This article was originally published as my Holistic Outlook column in The Times Herald Record.

I’ve previously debunked the myth of calorie-juggling and the mistaken notion that fats make us fat and sick. Today, let’s explore the myth that whole grains are essential to a healthy diet.

Not only is it untrue, but also it does a large number of people a great deal of harm. Those “healthy” whole grains make a lot of us ache-y, bloated, tired and fat, and perpetuate both hunger and cravings — so you are more likely to gobble ever more cookies, crackers, bread or pasta.

Every food has proteins, and when we react to a food, it is almost always to the proteins in it. Gluten is the protein in wheat, oats, rye, spelt and barley. One-third of the population has a genetic sensitivity to gluten, but recent research shows that even in people who are not gluten-sensitive, gluten causes inflammation: in the gut, the brain and throughout the body.

We’ve been told that increasing whole grains will improve our health, but, for most, taking them out does more good. My clients are amazed at the improvements they feel when they eliminate gluten, often within days. And those improvements continue to accrue for two years, as the body continues to heal.

Gluten lite?

People often ask if cutting back on gluten has the same benefits as eliminating it. Unfortunately, no. Glue-y gluten “sticks” in the system for about 10 days each time you ingest it. If you have gluten once a week, your system never gets to heal.

Secondly, gluten has addictive biochemical effects, so each time you eat some, your cravings resurface and you struggle to resist eating more and more. Conversely, once you eliminate it completely, cravings diminish, and willpower isn’t an issue.

The great masquerader

Gluten is a “hidden” food sensitivity, because response is not immediate and dramatic, but delayed and cumulative. Historically, gluten was associated with gastrointestinal issues, such as constipation/diarrhea, and the infamous “wheat belly.” But now we know only a minority of people suffer from gut issues. Most experience other symptoms as diverse as skin rashes, painful joints, asthma, chronic sinusitis, anemia, osteoporosis or anxiety. If you’re wondering if you might be one of the many who feel better gluten-free, I encourage you to experiment and find out for yourself.

Have you been feeling more forgetful?  Foggy?  Unfocused?  Would you like to improve your memory, focus and attention, in just minutes a day, while getting all the well-documented benefits of meditation for both the body and the spirit? Then this class is for you.

We will be learning and practicing a simple 12 minute meditation that has been shown to improve memory and executive function as well as mood, and to decrease tension and fatigue (research published in esteemed peer-reviewed journals).  In addition, I will be sharing many other tips about retaining and even improving brain health as we age.

The class is open to all, whether you have experience with meditation or not.  It is perfect for complete beginners, as well as experienced meditators.

This class will provide a structure and a safe forum to learn and develop a personal meditation practice.

Classes will take place at my office, on 8 Wednesdays from 6-7PM, starting May 30th and ending July 25th (no class June 27th).  The cost for the class is $229.  Class is limited to 15 people.

I have been practicing and teaching meditation for about 15 years, but haven’t taught in the past couple of years, although I often get asked. This new-to-me practice inspired me so deeply that I knew I had to share it.

• If you have ever felt that you would like to meditate, but don’t know how to start on your own, or want the structure of a class and teacher to develop and maintain a personal practice, then this is for you.

• If you are concerned about the effects of aging on memory, focus, attention and other measures of cognitive function, then this class is for you.

I hope you will join us.

This article appeared as my Holistic Outlook column in The Times Herald Record.

Surprise! Eating Some Fats is Good for You

In my last column, I explained how the calories in/calories out model sabotages your weight-loss plans. Let’s continue busting common health myths. Today: the myth that eating fat makes you fat.

Have you been frightened into thinking that eating any amount of dietary fat is harmful? In fact, eating a low or no-fat diet is more likely to put you at risk, because fat, and yes, even cholesterol, are essential to human life. Without them, you disrupt many normal functions, cause accelerated aging and break down your metabolism. Fats are essential to every process in your body, including a healthy, well-functioning brain.

Body fat is not necessarily correlated to dietary fat, in part because eating fat does not stimulate release of insulin. In fact, body fat and high cholesterol are more likely to be the result of a diet high in processed and refined carbohydrates.

Numerous studies show that people lose weight and improve health by adding healthy fats to their diets, not reducing or eliminating them. But there’s the clue: the difference between healthy fats and unhealthy fats, even if the number of calories is the same.

Plant fats generally good

Plant fats are generally good for you. Nuts and seeds, coconuts and avocados are better than fat marbled into a burger or steak, fried foods or processed foods made with hydrogenated fats. And most people know that fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, sardines, mackerel and trout provide healthy fats.

But did you know that pasture-raised cows that are never fed grain have a healthier fat profile than farm-raised, grain-fed fish? Animals fed “species-appropriate food” are always healthier to eat.

A recent headline-making study that showed any amount of meat increased mortality from cancer and heart disease did not take this into account. I was not surprised, however, that it showed significantly higher risk for people who ate processed meat, such as bacon and deli meats.

Beware: Many low-fat foods, including ice cream, yogurt, cakes and cookies, add extra sugars to make up for lack of palatability. Plus, eating low fat often leaves you hungry and craving carbohydrates shortly after. So don’t be afraid: Add some healthy fats back into your diet.

link to published article here

“…one serving daily of a sugar-sweetened beverage was linked to a 19 percent increase in the relative risk of cardiovascular disease.”

via Sugar-Sweetened Drinks Linked to Heart Disease – NYTimes.com.

As I have been teaching clients for many years, heart disease and problematic cholesterol, as well as diabetes, are far more likely to be a result of refined and processed carbohydrates, including sugar, than of dietary fats.  Low fat diets are neither safe nor health-promoting.  And if you add more healthy fats to your meals, you will find that you have fewer cravings for carbohydrates!

And please note that, as the article states, artificially sweetened drinks are not the solution, but their own problem, as they cause metabolic damage.

This article appeared as my Holistic Outlook column in The Times Herald Record.

Let’s bust some health myths. In the next few columns, I will discuss common beliefs that keep you from your optimal health, weight and body composition. People usually have the best intentions for their health and just need better information and understanding of how the body works. I can help you with that.

Let’s start by busting an almost universally accepted myth: the myth of calories.

Our bodies aren’t spreadsheets

How many times have you overindulged at dinner, thinking you’ll make up for it by skipping meals, drinking coffee or just eating salad the next day? After all, we’re told that if we just keep at a certain calorie level, we’re OK.

But our bodies don’t function like spreadsheets where you can move things around as long as they still add up to the same number. Nope, we are more like a chemistry lab, with everything changing and affecting everything else, all the time.

We are designed for homeostasis, the need to coordinate different systems to maintain overall stability. For example, the body will protect our organs and maintain core temperature, if necessary, by decreasing blood flow to our hands and feet.

When we restrict calories, our body goes into conservation mode. The oldest part of our brain, geared for survival, knows that less food means there may be a famine and so shifts our metabolism to make the most of every calorie we consume, with special attention to storing fat, in case there are times ahead with no food at all.

Don’t go to extremes

Not what you had in mind? Unfortunately, our survival mechanisms haven’t kept up with the times; they’re still the same as they were thousands of years ago, before the existence of refrigerators, supermarkets and fast-food drive-throughs.

Want to look like a Sumo wrestler? I didn’t think so. Yet that’s the extreme you’re going toward if you follow a pattern of overeating and fasting. It’s exactly how the body will put on the most weight.

Obviously, calories count. If you eat thousands of calories a day, you will probably be overweight (unless you are a teenage boy or a bodybuilder). But having three balanced meals daily of lean protein, complex carbohydrates and healthy fat is much more important and helpful to your metabolism than playing the calorie-juggling game.

I just received a small shipment of pure wild harvested Cistus Incanus and it seems excellent!  So if you have been waiting for more to arrive, now is the time to order. It is $20 for a bag, plus shipping, if applicable.

Use 1 teaspoon per 8 oz boiling water. Steep 8-10 minutes. Tea can be re-used several times and still have therapeutic effectiveness.

“Because calories change as they enter the body, the nine grams for fat and four for everything else turn out to be not very accurate measures at all”

via Is a Calorie a Calorie? – NYTimes.com.

After years of consistently preaching the outdated calories in/calories out model, the NY Times finally comes around.  I’ve been preaching this for years, and in fact my upcoming Holistic Outlook column for The Times Herald Record is about this very topic.  I’m not sure when it will be published, but you can have a sneak preview here:

How many times have you overindulged at dinner, thinking you’ll make up for it by skipping meals, drinking coffee, or just eating salad the next day?  After all, we’re told that if we just keep at a certain calorie level, we’re okay.  But our bodies don’t function like spreadsheets where you can move things around as long as they still add up to the same number.  Nope, we are more like a chemistry lab, with everything changing and affecting everything else, all the time.

We are designed for homeostasis, the need to coordinate different systems to maintain overall stability.  For example, the body will protect our organs and maintain core temperature, if necessary, by decreasing blood flow to our hands and feet.

When we restrict calories, our body goes into conservation mode. The oldest part of our brain, geared for survival, knows that less food means there may be a famine, and so shifts our metabolism to make the most of every calorie we consume, with special attention to storing fat, in case there are times ahead with no food at all.

Not what you had in mind?  Unfortunately, our survival mechanisms haven’t kept up with the times: they’re still the same as they were thousands of years ago, before the existence of refrigerators, supermarkets, and fast food drive-throughs.

Want to look like a Sumo wrestler?  I didn’t think so.  Yet that’s the extreme you’re going towards if you follow a pattern of overeating and fasting.  It’s exactly how the body will put on the most weight.

Obviously, calories count. If you eat thousands of calories a day, you will probably be overweight (unless you are a teenage boy, or a bodybuilder!).  But having three balanced meals daily of lean protein, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fat is much more important and helpful to your metabolism than playing the calorie juggling game.

Update: All 3 classes sold out, but if you are still interested, please let me know and I will add you to the list for the next classes.  It’s always possible there will be last minute cancellations, as well.

Third class is Wednesday April 25th 6-8PM. Please respond ASAP if you would like to attend. The first two classes are sold out.

Feeling kind of blah? sluggish? heavy?

Still got those winter blues and an extra 5 or 10 pounds?

Want to have more energy, clear up your skin, improve your focus, sleep better, and lose the belly bulge?

Want to be both informed and inspired to make some healthy ch-ch-ch-changes?

Please join me for a fun, tasty, and informative talk at my office, Wednesday, April 25th at 6PM Thursday, April 12th at 6:30PM, or Tuesday April 17th at 5PM.  We will talk about many different ways to cleanse and detoxify, as well as some popular methods you should definitely avoid.

You will learn:

• How to determine your personal Toxicity Quotient
• 10 simple ways to reduce your toxic burden
• Juicing, Shakes, and Smoothies: how, when, and why, as well as what to avoid. And I’ll be doing a demo and sharing some tasty samples and recipes!
• Coffee enemas: why this is one of the best things you can do for your GI system and your liver!

The past two years the class was full and I had to turn people away, so make sure you lock in your spot early.

We will be tasting and sampling, and I will be giving you a lot of printed information as well.  I will also be offering participants some very special opportunities to begin a Program with me.  So if you’ve been waiting for the right moment to get started, this could be it.

Please spread the word, and let your friends know, but reserve your own spot first!

$15 to register one person;

$25 if you register with a friend;

only $30 if you register with 2 friends, so spread the word and bring a buddy or two.

Spring is the perfect time to cleanse your body and renew your energy.  Whether you want to clear some “winter sludge” out of your system, prepare for a weight loss program, get in shape for the warm weather and skimpier clothes ahead, or just do a seasonal tune-up, the Rejuvenation! Class is a great way to get started.

To register, please email to let me know who’s coming, and then send a check to Sussman Holistic Services, 29 Goshen Rd, Chester, NY 10918, to hold your spot.  Classes will be held at my office.

Let’s see… who should we believe on the health benefits, or lack thereof, of milk? The Harvard School of Public Health, or the Milk Lobby?

“Harvard’s nutrition experts did not pull punches, declaring that the university’s food guide was based on sound nutrition research and more importantly, not influenced by food industry lobbyists. “  The Milk Mustache campaign, cute as it is, has a pretty clear agenda: to increase the sale of milk.

Harvard Declares Dairy NOT Part of a Healthy Diet | Care2 Healthy Living.

Milk Lobby Pushes Milk for Breakfast

By the way, the endocrinologist I trained with, Dr Diana Schwarzbein, used milk, rather than orange juice, for her diabetic patients, because it raised blood sugar even faster.  Just sayin’…

Pear and Arugula Smoothie With Ginger and Walnuts — Recipes for Health – NYTimes.com.

The popularity of smoothies alarms me, particularly when they are made, as this one is, with lots of fruit and orange juice, a potent combination of sugar and acid that is not actually healthy for anyone.  If you look at the nutritional information included with the article, you will see that it has 31 grams of carbs, mostly in the form of sugars, and only 5 grams (less than an ounce) of protein.  This is far from a balanced meal.

If you were having it as a salad, I would add some chicken, increase the walnuts, and definitely lose the juice.  Enjoy with a dressing made with fresh herbs, walnut or cold pressed virgin olive oil, and either lemon juice or vinegar.

If you want to experiment with smoothies, please don’t make them fruit-based. Sugar is sugar, even if it comes from fruit, and especially if it comes from juice (fruit stripped of its fiber), and sugar is causing us an awful lot of health problems.  Instead, experiment with more vegetable-based smoothies, with avocados (healthy fat and fiber), nuts (healthy fat, protein and a little carbohydrates), and coconut milk (good for the immune system and the nervous system). Or as a healthy alternative, see my article on green juicing.