Carole Carson

Defensive Strategies When Eating Out

More Americans are eating out on a daily basis than ever before. According to statistics reported by the United States Department of Agriculture, nearly half of the dollars expended for food are spent on eating outside the home. Not coincidentally, two-thirds of Americans are overweight, and half of these overweight Americans are obese (more than 30 pounds overweight).

 

Could our increasing pattern of dining out be a contributing factor to our rising national obesity figures? Some experts believe that there is a link. What can we do to keep wonderful restaurant meals from adding not-so-wonderful inches to our waistlines?

 

Here are four strategies that can help you trim calories:

 

1. Portion Management: If you’re eating with others, plan on sharing, whether it’s an appetizer or a sandwich. Many restaurants will serve a split order for a small additional cost. If you’re eating alone, package up half of your order before you begin eating so you won’t be tempted to finish the entire portion.

 

2. Conscious Choices: If fast food is your only option, order a salad or yogurt. For a more substantial entrée, order a large salad with grilled chicken, shrimp or garden vegetables for your entrée. Ask the chef to leave out croutons, cheese and bacon bits.

 

3. Sandwich Tricks: Take off the top slice and eat an open-faced sandwich. Replace mayonnaise and cheese with mustard. Order whole-grain bread and ask for a double serving of vegetables. Replace fries or chips that accompany the sandwich with fruit or a green salad.

 

4. Drinks and Desserts: Instead of sugared drinks (even a regular soda can contain several hundred calories), drink water, low-fat milk, tea or coffee. Ask for skim milk with coffee drinks. Order a child’s cone, sorbet, yogurt or light ice cream for dessert.

 

These and other defensive strategies for eating at fast-food restaurants can be found in the April 2008 issue of Consumer Reports on Health.

 

Our growing appetite for dining out isn’t the only factor triggering our collective weight gain, but it does play a role. Remember these important strategies when contemplating the menu: choose wisely, eat smart and enjoy your food!

Do Friends Make You Fat?

A study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine found that our friends can make us fat, even when the friendship is a long-distance one. But wait! If I’m overweight, am I making my friend fat? Or is my overweight friend making me fat?

I can’t answer that question, but I can tell you that the research is right! Here’s what I mean.

My niece lost 80 pounds shortly after the birth of her second child. At the time, she had a 4 year-old and a full-time job as a data manager at a big corporation. Even as a child, she had been overweight. When I learned in amazement that she had become trim and fit, I realized I could do it as well.

Once I made changes in my lifestyle and lost 62 pounds, my family and friends started making changes as well. I don’t take credit for their decision or their resulting weight losses. I just marvel at the chain of events.

My brother has lost about 30 pounds, my son-in-law about 60. My stepson has lost about 45 pounds. My son in France has lost about 35. My mother, in her early 90s, has lost 20 pounds. My older sister, who just turned 70, has lost at least 30 pounds. My tennis partner won’t tell me how many pounds she has lost but judging from her appearance, I would guess at least 20. I could name more, but you get the idea.

The most accurate statement I can make is, perhaps my example became a catalyst for family and friends to examine and change their lifestyle, just as my niece’s example was for me.

The implications of the research are stunning. Each of us needs to understand the impact we have on each other, whether we are a parent, friend, grandparent, son, or daughter.

Each of us has a unique opportunity to be a role model for everyone around us. On the flip side, we can look to others to be positive role models for us, too.

When you think about it, this research isn’t so startling. We humans are, after all, social creatures. When my friend yawns, I yawn. When the grocery clerk smiles, I smile back.

One thing the research makes clear, though, is that we’re all in this together.

We have a choice. We can be negative role models. But as you can see from the weight loss among my family members and friends, when it comes to eating and fitness, we can just as easily be positive examples.

We must make our choices knowing that our decisions help shape not only our own bodies but those of our family and friends.

AARP's FAT-TO-FIT WEIGHT LOSS CHALLENGE

AARP’S FAT-TO-FIT WEIGHT LOSS PROGRAM
CHALLENGES AMERICANS TO LOSE 10,000 Pounds

“Fat-To-Fit” Program to Track Weight Loss and Lifestyle Changes over Three-Month Challenge

Today (June 21, 2010), we launched AARP’s second annual “Fat-to-Fit Summer Weight Loss Challenge,” an online program challenging people to make positive, permanent lifestyle changes to improve their health. The Fat 2 Fit challenge will be hosted on AARP’s website (www.aarp.org/fat2fit). I will lead the Fat 2 Fit online community members through the summer-long program.

Studies show people are more likely to stick to exercise plans when they have support, and the Fat 2 Fit program will focus on personal interaction with both me and other participants through the Fat 2 Fit online community, which already boasts more than 4,600 members. Here participants will be able to access free diet and fitness tips, informational articles, videos, recipes and more.

Unlike diets and other weight-loss programs, the Fat-to-Fit Challenge is intended to help people make permanent, positive lifestyle changes–not just drop 10 pounds and then return to their old habits. Our hope is to help people break the diet-relapse cycle for good.

Beginning today, visitors to www.AARP.org will be invited to join the Fat-to-Fit Summer Weight Loss Challenge. Participants record their weight and activity and strive to lose pounds. Every time a user updates his or her weight, the Fat 2 Fit site shows how much weight he or she has lost since joining and how many pounds the Fat 2 Fit community has lost collectively. Participation in the Fat 2 Fit online community is key to the contest. Participants are urged to post frequent updates and to exchange ideas, encouragement, recipes and moral support.

The challenge will run through September 6, 2010. Throughout the challenge, I will select weekly prize winners, and when the challenge ends, I will select the top five overall winners. Winners will be selected on three criteria: serving as a role model for the entire community, facing and overcoming challenges, and demonstrating the principles of the Fat 2 Fit program. The first-place winner will receive a one-year Gold’s Gym membership, with six months of personal training, and also receive a trip to Orlando, Florida, where the winner will participate in a health session with me at AARP’s Orlando@50+ National Event and Expo, September 30-October 2, 2010. Official rules and details are available at www.aarp.org/fat2fit.

An Easy Guide to Portion Size

"Portion distortion" is the term used to describe the supersizing of servings. Whether you're eating at home or dining out, here's a quick guide to portions that doesn't require measuring instruments.

1 cup: Clenched fist

1/2 cup: Half of a clenched fist.

3 ounces: Palm of an opened hand

1 ounce: Bottom of a cupped hand

1 tablespoon: Thumb tip.

1 teaspoon: Finger tip.

Other ways to avoid consuming too much food are to use smaller plates, eat mindfully without distractions and stop eating when you are 80 percent full. Writing down what you eat can also be used to maintain awareness. By following these tips, even though you are consuming fewer calories, you may find yourself enjoying your food more. Bon appetit!

Photo courtesy of Davide Guglielmo

Get Your Kids Moving!

The single most important way parents can engage their kids in physical activity is to be a role model. Both parents and children need to incorporate movement into their daily lives. Playing outdoors, weather and safety permitting, should be part of your daily routine. Community sports programs are also an excellent way to promote exercise. If your kids aren’t competitive, consider enrolling them in dance, swim, martial arts or gymnastic classes. You could also mount a basketball hoop over your garage door or plan vacations around exercise opportunities, such as camping by a lake.

Photo courtesy of Neil Gould

How Much Exercise Is Needed to Lose Weight?

When I first talked to my doctor about my fitness and weight-loss goal, I began by describing my exercise plan. He responded by saying “There aren’t enough hours in the day to exercise off the pounds you need to lose.”

Although his statement was blunt, a recently reported study of 34,000 women supports its accuracy. Researchers found that women who are middle-aged or older need an hour of exercise a day just to avoid gaining weight. These regularly exercising women did not, however, limit their calories in any way. What I concluded from the study (and what’s consistent with my own experience) is that even 420 minutes of exercise a week is not enough to shed pounds. Calories must also be reduced.

Notice that I said reduced calories, not less food. By choosing foods that are high in volume and nutritionally sound, women can lose weight even while increasing the amount of food eaten. For ideas on how to achieve this, you might want to check out Dr. Howard Shapiro’s book Picture Perfect Weight Loss. I’ve used his book in my fitness classes because the pictures of food dramatically demonstrate how much a person can eat and still lose weight―if the food choices are high in volume and nutrition. You can get an idea of what I am talking about at http://pictureperfectweightloss.com/demo.htm.

Exercise has wonderful benefits: our bodies were designed to move. With regular exercise, we have more energy, we sleep better, our bones and muscles are stronger, our skin and overall appearance improve, our balance and flexibility are enhanced, we are sharper mentally, we make better decisions, and our heart and other organs perform better. Exercise definitely has an essential role to play in helping us achieve fitness. But bottom line, to achieve weight loss, we must combine exercise with healthful eating.

Photo courtesy of Ove Tøpfer

Trivia Question

Kaiser Permanente Medical Group surveyed 710,949 children ages 2 through 19 during 2007 and 2008 to determine the extent of obesity. Children were categorized as normal weight, overweight, obese or extremely obese. What percentage of the children fell into each of the last three categories?

1. Overall, 18 percent were overweight, 9 percent were obese and 3 percent were extremely obese.

2. Overall, 25 percent were overweight, 14 percent were obese and 5 percent were extremely obese.

3. Overall, 37 percent were overweight, 19 percent were obese and 6 percent were extremely obese.

The answer is number 3. The numbers are climbing, and the age at which obesity is occurring is falling. These children run a high risk of being obese as adults and developing diabetes and life-threatening cardiovascular problems. For advice on how to keep the children in your life from snacking their way into disability or early death, go here. Working together as communities, we can reverse these statistics.

Beyond Dieting—Affirmative Eating

Dean Ornish, MD, the founder of the nonprofit Preventive Medicine Research Institute, has long argued that comprehensive lifestyle changes can make a difference in preventing or reversing coronary heart disease. These changes include "stress management, moderate exercise, group support, and a low-fat, whole-foods nutrition plan. Most people experience substantial improvements in weight, cholesterol, blood pressure, vitality, and quality of life."

I am living proof of this medical theory. When I began my makeover, I was in the 90th percentile for risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and stroke. After changing what I ate and incorporating regular exercise into my routine (and losing 62 pounds in the process), my risk for those same diseases dropped to the normal range.

Another idea Dr. Ornish proposes, however, adds an additional dimension to getting fit. Perhaps like you, when I focus on losing weight, I typically review the food that I should avoid eating to keep from gaining weight--for example, chocolate cake and ice cream.

But Dr. Ornish encourages us to move beyond that mentality. Instead, he wants us to eat affirmatively--that is, eat food that nourishes our bodies:

"It's not just about what you exclude from your diet that's harmful, but also what you include that's beneficial. Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and soy products are rich in substances that, in my opinion, can help reduce the risk of coronary heart disease as well as breast cancer, prostate cancer, and colon cancer."

The idea that we need to eat affirmatively for health purposes (and not just limit caloric intake) is a solid one that those of us who seek to lose weight need to incorporate into our approach to eating. Instead of grim dieting, we can adopt affirmative eating.


Photo courtesy of Rob Owen-Wahl

Is Sugar Evil? Is Sugar Your Recreational Drug of Choice?

Demonizing particular foods and specific categories of foods, such as carbs or fats, is a peculiarly American trait. If you are over 30 years old, you watched margarine dethrone butter only to be dethroned when butter was restored to its former glory. You watched eggs disappear from refrigerators only to be welcomed back as an excellent source of protein. Remember when fat-free diets were promoted? A few years later when the Mediterranean diet was introduced, we learned that all fats were not evil. Some, in fact, were good for us.

Is sugar the latest food to be demonized? Is it addictive? Do you crave a sugar fix?

As a nation, two facts are undisputed. We are getting heavier, and we are consuming more sugar—in fact, 30 percent more than in 1970. The average American consumes 350 calories a day in the form of sugar, mostly in sugared beverages. According to researchers, even drinking one 12-ounce can of regular soda boosts the risk factors for heart disease by 25 percent.

If you’re going to locate all of the sugar you are consuming, you will need to become a very clever food detective. Sugar is hidden in processed foods, such as breakfast cereals, bread and spaghetti sauce. And it regularly is masked under different names, for example, sugar, brown sugar, fructose, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, malted corn syrup, barley syrup and molasses. And although federal regulations require listing the main ingredient on products first, you won’t necessarily find sugar listed even when it is the key item. Listing the different kinds of sugars as separate ingredients effectively circumvents this requirement.

Even when we know we are consuming sugar, we have a hard time resisting. In The End of Overeating, author David Kessler asserts that foods that combine fat, salt and sugar (and are, incidentally, accessible on a 24/7 basis) alter brain chemistry and trigger an impulse to eat more.

The increase in sugar consumption and sugar’s possible link to the epidemic of obesity have triggered questions about the relative virtues (or vices) of corn syrup versus natural honey versus white sugar. Because results are inconclusive and in some cases conflicting, some of us have simply tuned out the argument and are switching to sugar substitutes. If life gives us lemons, we say, we can still make sugar-free lemonade.

To be fair, sugar substitutes are not without their critics, but here are the current options if you are determined to avoid the evils of sugar:

• Stevia is made from a plant leaf and is considered generally safe. Product names are Truvia, PureVia and SweetLeaf.

• Sucralose is made by chemically altering sugar molecules. It is considered the safest sugar substitute by the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Product name is Splenda.

• Aspartame is used in desserts, yogurts and beverages. Recent research on rats raises questions about safety. Product names are NutraSweet and Equal.

• Saccharin was one of the first sugar substitutes. Long-term studies indicate it is safe to use. Product names are Sweet’N Low and Necta Sweet.

• Acesulfame-K is a calorie-free artificial sweetener. Some recent studies on rats suggest this product is not safe. In some people, gas and bloating have been reported. Product name is Sunett.

We can be assured that if we remove sugar entirely from our diet, we won’t be missing any essential nutrient. Except for blackstrap molasses, which contains a modest amount of calcium, iron and other nutrients, sugar lacks significant nutritional value. For this reason, calories consumed as sugar, while boosting our energy, are frequently referred to as empty calories.

At the same time, humankind is not likely to live by whole wheat unsweetened bread alone. An occasional sweet treat brightens our day. For some of us, though, occasional is a word that does not appear in our sugar vocabulary. Sugar is to us what one drink is to an alcoholic. We can’t stop with one cookie or one scoop of ice cream. Consequently, we find it easier to abstain entirely than to eat sugar in moderation.

Whatever your strategy, be prepared to pay more for sugared treats. Several giant food firms are predicting a shortage that may drive prices up. Besides paying more, you may have to adjust your perspective on sugar as new research challenges our current thinking. If history is our guide, we can be certain of only one truth: sugar fashions, just like clothing fashions, are subject to change. Until we learn otherwise, however, minimizing the sugar in our diet is highly advisable.

Three Tips for Keeping Kids Healthy and Trim: Tackling Childhood Obesity One Child at a Time

 

One out of three American children is overweight, a condition unacceptable to First Lady Michelle Obama, who recently launched the first salvo in her campaign against childhood obesity. In response to her concern, President Obama signed a memorandum on February 8, 2010, that created a national task force to address the issue. Members consist of the major heads of government agencies, and their charge is to define and implement ways to reverse the worrisome trend.

 

While the task force is convening, researchers suggest three actions parents can take today to ensure that their child will maintain a normal weight and develop healthy habits that will carry into adulthood. In a study of 8,550 children, researchers led by Dr. Sarah Anderson at Ohio State University found that the children of parents who followed these three simple practices were 40 percent more likely to achieve normal weight than other children were.

 

February is National Parent Leadership Month. Here’s how parents can lead their kids in becoming healthy and FIT:

 

F: Focus on eating meals together. The family that eats together becomes healthier together. Family meals tend to be more nutritious and are more likely to include fruits, vegetables and whole grains. And children who take part in family meals are less likely to fill up on fast foods and sugary sodas. Aim for 5 or more nights a week.

I: Institute a nightly routine for bedtime to ensure that children get adequate rest. School-age children need 10 to 11 hours of sleep a night. A survey in 2004 by the National Sleep Foundation found that American school-age children were, on average, sleeping less than 10 hours a night. This deficit can contribute to surplus pounds.

T: Turn off the television. Take control of and limit all screen time (DVD, video, video game, computer and television use). In one study, children ages 8 to 18 averaged nearly six hours a day of screen time. When limiting use, consider the age of the child: no television viewing before age 2, no more than one to two hours a day for preschool children and no more than two hours a day for school-age children.

 

These three practices will help your child avoid the discrimination and social embarrassment of being overweight as well as future medical problems associated with surplus pounds. As an added bonus, your child will perform better in school and be less likely to get into trouble.

 

Pediatricians, healthcare professionals and others who work with children, while concerned that childhood obesity rates have tripled in the past 30 years, also assure us that we can eliminate the scourge of childhood obesity. They agree with First Lady Obama that the problem is “imminently solvable.” But to reverse the trend, we’ll need to make these and other changes that enhance fitness. Government intervention, national task forces and school programs are needed and appreciated, but nothing is as powerful as parental leadership. Childhood obesity can be reversed—one child at a time, one family at a time.