Jan.
26, 2005 -- Need another healthy reason to drink green tea? Aside from
fighting heart disease, cancer, and other diseases, a new study shows
that drinking green tea may also fight fat.
The
study showed that people who drank a bottle of tea fortified with green
tea extract every day for three months lost more body fat than those
who drank a bottle of regular oolong tea.
Researchers
say the results indicate that substances found in green tea known as
catechins may trigger weight loss by stimulating the body to burn
calories and decreasing body fat.
The findings appear in the January issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Green Tea: Fat Fighter?
Black tea, oolong tea, and green tea come from the same Camellia sinensis plant. But unlike the other two varieties, green tea leaves are not fermented before steaming and drying.
Most
teas contain large amounts of polyphenols, which are plant-based
substances that have been shown to have antioxidant, anticancer, and
antiviral properties.
However, green tea
is particularly rich in a type of polyphenols called catechins. These
substances have also been shown to have anti-inflammatory and
anticancer properties, but recent research in animals show that
catechins may also affect body fat accumulation and cholesterol levels.
In this study, researchers looked at the
effects of catechins on body fat reduction and weight loss in a group
of 35 Japanese men. The men had similar weights based on their BMI
(body mass index, an indicator of body fat) and waist sizes.
The
men were divided into two groups. For three months, the first group
drank a bottle of oolong tea fortified with green tea extract
containing 690 milligrams of catechins, and the other group drank a
bottle of oolong tea with 22 milligrams of catechins.
During
this time, the men ate identical breakfasts and dinners and were
instructed to control their calorie and fat intake at all times so that
overall total diets were similar.
After
three months, the study showed that the men who drank the green tea
extract lost more weight (5.3 pounds vs. 2.9 pounds) and experienced a
significantly greater decrease in BMI, waist size, and total body fat.
In addition, LDL "bad" cholesterol went down in the men who drank the green tea extract.
The
catechin content varies by amount of green tea used and steeping time.
But general recommendations, based on previous studies on the benefits
of green tea, are at least 4 cups a day. Green tea extract supplements
are also available.
Researchers say the
results indicate that catechins in green tea not only help burn
calories and lower LDL cholesterol but may also be able to mildly
reduce body fat.
"These results suggest
that catechins contribute to the prevention of and improvement in
various lifestyle-related diseases, particularly obesity," write
researcher Tomonori Nagao of Health Care Products Research Laboratories
in Tokyo, and colleagues.
SOURCE: Nagao, T. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, January 2005; vol 81: 122-129.
Are you a low carber who checks your ketosis condition with "ketosticks"? Do you judge your progress by the color of the sticks? Please don't. There are so many variations for ketosticks!
You could buy the wrong kind (yes, there's more than one type).
Maybe you're producing tons of ketones -- and burning them just as fast through exercise or an active lifestyle? Ketones are energy. For some of us, too much energy as we suddenly find we only need 5 hours sleep each night.
Maybe
you bought the wrong ones? Yes, there's more than 1 type. Please check
with a pharmacist if you insist on buying them and explain to him what
you want to measure. It is different than for diabetics.
Not to mention that ketosticks seem to be naturally fickle. I recall one story of a woman who was planning a hot shower, laid her ketostick on top of her bath towel. When she emerged from the shower she was astonished to find that her ketostick had turned pink from the hot steam -- not ketosis.
Please don't forget that ketosticks will gladly turn any shade of purple if you're overeating fat! A story was posted by Jackie Eberstein, RN, of the Atkins Center who recanted that a woman was confused about why her ketosticks
were darkest purple, yet she wasn't losing. As it turns out, the woman
was snacking on an entire stick of butter with cinnamon each night as a
dessert!
In fact, if someone comes to me about slow loss with dark purple sticks I already know what I'll find when I
review their food journal. Too much fat -- hamburger, cheese, salad
dressing, sausage, chicken wings. Don't even get me started on the
cream cheese desserts!
What I don't understand is the almost phobic addiction that people have to ketosticks? They'll argue with me until their blue in the face (or it is ketostick purple?) that they're in ketosis. Never mind the scale hasn't budged an inch in days/weeks. They are inketosis, the sticks said so.
Listen. The onlyketosis we care about is fast weight loss. No weight loss? Then who cares what color the #@$%& sticks are?
Dark ketosticks and no loss? Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Pretty enough for a special lunch and fast enough for work lunch!
Ingredients
16 oz pork cutlets, trim all fat 1 head Napa cabbage, shredded
1 red bell pepper, julienned
1 scallion, minced
16 large Boston lettuce leaves
salt & pepper
Dressing: (optional)
1 tbsp Asian fish sauce (optional)
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
pinch of red pepper flakes
Combine cabbage, bell pepper and
remaining dressing in a large bowl. Lay double lettuce leaves on a
clean, dry work surface to make 8. Divide pork among leaves. Top with
cabbage mixture and roll tightly, tucking edges in as you go.
Place
rolls, seam side down on a cutting board, cut in half (lunch) or thirds
(hors d'ouvre) and serve! Delicious crunchy, or may be warmed for 1
minute in the microwave.
A major part of the Kimkins diet program is the support that members receive on our forums.
It is awe inspiring to see people reach out to strangers (who become friends) and pull them through tough times.
Our Kimkins moderator, littlebit, wrote this response to a member who questioned why she continued to make poor food choices. I sincerely thank littlebit for sharing this touching and extremely personal memory with us:
"Once upon a time, a lonely, lovely, unloved girl met a dashing, charming, sexy man. It is a common story, moth to flame.
All was wonderful, exciting, and secure - until the control started. But, well, it was just his way. Not quite as nice as she thought, but how could she live without him? He meant love and comfort to her.
Then, the violence began, small, mostly threats at first. But, he was always sorry, so sorry, and so sad then, and so extra-good afterwards -- for a while. So she took a deep breath ... and held it. She could not see herself without him, and, well, it wasn't so bad, overall. Maybe it really was her fault, like he said, and, anyway, she was sure it would be the last time.
But it wasn't. It got worse and worse, and eventually much worse. Time would go by between 'episodes', sometimes a long time, with kind, loving moments in between, and she would begin to relax and believe it was all fixed.
Then, out of the blue (or, on second thought, could she see it building, the tension looking for release?) things would spin out of control again suddenly.
Sometimes, if things got too bad, she would leave him --- for a while.
Each time it happened was the last time, he swore.
Each time she left, it was for real and forever this time, she swore.
But, each time, he eventually showed up again. And, she eventually took him back again.
Once, she even went years without him.
Then, a crisis came. Their child was seriously ill. They reconnected in their pain - and the spark was still here. She gave up feeling happy and wonderful about their love. She wasn't even sure it was love, or just need. Some deeply felt but unnamed and unspoken longing for what having him in her life SHOULD have been, some aching longing for what should have been but never could be, some hole in her heart. No, she couldn't give up the connection. So, she gave up giving him up. She gave in.
And, he almost killed her.
Thank God, by the grace of God, she had the wits to reach out for help. And, thank God, someone was there to come to her aid.
This story is true. The lovely lady is my little sister. The angry man is her ex-husband, currently facing charges of unlawful imprisonment and attempted murder. She found the will and way to call 911 on her cell phone while being repeatedly choked to unconsciousness, and someone heard and came to her aid.
This is also a picture of the relationship many of us have with food. Love, hate, control, powerlessness, desire, revulsion, fear, need.
We are the victim, and we are our own abuser at the same time.
Why do we want what we don't want, and why can't we leave behind and do without the things that hurt us?
How bad does it need to be before we find the strength to walk away and not look back?
And why do we wait so long?
Not easy to answer. Harder to do. But, look at the alternative, if we remain where we are. I wish I could have said or done something that would have helped my sister before it reached this point. God knows, I tried. But, she had to reach out, and mean it.
Like you've done.
Our words won't magically change how you think and feel. The decision must come from within you. But, if you want help, you've come to the right place. We are here for you."
Question:How many drinks do you have when you go out on Saturday night?
None: 24%
One or two: 30%
Three: 20%
Four or more: 26%
If you're a dieter, remember that alcohol is processed for energy before carbs or anything else! Your body then uses carbs, then protein, then dietary fat, then body fat. Well, unless you've already eaten enough calories that day and don't need any body fat calories. Which means no calorie deficit and another day of no weight loss or, yikes, a gain!
Beer is the worst culprit since it's alcohol plus a heft dose of carbs. Wine has fewer carbs and hard alcohol has none, but few people have any idea of what a 'serving' is.
Beer = 12 ounces
Wine = 5 oz (less than half a coffee mug)
Hard Alcohol (rum, vodka) 1.5 oz (that's only 3 tablespoons!)
Second second is how many of us stop at 1 drink? Hmmm. Third? How many of us begin relaxing? Which translates to rationalizing poor food choices or a "taste" of the high carb appetizers that always seem to accompany liquor whether at home, in a restaurant or as a guest at someone's home?
Trivia for drivers who drink. Did you know that if you hold a sip of hard alcohol in your mouth for 10 seconds, it can be visibly measured in your blood within 60 seconds? That's fast!
Here's an article from WebMD for your consideration.
