Sunday, February 24, 2008

Hungerless Eating

Hungerless eating is another common bad eating habit of many overweight people. We eat because food is put in front of us (for example, at work, when someone brings in treats). We engage in "mindless" eating, such as eating while watching TV, when we can easily consume a lot of food, without noticing how much, or even thinking about fullness. We eat as an emotional response to something, sometimes sadness or joy, but sometimes boredom.

If you are struggling with weight loss, always, always, think before you eat. Are you hungry? Separate wanting to eat from true physical hunger. When you are really, really, wanting to eat but you know you are not hungry, find something else to do. Easily said, not easily done. Call a friend, read, do a crossword or other type of puzzle, have some water or diet soda (I know it's not great for you but it can be a good crutch), munch on a raw veggie, or go for a walk if you can. Very often, when you resist that hungerless eating urge, it goes away after a while.

For me, not starting to eat if I am not hungry has pretty much become habitual. I no longer seek food just for the sake of food. But I still struggle with the other kind of hungerless eating: stopping when I am full. I suspect it will be an ongoing struggle. It helps me to know I need to be always conscious of this pitfall.

Monday, February 18, 2008

(Bad) Eating Habits

The next few entries will concern some detrimental eating habits that many overweight people have developed over time.

One of mine was the habit of "cleaning my plate" at every meal and whenever I snacked. Yes, I was raised in a home that required plate cleaning, probably because my parents were children of the depression. No one in India or anywhere else will starve if you don't clean your plate.

Saiety in eating is very complicated. It takes about 20 minutes for the stomach to send a message to the brain and get back the feeling of fullness. One way to help get the feedback is to slow down your eating. It's easy to say, hard to do. If you are trying to cut down on your portions, enlist the support of whomever you share your meals with, tell them you need help in slowing down. Solicit suggestions from your meal partners on how to make the pace of eating more leisurely.

Try this: after each bite, put your fork down on the table. Now this isn't easy either. I have discovered it is somewhat easy at a dinner party, when there is a lot of table conversation, and also when we dine out with friends.

Some of us rush when we are especially hungry. What I've learned, however, is that real hunger makes the meal taste its best! So when you are "starving" take the time to really savor each bite. As your plate gets emptier, think about your feeling of fullness. For me, fullness and saiety were not the same thing. Fullness came first, especially when I was eating something I really enjoyed. Reaching saiety involved cleaning my plate; it was what I was required to do, long after I stopped eating with my parents.

Think about how you might work on breaking this habit. Put less on your plate, and/or, as it empties, think to yourself "Am I full?" It's OK to leave some food there and throw it away.

Saturday, February 2, 2008

Calcium and Vitamin D

I'm away in Aruba, getting plenty of vitamin D but I do want to complete the Osteoporosis story.

You basically need the equivalent of 3 glasses of milk a day. A yogurt counts as a milk, as does cheese. But you need to check labels on dairy products other than milk.

By law, all milk in the US is fortified with vitamin D. If you look at a milk label, you'll see the % Calcium and % vitamin D are very close. Now check your favorite yogurt and frozen yogurt. You may see Vitamin D, you may not. There is no requirement that milk products are made from fortified milk, so check the label. It is worth having a discussion with your MD about vitamin D, and remember that the National Osteoporosis Foundation now recommends 1000 units a day.

What about calcium supplements? There are two kinds: the more expensive calcium citrate and the much less expensive calcium carbonate. Calcium citrate can be absorbed with or without food, calcium carbonate needs stomach acid to dissolve, so it needs to be taken with a meal. Both are fortified with some D. If you are using a cheap calcium carbonate, as I do, make sure you take it with food. But do this little check first: put one in a glass and add some white vinegar. It should dissolve in 30 minutes. If it doesn't, it will not dissolve in your stomach.

I hope this diversion has been useful. Consider it part of the owner's manual.