New Modern Paleo Email Lists

Diana Hsieh of Modern Paleo has created new email lists for those of us who are interested in a paleo-type approach to nutrition and fitness.  I am moderating the PaleoParents list since I am trying to start a family and Santiago and I plan to follow a paleo approach with our kiddo.  If one of the lists sounds interesting to you, sign up and give it a try!  

 

Here's Diana's announcement:

I'm delighted to announce the launch of three new Modern Paleo E-mail Lists: PaleoCooks, PaleoFitness, and PaleoParents. These new lists are just gathering subscriptions this week. They'll open for discussion on Monday, September 19th.

• PaleoCooks: PaleoCooks is an informal private mailing list for people who eat a broadly paleo diet to discuss paleo-friendly cookery. Its basic purpose is to facilitate communication about cooking and eating paleo -- such as favorite recipes, better and worse ingredients, good suppliers, useful techniques, and more. Its broader purpose is to help paleo-eaters eat more a healthy, varied, and delicious diet. PaleoCooks is managed by Julie Campbell of the crankin' kitchen. For more information and to subscribe, click here.
• PaleoFitness: PaleoFitness is an informal private mailing list for people who eat a broadly a broadly paleo diet to discuss paleo-friendly fitness. Its basic purpose is to facilitate communication about fitness from a paleo perspective -- such workout methods, lifting techniques, pre and post workout nutrition, preventing and healing from injuries, enjoyable sports, and more. Its broader purpose is to help paleo-eaters enjoy productive and enjoyable workouts. PaleoFitness is managed by Tammy Perkins. For more information and to subscribe, click here.
• PaleoParents: PaleoParents is an informal private mailing list for parents and others interested applying a a broadly paleo approach to nutrition, fitness, medicine, and supplementation to kids. Its basic purpose is to facilitate communication about paleo as applied to kids and families -- such as pregnancy, breastfeeding, kid-friendly recipes, dining out, supplementation, kids sports, and more. Its broader purpose is to help paleo parents raise healthy and happy kids. PaleoParents is managed by Kelly Valenzuela of Mother of Exiles. For more information and to subscribe, click here.

Of course, Modern Paleo's three other e-mail lists are open to new members any time. Those lists are:

• PaleoBloggers: PaleoBloggers is an informal private mailing list for bloggers who adhere to and advocate a broadly paleo approach to nutrition, fitness, medicine, and supplementation. Its basic purpose is to facilitate communication about matters of mutual interest -- such as blog worthy links, the paleo carnival, upcoming events, posts of interest, and best blogging practices. Its broader purpose is to help paleo bloggers more effectively advocate and promote the paleo approach. PaleoBloggers is managed by me, Diana Hsieh of NoodleFood. For more information and to subscribe, click here.
• PaleoThyroid: PaleoThyroid is an informal private mailing list for adherents of a broadly paleo diet with diagnosed or suspected thyroid disease. Its basic purpose is to facilitate the sharing of information, resources, and experiences about thyroid problems amongst independent-minded people already eating paleo. PaleoThyroid is managed by me, Diana Hsieh of NoodleFood. For more information and to subscribe, click here.
• SousVide: SousVide is an informal private mailing list for people who cook sous vide, particularly home cooks. Its basic purpose is to facilitate the sharing of information, resources, recipes, and tips related to cooking sous vide. (This list is not limited to paleo-eaters.) SousVide is managed by Shea Levy of Shea's Blog. For more information and to subscribe, click here.

Non-paleo lurkers are welcome on all of these lists, except PaleoBloggers.

Guest Blog Post at Modern Paleo

I have a guest blog post over at Modern Paleo today if you’d like to check it out.  Here’s a taste:

 

Some of you may have seen my Facebook status a week or so ago about my experience after eating a Sonic Blast. I rarely eat ice cream, much less ice cream from a fast food joint with whipped "topping" and Reese's Peanut Butter Cup bits in it, but I thought I would treat myself to dessert while I was out running errands. A treat it was not!

Great Blog Post by Eades on Cholesterol

Dr. Eades had a great blog post the other day about cholesterol and a Times article that was published 30 years ago.  Here’s an excerpt:

 

Although Mr. Shragai’s case is that of but one individual, since this vapid 1984 Time article came out launching the jihad against fat and cholesterol, the entire country became unwitting subjects in a long-term experiment testing the hypothesis that a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet is healthful.  And in the intervening 26 years, obesity has skyrocketed and type II diabetes has reached epidemic proportions, leading me and many others to say that the low-fat diet has failed.  At least as applied to large groups of subjects.

Oh Life – A Super Easy Online Journal Tool

I've been using Oh Life for a few weeks now with great success.  It's very easy to use.  They send you an email each evening (or whatever time you specify) that basically asks, "How'd your day go?" and you reply to the email.  It then keeps everything in chronological order and you can log in any time to read past entries.

 

Today, I thought of putting a twist on it that some of you may find helpful in trying to achieve your fitness and diet goals (or any other goals for that matter.)  In the spirit of Atul Gawande's awesome checklist article, I'm going to leave a checklist near my computer so I can respond to the following each day:

 

1.) What happened today?

2.) What did I eat?

3.) Did I work out?  If so, how and for how long?  If not, why?

4.) How were my emotions and my psychological state today?

5.) How much money did I spend today and on what?

6.) Any other specific questions about long-term goals or projects I'm working on

 

I think this will be a great way to kill several birds with one stone.  Experts always say to journal about this or that to introspect, stay on target, stick to your diet, watch your spending, etc.  Why not do it all at one time and in one place?

My Guest Blog Post at Modern Paleo

Peachy Keen Pork Chops!  Yum!   http://blog.modernpaleo.com/2010/09/peachy-keen-pork-chops.html

Cholesterol is GOOD!

As many of you know, I am on a variation of the paleo diet.  My friend Diana has outlined it well here:  http://www.modernpaleo.com/principles.html

 

Someone on a paleo diet email list I subscribe to forwarded this Huffington Post article, that is actually quite good!  Here’s a highlight:

 

Cholesterol and Inflammation - What's the Connection?

Inflammation has become a bit of a buzzword in the medical field because it has been linked to so many different diseases. And one of those diseases is heart disease ... the same heart disease that cholesterol is often blamed for.

What am I getting at?

Well, first consider the role of inflammation in your body. In many respects, it's a good thing as it's your body's natural response to invaders it perceives as threats. If you get a cut for instance, the process of inflammation is what allows you to heal.

Specifically during inflammation:

-- Your blood vessels constrict to keep you from bleeding to death

-- Your blood becomes thicker so it can clot

-- Your immune system sends cells and chemicals to fight viruses, bacteria and other "bad guys" that could infect the area

-- Cells multiply to repair the damage

Ultimately, the cut is healed and a protective scar may form over the area.

If your arteries are damaged, a very similar process occurs inside of your body, except that a "scar" in your artery is known as plaque.

This plaque, along with the thickening of your blood and constricting of your blood vessels that normally occur during the inflammatory process, can indeed increase your risk of high blood pressure and heart attacks.

Notice that cholesterol has yet to even enter the picture.

Cholesterol comes in because, in order to replace your damaged cells, it is necessary.

Remember that no cell can form without it.

So if you have damaged cells that need to be replaced, your liver will be notified to make more cholesterol and release it into your bloodstream. This is a deliberate process that takes place in order for your body to produce new, healthy cells.

It's also possible, and quite common, for damage to occur in your body on a regular basis. In this case, you will be in a dangerous state of chronic inflammation.

The test usually used to determine if you have chronic inflammation is a C-reactive protein (CRP) blood test. CRP level is used as a marker of inflammation in your arteries.

Generally speaking:

-- A CRP level under 1 milligrams per liter of blood means you have a low risk for cardiovascular disease

-- 1 to 3 milligrams means your risk is intermediate

-- More than 3 milligrams is high risk

Even conventional medicine is warming up to the idea that chronic inflammation can trigger heart attacks. But they stop short of seeing the big picture.

In the eyes of conventional medicine, when they see increased cholesterol circulating in your bloodstream, they conclude that it -- not the underlying damage to your arteries -- is the cause of heart attacks.

I highly recommend the entire article.  It’s very important for any human that wishes to live a long, happy life.  ;-)

Good Post on Leptin

Mark’s Daily Apple has an interesting blog post on leptin.  Here’s the intro, but click through for the good stuff.

 

Just about every physiological process occurring under the hood can be attributed to one hormone or another. Hormones are like software programs, directing our bodily processes, modulating our reactions to foods, and guiding energy metabolism and balance. We don’t consciously control our hormonal responses – that is, we don’t think to ourselves, “Hmm, let’s get some testosterone flowing,” or “Insulin: release!” But we can heavily influence our hormonal responses through the things we do, the stress we undergo, the foods we eat, the weights we lift, and the sleep we get.

 

Perhaps all those times someone said they were fat due to a hormonal or glandular problem, they were right!

I Love Fat!

I’m still far too busy at home and work to blog right now, but here’s some fat to chew on.  ;-)

http://freetheanimal.com/2010/04/melinda-wenner-moyer-the-war-on-fat-may-be-making-us-sicker.html