 week period. She won last night with a loss of 13.8 percent of her body weight. Weigh to go! (Pun intended).
This last week she lost 7 pounds. She worked really hard at it. Rode the bike 85 miles (not 100 like I said earlier), but 85 miles??????? Wow. I might make it around the block if it was all down hill.

Her goal is to get back the body she had at 29! That's been my goal since I hit 40. I am still working at it. Now I am working on 45. I might stand a better chance of hitting that.

On the flip side, I have some older friends I would like to comment on. Elaine celebrated her 75th birthday last summer, and her husband Julian is coming up on 80 this July. They get around pretty well. Elaine even has a jewelry business and has shows all year long. I worry about them though because they are not healthy. They see the doctors a lot. Julian is fighting cancer right now and having a hard time with the chemo. Now this same man had a pork chop last week that Fred Flintstone would have shared with his family. I mentioned the detox diet - less the juicing, as I really think this could reverse the cancer. At the very least, it would not hurt! Their response was to have us over for hamburgers. I am sure they enjoyed them but they eat beef and pork frequently. Even one day a week vegetarian might make a difference.

I met up with my husband's ex brother in law this weekend. He believed he got arthritis from taking Lipitor and then cancer from taking the drugs prescribed for the arthritis. I have no doubt he was right. He was clear of cancer, and surprisingly the arthritis seemed to be gone. However, he is still a heavy man! So is his wife. They clearly need to change their diet but can't imagine eating vegetarian even for a little while.

My other in-laws asked about the weight loss diet we were on. I told them about some tacos I made with bulgar wheat, mushroom and onion. That was enough. They don't like mushrooms. So much for the diet!

My hat is off to my daughter because she is doing something for her health without any more motivation than wanting to look good and be healthy. Well, the $500 didn't hurt either, but she was working hard long before the contest. Sometimes people have to wait until they loose their health and their looks. Sometimes they never get the wake up call at all.

I can't judge anyone for their decisions because I had a hard time myself. When I finally felt so bad I was willing to make a change, I was physically too ill to make it. However I fought back with the detox as a start to get me past the illness enough that I could then start on a diet to get healthier and lose weight.

Harry asked me today how much our diet impacted our allergies. My Doctor gave me a chart once and there was only two weeks out of the year there was not an allergen I was allergic to. Literally year round I had various degrees of a cough, red eyes and flu like symptoms. We went to the farm this weekend when allergens come out and attack you like baseball bats in full swing. Not a sniffle. Obviously our immune system has strengthened so much that our allergies are not a problem.
Neither is the acid reflux, diverticulitis or high cholesterol, but that is beside the point.

I can't believe that a vegetarian diet for the short time we were on it made such an impact. Keep in mind, we were vegetarian for 3 weeks, juice fast for one week, then we gradually added back animal protein over a two week period. After that we had a month of eating vegetarian and occasionally going out to dinner for what ever we had a yen for. This detox was a powerful diet!
Our current diet, the Dr Perricone diet has been compromised somewhat but we have held off any weight gain. We will have to see what happens this week now that we are following it better.

I guess I am a little puzzled why people would rather be sick than eat right. What motivates people to change. If we could bottle that motivation, we would all be healthy!

What is a detox plan

Some people at work have been asking me about my detox plan. One person asked what drug I was trying to get out of my system. Another showed pity on me because "I could not eat the processed food they loved". My daughter is in a contest for weight loss and has done some extreme things to get her weight down. She tried the salt water flush and then drinking nothing but lemon juice with cayenne pepper and maple syrup for a few days. She gave up after three days because she was feeling really bad and "looked gray". She is also riding her bike about 100 miles a week and working out at the gym every day. I think she is going to win! I am worried about her and very glad her contest ends soon. I am also very proud of her because I know how hard this is for her.
Detox plans seem to be the rage. However it seems there are many plans out there all labeled as detox and some are outright dangerous. There are many supplements and weight loss formulas that simply don't work and have the potential to impair one's health. When the buzz goes down, they are simply repacked with a new name and ad campaign. A different "popular today" ingredient is slapped on the label and everyone plops down the money for another failure. Rarely does anyone google the supplement or look for fraud or complaints about them. I do this for every single thing I take.

Don Colbert's detox plan is a modified version of his life style diet plan. He adds supplements that support the liver function and then finishes off the plan with a 7 day juice fast. We are not talking Minute Maid or Cranberry juice cocktail here. The juice fast requires a whole produce basket of fruits and vegetables blended with phyto-nutrients to give you plenty of energy at the lowest caloric intake. Once the detox is over, you can add a few foods back into the diet and be on his life style plan full time. It was not intended to be a weight loss diet but the 10% drop in weight and 40 point drop in cholesterol were an undeniable bonus. We also accomplished our ultimate goal and that was to get toxins out of our bodies that were making us sick. I don't cough all the time anymore and I don't get sick every time my grandsons come over. That was my #1 goal and the plan worked for us!
On this detox plan, I did not take laxatives, diuretics, 64 oz of salt water or any of those fads. I did incorporate a detox tea, but only a cup a day. We did not limit our caloric intake. However when eating all vegetables, you can certainly have a lot more volume. I did not realize until after this diet that we were eating barley grains most days that were 500 calories for a 1/2 cup serving. We were eating avocados, nuts and olives most days and they are relatively high in calories and "the good fats". We lost weight in spite of the calories.
We actually ate more than we have in years. The meals were interesting and flavorful and we feel better than we have in a long time. I think we could easily sustain this eating plan and embark on an occasional side step and be healthy.
The detox plan got us healthy. Now Dr Perricone's weight loss diet should help us with the weight. Again, Dr Perricone's diet is also a modified version of his life style plan. The negative side of this is the truck load of supplements we have to take, but the majority of them are only necessary for the weight loss. My daughter started taking the supplements this last week. She lowered her carbs a bit more on her already sugar free diet. She lost 7 pounds this week. Harry and I have not been so successful but we cannot blame the diet. For about 7 meals this week, we ate out. Not take-out, but as close to possible what the diet would allow. We got interesting looks when we asked for the entry (protien) first and salad last, but we stuck with it. Restaurant food always has additives of oils, fats, butter, flavor enhancers, sugar, salt, white flour, etc that we do not have on our diet. At home we can ensure we are using the right oils, Himalayan salt, no sugar, msg, chemical laden ingredients, etc. In spite of the restaurant food, Harry lost three pounds. I was down two pounds durng the week but ended where I started. Next week will be better. According to the diet, we are only eating about 1/2 the servings of fish and chicken that we are allowed. I never thought I would have to eat MORE to make a diet work.
Im summation, whatever plan you select, whether it is plan to get heathier, lose weight, or even fight a disease, the thing to ask yourself is if the transition to a lifestyle plan would be easy and minimal. Anything radical would not be the way to go.

New six week plan starting Monday 5/9/11

I mentioned Dr Perricone as my inspiration for trying a new weight loss diet.
Now my pursuit is for a diet we can live with that will make us healthy and be incorporated into our new life style. Before we can have a maintenance diet, we need to get where we want to be to maintain.

The detox diet helped us rid our body of a lot of junk in our system that should help our bodies be more receptive to a proper diet. It was very successful for the short period we were on it. We felt much better, our bronchial issues went away. Our blood pressure went down. Our cholesterol dropped 40 points. We both lost 10% of our body weight. The best part is that we both really enjoyed being on it, up until the week of juicing. The juicing part was rewarding in a lot of ways but not sustainable. It was not intended to be. We were hungry most of the time and the sheer amount of fruits and vegetables for the juice was cost prohibitive to continue for long. Also I think we reaped most of the before that week of juicing.

This Perricone weight loss diet was something we thought we would do for a month. His diet book recommends 2 weeks. Since Harry and I need to lose quite a bit more, Two weeks of any program is not going to get us there. Also because our detox diet was so successful, I want to incorporate it somehow into our plans.

The similarities between the diets are this. Total elimination of processed foods, fast foods, sugar, artificial flavors and condiments with names we don't recognize as a food. Both diets promote fresh vegetables and fruits, good fats such as olive oil, avocados and nuts, and healthy whole grains.

Dr Perricone's diet says to get the majority of protein from seafood, fowl and eggs. Low fat cheese can be consumed in moderation. He also allows turkey bacon, which I disagree with because of the nitrates. Yogurt and Kifer can be consumed on a daily basis. Since the protein is coming from animal products, beans and grains are treated as simple carbohydrates and to be limited. He allows agave syrup, stevia and something called Zsweet as the only added sweeteners. His key is to consume 20 grams of protein for each meal, consume the protein first and any fruit last. He prescribes 5 meals a day, lots of water, lots of spices. He then goes on to recommend specific foods and spices such as wild salmon, watercress, blueberries, cinnamon and turmeric to be staples in the diet. He also prescribes 12 supplements which add considerable cost to the diet. More about that later.

The detox diet totally eliminates animal protein of all kinds. Instead Dr Colbert prescribes a combination of beans or whole grains with seeds or nuts to supply the protein at each meal. He is less precise about how much to eat at each sitting, or how many meals to eat. He is more interested in the quality of the food and the cooking techniques used to prepare it. For example, if I start cooking animal protein, I will be careful to use grapeseed or macadamia oil for the preparation and use olive oil for salad dressing. Most oil breaks down and becomes carcinogenic at the temperatures required to prepare food properly. While on the detox diet, we added a high protein shake in the morning. It was a 20 mg rice protein drink with 60 calories, no carbs and no sugar. We also added Brewer's yeast and lecithin to provide the B vitamins that we would not be able to achieve with an all vegetarian diet. The supplements he prescribed were more for the detox affect as they were important for liver support. The NAC he prescribed is not something I think one would continually take, but it would be prudent to take maybe one week a month or after an illness.

We decided we alternate Dr Perricone's and Dr Colbert's plans a seven week period and take the supplements prescribed by Dr Perricone for the entire time. We will start with Dr Perricone for three weeks, have a one week break, and then finish with Dr Colbert's plan. The week break will be right during the Memorial day weekend. W have plans that week that I don't want to have restricted with a specific diet.

Dr Perricone's supplements are all about fat burning, metabolism, and basically reducing the body's ability to protect the fat. I really can't see anything is his plan that would allow one diet plan to work over the other with these supplements.

Dr Perricone's weight loss diet is also an anti-aging diet that helps the brain and skin. Again, I think the Omega 3 and DMAE he prescribes could be used with both diets.

In a nutshell and this is a big shell, this is the breakdown of the supplements.

Omega 3 from fish oil or Evening Primrose oil 1000mg - 3000mg 3x daily
Anti-inflammatory, accelerate loss of body fat
Stabilizes blood sugar, lowers insulin levels, improves skin.
May assist with memory, reduce eczema and relieves rheumatoid arthritis.
Alpha Lipoic Acid 150 mg 3x daily
Universal antioxidant. Insulin sensitizing. Converts carbs to energy.
Blocks Nfkb which causes cancer. Boosts Glutathione levels.
Must be taken with Acetyl L-Carnatine to be effective.
Anataxathin (From eggplant skin or microalgae) 2 mg 3x daily
Improves vision, may prevent cataracts, protects cell membrane,
protects muscle, increases endurance, reduces wrinkles and age spots.
L-Carnatine 250 mg 2x daily, not in evening
Converts fat to energy, prevents muscle loss, protects liver function.
Acetyl L-Carnatine 500 - 1000 mg 2x daily, not in evening
Prevents neurological decline, improves cholesterol, reduces triglycerides.
Necessary for Alpha Lipoic acid to be effective.
Conjugated Linoleic acid - CLA 1000 mg 3x daily (up to 4000 mg)
Decreases visceral (mid-section) fat, blocks absorption of fat and sugar
into cells, reduces size of fat cells. (Hallelujah!)
More effective when taken with sesame seeds.
CoQ10 or Coenzyme Q10 100 mg 3x daily
In general, heart heath. Regulates blood sugar and insulin sensitivity.
Chromium 200 mcg 1x daily
Unlocks fat cells, normalizes cholesterol and triglycerides.
Cardio protective. Should not be taken with grains, nuts, seeds, milk.
I imagine this should be taken upon rising with all of the morning
supplements taken 30 minutes later, or an hour before a meal.
Gamma Linoleic acid (GLA) 200 - 400 3x daily to 1000mg.
This is an Omega-6 fatty acid that regulates blood pressure.
Creates a powerful anti-inflammatory hormone.
Glutamine This is a powder. 1 serving 3x daily with meals. Make fresh.
Prevents muscle breakdown. Helps weight loss without losing muscle mass.
Assists with the metabolic process and delivers essential nitrogen to cells.
Prevents damage from alcohol and reduces cravings.
Maitake SX Fraction Grifron brand recommended, 3x daily, 30 minutes after meals.
Natural weight loss supplement. Controls blood sugar, regulates blood
pressure. Increase insulin sensitivity.
DMAE 50 - 100 mg daily
Optimum brain and beauty health. May take 200 mg daily to lower cholesterol.

Like I said, these are a lot of supplements. They are easy to get. As for the Omega-3, Dr Perricone recommends 3000mg to 9000 mg daily while in the weight loss diet. Otherwise 3000 mg is sufficient. Since Omega-3 is also present in seafood, I would reduce the supplement to compensate for what is consumed.

Foods to eat: Wild or sockeye Salmon, Sablefish (if you can find it), sardines, anchovies, clams, cod, flounder, lobster, halibut, tuna, other oily fish, chicken, turkey, Cornish hens, raw foods and sprouts, green or white tea, dark chocolate in moderation, fiber 20-30 grams daily, spices, nuts and seeds.
All vegetables but potatoes, corn and beans in moderation. Whole fruits are preferred to juice. Kefir, eggs, yogurt (no sugar), oatmeal, lentils, barley, buckwheat, Acai, POM juice and tea. LOTS of water.

Every meal has protein, low glycemic carbs, 1 tbsp essential fatty acids, protein eaten first and fruits last.

This should be FUN!

Clindamycin set back - wow

I have not posted a blog for two weeks. After a dental visit, I was prescribed some antibiotics to assist with the unexpected root canal I had to have.
I was prescribed 300mg Clindamycin HCL and on the third day I was suffering from quite a few side effects. I scanned the internet and found this antibiotic is usually prescribed long term for acne as well as dental infections.

I really don't want to go into details about how bad this set me back. For the most part I had flu like symptoms, chills, fever, weakness and so forth along with an intense headache and abdominal issues. I managed to work half days from home for two days and then all day from home for two days. I have been in the office since then but even yesterday, 12 days after stopping this drug, I was having issues. I am amazed that a drug can have side effects like that and I can't help but wonder what it would have done to me had I not been on a detox program just prior.

This drug obviously will not affect everyone the same way but from what I read from persons who have taken it, it can cause major gastro intestinal problems. It can lead to problems as long as 3 months after taking it, and cause problems that may result in surgery, organ failure and even death.

I urge anyone who has taken any drug and suffered side effects to log into http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch/default.htm and report it.

For too long the drug companies have been able to push drugs through by pressuring or simply out lobbying the FDA. New drugs are presented to our physican's who get free samples and possibly kickbacks for prescribing them. I have been guilty of taking free samples myself but I think there is a lot to be said for drugs that have been around for years as opposed to something that just hit the market.

For the last 10 days, since I didn't feel good and we have not been on a specific diet, we have relaxed our standards of what we eat. One night we even bought a hamburger from a new chain that has been opening up in Texas. We cheated on a few meals here and there but stuck with veggies and fruits in between. I am happy to say we have not regained our lost weight, but we have not lost any either.

It only convinces me more that a diet based on fresh vegetables and fruits, nuts, seeds an whole unprocessed grains is the way to go. I am a little concerned about going on a diet that stresses animal protein for weight loss but I am curious enough to give it a try. We have all the supplements we need now and will start that on Monday, but that is another topic.