Gastrointestinal & Other Nutritional Discussions:

One massive issue in our society isn't just obesity, but the difficulty individuals have in losing the excess weight. The purpose of this post is to help create a plan that is not only simple, but realistic. If followed, one can successfully lose weight. I do not create any sort of weight loss program or diet for others, but prefer the individual create it themselves. The following ideas are not to be used as a weight loss routine, but as an outline and resource to help one who wants to lose weight set their own goals and plan of action that is realistic for them. In advance, I do not offer consultations or further advice. I am not legally certified in any state to work in client counseling.

Before you choose any certain route for weight reduction, I would like to emphasize that lifestyle changes should always come first when you want to lose weight. These changes should include both diet change and physical activity; however, if one of these cannot be done, stick with just doing the other.

As you begin your weight loss journey, don't jump into the deep end without knowing what you are getting yourself into. This means, don't set goals that are beyond your capability. This is hard to achieve if you don't know where you currently stand on how you eat or how active you are. To find out this information, keep a food journal of what you eat and when and note down when you are physically active. If you do this for one week, you will see a routine start to unfold.

Once you start to get to know your lifestyle a little better, this is when you can start to look at parts of you day that you can begin to change. It is important to not make too many changes at once, but small changes one by one. With all of this in mind, create a list of what can be improve! Trust me, you will find at least one. ;)

Now, once you know your routine and have your list of routines or habits that can be changed, you are now ready to set a long term goal of where you want to be in 6 months to a year. For example, if I need to lose weight to help reduce my blood pressure, aim to lose 5 to 10% of your weight. So if I weight 200 pounds, I should only set a goal of losing 10 to 20 pounds between that 6 month to one year period.

This brings me to the point of goal setting. One should always set goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-based. You can use the acronym SMART goal to remember. This can be seen in the previous example I gave. I don't just want to lose weight, I want to lose a specific amount, let's say 10 pounds. This amount can be measured and should be achievable if I have enough time, which is about 6 months. This goal is relevant to me since I would need to lose the weight to help lower my blood pressure. As you can see, this goal contains each piece of the SMART goal.

Once this long term goal is created, set up short term goals. I want to lose 2 pounds per month in order to lose my 10 pounds in six months. Once that is set, you must move on to your list of lifestyles you can change. Maybe I want to add walking for 30 minutes a day to my routine. That seems like something not too difficult. It might even help me get through an audio book or podcast I have meant to finish.

Maybe I will start to use a smaller plate for meals to help reduce portion sizes. I can also drink a glass of water before meals. I might even be someone who needs to get rid of all my sweets to get rid of the temptation. I don't want you to think that to modify your diet means you have to follow a specific diet and cut out the "bad" foods. Change one thing at a time and soon, you will see that those small changes will add up to a complete change later on. Write down your plan and keep it somewhere that will remind you of what needs to be done. If you need, there are many books that can help you modify these daily habits and make them easier to start, complete, and repeat. Stick with it! You are capable if you just believe in yourself. Don't be too hard on yourself, because you want this to be a good experience.

As time passes, if you have been able to set your plan to achieve your goals and you stick to it, you will see success! It doesn't matter if this success was small or large, as long as there is some sort of change!

In summary, here is a list of what was discussed.

• Step 1: Keep a diet and exercise journal for at least a week.
• Step 2: Make note of what eating habits and physical activity can be changed. Give yourself a few simple options!
• Step 3: Set a long-term goal
• Make sure it is SMART!
• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-based
• Step 4: Set short-term goals to help achieve your long term goal
• Step 5: Create a plan using your notes from step 2 to help you achieve your short term goals.
• Step 6: Stick to your plan and modify it little by little. If done correctly, you will be successful! It doesn't matter if the weight doesn't just fall off. What matters is that you have made the initial steps to be where you want to be!

If you need any more advise, please reach out to a dietitian or someone else capable of helping you set nutrition and activity goals that you believe you can achieve!

Please ask questions and let me know what you think about the article! If needed, I can expound on this topic more or clarify any doubts.

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Resources:

1. Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Adult Weight Management (AWM) Evidence-Based Nutrition Practice Guideline
2. Position of the American Dietetic Association: Weight Management, Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Vol. 109, Issue 2, p330–346, Published in issue: February 2009.
3. Diet or Exercise Interventions vs Combined Behavioral Weight Management Programs: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Direct Comparisons, Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Vol. 114, Issue 10, p1557–1568, Published online: September 22, 2014.

Author: Derek Scholes, BS, RDN

Published: Nov. 17, 2021

A concern that many parents may have is "when" and "how" to start your baby on solids. This is a very understandable point of concern as you may hear many differing points of view from every single pediatrician that you go to. I have had that same experience of pediatricians telling me when I should start feeding my baby and how I should do so even though they know well that I am a dietitian and have had specific training on this subject

In reality, there is no specific time for a baby to be transitioned to solid food "purees"or “minced”. This mostly depends on not just the baby meeting certain milestones, but on the parents understanding those milestones and what foods are best to start out with. Here are a few hints to help a parent in need to know if their baby is ready to start eating some real food.

Milestones (1,3)

Baby can sit up with support

Baby’s tongue DOESN‘T come out when their lips are touched

Baby looks at food and wants it

The first 2 points are a must before starting food, as these milestones will help prevent possible choking. These will probably be seen between 4 to 6 months, but if you arent sure if the milestone is met, usually six months is prime time to start.

The last important pieces of information you need is what to feed your baby and what order to introduce them. Many parents like to feed their babies and progress rapidly to help them eat multiple food groups within a few weeks. This is understandable because the more items you feed your baby, the more different types of nutrients they will get. There is one drawback to this method, and that is if your child has a food allergy it will be difficult to determine what food item caused the allergy. If you want to avoid this issue, one major recommendation is to provide your infant with one new food every 3 to 5 days and feed them that food three times a day in addition to any previous food you have given them. If they end up developing an allergy within those few days, it is very likely it was the most recent food item you gave them that caused the allergy. (1,2)

Now, what food items should you start with? There is no real scientifically proven method, but there are correlations that show a benefit of starting out with certain groups. One correlation that has been made is that children who start off eating fruit tend to be more picky with other food groups such as proteins and vegetables. Those who began their food journey starting with vegetables and progressed to proteins and finally fruit tended to consume a wider variety of food items and consumed carbohydrate rich foods at a lower rate. Another reason to start off with vegetables and proteins are the certain types of vitamins and minerals that they contain naturally, such as iron. This is especially important in breastfed babies as they are more likely to have low iron levels due to a low amount of iron in breastmilk. Cereals are a good alternative if the parent chooses to not include meat; however, the iron in meat/fish is more easily absorbed than the supplemented form. (2)

When it comes to if you should provide your baby with home made food versus pre-made, that is more of a personal decision that should be made by studying it out on your own. There are many benefits for both options but there are also many issues that may arise with either. The most important aspect is to make sure that the texture and size of the food is something that your baby is able to handle without choking.

I truly hope that this explanation has helped some parents in need. If further explanation is needed, please feel free to contact me! Be prepared to get messy because like my little baby in this picture, they will love to get as dirty as possible.

If you are looking for more information, please feel free to visit any of the references provided below.

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Resources:

1. https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/infantandtoddlernutrition/foods-and-drinks/when-to-introduce-solid-foods.html
2. https://www.eatright.org/food/nutrition/eating-as-a-family/dos-and-donts-for-babys-first-foods
3. https://ihcw.aap.org/Documents/Early%20Feeding/Solid%20Foods/AAP-Solid-Foods_Print-Fact-Sheet.pdf
4. https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article-abstract/138/4/e20160772/52372/A-Baby-Led-Approach-to-Eating-Solids-and-Risk-of?redirectedFrom=fulltext
5. https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article-abstract/102/3/569/65966/Trial-on-Timing-of-Introduction-to-Solids-and-Food?redirectedFrom=fulltext

Author: Derek Scholes, BS, RDN

Published: Feb. 08, 2022

One question that is asked by many people is, "How can I naturally boost my testosterone?"

Now this is a very valid question. There are multiple reasons why one would want to boost their testosterone. These reasons include reduced testosterone levels, wanting testosterone or more testosterone than one originally has, and possibly as a way to improve certain characteristics.

Now, the main way for one to boost testosterone is actually through testosterone supplements prescribed by a physician; however, is it possible to actually boost testosterone with natural products?

Through my research, I came up with a few answers that may be helpful, but the research is very limited and contains a lot of important issues which will be discussed. The main products that are often used to help boost testosterone are as follows, testosterone boosting supplements or single herb supplements.

There are many supplements that claim to help with boosting testosterone levels. There are a few major issues with this claim. First, these supplements aren't regulated by any organization such as the FDA which provides the risk for the supplement to contain harmful substances. Additionally, there are limited and often no studies that back the claims to those supplements. When these supplements are broken down by ingredients, it is shown that most do not contain substances that are shown to improve testosterone levels. Another issue is that some of these supplements contain minerals that were above upper limits which can cause people to actually get sick. (1)

In order to prevent yourself from possibly ingesting high doses of minerals, it might be preferable to use a single herb supplement that has evidence and studies to back up the claim that it can increase testosterone levels. Now, there are two main herbal supplements that do help boost testosterone, and these are fenugreek and ashwagandha. Fenugreek showed significant increases in testosterone levels with supplements ranging from 500 to 600 mg daily. Ashwagandha showed similar effects with the same amount of supplementation. Studies on both of these herbs showed a range of increase in testosterone from 15 to 25% of an individual's original levels. (2)

Now, to sum up this data, each study was based on men between the ages of 18 and 45. It can be assumed then that most of what I discussed will not apply to those who were female at birth; however, more studies need to be conducted to see how testosterone can be increased naturally in this population. Another issues with the studies is that most had male participants that are younger than most of the actual population that would like testosterone boosts. To solve this limitation of the studies, more studies will need to take people from an older population and take a larger group of people so that the results can relate to males older than 50 years old.

If you are interested in boosting your testosterone and want to do so naturally, ashwagandha and fenugreek might be good options for you. If you want to be sure that your levels go up, the best method is to receive a testosterone supplement by prescriptions. Both are safe methods but what you choose should be your decision alone!

If you have questions, please feel free to reach out! Also remember, if you want a specific topic to be discussed, let me know and I can write about it as well!

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Resources:

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6920068/
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8166567/

Author: Derek Scholes, BS, RDN

Published: Feb. 28, 2022