Food Guidelines Should Focus On Fat?

Article by: Dr. Zoe Arugay
Photos: Getty Images 

So how do you actually cut down the calories and gorge on the right nutrients? It's nothing new from what our mama said when we were kids - eat your vegetables, fruits, high-fiber whole grains, low-fat milk and milk products, and seafood... and cut down on your sugars, solid fats, refined grains, and sodium.

Ok, so maybe our mamas never said it that way, but it's pretty much that.

In this instance, these other "mamas" - The Health and Human Services Department, or HHS, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture - will draw up new food guidelines as required by Congress every five years. These guidelines will set standards for U.S. school breakfasts and lunches and other federal programs.

As you recall, this would come in handy as the Barack administration has launched a fight against childhood obesity.

The committee's recommendations emphasize on a plant-based diet with plenty of whole grains, fruits and vegetables and moderate amounts of lean meat, poultry and eggs.

They also suggest cutting down on sodium, sugar-sweetened beverages, and promote healthier diet at home. Combating a long-term condition such as obesity needs to start early and needs to start in your own crib.

That means I have to actually try out that recipe that Jamie Oliver and Nigella Lawson was dishing out last time I saw them a long time ago...

Read more here.

Good Cholesterol And Cancer: What's The Connection?

There are more reasons now why HDL should be your BFF.

In a new study, researchers have found out that HDL (high density lipoprotein), the so-called good cholesterol, not only lowers your chances of coronary problems, but also narrows down your chances of developing cancer. Dr. Richard Karas of the Molecular Cardiology Research Institute at Tufts University in Boston and his colleagues are unsure as to how this happens, but believe it has something to do with HDL's anti-oxidant activity. In other words, what HDL is theorized to do is that it helps the immune system by searching and destroying abnormal and potentially cancerous cells.

With this in mind, then maintaining normal or high levels of HDL seems like the way to go, right? Doctors recommend that HDL levels be above 40 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) for men and above 50 mg/dL for women.

To achieve this, you could exercise, quit smoking, eat right, and keep your weight under control - concepts that aren't new anyway.

Besides, if you think that it's diffuclt to go through that, think of the other benefits - that HDL have significant anti-oxidant work to do to help prevent most chronic diseases associated with aging.