Wellness Webinar

12 Tips to Surviving Holiday Eating

with Melissa Majumdar, RD, LDN, CPT

Thursday, December 16, 2010

12:15 - 1:00pm ETD

Sign-up now - spaces are limited to the first 15 participants!

Give the gift of wellness to a friend or family member.

$10 for 45 minutes of nutrition and health tips = great holiday deal!

• Survive the holidays without gaining weight
• Attend potlucks and get-togethers without unbuttoning your pants
• Keep stress to a minimum this holiday season
• Learn the rules of holiday eating
• Gain perspective on holiday indulgences
• Step-by-step guide to being in the moment
• Leave with recipe ideas in hand!

FREE Webinar

Eat, Run, and Fight Stress!
Monday, April 26, 2010
3:30 - 4:30 pm EDT

Register Now!

On a scale of 1 to 10, how stressed are you? Have you ever had a bad race or workout because of stress? Do you commonly experience sugar or salt cravings? Do you feel like it takes a long time to recover after exercising or running? Or do you find yourself getting sick often, especially after long races?

Join Registered Dietitian Melissa Majumdar as she explores how stress affects running and overall health. Learn how proper fueling can actually decrease your level of stress and increase your performance level. Explore how nutrition and the "lost nutrients" water and sleep may be your missing link and the answer to your best season yet.

In Office Seminar - Nutrition, Stress & Metabolism

How many calories does stress have? We agree that this is a ridiculous question, but ask almost anyone if stress makes you gain weight and you will receive a resounding "yes." But, if stress has no calories, then how does it affect your weight? The truth is that the calorie model is not the whole story on fat loss. Stress and other lifestyle factors work through hormonal and metabolic mechanisms that alter not only the amount of calories we eat, but where on the body we store them, and most importantly what we burn: sugar, fat, or muscle.

Join Melissa Majumdar, Registered Dietitian, as she delves into the biochemistry of stress, nutrition, and metabolism. She will set the foundation with a scientific explanation of the function of your adrenal glands, cortisol, and insulin. You will learn the unique ways in which the metabolism and immune system respond differently to the type of stress - acute or chronic. Be prepared to walk away with precise tools to use through diet and nutrition to reduce stress levels, stimulate metabolism, improve mood and optimize health! You do not want to miss this valuable seminar!

We look forward to seeing you all for the April 22nd lecture on "Nutrition, Stress & Metabolism" at 6:45 pm! Healthy snacks and beverages will be provided, courtesy of Whole Foods Market in Rockville. Advanced registration is required, so please visit our website to register for your seat at this and upcoming seminars.

Caf Content of Your Fav Bev

Hopefully after reading the post from a few days ago, many of you are looking for ways to cut back on caffeine. A pretty extensive list of caffeine content of coffee, tea (iced and hot), soda, energy drinks, desserts, and over the counter pills and medications can be found at the Center for Science in the Public Interest's website but here are the basics:

Coffee (depends on the brew and brand) 8 oz. 102-200 mg
Espresso 1 oz. 75 mg
Tea (hot) 8 oz. 40-120 mg
Tea (iced) 8 0z. 5-20 mg
Soft drinks
Coke 8 oz. 23 mg
Diet Coke 8 oz. 31 mg
Vault 8 oz. 47 mg
Mountain Dew 8 oz. 28 mg
Root Beer- Barq's 8 oz. 38 mg
Mug 8 oz. 0 mg
Sprite 8 oz. 0 mg
Energy Drinks 8 oz. 48-300 mg

To Drink or Not to Drink- Caffeine

Caffeine is the drug of choice for most people. In 2008, an average of 50% of Americans drink coffee a day, according to the National Coffee Association of America's research. Caffeine is in everything from chocolate, to tea, to coffee, soda, and energy drinks. So if caffeine is so widespread, why is it a good idea to avoid?

Many weight loss drugs will add caffeine to help speed the metabolism and therefore weight loss. Although caffeine may act as a appetite suppressent, over time it will actually increase appetite. When caffeine is first ingested, it acts as a stimulant, similar to adrenaline. The adrenaline effect causes the body to reach into its stored carbohydrates for energy, releasing the carbohydrates into the bloodstream, increasing blood sugars. What goes up, must come down, causing a crash in blood sugars and a ravenous appetite. In order for the body to lower the blood sugars, insulin is released, which will store the carbohydrates as fat.

Furthermore, every time you have that cup of coffee, it puts stress on the adrenal glands to release the stress horomone adrenaline. The adrenals are walnut sized glands and are not meant to be taxed daily. When people ask Elizabeth and I if it is okay for them to drink coffee, our answer usually depends on whether they need it. Once there is state of dependency, or somoeone needs multiple cups to keep them going, there are signs of adrenal fatigue. When your adrenals have more pressure on them from the caffeine, they respond less to external stress, resulting in illness, fatigue, and hormone imbalance, including sex hormones.

Many of us swear by caffeine to help wake us up in the morning. The catch 22 behind this theory- drinking coffee during the day may actually hinder your sleep during the night. Caffeine has a half life of 9 hours, meaning half of the caffeine you drink is still present in the bloodstream 9 hours later. So if you have coffee mid-afternoon, it may be interrupting your sleep patterns, causing waking up in the morning to be that much more difficult. In addition, poor sleep will cause an increase in stress hormones, putting further stress on the adrenals.

Although stopping caffeine altogether can be quite a challenge, definitely consider cutting back. Ease off of it by asking for half-caf. Or brew your own by putting half scoops of regular and half decaf. Some coffee brands actually make a half-caffeinated coffee. After about two weeks without caffeine, see how you feel. I would love to hear your feedback!