Get rid of High Fructose Corn Syrup! Do that for a month, see the pounds drop and your cravings disappear!

This highly addictive refined sugar is full of calories, it has no nutrients, and it is found in a lot of foods, mainly in processed foods.

Research suggests that High Fructose Corn Syrup slows down your metabolism, increases your appetite and increases body-fat accumulation by altering hormones.

LIFESTYLE CHANGE #2: NO MORE MSG & NO MORE ASPARTAME

Two other ingredients to avoid are monosodium glutamate or MSG, and aspartame found in NutraSweet, Equal, and Neotame. They are excitotoxins.  Excitotoxins stimulate the brain.

Given the increasing publicity surrounding MSG, an increasing number of consumers avoid buying foods that contain MSG. So manufacturers sneak MSG in other ingredients so they don’t have to list “monosodium glutamate” on the label.

 The following food additives you see on labels always contain some amount of MSG:

. Any ingredient containing the word: “Autolyzed”: such as Autolyzed Yeast Extract

. Carrageenan Gum

. Gelatin

. Glutamate

. Glutamic Acid

. Any ingredient containing the word: “Hydrolyzed”: such as Hydrolyzed Corn     Gluten,  Hydrolyzed Oat Flour, Hydrolyzed Lecithin, Hydrolyzed Protein, …

. Hydrolyzed Plant Protein (any protein that is hydrolyzed), Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, etc.

. Monopotassium Glutamate

. Natrium Glutamate

. Plant Protein Extract

. Sodium Caseinate

. Textured Protein

. Vegetable Gum

. Any ingredient containing the word: “Yeast” such as Yeast Extract, Yeast Food, Yeast Nutrients, etc.

The following ingredients may contain MSG, but do not always:

. Flavorings or Natural Flavoring

. Seasonings or Spices

. Chicken, Beef, Pork, Smoke Flavorings

. Bouillon, Broth, or Stock

This makes it extremely difficult to acquire MSG-free foods. You are not able to accurately determine how much MSG is actually in a product.

Aspartame is made of the amino acids aspartic acid and phenylalanine, as well as methanol, also known as wood alcohol. Products that contain aspartame are required to include a caution for people who cannot tolerate phenylalanine. Some manufacturers hide aspartame in foods by simply saying “contains phenylalanine.”

MSG and Aspartame intervene with normal, healthy functioning of the endocrine system causing lowering of the metabolism, disruptions of regular appetite signals, and drastic weight gain.

You will find that when you stop eating MSG and Aspartame, you are going to experience some phenomenal, positive results. You will be quite amazed to find out how easy it is to control your appetite when you stop consuming MSG and Aspartame completely.

LIFESTYLE CHANGE #3: NO MORE TRANS FATS

Most people are at least somewhat aware of the danger of “trans fats” since they have received so much media attention over the last few years. But few people are aware that any product that has the words “hydrogenated or partially-hydrogenated” on the label contains trans-fats. (also known as trans-fatty acids.)

People who eat a diet with hydrogenated oils, develop larger fat cells. Large fat cells store considerably more fat, therefore they become overweight, and increase their likelihood for obesity. (Salmeron et al. 2001). This provides a clue to how people can easily accelerate their weight loss results: avoid all partially-hydrogenated and hydrogenated oils! It also will improve your cardiovascular health and lower bad cholesterol.

LIFE STYLE CHANGE #4: NO MORE SIMPLE/REFINED CARBS

There are two types of carbohydrates: Simple and Complex.

Refined carbohydrates are simple carbohydrates. They are called simple because they have been stripped of their original, natural form. This means that the nutrients such as the fiber, the healthy oils & fats, all the vitamins, the minerals, etc., have been taken out of the natural carbohydrates.

The natural carbohydrates are the complex carbohydrates.

So why do we refine carbohydrates? By removing the natural compounds of natural carbs, and making refined/simple carbs we now have a product that lasts longer on the store shelf. Which means, for example, that the box of cereal you buy today will still be good to buy six months later and will taste exactly the same no matter when you bought it.  This is good for business, but not so good for nutrition.

A carb changed from a complex carb to a simple carb is called a “processed” carb. Which is where the words “processed foods” come from.

Processing also adds chemicals to preserve, control consistency, add flavor, smells or textures to enhance the sale of the product. None of these are things that your body needs.

The abundance of processed foods is being cited as a major factor in the obesity rates which are rapidly rising in “industrialized” nations. Processing breaks down the food leading to faster absorption of sugars and starches and rapid blood-sugar fluctuations.

The problem with refined/simple carbs is that they are calorie dense and they don’t satisfy hunger.

Your body is hungry for nutrients found in natural/complex foods such as grains, fruits, vegetables, etc. So as long as you feed your body foods that have no nutrients in them such as white bread, you will be hungry. It is really about your body not being satisfied; you did not give it nutrients it needed. It has nutritional deficiencies. And when we are deficient in certain vitamins and minerals and nutrients, our bodies have out-of-control cravings. These cravings are easily correctable through good nutrition and food timing.

Your body is not designed to run on refined carbs. It simply is not. Giving up refined carbs such as white bread is tough for some of us, because we have been living on these simple carbs our entire live.

Simple carbohydrates are “empty” calories meaning they have no nutritional content: no nutritional value. Refined/simple carbs disrupt our appetite mechanism and food cravings. Complex carbohydrates are not necessarily lower in calories but take longer to digest because they have lots of nutrition: lots of nutritional value. Thus they keep us full for longer and help keep blood sugar-levels (and appetite) stable.