From the Woman’s Health Magazine website, in an article about dieting side effects:
Side Effect No. 1 You Can Give Oscar The Grouch A Run For His Money
Why it happens: You’re not eating enough carbs, or you’re not eating them often enough. Carbohydrates supply energy to the entire body, but the brain is the only organ that is solely carb-dependent, says Felicia D. Stoler, R.D., an exercise physiologist in New York City. Carb consumption stimulates production of serotonin, the brain chemical that lifts your mood. So too few carbs can make you feel — and act — like Paris Hilton on a bad bikini day.
Slim solution: Keep blood sugar levels (and your emotions) on an even keel by eating about every 3 hours. Scatter your carbs throughout the day rather than devouring them all in one shot. And choose ones that are high in fiber, like whole grains, fruits, and vegetables: They’re released into the bloodstream more slowly than their refined cousins (white flour, sugar) and cause fewer peaks and valleys in blood sugar levels, says New Yorkbased dietitian Marissa Lippert, R.D. See ya, Mallomar; hello, mango.
Side Effect No. 2 Your Period Is All Screwy
Why it happens: Dietary fat is one of the building blocks of estrogen production. So if you eat too little of it, your estrogen levels may drop — and your period may get delayed, or you may skip it altogether. Simply put: “Fat is necessary for menstruation to happen,” says Faye Berger Mitchell, R.D., a dietitian in Bethesda, Maryland. Not only are wacky periods bad for your bod, they’re clearly a problem if you want to get pregnant.
Slim solution: Chew some fat, for heaven’s sake! “The specific amount of fat needed differs from woman to woman,” Berger Mitchell says. But if your cycle is out of whack, you should get 30 percent of your calories from fat, according to Suzanne Phelan, Ph.D., assistant professor at Brown Medical School, the Miriam Hospital. That’s 480 fat calories in a 1,600-calorie-a-day diet. And remember: Fat can actually help you lose weight because it keeps you full and makes your dinner taste better. Just make sure most of those fat calories come from poly- and monounsaturated fats (the “good” ones, found in foods like olive oil, walnuts, fish, and avocados).
I know for me, I think I’m getting enough carbs. South Beach allots three servings a day of healthy carbs - not counting the carbs that come from fruits and vegetables. I’m not eating a lot of fat…but given that I have a daily serving of mixed nuts (and no I’m not talking about my kids) and usually some olive oil in there somewhere, I think I’m okay. But then why am I so grouchy? I don’t know, but I’m going to put my b-complex and fish oil supplements back in my diet. Both are supposed to help with mood.
Thanks, Blest!!
Ya know what I keep thinking about? That USDA food pyramid, with 6-8 (or is it 12) grains a day, and 3-4 veggies. It is so backwards from what “they” tell us now. (I have a nutritionist friend who says we need more like 7-10 veggie servings a day.) When is the USDA gonna re-vamp the program?!
Oh, never mind. I just looked it up and they have redone it, I guess. To even see it is too complicated for me at the moment..
Comment by lady laura — September 28, 2006 @ 8:03 pm
These are some great points - I KNOW I’ve not been eating enough during the week and I’m pretty sure that has a lot to do with my mood, period whackiness…etc.
Yesterday I ate more and tracked my food and I was a MUCH happier gal by the end of the day. Of course, having that meeting with God yesterday was a huge contributor as well.
What about water Blest? Are you getting enough of that?
Laura, they’ve changed the pyramid? I didn’t know that. It’s about time! Didn’t I read somewhere that that pyramid is the equivalent of “pig fattening feed” - yikes!
Comment by Blair — September 29, 2006 @ 8:54 am