Dr. Myra Ancelet Reed: We All Know The Saying “You Are What You Eat”

BY DR. MYRA REED

With this saying comes “What are we eating?” Why are we getting more obese and have more medical problems with more medications? One of the answers is our food. Food these days has an increased amount of sugar and additives. Over 600,000 foods have added sugar. Sugar stimulates insulin, insulin pushes calories into fat cells and weight gain. Too much insulin leads to inflammation and inflammation lead to diseases, diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke, cancer, arthritis, fatigue, insomnia, and autoimmune disorders.

Sugar consumption is up! In 1980, we each consumed 40 pounds per year. Now it is at 152 pounds per year. Almost 4 times as much! The American Heart Association recommends less than 6 teaspoons (24 grams) of sugar per day for women and no more than 9 teaspoons (36 grams) for men. The average adult consumes 22 teaspoons (88 grams) per day and children 32 teaspoons (128 grams)! The biggest culprit
is soda followed by cakes, cookies, fruit drinks, and milk or dairy. One 12 ounce soda has 10 teaspoons of sugar, more than 2 frosted Pop Tarts and a Twinkie combined!

A 6 ounce fruit-flavored yogurt has up to 32 grams of sugar! Although yogurt has good protein, calcium, and probiotics, it is better to eat it plain without the added sugar. Refined sugar has NO nutritional value, vitamins, or minerals. It is linked to major diseases. Sugar- sweetened drinks, even fruit juices, are just as bad. Liquid sugar and artificial sweeteners don’t register in our brains as solid food. This increases total calorie intake. Children who drink just one soda a day had a 60 percent increase in obesity. Studies show that each generation will have shorter life spans due to this. Caloric intake has increased in the last decade due to aggressive marketing of these high sugar, trans fats, with other additives in processed foods, especially to children in cereals and fast foods.

People used to think that a high fat diet made you fat. So in the 1970s, people started to change from traditional natural fats to processed hydrogenated vegetable, saturated oils, and trans fats invented by scientists to process foods for better shelf life. They are found in commercially packaged or fried foods like French fries, microwave popcorn, vegetable shortenings, and hard stick margarine. These bad fats increase your chance of heart disease by increasing your LDL cholesterol and triglycerides as well as decreasing the protective HDL cholesterol.

[box type=”shadow” align=”aligncenter” ]THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION RECOMMENDS LESS THAN 6 TEASPOONS (24 GRAMS) OF SUGAR PER DAY FOR WOMEN AND NO MORE THAN 9 TEASPOONS (36 GRAMS) FOR MEN. [/box]But not all fats are bad. Some are really good for you like unsaturated fats that help lower LDL cholesterol and heart disease. The body also needs unsaturated fats for energy and to help absorb certain vitamins and nutrients. These liquid fats come mainly from vegetable and fish products. There are two categories: polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. These include omega-3 fatty acids of cold water fish such as salmon, mackerel or herring, flax seeds, walnuts, almonds, olive oil, avocadoes, soybean and sunflower oil, tofu, and soybeans.

Another food that has changed is wheat. It is now known to have less nutrient value. Over time, the mineral content has declined 28 per cent of magnesium, iron, zinc and copper. The wheat grain has also been genetically altered causing gluten intolerance and sensitivity. The grain has been processed, bleached, and additives and preservatives have been added that spike blood sugar just as much as white bread. This leads to inflammation in the body and chronic diseases like digestive issues, arthritis, fatigue, weight gain, allergies, and rashes.

Eat foods without added sugar, preservatives, additives or processed grains. Cook with good oils. Eat lean proteins, cold water fish or grass fed meats, fresh vegetables, dark leafy greens, nuts, and plain yogurt with your own fruit added. Avoid artificial sweeteners and diet drinks. Drink lots of purified water with lemon or cucumber slices added. Also exercise daily and get 7-8 hours of sleep. Get a complete work up from your doctor including advanced labs of cardiovascular, genetic, insulin and diabetes, nutrient, omegas, vitamin D, and other mineral and vitamin levels. Check your hormone and thyroid levels to replace them bioidentically. Use medical-grade supplements that have been third party tested, are natural, and you know exactly what you are getting. Most supplements over the counter are not regulated and may not give you all you need.

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Myra Ancelet Reed, MD

1814 Thomas Drive Panama City Beach, FL 32408

850-249-5414

www.MyraAnceletReedMD.com[/box]