The Life Ledger

Fitness is a way of life.

photo credit: chiodachic

Trans fats take one more step to earning the infamy associated with drugs, alcohol and cigarettes. A study recently conducted on Wistar rats shows pregnant or nursing mothers fed a diet enriched with hydrogenated vegetable fat causes symptoms associated with obesity, even when the offspring never consumes that same diet. Scientists split the rats into four groups, and the results were striking:

Pregnant and lactating Wistar rats were fed with either a control diet (C group) or one enriched with hydrogenated vegetable fat (T group). Upon weaning, the male pups were sorted in four groups: CC a mothers were receiving C, and pups were kept on C; CT - mothers were receiving C, and pups were fed with T; TT a mothers were receiving T, and pups were kept on T; TC a mothers were receiving T, and pups were fed with C.

… Offspring of TT and TC rats had increased white adipose tissue PAI-1 gene expression. Insulin receptor was higher in TT than other groups. Ingestion of hydrogenated vegetable fat by the mother during gestation and lactation could promote deleterious consequences, even after the withdrawal of the causal factor.

That result bears repeating: offspring that never ate the high-trans-fat diet still exhibited symptoms of obesity, including insulin resistance, which leads to diabetes. Science Daily’s article includes this explanation of the study’s results:

“We know that foetal growth is influenced by the mother’s nutritional status,” explained Brazilian nutritionist Luciana Pisani. “Fats play a fundamental role in foetal development and changes in dietary fatty acids has important implications for foetal and postnatal development. Heavy ingestion of very hydrogenated fats rich in trans fatty acids increases risk of cardiovascular diseases and reduces insulin sensitivity and so leads to type 2 diabetes. We need to investigate this further as this has important implications for people’s own diets, especially pregnant women.”

Interestingly enough, Science Daily’s article also linked to a similar study on junk foodconducted in 2007:

Mothers who eat junk food during pregnancy and breastfeeding may be putting their children at risk of overeating and developing obesity, according to a study funded by the Wellcome Trust and carried out at the Royal Veterinary College, London. The research suggests that pregnant and breastfeeding women should not indulge in fatty, sugary and salty foods under the misguided assumption that they are “eating for two”.

The study*, published in the British Journal of Nutrition, found that rats fed a diet of processed junk food such as doughnuts, muffins, biscuits, crisps and sweets during pregnancy and lactation gave birth to offspring which overate and had a preference for junk foods rich in fat, sugar and salt when compared to the offspring of rats given regular feed. The research team behind the study believe the findings have implications for humans.

The more we study HFCS and hydrogenated fat, the more obvious it becomes we are killing ourselves by replacing food with man-made substances. I’m betting Michael Pollan’s non-scientific claims may eventually be backed with scientific studies - the more natural food and less man-made “food” in our diets, the healthier overall we’ll be.

The takeaway? Stop eating fried peeps. Yes, in case you were wondering, the picture above is someone’s fried peeps. Gross.

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Schools may phase out fried foods (@clarionledger.com)

The Clarion Ledger reports on an interesting Mississippi House Bill that passed and now moves to the Senate, containing the following requirements:

• Annual testing of a child’s body mass index, a measure of obesity.
• At least 30 minutes of daily exercise and a weekly 45-minute health lesson.
• Schools to only use oils without trans fat and reduce the sugar and sodium in cooking.
• A prohibition on fast food during breakfasts or lunches for teachers, too.
• A stop to schools buying new fryers in 2008, ensuring no fried food is served once the frying equipment stops working.

This definitely got my interest up.  Aware that news articles tend to be a little over-dramatic in their summation of legal news, I looked for the original bill language for House Bill 732 and found the following interesting bits:

At the end of the first semester of each school year, each school district shall collect an annual body mass index (BMI) for every Mississippi public school student and provide this information to parents.  The information sent to parents shall include an explanation of the BMI, benefits of physical activity, benefits of proper nutrition, and resources for parents that promote and encourage a healthy lifestyle…. The school districts shall treat the students’ BMI information as private information in the same manner as other student records are treated.

Hopefully, this means students won’t be herded into the gym and be poked with calipers in front of each other.  That’s how it was done in phys ed class in college - I left gym that day depressed, self-conscious and ready to emotionally eat my way through a satisfying, uplifting pasta dinner.  Seriously, children are cruel - we need to be sensitive to peer pressure and give them space to develop a strong self-image.

The regulations on preparation of food items for the Child Nutrition School Breakfast and Lunch Programs shall, at a minimum, address the methods of preparing foods and the use of ingredients that will:

1. Reduce the amount of and, whenever possible, eliminate saturated fat in food items, and reduce the amount of sugar and sodium in food items; 
2. Eliminate any nonnaturally occurring trans fatty acids in food items; 
3. Use one hundred percent (100%) whole grain products and ingredients whenever available; and 
4. Eliminate the frying of food items.

Sounds good to me!  Let’s hope the schools ignore ”zero trans fat” labels and look for partially hydrogenated oils in the ingredients list.  Half a gram of trans fat can really add up when you buy salad dressing in bulk and serve 4 tablespoons (4 servings) to each child.

The regulations on food items that can be prepared, sold or consumed in school cafeterias and on school campuses during the Child Nutrition School Breakfast and Lunch Programs shall, at a minimum: …  Prohibit anyone from bringing retail prepared food into the school cafeterias or onto the school campuses during the school breakfast and school lunch programs.

The also mentions “staff wellness” as one of the duties overseen by each school’s “local school health council.”  It’s nice to see the legislators recognize that children need role models - obese instructors who don’t follow healthy eating habits defeat the entire move to instill healthy habits in our children.

The State Board of Education shall encourage each school to provide students and staff with a minimum of fifteen (15) minutes to eat lunch once they have received their food.  In determining the total length of the lunch period, the time to and from the cafeteria, the time to go through the line, and the time to bus trays at the end of lunch shall be considered.

It’s good to see the legislature also recognizes wolfing food in a short period of time is unhealthy.  It looks like they’ve done their homework and tried to provide not just a bunch of rules, but shape an environment dedicated to principles of fitness.

The State Board of Education shall adopt regulations, for compliance by school districts, that specify the food and beverage items and other items that are approved for sale or distribution… through fund-raisers… conducted by students, teachers, school groups or parent groups… off the school campus.  With respect to food and beverage items, the board shall approve only healthy and nutritious items that are not inconsistent with the regulations adopted under subsection (9) that govern food and beverage items.

No more bake sales.

Well, I’m satisfied.  This sounds like a fantastic move.  Apparently, not everyone agrees.  I can understand schools being reluctant due to the rapid timeline of implementation or moving a herd of students through the lunch line while no longer being able to use fast cooking methods like frying, but to call the bill communist and depriving students of their right to choice?

“I think the bill is bogus and communistic,” said Rep. Steve Horne, R-Meridian, who argued government regulation should not encroach on personal choice.

I hate to be cynical, but it makes me wonder if Coke is contributing to his political warchest. 

It’s all about language.

Before I began Optifast, I over-ate a lot.  I loved food, I loved the taste of food, I  got a lot of emotional satisfaction out of food.  I ate to celebrate, I ate to gain energy, I ate to rise out of depression, I ate when I was lonely or bored.  The only time I didn’t eat is when I was hungry, because I never was.  I had completely co-opted my body’s mechanisms for signalling phyiscal hunger, replacing them with my emotional needs.  Feeling good?  I’m hungry!  Feeling depressed?  I’m hungry.  Feeling bored or lonely?  I need to eat.

Right before starting Optifast, I began to notice I ate when I wasn’t actually hungry, and I would eat way more than I needed to.  I didn’t have the words to describe it at the time, but I could identify the behavior.  For instance, when I ate Indian food, my stomach would be full but I would take 5 more bites because I craved the taste.  Or if I was having a bad day at work, I would take a magazine with me and have a burger and fries at Applebee’s and call it “me time.” 

Now I have the words to describe that behavior - emotional eating.

I also have developed the words to stop the behavior.  My first attempts to stop over-eating were unsuccessful - I would say to myself “I need to stop eating.”  Then I would take just one more bite, because it tasted so good, or there wasn’t that much left.  I would be left with an over-full stomach and an empty plate.  Other attempts were just as unsuccessful - “I’m full now”, “my stomach is full”, “I’m emotionally eating now.” No matter what I tried, I always found a reason to eat just a little more.  Then I hit on it -

“Put the fork down.”

Why did this work?  My previous attempts were either overbroad and unactionable (”I need to stop eating.”) or a weather-report of my current behavior.  I needed a physical, immediate action to stop the eating.  There was no emotion attached to putting my fork down, no judgment of how fat I was and how I was just making things worse, no craving to satisfy - that simple action severed my emotional ties.

So, if you need somewhere to start, just a little pebble to get your avalanche rolling, try putting your fork down.

I was reading a story at The Burlington County Times about Girl Scouts cookies dropping trans fats.  While that’s great news, and this is an exciting trend to watch, that’s not what caught my attention.

The Scouts’ annual cookie drive begins Friday, and this year the federal Food and Drug Administration says labels on the organization’s cookies may include the words “zero grams of trans fat.” … Some of the cookies will still have a small amount of the fat. The FDA allows food manufacturers to say a product has zero trans fat if it contains half a gram or less per serving.

That’s interesting.  Sure enough, the FDA’s FAQ page includes the following:

Q: Is it possible for a food product to list the amount of trans fat as 0 g on the Nutrition Facts panel if the ingredient list indicates that it contains “partially hydrogenated vegetable oil?”

 

A: Yes. Food manufacturers are allowed to list amounts of trans fat with less than 0.5 gram (1/2 g) as 0 (zero) on the Nutrition Facts panel. As a result, consumers may see a few products that list 0 gram trans fat on the label, while the ingredient list will have “shortening” or “partially hydrogenated vegetable oil” on it. This means the food contains very small amounts (less than 0.5 g) of trans fat per serving.

Just goes to show - get to know the ingredients instead of relying on the numbers.

Eating trans fats may increase infertility risk (@ topix.net, citing reuters)

The more I learn about trans fats, the less I want to eat processed foods.  I’m definitely going to start looking at all the labels of what I buy - it’s worth the extra money I spend to cut trans fats from our diet.  Here’s an excerpt from the article:

For every 2 percent increase in the amount of calories a woman got from trans fats instead of carbohydrates, the researchers found, her risk of infertility increased by 73 percent. The risk rose by 79 percent for every 2 percent of energy in trans fats if they replaced omega-6 polyunsaturated fats. And for every 2 percent of calories derived from trans fats instead of monounsaturated fats, the risk of infertility more than doubled.

For a woman eating 1,800 calories a day, 2 percent of energy intake in trans fats equals 4 grams, Chavarro noted. “It’s not very hard to get 4 grams of trans fatty acids every day,” he said. “It’s really a small amount of trans fatty acids that we observe having a significant effect on infertility.”

So, 4 grams of trans fats equals a 73% increase in infertility.  The food industry is killing us.  I just hope the effects are reversible once we stop eating trans fats.