Sweet Everywhere

Sweeteners (with different names) and alcohol are everywhere, even in your mouthwash products:

Of course, we don't drink it, I'm just wondering what effect it has on dental health.

Other names for sugar and sweeteners:

1. Anhydrous dextrose
2. Agave nectar
3. Beet sugar
4. Brown sugar (light and dark brown)
5. Cane juice (solids)
6. Cane sugar/syrup
7. Carob syrup
8. Caster sugar
9. Coconut sugar
10. Confectioners’ sugar
11. Corn syrup (solids)
12. Crystalline fructose
13. Date sugar
14. Demerara sugar
15. Dextran
16. Dextrose
17. Dehydrated cane juice

18. Dulcitol

19. Erythritol
20. Evaporated cane juice
21. Evaporated cane syrup
22. Evaporated sugar cane
23. Fructose
24. Fructose crystals
25. Fruit juice crystals
26. Fruit juice concentrate
27. Glazing sugar
28. Glucose
29. Glucose syrup
30. Golden sugar
31. Golden syrup
32. Granulated sugar
33. High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS)
34. Honey
35. Icing sugar
36. Invert sugar/syrup
37. King’s syrup
38. Lactose

39. Levulose
40. Maple sugar/syrup

41. Maltodextrin
42. Maltose
43. Malt sugar/syrup

44. Mannitol

45. Mannose
46. Molasses
47. Muscovado
48. Nectar
49. Pancake syrup
50. Panocha
51. Powdered sugar
52. Raw sugar
53. Refiners’ syrup

54. Saccharose

55. Sorbitol
56. Sorghum (syrup)
57. Sucanat

58. Sucralose
59. Sucrose
60. Sugar
61. Superfine sugar
62. Table sugar
63. Treacle
64. Turbinado sugar
65. White sugar

66. Xylitol 

67. Xylose
68. Yellow sugar

Modern Epidemic

“When diet is wrong, medicine is of no use. When diet is right, medicine is not needed.“ 
- Ayurvedic wisdom

Obesity and chronic diseases

Today, obesity is increasing at an alarming rate. Fat tissue growth increases our risk for chronic diseases, such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease etc. By this logic, if we lose fat tissue, we also reduce our risk for these diseases at the same time. So, what makes us fat?

Hair Loss and Diet

I have recently received many requests from women with hair problems (hair loss; thin, unruly hair etc.) They usually say that they have tried everything: supplements, hair packs, detox diets, green juices etc., and nothing seems to work.

Carbohydrate Tolerance

We are all different and our tolerance to carbohydrates also differs depending on:

• the quantity of carbohydrates consumed
• the quality of these carbohydrates
• the amount of time we've been consuming these different types of carbohydrates
• the genetic profile of the individual.

Improvements in Biomarkers through Diet

I was quite busy working with diabetic patients on their diet, this is the reason why I have been absent from my blog for the past few months.

Diabetes and Blood Sugar Control

"There are essential amino acids and essential fatty acids, but there is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate."
                                                                         - Dr. Bernstein (Diabetes Solution)

Videos: The Skinny on Obesity

Sorry for being repetitive, I've already posted a few of these videos earlier. They are very interesting with easy to understand animation. Enjoy!

Oxidative Stress

Oxidative stress is caused by the overproduction of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS). Normal amounts of ROS are important to protect the body from pathogens, but high amounts of these ROS can lead to damage in healthy cells, leading to chronic diseases.

Metabolic Syndrome

Great summary from the book Fat Chance (Robert H. Lustig) about the development of Metabolic Syndrome (in bold):

Video Presentation: Fat Chance

Recently I've been quoting a lot from the book Fat Chance, by Robert H. Lustig (I borrowed it from the library), and here's the easy-to-understand presentation. If you watch this video, you don't even need to read the book.

Enjoy!

Sugar in Disguise

Article: 16 Supposedly Healthy Foods With More Sugar Than A Snickers Bar

In this article I received today (thank you, Ross!) you can see that certain foods might not be as "healthy" as their manufacturers claim. We might be consuming more sugar than we think.

The Effects of Sugar on the Brain

According to this article: Junk food can junk your memory in a week, suggests new study

A Few Simple Recipes

When people ask me what I eat, I always say: the same as before, but without refined grains and sugar. It looks something like this (see picture).

1. Pumpkin and cauliflower. 
Very easy to prepare, just boil these vegetables, add a bit of butter and salt at the end.

2. Pork belly with eggplant. 
Slice fresh pork belly (not bacon) and eggplant. Fry in butter. When almost done, add garlic and fresh chili, salt and pepper.

3. Halibut with rosemary.
Fry halibut in butter, add rosemary and lemon when done. Season with salt and nutmeg.

4. Pork belly with local greens.
Thin slices of pork belly fried in butter. When almost done, season with salt and pepper.

5. Capers.
Bought at the store (no artificial ingredients, no sugar) to season plate number 6.

6. Fried tomato and bell pepper.
Cut tomato and bell pepper, fry in butter or ghee (clarified butter). When almost done, add garlic, green onion, salt and pepper to taste.

This, of course, does not mean that everybody should eat like this. The most important is to reduce refined carbohydrates and sugar which unfortunately became an important part of our modern diet.

The Effects of Fructose

I recently received a little present from Hungary: a chocolate bar. I was very surprised to read on the packaging: “Suitable for diabetics”. I checked the ingredients behind, it listed 35% fructose!

Alzheimer's Prevention

Very excited to read articles like this on the web: You Can Prevent Alzheimer's.

(I already mentioned the harmful effects of sugar on the brain and how it really works: Brain - Cancer and Alzheimer's.)

"[...] in diabetics having the highest level of various diabetes associated factors, things like vascular issues or leg ulcers, the risk of becoming demented was increased an astounding 37 fold."

Burger King Fries With Less Calories?... Misleading!

From this article:

"Fast-food giant Burger King has introduced lower-fat, fewer-calories french fries to united States patrons, allowing customers to order a side of 'Satisfries' with their meal."

Sugar and Other Stuff In Our Coffee

Sweetener
Ingredients: Sucrose Syrup (Cane), Water, Flavour, Preservatives (211, 202), Food Acid (330).

Do We Need Supplements?

It is a bit of a paradox that in this world of plenty, most of us are deficient in vitamins and minerals. The question is why we became deficient and what to eat or take in order to overcome these deficiencies. Many people has the mistaken belief that a bad diet will be rebalanced by taking supplements.

Brain - Cancer and Alzheimer's

Article Number 1:

When it Comes to Brain Cancer, Let's Look Beyond Chemo

In cancer research, it is very important to understand how cancer cells work, what they need to thrive and multiply, in other words their metabolism. As I've mentioned before, sugar (glucose) is an important "food" for cancer cells, as they generate energy by fermentation (Sugar and Cancer and Starving Cancer Cells). They are unable to survive in an oxygen rich environment and without sugar.

My Shopping Cart

To give you an idea of what kind of food I buy every day, please check out my shopping cart for today: