The Last Post…

             While looking for more articles I happened to stumble across one about cortisol levels from Immune Matrix, which is a website, put together by group of diagnostic investigators and doctors who specialize in:

·       Allergy elimination

·       Acupuncture

·       Anti-Aging for the face and whole body

·       Aromatherapy

·       Hormonal Imbalances

·       Nutritional Therapy

That was just a few from the list provided in the link below. The article had much to say about the cortisol levels, including an answer to the question as to how these levels contribute to the gastrointestinal tract. The article goes on to say that if your cortisol levels are low then you could have some gastro problems like constipation, abdominal pains or irritable bowels. I wondered what would happen if the cortisol levels were higher, and what could some of the possible side effects be? The article had the answer for that too. It says that an elevated level could mean anxiety increase, aggressive behavior, increased risk of heart attack, and could also be a factor in causing osteoporosis. This was sort of a wakeup call. I sat there and thought about this whole breakfast ordeal and came to a conclusion that eating breakfast is a very important factor for becoming healthy. So after exploring why it is important to eat breakfast on a regular basis, I have concluded that it is in fact the MOST important meal of the day. I believe that these articles put up a good fight against all of us who made excuses not to eat a healthy breakfast.

            As I continue to follow the guidelines to be healthier, I am not sure how easy it will be to consistently eat a good breakfast every morning, but I will say after learning about all the bad side effects of not eating in the morning, I was a little more than convinced I should take steps towards being healthier. I still want to do more research on how cortisol levels work with our bodies and to just learn more in general about them. I haven’t found a way to go to sleep before 10 p.m. yet but, with time it should become a normal routine. As I look toward the argument essay, I’m still thinking about how I should organize all of my data and also how to incorporate them into a thesis statement.

 

**Link to article:  http://chronicfatigueandnutrition.com/cortisol-rhythm/

Works Cited:

            David. “Your Cortisol Rhythm”. 25 October, 2010. Immune Matrix. Web. 18 July, 2012.

Hello All!

          After searching for more info I found an article from NOHA NEWS to be a lifesaver! Written by a Dr. Benton and an MD named P. Harding, it linked breakfast skipping to making you age faster. In their article they discussed a factor contributing to the aging process called cortisol, which is a hormone that controls dozens of vital functions in the body. It also goes to say that when cortisol levels are higher or lower than normal, the rapid-aging process accelerates. The article describes 7 activities/factors that lead to excess cortisol levels:

1. Skipping breakfast

2. Skipping any meal

3. Eating more carbohydrate than protein in any five-hour period

4. Assuming a slouched or a flexed posture (e.g. sitting posture) with the chin jutted forward

5. Staying up past 10 p.m.

6. Being emotionally stressed

7. Being in pain

Yes skipping breakfast was actually first on the list! I have to admit that I fit under a few of these categories. I needed some more clarification on how the cortisol levels work and when I came across this video from youtube.com, I felt a little more in tuned with what the article was saying and it made me think twice about how my family and I live and do things on a daily basis.

(Video:Can't Sleep Eat Your Breakfast! - Benjamin Glasman.MP4)


After learning all of this stuff about cortisol, I wondered if the effects of a low cortisol level lingers for a long period of time or if it will return back to normal the next day? Also I wanted to find an answer to how these levels contribute to the gastrointestinal tract?


To be continued...

Works Cited:

          Benton & Harding. "Anti-Aging & The Adrenal Gland". Winter 2002. NOHA News. Web. 16 July, 2012.       



Hello everyone! Upon further research I have found some more answers to our questions. Thanks to a website called Symptomfind, there is a list of unhealthy breakfast choices:

1. Pastries. We all saw that coming!

      2. Egg Dishes like and omelet with extra cheese and bacon or a fried egg cooked in lard.

3. Fatty meats like bacon, sausages, and ham. The website suggests healthy meat substitutes or chicken as a protein source.

4. DONUTS!! According to the article this is the WORST thing to eat for breakfast: Their nutritional value is little to non-existent.

5. Fruit juice? Yes fruit juice has a lot of added sugar which makes it similar to drinking a Pepsi or Coke for breakfast.

6. Yogurt made with whole milk can be high in sugar, fat and calories. Suggests non-fat or low-fat yogurt instead.

7. Cereal filled with sugar most likely has a poor nutritional value.

8. Bagels with piled with a thick layer of cream cheese. L

Some healthy foods we can try for breakfast include; whole-wheat toast, hard boiled eggs, fruit smoothies made with fresh fruit, low-fat yogurt with granola, plain instant oatmeal with cinnamon and raisins, cereal bars with at least 3 grams of fiber, whole-wheat berry pancakes with substitute Canadian bacon, egg white omelet with veggies and cheese, steel cut oats with fresh strawberries and milk, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, left over cold veggie pizza, crackers with cheese or peanut butter with fresh fruit. (list courtesy of Healthy Breakfast Foods List, written by Jill Corleon)

Uploaded by diethealth on Mar 2, 2009 on youtube.com

As for the question should children have milk, water or juice for breakfast?An article from the University Of Michigan Health System, suggests that your child drink mostly water. Milk is good too but it can have a lot of saturated fat and juice has a lot of added sugar as we know: Water should be your main thirst-quencher. Sadly I still have not found any answers to the question does skipping breakfast make you age faster or make you look older…I’m not giving up yet on that one.

Works Cited:





        Cenzon, Matthew. "The Worst Breakfast Foods To Start Your Day". 30 Jan, 2012 Symptomfind.com. Web. 11 July, 2012.
        Corleone, Jill. "Healthy Breakfast Foods List". 28 March, 2011. Livestrong.com. Web. 11 July, 2012.
       

Yay for breakfast!!

Sorting through all the possible sources I found that EBSCOhost and WebMD were the best.. The articles I found through EBSCOhost were credible because they were based on the results of scientific and psychological experiments and data. The article from International Journal of Obesity, gives us an insight on  a question about how skipping breakfast is linked to many health problems like overeating, weight gain, and obesity. (International Journal of Obesity) It also explains that if you don’t start eating right at an early age it can lead to a life-long habit, which in-turn can contribute to body weight issues as well as overall health issues and if you as a parent eat breakfast, your child is more likely to develop that good habit. Another question was does skipping breakfast make you lose your appetite for lunch? A graph from the article shows how your appetite changes depending at which time you eat during the day. The results showed that if you skipped breakfast you remained hungrier throughout the day, and if you did eat breakfast your appetite subsided until later during the day. After seeing this I knew it could be useful in my search to find answers. After skimming the article more I found it to be full of useful information. Another question that was mentioned was when should I eat breakfast? The article stated that eating breakfast should occur 2 hours after you wake up in the morning. I moved on to WebMD. This site was credible in my eyes because it was a source incorporated with opinions and inputs from Doctors and people in the medical field. Here is where I found many articles explaining the importance of eating breakfast. One in particular caught my eye, “Eat breakfast, Cut diabetes Risk.” The name says it all! The article stated that through a seven year study they found out if you ate breakfast you have 24%-34% less chance of developing type 2 diabetes. I also found this youtube video to be very helpful..

(Video uploaded by GundersenLutheran on Nov 15, 2010 on youtube.com)

Still questions remain unanswered. What is healthy/ unhealthy to eat or drink in the morning? (I wasn’t satisfied with the list the video provided) Does skipping breakfast make you look older or make you age faster? (I’m really anxious to find answers for this!!) What if you’re not hungry? Does the amount of coffee I drink make me not hungry? And why am I not hungry in the morning?

To be continued…

Work Cited

   Leidy, HJ & Racki, EM. "Pediatric Highlight: The Addition Of A Protein-Rich Breakfast And It's Effects On Acute Appetite Control And Food Intake In 'Breakfast-Skipping' Adolescents." International Journal Of Obesity 34 (2010): 1125-1133. Macmillan Publishers Limited. Web. 11 July. 2012.

Laino, Charlene. "Eat Breakfast, Cut Diabetes Risk." 14 June, 2012. WebMD. Web 11 July, 1012

I was going to write a blog about Illuminati but seeing as this is the first blog I have ever written, breakfast seemed like a much simpler and more gratifying topic. So how many of us actually eat breakfast? My guess is a really small amount. I have to admit I am guilty of not having the recommended 3 meals a day. Like a lot of us I usually just eat a large lunch or a late dinner, but never breakfast.  The main question is; why is eating breakfast so important? Sure we’ve all heard that eating breakfast is important but for those of us who didn’t hear why there may be some unanswered questions like; What is healthy/ not healthy to eat or drink in the morning? How much do you need to eat for breakfast? How long do you wait after you wake up to eat? Does it matter what age you are? Does skipping breakfast make you look older or make you age faster?  Will eating breakfast make you lose your appetite for lunch? What if you don’t have enough time to eat in the morning? What if you’re not hungry? Does skipping breakfast make you gain more weight? These are important questions because it pertains to our health and well-being. And as people get older they start focusing more on their health, we all know we can’t be young and sexy forever! Well most of us can’t ha ha. Which brings me to another question, how does skipping breakfast affect your health? This is one I have been wondering about a lot lately. I’m really absorbed by this topic; and I’m sure the Internet would have the answers to the questions above and much more. Hopefully much is learned in the posts ahead so there can be enough information to start healthier habits in my life as well as yours!