Feed Your Head

Eat Mushrooms, Drop Pounds

If you substituted portobello or white button mushrooms for beef just once a week, you'd save more than 20,000 calories and roughly 1,500 grams of fat (and shed more than five pounds!) over the course of a year without changing anything else about your diet. Researchers at Johns Hopkins Weight Management Center found that choosing low-energy-density foods, specifically white button mushrooms, instead of high-energy-density foods such as ground beef, can help prevent obesity. For four days, their study subjects saved 420 calories and 30 grams of fat per day by eating mushroom lasagna, napoleons, sloppy joes, and vegetable chili entrées. "The best thing about using mushrooms as a dietary substitute is that you typically won't compensate for the lower-calorie meal by eating more food later in the day," says study author Lawrence Cheskin, MD, director of Johns Hopkins Weight Management Center.

It's fresher, it's more nutritious, and it tastes better, and as if that weren't enough, there's growing evidence that organic food is healthier for you too. A new study in the journal Bioscience found that tributyltin chloride (TBT), a chemical used in pesticides on lettuce and other high-value food crops, activates components in our cells (known as retinoid X receptors) that switch on genes that cause the growth of fat- storage cells. The study authors found that TBT causes the growth of excess fatty tissue in newborn mice exposed to it in utero. Since the rise in obesity in humans over the past 40 years parallels the increased use of industrial chemicals, the researchers suggest chemical triggers might be fueling the obesity epidemic. Recent research has also shown that other pervasive pollutants, such as bisphenol A, can stimulate the growth of fat storage cells in mice.

SNACK BAR What to nosh to stay lean and strong

Just Tomatoes, Etc. Snacking on dried fruits and vegetables is the perfect way to fit in your "nine a day." Most dried produce products add preservatives, sweeteners, or even fat (see banana chips), but this brand never does. Its dehydration and freeze-drying process preserves flavor, locks in nutrients, and results in a crunchy texture that will satisfy your snack tooth. An ounce of the Just Veggies mix contains 60 percent of your daily vitamin C needs for a mere 100 calories and a bonus 2 grams of fiber.justtomatoes.com CYNTHIA SASS, R.D. A little tipple could help you lose pounds, according to a recent study published in the journal Appetite. The study tracked daily calories, food and beverage consumption, and energy expenditure for a group of overweight people. On days when the study participants consumed breakfast or alcohol, they had a higher energy expenditure and exercise duration compared with days when they skipped breakfast or alcohol, according to the researchers. In fact, those who consumed alcohol more often had a higher daily energy expenditure than those who consumed alcohol less frequently. The take-home, say the researchers: One or two drinks a day can help you burn more calories.

It goes against dining tradition, but eating dessert before your main course can help you melt away pounds. Dark chocolate (chocolate with a cacao content of more than 60 percent) is far more filling than milk chocolate, and it can lessen cravings for sweet, salty, and fatty foods, according to a new study from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark. When study participants consumed dark chocolate before they were given all the pizza they could eat, they ate 15 percent fewer calories. To take the edge off of your cravings, eat about 3.5 ounces of dark chocolate— which is also heart healthy and brain boosting—just before you sit down for lunch or dinner.




SNACK BAR What to nosh to stay lean and strong
Just Tomatoes, Etc. Snacking on dried fruits and vegetables is the perfect way to fit in your "nine a day." Most dried produce products add preservatives, sweeteners, or even fat (see banana chips), but this brand never does. Its dehydration and freeze-drying process preserves flavor, locks in nutrients, and results in a crunchy texture that will satisfy your snack tooth. An ounce of the Just Veggies mix contains 60 percent of your daily vitamin C needs for a mere 100 calories and a bonus 2 grams of fiber.justtomatoes.com CYNTHIA SASS, R.D.

Posted by The Correspondent on 12:45. Filed under Nutrition . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Feel free to leave a response