Greetings! I like to eat tortilla chips occasionally and always look at the package labels, hoping to find a lower carb brand. I recently discovered La Favorita, a Colorado brand of tortilla chips with 7 net carbs in an ounce of chips (about 10). That’s the lowest I’ve seen thus far and they have the following ingredients: stone ground yellow corn, water, soybean oil, salt and a trace of lime – nothing else! The other brands I checked have 16 or more net carbs, more than twice as much. And, best of all, I think La Favorita tortilla chips are delicious! If you are craving low carb chips and dip, give La Favorita a try! Happy low carb eating! Till next time……..

Greetings! Dr. Quigley sent me an article from consultant360.com, published in November, 2014, that is about carbs vs. saturated fats. A recent study concluded that “an uptake in consumption of saturated fat does not increase saturated fat levels in the blood, but consuming more carbohydrates is related to higher levels of fatty acids associated with adverse health outcomes”. It also stated, “while on the high-fat low-carb diets, researchers found that levels of palmitoleic acid-a biomarker of obesity, insulin resistance, and heart disease-decreased”.

What does this all mean? Well, when I first started this plan a year ago, I was unsure how eating more fat and less carbs could help me lose weight. Not only have I lost about 30 pounds, my blood pressure has decreased and so has my cholesterol! And, I find that I get less colds – meaning (I think) my immune system is higher. Overall, I feel so much healthier than I was a year ago (and look better too). Hooray!

So, based on my personal results and taking into account the conclusion of this study, eating higher fats and lower carbs is the RIGHT THING TO DO! If you would like to read the article, please go to www.consultant360.com, put carbs vs. saturated fats in the search tab, and it will bring up this and a few other related articles you may want to browse. You may also consult a professional such as Wellness Clinics of America with expertise in weight loss or services that provide fat loss procedures like bariatric surgery, laser lipo or water jet assisted liposuction, etc. Happy reading and high fat/low carb eating! Until next time!

Greetings! Eating breakfast is important! How do I know? Well, I’m a breakfast convert. For a large part of my adult life I drank my coffee, went to work and around 11am found that I was famished. So, I had an early lunch, then snacked, then had dinner, then another snack, etc. etc. What I realized was that if I didn’t have a good breakfast, I got hungrier as the day wore on and found out that eating breakfast gets your metabolism kicking so you have energy and burn calories. So, I will always eat breakfast……always! What do I have? Well, it may sound a little out of the ordinary…..this morning I had onion, asparagus and turkey in EVOO over fresh spinach with herbs/spices….DELICIOUS and filling and about 6-8 carbs (sometimes I add a little cheese or salsa). I usually have a few almonds that I munch on between breakfast and lunch and I’m surprised how satisfying that little snack is! What else do I have? Once in awhile I am just not very hungry so at the least I will have a low carb protein drink (by EAS, 1.5 carbs per 11oz) or a Detour bar (net 3 carbs). If I’m pressed for time and don’t feel like a protein drink or bar, I take 2 slices of good cheese, put a slice of turkey in between, add some fresh spinach leaves, put a teaspoon or so of mayo/mustard and have a sandwich without the bread. I also make the low carb blueberry muffins that are in George Stella’s cookbook (see blog from a few weeks ago). And, I also have eggs although I stay around 4 per week. I have lots of veggies with my eggs. If I’m on the road and fast food is the only restaurant around, I will get a “mcmuffinlike” breakfast and just don’t eat the bread! Hope this gave you some ideas to use in the future. Please remember to eat a good breakfast! Plan ahead if you need to(like prepping the night before), incorporate the things you like to eat that are on your plan and use herbs and spices for lots of flavor. Have a happy, healthy low carb cooking weekend! Till next time………..

Greetings! I went to a new restaurant last week. I’m apprehensive when I visit a new restaurant, however, I checked it online first and felt confident I could eat well and stay within my carb plan. It’s a good practice to review the menu of any restaurant you want to go to beforehand. If I decide to go to the restaurant, I feel certain that they will accommodate any changes I wish to make, usually at no charge! For example, the dish I ordered at last week’s restaurant included rice with the salmon and veggies. I asked if I could get extra veggies instead of rice and was told “of course – with pleasure”. Another thing you can do is ask your server to not bring food items to the table that you don’t want to eat; like bread or tortilla chips, etc. Works every time! If we are with friends who do eat bread/chips, I push them to their side of the table. Interestingly enough, our friends seem to eat less of these food items if we are not indulging in them and that’s a good thing! Once in awhile I will take a few tortilla chips with salsa but I’m ok doing this because I’ve maintained my food log and know where I stand carbwise for that day. So check the menu before you go; don’t be afraid to make reasonable food change requests and always remember to keep up your food log. Have a healthy low carb week! Till next time…….

Greetings! Do you like mashed potatoes but don’t eat them because you know they are a carb heavy food? How about trying cauliflower as a substitute….Cauliflower? Yep, cauliflower! We visited friends yesterday who also follow a low carb lifestyle and they made mashed cauliflower with parsnips. They tasted great and while I know it’s not really mashed potatoes, they totally satisfied my craving. My friend steamed a head of chopped cauliflower with about a cup of parsnips (which add a slight sweetness) until soft. She then drained them, added a bit of smart balance, salt and pepper and then mashed them (immersion blender works well). Delicious! Another taste option is to add some cheese on top. Yum! She also made dark chocolate chip cookies with almond flour by following the recipe on the back of the Bob’s Red Mill package. Also delicious and filling as well – I had two of em! And best of all, low in carbs! It was a winner of a dinner – thank you dear friends! We’ll be coming back for more. Wishing you a healthy, enjoyable low carb week. Till next time……

Greetings! Do you like bread but don’t think you can have any because you are on a low carb eating plan? Well, don’t despair! There are a number of websites catering to low carb baking that use almond flour as well as coconut flour; both of which are low in carbs. Check out the following websites for low carb bread and other baking recipes: elanaspantry.com, authoritynutrition.com, chow.com, food.com. There are also more and more “stores” that carry low carb bread, tortillas, etc. that you can order online: julianbakery.com, lindasdietdelites.com. Even our local supermarkets are starting to offer low carb bread options! I have found however, that baking yourself is a more delicious alternative. There is also a website that provides low carb substitutes for traditionally carb-heavy foods: greatist.com/health/low-carb-alternatives.

So the good news is that you don’t have to abstain from eating bread altogether and can indulge once in awhile! Have fun checking out and making these low carb bread recipes. Happy low carb eating…..till I see you next time…….

Blogs by Peak Health Low Carb Follower, Melanie

Greetings! I was at the store the other day and read a label (as all of us low carb followers do!) that listed “other carbohydrates”. I know that to obtain “net carbs” I subtract dietary fiber and sugar alcohol from total carbs, however, I did not remember seeing the term “other carbohydrates”. I didn’t think you should deduct it but wanted to confirm this is the case. So, I contacted Meagan Fitzpatrick, RN at Peak Health Family Medicine and fellow low carb follower. Meagan confirmed that when looking at the nutrition label, take the total carbohydrates and deduct ONLY the fiber and sugar alcohols to obtain net carbs. Thanks Meagan for confirming this! Thought I’d pass this piece of info along in case any of you were pondering this question as well. Wishing you a Happy, Healthy, Low Carb Eating Week! Till next time………..