What’s the Skinny on Fat?

Back in the early 90s, I remember gorging on Snackwell fat free chocolate cookies, biting into the not at all moist center, wishing, with each chew, that the taste of chalk would subside. It’s not as though I craved these domes of fluffed up chemicals, rather, I ate them because they tasted good enough for cookies that were healthy. In those moments of weakness I basically got high on sugar (the ingredient they used to replace fat), crashed, then would reach for the box and realize I had already finished the entire thing. I know I was not the only one.

The fat free movement may have started innocently enough - hydrogenated fats found in processed foods do cause cardiovascular disease. But the food industry capitalized on this by telling us we shouldn’t have any fat, and that we should only eat “fat free.” They created an untold number of new products that we had to purchase or else we would get fat. Or sick. Or die. Fat free crackers, yogurts, cheeses, milk. Heart healthy margarines and egg replacers.

“Fat” was a four letter word.

Until we learned, fat free was just another fad. The diet police were wrong, fat free foods don’t prevent weight gain. The health police discredited the movement as well; The British Medical journal confirmed in October 2013 that indeed, saturated fat was NOT bad for the heart. Time magazine told us to Eat Butter in 2014.

Yet, low and non fat foods continue to fly off the shelves. So why the disconnect?

Perhaps the food giants don’t want us consumers to understand the nuances between healthy fats and unhealthy fats, saturated or unsaturated, trans fats or hydrogenated fats. But know this, all fats are not created equal.

Good fats are essential. Good fats serve as the building blocks of our cell membranes and our hormones. We need good fat so that every organ in our body can function efficiently and effectively. Fat helps us burn energy slowly and it prevents us from craving carbohydrates. Fat is satiating so we are nourished without overeating. Fat does not compromise our cardiovascular system, promote weight gain or suck all of our energy. It is hydrogenated fats and trans fats and processed vegetable oils that are the real problem.

Good fats are fats that come from whole food sources, animals fats or cold pressed olive, flax and avocado oils (among others). Indulge in fatty fish, grass-fed butter, coconut oil, eggs. And try to break those old habits- drink whole milk, not skim. Eat full fat, not non fat yogurt.

And if you really want to eat a cookie, eat one cookie. One real cookie, made preferably from grass-fed butter, cream and organic, pastured eggs - not one of those nasty Snackwells.

Homemade Almond Milk

The new alternative milk craze (almond/cashew/hemp/coconut and good ‘ol rice or soy) is in full gear. These products take up nearly an entire aisle of Whole Foods (or your local equivalent)! This is a good thing for those of us who don’t do well with dairy - it allows us to try different varieties of nut milks and have some non dairy milk on hand in case of a culinary emergency. However, the commercial brands, even the best of them, contain some or many undesirable preservatives (think carageegan) to keep them fresh for a longer shelf life. It really is incredibly easy to whip up some homemade almond milk if you have a good recipe and a high-powered blender. And trust me, once you go homemade, you will never want to go back to commercial.

EASY AND SUPER DELICIOUS HOMEMADE ALMOND MILK

YIELD: 3.5 CUPS
PREP TIME: 10 MINUTES

INGREDIENTS

1 cup raw almonds, soaked in water

3.5 cups filtered water

1-2 pitted Medjool dates

1 whole vanilla bean chopped (or 1/2-1 tsp vanilla extract)

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

small pinch of fine grain sea salt, to enhance flavor

DIRECTIONS

Place almonds in a bowl and cover with filtered water. It’s preferred to soak them overnight (for 8-12 hours) in the water, but you can get away with soaking for 1-2 hours.

Rinse and drain the almonds and place into a blender along with 4 cups filtered water, pitted dates, and chopped vanilla bean.

Blend on highest speed for 1 minute or so.

Place a nut milk bag over a large bowl and slowly pour the almond milk mixture into the bag. Gently squeeze the bottom of the bag to release the milk. This is a tad labor intensive and messy, but trust me, it is worth it.

Rinse out blender and pour the milk back in. Add the cinnamon and pinch of sea salt and blend on low to combine.

Pour into a glass jar to store in the fridge for up to 3-5 days. Shake jar very well before using, as the mixture separates when sitting. Enjoy!

Bonus: The leftover almond meal is great for gluten free baking recipes- I also use it as a filler for homemade veggie burgers and salmon patties.

The Road to Healing

Welcome to Themindfulgut where I will share what I have learned on my lifelong journey from chronic pain and illness to good digestive health and overall wellbeing. The science is clear: better digestive health will help with metabolism, nutrient absorption (which is the root cause of so many ailments) and a better mental state. It is possible to feel better and live a healthier and happier life, simply by understanding the importance of what we eat, learning what our body needs and then eating and living mindfully.

At the age of 14, I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis (an inflammatory bowel disease or IBD). Ulcerative colitis is an auto-immune disease that affects the lining of the large intestine (colon) causing severe abdominal pain and gastrointestinal bleeding, among other things.  There is no known cause of Ulcerative Colitis and there is no cure, other than to remove the colon. I resigned to live a life where I casually took nine capsules of medicine daily, always felt mildly uncomfortable and often was in pain.  I lived with the disease by managing it, which worked for many years.  Until it didn’t.

When I was in my late twenties, I saw top specialists for a variety of physical ailments, but no one was connecting the dots.  I was diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), psoriasis, spondylitis - all autoimmune disorders - but no doctor saw that these issues were related. The doctors treated symptoms individually, but there was always something going on - and as time marched on, more symptoms arose. When I spoke to my doctors about ways I could change things for myself by way of diet and nutrition, I was told there was nothing I could do to help myself other than take my drugs and try to reduce stress.

So I did what I could to reduce stress.   Yoga and psychotherapy helped.  I ate a diet of mostly organic foods.  Although I was ill into my thirties and was sick during both of my pregnancies, none of my doctors seemed alarmed.  Indeed, I was told that I was high risk for getting colon cancer and lymphoma, but it was understood that since I was being monitored by the top doctors in New York City, whatever disease I might get would be caught early enough to treat.  This was unsettling, but I felt there was nothing I could do except trust these highly regarded experts.

It was not until my infant son began to have health problems, that I learned I could heal myself.  In order to understand and resolve his health and developmental issues, we went to a very progressive developmental pediatrician.  We completely changed my son’s diet, eliminating dairy, gluten and soy.  In solidarity with him, I took dairy out of my diet.

Amazingly, within five days, some of my son’s physical and neurological symptoms diminished. And within weeks, my colitis and many of my other ailments began to disappear. Six weeks after taking dairy out of my diet, and putting myself on omega 3 and probiotic dietary supplements, my gastroenterologist of ten years performed a colonoscopy and said,  “I don’t recognize you. Keep doing whatever you’re doing”. One year and another colonoscopy later, my doctor said, “If I didn’t know you, I’d never know you have ulcerative colitis.” After that visit, I took myself off of the drugs entirely.  One year later, my doctor said there is no sign of the disease and that he saw no evidence that I ever had ulcerative colitis.

This was diet. I now live disease-free and drug-free.  I have educated myself through reading, research and learning from various alternative and open-minded medical practitioners.  I am now a Nutritional Therapy Consultant, where I help people understand that they, too, can take control of their health and see dramatic shifts in their physical, neurological and mental health. It is not too late to reverse the effects that your diet or your genetics or your microbiome has inflicted on you. You don’t need to accept poor function or chalk things up to the effects of aging. Our bodies have an innate intelligence that can guide us to healing. The key is to find, in your specific case, how best to get on that healing track. Hopefully these articles, recipes, mindfulness exercises and alternative therapy recommendations will help you find a way to help yourself.