Cyd Notter

Author and Nutrition Educator, Founder of The "Plan A" Diet™

  • Home
  • Welcome
  • About Cyd
  • The “Plan A” Diet™
    • The “Plan A” Diet™
    • Free 45-minute Strategy Session
    • The 21-Day Meal Plan
    • Easy Meals and Desserts
    • The ‘Plan A’ Diet™ Food Pyramid
    • The Plan B Transition Approach
    • The “Plan A” Diet Transition Course
    • Our Mission & Philosophy
    • Why Go Plant-Based?
    • What’s Really True?
    • The story behind the book
  • Courses
  • About the Book
  • Contact Us
  • Articles of Interest
    • Food Topics
      • Artificial Sweeteners – What you should know
      • March is National Nutrition Month – Take the Quiz
      • Artificial Sweeteners – What you should know
      • Which food has 8x more cholesterol than beef?
      • 3 Big Reasons to Include Berries in Your Diet
      • Success Tips for Changing Your Diet
      • Do you suffer from Carbophobia?
      • What about alcohol?
      • The Slippery Slope of “Eating in Moderation”
      • A Nutrition Pop Quiz
      • Protein and Calcium
      • Aren’t Starches Fattening
      • Oils
        • Coconut Oil – Yes or No
        • Oils – what you should know
      • Eating Enough Fruits and Veggies?
      • Do you have a holiday game plan?
      • Making Only One Change?
      • America’s Love Affair with Bacon
      • Is it Safe to Eat Soy?
      • Are gluten-free diets for everyone?
      • Planning to diet this January? Do this instead.
      • Fabulous Flax Seed Has it All
      • How Important is the Glycemic Index?
      • Eating Out at Restaurants or Parties
      • Artificial Sweeteners – What you should know
      • Healthier Halloween Options
    • Health Topics
      • Inflammatory and Anti-Inflammatory Foods (Printable List)
      • What is Vitamin B12 and how much should I take?
      • Why exercise?
      • 5 Reasons to Steer Clear of the Charcuterie Boards
      • MEN: Prostate Stats You Should Know
      • The Aluminum in Our Foods is Strongly Linked to Dementia
      • Diet and Gallbladder Disease
      • Infants are Being Fed Junk Food by Their First Birthday
      • 4 Things Necessary for a Successful, Healthy Diet
      • Habits – Good or Bad?
      • Is it too late to start eating healthy?
      • Making Small Changes but Expecting Big Results
      • Family and Social Pressure
      • Genes, Schmenes – It’s most likely the food
      • Is a plant-based diet safe for children?
      • Which Processed Meats Should We Avoid?
      • Gut Bacteria and Our Diets
      • Diet & Breast Cancer Prevention
      • Statins – Don’t Believe Everything you Read
      • Diabetes – “Manage” or Reverse?
      • The Health Benefits of (a little) Unprotected Sun
      • Making Changes Stick
      • Evaluating Research
      • Vitamin D and Sunshine
    • Faith Related
      • Addressing Biblical Objections to a Plant-Based Diet
      • The mathematical odds that Jesus is who He said He is…
      • Poem: Lessons from a Bike Ride
  • Recipes
    • Rainbow Kale Slaw
    • Gingerbread Biscotti
    • Instant Pot Pineapple Chili
    • No-Flour Corn Muffins
    • BBQ Soy Curls
    • Carrot Cake with Glaze
    • Blueberry Oat Bran Muffins
    • Choco-Mint Nice Cream
    • Barley Burgers
    • Chocolate Orange Nice Cream (and Sauce)
    • Easy Instant Pot Risotto
    • Easy Meals and Desserts
    • Recipes for Chef AJ’s Cooking Demo
    • Recipe Links
    • Pumpkin Raisin Muffins
    • Roasted Veggie Pasta
    • Zucchini Muffins
  • Upcoming Events
  • Resources
  • Testimonials
    • Amanda G. – Loses Digestive Issues and 115 lbs.
    • Tim P. – Off all 8 Meds!
    • Cindi R. – Reversed Blocked Carotid
    • Doug M. – Doc says “Cured!”
    • Denise V. – At Peace with Food and Body Image
    • Linda Z. – Autoimmune Skin Disorder now Dormant
    • Olga A. – Improved Cognitive Function
    • Kim C. – Relief from “Getting Older”
  • Blog
  • Media Kit

Truly Hungry? or Just Craving?

October 10, 2022 By Cyd Notter

All of us have food cravings from time to time.

But finding yourself in the pantry or at the drive-up window might have more to do with your mood than your actual need for food.

It could be that you’re using food to deal with stress, boredom, anger, loneliness, or a host of other emotions. Or you may be struggling with a food addiction. In either case, indulging in such cravings usually means seeking out foods which are high in calories and fat.

So how can you tell if you’re experiencing a craving, or if you’re truly hungry and need to eat?

Here’s one way to recognize the difference:

Hunger usually occurs when you haven’t eaten for several hours. Your body will send one of several signals when your stomach is getting empty, anything from growling/gurgling belly sounds to headaches or feeling light-headed.

Hunger is the body’s way of telling you that you need fuel, and hunger doesn’t pass with time. When you feel true hunger, you’ll most likely seek out nutritious foods (not candy or cake).

Cravings, on the other hand, can masquerade as hunger. They push you to eat particular comfort foods—chocolate, sweets, fatty foods—even though your body doesn’t need more fuel.

Satisfying these cravings can feel good at first, but often leads to feelings of guilt. Cravings may be even stronger when you’re “dieting” or giving up your favorite foods.

Photo by Andres Ayrton, Pexels.com

The good news is that cravings do pass with time when you resist them. Distract yourself when craving the wrong foods by engaging in some activity.

Another option might be to fulfill that craving with a small amount of something healthy. For example if you’re craving sweets, how about a handful of grapes or a few slices of mango?

Self-awareness is key in distinguishing between hunger and cravings.

Below is a picture of the Hunger and Fullness Scale, which describes just that: varying degrees of hunger and fullness. It’s a tool that can help us identify how hungry or full we are.

Level 5 is neutral, neither hungry nor full. Level 4 is where we’re starting to think about food, at Level 3 our stomach starts to growl and our thoughts increase about getting something to eat.

At Level 2 there’s lots of stomach growling, our stomach may actually hurt, and we need to get food now! At Level 1, ravenous, we’re past the point of hunger and can have headaches, difficulty concentrating, and low energy. At Level 0 we’d be weak, dizzy, have a stomachache, and be mentally impaired.

The Role of Hormones in Hunger and Fullness - Hearty SmartyOn the fullness side, Level 6 would be lightly full, we’ll be hungry again in 1-3 hours. Level 7 = moderately full, satisfied, hungry again in 2-3 hours. Level 8 = Full, comfortably full but would not want to eat more. Level 9 means we’re stuffed, past the point of comfort (our stomach may hurt). And Level 10 is when we’re so uncomfortably full that we feel sick.

It is normal for your hunger and fullness to fluctuate all day long. Staying in the moderate ranges (from a 3-7) will help you avoid extremes in hunger and fullness.

If you start eating when you are lightly moderately hungry you are more likely to stop eating when you are lightly to moderately full. If you start eating when you are empty or ravenous you are more likely to eat until you are stuffed or sick. This scale can serve as a guide to help us mindfully connect to our bodies and our true hunger signals.

Hari Hachi Bu

The long-lived, Okinawans in Japan, who stay healthy well into old age and have the highest percentage of centenarians in the world, follow a practice called Hari Hachi Bu, which teaches people to stop eating when they’re 80% full.

It’s something they say before meals as a reminder to stop eating when they feel 80% full. One of their proverbs says that “eight parts of a full stomach sustain the man; the other two sustain the doctor.”

Wouldn’t it be great if we followed that example?

By getting back in tune with your hunger and satiety signals and paying attention to what/why you eat, you’ll soon be on the road to a much healthier lifestyle.

Interested in more tips for healthy eating? Check out this free training class where you’ll walk away with tips you can begin implementing today.

 Keep your mind on things above, not on worldly things. (Colossians 3:2, GW)

(Photos from VisualHunt)

Filed Under: My Blog Tagged With: cravings, faith based, faith based diet, food addiction, hunger vs cravings, plant a diet, Plant Based Diet, plant-based nutrition, The Plan A Diet, vegan, vegetarian, whole food plant based

Why is Sugar Inflammatory, and How Much is in Our Food?

August 14, 2022 By Cyd Notter

Sugar – One of our Biggest Addictors

Desiring sugar is quite natural! We have built-in taste buds for salt, sugar, bitterness, sour, and fat.

But there are MANY sources of sugar. The natural sugars found in whole plant foods promote health, while the added sugars found in refined, processed foods promote weight gain, inflammation, insulin resistance, and can even damage our arteries.

How much sugar are we eating?

Sugar consumption can be difficult to control because the food industry often adds it where consumers might not think to check.

The World Health Organization suggests getting no more than 5 percent of daily calories from sugar, or about 25 grams (6 teaspoons). The American Heart Association recommends women limit sugar consumption to 6 teaspoons (25 grams) per day and men limit to 9 teaspoons (36 grams) per day.

Other organizations have different limit suggestions.

But many people consume far more than the recommendations. The U.S. continues to be one of the highest sugar-consuming countries, with the average American now consuming over 22 teaspoons of sugar daily!

How does sugar cause inflammation?

The refined sugars found in soft drinks, fruit juice, sweet tea, pastries, desserts, cookies, candy, snack cakes, cereals, and even frozen entrees can stimulate the production of something called “free fatty acids” – which circulate through the bloodstream and trigger both insulin resistance and inflammation in the skeletal system, the liver, and the protective cells that line our arteries.

Sugar also triggers the release of inflammatory cytokine cells; just 40 grams of sugar per day (which is one can of pop) leads to an increase in inflammatory markers, weight gain, and increased LDL cholesterol.

Refined sugars also lead to the excess production of AGE’s – Advanced Glycation End Products – which form when protein or fat combine with sugar in the bloodstream. Having excess amounts of AGE’s harms the body’s cells and promotes oxidative stress and chronic inflammation.

Sugar can also contribute to “leaky gut” – another name for Intestinal Permeability. Leaky gut occurs when the lining of the small intestine becomes damaged, causing undigested food particles, toxins, and bacteria to ‘leak’ through the lining and into the bloodstream. This process triggers inflammatory reactions that cause problems in the digestive tract and beyond.

Lastly, sugar greatly contributes to weight gain, which in and of itself contributes to inflammation because our own fat tissues release those inflammatory cytokine cells mentioned earlier.

As you can see, processed, refined sugar is rated as a highly-inflammatory food for a number of reasons! And sugar is added to pretty much ALL of our packaged foods.

How Much Sugar is in That Item on the Shelf?

Here’s a quick label tip:  When looking at a product’s nutrition label, remember that 4 grams of sugar = 1 tsp.

Find the number of sugar grams, and divide by 4. That’s the equivalent of how many teaspoons of sugar the product contains per serving.

So a soda containing 41 grams of  sugar would contain 10 teaspoons of sugar (41 divided by 4 = roughly 10).  Eye opening, right?

Be sure the check the serving size, too. If a product contains 12 grams of sugar per serving, and the packages has TWO servings, you’ll be ingesting 24 grams of sugar if you eat the whole package.

Note: Products can contain natural sugars (such as fruit), added sugars, or both. The Nutrition Facts Label will sometime separate natural and added sugars, but for the most part, the label will only show the TOTAL sugar grams. That’s why you’ll need to read the ingredient list to discover the SOURCE of the sugars.

You don’t have to give up Sweet Treats!

The good news is you do NOT have to give up the sweet flavors you enjoy. But you do have to make good choices regarding your sugar intake if you want to achieve and maintain a healthy body.

Fruits (bananas, mangos, cherries) and DATES are the absolute best sweeteners that can be used to make a variety of desserts! From cobblers, pies, puddings, and shakes, to banana splits, cupcakes, cookies, and muffins. Go to my resource page to find my recommended recipe websites.

And you can click below for some Dessert Smoothie Recipes you can enjoy guilt-free!

For more details on refined sugars, plus information on artificial sweeteners, natural sugars, and acceptable sugar substitutes, please check out my class titled “Inflammation and Your Diet.”

For a short time, use the coupon code TAKE OFF50 to get 50% off the class price.

Click here for a free copy of “10 Simple Dessert Smoothies” which contain ZERO refined sugar 🙂

It’s not smart to stuff yourself with sweets…
(Proverbs 25:27a, MSG)

Filed Under: My Blog

Green Beans with Braised Onion

August 8, 2022 By Cyd Notter

When you need a “go-to” side dish you can whip up in a hurry, it doesn’t get much simpler than this!

Especially if you use Steamer Green Beans.

Do use “seasoned” rice vinegar (not plain) – it does make a difference.

Here’s the recipe!

Green Beans with Braised Onions

 

Filed Under: My Blog Tagged With: Christian diet, green geans, healthy eating, plant based recipes, plant based side dish, plant-based nutrition, The Plan A Diet, vegan, vegetarian, whole food plant based

Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)

July 27, 2022 By Cyd Notter

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the build up of too much fat stored in the liver cells that is not caused by alcohol.

According to the Liver Foundation, it’s normal for the liver to contain some fat. However, if more than 5% – 10% percent of the liver’s weight is fat, then it is called a fatty liver (steatosis).

The more severe form of NAFLD is called nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). NASH causes the liver to swell and may progress to advanced scarring (cirrhosis) and liver failure, very similar to the damage caused by heavy alcohol use.

Becoming the norm?

Sadly, NAFLD is becoming increasingly common, especially in the United States. About 100 million Americans are estimated to be afflicted….

...as well as the kiddos. NAFLD is the most common form of liver disease in children, and has more than DOUBLED over the past 20 years.

Photo by Julien Tromeur on Unsplash.com

 

Risk factors 

Risk factors for NAFLD include obesity, insulin resistance, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, and hypothyroidism, amongst others.

Diets with higher intakes of fats, oils, meat, dairy, and animal protein in general, are associated with higher liver enzymes; and fat intake, particularly saturated fat, significantly increases the risk of both NAFLD and NASH.

And it turns out that excess sugar plays a role too, as explained in this short video by Dr. Michael Greger. ​

What can be done?

Weight loss, while eating a low-fat, high fiber, plant-based diet, can be an effective treatment for NAFLD. Studies have shown that such diets are effective for addressing the underlying conditions that lead to NAFLD.

I’d love to help you get started with eating the right foods….no deprivation, no lack of comfort foods, no lack of flavor, no calorie counting, and no going hungry!

When you’re ready, I’m ready. Watch this free webinar and then book a chat with me. No strings attached, I promise.

 

Filed Under: My Blog

Pop Quiz #1: Which food has the most sodium?

July 16, 2022 By Cyd Notter

Pop Quiz Time

The teachers in my grade school were big fans of “pop quizzes.” We never knew when we’d be asked to pull out a blank piece of paper and answer the questions being written on the board.

Most of us dreaded those pop quizzes, but in retrospect, they did keep us on our toes!

In that spirit, there’s a little nutrition pop quiz just for fun. See if you know the answer 🙂

Question: Which product contains the most sodium?

a)  a serving of  beef

b)  a serving of baked all-natural chicken

c)  a large order of McDonald’s French fries

d)  a serving of salted pretzels?

(Think it over carefully as the Jeopardy music plays in your head)

(Are you sure you’re right? Don’t look just yet)

(Think again)

Ok, here’s the answer:

The chicken.

In his book How Not to Die, Dr. Michael Greger points out that the poultry industry commonly injects chicken carcasses with salt water to artificially inflate their weight, yet the chicken can still be labeled “100 percent natural.”

Consumer Reports found that some supermarket chickens are pumped so full of salt water that they registered 840 mg of sodium per serving – that could mean more than a full day’s worth of sodium in just one chicken breast.

Surprising, right?

The majority of our salt intake comes from processed food, animal products, and fast food. But a whole food, plant-based diet provides all the sodium you need and even allows you to flavor your food with a little salt.

Be sure to TASTE your food before salting it. About 1/3 of people add salt before they even taste!

Another good rule of thumb is to salt your food at the table rather than at the stove top. Far less salt is used by flavoring the surface of your food rather than mixing/cooking it into the recipe.

PS: Need help switching to a healthier diet? Check out my courses and optional coaching opportunities. I’d sure love to help you! 

Filed Under: My Blog Tagged With: 'Plan A' Diet, faith based diet, most sodium, Plant Based Diet, plant-based nutrition, quiz, sodium, The Plan A Diet, whole food plant based

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 49
  • Next Page »
Book Cover

Click here for details

Find me elsewhere

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn

Privacy Policy · Legal Notice & Disclosures

Copyright © 2023 · Cyd Notter · Site by WebByMike.com · Admin · Log in