Health Affixed

Health Is Limitless

Food Quality: Snack Upgrades

by

I used to be there; my snack foods consisted of peanut M&Ms, blue Doritos, cookies, and potato chips. My snack world was extremely limited because I was a creature of habit and those snacks were the snacks that I tried and knew that I liked so I didn’t bother looking elsewhere.

However, starting a journey to health forces you to examine your choices, and an examination of my choice of snack was long overdue. So, we all know that fruits make great snacks, but sometimes you don’t want fruit, nuts, or any other “healthy” snack. Sometimes you want something sweet like chocolate, search this website for the post called “Weakness: Chocolate” for some tips. Sometimes you want a bag of chips or other salty snack. One of the highlights of eating in 2018 is that you have a ton of healthier snack options; it seems that the demand for healthier snack options is at an all-time high and corporations are competing for the number one spot.

The end result is that you are no longer limited to the options that you once treasured growing up. Explore the new snack world which is filled with more “healthier” options than ever before.

THA Challenge: Try a new healthier snack that is in the same category as your treasured snack; love popcorn? Try a healthier brand or popping method. Love chips? Try a different type of chip like plantain chips. Love cookies? Try crispy thin cookies instead of thick chewy cookies.

Running for a Cause

by

There are so many worthy causes with annual invitations to run and walk. Why not participate?

Friendly competition is the best competition because everyone is a winner. Not to mention that your efforts and participation directly benefit people in need of support. The causes vary, the locations vary, and the activities vary. Thus, no matter what issue is close to your heart, where you live, or your activity level, you can make a difference and collectively we can have an impact on the issues that plague our society.

Explore here.

Warning: Drinking Too Much Water

by

A cold glass of water makes a very refreshing drink on a hot day or after a sweat session, but what if one glass is not enough? What if I need five glasses of water or a 20 oz bottle? Will I suffer from water intoxication or hyponatremia?

According to WebMD, individuals who are young and healthy will generally not develop hyponatremia unless they drink multiple liters of water at once. Our kidneys can only expel about half a liter of water within an hour. A half of a liter is equivalent to about 17 fluid ounces. So, if I were to consume a 20 oz bottle of water in one sitting, I will likely not put myself at risk of developing hyponatremia. However, if I drank four 20 oz bottles of water in one sitting, the chance of developing hyponatremia becomes much more likely.

When you drink an enormous amount of water at one time (think multiple gallons), the excess water may cause your sodium or salt levels to reduce drastically which may result in the fatal condition called hyponatremia. The sodium levels are regulated so that the fluids around the cells remain balanced. When the sodium levels are too low, the fluids move from the blood to inside the cells which causes the cells to swell. Swelling inside of the brain is a serious problem that requires swift medical attention and can result in seizures or a coma. If you are exercising for two hours or more, you should consider replenishing with a sports drink in conjunction with plain water; search this website for the post called “Recovery Basics: Cool Down and Replenish” for more information.

According to M.D. Alert, each year more athletes suffer from hyponatremia than dehydration. John Henry Dreyfuss advises that approximately 13-15% of endurance athletes have experienced hyponatremia. In addition, he states that sodium supplementation does not appear to affect the occurrence of hyponatremia. As a result, it appears that the most effective advice that coaches can provide is to tell endurance athletes to drink only when thirsty.

Bottom Line: Too much of anything can be harmful as the body seems to thrive in a balanced state; water is no exception. Drink water when thirsty and avoid consuming gallons of water as a weight management technique. Otherwise, you may end up putting yourself at risk for hyponatremia.

Warning: Avoid Water with Meal

by

In the old days, the trick to obtaining a full stomach quickly was to drink a sip of water before and after each bite of food. It was a tedious method that I found to be difficult to practice. I may have tried it once or twice during a meal, but I knew it would not be something that my psyche or body could tolerate on a regular basis.

About a year ago, I read that you should not drink water while eating. In fact, according to The Times of India, drinking water while eating may severely hamper the stomach’s digestive powers and cause insulin levels to spike or fluctuate significantly. Macrobiotic counselor, Shonali Sabherwal, warns against drinking water with a meal because it may dilute the digestive juices that the stomach releases in anticipation of the meal that is about to be consumed. The article states that drinking a sip or two of water while eating should not cause an issue, but drinking a glass or two may cause digestive issues.

It would appear that the best course of action is to make sure that you are hungry and not thirsty before you even begin eating a meal. Search this website for the post called “Feelings: Separating Thirst from Hunger” for more information. As noted above, a few sips during the meal is fine, but you should not drink a full glass or two of water until approximately two hours after your meal.

The reason you may feel the need to drink so much water during the meal may be because the meal is salty or you are inhaling your food. Both of these issues can trigger the thirst reflex. Avoid salty foods and chew your food slowly so that it is properly moistened before it is swallowed.

Psychological Trauma: Mind v. Body v. Food

by

Food is the enemy when one is struggling with an eating disorder. According to Addiction Center, there are three common eating disorders: Anorexia Nervosa, Binge Eating, and Bulimia Nervosa. However, I would be remiss if I did not mention Purging as well.

Anorexia: a person eats far less food than his or her body needs; the person generally measures his or her food intake by attempting to meticulously track each and every calorie eaten and burned. There is a sense of extreme control of food that is generally tied to an unhealthy body image.

Binge Eating: sudden and frequent severe overeating in one sitting in a manner that is often out of control.

Bulimia Nervosa: where an individual practices binge eating followed by unhealthy weight management techniques such as voluntary regurgitation.

Purging: forced regurgitation without a preceding binge which means that the individual may voluntarily regurgitate any food consumed without regard to the amount eaten or caloric value.

According to Mental Health America, eating disorders are complex medical and psychiatric illnesses categorized as bio-psycho-social diseases that may culminate into a life-threatening obsession with food, body image, and/or body weight caused by various biological, sociocultural, and psychological factors including genetic predisposition, low self-esteem, and abuse. These eating disorders have many health consequences including: heart failure, osteoporosis, muscle loss, growth of lanugo (fine hair) all over the body, gastric rupture, tooth decay, rupture of the esophagus, pancreatitis, heart disease, type II diabetes mellitus, gastric rupture, and gallbladder disease.

In Princeton Journal of Bioethics, Lauren Abruzzo, appears to argue that, in severe cases, replenishing the health of an individual suffering from an eating disorder should trump the individual’s autonomy to determine his or her medical care because the eating disorder actually undermines the individual’s autonomy in that the disorder itself disrupts the individual’s capacity to decide what is in his or her best interest health wise.

Similarly, permitting the individual to make the inevitable decision to decline treatment for a treatable life-threatening disease would seem immoral and contrary to the Hippocratic Oath. Autonomy for health does not appear to exist when the mind is preoccupied with waging war against the sustenance that the body needs to achieve a healthy state. In fact, one would argue that, in severe cases, the mind is on a suicide mission and, like suicidal individuals, patients who severely suffer from an eating disorder should not be permitted to have autonomy over their health because being healthy or staying alive is not their main goal.