Dr. Curtis McElroy

Category: Diet

  • What Foods To Avoid When Traveling

    5 Foods To Stay Away From When Traveling

     

    How about a disclaimer first. Even though the story I’m about to tell you is based on true events, you did not hear it from me because I made a promise never to tell another soul. Last year around this time of the year, we started on a very long drive from South Africa to Zimbabwe. We took turns with my wife, driving safely and taking very short stops when it was critically necessary. The whole family was very excited. My three sons and their aunt were safely packed in the back seat, and everyone had some sort of a gadget in their hands for entertainment. My wife had prepared all kinds of snacks for the journey. There were energy drinks, fizzy drinks, chips, sweets, roasted chicken, croissants, fruits, you name it. Before we even went far, you could hear foil paper being unwrapped and excited people loudly biting, sucking, and chewing from the back seat. My wife had warned the kids not to overeat or mix different foods. But let’s just say there was one person in particular who wasn’t listening.

    Just after crossing the international border from South Africa into Zimbabwe, my eldest son started complaining of an upset tummy. We gave him some water to drink and told him to stop eating for a bit. Sadly, the tummy toil did not stop, and he pressed for us to stop for a quick recess. We really wanted to stop, but the roads we were very dangerous for any car to stop. I guess I do not have to finish this story because I’m sure we all know how it ended. If you missed it, the story ends with a poor embarrassed grown-up teenage boy having to sit in his human waste with everyone else screaming and laughing at him.

    Falling ill whilst traveling is one of the worst things that could happen to you.  For many of us, eating is one of the best parts of traveling. All you want to do is enjoy your journey with some comfort, food, and good music without having to worry about getting a travel bug. But as they say, all great journeys require great preparation – and preparing yourself not to get stomach flu as you travel is also important. So next time you travel be it by road, air, or sea, just make sure to take note of the following foods and drinks so that you avoid catching a travel bug and spoiling your trip.

     

    1. Tap water

    Whilst traveling, your source of drinking water is one of the things you have to pay particular attention to. The pathogens that cause travelers’ diarrhea, rotavirus, cholera, and a host of other diseases tend to infect humans through contaminated water and food. You could try and research your destination in advance to find out if water safety is an issue. When in doubt, stick to clean, sealed bottled water. Ice carries the same risk as tap water. Avoid using it with your beverages if you’re not sure of the source of water. Also, avoid brushing your teeth with unsafe tap water.

     

     

    1. Raw produce

    In places where the water isn’t safe to drink, people often talk of the BPCF rule. Boil it; Peel it; Cook it; – or Forget it. Avoid salads and other raw fruits and vegetables, except those that can be peeled like bananas or oranges, (and that aren’t then exposed to tap water), since the peel protects against contamination. Whilst citrus fruits could be safer because they can be peeled, they should be limited during your travels. They have a high acidity which can affect your bladder. The last thing you would want is to constantly have to look for a bathroom whilst on a road trip. Also, avoid eating uncooked meat, seafood, and poultry, all of which are grounds for foodborne pathogens.

     

    1. Fizzy drinks and Soda (from a fountain)

    It is best to stay away from any fountain-based liquids if you’re not sure about the quality of the water in your chosen destination. Opt for a canned or bottled soda. Fizzy drinks come with a risk of bloating, gas, indigestion, nausea, and general abdominal pain. This is something you definitely don’t want whilst traveling.

     

    1. Tomato-based products

     

    Some researchers have discovered that tomato-based products can irritate the bladder because of their acidity. For someone with an overactive bladder, it is best to skip foods like pizza, pasta sauce, salsa, and ketchup. Best avoid those frantic searches for a restroom as you travel.

     

    1. Dairy products

    Some milk products such as milkshakes, ice cream, yogurt, and others can easily cause an upset stomach. These can be better enjoyed when you’ve reached your destination and settled in. Unpasteurized dairy like cheese or milk is one of the foods you may want to skip when traveling. These may be very harmful especially to kids, pregnant women, or someone with a weakened immune system. Unpasteurized cheese has been known to be associated with pathogenic microorganisms like Listeria monocytogenes.

     

    Make it a thumbnail rule to always check your diet before, during, and after traveling. This will buy you extra time to enjoy your trip and avoids nursing a tummy tornado from the hotel room.

     

  • Is A Low Carb Diet Safe For Kids?

    Is A Low Carb Diet Safe For Kids?

    The views on whether a low carb diet is safe for kids are mixed.

    Some people believe that kids benefit from low carb diets because they lower their wheat and sugar intake.

    They believe parents don’t need to be as strict about having a child in the healthy weight range because their insulin sensitivity is more sensitive than adults are so they can handle carbs more efficiently.

    The View That Low Carb Diets Are Safe

    For those who feel that kids are safe on a low fat diet, they need to think about which foods are beneficial for kids for things like their lunch boxes. They think that families of kids eating regular carb diets just put two slices of bread, some peanut butter, or salami together and that’s good enough for their child’s lunch. The wheat in the sandwich is 80 percent carbohydrates, which means they will soon be hungry again.

    People who feed their kids a low carb diet take away the bread in their child’s meal but keep the parts that are nutritious, such as the salad, mayonnaise, cheese, and meat. They feel that the child won’t be deficient in nutrients by giving up the carbs. For them, bread is a filler and not necessary in their child’s diet. They believe that eating a low carb diet high in good fats, proteins, and vegetables will more than compensate for the vitamins and fiber found in high carb diets.

    While everyone’s been told to eat whole grains, the scientific evidence indicates that when whole grain flour is turned into white flour, there is a reduction in diabetes, heart disease, and colon cancer. By eating more vegetables in a low carb/high fat diet, your child will get the benefit from this and that makes up for the loss of vitamin B and fiber that happens when they stop eating wheat products.

    Starting A Low Carb Diet

    Starting a low carb diet is not very difficult. The following tips are suggested when starting your child on a low carb diet:

    • Think about how many vegetables are in your kid’s diet. A good low carb diet still should contain plenty of carb-rich vegetables. The same is true for healthy fats. Just keep out anything made with sugar and flour, as they have no nutritional benefit.

    • Use cold meat as a wrap. Wrap a slice of roast beef or ham and put some vegetables or cheese inside. Roll them up as you would a wrap, and you have healthy low carb meal.

    • Start slowly. If you have a kid that is a fussy eater, he or she won’t want to go “low carb” right away. Change just one thing at a time, such as removing the bread first but keeping everything else the same.

    • Get a lunch box with small compartments in them. Instead of a lunch box, use a tackle box that has small compartments to put their low carb foods in them.

    • Think about what you would generally put into a sandwich and give your child that without the bread. Kids will enjoy picking through the sandwich fillers and grazing on low carb foods.

    Low carb diets are extremely popular. They use high fat, high protein foods while getting rid of the legumes, fruits, and grains that add to the carb count in high carb diets. Your teenagers might be particularly interested in low carb diets as they promise some sort of weight loss.

    The View That Low Carb Diets Are Bad

    Those that think that low carbs are bad for kids report that the wheat in carbohydrate-containing foods causes poor absorption of vitamins and leaky gut syndrome.

    Wheat contains gluten and amylopectin, which can cause allergies in kids. Bread and similar products, like wraps, are highly processed and provide little nutrition. Wheat has a high glycemic index that leads to a rapid influx of sugar into the child’s bloodstream.

    They believe that children need carbohydrates. Experts feel that about half of all the calories kids eat should come from carbohydrates. According to these beliefs, the body’s preferred energy source is carbohydrates in the form of yogurt, milk, vegetables, fruits, and grains.

    They don’t however believe that you should give kids the carbs found in baked goods, candy, and sugary beverages. Instead, they should eat healthy carbs, such as those found in fruits and vegetables. You don’t need bad carbs in order to stay healthy.

    Those who believe that low carbs are bad for you think that drastically lowering the carbs in your child’s diet may be bad for them. Cutting back on carbs can lead to several types of nutrient deficiencies, and is low in vitamin B and fiber.

    Additionally, when you lower the high carb foods in your child’s diet, there isn’t much left for them to eat. Kids load up on fat and protein to make up for the lack of carbohydrates. Low carbohydrate diets can lower a child’s energy level, which can be problematic for kids who are athletes.

  • Choosing a Weight Loss Plan that Works For You

    Choosing a Weight Loss Plan that Works For You

    Winning the battle of your weight loss struggles and becoming healthy requires determination to stick to a weight loss plan that works for you. So many diets are structured for you to lose – not weight – but the battle itself.

    To really be successful, lots of planning and thinking needs to come before you begin to meet your goals. The plan must be nutritional and provide your body with nutrients and vitamins you need to avoid future health problems.

    You’ll also need an exercise plan, along with the diet, to keep your metabolism purring and so you have the energy needed to meet your weight loss goals. Any plan should be considered carefully and your goals should be attainable.

    If you have a lot of weight to lose, it’s best to divide your weight loss goals into small increments. Reaching those minor goals will provide the motivation you need to keep going with the ultimate goals in mind.

    The 5 Best Diet Programs – Choose the Best One for You

    Diet plans can be fads that come and go. Many sound incredible, touting that you can lose 10 pounds in 10 days or even more outrageous claims. But, there are five particular plans that have lasted over time and continue to help people lose weight and keep it off.

    You may have tried one of these programs and it didn’t work for you. The likely reason for the failure is that you didn’t choose the right one for you. If you just dive in to a diet plan without thought or preparation, failure is more apt to happen.

    But, before you decide on one, give some thought to your lifestyle and what will work for you. If you travel a great deal, that should be taken into consideration. You may have to eat at restaurants, so you’ll need a diet plan that makes it easy to choose from the menus.

    The top 5 diet plans aren’t fly-by-night plans that help you lose weight at first and when you can’t stand the restrictions and deprivation anymore, you go back to your old ways of eating and you gain even more weight.

    The top 5 diet plans help you become and remain healthy with your weight loss goals intact. Here they are:

    Mediterranean

    Based on what researchers have found to be the healthiest population in the world – the Mediterranean diet is a plan that will give you food for your health and also food to take care of cravings. You can even have wine on this plan.

    Paleo

    The Paleo diet is based on the food our cave-dwelling ancestors lived on. Think of all the foods that might have been available for cavemen or stone-age people. Berries, plant-based food and meats and fish constituted the diet that our ancestors lived on.

    South Beach

    The South Beach diet plan has been around for years and offers a chance to reboot your metabolism and give you more energy by concentrating on a diet of high protein and low carbohydrates.

    Weight Watchers

    This diet plan has also been around since 1963, but the new Weight Watchers plan has been revamped. Now, you don’t have to travel to meetings at a certain location, but can use computer and cell phone to keep in touch with counselors and motivators. You don’t have to spend so much time counting points either with all the zero point foods that are available.

    Low-Carb

    Carbohydrates found in grains and some vegetables and fruits are very limited and protein and fat are emphasized. One huge benefit of the low-carb diet plan is that it lowers the risk for type-2 diabetes.

    Any of these diets will help you lose weight if you follow them closely. Choose one that will fit in best to your lifestyle and weight loss goals so you won’t be tempted to derail the diet plan and go back to old, unhealthy habits.

    How to Avoid Diet Derailment

    According to weight loss experts who have thoroughly researched the matter, there are three top reasons that your carefully-planned diet can get derailed:

    1. You get tired of the diet.

    All of the thinking and preparation involved in dieting can wear you out. So can the food.

    2. You can’t eat your comfort foods.

    Unless you plan a time (or it’s included in your diet plan) to eat foods you really love once in awhile, you won’t be excited about remaining on the diet – no matter how much weight you’re losing.

    3. The diet plan is too restrictive.

    Salads and water isn’t too appetizing on a constant basis. Even if your diet is more permissive about a variety of food, you may feel deprived.

    You know yourself better than anyone or better than any diet label gives you. It’s important to dig deep within yourself before you even choose or begin a diet to find out what your diet deal breakers are.

    You may be defeated before you begin a diet if you don’t give some thought to it, so plan to make it successful by addressing the issues. For example, if you travel a lot, you probably don’t want a diet plan where a great deal of preparation and cooking is involved.

    You’ll need to know how to eat out and which foods on the menus help you follow your diet without feeling deprived. Some diets fail because people can’t resist going back to their old patterns of eating.

    You might do well for awhile, losing weight, exercising and enjoying better health and more energy. You feel so good that you can’t imagine going back to your old ways. Diet backslides happen when you’re stressed, out of time, on vacation or a myriad of other situations.

    Stopping for fast food when you don’t have time to cook a healthy dinner or eating at your favorite Mexican restaurant where they serve the best chips and salsa can creep back into your lifestyle before you even know it’s happening.

    Since habits – especially eating habits – are repeated continuously on a subconscious level, it’s important that you eat on a conscious level. You know what your defeating habits are and when you decide to defeat them on a conscious level, you can succeed.

    If those cravings do get the best of you, think about substituting a food that’s healthier, but gives you the same satisfaction. For example, if you’re craving ice cream, have some low-calorie substitutes such as fudgsicles in the freezer and opt for that instead.

    You’ll also want to keep away from places that you can be tempted. Your favorite restaurant that features your favorite dessert or high-calorie entre could set you up to return to your old habits.

    Don’t Overdo It at First and Risk Failure

    When you become enthusiastic about a weight loss and exercise program, it’s easy to jump into the plan full-force and give it everything you’ve got all at once. The problem with that much exuberance is that you may soon become tired, feel deprived and your mindset for success wanes.

    You may have set your short-term goals too high. Reassess your goals and be realistic in your expectations. When you begin to feel discouraged and are tempted to fall back into old habits, it’s best to leave the diet plan for a couple of days and plan when to return.

    Don’t use a setback as a reason to give up on the diet altogether. An all-or-nothing mindset to a diet plan is often an obstacle rather than a positive way to think. Don’t be unshakable about the diet.

    So many changes in your lifestyle can be daunting and you may need to take a day or two off so you can resume the diet with enthusiasm. Take small steps rather than changing everything about your lifestyle all at once.

    Consider asking for support from a family member or friend when you feel like giving up. You can expect to have those feelings during your quest to lose weight and you may give in once in awhile. Just don’t let it derail your entire plan.

    Using Your Mindset to Overcome Weight Loss Obstacles

    Developing a mindset that helps you grow rather than digress is the best method to gain success in everything you do. Weight loss, in particular requires that your mindset remains positive and doesn’t allow negative thoughts to interfere with success.

    Think about some of the obstacles you might face when you take on a diet and exercise plan. Excuses such as being too busy, too weak, bad genetics or past failures can be exorcised from your mindset by refusing to accept them.

    Instead, immediately replace the negative thought with a positive one. Achieving a positive mindset won’t suddenly happen just because you want it. Some of the excuses for failure involve emotions that are difficult to cast out of your mind.

    They’re like old habits that are hard to break – they just keep coming back to taunt you. A couple of good ways to develop a positive mindset is with a vision board and affirmations.

    Vision boards are visual displays of what we want in life – how we envision ourselves in the future. Vision boards are easy and inexpensive to create and there are lots of suggestions online that will guide you through the process.

    Affirmations are simply positive phrases that you repeat to yourself both when you are already in a positive mindset and when you are on the verge of failure. If you can’t think of anything, there are lots of online help sites.

    Choose or create one that especially calls out to you. Your mindset can help you take the weight off or encourage you to put it on. A positive mindset is the catalyst to give you a winning attitude rather than a defeated one.

    In other words, you can think yourself thin. One of the biggest threats to your positive mindset is impatience. You want to lose weight fast and it’s just not coming off as rapid as you want.

    Our fast-paced society with Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter give us immediate contact with others – so we aren’t happy when we have to wait for the weight loss we so desperately want.

    Unfortunately, our bodies only get the best results when you lose the weight at a slow pace. If you lose weight too rapidly, you risk losing muscle and not fat. A rapid loss might also be due to water weight.

    Losing lean tissue or muscle makes your metabolism slow down and burn less calories. You’ll also be less energetic. Put yourself in a positive light rather than concentrating on losing weight in a hurry. When you picture yourself thin, your mind takes it from there.

    How Technology Can Help You Win with Any Diet Plan

    Technology has made huge strides in the past few years and helping people lose weight is one of its biggest successes. Now, you don’t need to keep that resolution to lose weight in your head.

    It’s too easy to ignore or forget. Digital devices galore are available to get you motivated and track your progress every step of the way. There are apps you can download to your phone or other device to help you successfully manage your fitness and health goals.

    Some of these apps can track the goals and progress of several people, so your family can also use it to set and complete goals. There are many ways to customize your own goals with these apps to add another dimension to your weight loss resolutions and better ensure your success.

    Besides digital devices, social media is known to be a great way to harness all the power of the internet. There are weight loss groups you can join online anonymously that will support you and make suggestions to make the lifestyle changes easier.

    When you share goal successes and setbacks with others you become more committed to reaching weight loss goals and keep on track with any diet and exercise plan you choose.

    Blogs are also a good way to interact with others about weight loss. Most weight loss programs have online blogs where advice and suggestions are offered and you’ll be able to see that you’re not the only one who has trouble following a diet plan.

    Other technological devices and strategies that can help you with weight loss goals include wearable watches, glasses, jewelry and even clothes. Smart glasses are receiving lots of attention lately.

    These glasses are great for cycling. They can report on how much distance you’ve traveled and heart rate as well as maps and routes to choose from – and more. Tech glasses made for swimming are also available. They can tell you the number of laps, distance, calories burned, heart rate and more.

    Tech jewelry is fairly inexpensive and comes in the form of attractive necklaces that transfers your voice into recorded text. It tracks your activity and pairs with various apps to let you meet your fitness goals and it can even look up recipes and control other things such as locks.

    Fitness smartwatches have been around for a while, but now they’re more sophisticated and can provide more information than ever. Just about any fitness tracking you can think of is included with these smartwatches.

    You can choose from several apps that can be downloaded to your device. The watch transfers your data to the app and you can track it any time you wish. It monitors such fitness information as sleep monitoring, heart monitor, nutrition logs, water consumption and amount of calories going in and those going out.

    We all have to wear clothing – so why not choose wearable technology clothing with embedded sensors that will track your fitness journey the same as a smartwatch or smart jewelry.

    Dresses that change color, wearable touchpads and self-lacing shoes are all part of the technology trend, but the health and fitness industry is the main focus today. It’s difficult enough to lose weight on your own.

    Why not use everything technology has to offer to help you set goals, track and report your progress, keep us safe and even reward us when we reach our goals? Check out the latest technological devices for fitness online.

Copyright @ 2017 DrCurtisMcElroy