The Great Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Experiment

Each month this quarter, the Student Dietetic Association (SDA) at Ohio State has been volunteering one night to prepare a home-cooked meal for the residents of the Ronald McDonald House of Columbus.  We had a great experience in January, made chicken parmesan, salad, and several of us baked brownies ahead of time.  I decided to make black bean brownies (which also happen to be gluten free), and we had one gluten-free mother thanking us profusely because she hadn't been able to eat brownies in forever.  It was a truly rewarding experience!

So we're going back again tomorrow to cook for them, and the dessert of choice this time is cookies.  I've never tried my hand at gluten free chocolate chip cookies before, so I figured this would be a good experiment.  I love experimenting with different (and healthier!) ingredients in baked goods and seeing what happens.

I stole the gluten free chocolate chip cookie recipe from the King Arthur flour website...   

1 cup butter (I use Smart Balance buttery sticks -- it has omega-3 fats and NO trans fats!)

1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons gluten free vanilla extract (pure vanilla extract is gluten free)

1 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

2 1/3 cups King Arthur Gluten-Free Multi-Purpose Flour or brown rice flour blend (I could not find either of these in the store, so I got Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose baking flour -- it's a mix of garbanzo bean flour, potato starch, tapioca flour, white sorghum flour, and fava bean flour.)

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups chocolate chips (I used dark chocolate chips -- extra antioxidants!)

 (I left out the optional nuts.)

Directions

1) Beat the butter, sugars, vanilla and salt till fluffy.

2) Beat in the eggs one at a time, being sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl midway through to make sure everything is well combined.

3) Whisk together the flour or flour blend, xanthan gum, baking powder, and baking soda.

4) Beat the dry ingredients into the butter mixture, then blend in the chocolate chips and nuts. Again, scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to be sure everything is well blended.

5) Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour, or for up to 2 days. (I refrigerated it for about 3 hours, and kept the extra dough in the fridge between baking -- it seemed to improve the fluffiness of the cookies as the dough got colder.)

6) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a couple of baking sheets, or line with parchment.

7) Scoop tablespoon-sized balls of dough onto the prepared baking sheets; a tablespoon cookie scoop works well here. Leave space between the cookies so they can spread.  (They are not kidding when they say these cookies can spread!  Without gluten holding them together, they did bake up fairly flat.  But using a tablespoon measuring spoon worked well for dishing out the dough.)

8) Bake the cookies for 9 to 11 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let rest on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, to set, before transferring to racks to cool completely. Or allow them to cool right on the baking sheets.

Yield: 3 dozen cookies

Just as a warning to folks who like to eat the raw cookie dough, these tasted a little odd to me.  I think it may have been from the Bob's Red Mill gluten free flour, since it is mainly a bean-based flour the dough has a beany aftertaste.  But they baked up nicely and have a wonderful buttery, melty chocolate taste baked!  Other than the fact that they bake up to be rather flat cookies, I would not know they were gluten free!  Definitely a delicious experiment, hopefully the cookies will go over well tomorrow.

Nutrition Misinformation and You

I have been debating about what to write my next blog about, but one thing keeps coming to mind.

Where do you get your nutrition information?  Who can you trust?

It's no secret that the weight loss and diet industry in the US and many other areas of the world rakes in billions if not trillions of dollars each year.  The freedom of information on the internet and TV allows anyone to advertise their ability to DROP 30lbs in A WEEK! or whatever their miraculous claim may be, and the advertiser may have never even stepped foot in a basic nutrition class.  While some claims may seem obviously fabricated, there is that gray area.  What if a DOCTOR recommends a diet pill or amazing diet plan?  Does that suddenly make it legit?  Here is a simple litmus test to follow when evaluating nutrition information to see if it is valid.

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.  This may seem like common sense, because it is common sense.  Remember the last weight loss advertisement you saw on TV with miraculous "before" and "after" photos -- the ones where the person goes from frumpy and fat to ripped and lean like a professional body builder?  Many companies hire formerly fit athletes who were recently injured or hospitalized and may have gained some weight due to being inactive.  When they lose weight, their bodies will be able to get back to that extremely toned physique that the average couch potato is not going to be able to train their muscles to achieve no matter how hard they try.  The ephedra diet supplement (also known as ephedrine or ma huang) was marketed for weight loss for years -- only to find out that, by the way, it can kill you -- but you can still easily find it sold on the internet and likely in several stores.  Maintaining a healthy dose of skepticism when approaching any nutrition information is not only safer for you, it's just plain smart.  Take the time to find unbiased research that backs up the information you're given.  PubMed, Cochrane Reviews, and the National Institutes of Health are some good places to start.

What is the source of the nutrition information?  A friendly, good looking doctor espouses the benefits of an extremely low carbohydrate diet.  Coming from a doctor makes it sound legitimate and safe, right?  What if I told you that doctor's degree is in journalism or marketing, and he's never taken a nutrition class in his life?  This is a more common phenomenon than you might think.  Gary Taubes, who hails himself as a self-proclaimed medical and nutrition guru, has Master's degrees in applied physics, aerospace engineering, and journalism.  I don't know about you, but I certainly don't go around the country lecturing about physics -- I've never taken a physics course in my life and don't know the first thing about it, so how Mr. Taubes can presume to know anything about nutrition AND people believe him is beyond me.  Jeffrey Smith, the man behind the "Institute for Responsible Technology", a leading proponent against genetically modified foods (GMOs), has a marketing degree -- absolutely no science background.  Two doctors of biochemistry and food science made a website refuting every single claim in one of Smith's books, backed with research evidence.  Yet Smith still tours the country and gets on TV as an expert on GMOs.

So where should you turn for nutrition information?  Your neighborhood Registered Dietitian (RD) is a good source -- but again, maintain a healthy dose of skepticism.  Even the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (formerly the American Dietetic Association) has corporate sponsors that include Coca Cola, Hershey's, PepsiCo, Mars Incorporated, General Mills, Kellogg's, Soyjoy, and the National Dairy Council.  A Hershey bar and a 2-liter of Coke sure don't sound like good nutrition to me, and whatever they may say, I can't believe that corporate sponsorship like that is not going to make an organization at least a little biased.  Not every RD specializes in weight loss therapy or nutrition for a particular disease, so again, do your homework.  Find a resource you are comfortable and feel safe with, and keep asking questions.

Be on the lookout for biased research.  The Corn Refiners Association puts out all of the ads about how great high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is.  Not to be outdone, The Sugar Association puts out almost as much material about how fantastic cane sugar or beet sugar is.  Research studies both parties site were funded by, guess who -- the Association that wants the result that says their product has some benefit over the other.  While the HFCS debate is a topic for another blog post, the point is: find out who did the research quoted and how they were funded.  Any legit research study must state any conflicts of interest for the authors, usually towards the end of the article.

In most cases, every popular diet or nutrition guru has a grain of truth somewhere behind what they're touting.  Unfortunately, the rest of what they promote may be a lot of smoke and mirrors.  But if you do a little research yourself and keep questioning what you're being told, you won't fall victim to the next potentially dangerous nutrition fad promoted by Joe Schmo with research paid for by the company that makes the product.  It's your health and nutrition; take control of it.
               

What diet is right for me?

The most common question I get asked when people find out I've lost a lot of weight is: "How did you do it?"

I'm often tempted to make up an outlandish reply like, "I stood on my head for 3 days and ate nothing but bacon and the weight just fell right off!"  But the point is, most of us already know HOW to lose weight.  Use up more calories than you put in.  So, either exercise more, eat fewer calories, or do a little of both.  Every successful weight loss plan in the world is some variation of this principle.  It's not some magic secret we have yet to unlock about the human body, and I am certainly not hiding it. 

What many people really need to know about weight loss comes down to three main factors...

What diet is right for me?  Not every diet is one-size-fits-all, works for everyone.  One of my favorite quotes is, "What is popular is not always right, and what is right is not always popular."  Just because it's trendy to take HCG drops and severely restrict your calories, doesn't mean that is what's going to work for you (nor is it necessarily safe, but that's another topic).   

Many people find success in more structured plans like Weight Watchers and NutriSystem that try to take the guesswork out of counting calories and provide you with a set amount of "points" or food for you to eat for the day.  Group support is a very important part of many programs, like Overeaters Anonymous and similar programs.  Some people like the simplicity of plans like SlimFast, soup diets or juice fad diets -- most meals become predictable, planned, not something you have to think about anymore.  The best question to ask yourself when seeing if a diet is the right fit for you is: "Five to ten years from now, do I see myself still following this diet and still enjoying it?"  If the answer is no, then perhaps you need to do some more research and look elsewhere.  If a diet is not enjoyable, sustainable, and do-able long term, then what is the point in throwing your time, money, and energy into it?  Find a diet plan you really enjoy and WANT to do.  If you can't find one, make your own!  My current diet is a bastardization of what I learned in Weight Watchers -- high fiber, low fat, lean protein -- but I don't count any "points", because that drove me batty after a couple years.  I only weigh myself once a month so I'm not so fixated on the ever-fluctuating number on the scale.  I try to listen to my body and adapt my diet to what's going on in my life at any given time -- because that is what works for ME.

Am I ready?  The most underrated, unmentioned factor in weight loss is mentality, and to a lesser extent environment.  I am by no means a psychologist, but there were many times in my life when I was not ready to lose weight -- not because I couldn't buy the foods needed or start an exercise plan, but because my head was not in the game.  True, lasting weight loss involves a commitment to yourself, to get back on the horse and keep trying every single day even if you fall off the wagon for the umpteenth day in a row.  There is no shame in falling off a diet -- we are human, and our bodies AND minds need different things at different times.  But if you can't mentally pick yourself up after a fall, dust yourself off and say, "Today is a new day." -- then perhaps now is not the time to be forcing the weight loss issue in your life.  Weight loss takes a commitment to yourself and also compassion for yourself.  You've got to want it, you've got to be hard-working, but you also have to be forgiving of yourself.  This is the hardest thing to find, and something I still work on everyday.  Only you know what you are ready for and what you are capable of -- but only if you try to find out.  If you're not ready right now, that is OKAY.  Just keep checking back from time to time to see if you are ready to make that life-long commitment to a better you.

Can I adapt?  Weight loss is not about supermodels in teeny bikinis, beach vacations, free clothes, endorsement deals, and happiness like the media portrays.  Weight loss is hard, and life changes around you at the same time as your body.  The diet that worked for you at the beginning will need some tweaks and adjustments as you get to the weight your body is meant to be at, and it takes work to find that magic balance in diet and exercise to keep your weight stable for the long haul.  The people around you may react differently to you at a lower weight, positively AND negatively.  There will be bumps along the road, probably even some violent turbulence from time to time.  You need to be firm enough to stick to your plan, but also flexible enough to take changes in stride and adjust.  To me, losing weight is not the hardest part-- keeping it off through all of life's ups and downs is the struggle.  Continually be willing to adapt to your situation and your surroundings, and you will find that balance of diet and exercise that fits in your life, right here and right now.

Many of us expect "skinny" people to just automatically be happy, when often losing weight will bring up new challenges and problems in your life.  Weight loss is not a magic cure-all to every problem.  But if you follow the right diet for you, are mentally ready to commit to it for life, and still have the flexibility to adapt to changes in your life around you, you'll find that success you're looking for.  And it will feel pretty sweet to sit back and say, "Look how far I have come.  Now I just have to keep going."           

*Disclaimer: I do not endorse nor dispute the effectiveness of any diet plans linked in this blog.  The links are provided for informational purposes only.        

Why is weight loss glorified?

Many of us grew up with Barbie Dolls, watching movies with Disney Princesses and TV shows starring glamorous actresses.  The ideal put before us at a young age, particularly for girls, is of a waif-like, buxom beauty.  Models are size 0 women, twig-thin, emaciated.  We are programmed to want to attain that status, whether we admit it to ourselves or not.  It's there, secretly whispering to us, what we want to be, what we should be, what we value.

It came as somewhat of a shock to me in the past year or so, as I've been doing projects and during my clinical dietetic internship, that being overweight is not as bad for your health as it's made out to be in the media.

It is true that morbidity and mortality increases with weight.  Heart disease, diabetes, everything that we're told will kill us because of those extra pounds becomes more likely.  But it's a gradual increase in risk.  For a BMI between 25-29.9 (considered "overweight"), research has shown LOWER mortality rates than those for normal weight individuals.  This is especially true the older you get.  If you take the flip side and look at morbidity and mortality risk in underweight individuals (BMI < 18.5), the risk for disease and death skyrockets. Why?

During sickness, particularly infections, when your immune system is up and running at full steam, your digestive system gets turned down.  Remember not feeling hungry the last time you ran a fever?  That's your immune system doing its job.  Not only does your body shunt energy away from running digestion to run your immune system, but it's trying to keep nutrients away from whatever bugs are inhabiting you so it's better able to get rid of them.  Depending on the severity of the illness, this may last for days or weeks.  If you don't come into it with some energy stored away as fat, the body has no choice but to start breaking down muscle for fuel during times of starvation, and your chances for survival start going down quickly.  Your favorite supermodel would be taken down by the flu far faster than those of us with some extra padding.

In cancer patients, survival is directly correlated with the patient's weight going into treatment.  Many doctors won't even try a newer, experimental, or aggressive treatment option if a patient is underweight or even normal weight.  It is fully expected for a patient to lose some weight during most chemotherapy and radiation treatments, and if the patient doesn't have the weight to lose, that treatment suddenly does not become an option.  Most of the nutrition battle for cancer patients is finding ways to get enough calories, the opposite of what the rest of us are programmed to do.

This isn't to say that you should abandon reasonably healthy eating practices or forget your exercise routine.  I'm not advocating for obesity (BMI > 30) or pigging out with reckless abandon.  But we should be more forgiving of ourselves for those pesky last 10-20lbs that won't go away no matter how hard we torture ourselves about them.  Someday, they may just be what helps keep you alive.

Treat your body right.  Eat whole grains, fruits and vegetables but also eat some of what you enjoy.  Exercise regularly, but make it something you like to do.  Find successes in actions, not the number on the scale.  Your body will be at the weight it's meant to be at, and that will be your ideal.  Weight loss in and of itself is not what should be glorified.  Health is.

Keep asking yourself, "Why?"

I have a vivid memory of a nice dinner my now ex-husband Brian, my daughter Audre, and I had together several years ago.  At the time, it was a fun, family meal, we were all happy and enjoyed each other's company and the food we shared.  Audre would have been about 3 years old, coming into her intelligent and fun-loving personality.  But looking back on it now, I see a much more grim picture that invokes feelings of disgust.

The meal took place at McDonald's.  In rapid succession I ate 2 Big Macs, an extra-large serving of fries, a 44oz cherry coke (with a refill), and apple pies for dessert.  I have vague recollections of finishing Audre's uneaten fries, and we may have also shared a 10-piece Chicken McNugget.

At the end of the meal, I was still hungry.

Tipping the scales at 300lbs with enough fat stores to survive a worldwide famine, having ingested enough calories to feed a village for a week, and my body was still screaming, "Please, sir, may I have some more?".  Breaking down the fog of nauseous hindsight, I can't help but wonder... Why?

I have often questioned whether I have diabetes.  My blood sugar was checked in May of 2003 and I remember it being around 200mg/dL.  I had no idea what that meant at the time, except that it wasn't good.  I had eaten some oatmeal for breakfast that morning, but by standards now I was pre-diabetic if not diabetic.  In type 2 diabetes, the hormone insulin can't do its job very well.  Its most important job is to serve as the key opening the lock on glucose (sugar) transporters on most cells in the body, to allow glucose from the blood into the cell.  In type 2, the keyhole becomes distorted so that insulin cannot fit into it, and glucose builds up in the blood (hyperglycemia) and starts to damage smaller blood vessels and capillaries especially in the eyes, kidneys, and extremities.  On top of that, the cells are deprived of glucose (their preferred fuel for energy) and start sending out S.O.S. messages to the brain that they're starving, even if you've just eaten a McDonald's buffet with several buckets of pure sugar-laden soda.

9 years later and after losing 120 pounds, regaining it, and losing it again, my blood sugars were last hanging out with a HbA1c of 5.5.  Although I still occasionally have slightly high fasting blood sugars, this puts me into the "normal" category -- even though you technically can't "cure" diabetes, just control it.  One of the secrets the doctor doesn't specifically tell you is that there's a back door to get glucose from your blood into your starving cells: Exercise.  During exercise, a different glucose transporter on cells gets opened to allow glucose to come in without needing insulin to unlock it.  Your cells get fed, glucose doesn't build up in the blood, and everyone is happy again.  A balance still needs to be maintained between what you eat (how much glucose / sugar / carbs), when you eat (regular small meals!) and how much you exercise (plus what kind of exercise and intensity), but the jist is, exercise is good for you, folks.  And not just in that, "oh, just diet and exercise" way your doctor may casually remind you to do but not really believe you'll do it.  When you do it and stick with it almost every day, it works.  On days I don't get in a good sweaty, heart-pumping workout, I feel hungrier.  My cells start screaming for fuel.

For those of us who are insulin resistant or have type 2 diabetes, we should start asking why we always feel hungry, and listen to what your body is really trying to tell you.  If you've already eaten, your cells may be screaming, "Go for a walk!" instead of telling you to reach for that next Big Mac.  Speaking of which, my cells are telling me I should go to the gym right now.