Finding a New Primary Care Doctor

A Big Thanks To Leslie at Wellparents.com for this great advice Thanks to Leslie at Read more

The Rollercoaster of Life

Grandma: "I always wanted to go again. You know, it was just so interesting that a ride could make me so frightened, so scared, so sick, so excited, and so thrilled all together! Some didn't like Read more

Sheltering at Home/Covid 19

Never in the last two decades of my career as a physician would I have imagined that we would be using the same mask to see patients all day and then sterilizing/recycling them at the end of the day. Read more

Turmeric Health Benefits

Have you ever wondered what the paste is applied to the bride and groom's faces and arms in Indian weddings?  It's actually the spice turmeric.  Turmeric is the ingredient in curry that gives it a vibrant yellow color.  Actually, Read more

COVID 19 Precautions

With the scare of COVID here in the USA now, I wanted to post a little info about boosting immunity to prevent contracting the virus. Here are some important facts about Covid-19 It is spread by contact with Read more

Natural Tips for Avoiding Colds

This cold and flu season is still upon us and unfortunately, many patients are still being plagued by these nasty viral symptoms.  Here are a few tips to try if you feel like you are coming down with something. Of Read more

Sherry's Story

Sherry has a great story.  She has been diabetic for years and she has made some massive changes!   "I have been on a lifestyle change. It has been a year following a ketogenic food plan.  When I started this journey Read more

Pharmacy to Farmacy

Many of you may know Erin-- the fabulous Pharm D that worked in our office a few years back.  Erin is a phenomenal gal and we embarked on the journey  into natural medicine around the same time.  As we both Read more

weight loss

Tara’s Story

Tara’s Story

When I turned 30 years old I weighed in at 348lbs; clothes were getting harder to find and more expensive, and my life was getting difficult to manage. When going out to eat we had to have a table because I could not comfortably sit in a booth, my stomach hit the steering wheel when I drove, and at family gatherings, I often sat on the floor in the corner so no one had to navigate around me. My depression and anxiety were getting worse and, as a previous nationally competing athlete, I was disgusted with myself and how I was allowing my health, and weight, box in my life.

After attempting every fad diet plan, ‘cleanse’ and losing a few pounds only to gain them, and some of their friends, back, I was giving up. Then Dr. Angie had me watch a TedTalks video about a high fat, low carb diet and provided me with literature to go through. However, I knew after the video that this high fat, low carb (or Keto) diet change would be manageable. I still got to eat cheese and enjoy meat!

After 6 months, I have lost 60lbs and continue to lose weight even though I am not super strict all the time. When I want something, I have it, but in moderation. I do not beat myself up for slip-ups, or cheat meals. Not only am I am able to sit in booths again, I have started to enjoy shopping, my mental state is better than ever and my body is starting to feel like my own again. My weight no longer controls me.

I still have a long way to go, but I know I will get there.

This is the video I shared with Tara— There are many more that explain the theory of the ketogenic/ low carb/high fat diet.

I love seeing patients make changes that don’t involve pharmaceuticals!!

Share any of your own weight loss adventures in the comments below– and please call or message me if you want more info!  You can contact me at the office (317) 217-2626, email at doc@angelamd.com or contact me thru my Angelamd Facebook page.

Congrats Tara!  You are such and inspiration and I am so excited to continue to watch all your health improvements!

Posted on by Angela in Body, Call to action, Diet, Guest Blog, Nutrition, Organic, Weight Loss, Whole Food 1 Comment

Breaking up is hard to do

Here is one of my favorite post’s of Dee’s– such a funny gal!!  I thought this would be appropriate on Cinco de Mayo after most of us have been splurging with nachos and margaritas!

I’m Breaking Up with You

Nothing personal. We’ve had a great relationship. It’s not you, it’s me. I’m sorry for the short notice but I’m feeling brave today. It’s been a blast to hang out together after work every night. Remember how fun it was to crank up the stereo and clean the house and then as a reward for a great day OR as a consolation for a stressful day OR as a routine for a routine day…we drank together at night. But I have to move on and get control of my health and many of my bad eating choices have been in your company. You introduced me to your friends: Wings, Nachos, Pizza and Chips. I’m dumping them too. Don’t call or text or yell out to me when we see each other at the grocery store because I will ignore you. I’m better than you…no offense.

Thanks Dee—I know relationships can be hard.
I had considered taking your sloppy seconds but then I met Kale and Broccoli.  They are both so wonderful, I can’t choose.   I’m going for the threesome!  Please don’t judge!
Posted on by Angela in Diet, Nutrition, Weight Loss 2 Comments

Meet Dee- She needs shoes!

A few years ago, I introduced you to my dear friend Dee.  She invited us on her weight loss journey and did quite a few posts regarding her story.  I just wanted to repost a few of these because:

1.  I miss Dee!!

2.  I always love her posts and admire how real and down to earth she is!  Hope you enjoy them as well.

Dee is a mom!  Dee wants to lose weight.  Dee believes we need to eat healthy.  I love Dee.  She has invited us to follow her weight loss journey with her because she can’t see her feet!  Please follow her amazing posts with me!  She is inspiring!  And to Dee, thank you for admitting that you aren’t perfect and this isn’t an easy thing to do!  We should all have that much integrity.

Dee writes:

Funny how people are ashamed to share their weight. I don’t mind telling people who I weigh 190 pounds. When I’m speaking to someone and the issue of health or weight comes up, I freely share my weight…the real number. I share my age too, 49. People are sometimes surprised that I’m 49, but no one has ever reacted surprisingly to the 50 extra pounds. I’m guessing it’s because if they are speaking to me in person, they can see the extra pounds…mostly around my middle. I don’t like this section of me but I’ve gotten used to it. I chose this photo, taken from my chin looking down to show you what I see when I look at my shoes. Get it? No shoes. I’d like to see my shoes and have started a new goal to get there. After years and years of dieting, I am a diet expert. Most overweight people are diet experts. The trick isn’t knowing what to do, it’s doing it. If you want to jump into the journey, I would love the company. It might not always be pretty, but it will always be real.

Posted on by Angela in Diet, Guest Blog, Humor, Nutrition, Spirit, Whole Food Leave a comment

Diets Don’t Work

First, I don’t ever advocate dieting . Diets don’t work and the only way to “lose weight” is to get healthy and make a lifestyle change. I agree that our society is ridiculous with such social emphasis on thin, unhealthy weights and starvation based lifestyles. Kids see role models that are bone thin and completely malnourished! That puts a ton of pressure on adolescents. It’s not realistic and obviously not working as we see obesity and diabetes rates rising at astronomical rates.

I really try to focus on emphasizing the importance of nourishing the body with vitamins, mineral, and essential nutrients to ensure good health.  I don’t really believe in the PALEO diet because it is a fad diet and in all actuality – it isn’t an authentic diet. There no way that we could actually eat as our paleolithic ancestors did.  We simply don’t have the same habitat/environment. Todays’s berries, vegetables and seeds are nothing like the ones bought in grocery stores today. It is simply just a different environment and time period.

That being said, the PALEO diet does focus on No processed foods!!!!—- which is a huge improvement from what most Americans are eating today. A diet rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds and organic, grass-fed lean meats is amazing for the body. It can only be sustainable though if it is implemented in small steps. I usually try to get patients to first adopt the idea that what they eat significantly impacts their health. I try to get them off of soda, packaged foods ,and sugars first. Then we start to implement changes that compatible with their lifestyle, work schedules, and individual tastes.

I will have patients first watch some of the newer documentaries like “Hungry For Change” and “Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead” which are entertaining films that really hit home regarding the idea that “you are what you eat”. In Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead, Joe Cross literally cures himself of the disease “chronic urticaria” by changing his diet.

Of course —everyone should consult with their doctor before making any changes. Certain diet changes really should be tailored to specific disease states, medicines and lifestyles. I believe your doctor should be your partner and should work with you in tailoring lifestyle changes.  I have seen amazing results in patients that have been willing to make some changes.  They get off of medications, feel better, lose weight, and enjoy life more!

Personally, my life is busy and it is really hard to sustain a healthy eating pattern. I work full-time and have daughters that keep me running. We like to spend Sundays juicing fruits and veggies and making meals for the week. It is the only way we can stay on track and it is good bonding time (YES-I do give them allowance for helping #BRIBE). We still eat junk sometimes and my kids certainly don’t always eat like me. But, I can hope that they are at least becoming more aware of their food choices. We do like to get outdoors and hike on weekends and sit down and watch movies together. Yes we even occasionally eat popcorn and sno-caps which are both UBER unhealthy!!! It’s all relative!!!

I love my practice because I love to see people change!!  I relish in seeing their lives improve and taking control of their own health.  It is the most rewarding profession that I can imagine myself doing.  If one person is helped by what I have to offer–it is worth it!IMG_0238

Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Nutrition, Weight Loss 10 Comments

Ash Wednesday

One year ago on Ash Wednesday, I vowed to officially go gluten and dairy free and finally practice what I was preaching. I had been limiting gluten and dairy for years before but would ultimately end up cheating every 3-4 weeks with occasional  pizza/cake/ nachos etc. So last year I gave it the 40day test and I was amazed at how great I felt. I lost weight, my energy and brain fog improved, my skin cleared up and my mood seemed great! Mind you , I wasn’t grain free all together and was still eating some brown rice and corn. I also wasn’t completely cognizant of all the hidden doses of gluten were stashed in food. Overall, I felt pretty proud of kicking diet cola, gluten and dairy. I would do it all over again in an instant. But, I got weak and lazy after Easter and gradually added back the dreaded cheese. I’m talking the factory farmed stuff too–not the organic goat stuff. However, when I did add the dairy —the weight came back instantly (proving to myself that I am one of those victims of molecular mimicry) that can’t tolerate casein.
The year was successful and I was able to kick gluten for good (I only cheated once with Coors Light at the Dave Matthews concert).
I was still doing some grain and dairy. 

So today I am starting the official grain free/dairy free diet again and am anxious to keep you updated on the results —
So far for breakfast I’ve had a spinach/mushroom/pepper/onion omelette with NO CHEESE and iced tea–lunch was a salad with only veggies/chicken and NO RANCH DRESSING.

I’m still alive!
I’ll keep you posted!

Our spirits dwell in a beautiful vessel that should be treated well -So it’s about time I get over myself and start relishing my health.

 

–What are you going to give up that isn’t serving you??? Leave your thoughts in the comments below

 

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Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Nutrition 2 Comments

Paleo Diet Hoax

I was listening to the healthy gut summit presentations today and they touched upon a very important point that I think needs to be addressed.   That point is that the Paleo diet is a hoax?   There are many different Paleo diets and frankly -none of them are anywhere close to what our paleolithic ancestors would have eaten. We see two schools of thought; those that call it a fad diet and those who honestly believe that it is the cure for a significant number of diseases.

There doesn’t seem much doubt that it is a fad diet.   As a society, we tend to latch onto the latest diet trend that’s been presented and most of us don’t understand the underlying fundamentals of the diet research (if there are any).  We treat a fad diet as all or nothing and perceive that it should be suggested for an entire population of people.  This simply isn’t true.  There’s no diet that is actually good for everybody.  Think about different climates and daily environments we exist in are highly variable. This is no different from in the Paleolithic era.  The type of foraging, meat and vegetable consumption greatly depends on the of availability of the plant life, and the climate and animals in the area.  Research shows that some of our Paleolithic ancestors did eat grains and legumes.  Just look at mortar and pestal from that era that were obviously used to grind down grains.

The Paleo diet is a great diet for one reason –it cuts out all processed foods. This diet is a whole,real food-based diet. Whether were eating more meat or cutting out legumes, we are vastly improving the plant-based component of our diet and cutting out junk carbs.  I can’t argue with that.  The biggest point I make is that our society’s food supply is based on processed foods that are stripped of the vital nutrients and minerals. So is any Paleo diet actually Paleo?  NO of course not.  You wouldn’t have seen a caveman walking around carrying a Paleo Kind bar.  The berries, seeds, and vegetables that were forging for are nowhere near the equivalent of the berries we buy at the supermarket. 

Here’s a great presentation based on some real science of what Paleolithic ancestors were actually eating. 

 Just you watch this quick TEDTalk that is a thorough evaluation of why the Paleo diet is a hoax.

 No single diet is good an the entire population people. There many factors that come into play.  Our gut microbiome is incredibly important as well.  We are just now beginning to discover  this huge complex microrganism community that plays such a huge role in our immune health. I do like the Paleo diet because it’s a clear concise diet shows you exactly what to eat based only on real food.  I do recommend this to a lot of my patients because the Paleo diet in of itself is probably 90% better than what most of us are eating right now.  #JERF  Just eat real food!!!

Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Nutrition, Organic, Weight Loss 2 Comments

Last Chance—The Digestion Sessions with the Real Food and Paleo Summit

Oh my gosh—These digestion sessions have been amazing!!!  The most exciting thing is that if you decide to order the all access pass–you also get the Paleo and Real Food summit  for free!!!!  I’m ordering today—There were so many good sessions and great points that even though I was taking notes, 48 hours still wasn’t enough to get all the information.

For instance—-I always thought that the reason that people who had bariatric surgery lost weight because they take in fewer calories—-well that is only part of the reason!  The majority of the reason is that the gut hormones get stimulated and the intestinal flora change .  Yes–the bacteria in your gut can make you fat–so can that reflux medication.

Don’t miss this!!!

 

You can ORDER HERE before time runs out!

Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Nutrition, Weight Loss 2 Comments

Can Diet Changes Regulate Your Hormones to Lose Weight?

I have been recommending “The Hormone Cure” book by Dr. Sara Gottfried with some amazing patient results!  Jessica (our guest author) graciously offered to write a post explaining the science correlating hormone balance and weight loss.  Be sure to visit her site as well!  We have been talking about limiting grains in the diet for prevention of blood sugar issues so keep that in mind as well.  EAT YOUR VEGGIES!

Jessica writes:

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Can Diet Changes Regulate Your Hormones To Lose Weight?

Modern research suggests that it is possible to modify your daily diet to bring about changes in the ways your body hormones are functioning. Dietary changes will influence hormone levels and help you lose weight. So, weight loss is not only about shedding calories or having a strong willpower; it has quite a lot to do with the way your hormones behave. Although it sounds strange, what you eat can actually regulate your hormonal functions.

Hormonal imbalance is responsible for different forms of ailments, ranging from cancers to amnesia. Studies show that nearly 40 chemicals actually work to influence one’s appetite. When your hormones are not in control, your weight loss efforts can suffer a setback even if you are following a healthy well-balanced diet. Since hormones are produced when the body has enough cholesterol and good fats, it is important to have these foods as part of your everyday diet in order to release important hormones.

How diet changes can affect hormone functions:

  • Control omega-6 intake: Cortisol hormone leads to heightened appetite particularly for comfort foods that are sugar-rich and fattening. If you can avoid the omega-6 polyunsaturated fats you can protect yourself from inflammation. These fats are unstable and get oxidized easily, causing mutation and inflammation of arteries. Instead, you should focus on including monounsaturated fats and saturated fats because these benefit health. So, vegetable oils, peanut oil, margarine etc are best avoided; it is wiser to opt for real butter, coconut oil and olive oil.
  • Limit caffeine consumption: Excess caffeine can adversely affect the endocrine system especially when you are already feeling the effects of other hormone stressors. You can switch to drinking herbal teas.
  • Limit toxins: Toxins are present in household chemicals and plastics, and pills for birth control likewise can play havoc with your hormones. When you already have hormonal imbalance or trying to get pregnant, you need to stay away from such toxins. You should avoid storing foods in plastic containers and choose organic produce and organic meats.
  • Coconut oil: Coconut oil can work wonders for your hormones by providing the building blocks for their production. Therefore, it helps in weight loss, reduces inflammation and has anti-bacterial properties.
  • Increase fiber intake: When you eat more fibers like raw fruits and vegetables and whole grains, you can not only lose weight but improve the release of old estrogen from your body. This in turn leads to an improved overall hormonal balance.
  • Increased meat and carb intake: When you include more carbs and meat in your daily diet, you get more energy for hormone production. For instance, seafood that is rich in omega-3 fatty acids or low-fat meats is an excellent source of fiber which can contribute to weight loss.
  • Eat more vegetables: You can include  fibers and vegetables in the diet to control leptin resistance. Veggies contain important vitamins and antioxidants that reduce inflammation which interferes with leptin secretion. This in turn improves the body’s fat-burning power and helps to reduce your cravings.
  • Opt for meal delivery services: You can consider joining reputed weight loss meal delivery services that deliver portion controlled meals. As they prepare meals especially to lose weight, the above said factors would be well imbibed in their diet plans. Moreover you need not bother about counting calories or cooking healthy meals each day when you join such programs. For instance, Nutrisystem is a popular weight loss meal delivery service which delivers nutritionally balanced and portion controlled meals to their dieters. The meals are usually low glycemic, low-fat, low carb, low sodium and are devoid of trans and saturated fats. So, considering the diet services is one of the wisest options to lose weight.

These are some easy dietary changes which can help in the release of important hormones that allow you to maintain an optimal weight. Weight loss is guaranteed to happen when your hormones are working optimally and your diet is well-balanced.

Author Bio:

 

Jessica Robert Keenly blogs about weight loss ideas and diet tips. She runs a simple blog displaying helpful articles on easy dieting methods and weight loss ideas.

Image link:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/inspiredhomefitness/8753895157/sizes/z/

 

Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Nutrition, Weight Loss, Whole Food 1 Comment

The Gluten Summit

05a903eecbbabcb6bd2e3d855edd80c7Ok guys–I know you are annoyed with all the Gluten-Free posts and don’t really understand this crazy fad any more than I do!  Here is our chance to check out the science behind the madness!  This is a great opportunity to learn anything and everything you need to know about Gluten.

www.freeglutensummit.com <– Register Here

This is my Gluten-Free God’s (Dr. Tom O’Bryan) free educational summit that will give you everything you need to know and more.

This could change your life –I’m not joking when I say that I’ve had more than a handful of patients tell me they turned their life around by eliminating grains from their diet.

Have a great week all!

Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Nutrition, Whole Food Leave a comment

All About the Numbers

Thanks Dee–this is just more proof that a calorie doesn’t equal a calorie—Check out a little about Johnny Bowden who gives a great explanation on this topic.  All calories are not created equal.  And Snicker’s doesn’t satisfy!snick

 

Dee writes:

We recently had a dietician come to my work to talk about reading food labels and she gave a great presentation about the acceptable levels of sugar, sodium, trans fat, protein and carbohydrates. One thing that she said about calories was funny, that you could do a Snickers bar diet. What she meant was that I could consume all 1200 of my daily calories in the form of Snickers bars — about 5 a day — and lose weight. If you create a negative net calorie point, you lose weight. You need to burn more calories than you consume. Twelve hundred calories of sugar and fat however, will not lead to any long-term benefit PLUS you’ll be starving all the time from the high sugar, simple carb rush. The trick is to get your 1200 (or whatever) calories in each day in the form of colorful, nutrient-rich, raw or minimally processed fruits, veggies, lean proteins and whole grains. That is what keeps you feeling full, energized and ultimately healthy in the long run.

 

 

Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Nutrition, Weight Loss, Whole Food Comments Off on All About the Numbers
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