Recommended Daily Allowance(RDA) vs. Optimal Daily Allowance(ODA)

There is a tremendous difference between what our bodies need to function and what they perform effectively with.  The recommended daily allowance gives a good estimate of what the average body needs to survive without major complications.  The Optimal Daily Allowance allows you to optimize and be truly healthy.  By giving your body plenty of valuable resources in the form of vitamins and minerals, it is able to work harder for you.

Borrowed from http://www.fibromyalgiacfsstore.com

This chart is incredibly useful.  I frequently refer to it when I look at nutrition labels.  We need to focus on the mass of the nutrients we are taking in(mg, mcg, g etc). The percentage next to it, like the vitamin A at the bottom of this label, is unimportant unless you are following a 2000 calorie diet.

Borrowed from http://3.bp.blogspot.com

Protein, sugar, and sodium, as well as the rest, are listed with a gram amount at the end.  That is what should be focused on.  Comparing it to the ODA table we can understand how much we are really getting.  Unfortunately, most labels do not list the vitamins in grams, but if you check this site you can find the values.  The table does not list macro-molecules like fat, protein, and carbs because it varies greatly between individuals.  In a future post I will discuss a few ways to get a general idea of how many calories you should eat.  One major thing to keep in mind - more is not always better and there can easily be too much of a good thing.  Vitamins CAN be overdosed on, but only through supplementation or things like eating organ meats(liver, stomach, intestines etc).  You can't overdose on Vitamin C by eating something like 12 red bell peppers.

1 http://www.fibromyalgiacfsstore.com
2 http://www.drlam.com/supplements/mensoda.asp

A Fast Food Experience

When I was a kid I used to eat cheeseburgers and chicken nuggets every other day from many different fast-food chains.  Now I eat these sorts of things at maximum once per year.  Today I had a coupon for a 10 piece nugget with a large fry.  My stomach already hurts halfway through eating and I'm not even drinking a soda with it.  If you are used to eating healthy and you splurge on fast-food you are more likely to feel yucky than someone who eats it all the time.  The law of diminishing returns hit hard for this meal.  The amount of enjoyment I experienced from each fry went down considerably with each one, but my body kept telling me to eat more.  This is exactly how they get you.  Fast food is high in the molecules our body craves - fat and simple carbs.  We are genetically programmed to want more of these when we start eating them.

French Fries
Nuggets

These two + sauce adds up to over 1000 calories and I don't even feel full.  I consumed a ton of fat and carbs and a small amount of protein.  Vitamins and minerals? almost none.  I also got trans fats and some cholesterol.  Your $5-10 could be utilized more effectively.

Here are some foods you could buy instead (assuming $6.50 spent on nuggets and fries):

• 6 tins of sardines
• 3 pound bag of frozen chicken
• Omega 3 trail mix and 1 apple
• Greek yogurt 32 oz and 3 bananas
• Cauliflower head and 3 oranges
• 2 10 oz cans of chicken and some frozen mixed veggies
• 6 cans of beans

and many other things.  The easiest and fastest way to save money and eat healthier is to cut out fast food and spend the money on groceries.  Cooking takes time, but not too much time as you improve.  I will be posting fast and easy recipes on my Healthy On a Budget page.  Its perfectly fine to eat fast-food every once and a while but to really save money and live healthier it's a good idea not to make fast-food a staple in your diet.

1 Nutrient-Dense Food Groups Have High Energy Costs: An Econometric Approach to Nutrient Profiling

High Protein Diet

As many of you may have gleaned from my posts, I follow a high protein diet.  This podcast starring Chris Kresser goes into detail about protein intake.  The average protein intake is around 15% and is regulated by the brains of most people.  Even though our brains regulate our protein intake, our brains don't know if we are bodybuilders and athletes that may need more protein.

Those who shouldn't eat a high protein diet

• Pregnant Mothers
• Those with kidney disease
• If kidneys are not functioning properly, toxic ammonia can build up in the body from excess protein

Effects of higher protein intake

• Boosted Metabolism
• Natural Weight Loss
• Protein promotes feelings of fullness
• High thermic effect
• Blood Sugar Stabilization
• Helps with recovery and performance in athletes/bodybuilders
• Protein is required to repair damaged muscles
• Reduces muscle wasting in elderly
• Stress reduction
• protein repairs tissue damage caused by stress

Protein supplements are useful for reaching protein intake goals.  It can be difficult to get enough protein from whole food sources like meat and eggs, without also getting a lot of fat/carbs.  A good starting point is 1.7g/kg of body weight. (3)

Eggs>Whey Protein>Milk>Casein>Beef/Soy>Beans>Peanuts>Wheat Gluten (2)

Plant protein often does not have the essential amino acids and can cause unwanted side effects in some individuals, particularly from pea protein and gluten.  Eggs and whey protein are two good forms of readily available proteins.

Whole food protein sources:

1. Eggs
2. Chicken
1. Tenderloins>Breast>Drumsticks>Ground>Wings
3. Turkey
4. Pork
5. Beef
6. Sardines
7. Tuna(once per week b/c of mercury)
8. Greek Yogurt
9. Cottage Cheese(low sodium preferred)
10. Hemp Seeds
11. Tempeh
12. Edamame
13. Beans
14. Soymilk
15. Nuts
16. Tofu

1 Why a High Protein Diet is Beneficial
2 PROTEIN – WHICH IS BEST?
3 Protein Requirements for Athletes

Body Types

Humans have 3 basic body types:

Borrowed from pinterest.com

These also exist in combinations such as EctoMesomorph, EndoMesomorph, etc.  Most people, including myself, have traits from 2 different types.

Borrowed from wiseandfit.com

These vary quite a bit and are independent of weight and height.  For example, someone with an ectomorph body type that is 6' 5" and 250 is going to be stronger than a mesomorph that is 5' 6" and 140.

Ectomorph

This is my body type.  This body type is a smaller frame than the mesomorph and has a harder time gaining muscle.  These are your "hardgainers" and long distance runners.  Fortunately, I also posses attributes of the mesomorph.  I know this because I was able to do sprints and jumps for track and field and I enjoy weightlifting.
Encyclopedia Definition

Mesomorph

Characteristically strong, these individuals are meant for heavy lifting.  Their bodies are thicker and have denser musculature.  They usually carry less body fat and can strengthen and grow muscle easily.

Encyclopedia Definition

Endomorph

These are your football linemen, strongmen, sumo wrestlers etc.  This body type puts on fat very easily while also gaining muscle easily.  As the picture shows, they may have large amounts of muscle but have a harder time showing it than the other two classifications.

Encyclopedia Definition

Borrowed from pinterest.com

Ingredient Spotlight - MSG

Monosodium Glutamate:

• one of the most controversial and widely used additives in food
• hazardous
• improves taste of food from a 5th taste sensation called umami

This chemical is considered GRAS(generally recognized as safe) by the FDA even though it causes symptoms in possibly a third of the population.  I have talked to people who immediately have these symptoms as soon as they ingest MSG.

A common claim is that MSG is no different than the glutamic acid that occurs naturally in food.  Through studying organic chemistry we can understand this is false.

Glutamic acid in food exists as part of protein in the form L - Glutamic Acid. (6)  Free glutamic acid(D - Glutamic acid) has altered stereochemistry and is only produced artificially outside of the body. (6)  Therefore MSG and glutamic acid in food are not the same and do not produce the same results in the body.  A few studies noticed detrimental effects from MSG ingestion.  Retinal damage in rats as well as a change in concentration of neuropeptides in the hypothalamus of rats have been documented. (7, 9)

Why is this such a big deal?  I'm sure not too many foods actually have MSG right?  The following is a list of the different names of substances that contain MSG:

1. MSG
2. Gelatin
3. Calcium Glutamate (E623)
4. Monosodium glutamate
5. Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein (HVP)
6. Textured Protein
7. Monosopotassium glutamate
8. Hydrolyzed Plant Protein (HPP)
9. Yeast Extract
10. Glutamate (E620)
11. Autolyzed Plant Protein
12. Yeast food or nutrient
13. Glutamic Acid (E620)
14. Sodium Caseinate
15. Autolyzed Yeast
16. Vegetable Protein Extract
17. Senomyx (Wheat extract labeled as artificial flavor)
18. Any hydrolyzed protein
19. Calcium Cascinate
20. Magnesium glutamate (625)
21. Monoammonium glutamate (E624)
22. Soy protein, soy protein concentrate, soy protein isolate
23. whey protein, whey protein isolate (this really stuck out to me because I frequently ingest these in whey protein powder)
24. Natrium glutamate
25. Ajinomoto
26. Vestin
27. Anything hydrolyzed or autolyzed

(3)

1 Mayo Clinic
2 Howstuffworks
3 msgmyth.com
4 Dr. Mercola
5 FDA
6 Eden Organic
7 MSG and Retinal Damage
8 Symptom testing from MSG
9 Neuropeptides altered in rats by MSG

Food Spotlight: Palm Oil (Elaesis guineensis)

This is the first of many food spotlights I will be doing.  I will put as much information on a particular food as I can for each post, the good/bad, nutrition facts, fun facts, other names for certain foods, and history.

Elaesis guineensis

Palm nuts

Palm Oil

Palm oil has been used as a food for ~5000 years and originates in West Africa.

The following is regarding natural, cold-pressed(expeller pressed) red palm oil(palm oil).  With oxidized palm oil, most of the benefits deteriorate and toxic effects arise. (4)  Moderate consumption leads to benefits while higher levels of palm oil have led to toxicity in the liver.

Nutrition Facts

Good:

1. Carotenoids (alpha-,beta-,and gamma-carotenes)(1)
2. Sterols (sitosterol, stigmasterol and campesterol)(1)
3. Vitamin E (tocopherols and tocotrienols)(1)
4. Water-soluble powerful antioxidants, phenolic acids and flavonoids(1)
5. Reduces risk of:
• Alzheimer’s disease
• Arterial thrombosis(1, 4)
• Atherosclerosis(1, 4)
• Cancer(1)
• Cataracts(3)
• Cognitive impairment(3)
• Macular degeneration(3)
• Platelet aggregation (blood clotting)(1, 4)
• Hypercholesterolemia (high cholesterol levels)
• Hypertension (high blood pressure) (4)
• Vitamin A deficiency(1)

Bad:

1. Palm oil destroys the rain forest in most cases
1. CSPO Cerified Sustainable Palm Oil does not destroy the rainforest.
2. Processed/oxidized palm oil:
1. Induces an adverse plasma lipid profile
2. Induces reproductive toxicity
3. Causes Organotoxicity in multiple organs:
1. Kidneys 
2. Lungs 
3. Liver 
4. Heart

Other names for Palm Oil:

Aceite de Palma, African Palm Oil, Crude Palm Oil, Elaeis guineensis, Elaeis melanococca, Fractionated Palm Kernel Oil, Huile de Palme, Huile de Palme Brute, Huile de Palme Rouge, Huile de Palmiste, Main Ja, Oil Palm Tree, Palm, Palm Fruit Oil, Palm Kernel Oil, Palm Oil Carotene, Palmier à Huile, Red Palm Oil.(1)

Foods containing the healthy version of palm oil:

• Maranatha Almond Butter

Palm oil uses:

• Frying
• Binding (almond butter, peanut butter etc)
• Soap
• Cosmetics

1 Springer Link Research Paper 
2 Webmd

3 draxe.com
4 Influence of palm oil (Elaesis guineensis) on health
5 History

Protein

Protein= chain of amino acids, contains nitrogen, used to build muscle, enzymes are proteins, sources include:meat, fish, dairy, eggs, beans, and grains. 1g=4calories

Protein has a wide variety of functions inside the human body:

1. DNA transcription, translation, destruction
2. Hemoglobin for oxygen transport
3. Enzymatic activity
4. Protein synthesis
5. Muscle activity (actin, tropomyosin, myosin)
6. Energy
7. Hormones
8. Antibodies
9. Cell Signaling

It is possible to not get enough protein which results in Kwashiorkor, a nasty disease causing muscle loss, fatigue, diarrhea, decreased immunity, and many other symptoms, even death.  For athletes, especially weightlifters, a higher protein intake provides greater training results by giving your body's cells enough material for growth.

Protein has a high thermic effect (20-35%) compared to carbohydrates (5-15%) and fats (0-5%). (1)

1 Bodybuilding.com

2 Harvard Protein

Organic

Organic=no chemical pesticides or fertilizers, sometimes higher in nutrients, grown in crop rotated fields, processed using no chemical additives, industrial solvents, or irradiation

So what exactly is organic food and is it better than conventionally grown crops?  This is a source of debate that may never end so I will give facts first and then how I feel about Organic food.  Research into organic food is sparse at this point but a few cases of increased nutrient density have been observed. (1)  Mayo Clinic says there isn't a significant difference between organic nutrient concentration and conventionally grown nutrient concentration but I read a study that says otherwise. (2)  Conventional crops differed in Vit C, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, and nitrates from that of organic. (3)  The organic crops had significantly(p<.01) higher amounts of vit c, iron, magnesium, and phosphorus and less nitrates.  Organic farmers use crop rotation, selection of disease/pest resistant crop strains, and natural predators to aid in crop growth, rather than artificial pesticides.  The USDA organic seal may be placed on products that are at least 95% organic.

I prefer organic food over conventionally grown for a few reasons:

• No pesticides - our diets inevitably contain innumerable man-made toxins already and I don't want to add more toxins from my fruits and vegetables
• More nutrients - this fact is controversial and may seem insignificant
• No additives - by using 0 food additives during processing, organic food ends up having less toxins than conventional
• Taste - This one is tough because I have had good and bad experiences. In my experience, organic fruit usually tastes better than conventional.  Vegetables have been 50/50.  Sometimes they are incredibly bitter and nearly inedible but other times they are amazing.  I personally avoid organic broccoli and cauliflower.

1 Wikipedia
2 Mayo Clinic
3 liebertpub.com

Muscle Fibers

"In summary, the 7 human muscle fiber types, as identified by myosin ATPase histochemical staining are (from slowest to fastest): types I, IC, IIC, IIAC, IIA, IIAB, and IIB (Fig. 2).1,3,5"(1)

FG: Fast Twitch Glycolytic (anaerobic)
FOG: Fast Twitch Oxidative
SO: Slow Twitch Oxidative
So from the picture, type I muscle fibers use SO and the type II fibers use FOG and FG interchangeably, as the type I muscle fibers are slow and type II are fast.  Type IIB uses primarily FG while IIA and IIAC use FOG.

Motor Units - group of fibers controlled by the same motor neuron, usually all fibers of the unit have similar characteristics.  These groups are classified as such:
S:Slow Twitch
F:Fast Twitch
F Subclasses
FR:Fast Twitch Fatigue Resistant
Fint: Fast Twitch Fatigue Intermediate
FF: Fast Twitch Fatigable

Muscle Fiber Plasticity

Many people have heard about distance runners having slow twitch muscles and sprinters having fast twitch muscles.  Thus, sprinters would have a higher number of type II muscle fibers whereas distance runners will have type I.  One interesting subject of this article is the ability for the type of fibers we have to change.  Type II conversion to type I only occurs in a laboratory setting.  What this means is you hit a threshold for your muscle's capacity to improve your distance running ability.  The same thing goes for sprinting, albeit in a smaller magnitude.  Type IIA and IIB fibers convert between each other but no evidence of other type conversions has been observed in a natural setting.  When deconditioning occurs (when we stop working out) muscle fibers convert in the fast direction.  Slower muscle fibers convert to faster ones.  Additionally, the enzymes that assist in aerobic oxidative metabolism, which is required for aerobic exercise, decrease.  This is why we lose our endurance so quickly when we stop training.(1)
High-intensity resistance training, such as weightlifting, not only changes the types of muscle fibers but also increases the volume of proteins within the muscle fibers.

1 Muscle Fibers

Glycemic Index

Eating High GI(Glycemic Index) foods all the time=risk for diabetes, can make you fat, and causes drowsiness during the sugar crash after eating these foods
GI=100=bad
GI=0=good

Table borrowed from Wikipedia

The glycemic index is a scale used to explain how much a food affects your blood sugar.  The higher GI a food has, the more quickly it raises your blood sugar.  Pure sugar has a rating of 100 and things like lettuce and avocado have 0.

Search Tool
nutritiondata.self.com

Diabetes and obesity have become enough of a problem that there is now a GI symbol in Australia to help consumers know the risks of certain foods and make better choices.
GI Symbol

Movie Recommendations

There are many interesting food documentaries out there that are worth watching to gain knowledge about food culture, historical food trends, and how these affect populations.  Many of the movies I will list may be biased but still contain quality information.

Food Inc.

Borrowed from Amazon.com

This movie is heavily biased against meat but still entertaining and mind blowing.

Hungry For Change

Hungry For Change is much more motivational than the other movies listed here.  After watching this I felt like going to the grocery and buying all the vegetables.  Everything explained makes sense and encourages a diet change.

Forks Over Knives

This is a high quality movie in my opinion.  It is very similar to Food Inc. in that it is against meat. The western diet is completely slammed and plant based foods stressed.

Supersize Me

This is the movie almost everyone is familiar with.  Disgusting and hilarious, it puts McDonalds' food into perspective.  Many of my friends say "Oh well that's just if you eat it every day" but what they don't realize is that many people do.  Most fast food places don't differ extremely on a health scale.  Even though someone may not be eating McDonalds every day, if they eat Taco Bell, Wendy's, Burger King, or many other fast food chains, it might as well be McDonalds.  These individuals end up feeling similar effects and going down the same path as the super sized Morgan Spurlock.

We do need to recognize which foods from McDonalds are really at fault.  As pointed out in Fathead, listed below, certain foods are much worse than others at McDonalds.

Meat and saturated fat has been continually projected as a main cause of obesity in the U.S.  When we eat a greasy burger along with sugary ketchup and a processed enriched flour bun it is a recipe for obesity.  The sugar triggers fat storage and then the fat from the burger goes straight to where we don't want it to.  I eat tons of meat but what I don't eat all the time is things like white bread and soda.  Meat is high in protein and minerals and our bodies are designed to eat it.  Go for chicken breasts, bacon, burgers, or turkey burgers that you prepare at home with salt-free seasonings and you will feel better.  In the future I hope to make a turkey burger recipe.

Fathead

Borrowed from wikipedia

This movie exposed fallacies commonly believed throughout the U.S.

Fed up

Food Matters

Borrowed from wikipedia

I will continue to add more movies to this list as I view them.

Protein Powder

Protein powder is useful for weightlifters and athletes as well as older individuals.  Protein supplements are an easy and relatively inexpensive way to boost your daily protein intake.  For Vegetarian and vegan individuals, there are many different types of protein powder: Whey, Egg, Pea, Soy, Rice, and Hemp.  Protein supplementation around 20g following a workout is shown to improve muscle synthesis. (1)

Powders that I use:

Buy on Amazon

This is my favorite because it is $20 for 2 pounds and doesn't contain artificial additives.  It works well for baked goods or as a post-workout.  It contains whey concentrate.

This is a very high quality protein powder, containing both whey concentrate and isolate.  It also contains L-Glutamine and proteolytic enzymes to enhance amino acid uptake in the body.  I highly recommend the vanilla flavor rather than chocolate.  Usually it can be bought on Amazon for $23

This is the most expensive protein powder I use.  Like the MRM brand above, it contains both whey concentrate and isolate.  It drops down to as low as $27 on Amazon.  It is also sweetened with Stevia but still tastes good and mixes well.

Stacker2 - Not Just Protein

I found this on sale for $6 so I gave it a try. (Normally ~$15 per pound) It tastes good and has really good ingredients but is hard to mix.

Protein Shakes that I enjoyed less than others:

Eas Myoplex

GNC Amplified Wheybolic Extreme 60

*images borrowed from Amazon.com

1 Ingested protein dose response of muscle and albumin protein synthesis after resistance exercise in young men

2 Protein supplements and exercise

How to Eat Foods You Don't Like

Just eat it

Change doesn't happen overnight

The above article briefly discusses why we don't like certain foods and what we can do to change that.  I have had experiences where I liked different foods but then had a bad experience with one.  Even though consciously I wanted to try the food again, my subconscious wouldn't let me do it because of how it made me feel before.  We can overcome these types of feelings and increase the number of foods we can eat.

• Try, try again.  If you haven't ever liked something, give it another shot.
• After a period of trying to eat a food your body will begin to like it, just like your body adapts to everything else.
• Don't give up.  What if Edison gave up after he failed a few times.  We would be sitting in the dark and you wouldn't be reading this.

The Truth About Vitamins and Minerals

A multivitamin is not a cure-all

Fake Vitamins

Multivitamins can be redundant or even detrimental.

1. If you follow a balanced diet and exercise they are entirely unnecessary.
2. All but a few brands of multivitamins are synthetic and cannot prevent deficiency.
3. If you eat cereal and take a multivitamin you can overdose on iron or fat soluble vitamins that are present in high quantities in both multivitamins and cereal.

Picture borrowed from http://www.healthsachoice.com/

This picture sums up why you shouldn't buy orange juice for the "vitamin C" it provides.  Orange juice, as shown, no longer contains functional Vitamin C.  Exposure to air and hot/cold temperatures, as found during processing, denature the Vitamin C and make it unable to be fully utilized by your body.  Any drink that is heat pasteurized has all of the actual Vitamin C denatured because of the high temperature.  Companies sometimes add ascorbic acid to enable themselves to put "vitamin c" on the label.

Picture borrowed from http://alternativehealthatlanta.com/

Same thing goes for vitamin E.  Alpha tocopherol is actually just a small part of vitamin E.

Food is the best way to get vitamins and minerals.

Set Point

The hypothalamus has been researched and shown to regulate body fat percentage. (2)  The human body wants to keep its weight within a set range and uses multiple mechanisms to accomplish this. (3)

A guy took in 5000+ calories per day for 21 days and gained less than 2kg, far less than expected based on caloric intake.  The type of calories eaten is much more important than how many. (1)

His diet consisted of High Protein/High Fat with a small amount of carbs(10%).  The only carbs he ate were always low glycemic index.  He got plenty of vitamins and minerals and absolutely no added sugar calories.

1 21 Days
2 Hypothalamic Regulation of Body Weight: Experiments suggest that the lateral and ventromedial hypothalamus jointly determine the regulation level or "set point" for body fat
3 Dietary Fat and Body Weight Set Point

Nutritional Information

The source of the information on http://nutritiondata.self.com/ comes from handbook 8 from the USDA.  This index is much more up to date on nutrition data.

Nutritiondata.com is more user friendly than the raw USDA database.  The Glycemic index, Caloric ratio pyramid, and nutritional target map are especially useful when trying to quickly get a brief overview of a food.

The Main Queeze

Hi everyone!
I am creating a blog all about food. I will be posting: recipes, reviews, funny realizations, miscellaneous tips and whatever else I or you want.