Striving4Zen

The "once you pop, you can't stop" Pringles campaign seemed kind of cute, but the catch phrase actually embodied truth in advertising. Former FDA commissioner David A. Kessler says some foods are scientifically engineered with particular combinations of salt, sugar, and fat that ultimately take you to your "bliss point" and keep you reaching for more.

The appetite is manipulated by these flavor combinations and your willpower doesn't stand much of a chance after you've had a taste. The brain's pleasure system is shot into nirvana, and then you crave to relive that moment of pleasure by eating the same junk food. But that doesn't mean you're powerless — knowing what foods trigger your bliss point will enable you to avoid them, and ultimately those cravings should vanish.

In his book, The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite, Kessler identifies some of the most blissful (and offensive) menu items.

Classically comforting dishes like cheese fries, buffalo wings, chicken tenders, spinach dip, and potato skins, are all designed so you want to devour the entire plate. If moderation just isn't an option when you're presented with these foods, skip the order altogether and find a creative swap instead.

For example, satisfy your desire for potato skins by ordering a healthy baked potato instead. Top it with salsa or broccoli and go light on the cheese, butter, and sour cream for a nutritious and delicious substitute. You should notice your cravings subside the more you forgo those tricky foods that entice you to keep eating.

Thanks Fit!

Labels: bliss point, cravings, David A. Kessler, eating healthy, FDA, junk food, new book

What To Eat When…

You’re Stressed

Modern life is a big, boiling cauldron of anxiety stew, and we get a heaping helping every day. Whether you’re talking to your boss about a promotion, talking to your spouse about the credit cards bills, or talking to your kids about a streak of bad behavior, there’s always a stress-soaked moment around the corner. So calm yourself quick with these natural nerve-settlers.

Eat This:

1 cup of low-fat yogurt; 2 tbsp of nuts
Scientists in Slovakia gave people 3 grams each of two amino acids—lysine and arginine—or a placebo and asked them to deliver a speech. Blood measurements of stress hormones revealed that the amino acid—fortified guys were half as anxious during and after the speech as those who took the placebo. Yogurt is one of the best food sources of lysine and nuts pack tons of arginine.

Red Bell Peppers
Researchers at the University of Alabama fed rats 200 milligrams of vitamin C twice a day and found that it nearly stopped the secretion of stress hormones. Add half a sliced red bell pepper to a salad or sandwich; calorie for calorie, no single food gives you more vitamin C.

A Cup of Peppermint Tea
The scent of peppermint helps you focus and boosts performance, according to researchers. In another study, they found that peppermint makes drivers more alert and less anxious.

A Handful of Sesame Seeds
Stress Hormones can deplete your body’s supply of magnesium, reducing your abilities and increasing your risk of developing high blood pressure. Sesame seeds are packed with this essential mineral.

Not That!

A Can of Soda
A study from the American Journal of Public Health found that people who drink 2 ½ cans of soda daily are three time more likely to be depressed and anxious, compared with those who drink fewer.

You’re Sad

Watch enough TV advertising and you begin to think the only answer to a bad mood is a bottle of pills. Wrong! Your next meal can have as dramatic an impact on your mood as your next prescription refill. So the next time you have a gnawing feeling that something’s amiss, try gnawing on one of these.

Eat This:
An arugula or spinach salad
Leafy greens—arugula, chard, spinach—are rich sources of B vitamins, which are part of the assembly line that manufactures feel-good hormones such as serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine. In fact, according to a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience Nursing, a lack of B6 can cause nervousness, irritability and even depression.

Tuna Sashimi or Grilled Salmon
A study in Finland found that people who eat more fish are 31% less likely to suffer from depression. And skip sweet, simple carbs (like the rice with you sushi)—the inevitable sugar crash can deepen depression.

1 tbsp of Ground Flaxseed Daily
Flax is the best source of alpha-linoleic acid, or ALA—a healthy fat that improves the working of the cerebral cortex, the area of the brain that processes sensory information, including that of pleasure. To meet your quota, sprinkle it on salads or mix it into a smoothie or shake.

Not That!
White Chocolate
White chocolate isn’t technically chocolate, since it contains no cocoa solids. That means it also lacks the ability to stimulate the euphoria-inducing chemicals that real chocolate does, especially serotonin. If you’re going to grab some chocolate, darker is better; more cacao means more happy chemicals and less sugar, which will eventually pull you down.

Excerpted from Eat This, Not That by David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding. Rodale Books, 2007.

Labels: David Zinczenko, Eat This, eating healthy, food and mood, healthy eating, men's health, new book, Not That

In preparing the book, Eric Weiner did what any enterprising reporter would do: he headed straight for the World Database of Happiness, a nondescript, if not dreary, building in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, that houses scores of surveys on cheer.
Based on those studies, Weiner finessed a 10-locale itinerary — including the Netherlands, Qatar, Iceland, Moldova, Thailand, Great Britain, India and, of course, the U.S.

Here's what he found out about some of the most jovial territories around:
- Bhutan has a Gross National Happiness policy. "It's their way of saying there is more to life than money," Weiner says.
- The Swiss are happier than most because they suppress envy. "They believe, 'If you've got it, hide it,'" Weiner explains. Whereas, "our philosophy is, 'If you've got it, flaunt it.'"
- In Iceland, "they embrace failure and even seem to enjoy it. But there is also a real sense of community."

Labels: Eric Weiner, geography, happiness, Netherlands, new book

1. "Don't eat anything your grandmother wouldn't recognize as food."
2. "Avoid foods containing ingredients you can't pronounce."
3. "Don't eat anything that won't eventually rot."
4. "Avoid food products that carry health claims."
5. "Shop the peripheries of the supermarket; stay out of the middle."
6. "Better yet, buy food somewhere else: the farmers' market or CSA."
7. "Pay more, eat less."
8. "Eat a wide variety of species."
9. "Eat food from animals that eat grass."
10. "Cook, and if you can, grow some of your own food."
11. "Eat meals and eat them only at tables."
12. "Eat deliberately, with other people whenever possible, and always with pleasure."

Michael Pollan's Twelve Commandments for Serious Eaters, from his new book, In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto.

Labels: healthy dining, Michael Pollan, new book