The rise in the U.S. calorie supply responsible for the obesity epidemic wasn’t just about more food, but a different kind of food.
The rise in the number of calories provided by the food supply since the 1970s “is more than sufficient to explain the US epidemic of obesity.” Similar spikes in calorie surplus were noted in developed countries around the world in parallel with and presumed to be primarily responsible for, the expanding waistlines of their populations. After taking exports into account, by the year 2000, the United States was producing 3,900 calories for every man, woman, and child—nearly twice as much as many people need.
It wasn’t always this way. The number of calories in the food supply actually declined over the first half of the twentieth century and only started its upward climb to unprecedented heights in the 1970s. The drop in the first half of the century was attributed to the reduction in hard manual labor. The population had decreased energy needs, so they ate decreased energy diets. They didn’t need all the extra calories. But then the “energy balance flipping point” occurred, when the “move less, stay lean phase” that existed throughout most of the century turned into the “eat more, gain weight phase” that plagues us to this day. So, what changed?
As I discuss in my video The Role of Processed Foods in the Obesity Epidemic, what happened in the 1970s was a revolution in the food industry. In the 1960s, most food was prepared and cooked in the home. The typical “married female, not working” spent hours a day cooking and cleaning up after meals. (The “married male, non-working spouse” averaged nine minutes, as you can see below and at 1:34 in my video.) But then a mixed-blessing transformation took place. Technological advances in food preservation and packaging enabled manufacturers to mass prepare and distribute food for ready consumption. The metamorphosis has been compared to what happened a century before with the mass production and supply of manufactured goods during the Industrial Revolution. But this time, they were just mass-producing food. Using new preservatives, artificial flavors, and techniques, such as deep freezing and vacuum packaging, food corporations could take advantage of economies of scale to mass produce “very durable, palatable, and ready-to-consume” edibles that offer “an enormous commercial advantage over fresh and perishable whole or minimally processed foods.”
Think ye of the Twinkie. With enough time and effort, “ambitious cooks” could create a cream-filled cake, but now they are available around every corner for less than a dollar. If every time someone wanted a Twinkie, they had to bake it themselves, they’d probably eat a lot fewer Twinkies. The packaged food sector is now a multitrillion-dollar industry.
Consider the humble potato. We’ve long been a nation of potato eaters, but we usually baked or boiled them. Anyone who’s made fries from scratch knows what a pain it is, with all the peeling, cutting, and splattering of oil. But with sophisticated machinations of mechanization, production became centralized and fries could be shipped at -40°F to any fast-food deep-fat fryer or frozen food section in the country to become “America’s favorite vegetable.” Nearly all the increase in potato consumption in recent decades has been in the form of french fries and potato chips.
Cigarette production offers a compelling parallel. Up until automated rolling machines were invented, cigarettes had to be rolled by hand. It took 50 workers to produce the same number of cigarettes a machine could make in a minute. The price plunged and production leapt into the billions. Cigarette smoking went from being “relatively uncommon” to being almost everywhere. In the 20th century, the average per capita cigarette consumption rose from 54 cigarettes a year to 4,345 cigarettes “just before the first landmark Surgeon General’s Report” in 1964. The average American went from smoking about one cigarette a week to half a pack a day.
Tobacco itself was just as addictive before and after mass marketing. What changed was cheap, easy access. French fries have always been tasty, but they went from being rare, even in restaurants, to being accessible around each and every corner (likely next to the gas station where you can get your Twinkies and cigarettes).
The first Twinkie dates back to 1930, though, and Ore-Ida started selling frozen french fries in the 1950s. There has to be more to the story than just technological innovation, and we’ll explore that next.
When I began my career in culinary nutrition, homemade sauerkraut was a dying art. Over the years while I was teaching in-person classes, I made it my mission to bring it back to my community and typically had a sauerkraut demo on the docket. Thankfully, fermented foods like sauerkraut are experiencing a popular resurgence and plenty of people are now trying it at home. It’s inexpensive, easy to make, and incredibly nutritious – so there’s really no reason not to do it.
What Is Sauerkraut?
Sauerkraut is finely shredded cabbage that is combined with a brine or massaged to create its own brine, and sometimes herbs and spices. It’s generally used as a condiment on things like burgers, tacos, salads and sandwiches.
What’s The Difference Between Fermented Sauerkraut and Vinegar Sauerkraut?
The only type of sauerkraut I eat is the kind that has gone through a lactic acid fermentation process – basically fermented in naturally derived salt brine. During the fermentation process, various bacteria work on the cabbage to produce lactic acid. No special cultures, preservatives or chemicals need to be added.
Non-fermented sauerkraut is usually coated in a heated vinegar-salt brine and then canned. Often, food producers will use extra preservatives to keep it more shelf-stable and to ensure that the colours stay bright and vibrant. Most of what you’ll find in your supermarket has been pasteurized, which means all of the good bacteria have been killed. We want the good bacteria!
Canned sauerkraut has a very different taste from naturally fermented sauerkraut – the former is quite vinegary, while the latter is tangy and delightfully sour.
Health Benefits of Sauerkraut
Fermented foods like homemade sauerkraut are rich in probiotics. The word ‘probiotic’ means ‘promoting life’. Probiotics are the good guys; the beneficial bacteria we need in our gut that help keep us healthy. They support healthy digestion, immunity and our brains.
Key Health Benefits of Sauerkraut
How to Incorporate Sauerkraut in Your Diet
I like to have a little bit of fermented foods, like sauerkraut, every single day. I also give it to my son Finn, as it’s one of his favourite foods. You don’t need a ton of it – a small amount, 1 or 2 tablespoons only, will do. If you eat too much (and aren’t used to eating kraut), you may end up with diarrhea.
Serve it over avocado toast, poached eggs or omelettes
Mash it into guacamole or salsa
Don’t forget about the brine – save it to use in salad dressings or any other recipe where you’d use vinegar
Sauerkraut Troubleshooting
The recipe I’ve included in this post is very easy to make. However, I know that fermenting can be scary if you haven’t done it before! Fermentation can sometimes be a science experiment, where you don’t always know the results.
Some things to keep in mind:
The sauerkraut must be submerged in brine to prevent mold. To keep it submerged, use a rolled cabbage leaf or a fermentation puck on top.
Depending on where you live and the season (summer vs winter), fermentation can take different amounts of time. In a cold climate, it can take several weeks to ferment.
Always taste test with a clean spoon.
Don’t double-dip into your kraut. I like to make a big jar (my ‘main jar’), and then transfer to a small jar as I use it. That way, the main jar has less exposure to air or other bacteria, so it lasts longer.
Sauerkraut will change colour as it ferments.
If you get tired of massaging your kraut, leave the salt on it for about an hour before you begin massaging or pounding it. This will help naturally release the juices, cutting down on massage time.
If I see mold, I throw my kraut out. Some people like to live on the edge and just scrape it off, but if there is mold on top, there is likely mold throughout that you can’t see.
Your nose will likely tell you if sauerkraut has gone off. But when it doubt, throw it out. You can always start a new batch tomorrow.
This note goes through the basics of the case: who, when, what, defamation law, the defence put forward by the Defendants, the summary Judgment and what this case was and wasn’t about.
I will quote verbatim from the Judgment as much as possible in this note, and reference the paragraphs, as this is the most reliable way in which to share findings. I will put direct quotations from the Judgment in blue and without italics. This is because the Judgment often used italics (to quote from the Articles or emails) and I need to capture these faithfully. Any emphasis in blue passages is the original emphasis, unless stated otherwise. This will also distinguish any comments from the Judgment from anything else in italics and/or quotation marks in this note.
Please don’t worry if you are trying to read the Judgment and don’t understand the legal bits – especially all the case law references. I’m not sure more than a few lawyers working exclusively in defamation understand all aspects of defamation law. And then this case is complex on top of complex. As I shared in the Tuesday note (Ref 1), which announced the Judgment – the Judge, Mr Justice Nicklin, said of the case “It is no exaggeration to say that the parameters of this litigation are very substantial. Indeed, this is the most significant piece of defamation litigation that I have seen in a very long time.”35 (9) That number reference (35 (9)) refers to the Judgment – paragraph 35 subpoint (9).
It might help to have the full Judgment to hand while reading this. The link is here, if so (Ref 2).
Learn How to Leave the Hospital and Start Your Own Online Wellness Practice.
Are you feeling a bit burned out by your traditional nursing job?
Maybe you’re tired of the demands – commuting to and from the hospital, working long hours, lacking the impact you deserve as a holistic wellness expert.
Or, maybe…
Your own health is suffering from the stress
You see the limitations in the conventional medicine approach
You want more freedom & flexibility for your family
And here you are, googling things like:
“jobs for nurses outside of the hospital”
“jobs for RNs to work from home”
“how to start an online practice”
Whatever it is that brought you here, we see you.
There are tons of jobs for nurses outside the hospital, but one in particular makes a fantastic option, and you may not have considered it yet.
Functional Health Coaching!
What is a Functional Health Coach?
As a Functional Health Coach, you’re able to optimize your clients’ health and well-being through a holistic approach that addresses the root-cause of their health issues.
Unlike other career alternatives for nurses, this option also gives you the freedom to start your own practice (AKA, be your own boss!), replace your income, and swap your scrubs for sweatpants.
Plus, while you’ll need some training, it requiresno schooling.
Sound like the dream?
Keep reading!
In this article, we’re breaking down:
What Is Functional Health Coaching?
The Difference Between Being an Employee vs. Starting Your Own Practice
The Benefits of Starting Your Own Functional Health Coaching Practice
5 Steps to Go from Hospital Nurse to Functional Health Coach
Here at Functional Diagnostic Nutrition® (FDN), we’ve helped 4,000+ people build thriving online health businesses – many of whom started as traditional health professionals who never dreamed they’d leave the clinic and work for themselves one day!
If you’re curious about making the jump, we’re here to support you.
Can Nurses Become Functional Health Coaches?
When you think about becoming a “Functional Health Coach,” what comes up for you?
It’s possible you were once skeptical of this approach. Or maybe you thought health coaching was only a side-hustle used to bring in some extra spending money – not pay your bills. And while the career certainly lends itself to flexibility…
Rest assured, health coaching is ALIVE and WELL!
In fact, it’s part of a 7 billion dollar industry!Popular job listing sites like Glassdoor report that the average health coach is earning ~$79,259 per year.
That’s because as a Functional Health Coach, you have the opportunity to transform people’s lives. Your ability to do that, of course, impacts the level of income (and fulfillment) you’re able to earn.
Depending on your training, functional health coaching can involve:
Evaluating your clients’ health history and habits
Ordering functional lab tests
Analyzing data and looking for patterns
Creating protocols with diet and lifestyle recommendations (food, sleep, movement, etc.)
Providing education and empowerment
One of the coolest things about this career path is the ability to make it your own.
Here’s what we mean…
Being an Employee vs. Starting Your Own Practice
As a nurse, you’ve had a step-by-step path laid out for you since you left nursing school.
Your days might even feel monotonous at this point.
If you’re sick of that rigidity, you’re in the right place!
As a Functional Health Coach, you have more options, starting with whether you want to work for someone else, or yourself.
Here’s the difference between the two:
Employed Health Coach: Want to stay in a traditional healthcare setting? Hospitals and clinics hire health coaches to work one-on-one with patients to maintain healthy lifestyles and prevent future conditions. Depending on the specific job title, certain certifications or degrees may be required.
Private Health Coach: If you’re looking for jobs for nurses outside of the hospital, starting your own online practice is the way to go. Having a private practice gives you the freedom to work from home, set your own hours, and choose WHO you want to help.
We’d argue that starting your own functional health coaching practice is your ticket to having the most fulfilling career in healthcare.
It’s 2024 – and change makers are transforming lives in their pajamas!
Sign me up!
The Benefits of an Online Practice for Nurses
Aside from ditching scrubs and fluorescent lights (big one!), here are a few more reasons why starting a functional health practice is a great job alternative for nurses:
Take a Holistic Approach. In all your time working with patients, you’ve likely wished for a long time that you could do more to help than offer medication. If you’ve found yourself researching holistic remedies, or thinking about how silly it is that “nutrition” is hardly covered in the traditional healthcare conversation, you’ll love
Earn an Uncapped Income. With your own practice, you’re not locked into a set salary. If you want to take on more clients, you can raise your income. Want to work less? You have that flexibility, too.
Be Your Own Boss. Basically what we’re saying is, you make the rules! Including when you start work, sign-off, and take a vacation (say, over the holidays?). You don’t need approval from anyone but you.
“Sounds good. Where do I start?”
Hospital Nurse to Functional Health Coach
Here are 5 steps to take you from your current hospital nurse job to a thriving online practice that lets you work from home, contribute to your family financially & live with more freedom.
Step #1. Choose a Health Coach Training Program.
Your first step is to get certified.
But you don’t want to go with just any certification program!
There are A LOT of options out there. All have their own advantages and disadvantages depending on your goals.
Functional lab testing. Will you learn how to analyze functional labs? How will you be supported in this both during and after the program? Will you be able to order labs as a solo practitioner after you graduate?
Mentorship. Does the program offer individual support? You’re learning new, advanced information and skills. Where can you turn to ask questions?
Graduate support. Learning the science, and actually working with clients and building your business are two separate things. What kind of support does the organization offer to graduates? Is there community? Business or clinical support?
Testimonials. What do previous students have to say about the program? What are the themes in their feedback? The mentorship? The community? The results?
These are all things to think about when picking your program.
Step #2. Become a Certified Functional Health Coach.
Here’s where your journey really begins!
You’re no stranger to this part.
Once you pick your program, you’ll get back to being a student.
You might receive:
Course Work
Written + Practical Exams
Program Mentorship
All in all, becoming a certified health coach can take anywhere from ~6-12 months.
For example, the FDN Certification program takes students 8-10 months on average to complete.
Remember: this is a marathon, not a sprint. You’re starting a brand new career and skipping more graduate school!
Step #3. Pick a Wellness Niche.
Now that you’ve mastered the science, it’s time to throw on your business cap!
You’re about to take everything you just learned and use it to actually start your practice.
The very first step?
Pick a “NICHE”!
Your “niche” is an area of focus you choose for your practice to differentiate yourself from all the other functional health coaches out there.
Do you need to niche-down?
Well, remember when we said health coaching is a 7 billion dollar industry? That means there are A TON of health coaches out there!
Having a clearly-defined niche helps you stand out as an expert and accelerates your growth.
If you were talking about your new venture before, make sure to tell them you’re officially in business and taking clients.
You’ll be surprised at how many people need your help.
And just how prepared you feel after the right high-level training.
Step #5. Get Client Results.
The final, most important step is to focus on client outcomes.
Like us, we know you’re in the business of wanting to help more people actually get better.
When you learn a system that goes below the surface, and leverages real functional data and holistic strategies, you will ALWAYS get results.Guaranteed.
Which is exactly what we teach here at FDN.
Because results lead to healthy and happy clients…
Which leads to word-of-mouth referrals and a thriving health practice!
Still feeling like you’ll be back to googling “jobs for nurses outside of the hospital”?
We get it – there is a lot to learn!
But you might find that hearing directly from fellow nurses is just what you need to build your confidence in this department.
Podcast Episode: Jobs For Nurses Outside The Hospital
Odds are, you NEVER thought you’d be searching for jobs for nurses outside the hospital, or leaving traditional healthcare to be your own boss.
And it can feel totally overwhelming.
If you’re ready to dive in deeper, and hear directly from fellow nurses who left their hospital jobs in favor of functional health coaching, we have the perfect podcast episode!
Listen to four registered nurses share why they chose to leave their hospital nursing jobs and start online functional health coaching practices.
They share how they’ve created lives rooted in:
Freedom Flexibility Holistic Health
Here at FDN, we support nurses on their journey to leaving the hospital for a life of freedom. Our signature FDN Certification Program gives you the advanced training you need to analyze the data from functional labs, put together personalized protocols, and get real, life-changing results for clients.
We hope you stay connected with us on this next chapter of your life!
We have an uncanny ability to pick out the subtle distinctions in calorie density of foods, but only within the natural range.
The traditional medical view on obesity, as summed up nearly a century ago: “All obese persons are, alike in one fundamental respect,—they literally overeat.” While this may be true in a technical sense, it is in reference to overeating calories, not food. Our primitive urge to overindulge is selective. People don’t tend to lust for lettuce. We have a natural inborn preference for sweet, starchy, or fatty foods because that’s where the calories are concentrated.
Think about hunting and gathering efficiency. We used to have to work hard for our food. Prehistorically, it didn’t make sense to spend all day collecting types of food that on average don’t provide at least a day’s worth of calories. You would have been better off staying back at the cave. So, we evolved to crave foods with the biggest caloric bang for their buck.
If you were able to steadily forage a pound of food an hour and it had 250 calories per pound, it might take you ten hours just to break even on your calories for the day. But if you were gathering something with 500 calories a pound, you could be done in five hours and spend the next five working on your cave paintings. So, the greater the energy density—that is, the more calories per pound—the more efficient the foraging. We developed an acute ability to discriminate foods based on calorie density and to instinctively desire the densest.
If you study the fruit and vegetable preferences of four-year-old children, what they like correlates with calorie density. As you can see in the graph below and at 1:52 in my video Friday Favorites: Cut the Calorie-Rich-And-Processed Foods, they prefer bananas over berries and carrots over cucumbers. Isn’t that just a preference for sweetness? No, they also prefer potatoes over peaches and green beans over melon, just like monkeys prefer avocados over bananas. We appear to have an inborn drive to maximize calories per mouthful.
All the foods the researchers tested in the study with four-year-old kids naturally had less than 500 calories per pound. (Bananas topped the chart at about 400.) Something funny happens when you start going above that: We lose our ability to differentiate. Over the natural range of calorie densities, we have an uncanny aptitude to pick out the subtle distinctions. However, once you start heading towards bacon, cheese, and chocolate territory, which can reach thousands of calories per pound, our perceptions become relatively numb to the differences. It’s no wonder since these foods were unknown to our prehistoric brains. It’s like the dodo bird failing to evolve a fear response because they had no natural predators—and we all know how that turned out—or sea turtle hatchlings crawling in the wrong direction towards artificial light rather than the moon. It is aberrant behavior explained by an “evolutionary mismatch.”
The food industry exploits our innate biological vulnerabilities by stripping crops down into almost pure calories—straight sugar, oil (which is pretty much pure fat), and white flour (which is mostly refined starch). It also removes the fiber, because that effectively has zero calories. Run brown rice through a mill to make white rice, and you lose about two-thirds of the fiber. Turn whole-wheat flour into white flour, and lose 75 percent. Or you can run crops through animals (to make meat, dairy, and eggs) and remove 100 percent of the fiber. What you’re left with is CRAP—an acronym used by one of my favorite dieticians, Jeff Novick, for Calorie-Rich And Processed food.
Calories are condensed in the same way plants are turned into addictive drugs like opiates and cocaine: “distillation, crystallization, concentration, and extraction.” They even appear to activate the same reward pathways in the brain. Put people with “food addiction” in an MRI scanner and show them a picture of a chocolate milkshake, and the areas that light up in their brains (as you can see below and at 4:15 in my video) are the same as when cocaine addicts are shown a video of crack smoking. (See those images below and at 4:18 in my video.)
“Food addiction” is a misnomer. People don’t suffer out-of-control eating behaviors to food in general. We don’t tend to compulsively crave carrots. Milkshakes are packed with sugar and fat, two of the signals to our brain of calorie density. When people are asked to rate different foods in terms of cravings and loss of control, most incriminated was a load of CRAP—highly processed foods like donuts, along with cheese and meat. Those least related to problematic eating behaviors? Fruits and vegetables. Calorie density may be the reason people don’t get up in the middle of the night and binge on broccoli.
Animals don’t tend to get fat when they are eating the foods they were designed to eat. There is a confirmed report of free-living primates becoming obese, but that was a troop of baboons who stumbled across the garbage dump at a tourist lodge. The garbage-feeding animals weighed 50 percent more than their wild-feeding counterparts. Sadly, we can suffer the same mismatched fate and become obese by eating garbage, too. For millions of years, before we learned how to hunt, our biology evolved largely on “leaves, roots, fruits, and nuts.” Maybe it would help if we went back to our roots and cut out the CRAP.
A key insight I want to emphasize here is the concept of animal products as the ultimate processed food. Basically, all nutrition grows from the ground: seeds, sunlight, and soil. That’s where all our vitamins come from, all our minerals, all the protein, all the essential amino acids. The only reason there are essential amino acids in a steak is because the cow ate them all from plants. Those amino acids are essential—no animals can make them, including us. We have to eat plants to get them. But we can cut out the middlemoo and get nutrition directly from the Earth, and, in doing so, get all the phytonutrients and fiber that are lost when plants are processed through animals. Even ultraprocessed junk foods may have a tiny bit of fiber remaining, but all is lost when plants are ultra-ultraprocessed through animals.
If you’re familiar with my work, you know that I recommend eating a variety of whole plant foods, as close as possible to the way nature intended. I capture this in my Daily Dozen, which you can download for free here or get the free app (iTunes and Android). On the app, you’ll see that there’s also an option for those looking to lose weight: my 21 Tweaks. But before you go checking them off, be sure to read about the science behind the checklist in my book How Not to Diet. Get it for free at your local public library. If you choose to buy a copy, note that all proceeds from all of my books go to charity.
Pro-Inflammatory and Anti-Inflammatory Exercise: Summary
In this episode, repeat guest Debra Atkinson discusses the balance between pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory exercise, particularly for midlife women experiencing menopause. Atkinson, a hormone balancing fitness expert and founder of Flipping 50, emphasizes that both too much and too little exercise can be detrimental, and the type and intensity of exercise should be tailored to individual needs based on factors like adrenal stress, cortisol levels, and current inflammation status. She also highlights that the type of exercise that is beneficial can change over time depending on life circumstances and overall health conditions, such as exposure to mold or hormonal shifts during menopause.
Her approach focuses on the importance of finding the right balance to avoid overtraining and undertraining, ultimately promoting longevity and overall well-being through appropriately intense and regular exercise routines. Additionally, she stresses the significance of proper nutrition to support exercise, detailing how women often underconsume essential nutrients due to past conditioning to eat less and exercise more.
She discusses intermittent fasting and how it can be balanced with the need to maintain a healthy circadian rhythm and adequate nutritional intake, especially protein, which is crucial for muscle maintenance and overall health. Atkinson advises being cautious with strict dieting strategies and reserving more intense forms of intermittent fasting for those who have established a solid foundation of healthy eating and exercise habits. The conversation also touches on the potential negative impacts of endurance training for women with extreme fatigue or eating disorders like anorexia, advocating instead for strength training as a more beneficial exercise form. Finally, practical guidelines are provided to measure exercise appropriateness, such as monitoring resting heart rate, body composition, and inflammation markers.
Pro-Inflammatory and Anti-Inflammatory Exercise: Topics
00:00 Introduction to Debra Atkinson
00:48 Debra’s Background and Expertise
01:58 Understanding Pro and Anti-Inflammatory Exercise
05:26 Personal Experiences with Exercise Intolerance
08:50 Exercise Intensity and Overtraining
12:01 Strength Training for Midlife Women
16:28 Nutrition and Exercise: Finding the Balance
21:01 Intermittent Fasting and Exercise
23:50 Nutrient Intake and Fasting Flexibility
24:42 Tracking and Adjusting Fitness Goals
25:51 Balancing Intermittent Fasting and Workouts
27:01 Addressing Osteoporosis with Exercise
29:17 Maintaining Circadian Rhythms with Diet
37:09 Objective Measurements for Exercise
40:58 Endurance Training and Eating Disorders
42:24 Debra’s Fitness Offerings and Final Thoughts
Rather than being some kind of disorder or a failure of willpower, weight gain is largely a normal response by normal people to an abnormal situation.
It’s been said that “Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution.” The known genetic contribution to obesity may be small, but, in a certain sense, you could argue that it’s all in our genes. The excess consumption of available calories may be hardwired into our DNA. We were born to eat.
Throughout human history and beyond, we existed in survival mode—in unpredictable scarcity. We’ve been programmed with a powerful drive to eat as much as we can while we can and just store the rest for later. Food availability could never be taken for granted, so those who ate more at the moment and were best able to store more fat for the future might better survive subsequent shortages to pass along their genes. So, generation after generation, millennia after millennia, those with lesser appetites may have died out, while those who gorged may have selectively lived long enough to pass along their genetic predisposition to eat and store more calories. That may be how we evolved into such voracious calorie-conserving machines. Now that we’re no longer living in such lean times, though, we’re no longer so lean ourselves.
What I just described is the “thrifty gene” concept proposed in 1962. As I discuss in my videoThe Thrifty Gene Theory: Survival of the Fattest, it suggests that obesity is the result of a “‘mismatch’ between the environment in which humans evolved and our modern environment”—like being a polar bear in a jungle. All that fur and fat may have given polar bears an edge in the Arctic but would be decidedly disadvantageous in the Congo. Similarly, a propensity to pack on the pounds may have been a plus in prehistoric times but can turn into a liability when our scarcity-sculpted biology is plopped down into the land of plenty. So, it’s not gluttony or sloth. Obesity may simply be “a normal response to an abnormal environment.”
Much of our physiology is finely tuned to stay within a narrow range of upper and lower limits. If we get too hot, we sweat; if we get too cold, we shiver. Our body has mechanisms to keep us in balance. In contrast, our bodies have had little reason to develop an upper limit to the accumulation of body fat. In the beginning, there may have been evolutionary pressures to keep lithe and nimble in the face of predation, but thanks to things like weapons and fire, we haven’t had to outrun as many saber-toothed tigers for about two million years or so. This may have left our genes with the one-sided selection pressures to binge on every morsel in sight and stockpile as many calories as possible in our bodies.
What was once adaptive is now a problem—or at least so says the thrifty gene hypothesis that originated more than half a century ago. It “provides a simple and elegant explanation for the modern obesity epidemic and was quickly embraced by scientists and lay people alike.” Although the researcher, James Neel, later distanced himself from the original proposal, the basic premise, despite remaining mostly theoretical, is still “largely accepted” by the scientific community, and the implications are profound.
In 2013, the American Medical Association voted to classify obesity as a disease (going against the advice of its own Council on Science and Public Health). Not that it necessarily matters what we call it, but disease implies dysfunction. Bariatric drugs and surgery are not correcting an anomaly in human physiology. Our bodies are just doing what they were designed to do in the face of excess calories. Rather than being some sort of disorder, weight gain is largely “a normal response by normal people to an abnormal environment.” As you can see below and at 4:12 in my video, more than 70 percent of Americans are now overweight. It’s normal.
“A body gaining weight when excess calories are available for consumption is behaving normally. Efforts to curtail such weight gain with drugs [or surgery] are not efforts to correct an anomaly in human physiology, but rather to deconstruct and reconstruct its normal operations at the core.”
If weight gain is largely a normal response by normal people to an abnormal situation, what exactly is that abnormal situation? Calorie-Rich-And-Processed Foods. (I’ll let you work out the acronym.) That’s the topic we’ll turn to next.
The podcast begins with a shoutout to NorthStar Grounding, a company that creates products like grounding sheets and pillowcases, which are claimed to improve health by grounding users while they sleep. The host shares personal experiences of improved readiness and reduced soreness measured by an Oura ring within two days of use. Additionally, NorthStar Grounding funds a nonprofit that supports cancer patients by providing free customized video messages from cancer survivors, offering a relatable and valuable resource for those battling the disease. The segment ends by sharing a discount code for listeners to purchase NorthStar products at a reduced price using code HDP15.
The discussion then transitions to an introduction to hormones with guest Lucy. Hormones are described as chemical messengers produced by various glands that play crucial roles in growth, development, metabolism, mood, stress, and reproduction. The conversation highlights the significant impact of chronic stress on hormones, noting that stress increases cortisol levels, which can lead to weight gain, high blood pressure, and immune system suppression. The hosts emphasize the importance of addressing chronic stress and its effects through foundational health tests and offer practical advice, such as considering the impact of light exposure and reducing the use of toxic products on the body.
Finally, the podcast addresses the broader issue of stress and its multifaceted sources. It’s noted that stress isn’t only emotional but also environmental, such as exposure to artificial light and chemical-laden products. Evan and Lucy share personal strategies to mitigate these stresses, like controlling light exposure and maintaining a healthy circadian rhythm. The episode concludes with a preview of an upcoming Lunch&Learn session focused on analyzing hormone tests and examining changes over time, indicating a commitment to ongoing education and practical health advice.
In my youth, I had the fortune of travelling a lot. It was my passion and I was working on building a business around it (a women’s travel-zine turned website intended to be a hub for women travellers to connect and find resources – but alas, a story for another day). But in all of this exploring, I feel that I have seen very little of my own province, and now with a little one in tow, there is so much of my city I want to experience again. And so I’ve been drawing upon my creative staycation ideas!
If you’re staying close to home this summer, beyond having a dance party, cooking up something new and exciting, and tending your garden, I hope some of these staycation ideas help you pass the time with a little more fun and enjoyment.
9 summer staycation ideas
Berry Picking / Pick Your Own
There are loads of farms offering experiences for families. Whether it be berry picking, visiting farm animals, or helping out on the farm, explore the options in your area for a fun day in nature, with sweet treats to reward your efforts.
Home Spa Day
I am a huge fan of natural beauty care and there are many ways that you can make an at-home spa day special for you or your family. Depending on what kind of supplies you have at home, your at-home spa day could include:
Outdoor Drinks or BBQs
If you have an outdoor space, like a patio or a backyard, take advantage and host something! Enjoy mocktails, BBQ classics like burgers and ketchup, iced tea, or anything else you and your friends and family would love. If you don’t have a backyard or patio, then visit a neighbourhood park (ensure you follow the regulations for the park you’re in).
Do or Learn Something Creative (Or Share Your Skills With Others)
Tap into the creative side of your brain by getting out some art supplies, starting a journal, taking a writing class, making jewelry, or whatever other creative endeavour you’d love to pursue. Even better, if it can be brought outside, invite friends over for a craft party and take turns hosting. It could become a really nourishing skill share event to look forward to.
Have a Concert, Comedy, or Movie Night
There are many wonderful concerts, stand-up shows, and obviously movies on streaming services like Netflix, Prime, and others. Have a weekly movie night – I highly recommend that you include popcorn with this amazing popcorn topping. If you have creatives in your house, try having a live talent show where family members can celebrate and show off their skills.
Neighbourhood Adventures
It’s so easy to get stuck in our own neighbourhoods and most cities offer amazing surprises, delights, and interactions as soon as you venture off your usual path. There are loads of small businesses in operation and great restaurants you don’t even know exist – and small businesses really need help right now. Be a tourist in your own city and pick a neighbourhood to explore top to tail without a specific destination or goal.
Go For a Walk in Nature
Aside from the exercise, walking in nature (also called forest bathing) has many positive effects on our immunity, mood, nervous system, and cardiovascular health. Increase the fun by making an outdoor scavenger hunt (or find one that’s already been done online) where you have to find flowers, animals, statues, or other special things. If you’re walking in the city, there are many city mural walks or alleyway art shows that you can enjoy.
Enjoy a Picnic
Enjoy the sunshine and fresh air by packing a picnic, whether you decide to have it in your own backyard or visit an outdoor park. I like to keep my picnics zero waste so I don’t leave any garbage behind. Find a bikeable location and make getting there a part of the fun.
City-Wide Scavenger Hunt (Or Keep It To Your Local Park or Backyard)
So these are my best summer staycation ideas. I am sure I am missing loads. Please post a comment below and let me know what I missed! Happy to keep this list growing to keep us all enjoying new experiences all summer long.
In this inspiring interview, Jon Hegarty speaks on why everyone should sleep grounded as he also shares the remarkable story of his younger brother, Christian Hegarty, who was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer, at the age of 16. Conventional treatments initially led to Christian’s remission, but when the cancer returned years later, the prognosis was grim. Jon left his finance career to explore natural and integrative medicine, leading to Christian’s current 30-month remission.
This experience spurred the creation of Going Well, a nonprofit aimed at empowering cancer patients by connecting them with inspirational survivor stories and integrative health advice through personalized videos. Jon also discusses the benefits of grounding, a technique they have included in their natural health regimen. Grounding involves physically connecting to the Earth to reduce inflammation and improve sleep. Jon’s company, NorthStar Grounding, provides products like grounding sheets and pillowcases to make this practice more accessible.
Throughout the conversation, Jon emphasizes the comprehensive approach they took toward natural healing, incorporating elements like high-dose vitamin C, mistletoe therapy, and lifestyle changes. The session closes with Jon underscoring the power of meditation and grounding as essential but often overlooked components of holistic health.
Sleep Grounded: Topics
00:00 Introduction to Jon Hegarty
00:51 Christian’s Initial Diagnosis and Struggles
03:46 The Turning Point: Embracing Alternative Medicine
06:01 Jon’s Personal Journey and Motivation
08:13 Exploring Alternative Treatments
17:57 The Power of Natural Healing
23:18 The Benefits of Grounding
23:46 Personal Experiences with Grounding
25:28 Customer Success Stories
29:03 Grounding Products and Recommendations
34:41 Addressing Safety Concerns
38:40 Going Well: A New Initiative
44:49 Final Thoughts and Signature Question
Where to Find Jon Hegarty
They created these grounding sheets and grounding pillow cases. You get the benefits while you sleep. Detective Ev said, “I don’t know about you, but admittedly that’s a thing in functional medicine that’s harder for me to do. And full transparency I was probably averaging 10 minutes or less per week grounded prior to getting this. And now a third of my life, eight hours a day, is spent grounding. We can be sleeping grounded. Why would we not do this all the time?”
Click here and use code HDP15 – for 15 percent off your entire order.
Thank you for your kind messages following the ‘Tuesday note’ (Ref 1). With the fallout from Tuesday, I’ve not had a chance to write much coverage of the Judgment (and I would want to check any legal points carefully before posting anything). However, there is only one thing on my mind at the moment and thus this week’s note is core to the case.
The safest content to share with you, without concern about getting legal points checked, is the first correspondence that I had as part of the case.
In the Judgment, I am the First Claimant (by virtue of alphabetical surname); Dr Malcolm Kendrick is the Second Claimant; Associated Newspapers are the First Defendant; and Mr Barney Calman, Health Editor of the Mail on Sunday, is the Second Defendant.
The first I heard of the planned articles was on Thursday 28th February, 2019 at 16.52 when the Second Defendant emailed me to say that “The Mail on Sunday plans to publish an article this weekend on growing concerns about claims you and a number of other individuals have publicly made about statins, the role of cholesterol in heart disease, and the allegations that researchers into the drugs are financially conflicted due to payments made to the organisations they work for, and so the evidence they provide about the effectiveness of these medications, and their side effects, are in some way untrustworthy.”
Summer is here, bringing longer days, warmer weather, and the perfect opportunity to enjoy delicious, light, and refreshing meals. One of our favorite summer recipes is Fresh Spring Rolls with a delightful SunButter Summer Sauce. This dish captures the essence of the season with its vibrant colors, fresh ingredients, and a flavorful sauce that adds an Asian twist. These wraps are perfect for enjoying throughout the summer, whether you’re having a picnic, hosting a barbecue, or simply looking for a light and satisfying meal on a warm day.
Ingredients:
Serves: 20
Rolls:
⁃ 20 small organic non-gmo rice paper rolls
⁃ 3 avocados
⁃ 3 cucumbers
⁃ 8 carrots
⁃ 1 head of romaine
⁃ 2 bell peppers
Sauce:
⁃ 2 Tbsp honey
⁃ 2 tsp Bragg liquid aminos
⁃ 2.5 tsp Bragg Apple cider vinegar
⁃ 1/4 cup water
⁃ 1/2 tsp chipotle chili flakes
⁃ 1/4 tsp Redmond salt
If you want it thinner, add more apple cider vinegar or water to reach desired consistency.
Instructions:
Cut all vegetables into thin rectangular slices and place in separate bowls.
Cover the bottom of a saucepan with a layer of water and set aside, dip each piece of rice paper in the water for about 30 seconds or until soft.
Add in the soft lettuce first (so that the more firm veggies don’t break the rice paper), add desired amount of sliced veggies, fold up like a burrito and slice!
To make the sauce add all ingredients in a jar and stir until completely creamy! Dip your fresh spring rolls in it – delicious.
Save this recipe and try it out this summer. These Fresh Spring Rolls with SunButter Summer Sauce will become a seasonal favorite in your kitchen. Enjoy and happy summer!
The “fat gene” accounts for less than 1 percent of the differences in size between people.
To date, about a hundred genetic markers have been linked to obesity, but when you put them all together, overall, they account for less than 3 percent of the difference in body mass index (BMI) between people. You may have heard about the “fat gene,” called FTO, short for FaT mass and Obesity-associated). It’s the gene most strongly linked to obesity, but it explains less than 1 percent of the difference in BMI between people, a mere 0.34 percent.
As I discuss in my video The Role of Genes in the Obesity Epidemic, FTO codes for a brain protein that appears to affect our appetite. Are you one of the billion people who carry the FTO susceptibility genes? It doesn’t matter because it only appears to result in a difference in intake of a few hundred extra calories a year. The energy imbalance that led to the obesity epidemic is on the order of hundreds of calories a day, and that’s the gene known so far to have the most effect. The chances of accurately predicting obesity risk based on FTO status is “only slightly better than tossing a coin.” In other words, no, those genes don’t make you look fat.
When it comes to obesity, the power of our genes is nothing compared to the power of our fork. Even the small influence the FTO gene does have appears to be weaker among those who are physically active and may be abolished completely in those eating healthier diets. FTO only appears to affect those eating diets higher in saturated fat, which is predominantly found in meat, dairy, and junk food. Those eating more healthfully appear to be at no greater risk of weight gain, even if they inherited the “fat gene” from both of their parents.
Physiologically, FTO gene status does not appear to affect our ability to lose weight. Psychologically, knowing we’re at increased genetic risk for obesity may motivate some people to eat and live more healthfully, but it may cause others to fatalistically throw their hands up in the air and resign themselves to thinking that it just runs in their family, as you can see in the graph below and at 2:11 in my video. Obesity does tend to run in families, but so do lousy diets.
Comparing the weight of biological versus adopted children can help tease out the contributions of lifestyles versus genetics. Children growing up with two overweight biological parents were found to be 27 percent more likely to be overweight themselves, whereas adopted children placed in a home with two overweight parents were 21 percent more likely to be overweight. So, genetics do play a role, but this suggests that it’s more the children’s environment than their DNA.
One of the most dramatic examples of the power of diet over DNA comes from the Pima Indians of Arizona. As you can see in the graph below and at 3:05 in my video, they not only have among the highest rates of obesity, but they also have the highest rates of diabetes in the world. This has been ascribed to their relatively fuel-efficient genetic makeup. Their propensity to store calories may have served them well in times of scarcity when they were living off of corn, beans, and squash, but when the area became “settled,” their source of water, the Gila River, was diverted upstream. Those who survived the ensuing famine had to abandon their traditional diet to live off of government food programs and chronic disease rates skyrocketed. Same genes, but different diet, different result.
In fact, a natural experiment was set up. The Pima living over the border in Mexico come from the same genetic pool but were able to maintain more of their traditional lifestyle, sticking with their main staples of beans, wheat flour tortillas, and potatoes. Same genes, but seven times less obesity and about four times less diabetes. You can see those graphs below and at 3:58 and 4:02 in my video. Genes may load the gun, but diet pulls the trigger.
Of course, it’s not our genes! Our genes didn’t suddenly change 40 years ago. At the same time, though, in a certain sense, it could be thought of as all in our genes. That’s the topic of my next video The Thrifty Gene Theory: Survival of the Fattest.
A free, month-long event packed with expert speakers,training, and an inside look at the FDN Program. This is a must-see event for aspiring and seasoned health coachesand practitioners who want to learn business and marketing strategies to propel their career to the next level.
Receive expert training on how to market your health coaching business, including elevating your personal brand, pitching podcasts, and more.
Hear from 15+ FDN graduates who have reached the six-figure milestone. Steal their strategies, and discover how the FDN framework led to their success.
Learn from leading FDN Practitioners + industry experts who have built thriving health practices from the ground up.
Receive candid insights from FDN graduates, so you can make an informed decision about your potential future with FDN.
We are talking about the GI MAP stool test, a foundational lab test used to assess gut health, in today’s Lunch & Learn with hosts Evan Transue and Lucy McKellar from FDN (Functional Diagnostic Nutrition). They discuss how chronic stress impacts gut health, leading to conditions such as dysbiosis, infections, inflammation, and leaky gut, which can further develop into autoimmune issues and toxicity. The GI MAP test, which employs PCR DNA technology, is preferred over stool cultures due to its ability to detect dead pathogens, providing a comprehensive understanding of gut health.
Evan and Lucy share live GI MAP results, specifically from Evan’s own test, to illustrate the test’s functionality. They analyze different sections of the test, including pathogens, normal bacterial flora, and opportunistic bacteria. They also highlight the significance of clinical correlation, where test results are matched with the individual’s symptoms to provide effective treatment recommendations. Particular emphasis is placed on the pervasive presence of H. pylori and its potential health risks, as well as the importance of balancing prebiotic and probiotic intake to maintain healthy gut flora.
Lastly, the hosts address the detection of parasites like Blastocystis hominis and their associated symptoms. They stress the essential role of holistic analysis and individualized treatment protocols, taking into account other foundational labs and the patient’s overall health history. The episode concludes with a brief mention of ongoing educational opportunities through FDN, encouraging listeners to continue exploring integrative health approaches.
The common explanations for the cause of the obesity epidemic put forward by the food industry and policymakers, such as inactivity or a lack of willpower, are not only wrong, but actively harmful fallacies.
Obesity isn’t new, but the obesity epidemic is. We went from a few corpulent kings and queens, like Henry VIII or Louis VI (known as Louis le Gros, or “Louis the Fat”), to a pandemic of obesity, now considered to be “arguably the gravest and most poorly controlled public health threat of our time.” As you can see below and at 0:34 in my video The Role of Diet vs. Exercise in the Obesity Epidemic, about 37 percent of American men are obese and 41 percent of American women, with no end in sight. Earlier reports had suggested that the rise in obesity was at least slowing down, but even that doesn’t appear to be the case. Similarly, we had thought we were turning the corner on childhood obesity “[a]fter 35 years of unremittingly bad news,” but the bad news continues. Childhood and adolescent obesity rates have continued to rise, now into the fourth decade.
Over the last century, obesity appears to have jumped ten-fold, from about 1 in 30 to now 1 in 3, but it wasn’t a steady rise. As you can see in the graph below and at 1:15 in my video, something seems to have happened around the late 1970s—and not just in the United States, but around the globe. The obesity pandemic took off at about the same time in the 1970s and 1980s in most high-income countries. The fact that the rapid rise “seemed to begin almost concurrently” across the industrialized world suggests a common cause. What might that trigger have been?
Any potential driver would have to be global and “coincide with the upswing of the epidemic.” So, the change would have had to have started about 40 years ago and would have had to have been able to spread rapidly around the globe. Let’s see how all the various theories stack up. For example, as you can see below and at 1:55 in my video, some have blamed changes in our built environment and shifts in city planning that have made our communities less conducive to walking, biking, and grocery shopping. That doesn’t meet our criteria for a credible cause, though, because there was no universal, simultaneous change in our neighborhoods within that time frame.
When researchers surveyed hundreds of policymakers, most blamed the obesity epidemic on a “lack of personal motivation.” Do you see how little sense that makes? In the United States, for example, obesity shot up across the entire population in the late 1970s, as you can see at 2:26 in my video. I concur with the researchers who “believe it is implausible that each age, sex, and ethnic group, with massive differences in life experience and attitudes, had a simultaneous decline in willpower related to healthy nutrition or exercise.” More plausible than a global change like our characters would be some global change like our lives.
The food industry blames inactivity. “If all consumers exercised,” said the CEO of PepsiCo, “obesity wouldn’t exist.” Coca-Cola went a step further, spending $1.5 million to create the Global Energy Balance Network to downplay the role of diet. Leaked emails show the company planned on using the front to “serve as a ‘weapon’ to ‘change the conversation’ about obesity in its ‘war’ with public health.
This tactic is so common among food and beverage companies that it even has a name: “leanwashing.” You’ve heard of greenwashing, where companies deceptively pretend to be environmentally friendly. Leanwashing is the term used to describe companies that try to position themselves as helping to solve the obesity crisis when they’re instead directly contributing to it. For example, the largest food company in the world, Nestlé, has “rebranded itself as the ‘world’s leading nutrition, health and wellness company.” Yes, that Nestlé, makers of Nesquik, Cookie Crisp, and historically more than a hundred different brands of candy, including Butterfinger, Kit Kat, Goobers, Gobstoppers, Runts, and Nerds. Another one of its slogans is “Good Food, Good Life.” Its Raisinets may have some fruit, but Nestlé seems to me more Willy Wonka than wellness.
The constant corporate drumbeat of overemphasis on physical inactivity appears to be working. In response to the Harris poll question, “Which of these do you think are the major reasons why obesity has increased?,” a “huge majority of 83% chose lack of exercise, while only 34% chose excessive calorie consumption.” “Confusion about the effect of exercise on the energy balance” has been identified as one of the most common misconceptions about obesity. The scientific community has “come to a fairly decisive conclusion” that the factors governing calorie intake more powerfully affect overall calorie balance. It’s our fast food more than our slow motion.
“There is considerable debate in the literature today about whether physical activity has any role whatsoever in the epidemic of obesity that has swept the globe since the 1980s.” The increase in caloric intake per person is more than enough to explain the obesity epidemic in the United States and also explain it globally. If anything, the level of physical activity over the last few decades has gone up slightly in both Europe and North America. Ironically, this may be a result of the extra energy it takes to move around our heavier bodies, making it a consequence of the obesity problem rather than the cause.
“Formal exercise plays a very small role in the total daily physical activity energy expenditure.” Think how much more physical work people used to do in the workplace, on the farm, or even in the home. It’s not just the shift in collar color from blue to white. Increasing automation, computerization, mechanization, motorization, and urbanization have all contributed to increasingly more sedentary lifestyles over the last century—and that’s the problem with the theory. The occupational shifts and advent of labor-saving devices “have been gradual and largely predated the dramatic increase in weight gain across the developed world in the past few decades.” Washing machines, vacuum cleaners, and the Model T were all invented before 1910. Indeed, when put to the test using state-of-the-art methods to measure energy in and energy out, it was caloric intake, not physical activity, that predicted weight gain over time.
The common misconception that obesity is mostly due to lack of exercise may not just be a benign fallacy. Personal theories of causation appear to impact people’s weight. Those who blame insufficient exercise are significantly more likely to be overweight than those who implicate a poor diet. Put those who believe lack of exercise causes obesity in a room with chocolate, and they can covertly be observed consuming more candy. Those holding that view may be different in other ways, though. You can’t prove cause and effect until you put it to the test. And, indeed, as you can see in the graph below, and at 7:22 in myvideo, people randomized to read an article implicating inactivity went on to eat significantly more sweets than those reading about research that indicated diet. A similar study found that those presented with research blaming genetics subsequently ate significantly more cookies. The title of that paper? “An Unintended Way in Which the Fat Gene Might Make You Fat.”
When I sat down to write How Not to Diet, I knew this “what triggered the obesity epidemic” was going to be a big question I had to face. Was it inactivity (just kids sitting around playing video games or scrolling on their phones)? Was it genetic? Was it epigenetic (something turning on our fat genes)? Or was it just the food? Were we eating more fat all of a sudden? More carbs? More processed foods? Or were we just eating more period, because of bigger serving sizes or more snacking? Inquiring minds wanted to know.
This is the first in an 11-video series to answer this question, which I originally released in a two-hour webinar in 2020. Check out the webinar digital download here. Or, check them out in the related posts below.
Travel and vacation is all about taking a break from the ordinary, but it’s often difficult to stick to your diet and wholesome nutrition when on the road and travelling with kids. There are restaurants, drive-thrus and buffet lines, time zone interruptions, cultural culinary delicacies and busy schedules. However, holidays shouldn’t un-do your family’s health goals, because you’ll all come home with more than just great memories: bloating, digestive upset and moodiness are all common consequences of travel nutrition sabotage!
Here are some helpful tips to help keep the family’s health on track while travelling with kids on vacation and even on one-day outings.
How to Keep Nutrition On Track With Travelling with Kids
1. Don’t sabotage your snacks
The worst culprit for sabotaging healthy eating are those moments when you’re off schedule, running around, coordinating activities and children and hunger strikes. This moment, affectionately known as ‘hangry’, is anger caused by hunger. It manifests as a cranky state from a lack of food. More precisely, ‘hanger’ is really a blood sugar crash and results in moodiness.
Whether you, your travel companions or children are hangry, the best prevention is having an arsenal of prepared and healthy snacks. I’m not talking granola bars, chips or Krispie squares, but rather a variety of nutritious, whole food snacks. Like their convenience-food counterparts, nutritious snacks must be portable, easy to grab and distribute, and simple to pack and store.
To make the most of your snacks and avoid ‘hanger’, follow the Protein-Fiber-Fat rule of eating to maintain blood sugar levels – which means include these three important nutrients in your snacks.
Here are some examples of blood sugar-balancing snacks:
If you’re planning to visit a warm destination, all you really need to pack for clothing is your bathing suit, flip flops and beach towels. So pack light and reserve a suitcase to bring your and your children’s favourite foodstuffs. Most airlines allow you to pack food as long as it’s in the checked luggage.
I always pack:
a tetra pack of non-dairy milk
a variety of tea bags
protein powder
greens powder
a jar of almond butter
cereal
I also pack a small portable “bullet” blender, empty jars with lids (to shake a quick protein drink with water), reusable water bottles and insulated travel mugs. These accessories and food not only help with mornings, but they provide the comforts of home and help to establish a routine when you’re away. By starting your day by preparing your own breakfast, you’ll save time and money by not eating out, too.
3. Navigate the buffet and eating on the road with smarts
Eating out is inevitable when it comes to travelling, holidays or day trips. But eating out doesn’t have to mean you feed your kiddos at all-you-can-eat buffets, greasy spoons or drive-thrus. Your family can certainly eat nutritiously when eating out, you just have to be conscious about your food choices.
On cruise ships and all-inclusive destinations, the buffet is generally part of the package deal. Buffet doesn’t have to mean all-you-can-eat! The first rule when navigating the buffet line is to only fill your plate once. Browse the buffet menu options with your children before everyone grabs a plate, and encourage everyone to pick their 3 favourite items. Having a tough time deciding? Most buffets rotate and repeat their selections, so chances are, you’ll have another opportunity to try a dish that piques your interest. Reserve half of your plate for salad or veggies and portion the rest of your plate with protein and whole grains.
When eating out at a restaurant, the same rules apply. Pass on the deep-fried foods, refined carbs and appetizers. Instead order salads (with dressing on the side), wraps and substitute fries, potatoes, pasta and rice with extra veggies. Most restaurants will happily accommodate your requests. Include a protein with your meal – if you’re ordering meat or fish, make sure it’s grilled or broiled as opposed to fried.
4. Stay regular
If you and your kids eat healthy on a regular basis, then travelling or eating out can often affect everyone’s regularity! That’s why when eating out, I suggest including a variety of veggies and pack a greens supplement in your suitcase.
Staying hydrated with water, supplementing with healthy fats from Omega 3s, and a good quality probiotic will help to keep you and your kids regular, aid in preventing traveller’s diarrhea and reduce chances of constipation.
5. Keep moving – exercise and stretch
Car rides, airport lines and long waits are also part of travelling, vacations and day trips. Make the most of these situations by periodically moving and stretching to keep the blood flowing. Kids have a lot of energy to burn, so this will help them work off that extra energy.
If you’re lucky enough to include an excursion or activity in your plans, then make sure to properly warm-up prior to exercising. And follow-up strenuous activity with a cool-down to prevent injury and sore muscles.
Be adventurous and have fun during your vacation. Take an opportunity to try something new and get out of your comfort zone. Look for active and family-friendly events and activities to stay moving. Keeping kids active and busy is also a great way to get them to sleep! A welcome reprieve for parents after a long day, right?
With these tips in mind, you and your family can travel healthfully and return from your vacation refreshed and relaxed – not immediately in need of another vacation!
What tricks do you have to keep nutrition on track when travelling with kids? Please share in the comments!
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A free, month-long event packed with expert speakers,training, and an inside look at the FDN Program. This is a must-see event for aspiring and seasoned health coachesand practitioners who want to learn business and marketing strategies to propel their career to the next level.
Receive expert training on how to market your health coaching business, including elevating your personal brand, pitching podcasts, and more.
Hear from 15+ FDN graduates who have reached the six-figure milestone. Steal their strategies, and discover how the FDN framework led to their success.
Learn from leading FDN Practitioners + industry experts who have built thriving health practices from the ground up.
Receive candid insights from FDN graduates, so you can make an informed decision about your potential future with FDN.
In this podcast, Dr. Wayne ‘The Mango Man’ Pickering, a highly credentialed expert in natural sciences, naturopathy, theology, and nutrition, shares his profound insights into the science of nutrition and the importance of a healthy diet. Dr. Pickering discusses his extensive background, including overcoming a terminal prognosis, becoming an award-winning triathlete, and his contributions as an author, speaker, and licensed nutrition counselor. He emphasizes the necessity of a balanced diet, proper food combining, and avoiding certain foods to maintain optimal health and longevity.
Dr. Pickering introduces his concept of food combining, explaining how different food types require specific digestive environments, and thus should not be mixed inappropriately. He outlines the nine components crucial for lifelong health: attitude, nutrition, exercise, water, sunshine, tenacity, air, rest, and temperance. Additionally, he shares his general philosophy of life, emphasizing the importance of enjoying life, and avoiding harmful foods, specifically anything white, fizzy, or greasy.
The podcast concludes with practical advice on maintaining health, such as eating in alignment with nature’s seasons and avoiding over-reliance on supplements. Dr. Pickering’s final thoughts encourage listeners to appreciate the importance of their health, make mindful choices, and foster a positive attitude. For further guidance, he directs listeners to his detailed resources on nutrition and health management available online.
Science of Nutrition: Topics
00:00 Introduction to Dr. Wayne ‘The Mango Man’ Pickering
03:00 Dr. Wayne’s Early Life and Challenges
05:52 The Nine Components of Lifelong Health
10:18 Defining Nutrition and Its Processes
11:12 The Five Elements of a Sound Nutrition Plan
17:54 The Science Behind Food Combining
25:44 The Three Commandments of Eating
29:30 Avoiding the Three Dangerous Foods
32:36 The Impact of White and Greasy Foods
35:03 Hospital Food and Health Care Ironies
38:53 Supplementation
40:42 Final Thoughts and Signature Question
Where to Find Dr. Wayne Pickering
They created these grounding sheets and grounding pillow cases. You get the benefits while you sleep. Detective Ev said, “I don’t know about you, but admittedly that’s a thing in functional medicine that’s harder for me to do. And full transparency I was probably averaging 10 minutes or less per week grounded prior to getting this. And now a third of my life, eight hours a day, is spent grounding. We can be sleeping grounded. Why would we not do this all the time?”
Click here and use code HDP15 – for 15 percent off your entire order.
A free, month-long event packed with expert speakers,training, and an inside look at the FDN Program. This is a must-see event for aspiring and seasoned health coachesand practitioners who want to learn business and marketing strategies to propel their career to the next level.
Receive expert training on how to market your health coaching business, including elevating your personal brand, pitching podcasts, and more.
Hear from 15+ FDN graduates who have reached the six-figure milestone. Steal their strategies, and discover how the FDN framework led to their success.
Learn from leading FDN Practitioners + industry experts who have built thriving health practices from the ground up.
Receive candid insights from FDN graduates, so you can make an informed decision about your potential future with FDN.
In this podcast, Dr. Wayne ‘The Mango Man’ Pickering, a highly credentialed expert in natural sciences, naturopathy, theology, and nutrition, shares his profound insights into the science of nutrition and the importance of a healthy diet. Dr. Pickering discusses his extensive background, including overcoming a terminal prognosis, becoming an award-winning triathlete, and his contributions as an author, speaker, and licensed nutrition counselor. He emphasizes the necessity of a balanced diet, proper food combining, and avoiding certain foods to maintain optimal health and longevity.
Dr. Pickering introduces his concept of food combining, explaining how different food types require specific digestive environments, and thus should not be mixed inappropriately. He outlines the nine components crucial for lifelong health: attitude, nutrition, exercise, water, sunshine, tenacity, air, rest, and temperance. Additionally, he shares his general philosophy of life, emphasizing the importance of enjoying life, and avoiding harmful foods, specifically anything white, fizzy, or greasy.
The podcast concludes with practical advice on maintaining health, such as eating in alignment with nature’s seasons and avoiding over-reliance on supplements. Dr. Pickering’s final thoughts encourage listeners to appreciate the importance of their health, make mindful choices, and foster a positive attitude. For further guidance, he directs listeners to his detailed resources on nutrition and health management available online.
Science of Nutrition: Topics
00:00 Introduction to Dr. Wayne ‘The Mango Man’ Pickering
03:00 Dr. Wayne’s Early Life and Challenges
05:52 The Nine Components of Lifelong Health
10:18 Defining Nutrition and Its Processes
11:12 The Five Elements of a Sound Nutrition Plan
17:54 The Science Behind Food Combining
25:44 The Three Commandments of Eating
29:30 Avoiding the Three Dangerous Foods
32:36 The Impact of White and Greasy Foods
35:03 Hospital Food and Health Care Ironies
38:53 Supplementation
40:42 Final Thoughts and Signature Question
Science of Nutrition: Where to Find Dr. Wayne Pickering
Where: San Diego, CA
When: October 17-19, 2024
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They created these grounding sheets and grounding pillow cases. You get the benefits while you sleep. Detective Ev said, “I don’t know about you, but admittedly that’s a thing in functional medicine that’s harder for me to do. And full transparency I was probably averaging 10 minutes or less per week grounded prior to getting this. And now a third of my life, eight hours a day, is spent grounding. We can be sleeping grounded. Why would we not do this all the time?”
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You know the tired cliché: nobody walks in Los Angeles. Why not? Because it’s way more fun to run. L.A. occupies a vast 466-square-mile swath that stretches from the Pacific Ocean to the San Gabriel Mountains, which rise thousands of feet above the cityscape. In between are countless urban routes, trails, parks, and paths that weave together L.A.’s unique neighborhoods and form a sun-soaked playground for runners.
“We have so many different vibes,” says Kate Olson, founder of L.A. Running Connoisseur, an online guide to the city’s running scene.
Olson has lived and run in Los Angeles for more than 12 years, and she has experienced firsthand how the city’s varied terrain, diverse population, and enthusiastic running community create a truly epic place to run. We recently talked with her to get her recs for must-do routes, notable running events, and key resources. Consider this your invite: step into the sunshine and get ready to discover why everyone runs in L.A.
Routes
Runyon Canyon: Perhaps the most famous trail in Los Angeles, Runyon Canyon is a killer workout and an excellent place for people-watching. Road runners can ascend the paved fire road for an out-and-back adventure of 2.8 miles, and trail runners can follow a rugged three-mile loop that circles the park. It’s also a great place for dogs, with an off-leash area on a section of the paved road.
The Hollywood Sign: “Everyone wants to run behind the Hollywood sign,” says Olson, and getting to the iconic landmark comes with a bonus experience: exploring the 4,200-acre Griffith Park, one of the largest municipal parks in North America. Olson suggests a three-mile out-and-back along the Aileen Getty Ridge Trail. This route features sweeping views and a stop at the Wisdom Tree (a lone pine growing atop a prominent peak) before topping out just above the Hollywood Sign.
Hollywood Reservoir: Not into climbing? Head to the Hollywood Reservoir for a paved 3.3-mile loop around a large body of water. In addition to panoramic views of the city and the Hollywood Sign, you might spot some local wildlife—Olson recently encountered deer while running here.
Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook: This state park is an island of wilderness in the middle of West L.A. Start at the trailhead on Jefferson Boulevard and make a one-mile switchbacking ascent to the overlook’s 500-foot peak. Once there, you can enjoy 360-degree views of the city, including downtown skyscrapers and the Pacific Ocean. For more mileage, continue on trails to explore the adjacent Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area.
Marvin Braude Bike Trail: This is L.A., so a trip to the beach is required. Get your fix while jogging on this 22-mile paved trail—specifically the Santa Monica to Venice Beach segment. You’ll pass under the Santa Monica Pier (mid-run Ferris wheel ride?) and run through the famed Muscle Beach bodybuilder hangout. Pro tip: Make a pit stop at the Venice Beach Skatepark to watch skaters pull off all kinds of aerial stunts.
Los Angeles includes a vast variety of routes to entertain every kind of runner. (Photo: Getty Images)
Events
CicLAvia: This recurring series of events closes L.A. streets to car traffic and opens them to pedestrians and cyclists—an ideal way to explore new neighborhoods and see the city from a different perspective. Recent editions showcased South L.A. and Venice Boulevard, and each route has sitting areas with food and drink vendors, so you can stop for a mid-run snack.
Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation Sunset Run: You don’t have to be a baseball fan to appreciate this event. Dodger Stadium, set amid the hills of Elysian Park, is one of L.A.’s most notable landmarks, and this race series (there’s a 5K, 10K, and kids’ run) is a great way to experience it. The event is held at sunset for incredible views of the stadium, city skyline, and surrounding parkland.
Homeboy 5K: For more than 30 years, Homeboy Industries has helped formerly gang-affiliated and incarcerated people get back on their feet. This fun race, held in Chinatown, near downtown L.A., is an excellent way to support the group’s work and explore a unique corner of the city.
Los Angeles offered every kind of terrain from mountain trails to coastal paths. (Photo: Getty Images)
Local Resources
Clubs
Keep It Run Hundred: Olson loves Keep It Run Hundred for its welcoming, beginner-friendly atmosphere. The group hosts weekly runs in Inglewood and Culver City and places a special emphasis on supporting underserved communities in South Central L.A.
New Basin Blues: Running with New Basin Blues is a must for anyone who’s trail curious. This club explores the best dirt routes in the L.A. region. All levels are welcome at their weekly runs on Thursdays and Sundays.
Stores
Run With Us: Olson is a big fan of this independent running store in Pasadena thanks to its weekly group runs and top-tier apparel. “I am obsessed with their sock collection,” she says.
New Balance Stores: Browse the latest apparel, get your feet scanned and fitted for a pair of shoes, or meet up for a guided run at one of New Balance’s two L.A. retail locations. (There are storefronts in Brentwood and Santa Monica.) They’re the perfect launching points for diving into the city’s running scene.
Independent since 1906, New Balance empowers people through sport and craftsmanship to create positive change in communities around the world.
I sometimes do research for friends and family on diagnoses or treatments. This usually involves finding the best papers on a health condition and/or clinical pathways suggested. People want as much information as possible and a second opinion when they are diagnosed with something. Invariably, I have not looked into the condition before, so I’m starting with no pre-conceived ideas.
I recently had a query from (let’s call him) John. John is in his 50s. He’s slim and fit (exercises daily). He eats a real food, low-carb diet. He has a couple of health conditions unrelated to lifestyle but looks and feels mostly healthy. He shared that his blood pressure had been flagged as a concern at recent medical appointments. He was the last person you’d suspect of high blood pressure, but his conditions (and medications for those conditions) could be a factor.
I made the usual first suggestion – measure your blood pressure at home a number of times during the day and keep a record in case it was high at appointments because of the well-known ‘white coat syndrome’ (Ref 1). People are often stressed in clinical settings, and this can raise blood pressure. John did this and his readings were quite varied (170/80 mmHg at the highest and 135/70 mmHg at the lowest). There was no clear pattern with time of day, meals etc. The simple average of the first few readings was 156/80 mmHg. That’s not ideal.
Systolic blood pressure (SBP) is the top number and refers to the amount of pressure experienced by the arteries while the heart is beating.
Diastolic blood pressure (DBP) is the bottom number and refers to the amount of pressure in the arteries while the heart is resting in between heartbeats.
The difference between the SBP and DBP numbers struck me as large and that was the first thing I researched. The difference between the two numbers is known as the pulse pressure (Ref 2). That number ideally should be 40 mmHg. As pulse pressure rises above 40 mmHg, the risk of problems with the heart and blood vessels increases. Pulse pressures of 50 mmHg or more can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. John’s average pulse pressure (from those early numbers) was 76 mmHg.
