Understanding Our Bodies – Fiber!
ost of us already know that we should be eating fiber – according to the Institute of Medicine, adults should be eating 20-35 grams of it per day. But why? What’s so important about fiber anyway? What ...
Understanding Our Bodies: Insulin
Almost everyone has heard of Insulin. You probably know that people with type 1 diabetes need to inject themselves with insulin to survive, and must constantly monitor the amount of sugar they eat. But what do ...
Understanding Our Bodies: The Role of Antioxidants
It seems like every day there’s a new super-food that is chock full of antioxidants and ready to cure everything from the flu to cancer. Antioxidants are touted as a nutritional panacea, but I would bet that ...
New Study Connects Leptin to Dopamine
As I’ve been writing the “Understanding Our Bodies: The Physiology of Nutrition” series, I’ve tried to explain how the various chemical systems in our bodies relate to how and what we eat. For example, ...
Understanding our Bodies: Dopamine and Its Rewards
As much as we’d like to deny it, there’s a lot more involved in our decision making when it comes to food than just the advice of our inner and outer nutritionists. For the most part, we know that ...
Understanding Our Bodies: Amino Acids Are Important
Just about every diet I know of supports eating a large portion of protein. Whether the strategy is to cut carbs or to cut fat or to cut calories in general, just about everyone agrees that protein is good for ...
Understanding Our Bodies: Serotonin, The Connection Between Food and Mood
Continuing the series on The Physiology of Nutrition, I present to you the connection between food and mood – serotonin. While it’s easy to see how what we eat has a direct impact on our waistlines, it ...
Understanding Our Bodies: Leptin (The Fullness Hormone)
Time and time again, I tell you guys that the best way to stay healthy is to stay informed. Read labels, I say. Know what you’re eating. Know what you’re not eating. Know this, know that, etc and make ...