Sorry, Regina George, but butter isnt a carb. Its actually a fat, which means its keto diet friendly.

Diet friendly?! you might be thinking. What kind of diet includes BUTTER?

That would be keto, a diet with a high fat, moderate protein, low carbohydrate formula.

See, upping your consumption of protein and fat while drastically reducing your carb intake puts your body into a metabolic state called ketosis.

The science behind ketosis is *slightly* more complicated than figuring out the percent of calories from fat, but basically it means your body doesnt have enough glucose (or blood sugar) for energy.

Instead, your body burns stored fat for fuel, which stimulates weight loss. (It also turns fat into ketones, which supply energy to your brain more on that later.)

Your social feeds may be flooded with #keto posts, but the diet isnt just another Instagram fad (or #ad).

In fact, 20-plus studies have shown it can help you lose weight and even improve your health. Research has even found that the ketogenic diet can be more effective for weight loss than low fat diets.

Keto isnt a new concept its actually similar to low carb diets of yore, like Atkins.

If that reference gives you pause, fear not: For the most part, theres no calorie counting or food tracking involved. And since the diet is protein heavy, participants usually shed pounds without the hangry vibes.

Eating keto can have positive health effects beyond weight loss, including lowering your triglyceride level and increasing your HDL cholesterol (thats the good kind!).

The diet was originally used to help treat neurological disorders like epilepsy. Today, researchers are still exploring how it could help with the following health conditions:

Not to complicate things, but there are a few different forms of the keto diet

Types of keto diets:

The cyclical and targeted keto diets are more advanced and are primarily used by bodybuilders and athletes. The standard keto diet is the most researched method (and the most recommended).

Some diets are highly scientific. All are highly personal.

Just because a method is trending on Instagram or showing up on the New York Times best-seller list doesnt necessarily mean its right for everyone. Finding a diet that fits your lifestyle and helps you feel your best can require some exploration.

Research is a good first step in determining whether a diet might fit your needs. But in some cases, firsthand accounts can be more telling. Read on for six very different experiences with the keto diet.

Liz, 34, homemaker

Why did you start keto?

I was overweight and wanted to lose weight, like most people. I was also having issues with high blood pressure and didnt want to be on medication forever.

A friend told me about the keto diet, and it looked like the few things I wanted to change in my life, it could do. So I figured that before going to a doctor and going on medication, I should give the diet a chance.

How long did you follow the diet?

Three and a half years eating keto is still my primary way of eating.

What works for you?

These days I can get by with eating extra carbs and still stay in ketosis. I eat closer to 30 net carbs, but starting out at 15 carbs worked well for me.

What hasnt worked?

Overeating on fat and calories, which I found was fairly easy for me to do.

Did you experience any side effects?

I had major keto flu issues starting out. Ive since learned how to avoid it, but when I began 3 years ago, resources and info were lacking.

What do you wish youd known in the beginning?

Theres a lot of keto junk out there, so buyer beware. Also, how to avoid keto flu. But I did what I felt was a good amount of research starting out, so I felt like I had a good idea of what to expect.

Favorite keto recipe

Egg roll in a bowl and wings. I also make a killer keto friendly pho with zoodles.

The bottom line

Keto was a life changing diet for me. It was something I really needed for my overall health not just physical but mental as well. I heard someone say, the best diet is the one you can stick to. Im a pretty firm believer in that.

Christal, 29 (25 when on keto), editor

Why did you start keto?

I thought I was fat and needed to be fit to be attractive. I discovered keto on r/reddit and was convinced it was the healthiest way to lose weight.

I also convinced myself that because my dad had diabetes, it would be a preventive lifestyle (despite my not being large or heavy in any way).

How long did you follow the diet?

Three months at first, and then 5 additional months.

What worked for you?

Making a spreadsheet and creating my own recipes so I was in charge of the portion size. I made a what to eat each day and when spreadsheet and set a timer to remind myself to eat snacks.

It was also a very cheap and efficient way to cook. After the initial hump, my sugar cravings dropped. Thanks to keto, Im more aware of whats in my food. Was it worth it? Meh.

What didnt work for you?

I got really fit and skinny. I looked great, but it didnt change anything other than my body, which I realized wasnt a source of happiness for me.

I hated not being able to eat freely, and I had to explain to everyone over and over about this new diet I was trying while they looked at me like I was unhinged.

It would make sense if keto was a prescribed diet or if I had allergies, but I was being an unnecessary burden for no other reason than my own physical insecurities.

Did you experience any side effects?

I lost a cup size in my bra.

What do you wish youd known in the beginning?

I wish I had more knowledge about diet culture and intuitive eating. I understand keto for people who have conditions, but for me Im someone who is perfectly average and normal, who can eat freely and just go to the gym twice a week and be fine.

I just did my yearly wellness check and Im very healthy. I havent been on keto and Ive been eating whatever I want (intuitively)!

Favorite keto recipe

I loved buying chicken thighs with skin and then taking the skin off to bake into chips with cheese on top. Id also make Parmesan chips.

The bottom line

I can eat all of that without being on keto!

Nathan, 29, physical therapist assistant

Why did you start keto?

In hopes it would improve my health. I have type 1 diabetes.

How long did you follow the diet?

Six months.

What worked for you?

I found that I needed smaller insulin doses for my meals at least initially.

What didnt work for you?

My A1C (blood glucose average) score rose, and my bad cholesterol went up.

Did you experience any side effects?

Keto breath, and my LDL levels rose.

What do you wish youd known in the beginning?

That the body can turn excess proteins into sugars if you have too much of them.

Favorite keto recipe

Lupini beans.

The bottom line

I filled my diet with too much protein, and my body was slow to convert the excess protein into sugars. This, in turn, raised my blood glucose levels higher than normal in an insidious way I couldnt easily detect the change or correct it.

I also didnt focus enough on good fats and treated [the diet] as a bit of an excuse to eat fatty meats that were high in bad cholesterol. Avoiding carbs was easy for me, but its more complicated than that for a type 1 diabetic.

Carrie, 30, computer programmer

Why did you start keto?

Partially for weight loss but mainly to help decrease chronic inflammation.

How long did you follow the diet?

One year (and counting).

What worked for you?

I was able to get off a medication that I used for chronic inflammation, and I reached my goal weight.

What didnt work for you?

Its difficult to find a satisfying variety of meals because Im a vegetarian and have food allergies, but overall its worth it.

Did you experience any side effects?

Slight hair loss, but not significant enough for others to notice. I added a collagen booster to my protein shakes, and it helped.

What do you wish youd known in the beginning?

It wouldve been nice to have a carb-manager app for counting macros when I first started. And I wish Id had a better understanding about carbs being a daily limit, protein being a daily goal, and fat being something you consume until you feel full.

Favorite keto recipe

Fathead Dough recipes.

The bottom line

This way of life is not for everyone. Its a very limiting diet, especially for a vegetarian, and it takes away the opportunity to eat at the majority of restaurants (although this is improving).

It works for me I feel better than I have in years and have found some great meals that work for me. I still enjoy a cheat meal every once in a while, though.

Mandy, 32, editor

Why did you start keto?

I wanted to drop a little weight quickly to improve my speed for a marathon.

How long did you follow the diet?

Im currently still on keto. So far Ive made it 4 weeks out of my goal of 10 weeks.

What worked for you?

Go here to read the rest:
Why I Tried the Keto Diet: 6 Very Different Experiences - Greatist

Before Elon Musk sends people to Mars, he might want to consult Dr. Stephen Phinney about what the space explorers should eat.

Phinney, a nutritional biochemist and chief medical officer of diabetes-reversal company Virta Health, has been studying nutrition, and particularly ketosis, for decades.

He's learned that it may be easier for some people to excel in extreme endurance pursuits if they carry lots of fuel in their bodies, as the keto diet allows, rather than on their backs, bikes or in their spaceships.

"It's going to cost a heck of a lot less to send people [to Mars] on a ketogenic diet," Phinney said at the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics' annual Food and Nutrition Conference on Sunday in Philadelphia.

The keto diet is a low-carb, high-fat eating pattern that forces the body to burn fat, rather than carbs, for fuel.

While the plan is controversial in the nutrition community, it's especially counterintuitive for endurance athletes, who have long been known to need quick energy in the form of carbohydrates.

Phinney cited several examples of elite endurance athletes who broke records after going keto, suggesting that part of the diet's power for them was the ability to stop carrying carbs in the form of bagels, bananas, and goos.

Space travelers could potentially benefit from this as well, he said.

Back in 2012, ultra-endurance runner Tim Olsen won a 100-mile race, taking 21 minutes off the previous course record. He switched to a keto diet in order to avoid the digestive distress he'd previously experienced consuming the necessary 6,000 calories in carbs on the course, Phinney said.

Olsen won again the next year.

Then there's Mike Morton, who set a record running the most miles (172.5) over the course of 24 hours, as well as Sami Inkinen and Meredith Loring, the couple who made history rowing from California to Hawaii in 45 days. All were "keto-adapted," meaning their bodies had learned to use fat for fuel.

Phinney also discussed research suggesting that the keto diet is at least no worse than a higher-carb eating plan for some endurance athletes.

In one of his studies, he and colleagues compared 10 elite ultra-endurance male runners who were eating a traditional high-carb diet to 10 other (physically similar) elite ultra-endurance male runners who were eating a low-carb diet.

Over the course of six months, the researchers found that the low-carb athletes used mostly fat as fuel while the higher-carb group's bodies used mostly carbohydrates.

Surprisingly, there was little difference in the two group's "resting muscle glycogen or depletion" during and after a three-hour run, meaning somehow the low-carb group's muscles were still able to store and replenish sugars without actually eating much sugar.

The results suggests athletes who are given long enough in this case, six months to get their bodies well-adapted to fueling with fat may be able to make what they need for fuel.

There's a healthy and unhealthy version of every eating plan. Shutterstock

Phinney and his fellow presenter Louise Burke, a sports dietitian who had a more cautious view of keto, said there's much more work to be done to understand exactly if, how, and why a keto diet can work for some endurance athletes, and to better understand why some people excel on it while others lag.

The overall takeaway is that "any diet can be followed in good and bad forms," Burke said.

Keto with plenty of vegetables and healthy fats is good. "Dirty keto" or "lazy keto" with a menu packed with "fat bombs" is bad.

"You've got to do it the right way if you're going to do it," she said.

Phinney isn't the only researcher to ponder the usefulness of keto in space. In 2017, a researcher tested the keto diet while participating in an undersea NASA experiment designed to simulate Mars living. His theory was that the diet could one day help protect people from the neurological risks of traveling in space.

Visit link:
Elon Musk should send people to Mars on a keto diet to save money, according to a doctor who studies ketosis - INSIDER

People who take all of their blood-pressure medication in one go at bedtime are better able to control their condition and have a significantly lower risk of death or illness caused by heart or blood vessel problems compared to those who take their anti-hypertensive medication in the morning, according to research published this month in the peer-reviewed European Heart Journal.

The trial instructed 19,084 patients to take their pills on waking or at bedtime, and followed them for more than six years during which time the patients ambulatory blood pressure was checked over 48 hours at least once a year. The results were adjusted for age, gender, Type 2 diabetes, kidney disease, smoking and cholesterol levels.

The researchers found that patients who took their medication at bedtime reduced by 45% their risk of dying from or suffering heart attacks, myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure or requiring a procedure to unblock narrowed arteries, compared to those who took their medication after waking up in the morning.

The risk of death from heart or blood vessel problems was reduced by 66%, the risk of myocardial infarction was reduced by 44%, coronary revascularization (unblocking narrowed arteries) by 40%, heart failure by 42%, and stroke by 49%. However, the researchers noted there are no studies showing that treating hypertension in the morning reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Morning ingestion has been the most common recommendation by physicians based on the misleading goal of reducing morning blood pressure levels, said co-author Ramn Hermida, director of the Bioengineering and Chronobiology Labs at the University of Vigo in Spain. Allowing the medication to work before the next days activity may also play a role.

Preventative measures in early adulthood include taking statins lipid-lowering drugs and drugs to lower cholesterol, which can be more effective than merely relying on diet and exercise, particularly for those who have a genetic predisposition to high cholesterol and elevated blood pressure, experts say.

You may also like: Taking these two health precautions now can dramatically reduce your risk of heart disease later in life

Between 2008 and 2018, 10,614 male and 8,470 female adults of Caucasian Spanish origin who were diagnosed with hypertension had to adhere to a routine of daytime activity and night-time sleep. Hermida said its not possible to know whether the results apply to people who work night shifts or those from other racial/ethnic backgrounds.

One possible theory for the results: A bad nights sleep can result in a spike in blood pressure that night and the following day, separate research found. That study, published in a recent edition of the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, offers one explanation for why sleep problems have been shown to increase the risk of heart attack, stroke and even death from cardiovascular disease.

Those participants who had lower sleep efficiency showed an increase in blood pressure during that restless night. They also had higher systolic blood pressure the number in a persons blood-pressure reading the next day. The researchers said getting good sleep and quality sleep was important for a healthy heart. It also allows medications to work while the body is restoring energy.

Blood pressure is one of the best predictors of cardiovascular health, said lead study author Caroline Doyle, a graduate student at the University of Arizonas department of psychology. Cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 killer of people in the country. We wanted to see if we could try to get a piece of that story: how sleep might be impacting disease through blood pressure.

There are other ways to help reduce hypertension. A diet that helps people reduce high blood pressure may also reduce the risk of heart failure in people under the age of 75, according to separate research recently published in the latest edition of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

This Dash (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet recommends eating fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains, poultry, fish and low-fat dairy products, while reducing the amount of salt, red meat, sweets and sugar-sweetened beverages, full cream and alcohol in your diet. Aside from the last two items, its very similar to the Mediterranean diet.

Read the original:
Taking blood-pressure medication at this time of day could save your life - MarketWatch

Green tea is enjoyed worldwide by those who enjoy its pleasant taste and hope to garner its many associated health benefits (1).

Perhaps surprisingly, when you choose to drink the beverage may affect your potential to reap these benefits, as well as the risk of certain negative side effects.

This article reviews the best and worst times of the day to drink green tea.

In some cases, timing can matter when it comes to reaping the benefits of green tea.

Many choose to drink a soothing cup of green tea first thing in the morning to boost focus and concentration.

The drinks mind-sharpening properties are partially due to the presence of caffeine, a stimulant shown to enhance attention and alertness (2, 3).

However, unlike coffee and other caffeinated drinks, green tea also contains L-theanine, an amino acid that exerts calming effects (4).

L-theanine and caffeine work together to improve brain function and mood without causing the negative side effects that may accompany consuming caffeine on its own (5, 6).

For this reason, enjoying this tea first thing in the morning is a great way to start your day off on the right foot.

Some research suggests that drinking green tea may be especially beneficial just before working out.

One study in 12 men found that consuming green tea extract before exercising increased fat burning by 17%, compared with a placebo (7).

Another study in 13 women showed that drinking 3 servings of green tea the day before working out and another serving 2 hours before increased fat burning during exercise (8).

Whats more, the tea may speed recovery after an intense workout, as one study in 20 men found that supplementing with 500 mg of green tea extract reduced markers of muscle damage caused by exercise (9).

Green tea contains caffeine and L-theanine, both of which can enhance alertness and attention, which is especially beneficial in the morning. Also, drinking this tea before exercise may increase fat burning and reduce muscle damage.

Though green tea offers many health benefits, it may come with some downsides.

Several compounds in green tea can bind to minerals in your body and block their absorption.

Particularly, tannins are compounds found in green tea that act as antinutrients and reduce iron absorption (10).

Furthermore, research shows that the epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) in green tea can bind to minerals like iron, copper, and chromium, preventing their absorption in your body (11).

Several studies have demonstrated that drinking this tea with meals can reduce iron absorption, which may lead to a deficiency over time (12, 13, 14).

Therefore, its best to drink green tea between meals if possible, especially if you are deficient in iron or other key minerals.

One cup (237 ml) of green tea contains about 35 mg of caffeine (15).

While this is much less than the roughly 96 mg of caffeine provided by the same amount of coffee, it can still cause side effects in those who are sensitive to this stimulant (16).

Common side effects of caffeine consumption include anxiety, high blood pressure, fidgeting, and nervousness. Caffeine can also cause sleep disturbances even when consumed up to 6 hours before bedtime (17, 18).

Therefore, if you are sensitive to caffeine, consider avoiding drinking green tea for up to 6 hours before bed to prevent sleep problems.

Certain compounds in green tea may inhibit the absorption of iron and other minerals, so its best to drink it between meals. Plus, the caffeine content can cause sleep disturbances when consumed before bedtime.

The time of day you choose to drink your green tea comes down to personal preference.

While some people may enjoy drinking it at the beginning of the day or before working out to reap its health benefits, others might find that it fits better into their routine at other times.

Keep in mind that it contains caffeine, as well as certain compounds that can reduce the absorption of key minerals, so it may be best to avoid drinking it before bed or along with meals.

More here:
Is There a Best Time to Drink Green Tea? - Healthline

Miriam didnt start out seeing herself as someone who could beat MCI. It didnt even feel like a possibility.

But early one day in September, she logged into a support group on Facebook to share the good news.

Heres exactly how she put it:

Miriams outcome, which took more than four years of hard work to achieve, isnt the most common for someone with mild cognitive impairment.

But it isnt the rarest either.

A recent study shows that over roughly that period of time, about half of the people diagnosed with MCI are likely to see their memory loss stabilize, and about a third will return to cognitively normal as Miriam did or at least fluctuate between MCI and cognitively normal.

So Miriam is not an outlier. Rather, shes an inspiration. She shows us that MCI can indeed be reversed. More importantly, she shows us how.

Thats why I tracked Miriam down after I saw her post on Facebook, and why Im glad she was willing to talk to me. I wanted to understand what worked for her how she did it.

Not because shes found some secret formula that anyone else can follow and get exactly the same result she did. But because Miriam took so many of the fundamental things people with MCI are encouraged to do, and threw herself into them.

For her, they worked. And shes convinced they can work for others, too.

When I started on this journey of recovery, my goal was to keep myself from getting worse; thats all I wanted, Miriam says.

But what happened was, I got better and it reversed, and I wasnt expecting that. I want people to know if that happened to me, it could happen to you.

For Miriam, the odyssey back to cognitively normal involved long, vigorous walks with her husband. It required her to radically improve her eating habits, giving up meat and eventually moving to an entirely plant-based diet. She had to learn ways to manage stress, and practice them faithfully.

So make no mistake about Miriams journey. It was a long, arduous one. And it began with memory problems that sent her stress level shooting off the charts, and a frightening diagnosis involving a condition she knew nothing about.

Miriam was 50 years old, married with three adult children and working as an accountant in the southwestern U.S. when her memory began to slip.

I was working a very stressful job, she says. The thing I remember most is that I would have to run meetings and when someone else was talking, I couldnt write down what people were saying because I couldnt remember what they said.

She wasnt the only one to notice. At one point, my manager said, Miriam, they just told you that, she recalls. But I couldnt write it down. It was gone. I thought, You didnt used to do this. Something is wrong. I started to get really stressed out.

Miriam immediately assumed the worst. Alzheimers runs strongly in her family, on both sides. But it really threw me, because I thought it was happening too soon, she says. It didnt hit my family until they were in their 70s, and I was 50.

She talked to her doctor, who sent her for an MRI and referred her to a neuropsychologist for cognitive testing. The following month, the results came in and she received her diagnosis mild cognitive impairment due to vascular disease and depression.

It wasnt the news she was hoping for. Even though I thought something was wrong, I had hoped it wasnt that bad, Miriam says. I hoped it was just me being too worried. I guess I was a little shocked, even though I wasnt completely shocked.

Based on her family history, Miriam knew all about Alzheimers. But MCI? Shed never heard of it.

I had no clue what MCI is, she says. I started reading everything I could find about it on the Internet. I think probably at that time I saw something about the percentage of people with MCI who went on to Alzheimers, and I knew I was at high risk. I thought, So this is how it starts.

If the concept of MCI was vague and confusing, the reality of living with it hit her in ways she has no trouble describing.

I was tired. I was fatigued, Miriam says. I tried to exercise but it felt like there was a weight on me. I couldnt focus properly. I couldnt think properly. I was scared. I had to write everything down, because I couldnt remember. I could not come home and cook dinner. I would come home and sit and watch TV. At that particular point, it was strictly that I wasnt able to thrive.

The company Miriam worked for at the time was a high-tech startup, and it was struggling. Her manager got laid off. Soon after that, she was laid off too.

During the time when I was let go, I was feeling so much anxiety, Miriam says. I decided I didnt want to start another job yet. I wanted to get some of this anxiety down. I started searching to see if I could find a doctor, someone who I could trust, who knew something about dementia. I knew there really was no cure, but I thought if I could find someone who was really into it, they would be on the front line and be aware of something if it did come up.

She was fortunate to find a memory specialist who was well-versed in MCI and dementia, and that helped put her on a better course. Miriam began to understand that even if theres no medicine approved for the treatment of MCI, theres ample evidence that lifestyle changes have the potential to slow or halt it.

She took up an exercise program, and coupled that with dramatic changes to her diet.

I started walking with my husband, Miriam says. We would walk three times during the week, three or four miles. On weekend days, wed walk four to eight miles each day. It was hard. I felt like I had weights on my legs.

But she persevered. Those regular walks turned into a healthy habit she continues today, and that fatigue has been replaced by a feeling of fitness. I still do about that much walking, but I walk a lot faster now, she says. Im not dragging. I have pep. I have energy. I feel a lot younger.

For Miriam, an even bigger turning point came when a physician assistant who worked for her memory specialist recommended a primarily plant-based diet, with no meat, but fish two or three times a week. She gave Miriam the book The Perfect Gene Diet, by Pamela McDonald, and told her to follow the diet recommended for people with the APOE4 gene. That gene is associated with a higher risk of Alzheimers.

Four months after being on The Perfect Gene Diet and I followed it strictly I was no longer on an anti-depressant, Miriam says. The diet cleared up my depression, so I continued doing the diet. I followed the diet, except no meat whatsoever. I only did fish.

While exercise and diet were beginning to benefit Miriam, that wasnt the whole picture. She was working a new job now, and she continued to struggle with work-related stress and the emotional toll of everything she was dealing with in her life. She realized that she had to address those things if she was going to get better.

Around mid-2016, I started going to a therapist, she says. I did individual therapy for two and a half years, and I also did about a year of group therapy. That helped me in this whole process of growing and changing things in my life, and moving forward and getting well.

She also learned a couple of stress-reduction techniques, and began to use them regularly.

One was a visualization technique that taught her how to leave her stress at work. I was bringing things home from work mentally, she says. So I would visualize putting whatever that concern was in a jar, putting the lid on the jar and setting that jar on the desk at my office before I left work.

She began using a very simple breathing technique as well. Breathe in, breathe out slowly, and letting go, just relaxing, she says.

All of these things were making a difference, though Miriam still had a ways to go. I felt a little bit better, my mind was a little clearer, she say, but I was still having some trouble.

The final turning point came when Miriam found a new neurologist. The memory specialist she worked with previously decided to stop taking patients and focus full-time on research. So Mariam had gone a while without seeing a specialist, and her general practitioner wanted her to go back to a neurologist again. I hadnt been able to find anyone else, Miriam says, so she recommended this nice young neurologist, right out of school.

Miriam found her new neurologist to be energetic and full of fresh approaches. About the same time, she discovered the teachings of Dr. Dale Bredesen, author of The End of Alzheimers. She read the book, and a lot of what Bredesen teaches made sense to her, so she asked her neurologist about his protocol. She had heard about it, and she said it was very expensive, but she said she believed in it, Miriam says.

Based on the expense and other considerations, Miriam choose not to seek out a medical specialist trained in the Bredesen protocol. Still, she felt there were parts of it she could incorporate into her life without that help. I decided I would just have to see if I could figure it out on my own, she says.

By then, Miriam had fully committed herself to a healthier lifestyle, and she had a lot of support and encouragement along the way. While she was dealing with MCI, her husband was diagnosed with a blood disorder, so they motivated each other to stick with the improvements in exercise and diet that both of them were making.

She had other family support as well. My half-brother, who is nine months older than me, was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimers, she says. He became another inspiration for me. Hes an electrical engineer, and by changing his diet, and exercise and all the extra things he does, he was still able to work, so he encouraged me. He was always reaching out to me to make sure I was following the protocol.

Yet even at this point, there still was one piece of the puzzle missing for Miriam. And the new neurologist helped her find it.

After I started seeing her, she began running all these different test, Miriam says. She told me, I have some blood work I want to do on you. Its called a dementia profile. She did my blood work in April. Because I was eating fish all the time, she wanted to be sure my mercury levels and my lead levels were OK.

The test results came back, and showed there indeed was a problem. Miriam had high levels of mercury, not to mention arsenic. Her neurologist moved immediately to address the problem. She told me, Stop eating that fish, Miriam says.

Her neurologist predicted it would take six months to a year for Miriam to flush the mercury from her body. But a month later, she says, my brain was clear.

And Miriam says once the mercury was completely out of her system, it was like a curtain being lifted. I noticed I was getting better and better, she says.

After that, all the indications began to turn positive for her.

Shed been working with a speech therapist on issues related to cognition, memory and speech, but her therapist told her that she didnt need further help with those. She said, You are not having any problems, Miriam remembers.

Miriam also had changed jobs, and found the new position to be less stressful. Now I was in a job thats perfect for me, and it was going well, Miriam says. I was having hour-long meetings, and I could talk about everything. I couldnt do that before. I am able to do that now.

The most encouraging indication, though, came this summer, when Miriams former memory specialist reached out to her. The specialist had found a study that she thought Miriam would be a good candidate for, and wanted to screen Miriam for it.

Miriam had always been open to participating in a clinical trial, but most studies are looking for people age 65 or older, so she hadnt been eligible. This one was open to people her age, who either had mild cognitive impairment or in some cases hadnt even received that diagnosis yet.

So Miriam volunteered to be screened for the study. But it turns out she didnt qualify for the best possible reason. They ran me through some of the testing, she says, and then they told me, Were sorry, but your memory is too good for our research.

I could tell even when I was being asked the questions, I was getting more answers right, she says. I was like, Wow, Im remembering more. I knew I was doing better, so I wasnt surprised.

I asked Miriam what it felt like to experience that, and she was giddy in her reply. She described one day at work, when she was so happy and doing so well, she found herself skipping along the corridor like a schoolgirl.

I am thrilled. Im just thrilled, she says. I knew how well I was doing. I was skipping down the hall because I felt so well.

I also invited Miriam to reflect back on all the hard work she had put in over those four-plus years, and all the ups and downs, and the fears and the frustrations of facing MCI. I asked her what she thought had made the difference for her.

The diet was a big piece of it a big, big, big piece of it, she says.

Asked to describe how she eats now, she says: Im on a whole-food, plant-based vegan diet. I strongly limit processed foods. I dont eat meat, fish, dairy, eggs, sugar or oil. I eat all fresh fruit, all vegetables and whole grains such as rice, oats, quinoa, bulgar, and beans, nuts and seeds. I limit bread and pasta.

And of course, there was a bigger picture than that, in terms of how she fought to defend her cognition.

It wasnt just the diet, she says. It also was the exercise and the help that I got with stress and overcoming the anxiety and just dealing with my whole thought process.

To put Miriams experience in perspective, its important to understand that no one can promise you the results she got. But remember, reversing MCI wasnt even her goal in the first place.

She was just hoping to slow it down or keep it from getting worse. And for people with MCI, its not an unrealistic goal. That is actually the more frequent outcome.

Earlier this year, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh published a study showing that across a broad general population of adults with mild cognitive impairment, relatively few of them went on to develop dementia over a period of five years.

Most people with MCI do not progress to dementia in the near term, but rather remain stable with MCI or revert to normal cognition, the study says.

In fact, according to the study, of nearly 900 adults with mild cognitive impairment:

There was a time when MCI was routinely referred to as a precursor to dementia, or an intermediate stage leading to dementia. We know better now.

For people with mild cognitive impairment, the odds of slowing, halting or reversing it are actually pretty good. And you can improve those odds even more by adopting healthy habits that promote brain health.

One of the quotes I like to share as often as I can comes from Dr. Joel Salinas, a neurologist at Massachusetts General Hospital. He told the Harvard Health Letter that only about 15 percent of people over the age of 65 who have MCI will progress to dementia.

Salinas says hes seen plenty of patients stay in the MCI stage for many years, even when we presume it was a neurodegenerative disease, and by that, he means even in cases where the doctors assumed the person had Alzheimers.

Salinas goes on to add: The people who spend the most time cognitively stable are often the ones who stick to lifestyle recommendations.

In other words, people like Miriam.

Again, its important to understand her experience is not a prescription for how to beat MCI. Its more of an allegory.

Its an example of what becomes possible when someone struggling with cognitive loss:

I had no earthly anticipation that I would be back to where I was before I began having this difficulty and getting this diagnosis, Miriam says.

I just want people to know that if you have mild cognitive impairment, theres something you can do and you dont have to spend a lot of money to do it, she says. I hope someone hears my story, and it inspires them to make the changes that are necessary. I hope it helps someone else. I really do.

See the rest here:
She reversed her MCI, and here's how she did it - GoCogno.com

Dear Rachel,

I'm a university student and I lost 20 pounds from January to April through eating healthily and regular exercise, which I loved. My confidence and mental health, which had been affecting me for a while, were so much better. At the beginning I went to the gym with a friend and we did workouts together, but by the end I was quite happy going by myself and going into the weights section alone. It was such a relief to finally be feeling good and so much more positive about my life.

Then something happened. I started feeling like I could treat myself more. Without noticing, I stopped going to the gym and wasn't making the right food choices. I started to stress-eat around exam time and shut off anything to do with exercise, spending time in the library eating chocolate bars and chips as a comfort blanket. I didn't really notice the weight piling back on. I tend to self-destruct like this when I feel like everything's too much.

It's now a few months later and I'm right back where I started. I feel so frustrated and angry for letting myself do this when I tried so hard. I try to eat healthily but after two days I'm back to binge-eating in the evenings for no reason. I have no motivation to exercise. I feel like I'm at a standstill and don't know how to get started again.

What can I do to improve my situation? I feel stuck in the same cycle that I've always found myself in and find it so hard to stick to a regular routine.

Yo-Yo Dieter

Dear Yo-Yo,

Your frustration is very understandable believe me, I know the feeling and I honestly believe keeping weight off may be harder than losing it in the first place.

For lots of people, you get in a "zone" when you're losing weight. A certain headspace, if you will, where you're focused on your goal. You find out what works for you, and you gradually get there. It feels good.

But then once you're feeling happy with the amount of fat you've lost, you want to move into maintenance and that's often the most difficult bit.

Firstly, it's hard to know how much you can "relax" in order to maintain your current body composition rather than gain weight. Once you move away from your weight loss mindset, it's also all too easy to slip right back into all your old eating habits, which for many of us were what got us feeling like we should slim down in the first place.

So what's the solution?

Firstly, as always, don't beat yourself up.

"While I'm not condoning eating copious quantities of chocolate and not taking part in any physical activity, have you ever thought that this constant berating of yourself is feeding into your behaviour?" sports and eating disorder specialist dietitian Renee McGregor asked.

McGregor told Insider that holding yourself to too high a standard could be setting yourself up to fail.

A post shared by Renee Mcgregor (@r_mcgregor)Sep 7, 2019 at 1:00am PDT

"It's obvious from your message that you have some real beliefs about what makes you happy and a good person. While training and eating right are healthy behaviors, they should also never become obsessive," she said.

"The issue now is that because you've got this belief system that to be healthy you have to go to the gym daily and eat in a certain way, when you don't quite meet this, you feel like you've failed and so you beat yourself up."

And if you don't switch this mindset, you'll never make any sustainable changes.

The key is to try and re-train your brain as much as your body.

McGregor pointed out that taking a black and white approach to "good" and "bad" days is unhelpful.

"What can often happen is that individuals over-restrict on 'good' days," she said. "The body then finds this difficult as it is always trying to achieve energy balance; similarly if you don't provide your body with enough fuel, you will crave more sugar as glucose is the body's preferred currency to provide energy.

"So you set yourself up to fail. You over-restrict, your blood sugars drop, you eat something you deem as 'bad' which then sets up the thinking that you have failed, resulting in you eating to excess, feeding back into the self-sabotage that you are a bad person."

But it's totally possible to move away from this downwards spiral, and that's what will make any changes you implement become part of a new healthy, sustainable lifestyle, meaning any weight lost in the process is more likely to stay off.

A post shared by Rachel Hosie (@rachel_hosie)Apr 22, 2019 at 4:45am PDT

You have to stop thinking about weight loss as something which has an end goal in sight. There's no finish line.

I don't mean for that to sound depressing, or make it seem like you're going to be trying to lose weight for the rest of your life. Instead, you should figure out which healthy habits are enjoyable enough for you to become part of your lifestyle.

This mindset also helped me stop beating myself up if, say, I indulged more than usual on a holiday and put on a few pounds as a result, I feel OK about it because I know in the scheme of my life, it's insignificant. I come back from holiday, and I go back to my normal routine.

Registered nutritionist Lily Soutter agrees that it's important to stop thinking about being on a diet.

"'Dieting' can be a huge driver for binge-eating. In fact, the more restrictive we are with our diet the more likely we are to binge-eat," she explained to Insider.

"Focusing on weight loss can be counterproductive to binge-eating recovery, however, binge-eating recovery can be the best step to achieving a healthy body weight."

A post shared by Lily Soutter BSc (hons) (@lily_soutter_nutrition)Oct 12, 2019 at 1:52am PDT

Don't cut anything out of your diet or tell yourself you can't have it, as that will just make you want it even more. If you love cookie dough ice cream, you're not going to be able to live the rest of your life without it, so allow yourself some and learn that "enough is as good as a feast" (or so my mother always says to me). This essentially means re-training yourself to be satisfied by a normal portion size rather than feeling like you need to consume vast amounts.

"If chocolate is a common binge food, instead of going cold-turkey, enjoy this food daily to reduce its desirability," Soutter recommended.

"But be mindful of portion-size and the environment in which you consume this food, only buy small packs and eat slowly and mindfully, ideally in the company of others.

"Often when we eat mindfully we tend to feel more satisfied with our food which better regulates our hunger and fullness cues."

It's never too late to start again when it comes to working towards a healthier lifestyle, and don't worry about the fact that you lost weight then regained it most of us try various approaches, diets, and ways of exercising before finding what's right for us.

It's not failing. It's how we learn.

But you need to start small.

"In order to change you need to make realistic changes, baby steps that don't feel too difficult," McGregor advised.

"If the gym feels like a big jump at the moment, why don't you start with daily walks; if this feels manageable then sign up to a class, something like yoga which may feel more nurturing than the gym.

"Similarly with eating, don't create any rules about what you should or shouldn't eat. The first aim should be to prevent blood sugar fluctuations to do this try to eat something at 3-4 hour intervals."

Soutter pointed out that eating regularly can help remove the urge to binge-eat, too.

A post shared by Lily Soutter BSc (hons) (@lily_soutter_nutrition)Oct 21, 2019 at 12:35am PDT

McGregor recommends eating satiating snacks like Greek yogurt with fruit, oatcakes with houmous or peanut butter, or an apple with brazil nuts.

"This more gentle approach will help you to create sustainable, balanced behaviours and focuses on having a healthy attitude towards food and exercise," she added.

Soutter agrees that taking on too much too quickly is likely to end in disaster.

"It can be all too easy to be overly restrictive when starting up an exercise and nutrition regime," she says. "However, following a routine which is overly taxing and unrealistic can trigger an 'all or nothing' mentality.

"On the other hand, small incremental and sustainable changes can make a big impact long term."

If you lose some weight and then gain some weight, that's OK. There's no rush. And remember, health really isn't to do with the number on the scale.

If you're making healthy decisions like snacking on an apple rather than a chocolate bar, prioritizing your sleep, and getting more activity into your day, applaud yourself for that. By trying to make positive changes, you're already doing amazing.

Wishing you well,

Rachel

As Insider's Senior Lifestyle Reporter and a self-confessed fitness fanatic, Rachel Hosie is fully immersed in the wellness scene and is here to answer all your burning questions. Whether you're struggling to find the motivation to go for a run, confused about light vs. heavy weights, or don't know whether you should be worried about how much sugar is in a mango, Rachel is here to give you the no-nonsense answers and advice you need, with strictly no fad diets in sight.

Rachel has a wealth of experience covering fitness, nutrition, and wellness, and she has the hottest experts at her fingertips she regularly speaks to some of the world's most knowledgeable and renowned personal trainers, dietitians, and coaches, ensuring she's always up-to-date with the latest science-backed facts you need to know to live your happiest, healthiest life.

Have a question? Ask Rachel at workingitout@insider.com orfill out this anonymous form. All questions will be published anonymously.

See the original post here:
How to avoid regaining weight and keep the pounds off - Business Insider

When you think Halloween, it's impossible not to picture candy. Halloween is just one of many holidays that highlight America's love of sugar. The latest edition of theDietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that you get no more than 10 percent of your total calories from added sugars. That's about 12 teaspoons each day if you're following a 2000-calorie diet.

But on an average day, Americans consume a whopping 17 teaspoons of added sugarso just imagine how high your totals get when you're nabbing a couple of mini chocolate bars out of the treat bowl.

Cutting down on added sugars can help reduce your risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers. Excess sugar in your diet may also negatively impact your brain. Eating higher amounts of sugar is linked to a higher risk of depression. Learn more about what sugar does to your body, here. Eating sugar makes you want more, too: University of California San Francisco's SugarScience researchers have found that sugar may have addictive properties.

Of course, healthy eating is more about what you eat every single day, rather than a one-day indulgence on a holiday like Halloween. But if this Halloween, you want to consider low- and no-sugar candy options either because you have a health condition like diabetes or just because you are watching your sugar intake, start with the lowest and work upwards. (And keep an eye out for sneaky sources of added sugar.)

Originally posted here:
The Halloween Candy With the Lowest Sugar - msnNOW

Many years ago, I worked for a reproductive endocrinologist who hosted a yearly gathering of former patients. It was there that I encountered a woman holding infant twin daughters. When I congratulated her on her twins, she had these thoughts to share: Im a psychiatrist and I hope youll pass this on. Please tell people not to worry about being positive and hopeful. I abandoned hope and went through my last IVF cycle as the queen of negativity. Then she held up her twins and said, And this is what I got. Please reassure people that they dont have to stay positive.

Over the years, I have come to believe that managing hope is a major challenge during infertility treatment. This story illustrates one facet of the challenge: does it matter if one is hopeful during a treatment cycle? Some patients work very hard to remain positive and to nurture hope, while others, like the mom in the story, ride a wave of negativity. People in both groups have healthy pregnancies. And sadly, there are members of both groups who meet repeated disappointment.

Managing hope is even more challenging when it comes to the big picture, looking beyond a specific cycle and to the question of when enough is enough. During infertility treatments, there are people who remain hopeful when odds are against them and others who lose hope when test results and medication responses seem promising.

A few factors that contribute to or reduce your sense of hopefulness are:

Personal history. Some people come to infertility with a history of good luck and good fortune, an abiding belief that things work out for them. Their history fuels their hope.

Determination. Threaded throughout the infertility population are some pretty determined people. These hard workers have been rewarded for their efforts on the job and in other areas of their lives. They assume that if they read extensively on infertility, research the best doctors, eat a fertility diet, and incorporate appropriate alternative treatments, they will succeed in having a baby.

Doctor-patient relationship. Communication between doctors who treat infertility and their patients plays a significant role in fueling or deflating hope. Good doctors do their best to promote an appropriate level of hope. They believe that doing right by their patients means helping them pursue treatment that has a reasonable chance of working, and helping them leave treatment that is unlikely to work. Sadly, there are times when people remain in unsuccessful treatment because their doctors are reluctant to be the bearers of bad news.

Fellow travelers. Infertility patients cope with the stresses of infertility by finding each other. Waiting rooms, support groups, and online chats all connect infertility patients. While it can be painful to learn that a fellow infertility traveler has become pregnant against all odds, this sort of news fuels hope. Alternatively, seeing a fellow infertility traveler move happily on to adoption or egg donation can redirect hope. An option that once seemed like what you do when you give up now brings new possibilities.

Faith. Faith and spirituality nurture hope for some infertility patients. The nature of this hope may shift from the hope that comes from believing that prayers will be answered, to the hope that comes from believing that some things are meant to be. Guided by faith, these infertility patients have an abiding sense that there are forces beyond them ensuring a safe and positive outcome of this journey.

In working with individuals and couples trying to manage hope and caution as they enter a first or second or fifth IVF cycle, I am always careful to leave it to them to gauge hope. Over the years, it has been humbling to see some people achieve the most unlikely pregnancies while others are mired in disappointment.

These experiences have left me with a profound respect for peoples ability to titrate optimism and caution as they make their way through infertility. There are times when a bounty of hope feels right. At other times, infertility travelers need to shelter themselves with caution. This was my takeaway message from the psychiatrist mom I met at that gathering so long ago.

Read more:
Hope and caution during infertility treatment - Harvard Health Blog - Harvard Health

Rob Kardashian was once a fixture on reality TV. He appeared on Keeping Up with the Kardashians as well as some of the familys spinoff shows including his own show Rob & Chyna. But Kardashian has struggled with his weight for years and decided to spend more time out of the spotlight.

Recently though the Arthur George designerhas been focused on getting healthy both physically and mentally and is seeing results. Heres how much weight he has lost so far and what hes doing to keep it off, plus if hes ready to return to the limelight.

While his sisters never shy away from the spotlight, their brother is the opposite and did not want to be seen in public at all after he started putting on the pounds.

I gained a bunch of weight and was super uncomfortable in my skin, he told People in 2016, adding, The whole weight thing really affected me.

Kardashians insecurities even kept him from attending his older sibling Kims wedding to Kanye West in 2014 because he did not want to be photographed looking and feeling the way he did.

I was doing my suit fittings in Paris right before the wedding and I just wasnt comfortable. Im 6 foot 1 and at my most I probably weighed 300 lbs, he revealed. There were cameras at the airport on our trip there and I was very unhappy with the person I saw in all the pictures.

But in June 2019, Kardashian announced that he was hitting the gym and determined to shed the weight.

Then in October, fans caught a glimpse of him in Kims Instagram stories. He was noticeably thinner and according to TMZ has lost around 20 pounds so far.

A source close to Kardashian told E! News that he is not only looking better but feeling a lot better too. So what has he done to drop the weight and how is he staying in shape?

He is very focused on making changes and sticking with it. He has cut down fast food and has completely changed his diet, the source said. He also stopped drinking, which is really helping him. He is feeling a lot better and seeing results.

In addition to his new diet, Kris Jenners son has also been working out regularly with a trainer and playing basketball with friends.

Its also been reported that Kardashians motivation to finally get healthy and maintain that lifestyle is his young daughter, Dream, who he shares with Blac Chyna.

Now that hes made positives changes and is feeling good fans are wondering if theyll be seeing him at public events more or back on KUWTK regularly.

Time will tell but as of right now he seems to be content with working on himself away from the spotlight, which is fine by his fans as they are rooting for him to be happy and healthy.

Read more: Which Kardashian-Jenner Sister Has Had the Most Plastic Surgery?

See the rest here:
How Much Weight Has Rob Kardashian Lost and How is He Keeping it Off? - Showbiz Cheat Sheet

While running doesnt cause osteoarthritisreally, research backs us up!runners can still be at risk of developing this condition, where the cartilage protecting your joints wears down.

If you are one of the people who deals with osteoarthritis, you may have heard about steroid injections as a potential treatment for pain and inflammation. But according to new research published in the journal Radiology, these injections may not be as safe as doctors previously thought.

In a review of existing studies about complications from steroid injectionsplus observing outcomes of 459 patients from their hospitalresearchers from Boston Universitys School of Medicine found that the injections can cause further damage to your joints, therefore accelerating your arthritis. Specifically, you may lose joint space, cartilage, or even bone, Ali Guermazi, M.D., Ph.D., study author and professor of radiology at Boston University, told Runners World.

This may be because steroids can be toxic to cartilage tissue in high doses, the study states, interfering with the production and breakdown of cartilage proteins. That means you may lose out on the cushioning effect of cartilage.

However, Guermazi notes that this is an observational studymeaning it cant prove cause and effectand further research is needed. His take-home message, though, is for patients to merely be informed that these complications can occur, since as of right now, theyre not well known, and its not common for doctors to inform patients of these possibilities.

These injections are used by hundreds of thousands worldwide, so from now on, we need to let patients know this is something that can happen, he said.

[From training tips, to fueling strategies, to improving the mind-body connection, the Runners World 2020 Calendar will help you run your best all year long.]

Guermazi goes on to say that even if your steroid injection doesnt cause the above-mentioned complications, they only treat inflammation and pain temporarily, which is why people have to keep getting them. As it stands right now, there is no permanent treatment for osteoarthritis, according to Guermazi, though there are currently clinical trials going on in regards to treating both pain and the structural damage to the joint. (As weve previously reported, some of the more advanced treatments include neuromuscular stimulators, regenerative injectables, cartilage replacement, and synthetic implants.)

And while NSAIDs can also help relieve pain and inflammation temporarily, your best bet, he says, is to focus on diet and exercise. While its common to believe being active might worsen arthritis, research shows that it can reduce inflammation and prevent further damage to your cartilage.

Its also important to make sure that your weight falls within a healthy range, since the more overweight you are, the more force you put on your joints. Guermazi also recommends regularly practicing yoga to ease any stiffness you may be experiencing.

Originally posted here:
Steroid Injections May Not Be the Arthritis Cure-All That You Think - Runner's World