Q: I just have a quick question about cottage cheese.  I really like the stuff however I find it doesn’t sit well with me.  I currently am using a 4% one.  Would you recommend I try the lower % fat cheese since it may be the fat content that’s causing me difficulties with digestion?

Mike: The problem here is most likely the lactose (a carbohydrate found in dairy products) and not the fat in the cottage cheese. I would look for the Lactaid brand cottage cheese or cottage cheese that contains live cultures (Cabot is a brand that does).

Lactaid cottage cheese will contain lactase the enzyme responsible for digesting lactose and thus will most likely help relieve your symptoms.

If you buy cottage cheese that contains live cultures the bacteria can help digest the lactose and make the cottage cheese easier on your system.

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

Day in and day out.

Chicken, Spinach, broccoli, almonds, fish….

Day in and day out.

STOP. I am constantly preaching dietary variety – not for just sanity but to ensure adequate amounts of a variety of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals.

One thing that many people are guilty of is eating the same kind of nuts everyday. You know what I’m talking about…almonds.

Almonds are a great snack food but don’t limit yourself to them. Let’s look as some other good options:

Pecans – Pecans have a buttery taste and are packed with antioxidants and monounsaturated fats

Pistachios - Pistachios can often be oversalted and this can detract from their flavor. Pistachios are a great choice as they to two contain high levels of monounsaturated fat and have been shown by the lab I work in to reduce the oxidation of LDL cholesterol (oxidized LDL cholesterol is essentially the bad getting badder).

Walnuts – Walnuts are a well rounded nut with significant levels of monounsaturated, omega-6 polyunsaturated, and omega-3 polyunsaturated fats. they have 2.5grams of omega-3s per 1oz serving. EAT ‘EM UP. Walnuts are my nut of choice when making a shake.

This week when you go shopping, if you have been married to almonds add some variety and pick up pecans, pistachios, or walnuts instead.

This is how many people think. That is why food companies work so hard to convince you that their products are good for you. Now I have no problem with them doing this as long as the product is really good for you. The dairy people are relentless marketers about the benefits of dairy. Yeah they went a little awry with the whole “lose weight, drink milk” stuff. But for the most part they are honest about the good (protein, calcium, etc) and bad (fat, saturated fat) about dairy and do their best to make products that emphasize the good and minimize the bad (low fat dairy or my favorite low carb/low fat dairy – I love calorie countdown chocolate milk).

Other groups are not so moral (ohhh…moral. That’s a strong word. I can only imagine the emails I will get after the rest of this entry). Today I’m talking about chocolate. There is a ton of hoopla about healthy chocolate. Everyone wants to know about the health benefits of chocolate.

“Did you hear that chocolate is healthy!?”

“I know I can’t wait to have a whole case of oreos!”

Let’s get real here. Green Tea is healthy. Green Tea Ice Cream…not so much. The same goes for chocolate. Coco is loaded with antioxidants and has a long list of potential health benefits.

But we don’t like coco.

We like candy.

What is being done all over the chocolate industry is that companies are using science to highlight one aspect of their product that has potential health benefits and they forget to mention the other aspect of the same product that could be bad for your health.

Exhibit A – Hershey’s Extra Dark: Pure Dark Chocolate

Look at the antioxidant comparison. Dark chocolate has more ORAC (basically antioxidant activity) than blueberries, raspberries, grapes…This is amazing (read with sarcasm).

“If blueberries are good because of their antioxidants then dark chocolate must be even better?“. Right?

Ummm….Let’s look a little deeper.

Exhibit B: Nutrition Facts

 When we look at the nutritional information we find that the one serving of dark chocolate that gave us all that ORAC also gives us 8 grams of Saturated Fat. That’s 40% of your daily intake. So where is the health benefit?

Think about it Good (high ORAC) vs Bad (high saturated fat). How do the health benefits net out? I would score it like this

ORAC = +5

8g Saturated Fat = -20

Overall Health Benefit = -15

Doesn’t seem so healthy after all does it?  Coco may provide health benefits. But chances are if you are getting your coco via commercial chocolate products then those health benefits do not exceed the negative health impact from other components of the product.

Be a smart shopper. Don’t get sucked into the marketing hype surrounding food.

Have a good one,

-Mike

Olive oil, Flaxseed oil, Fish oil – which is the best?

In reality none of them are the best. Those oils are high in monounsaturated fat and omega-3 fats; but there are other important fats that you should consume.

One type of oil that people swear are oils high in the short chain omega-6, linoleic acid. Quoting the “inflammatory” properties of omega-6s. In reality this is a weak argument.

I’ve written before about the differences between omega-3 fats – alpha-linolenic (from flax) vs. EPA and DHA (from fish)

Omega-6 fats come in two main “flavors” – short (linoleic acid) and long (arachidonic acid) chain. These fats are very different. Arachidonic acid gets directly converted to pro-inflammatory compounds (Note: This is an over simplification as the compounds can also be anti-inflammatory – confusing huh?).

Linoleic acid doesn’t easily get converted to arachidonic acid. The data supporting the inflammatory effects of linoleic acid are hard to find.

What many people don’t realize is that the research supporting the health benefits of omega-6 polyunsaturated fats is waaaay better then that supporting the health benefits of monounsaturated fats -shocker huh? But that is a topic for another post.

Another thing to consider is that nuts contain omega-6 polyunsaturated fats. People avoid oils high in omega-6 polys but then suck down nuts and seeds with no hesitation.

The key here is balance. You need monounsaturated fats, omega-6 polyunsaturated fats, omega-3 polyunsaturated fats, and saturated fats. Eat them all, everyday.

In regards to oils don’t stop at fish, flax, and olive. Eat canola, toasted sesame, coconut, and peanut oil as well.

You may be wondering “Why supplement with beta-alanine?  Why not supplement with carnosine?”  Carnosine is made up of beta-alanine and histidine (an amino acid).  In the gut carnosine is split into beta-alanine and histidine and then re-assembled back to carnosine in muscle or other cells in the body.  Since histidine is already very abundant in the body and food supply the limiting factor with carnosine synthesis is beta-alanine.  Supplementing beta-alanine has been show in studies to increase intramuscular carnosine concentrations.  That is why people supplement with beta-alanine and not carnosine.

As you can probably tell from a performance perspective carnosine and beta-alanine have the potential to make a huge impact.  But what may be even more interesting is the role that carnosine may place in slowing the aging process.

Tomorrow we’ll look at how carnosine can prevent aging (and potential the onset of some diseases).

On of the solutions is beef jerky. When in a pinch beef jerky can provide a nice infusion of amino acids to your system. However there are a couple problems with beef jerky. the first is salt. One bag of beef jerky can contain up to 1.5 grams of salt! The second is preservatives – ugh. Some beef jerky products are so loaded with preservatives you wonder if it was ever real beef.

Here’s the thumbs up/thumbs down for beef jerky
Thumbs Down – Oberto: I wasn’t convinced this was actually real meat. The texture is funny and I think they may have added some sort of coloring to the meat. the taste was too “chemically”. Definitely not my first choice.

Thumbs Up – Damn Good Beef Jerky: This is definitely my first choice for beef jerky (unless I can get homemade stuff). The meat texture and taste is great. You feel like you are eating real meat. The sodium content varies between flavor (teriyaki is the highest if I remember correctly). I have found it is available at most convenience stores (in the Northeast at least).

From a purely taste driven perspective you should incorporate fresh ginger into your cooking as it easily turns dishes from boring to tasty. But aside from the great taste ginger has remarkable health benefits.

The effects of ginger are two-fold. The first is in the easement of an upset stomach. Ginger (namely ginger tea) has been used for thousands of years for the treatment of upset stomach. If you are currently starting a nutrition plan that is causing some GI upset (this is common symptom when new foods are introduced to ones diet) then ginger tea during and after a meal can help relieve symptoms.

Ginger also have anti-inflammatory properties with a mechanism similar to that of fish oil (however not as powerful).  Below is a great summary of Ginger courtesy of  The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

——–

Introduction

This fact sheet provides basic information about the herb. A plant or part of a plant used for its flavor, scent, or potential therapeutic properties. Includes flowers, leaves, bark, fruit, seeds, stems, and roots. ginger–uses, potential side effects, and resources for more information. Ginger is a tropical plant that has green-purple flowers and an aromatic underground stem (called a rhizome). It is commonly used for cooking and medicinal purposes.

Common Names–ginger

Latin Names–Zingiber officinale

What It Is Used For

• Ginger is used in Asian medicine to treat stomach aches, nausea, and diarrhea.
• Many digestive, antinausea, and cold and flu dietary supplements sold in the United States contain ginger extract as an ingredient.
• Ginger is used to alleviate postsurgery nausea as well as nausea caused by motion, chemotherapy, and pregnancy.
• Ginger has been used for rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, and joint and muscle pain.

How It Is Used

The underground stems of the ginger plant are used in cooking, baking, and for health purposes. Common forms of ginger include fresh or dried root, tablets, capsules, liquid extracts (tinctures), and teas.

What the Science Says

• Studies suggest that the short-term use of ginger can safely relieve pregnancy-related nausea and vomiting.
• Studies are mixed on whether ginger is effective for nausea caused by motion, chemotherapy, or surgery.
• It is unclear whether ginger is effective in treating rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, or joint and muscle pain.
• NCCAM-funded investigators are studying:
  • Whether ginger interacts with drugs, such as those used to suppress the immune system.
  • Ginger’s effect on reducing nausea in patients on chemotherapy.
  • The general safety and effectiveness of ginger’s use for health purposes, as well as its active components and effects on inflammation.

Side Effects and Cautions

• Few side effects are linked to ginger when it is taken in small doses.
• Side effects most often reported are gas, bloating, heartburn, and nausea. These effects are most often associated with powdered ginger.
• Tell your health care providers about any herb or dietary supplementA product that contains vitamins, minerals, herbs or other botanicals, amino acids, enzymes, and/or other ingredients intended to supplement the diet. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has special labeling requirements for dietary supplements and treats them as foods, not drugs. you are using, including ginger. This helps to ensure safe and coordinated care.

Sources

Ginger. Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database Web site. Accessed May 1, 2006.

Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe). Natural Standard Database Web site. Accessed a May 1, 2006.

Ginger root. In: Blumenthal M, Goldberg A, Brinckman J, eds. Herbal Medicine Expanded Commission E Monographs. Newton, MA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2000:153-159.

Ginger (Zingiber officinale). In: Coates P, Blackman M, Cragg G, et al., eds. Encyclopedia of Dietary Supplements. New York, NY: Marcel Dekker; 2005:241-248.

Thumbs Down – Chunk White Tuna: The danger with consuming too much tuna fish is mercury toxicity.  Chunk white tuna is not only more expensive than other types of canned tuna it contains the highest mercury levels.

Thumbs Up – Chunk Lite Tuna: Chunk lite canned tuna is cheaper and contains significantly less mercury than chunk white tuna fish.

My friend said that he usually just brings along a prepackaged MRP like Met-Rx, MyoPlex, or Nytro-Pro40.  That got me thinking as while those probably would do the trick there must be a better option.  Here are two that I came up with.

 Vitamin Water- Energy + 6 Biotest BCAA tabs - The vitamin water flavor Energy contains 125mg of caffeine and almost 40 grams of carbohydrates combine that with rapidly digesting BCAAs and you have an awesome workout drink.

 Chocolate Milk – I call this the poor man’s workout shake as it contains a blend of whey and casein proteins along with a heap of sugar.  There have actually been studies that have found benefit to consume milk/chocolate milk post workout.  The great thing about using chocolate milk as your workout shake when traveling is that you don’t need to bring it with you as you can find it just about anywhere.