Why you won’t lose weight eating your ‘healthy’ breakfast

Monday, 24 October 2011 15:55

A typical “healthy” breakfast reviewed:

• · Low-fat muesli / cereal
• · Skimmed milk
• · Wholegrain toast
• · Low-fat margarine
• · Glass of Orange Juice (store bought)

I know, I know, if you read three different nutrition articles, you can easily get four to six different opinions on what a healthy diet is, all claiming to make you skinny. One thing that gets me going whenever you listen to ‘experts’ in the media is the opening statement “we all know that saturated fat is bad for you / a diet high in grains is necessary for a healthy heart / we all need to eat more polyunsaturated “essential” fats / the key to health is to eat a little less and exercise a little more“ and so on. Do you think it is because we all know this that we are fatter and less healthy than ever in human history?

One simple strategy that you can employ to guard yourself against the charlatans of health is to look at the people giving you the advice. If they look less healthy than you, look elsewhere! Einstein said: “you can’t solve a problem with the same thinking that created it.” Trying the same thing over and over again expecting a different result (referred to in Military Tactics as reinforcing failure) isn’t going to help progress the species.

If what everyone knows isn’t working, then it is time to start looking for what does, then reinforce that thing until its becomes the norm. It wasn’t so long ago that your Medical Professional advocated smoking to decrease your appetite!

Let’s start with the most important meal of the day. Even the geniuses at Kelloggs realise that in order to feed your body properly, you should be aiming for at least 25% of your daily caloric intake coming in at breakfast. But why?

Answer – to stimulate your metabolism and break the stress cycle. If you want to lose fat AND get healthy (the two aren’t always complementary) then you want to be eating and exercising to stimulate your metabolism. After not eating anything for 8-10 hours during sleep, your body begins to rely on increasing stress hormones (principally Cortisol) to maintain your blood sugars through a process called gluconeogenesis where the body looks to convert its tissues (thymus, liver, skin, muscles) into a useable fuel source, and by releasing the liver’s supply of stored glycogen. You need this because your nervous system and your brain NEED a steady supply of glucose.

Cortisol is also an awakening hormone, so as the sun rises your Cortisol levels will automatically rise in order to be prepared to hunt, guard against predators etc. It’s a survival thing (see Paul Chek’s chapter on Circadium Rythyms from his book “How to eat, move & be healthy”).

“Additionally, cortisol blocks the enzyme which converts inactive thyroid hormone (T4) to active thyroid hormone (T3) in the liver. The body intentionally slows the metabolic rate so it doesn’t quickly run out of tissues to use as fuel in this emergency state. High cortisol also depresses immune function, decreases glucose oxidation, affects bone health, contributes to belly fat, and thins the skin.” (Functional Performance Systems, Low Carb Diet – Death to Metabolism; http://www.functionalps.com/blog/?p=1664 )

So according to breakfast cereal manufacturers, a breakfast high in carbohydrate will help you do this, but sadly no.  Interestingly Dr William Kellogg originally introduced his Cornflakes to the patients at his Battle Creek Sanitarium as he believed that spicy or sweet foods would increase passions. In contrast, corn flakes would have an anaphrodisiac property and lower the sex drive, which says a lot for its ability to affect you hormonally!

Remembering that our primary goal at breakfast is to feed the body to break the stress response and stimulate your metabolism. So here is what happens with a high starch, low-fat, low-protein breakfast for the majority of the Western population:

1. 1. High starch content rapidly raises blood sugar levels
2. 2. Body reacts to imbalance by releasing insulin
3. 3. Insulin rapidly shunts excess blood sugar into working muscles, by mostly into belly fat storage
4. 4. Blood sugar levels drop below homeostasis, liver forced to release stored glycogen, cortisol released to stimulate gluconeogenesis, lowering metabolism
5. 5. Hunger cravings, mood depression, fatigue, mental sluggishness
6. 6. Grab sugary food and stuff it into mouth to give you a lift
7. 7. Repeat step 1

“The Dietetic Association's association with General Mills, the breakfast cereal empire, (and Kellogg, Nabisco, and many other food industry giants) might have something to do with their starchy opinions. Starch-grain embolisms can cause brain damage, but major money can also make people say stupid things.

In an old experiment, a rat was tube-fed ten grams of corn-starch paste, and then anesthetized. Ten minutes after the massive tube feeding, the professor told the students to find how far the starch had moved along the alimentary canal. No trace of the white paste could be found, demonstrating the speed with which starch can be digested and absorbed. The very rapid rise of blood sugar stimulates massive release of insulin, and rapidly converts much of the carbohydrate into fat.” (Ray Peat; “Glycaemia, Starch and Sugar in Context; www.raypeat.com )

In Sally Fallon’s “Nourishing Traditions”, she cites a study performed on four sets of rats given special diets. One group received plain whole wheat, water, vitamins and minerals. Another group received puffed wheat, water and the same nutrient solution. A third set was given water and white sugar, and a fourth given nothing but water and chemical nutrients as supplements.

Group                                                     Life Span

Whole wheat                                        Over a year

Water & Vitamins                 Eight weeks

Sugar & Water                                     One month

Puffed Wheat Two weeks

It wasn’t a matter of the rats dying of malnutrition, this suggested there was something actually toxic about the Puffed Wheat itself! (Sally Fallon; Nourishing Traditions; pp 462; Copyright New Trends Publishing 2001). I hope this study makes you think twice about whether you want to eat breakfast cereals, and why they aren’t healthy options. Sadly this wasn’t enough to stop them from wanting to make money selling it to you. The sooner you come to acknowledge that THEY DON’T CARE if you are healthy, they faster you will be able to take control of your own body.

So what about the healthy breakfast above?

Taking a critical look at our concept of the ‘healthy breakfast’, we can rapidly see the following:

• · Low-fat muesli / cereal – high starch content, rapidly increases blood sugar levels leading to insulin surge and belly fat storage, lowers metabolism, stresses liver, reduces thyroid function;
• · Skimmed milk – dead food product, contains milk sugars ‘lactose’ that aren’t easily digested by a large proportion of western population due to killing off of ‘lactase’ enzymes during pasteurisation;
• · Wholegrain toast – 50 years ago wholegrain may have been a health food product, but given its ability to rapidly raise blood sugar, inflame your colon, block absorption of essential vitamins D and B12, and inhibit your abdominal function, eating this is a shortcut to poor health. See articles on Gluten sensitivity or “Going Against the Grain” by Melissa Smith;
• · Low-fat margarine – Margarine = Trans Fat. This is never a good idea, IN ANY QUANTITY. Has been directly linked to Coronary Heart Disease and numerous other health issues. Again, food manufacturers know this, but you are still sold it as your ‘healthy’ alternative to butter, which has been used by native societies for millennia without issue, because they ‘knew’ that it was actually good for them. Remember the ad for Camel Cigarettes above? (Dr Weston Price; “Nutrition & Physical Degeneration”);
• · Glass of Orange Juice (store bought) – once fruit juice is exposed to oxygen from piercing the skin it immediately begins to lose essential vitamins through oxidisation. What you are left with is concentrated fruit sugar. If you are going to eat fruit sugar, then either freshly squeeze it, or just eat fruit. It is really, really hard to overdose on fruit.

So what we have, in essence, is grain-based starchy sugar, with milk sugar, with gluten and more grain sugar (see extract from Ray Peat above if you have already forgotten what this does to your insulin and stress hormone levels), with a spread of heart disease causing Trans Fats, then a glass of concentrated fruit sugar. And you wonder why we think this is a bad idea? Add to this a low fat café-latte and your glands are in for a rollercoaster!

So what can you eat for breakfast?

If you want to lose weight, then forget your exercise programme if you aren’t willing to get this bit right. Seriously, don’t bother, as you will only be adding stress to your already overtaxed stress hormone producing gland. And don’t get me started on cardiovascular-based exercise!!!

Step One

The most important thing to take at breakfast is time, if you don’t have much then make the most of whatever you have! Stuffing something in your face on the way out the door is doing nothing for your digestion or your hopes of losing that belly fat. Try getting out of bed five minutes earlier, or prepare your breakfast the night before.

Step Two

Breakfast should contain a balance of all three of the following:

1. 1. protein, preferably from organic animal sources (eggs, chicken, beef, lamb, smoked salmon, liver & pate are all popular breakfast choices among my clients), SOY-BASED PRODUCTS DON’T COUNT.
2. 2. digestible carbohydrates (fruit, vegetables), and
3. 3. some type of healthy fat (Coconoil, Full Fat Butter, Avocado in moderation are again all popular choices among our clients). If you are concerned about eating fats and the link between dietary cholesterol and CHD see our article on this subject, and worry no longer. It’s not true!

Starting with a serving of lamb chops is often too much for my clients to consider at breakfast, so my advice is to pick something that you would consider eating. This is where options like scrambled eggs in Coconoil, smoked salmon in moderation, cold chicken and organic liver pates work really well.

What about porridge oats? This is where you need to figure out how your body reacts, I would certainly advise buying the best organic gluten-free oats you can afford, and soaking them overnight in filtered water to break down the phytic acid content. My clients have found that mixing organic full-fat cream into the porridge helps balance the blood sugar rush, as the fat helps moderate the flow of starch through the digestive tract.

So how much of each do you need to eat? Well this is where what works for me, in terms of proportions, may not work for you because of a concept known as “Biochemical Individuality”. This means that we look as differently on the inside as we do on the outside, and so will our nutritional requirements differ. I am a genetic mongrel, with carefully blended hints of Scottish, Irish, Germanic, Welsh and Maori, so while I should be able to drink, fight and play rugby well, my digestive makeup is potentially affected by all these influences. Start by looking at what your ancestors lived on 10,000 years ago and work backwards, or do some controlled experimentation.

Finding the right balance of Proteins, Carbs and Fats to balance your blood sugar levels needs to be your number one priority if you want to lose weight.

Just eating a high Protein breakfast isn’t the answer, as Protein on its own will lower your blood sugar levels. Fat loss through a low carb diet is possible in the short term, but will affect your thyroid and lower your metabolic rates in the long term, so is not a strategy that we recommend.

I thoroughly recommend further reading of William Wolcott’s “The Metabolic Typing Diet”, which explains the process of understanding Biochemical Individuality, further articles on Thyroid health and Metabolism at www.raypeat.com , Paul Chek’s “How to eat, move & be healthy” or book in for a session with Boddy Language to learn more about how you can structure your nutrition for healthier living.