Archive for November, 2009

Its February, it’s valentines, its romance so its chocolate! This is an old post but I decide to make it a sticky
So I can be reminder that chocolate is candy and candy is sugar and see what sugar do to us!
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Being a working mom most of the time means pressed for time. A lot of healthy habits can sometimes be luxury and I’m a witness to that. My husband sent me this email today with some facts about sugar boy did I go wow! Sugar is sweet but the results can be very bitter.
Read on below…
Working Mom for Healthy Living
Sugar’s effect on your health
The average American consumes an astounding 2-3 pounds of sugar each week, which is not surprising considering that highly refined sugars in the forms of sucrose (table sugar), dextrose (corn sugar), and high-fructose corn syrup are being processed into so many foods such as bread, breakfast cereal, mayonnaise, peanut butter, ketchup, spaghetti sauce, and a plethora of microwave meals.

In the last 20 years, we have increased sugar consumption in the U.S. 26 pounds to 135 lbs. of sugar per person per year! Prior to the turn of this century (1887-1890), the average consumption was only 5 lbs. per person per year! Cardiovascular disease and cancer was virtually unknown in the early 1900′s.

The “glycemic index” is a measure of how a given food affects blood-glucose levels, with each food being assigned a numbered rating. The lower the rating, the slower the absorption and digestion process, which provides a more gradual, healthier infusion of sugars into the bloodstream. On the other hand, a high rating means that blood-glucose levels are increased quickly, which stimulates the pancreas to secrete insulin to drop blood-sugar levels. These rapid fluctuations of blood-sugar levels are not healthy because of the stress they place on the body.

One of sugar’s major drawbacks is that it raises the insulin level, which inhibits the release of growth hormones, which in turn depresses the immune system. This is not something you want to take place if you want to avoid disease.

An influx of sugar into the bloodstream upsets the body’s blood-sugar balance, triggering the release of insulin, which the body uses to keep blood-sugar at a constant and safe level. Insulin also promotes the storage of fat, so that when you eat sweets high in sugar, you’re making way for rapid weight gain and elevated triglyceride levels, both of which have been linked to cardiovascular disease. Complex carbohydrates tend to be absorbed more slowly, lessening the impact on blood-sugar levels.

Sugar depresses the immune system.
We have known this for decades. It was only in the 1970′s that researchers found out that vitamin C was needed by white blood cells so that they could phagocytize viruses and bacteria. White blood cells require a 50 times higher concentration inside the cell as outside so they have to accumulate vitamin C.

There is something called a “phagocytic index” which tells you how rapidly a particular macrophage or lymphocyte can gobble up a virus, bacteria, or cancer cell. It was in the 1970′s that Linus Pauling realized that white blood cells need a high dose of vitamin C and that is when he came up with his theory that you need high doses of vitamin C to combat the common cold.

We know that glucose and vitamin C have similar chemical structures, so what happens when the sugar levels go up? They compete for one another upon entering the cells. And the thing that mediates the entry of glucose into the cells is the same thing that mediates the entry of vitamin C into the cells. If there is more glucose around, there is going to be less vitamin C allowed into the cell. It doesn’t take much: a blood sugar value of 120 reduces the phagocytic index by 75%. So when you eat sugar, think of your immune system slowing down to a crawl.

Here we are getting a little bit closer to the roots of disease. It doesn’t matter what disease we are talking about, whether we are talking about a common cold or about cardiovascular disease, or cancer or osteoporosis, the root is always going to be at the cellular and molecular level, and more often than not insulin is going to have its hand in it, if not totally controlling it.

The health dangers which ingesting sugar on an habitual basis creates are certain. Simple sugars have been observed to aggravate asthma, move mood swings, provoke personality changes, muster mental illness, nourish nervous disorders, deliver diabetes, hurry heart disease, grow gallstones, hasten hypertension, and add arthritis.

Because refined dietary sugars lack minerals and vitamins, they must draw upon the body’s micro-nutrient stores in order to be metabolized into the system. When these storehouses are depleted, metabolization of cholesterol and fatty acid is impeded, contributing to higher blood serum triglycerides, cholesterol, promoting obesity due to higher fatty acid storage around organs and in sub-cutaneous tissue folds.

Because sugar is devoid of minerals, vitamins, fiber, and has such a deteriorating effect on the endocrine system, major researchers and major health organizations (American Dietetic Association and American Diabetic Association) agree that sugar consumption in America is one of the 3 major causes of degenerative disease.

Honey is a simple sugar
There are 4 classes of simple sugars which are regarded by most nutritionists as “harmful” to optimal health when prolonged consumption in amounts above 15% of the carbohydrate calories are ingested: Sucrose, fructose, honey, and malts.

Some of you may be surprised to find honey here. Although honey is a natural sweetener, it is considered a refined sugar because 96% of dry matter are simple sugars: fructose, glucose and sucrose. It is little wonder that the honey bear is the only animal found in nature with a problem with tooth-decay (honey decays teeth faster than table sugar). Honey has the highest calorie content of all sugars with 65 calories/tablespoon, compared to the 48 calories/tablespoon found in table sugar. The increased calories are bound to cause increased blood serum fatty acids, as well as weight gain, on top of the risk of more cavities.

Pesticides used on farm crops and residential flowers have been found in commercial honey. Honey can be fatal to an infant whose immature digestive tracts are unable to deal effectively with Botulinum Spore growth. What nutrients or enzymes raw honey does contain are destroyed by manufacturers who heat it in order to give it a clear appearance to enhance sales. If you are going to consume honey, make sure it is raw, unheated honey. Good to use in special cures, but not as an every day food. It is not much better than white or brown sugar.

Here is a list of ways sugar can affect your health:
Sugar can suppress the immune system.
Sugar can upset the body’s mineral balance.
Sugar can contribute to hyperactivity, anxiety, depression, concentration difficulties, and crankiness in children.
Sugar can produce a significant rise in triglycerides.
Sugar can cause drowsiness and decreased activity in children.
Sugar can reduce helpful high density cholesterol (HDLs).
Sugar can promote an elevation of harmful cholesterol (LDLs).
Sugar can cause hypoglycemia.
Sugar contributes to a weakened defense against bacterial infection.
Sugar can cause kidney damage.
Sugar can increase the risk of coronary heart disease.
Sugar may lead to chromium deficiency.
Sugar can cause copper deficiency.
Sugar interferes with absorption of calcium and magnesium.
Sugar can increase fasting levels of blood glucose.
Sugar can promote tooth decay.
Sugar can produce an acidic stomach.
Sugar can raise adrenaline levels in children.
Sugar can lead to periodontal disease.
Sugar can speed the aging process, causing wrinkles and grey hair.
Sugar can increase total cholesterol.
Sugar can contribute to weight gain and obesity.
High intake of sugar increases the risk of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
Sugar can contribute to diabetes.
Sugar can contribute to osteoporosis.
Sugar can cause a decrease in insulin sensitivity.
Sugar leads to decreased glucose tolerance.
Sugar can cause cardiovascular disease.
Sugar can increase systolic blood pressure.
Sugar causes food allergies.
Sugar can cause free radical formation in the bloodstream.
Sugar can cause toxemia during pregnancy.
Sugar can contribute to eczema in children.
Sugar can overstress the pancreas, causing damage.
Sugar can cause atherosclerosis.
Sugar can compromise the lining of the capillaries.
Sugar can cause liver cells to divide, increasing the size of the liver.
Sugar can increase the amount of fat in the liver.
Sugar can increase kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney.
Sugar can cause depression.
Sugar can increase the body’s fluid retention.
Sugar can cause hormonal imbalance.
Sugar can cause hypertension.
Sugar can cause headaches, including migraines.
Sugar can cause an increase in delta, alpha and theta brain waves, which can alter the mind’s ability to think clearly.
Sugar can increase blood platelet adhesiveness which increases risk of blood clots and strokes.
Sugar can increase insulin responses in those consuming high-sugar diets compared to low sugar diets.
Sugar increases bacterial fermentation in the colon.
Source: www.nancyappleton.com

Sugar and cancer
Of the over 4 million cancer patients being treated in the U.S. today, almost none are offered any scientifically guided nutrition therapy other than being told to “just eat good foods.” Many cancer patients would have a major improvement in their conditions if they controlled the supply of cancer’s preferred fuel: GLUCOSE. By slowing the cancer’s growth, patients make it possible for their immune systems to catch up to the disease. Controlling one’s blood-glucose levels through diet, exercise, supplements, meditation and prescription drugs – when necessary – can be one of the most crucial components to a cancer treatment program. The saying “Sugar feeds cancer” is simple. The explanation is a little more involved.

German Otto Warburg, Ph.D., the 1931 Nobel laureate in medicine, first discovered that cancer cells have a fundamentally different energy metabolism compared to healthy cells. The gist of his Nobel thesis was this: malignant tumors frequently exhibit an increase in “anaerobic glycolysis” – a process whereby glucose is used by cancer cells as a fuel with lactic acid as an anaerobic by-product – compared to normal tissues.(1) The large amount of lactic acid produced by this fermentation of glucose from the cancer cells is then transported to the liver. This conversion of glucose to lactate creates a lower, more acidic PH in cancerous tissues as well as overall physical fatigue from lactic acid build-up.(2,3) Therefore, larger tumors tend to exhibit a more acidic PH.(4)

Hence, cancer therapies should attempt to regulate blood-glucose levels through diet, supplements, exercise, medication when necessary, gradual weight loss and stress reduction. Since cancer cells derive most of their energy from anaerobic glycolysis, the goal is not to eliminate sugars or carbohydrates entirely from the diet but rather to control blood-glucose within a narrow range to help starve the cancer cells and boost immune function.
References

(1) Warburg O. On the origin of cancer cells. Science 1956 Feb;123:309-14.

(2) Volk T, et al. pH in human tumor xenografts: effect of intravenous administration of glucose. Br J Cancer 1993 Sep;68(3):492-500.

(3) Digirolamo M. Diet and cancer: markers, prevention and treatment. New York: Plenum Press; 1994. p 203.

(4). Leeper DB, et al. Effect of i.v. glucose versus combined i.v. plus oral glucose on human tumor extracellular pH for potential sensitization to thermoradiotherapy. Int J Hyperthermia 1998 May-Jun;14(3):257-69.

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SuperMomPlace.com: I blog about faith, family, kids, hair, being a mom, my ever changing hobbies and other things that cross my mind. What did you think of my blog? Thank you for your comments! I appreciate all your tips, advice, and well wishes!
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Love Roodlyne

WOw it’s Monday already thanksgiving week end has come and gone for this year. Like many of you I did my share of traveling for the holiday weekend. We took the family up to North Carolina to spend the week end with our family. Good times good times! I like it up there a little change of climate, sucked in my share of cold weather for the year, most of all I didn’t have to cook all the food, I didn’t have to watch my kids so close. Why should I? they have 2 sets of grandparents right there with them. I like everything about going up there but the drive. ugh! I dread that drive! I don’t like the drive, that 12 hours of misery of passing exit after exit town after town and longing when am I going to see my exit? it was bad when it was just the two of us now adding two little one makes it more interesting. When my first daughter was 8 months we learn something about traveling with children: Never drive during the day! it is the worst travel experience ever for mom and baby. she was crying, squirming, twitching you name it. She was not having a good time and neither was I. since that time we decide if we ever going to take that drive its going to be a night thing.
although night driving is not always ideal but it work for us. Traveling mom with a 2 year old and an 8months old strap to a car seat for 12 hours is a recipe for disaster. At least at night they go to sleep, and if they ever wake up before we get there I make sure to plan a different toy/activity for every 20 minutes.
Working the schedule is key. Well Thanksgiving is over, I can still express my thanks for safe travel. Now that mom is back to working let keep it moving!
until later
Super Working Mom
Roodlyne

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SuperMomPlace.com: I blog about faith, family, kids, hair, being a mom, my ever changing hobbies and other things that cross my mind. What did you think of my blog? Thank you for your comments! I appreciate all your tips, advice, and well wishes!
Connect with me on twitter @supermomplace and Facebook if this is your first visit grab the rss feed
Love Roodlyne

The Girl Next Door Grows Up
Don’t Mess with My Sleep Number
by Laura
5:15 AM
Yep. That is my sleep number. Actually I wake up at 5:05 AM, but I have my clock set 10 minutes ahead so I can hit snooze and then get out of bed at 5:15 AM. I know. It’s a brilliant system. You just didn’t realize how insane I was until now, did you?

Did I mention that I also wake up at that time 7 days a week? Yes I have read blog posts that talk about “that mom” the one who gets up and gets dressed and ready before the kids wake up. Well, “that mom” is me. Please still be my friend.

Let me explain. There is a reason for the insanity.

At the ripe old age of 15 I began working at a golf course in the summer. So basically when the sun is up – people are golfing and if people want to golf, others need to work. Being the newbie I got stuck with the 6:00 AM-2:00 PM shift and sometimes even the 5:30 AM-1:30 PM shift.

I know. Fun stuff. Crazy as it is, I really came to love the morning shift and that became my shift. Even 10 years later when I ran the place, I would come to work as early as possible. Then I could play golf after work every day. It was pure bliss.

The peace. The quiet. Seeing the deer. No traffic. Hot coffee. Watching the sun come up every day. I got hooked.
But, I got pregnant and began enjoying staying up later than 9PM and I got used to sleeping in. Then I had a baby. Emily apparently enjoyed the mornings too for she would wake up at 6:00 on the dot every single day. No matter how late I put her to sleep she would wake up at 6:00 AM. The benefit to that was I could put her to bed at 6 PM and she would sleep for 12 hours.

Now, I tried so hard with her, you see. I would beg for more sleep. I would pull her into bed with me and turn on the TV and I would doze in and out. Maybe I would get into the shower by 8:00, maybe not. Emily started school and I adjusted my wake-up time to 6:30 when she woke up. I seemed to be always scrambling around trying to get everything ready, and always feeling hurried.

Then came Sarah. Dear, sweet Sarah, who cannot for the love of God sleep past 5:30 AM. On the rare, rare occasions that she does sleep to 6:30 I am dripping in a cold sweat, sure that she is dead. She also will arise at 5:30 no matter how late she goes to bed.

One day, when Sarah was 1 month old, my dad was in the hospital because he thought he was having a heart attack. (He didn’t, but has an irregular heartbeat.) Anyway, I woke up with Sarah and fed her and instead of going back to bed to eeek out an extra hour, I did something wild and crazy. I got into the shower and got ready, did my morning chores and went to go visit my dad. I knew he’d be up early.

And do you know what?

That was just the best day ever! I wasn’t behind schedule and I finally felt on the ball. From that day on I have been waking up at 5:15 every single day. Tyler does too. We get some nice time alone drinking our coffee, going over our plans for the day. Ok – it is, like, 5 minutes of alone time, but, nonetheless, we savor it.

Tyler usually can get Sarah to snuggle on the sofa for about 20 minutes before she is dancing and playing and, well, Emily has always woken up talking 90 miles an hour, but at least I am prepared for it now. I have caffeine flowing through my veins, I am clean and dressed. I am prepared to handle any and all major crises that Emily has conjured up. Hey Sarah and Emily!!! I win!!!

So last weekend Tyler was out of town for 3 days. We were counting down the days and Sarah was missing him. To make her happy the night before I had told her that Daddy would be home by lunch the next day.

4:30 AM IS NOT LUNCH!!! Even if you wake up at 4:30 AM and are knocking on your door asking for lunch – it is not LUNCH TIME!!!!!

She got up and I tried to snuggle with her in bed and tried to get her to go back to sleep, but according to her, she was up. She wanted juice and to play…at 4:30 in the morning. Emily woke up at 5:00. 2 hours and 6 cups of coffee later, I was still not up. They beat me. They won.

I can do my fake 5:15 wake up time. I can even convince myself that I like it. I cannot and will not do 4:30 AM. Not now. Not ever. Do NOT Mess With My Sleep Number!!!!

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SuperMomPlace.com: I blog about faith, family, kids, hair, being a mom, my ever changing hobbies and other things that cross my mind. What did you think of my blog? Thank you for your comments! I appreciate all your tips, advice, and well wishes!
Connect with me on twitter @supermomplace and Facebook if this is your first visit grab the rss feed
Love Roodlyne