Most people have heard of Omega 3 oils and that they should consume them but very few people really understand what they are and why they are important. The next 3 entries will explain this interesting topic in an understandable and comprehensive fashion.

There are 2 dietary fats which are essential., that is, required for human life- Omega 6 and Omega 3. Omega 6 comes primarily from seeds or grains such as wheat, corn, rice, and the food stuffs made from these grains like bread, pasta, beer and most of the oils we use to cook with such as corn and vegetable oil. Once we consume Omega 6 oils they become a huge part of our cell membranes and also create substances that support the inflammatory response, for example, to infection or cancer or injury.

Omega 3 oils are made by one-celled organisms in the ocean called plankton and are also found in green leafy vegetables. Since fish, particularly cold-water fish, eat plankton and algae they are a great source of Omega 3. These oils also become part of our cell membranes, particularly in our brains, eyes and heart but they do the opposite of Omega 6 with regards to inflammation- they actually fight inflammation. So the higher the ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 that you consume, the more at risk you are for developing inflammatory diseases such as heart disease, arthritic diseases, auto immune diseases, inflammatory bowel disease, asthma and COPD even chronic depression.

One of the reasons these types of diseases are so common in industrialized countries is because of the unhealthy high consumption of grain-based foods (breads, rice pasta etc.) with a too low consumption of Omega 3 from wild caught fish, grass fed beef and green leafy vegetables.

Since almost all the flesh we eat from cows, pigs and chickens is raised on corn, which is an Omega 6 based feed, we get it coming and going. Even most of the fish we eat is “farm raised” which means they are fed corn based fish chow and not therefore getting the Omega 3 containing food of algae and plankton that wild fish would eat. So one can see how just about every where we turn in a modern American supermarket we are looking at high
Omega 6 foods- cereals, snack foods, breads, farm raised beef and fish etc with very few if any high Omega 3 foods.

Metassist also contains:

Gymnema Sylvestrie – Used for over 2,000 tears in Aryuvedic medicine to prevent and treat diabetes, the Hindu word for this amazing herb is “gumar” which literally means “sugar destroyer”. This herb is being actively studied by scientists as it holds great promise in not only treating and preventing diabetes but as well inth earea of weight loss and general weight loss. Studies have shown that gymnema:

• reduces the sweetness of sugar thereby inhibiting sweet cravings
• reduces the absorption of both sugar and fat causing these to be excreted from the body
• stimulates insulin to be secreted from the pancreas by regenerating pancreatic cells
• is anti-diabetic in laboratory rats

Green Tea - Green tea has been the subject of thousands of medical studies particularly over recent years. As green tea relates to the subject at hand it has been shown to:

• increase the burning of fat by the body by 17%
• cause a 4% weight loss in 12 months
• decrease both systolic and diastolic blood pressure which are often elevated in overweight individuals
• decrease total and LDL cholesterol
• reduce deaths due to heart disease the most common cause of death particularly in the overweight

Fenugreek Seeds – Have been used medicinally throughout the world for thousands of years. It has many health benefits from increasing milk production in nursing mothers to increasing libido 25% in aging men but as it relates to weight loss, carb craving and diabetes fenugreek:

• is anti-diabetic and ameliorates most metabolic effects of Type 2 diabetes
• improves glucose tolerance
• lowers cholesterol levels 14% in 24 weeks

Ginger Root- Another ancient herb with myriad uses in health and wellness which has been shown to

• lower blood pressure in laboratory animals
• lower blood sugar in laboratory animals
• lower cholesterol in laboratory animals

Taking 1-2 tablets of MetAssist 3 times a day before each meal will result in a noticeable reduction in sugar craving, hunger, insulin overshoot symptoms and will be a very useful addition to your fat loss and wellness regimen.

So far we addressed dietary changes to cure carb craving such as eating more protein, eating more frequently and decreasing intake of white foods (sugar, bread, rice, potatoes, pasta). There is a supplement called MetAssist which I formulated which will help not only with blood sugar stabilization but also help you lose excess body fat. In MetAssist there are 4 major and 4 minor nutraceuticals that work synergistically to normalize and prevent swings in blood sugar, lower hemoglobin A1C in diabetics, improve mood, directly curb desire for sweets and actually decrease body fat levels when taken regularly. These nutraceuticals are as follows:

Hydroxycitric Acid or HCA – This naturally occurring substance is derived from a tropical fruit garcinia cambogia, also known as tamarind.

In multiple scientific studies HCA has been shown to:

• decrease conversion in the liver of sugar and starch to fatty acids
• decrease absorption of sugar from the gut so more sugar is simply excreted from the body
• lowers sugar and insulin levels, triglycerides and inflammation in the body as shown by lowering C reactive protein and interleukin 6 which are blood markers of inflammation
• increases serotonin, the “feel good” chemical in your brain which lowers appetite directly as well as indirectly by decreasing stress and depression which are major triggers for excess eating particularly starchy foods
• lower body weight by BMI by 6% in 12 weeks

Chromium Polynicotinate – This is a compound which consists of the metallic element attached to the B vitamin niacin. This compound is also known as glucose tolerance factor (GTF) as it is the link that attaches the insulin receptors to the cell membrane as also keeps the insulin receptors active. When insulin receptors become inactive due to chronic overeating of white foods this is what causes type 2 or adult onset diabetes. In fact, chromium polynicotinate has been shown in many human studies to lower hemoglobin A1C (HgB A1C) by 0.6 in diabetics. Diabetes is defined in laboratory studies as an elevated HgBA1C of greater than 6 so basically this can decrease it by 10% which is quite significant.

A landmark scientific study of carb cravers demonstrated that these individuals consume 800 calories on average more per day than people who do not have this syndrome. Unless you can get this problem under control you will not be able to lose significant amounts of fat. EATING FAT DOES NOT MAKE YOU FAT-EATING EXCESSIVE CARBS MAKES YOU FAT. PERIOD!!!

Here are a few strategies that have been shown to help:

One of the most common causes of carb craving is depression/stress/anxiety. Carbs help relieve these by releasing serotonin in the brain. The effect is short lived however and when it wears off you are off to the races (or the cupboard). Exercise, vigorous exercise, has been scientifically proven to raise serotonin as high as the SSRI anti-depressants (Prozac, Zoloft, Celexa, Paxil etc). So FORCE yourself to exercise vigorously at least 30 minutes a day and you wont require that bag of chips. Just make sure you don’t reward yourself for exercising with it.

Eat a high protein breakfast and lunch (or substitute with an all-natural high protein shake like the Cornerstone Meal Replacement) and high protein snacks. This will lower your insulin levels and stabilize your blood sugar, which will help immensely with carb craving. This will also help maintain muscle, which will keep you burning more calories.

Prepare ahead with crunchy low calorie and slightly salty snacks. At home and work keep cut up raw vegetables such as celery, carrots, snap peas, peppers, jicama etc in a lidded container of slightly salty water in the fridge. The crunch and the saltiness will satisfy the need at a fraction of the calories and insulin response.

Keep cold club soda or sparkling water at home and work with limes or lemons that you cut and throw in. The gas will fill you up so you will feel full and there are 0 calories. Try not to drink diet sodas as the artificial sweeteners have been shown to make people seek out carbs and sweets. It has been shown that 27% of calories in America comes from beverages, higher in the South where sweet tea is one of the 4 food groups. If a 180 lb woman drank club soda instead and changed nothing else she would lose more than 50 lbs in a year.

When you eat out always tell the server to skip the bread. It doesn’t matter that it is free-I guarantee you will never not empty the basket. Also, sub out vegetables for the potato. The healthier part of a loaded potato is actually the sour cream and bacon.

If you are a tortilla eater, remember a tortilla has as much carbs and calories as a slice of bread. The average Mexican American eats 12- 15 tortillas /day. Flour or corn, it makes no difference. Remember, corn is a starch not a vegetable. How do you fatten a cow? By feeding it corn.

When you go grocery shopping, don’t buy chips, crackers, cereals and other flour and starch based foods. If they are not in the house you will not eat them. Don’t worry about the kids. Remember your kids have half your DNA, if you are overweight they will be overweight especially if they are eating what you have been bringing home because of your own carb addiction. Things are hard enough for kids today. Don’t sabotage your kid’s success in life by contributing to their obesity. If you are not willing to do it for yourself, at least do it for your kids. Be a role model for healthy eating. Besides, they will find enough crap at the neighbor’s and the pesky neighbor kids wont come over because you don’t have anything they want to eat. Voila!

Continue reading Part 3 to learn about MetAssist by Cornerstone Wellness, a tablet that will help you immensely with your quest to manage your carb craving.

If you are overweight, over-fat or obese you did not get that way by eating too much fruit, vegetables, dairy or meat. You got that way, one way and one way only- by eating too much white food- bread, rice, pasta potatoes, cereal, sugar and beer (liquid grain). It is truly that simple. It doesn’t matter whether it is whole grain bread, rice or pasta or not, the effect is the same. Although there is a little more fiber and vitamins in whole grain, the effect on weight gain is essentially the same.

So why is this. First of all, these foods are almost pure starch, a type of carbohydrate that has very little nutrition and is essentially just empty calories. If you don’t burn every bit of these starch calories they are converted to fat by your liver and stored in your body as fat. White foods have 3 other qualities that make them dangerous from the standpoint of weight control. First, they have no turn off switch in your brain. Who binges on apples, lettuce or steak? Almost nobody does. Who binges on chips, cookies, fries and bread? Pick your poison and it’s most likely a white food.

Secondly, white foods increase levels of a depression- fighting chemical in your brain called serotonin. This effect is temporary however and when the effect wears off, you of course start looking for more of the same. This is why many of them are called comfort foods. Ever eat chicken for comfort? Doubtful. How about a box of Oreos? Heck yeah!

Everyone has their tried and true comfort foods to treat stress, anxiety or the blues. The problem is, the guilt and shame that follows binging on these foods may very well be worse than the initial feelings, or, stated differently, the cure is worse than the disease.

The third and most pervasive reason white food makes you fat, is because of a well-documented effect known as insulin overshoot. When you eat white food, in particular, sugar is released rapidly into your blood and your pancreas releases insulin to keep your blood sugar from getting dangerously high. White foods are high glycemic and induce an exaggerated insulin response, which then brings blood sugar TOO low and this signals the brain that you are hungry and it directs you to find and eat more white food.

Most overweight people spend their days on this rollercoaster or vicious cycle of unhealthy high blood sugar peaks and uncomfortable, tiring, brain fogging sugar lows. Since insulin is THE fat storage hormone, all these sugar/insulin peaks are driving fat on to your hips, thighs, belly, love-handles and most dangerously into your abdomen, around your organs. This process, repeated over and over again, daily over decades, will result in the body’s cells becoming insensitive to insulin (insulin resistance syndrome or metabolic syndrome) with resultant hypertension, elevated LDL cholesterol and triglycerides and eventually heart disease. If the insulin resistance is severe enough it is known as Type II diabetes. Although there are medications for that, if you don’t change your eating habits this will progress to your pancreas becoming incapable of making insulin- it simply burns out. Then you will need to take insulin shots daily to keep from losing your eyesight, kidneys and toes. Unfortunately, even taking insulin will not necessarily prevent this from happening.

The information above is one of the postulates of medical weight loss. Now that you understand the what and why of carb craving be sure and watch Part II of this blog to learn what you can do to cure your carb craving problem.

Body Fat: It’s Importance and Measurement

The importance of body fat and lean body mass has been established as more vital than weight or BMI.  I consider body fat % to be the 5th vital sign after temperature, blood pressure, pulse and respiratory rate.  Reducing excess body fat is more important from the standpoint of disease prevention and quality of life than any other vital sign.

Cornerstone Wellness utilizes technology that puts it on par with DEXA, the gold standard. Utilizing new algorithms developed at the University of Southern California’s School of Medicine, the Cornerstone Wellness Body Composition IV (BC IV) is within 0.5% of DEXA on average. Its accuracy really shines as one gets into the higher BMIs, where most other bioimpedance devices start to falter. It is also hand held and connects to the Internet so patients and medical weight loss physicians can follow the results online. Because it is Internet based the data can be intercalated with the meal planning program so that patients’ meal plans are customized according to their BMR, as it should be, instead of one-size-fits-all like the older, less cutting edge approaches that put all patients, regardless of size, on a standard caloric intake.

Protein, Carbohydrates and Calories – A Juggling Act

Now that body fat, BMR and calories can be determined, it allows custom individual diet plans to be engaged. The goal again is not weight loss, it is fat loss with maintenance of muscle and BMR.  The results of this approach by medical weight loss physicians that utilize the Cornerstone Wellness program are constantly evaluated by frequent follow up testing to make sure values are moving in the right direction. Many patients are so determined to lower their weight, they literally don’t eat as much as is recommended and this results in loss of muscle and BMR. Likewise, we have patients who may have lost a few pounds but they drop several dress or pant sizes due to gains of muscle with loss of body fat.

When not enough calories are consumed, physiologic survival mechanisms (starvation mode) result in a lowering of metabolic rate.  This is why mild to moderate caloric restriction diets (like Cornerstone) have been shown to result in better long term results than very low calorie diets or” VLCDs”. STARVATION HAS NO PLACE IN DIETING!!! It is completely counterproductive, dangerous and flies in the face of medical science.

Once LBM and BMR is determined by the Cornerstone BC IV, the patient is put on a calorie intake equal to their BMR minus 10% of their BMR. A 200 lb man, with a BMR of 2000 calories is actually burning about 2700 calories a day when one includes all their activities of daily living, even more if he is exercising. So when he is put on the Cornerstone program he would be eating 1800 calories/day (2000-200), which actually represents a reduction by 33% of what he was eating before (2700 cal). If he were put on a typical “very low calorie diet” like Optifast or Medifast of 800-1200 cal/day he would be reducing his calories by as much as 70%.

Not only is this degree of caloric restriction not necessary, it is potentially dangerous, makes people miserable and is counter to modern principles of metabolism and physiology.

Macronutrient (protein, carbohydrate and fat) proportions are set initially at 35%-35%-30% respectively. Compared to what most people consume this represents a marked increase in protein and reduction in carbohydrate. This conveniently gets most patients up to the 1.4-1.5 grams of protein per kg of body mass, which is necessary for maintenance of muscle with loss of body fat. By maintaining muscle while losing primarily fat, the metabolic rate is maintained so there will be no likelihood of cycling or yo-yoing.

The patients notice the changes in the mirror and in the looseness of their clothes since almost all the fat loss is from the abdominal area. Most importantly, metabolic co-morbidities like hypertension, hyperlipidemia, insulin resistance and diabetes improve more rapidly than one would expect with weight loss alone.

It is a well documented fact that over 95% of people who diet end up gaining their weight back within a couple of years. Obviously there are a lot of reasons for this. Perhaps the most important reason goes to the very concept of “dieting”. Unfortunately, most dieters change their caloric intake (often drastically) for a certain period of time but then when their diet is “over” they simply return to their previous eating habits. This makes no sense and goes to the oft-quoted definition of insanity “doing something over and over and expecting a different outcome”. Short term weight loss, while perhaps satisfying a New Year’s resolution, preparing for a cruise or a wedding or High School reunion doesn’t really change health risk factors to any significant degree. The later requires a long term change not so much in terms of weight but in terms of body fat levels.

Dieters focus on weight. Most people have a certain weight that they feel they should be. The focus on weight and BMI, (weight divided by height), particularly by the medical establishment (even researchers) and the insurance industry has reinforced this. Weight and body fat are not necessarily tethered. It is excess body fat, particularly intra-abdominal or visceral fat that causes all the diseases associated with overweight or the better term, over-fat.

Weight bearing joints (hips, knees, ankles, feet) care about body weight but every other illness related to “overweight” is due to excess body fat, not weight. Excess body fat increases insulin levels, which leads to hypertension, elevated LDL and triglycerides, diabetes, heart disease and even some cancers. The diseases of industrialized nations are due to excess inflammation and fat cells that are packed with fat produce inflammatory substances.

One of the pitfalls of losing weight instead of focusing on body fat is that it leads to a drop in metabolic rate (BMR) since BMR is almost completely determined by lean body mass (LBM) or muscle. Weight loss without maintenance of muscle lowers BMR so more calories are stored (as fat) instead of burned for energy. This of course will lead to cycling, or yo-yoing essentially setting people up for a vicious cycle of dieting for a weight goal, losing muscle, dropping BMR, storing more calories as fat and then simply repeating this cycle.

There are several ways to measure body fat and LBM, some more accurate or convenient than others. Please see part II of this discussion to learn about the different techniques to measure these parameters. The various dietary interventions utilized to result in loss of fat with maintenance of muscle and BMR will follow as well.