Vas at the Multiple Sclerosis Race for the Cure Walk
After being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, I immediately began my search for optimal health. Naturally, I started out with medications proven to help decrease the incidence of MS flare ups, but I also wanted to do more.After much research, I began to realize that medications were not the only answer for fighting MS. The more I read, the more I realized that there was so much more that I could do by taking charge of my health.
These days everything from cereal to vodka is fortified with vitamins and minerals. But getting 500% of a day’s worth of vitamin C might not be necessary — or have any health benefits at all. In fact, several experts say getting mega-doses of some vitamins might even be risky, not to mention costly.
Here are four so-called “healthy” foods that actually may be harmful to your health … and your wallet:
Every three months, Pamela Bryant, 50, stops eating food for at least 10 days to clean the gunk out of her body. When she’s hungry, she drinks a concoction of lemon juice, cayenne pepper and maple syrup, laxative tea or saltwater.The popular liquid detox diet, known as the Master Cleanser, has few nutrients and is ridiculed by most nutrition experts. But Bryant swears it helps her lose weight and reduce cravings for sugar, caffeine and marijuana.When it’s over, “you feel incredible,” said Bryant, a Maui massage therapist. “You have way more energy, and all your vital organs are rested and detoxified.”
Alice After
Alice Before
Consulting with Stella last August was one of the best decisions of my life. For the past five years, my health had increasing declined. I experienced chronic and unexplained fatigue, insomnia, bloating, inflammation, digestive problems, and declining ability to absorb essential vitamins and nutrients. Despite my efforts to “eat right” and exercise, I was feeling increasingly worse and putting on weight. I felt helpless and quite frankly, I was convinced that I would never feel normal again.
Brenda Berg’s Story:
When Brenda initially signed up, she wanted to drastically improve her health, and be in the best shape of her life. During our first appointment, Brenda shared that she felt something wasn’t quite right. She was working out daily, dieting and taking an array of vitamins, with no real improvements. Brenda suffered from fatigue, inadequate sleep, and body-aches that would actually wake her up in the middle of the night. She also had about 20 pounds to lose, with no success in her previous dietary intervention of calorie restriction–also known as dieting. Finally, Brenda really wanted to be healthy (I’m quoting Brenda) ” I just want to be health and look good for my age. I want my energy back!”
Prior to seeing Stella at W8less Nutrition, I was consuming a lot of processed grains, cereals, soy, and frozen dinners. I was strictly concerned about my caloric intake rather than the actual makeup of the food I was consuming. I had a lot of indigestion and my energy levels would go up and down all day. I was not aware of the importance of getting my nutrients from its raw source and how it attributes to digestion, recovery, and my overall energy level.
Since I have changed my diet and gotten away from processed foods, I have noticed a steady energy level throughout the day and my recovery rate is far beyond what it used to be. With 30 hours of training a week and 40 hours of work, it is vital I put the correct foods in my “engine” that allow me to complete my workouts with focus, and also allow it to recover for the next day.
Facing an Overweight
Electorate, Barack Obama
Might Find Low Body Fat a
Drawback
By AMY CHOZICK
Speaking to donors at a San Diego fund-raiser last month, Barack Obama reassured the crowd that he wouldn’t give in to Republican tactics to throw his candidacy off track.
“Listen, I’m skinny but I’m tough,” Sen. Obama said.
But in a nation in which 66% of the voting-age population is overweight and 32% is obese, could Sen. Obama’s skinniness be a liability? Despite his visits to waffle houses, ice-cream parlors and greasy-spoon diners around the country, his slim physique just might have some Americans wondering whether he is truly like them.
BEFORE 174 LBS.
LOST 12 LBS.!
BY EATING LESS WHITE FLOUR
Jim Nesbitt cross-trained five days a week and was fairly trim at 174 lbs. Except, he says, “my belly stuck out.” Frustrated, the Tustin, Calif., computer network broker, 46, hired nutritionist Stella Metsovas, who noticed he ate a lot of floury foods. “I love my pizza, pasta and bread,” says the dad of 7-year-old twins.
I’m very proud to be recognized as a national media-expert in detoxification and metabolism, which means all information presented is research-backed and published.
What is Detoxification? Working in LA, I hear the “Oh, I’m fasting” statement quite often. It could be at a coffee/tea shop, out to lunch, or at the gym. Whenever I hear this statement, I’m always curious about what kind of fast in which they’re engaged, but never indulge in asking.
As a nutritionist, I’m aware of two types of fasts: The one that makes sense and the other that is just plain stupid. The Master Cleanse is a colossal example of the just plain stupid fast. Those who partake are sipping lemonade sweetened with maple syrup for a minimum of 10 days — and even as long as 45 days.
Personally, I rarely “slam” individuals beliefs, especially those pertaining to health. But how could anyone believe that this fast — which includes lemon, water, maple syrup and cayenne pepper — could actually bring the body back to health. First and foremost, you’re causing more stress to the system by rapidly moving from the average diet (which includes coffee, alcohol and processed foods), to an overnight famine-mode.
Most people today have compromised immune systems due to many factors, one of which is following their beliefs in diets such as The Master Cleanse. The compromised immune system could actually make you sicker and set you up for a big dietary crash. And here’s the worst part: Once Master Cleansers are finished with their fast, they inevitably return to their previous habits. As they return to their real-life consumption within a few days (the immune system is lowered because of the famine mode), you actually could be more prone to problems associated with being sick, including joint/muscle pain, lethargy, constipation and a host of other negative consequences.
Trust me, if you really want to fast properly, first figure out if you have any underlying ‘food intolerance’. In office, I clinically test for food intolerance’s and gastrointestinal problems. You can try doing a rotation-diet at home, by omitting a list of foods for three to four weeks, or, to make it really easy, consume a specific list of low allergenic foods for 3-4 weeks and gradually introduce foods back into your dietary regimen (please see list of foods at the end of this column).
When you introduce foods back into your diet, keep a list of symptoms that could occur once ingested (also included at the end of this column).
To find out more about ‘Stella Metsovas ’s Detoxification Protocol’ use the Contact Us link and schedule a mini-consultation offered at no charge!
