1. Eat Less Carbs – More and more studies are showing that carbohydrate restriction is a effective way at reducing markers of inflammation.

2. Eat More Anti-Oxidant Rich Foods – Getting more polyphenol and anthocyanins rich foods in your diet isn’t that difficult. Eat more red, purple, and blue fruits and vegetables, have a couple cups of green tea each day, even some red wine or dark chocolate.

3. Increase the Amount of Omega-3 Rich Foods in Your Diet – I’m not just talking about EPA/DHA (from fish oil /salmon). ALA (from flax) has been shown to impact inflammation via a different mechanism so make sure you are getting both kinds of omega-3s.

4. Lose Excess Fat – Extra sagging body fat is an inflammation factory. Dropping the extra pounds is the best way to reduce inflammation (and your blood pressure, risk for heart disease, risk for diabetes, etc) (WSFL 2.0 will get the job done quick).

If you are doing all of these…great. If not, what are you waiting for?

Apply these simple steps so that you can control the pro/anti-inflammatory balance in your body.

Note: If you are interested in hearing the full interview…it isn’t available yet but I’ll let you know when it is.

While this all sounds good in the headlines, the question we should be asking is – “Will effects make an impact on my life and health?” or as my friend Alwyn Cosgrove would say “Is there a real world effect?”

The answer is yes. They do have what can amount to a very important effect through what I call nutrient stacking.

Nutrient stacking is the cumulative beneficial effect of small improvements in your body’s function that lead to increased weight loss, improved health, and ultimately a longer life.

To illustrate this point let me use two examples from the latest issue of Strong, Fit, & Healthy. In one of the Research Reviews I share a study that looked at how cinnamon can help control blood sugar levels.

Adding 1 TBSP of cinnamon to your oatmeal each day won’t be the difference between you having diabetes or not but the addition of several small factors such as making an effort to regularly using cinnamon, vinegar, and even an alpha-lipoic acid supplement each day as part of your diet/routine will amount to you gaining better control on your blood sugar levels. When you then stack large impact factors like eating less starches and regular exercise, you will have an unbeatable combination.

The second example comes from the Key Concepts section this month’s newsletter. The key concept this month is eating 5-6 meals per day. In this I discuss one of the benefits being an increased thermic effect of food.

The thermic effect of food is the amount of calories that you body burns from digesting and processing the foods that you eat.

The boost in calorie burning you get from consistently eating 5-6 meals per day isn’t ground breaking; however when you combine it with other thermic effect of food boosting strategies such as eating more protein (which takes more calories to digest and process compared to carbohydrates and fats), you will start to see a ‘real world’ increase in the calories your burn from the thermic effect of food.

To wrap things up, nutrient stacking is a powerful concept that can be applied to many different aspects of your diet beyond the two examples I shared above. Whenever you learn about foods/nutrients that can improve your health, performance, or weight loss always think of what you can combine with it to further enhance the effect.

Fish Oil Fights Obesity In Kids Before It Even Starts – Higher maternal intake of n-3 LC-PUFAs in pregnancy was associated with lower childhood adiposity at age 3, suggesting that western diets low in n-3 LC-PUFAs favor the development of adiposity later in life.

Fish Oil Reduces Hot Flashes (I’ve written about fish oil and hot flashes before) – Supplementation of post-menopausal women with ethyl-EPA for 8 weeks was associated with a significant 55% decrease in the frequency of hot flashes compared with women consuming a placebo, but the intensity of the hot flashes was unaffected. Supplementation of a similar group of women experiencing post-menopausal psychological distress with both EPA (1.0 g/day) and DHA (150 mg/day) was without effect on psychological distress, but in women with major depression, n-3 LC-PUFA supplementation was associated with a significant improvement in psychological distress and depression compared with the placebo.

Corn Oil Breaks Bone? -  The effect of PUFAs on bone mineral density has attracted attention because of the loss of bone mass in the elderly and the importance of accruing bone mass during growth. A study of the relationship between bone mineral density and serum phospholipid n-6 PUFAs in 8-year old children reported that linoleic acid was inversely associated with bone density in the total body, lumbar spine and hip, but that ARA was positively associated with bone density in the total body and hip. Omega-3 PUFAs were unrelated to bone density.

Forget The Carrots for Better Vision -  The likelihood of developing advanced age-related macular degeneration was significantly lower in people with the highest intake of DHA. Risk was further reduced in people who consumed aspirin more than 5 times/week and had high DHA intakes.

More Fish = More Focus (and happier parents) – Behavior and learning disorders in children cover a spectrum with overlapping symptoms and distinct subsets of characteristics. In children with attention deficit with or without hyperactivity (ADHD), inattention may be the greatest impairment. In a randomized, placebo-controlled trial, a large subgroup of children with inattention experienced a 47% reduction in ADHD symptoms after 6 months’ supplementation with n-3 LC-PUFAs containing a small amount of ?-linolenic acid. Another controlled trial in ADHD children using only EPA reported significant treatment benefits related to the predominant behavioral subtype, not in the overall sample. Responses were the greatest in children with the lowest EPA concentrations at baseline.

“I’ll have martini, shaken not stirred with a splash of fish oil” -  Chronic alcoholism depletes DHA in the orbitofrontal cortex of the brain and reduces DHA incorporation and turnover. These changes are thought to impair neurotransmission.

To learn more about fish oil, creatine, protein powder, greens products, BCAAs, forskolin, hoodia, nitric oxide stimulators, multivitamins and a whole slew of other supplements go to StrongFitandHealthy.com to get your free copy of The Truth About Dietary Supplement (I’ll even pay the shipping and handling).

ISSFAL 2008 Highlights [via Fats of Life]

Question from Helen: One blip (this video) says 6-8 servings of grains, then another mentions -well, you don’t really need carbohydrates coz the body can make them – so why would one want to eat so much grain? I can totally relate to the fruits and veg, but grain?

Answer from Mike: The 6-8 servings of grains is not my recommendation but the recommendations for the DASH diet. The DASH diet is extremely popular in nutrition research and in medical settings. I think that the 6-8 servings of grains is high and that by cutting the starchy carbs you will be able to get better results in regards to weight loss and health. Last April I saw a presentation by Dr. Jeff Volek where he showed that when they put their subjects on ketogenic diets with resistance training that they essentially cure metabolic syndrome. So grains are good but not necessarily in the 6-8 serving dosage.

Question from Helen: Why so many clips [Videos - Here] on carbs? and about controlling insulin? How does that relate to hypertension? okay i admit that the biggest evil in the US is really sugar, so is the idea that that is the cause of the hypertension?

Answer from Mike: I have a lot of videos the carb ones were just the first to get edited. Controlling carbs and insulin is very important. The videos aren’t meant to be specific to controlling high blood pressure. From the research that I have seen, to decrease your blood pressure I would do the following :

• • Lose Weight
  • Eat Lots of Fruits and Vegetables
  • Take 2-3 grams of EPA/DHA
  • Exercise regularly
  • Lose Weight (yes it is in there twice)
  • Get 2-3 servings of low fat dairy in each day
  • Cut Carbs

Question from Douglas: I am a 41 yo M, that is 5?9? tall. weight currently at 220. My Main issue is VERY high blood pressure. I am in a quandary the 5 different blood pressure meds I am on lower my blood pressure to 150/100. But also make me very tired and weak. Turning a screwdriver makes my arms burn, walking up a flight of stairs feels like I have walked 5 miles. etc. That said, I want to work to get off the drugs, they make me dizzy and besides the other side effects.

So the questions I have. How do you rate the DASH diet from a weight lost perspective. It seems to be highly loaded in grains which I would think would be a Insulin issue.

I have been reading A Lot about inflammatory type foods causing heart disease. Have you seen or heard anything in that regards??

One of these days I am going to be able to do the Warp Speed Fat Loss exercises. right now when I attempt to do them my heart rate goes through the roof. (almost 220 bpm).

Answer From Mike: Yes, let’s get you to the point where you can come off the drugs (or at least cut down the number of meds you are on). See my answer above regarding nutritional approaches to decrease blood pressure. Weight loss is really important. Because your meds are making exercise difficult you are going to need to be in close contact with your physician about what you can and can’t do (NOT Warp Speed Fat Loss).

Studies have used the DASH diet for weight loss with the driving force behind weight loss being a calorie deficit. It works, but isn’t my preferred method. One thing about the DASH diet (I have also found this with the subjects in my clinical trial) is that they are never hungry on the DASH diet due to all the fruits and vegetables. But that effect is not specific to DASH but just eating lots of fruits and vegetables so it is easily replicated.

Inflammation is a very hot topic. Inflammatory foods are nutritional buzz words (see Grocery Store Scams for more about nutrition buzz words). For example many people are very against plant oils because of all the linoliec acid (omega 6 fat) claiming that it is pro-inflammatory.

However the data supporting a direct pro-inflammatory effect from eating more linoleic acid is very limited (non-existant?). Not to sound like a broken record but if you wanted to eat an anti-inflammatory diet you can basically follow the steps I outlined above in my answer to Helen’s question about lowering blood pressure and make sure you add some high anti0xidant fruits for good measure (also see my new free 6 Pillars of Nutrition Video) and you will have a solid anti-inflammatory diet.

1. Not Using Fish Oil – You should really be taking fish oil all the time for optimal health reasons. But in case you didn’t know, fish oil will also help burn fat. You can read more specifics about it here.

2. Not Finding an Emotional Goal – You need to really want to lose weight. I mean really. The casual cocktail party talk of “yeah, I’d like to lose 20lbs” is great but with an attitude like that you’ll never lose any weight. You need to find a reason that has deep rooted emotional ties. If you can’t think of one, think harder. You don’t have to tell anyone (you probably won’t want to). But you need it.

3. Skipping Workouts – This is the only training related tip I’ll cover in this article. You can’t skip training sessions and expect to reach your goal. Don’t try to rationalize it in your mind. If you are scheduled to train, then do it. There is no…“oh, I’ll just move my training split back one day.” That kind of attitude is a slippery slope.

4. Cutting Calories Too Low – Cutting your calories too low too fast is a sure fire way to crash your metabolism. Begin by working on increasing your energy expenditure, and THEN reducing your food intake.

5. Not Reducing Carbs – Lower carbohydrate diets are just superior when it comes to dropping body fat. The increased amounts of fats and proteins that you will eat by cutting your carbs will also increase your feelings of satiety so you won’t be starving all the time.

6. Trying to Build Muscle at the same time – Burning fat and building muscle are two opposite processes. Can you do both at the same time? Yes. However, if you really want to lose 20lbs and gain 15lbs of muscle, you will get faster results if you lose the fat and then focus on getting bigger and stronger.

7. Not Modify Type of Carbs – As noted in mistake #5 not reducing your carbohydrate intake is a mistake. It is also a mistake if you don’t modify the types of carbs that you are eating. Your focus needs to be on vegetables and fruits. The less calories you are eating the more vegetables you need to eat. This will ensure that you maintain a significant bulk (or volume) to your diet and don’t go nuts eating extremely small amounts at each meal.

8. Thinking a supplement will make the difference – Magazines are full of “special reports” that are aimed at convincing you that you need their supplement to get the body you want. !News Flash! There is no such thing as “Exercise in a Bottle” (well actually there was a fat burner called “Exercise in a Bottle” but it didn’t work). If you aren’t losing weight to start out with then a fat burner isn’t going to help you. Get your weight loss going and then add the fat burner.

9. Not Telling People – It is important to tell the world that you are dieting. Tell everyone. This is important for 2 reasons. The first is it will give you the beginnings of a support system. People can’t support you if they don’t know what you are doing (see mistake 11 for more on this). The second reason is social pressure. If you tell everyone that you are trying to lose weight then you have created more accountability and a sense of commitment. You can’t back out, as every time these people see you they will be asking about your diet.

10. Trusting Your Eye – Don’t trust your eye! Even though we don’t know each other I feel safe making the statement that you can’t look at a piece of food and estimate the caloric value of it. Even if you are just using food choices to guide your fat loss plan – measure oils using a teaspoon instead of just pouring them. Use a ½ cup measuring cup when scooping oatmeal instead of just dumping oatmeal in a bowl. While it is not always necessary to measure and calculate your food intake – you should always have some grasp on how much you are eating.

11. Not Having a Support System – This is big. If you are going through your fat loss journey alone then you are in trouble. However, if you are reading this article then you aren’t alone because you are a member of the Faster Fat Loss Zone. Use the community. Post your training and nutrition logs. These are great places to receive encouragement and support. Ask question about your training, nutrition, and struggles. The more you participate the more you will realize that others are going through the exact same thing you are going through.

12. Thinking That You Are Missing Out On a Secret That Everyone Else Knows – Here’s the thing. Despite what many people may lead you to believe, no one is holding back the secrets to fat loss for you. In this community you are given the tools to burn lots of fat. We are constantly updating the information to ensure you have continued success and know that nothing is being “held back.” Taking the stance that you don’t know the ‘insider information’ is just a way to rationalize youR not reaching your goals. Know that you know everything you need to know (say that 5 times fast) and make it happen.

13. Diet Jumping – You can’t be on a ketogenic diet today, Zone diet tomorrow, Naked Nutrition the following week and then say that none of the diets work for you. Unfortunately with all the fitness information on the internet you can easily be tempted on a daily basis to switch your diet to the latest new twist. This constant jumping will never give you time to make sufficient progress on any one diet. Make your plan and stick to it – regardless of what you read about the next greatest thing.

14. Following Fads and Not Foundational Principles – Fads never work. I have never met someone who lost weight on the cabbage soup diet and kept if off. I have never met anyone that went on the grapefruit diet and could stick with it for more than 2 weeks. These diets are fads. Fad diets are called fad diets for a reason. Your fat loss plan needs to be based on solid scientific and time tested principles. Only then will you be able to lose the extra fat hanging off your body and keep it off.

15. Not being Honest With Yourself About Your Compliance – Let’s be honest. You can eat an extra piece of toast and not mark it down. You can make that teaspoon of peanut butter more like a tablespoon and not tell anyone but in the end the tape measure never lies. Lie to yourself now but you’ll be disappointed later on when the time comes to measure your progress. It is better to be honest about your compliance so you can make strides to fix the holes in your plan, then lie to yourself, not lose the weight, and be stuck saying “I don’t know why I’m not losing any weight.”
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Q: I take flax oil from natures way with 7.5grams of Omega-3 as Alpha-Linolenic acid; Lignan rich flax providing 15 mg  Lignans; Omega 9 fatty acids 2.2 g as Oleic acid, Omega 6 fatty acids as Linoleic acids2.0g  and thats one serving an dI try to get to 3 servings perday…Hows that compare with fish oil  recommendations?

A: Adding flaxseed oil to your diet is a great idea as Alpha-Linolenic Acid has some great health booster properties. But even those flaxseed oil and fish oil both contain omega-3 fatty acids they are very different and they act differently in the body. So you can’t really compare them – you need them both!

I’ve written about the differences between Fish Oil and flaxseed oil (click here for the other post)before so make sure to check those out as they go into detail about how they are both different (and important).

Reported Benefits of Supplementing with Fish Oil:

• Fat Loss and improved body composition – Research has shown that fish oil seems to turn on the body’s fat burning mechanism and even better, it was shown that most of the fat loss was in the abdominal region. Yes, your belly fat!*
• Fights Inflammation – reduces the inflammation causing substances in the body. Inflammation will kill you eventually. It wreaks havoc on your body and long term health. Not to mention it is responsible for painful conditions around the body. Fish oil can help with muscle soreness and joint pain
• Improves Cardiovascular health -Fish oil lowers triglycerides, reduces the likely hood of blood clots, can lower high blood pressure, reduces chance of stroke.
• Mental Health – Reduces depression, and elevates the mood. It was even found that fish oil supplementation in children with ADHD dramatically improved their symptoms.
• Healthy Eyes – Fights Macular Degeneration, Glaucoma and dry-eye syndrome
• Boosts the immune system – Less time being sick, and better fight against colds and other illness.
• Increase s.ex drive – Do I really need to explain this any further?
• Helps with menstrual pain – Women rejoice!
• Improves digestion – So many people out there live with digestion problems. This supplement can really help with some of those issues.
• Fights Osteoporosis
• Helps to prevent cancer
• Lowers the risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease
• Helps with Asthma
• Helps with Multiple Sclerosis
• Helps with skin problems – Eczema, and psoriasis. I can personally attest to this benefit. All of my life I battled with Eczema, and never won until I started using fish oil. Now, I rarely get an outbreak and if I do, it is short lived.
• Helps with Diabetes
• Can lower stress
• Reduces headaches
• Helps with Fibromyaglia

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIgNpsbvcVM

1. Fish Oil does NOT lower C-Reactive Protein

2. Fish oil does NOT really help with improving insulin resistance

Today we will look at how fish oil does NOT help control blood sugar levels.  In 2006, nutrition juggernaut Dr. Alice Lichtenstein (and some others) wrote a review article that focused on the effects of omega-3 fatty acids and serum makers (e.g. things in our blood) on cardiovascular disease.

One of the areas they looked at was blood sugar control.  In regards to controlling blood sugar levels the two markers they examined were Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and fasting blood sugars (FBS) levels.  HbA1c is a long term marker of blood glucose control and FBS is what it sounds like – what your blood sugar levels are when you haven’t eaten for a while.  The researchers looked at 28 different randomized clinical trials and found that fish oil supplementation yielded a wide range of results ranging from a 29mg/dL decrease to a 25mg/dL increase in FBS.  The findings surrounding HbA1c weren’t that exciting either as there was a small (and clinically insignificant) effect.

After doing some more of what I call “statistical voodoo” the researchers concluded that fish oil caused a nonsignificant increase in FBS and HbA1c.  So not only does fish oil have no effect on blood sugar control it actually has a minor (very minor) negative effect.

As you know I love fish oil and believe that everyone should take it on a daily basis.  There are TONS of good reasons why you should take it but controlling blood sugar levels is not one of them.