health Matters
New Year, New Diet, New You!
Part 1
by Dr. Thomas K. Lo, Advanced Chiropractic & Nutritional Healing Center
r! Many of us make New Year’s resolutions, and many of us fail to make them stick.
My suggestion is to figure out what the best eating plan is for you to follow and start there. When you feel good and are happy with yourself, you often do better in all areas of your life.
Following are some ideas to help you figure out what the best eating plan is for you to follow.
This is a two-part series. Next month will continue with Part 2.
What Is Your Best Food Plan?
It is best to ask a practitioner what the best eating plan is for you to follow. However, there are some major principles you can follow and issues to look out for.
We all have different bodies, different health issues, and different goals. Even so, there are some basic principles you can follow to help you figure out your issues and feel better.
The goal is to feel good after you eat and in between your meals. If you have unwanted symptoms, you may be eating something you have a sensitivity to; you may have exceeded a threshold for a particular macronutrient, such as fat, carbs, or fiber; or you may have triggered an intolerance, for example, by eating too much histamine, too much FODMAP, (FODMAP is an acronym for naturally occurring Fermentable Oligo, Di- and Monosaccharides and Polyols), or too much gluten.
Read on to discover why you may have some of the health issues that you have.
Real Food Diet
No matter what macronutrient ratios you are targeting and what micronutrient levels you want to improve, the main goal is to follow a real food diet instead of relying on packaged, overly processed foods. This is the basis of every good food plan.
So, start off by avoiding ultra-processed foods. This means packaged foods with a long list of ingredients, including artificial ingredients, additives, and chemicals.
Avoid unhealthy fats, such as refined oil and hydrogenated oils.
Choose organic as much as possible, and for animal products, if possible, consume organic grass-fed meat, pasture-raised poultry and eggs, wild-caught fish and seafood, and wild game.
Reduce your grain consumption. Sourdough and low-gluten grains are your best choices in lower quantities. Many people need to avoid gluten completely. Quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat, wild rice, brown rice, and chickpea pasta can be great options for gluten-free grain-like foods.
Protein Levels
Eating enough protein is critical for building muscle, burning fat, balancing blood sugar levels, supporting energy, reducing inflammation, and lowering pain.
Most individuals do well on 30 to 60 grams of protein per meal.
Pick healthy animal sources of protein. Nuts, seeds, and legumes also add protein to the diet.
Not everyone does well on legumes, so if it causes you digestive issues or food sensitivities, reduce or avoid it.
Dairy is another protein source that’s not right for everyone; however, if you do well on dairy, that is also a protein source.
Personalize Your Fat Content
Consuming enough healthy fats is just as critical as eating enough protein. Healthy fats are essential for reducing inflammation and pain, supporting brain function, heart health, skin health, and hormonal health, stabilizing blood sugar levels, and supporting a healthy weight.
The amount of fat you need in your diet depends on your personal situation. Too much fat can turn into a problem.
The kind of fat you eat matters a lot. Avoid unhealthy fats, such as refined oils, fatty fried foods, and other sources of trans fats. Choose healthy fats, including olives, extra-virgin olive oil, avocados, avocado oil, coconut oil, coconut milk, MCT oil, grass-fed butter, ghee, palm oil, and pasture-raised eggs.
Fatty fish are also great sources of healthy fats that support your well-being.
Add Colorful Fruits, Veggies, Herbs & Spices
Eat lots of colorful fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices.
Eat the rainbow, as they say. Each color is associated with different nutrients and different benefits.
They are full of powerful minerals, vitamins, antioxidants, and fiber to support your digestion, lower inflammation, fight oxidative stress, decrease pain, support weight loss, increase energy, and enhance overall health.
Consider Adding Fermented Foods & Drinks
For gut health, you may consider adding fermented foods and drinks to your diet. They are high in probiotics and post-biotics and can help to support your gut microbiome and reduce inflammation.
Some of the best probiotic-rich fermented foods and drinks include sauerkraut, kimchi, fermented vegetables, fermented herbs, kefir, coconut yogurt, and kombucha.
Observe for Food Allergies & Sensitivities
Food allergies and food sensitivities are very common issues. Food allergies are immunologic hypersensitivity (IgE reaction), food sensitivities are delayed immunologic reactions (IgG and IgA reactions), and food intolerances are non-immunologic reactions to food.
What does this mean? Food allergies cause an immediate reaction that you experience right after you are eating a certain food. These reactions or symptoms may include swelling, rashes, redness, itching, hives, difficulty breathing, throat causing, and in severe cases, an anaphylactic shock.
Food sensitivities are less dangerous. However, they are much sneakier and are often missed. They are delayed reactions to food that may occur hours or even days after you consume the food. Since you don’t know about the issue, you may consume these foods regularly, leading to chronic issues.
Symptoms of food sensitivities may include gas, bloating, abdominal pain, cramping, diarrhea, nausea, constipation, headaches, migraines, eczema, other skin issues, brain fog, fatigue, congestion, runny nose, other sinus issues, depression, poor immunity, and more.
Food intolerances often produce similar issues and delayed, chronic reactions as food sensitivities, but they are different. They occur because of a deficiency of an enzyme necessary to digest a certain food. For example, lactose intolerance develops due to a lack of enzyme lactase, which is needed to break down lactose, a sugar found in cow’s milk.
You may develop histamine intolerance if your body doesn’t have enough DAO (Diamine oxidase) or HNMT (Histamine N-methyltransferase) enzymes to break down excess histamine, causing histamine buildup and histamine reactions.
While noticing and avoiding food allergies is easier because of the immediate and often severe symptoms, food sensitivities and food intolerances are trickier.
Common food sensitivities include gluten, corn, dairy, eggs, shellfish, nuts, and seeds. Many must avoid or reduce these, or some of these, foods. However, you may have issues with other, less common foods.
Using an elimination diet and watching your symptoms may be the best way to note your personal food sensitivities. Food sensitivities can change over time, so if new symptoms occur, you may want to do another elimination diet.
Food Timing Issues
The timing of your meals can also be important. Avoid eating too late. Ideally, allow 3 to 5 hours between dinner and bedtime. Avoid nighttime snacking. Eating too late at night can lead to blood sugar imbalances, hypoglycemic symptoms, acid reflux, other digestive issues, poor sleep, and low energy during the day.
Drinking herbal teas, such as chamomile, valerian, passionflower, or lavender, may be a good option instead of snacking at night to help you sleep and support your health.
