The Hemp Connection [Search results for glycemic index] 

Marissa Kent of Mission Viejo, California wrote a wonderful article about watermelon for her August newsletter. Be sure to check out the watermelon salad recipe at the bottom of the post!

In addition to being a dietitian specializing in eating disorders and a certified diabetes educator, Marissa loves food, cooking, and hanging out at her local farmer's market.

You can learn more about Marissa and her nutrition counseling services at http://www.marissakentnutrition.com/.

One of the most enjoyed fruits during the hot season is the watermelon (Citrullus lanatus), which originated
from Africa. Did you know a watermelon is 95% water, and there are more than 200 to 300 varieties grown
in the United States alone? Only about half a dozen of those varieties make it into your supermarket. There
is even a square shaped watermelon grown in Japan, so that it will fit into refrigerator shelves nicely and not
take up too much space.

Watermelons do grow from a vine, but the melon is on top of the ground. Growing a watermelon can be very demanding. They require a lot of sunlight, space, water, and nutrients.It takes about 90 days for a full mature watermelon. California’s peak season for watermelon is May – October, but in general you can buy watermelon throughout the year.

Picking a watermelon requires both talent and skill, or just pure luck. Ideally you want a firm, smooth melon
with a yellowish creamy-white underside where it touched ground. Ripe watermelons should have a healthy
sheen and a melon smell. One popular way of picking a watermelon is by knocking on the melon with your
knuckles and listening for a dull, hollow sound. The unripe melons have a higher pitched sound.

Most people prefer watermelons for the cool sweet refreshing taste, but little do they know a watermelon is filled with nutrition.

Nutrition values:

1 cup of diced watermelon:
50 calories
11 grams of carbohydrate
0.6 grams of fiber
9 grams of sugar
1 gram protein– (can you believe it!)
11 mg calcium
170 mg potassium– (helps you stay hydrated)
12.5 mg Vit. C
875 IU (International Units) Vit. A
6900 mcg (micrograms) lycopene — Wow!

Watermelon (as defined by its name) mostly consists of water. It’s a great source for keeping your body hydrated during this hot season. Most of the water will come out of your body through sweat or urination. This does not mean it is low in nutritional value!

The top 2 benefits of eating a watermelon are: 1) the values of vitamin A and 2) lycopene. Both of these are antioxidants. Antioxidants help protect the body from damage caused by free radicals (highly reactive and unstable molecules). Vitamin A aids in the building and strengthening of bones, soft tissue, skin, and mucous membranes. Lycopene is in the subcategory of Vitamin A, and has been shown in recent studies to have potential health benefits to reduce the risk of cancer! Watermelon contains potassium. Potassium helps trigger your heart’s squeeze of blood through your body. It also helps with reducing the amount of muscle cramps.

People with diabetes may be concerned with the sugar content of watermelon. However, other foods you eat with watermelon will reduce the impact on your blood sugar.

Glycemic index refers to how fast a specific carbohydrate (bread, rice, potato, fruits, etc… ) food raises the blood sugar within a given time. The glycemic index of a food can change when you eat a combination of nutrients (carbohydrate, protein, fat). Watermelon (as defined by its name) mostly consists of water. It’s a great source for keeping your body hydrated during this hot season. Most of the water will come out of your body through sweat or urination. This does not mean it is low in nutritional value!

The top 2 benefits of eating a watermelon are: 1) the values of vitamin A and 2) lycopene. Both of these are antioxidants. Antioxidants help protect the body from damage caused by free radicals (highly reactive and unstable molecules). Vitamin A aids in the building and strengthening of bones, soft tissue, skin, and mucous membranes. Lycopene is in the subcategory of Vitamin A, and has been shown in recent studies to have potential health benefits to reduce the risk of cancer! Watermelon contains potassium. Potassium helps trigger your heart’s squeeze of blood through your body. It also helps with reducing the amount of muscle cramps.

People with diabetes may be concerned with the sugar content of watermelon. However, other foods you eat with watermelon will reduce the impact on your blood sugar.

Glycemic index refers to how fast a specific carbohydrate (bread, rice, potato, fruits, etc… ) food raises the blood sugar within a given time. The glycemic index of a food can change when you eat a combination of nutrients (carbohydrate, protein, fat).

For example, if you are eating a hamburger and then a slice of watermelon, that will decrease the time it takes to rise the sugar level. You may want to work with a dietitian to learn more about combining and preparing foods to achieve the lowest glycemic index levels in your meals.

The glycemic index of a watermelon is 72, which is high compared to the chart below. Most nonstarchy vegetables, legumes, high fiber fruits and grains, have a low glycemic index.

Here is a chart of the levels of the glycemic index:

 Low (good) glycemic index levels: 55 or less

 Medium glycemic index levels: 56–69

 High (bad) glycemic index levels: 70 or higher

In conclusion, the glycemic index of watermelon is high. If you stay within the recommended portion size (1 cup diced), your blood sugar will not be significantly affected. In addition, if you enjoy watermelon with a meal this will further balance blood sugar.

Enjoy picking out and eating your watermelon while we are still in summer!!!

Watermelon Summer Salad

Dressing:

1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
1/4 cup minced shallots (1 large)
1 T honey
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Salad:

6 cups of baby arugula, washed
1/8 of a seedless watermelon, rind removed and cut into 1 inch cubes
12 oz of feta cheese, 1/2 inch diced
1/2 cup whole fresh mint leaves, julienned

Directions

Whisk together the orange juice, lemon juice and shallots, honey, salt and pepper. Slowly pour in the olive oil, whisking constantly to form an emulsion. If not using within an hour, store the vinaigrette covered in the refrigerator.

Place arugula, watermelon, feta, and mint in a large bowl. Drizzle with enough vinaigrette to coat the greens lightly and toss well. Taste and serve immediately

I recently received a review copy of the Glycemic Index Cookbook for Dummies, by Meri Raffetto, RD, and Rosanne Rust, MS, RD, LDN. Meri's name may sound familiar to some of you, as she also wrote the Glycemic Index Diet for Dummies.

This followup book is a nice practical guide to putting the principles of the glycemic index into action. I like this. I can't tell you how many times I've spoken to groups of women with PCOS who can repeat the many sound principles of diet for PCOS, as if they have more education than I do on the topic, but look at me like a deer in the headlights at the end of the presentation when I ask,"OK, now what are you all cooking for dinner?"

What really matters is not how much you KNOW about what to eat, but how often you EAT based on what you know. This book transitions you from theory into practice.

This book is not lacking in theory, however. It nicely distinguishes between low-glycemic foods and a low-glycemic diet, for example. You don't always get both with the same food choice.

The authors are also very good about discussing in detail the many factors besides diet (like stress, binge eating, not attending to portion sizes, for example), that can interfere with good blood glucose control.

Once they make sure you're on board with the principles of low-glycemic eating as they were intended to be used, they proceed to what to eat. Even there, they're entirely practical, reminding readers that if you haven't taken the time to stock your kitchen with the right items, you're not going to eat the way you say you want to. From planning your menus, and making your shopping list, to organizing your kitchen to navigating the grocery store, Meri and Rosanne work you through setting yourself up for success.

And then…about 2/3 of the book is actual recipes to use. If the recipes don't make you wonder why it took you so long to try this way of eating, the beautiful food photography in the middle of the book will certainly start you thinking!

Trust me, I saw chocolate, cream cheese cake, asparagus and goat cheese and toasted walnuts, cheesy quinoa with spinach, and even spaghetti, yes spaghetti!

If you're done with the theorizing and ready to get in the kitchen and get your eating plan off on the right foot, consider adding this book to your library.

Click here to order the Glycemic Index for Dummies
Click here to order the Glycemic Index Cookbook for Dummies — paperback version
Click here to order the Glycemic Index Cookbook for Dummies — Kindle version

Disclaimer: I do want to add that Meri is a personal friend and she did mention inCYST in her book as a PCOS resource. Because of this I do have a bias that cannot be avoided. However, I have declined to promote friends with other books, products and services on the blog that were not the right fit for our audience. I do my best to stay 100% fair, but I want you to know it's not a perfect world. Just wanted to be sure you know where I stand on the issue.

Many of you are following the Low GI (Glycemic Index) diet, which sorts food based on their potential to raise blood glucose. The approach I hear many on this diet use, is very black and white; in other words, if a food has a high GI, it's not to be eaten. Unfortunately, this may be overly restrictive and not entirely reflective of how food acts in the body. The glycemic load of a food is far more important.

Glycemic index for a given food is calculated when a food is eaten all alone, without any other foods. We simply do not eat that way. We eat foods in combinations, and what really matters is how the combinations of foods affect our metabolism.

The glycemic load of a food takes into account the amount of a food consumed as well as the amount of glycemic sugars (net carbs) it contains. Nutritiondata.com has a nice explanation of the concept, and for each food in its database, the glycemic load is provided.

A really good example of the importance of looking at the whole food is to look at the glycemic loads for 4 ounces of fat free ice cream vs. 4 ounces of regular ice cream. Four ounces of fat-free vanilla ice cream, the option many people would think would be best…has a glycemic load of 16, and four ounces of regular vanilla ice cream has a glycemic load of 8. That is because the fat in the regular ice cream helps to slow down the rate at which the sugar in the ice cream is absorbed into the bloodstream.

If you were to assume that because the regular vanilla ice cream was a better choice, however, and overindulge, it would only take a double serving to erase the difference.

Bottom line:
--Variety in food choices is as important to your overall blood glucose as is types of foods
--Too much of any food will eventually affect your blood glucose…there is no such thing as healthy bingeing or low glycemic food comas!
--When you eat a food with a high"glycemic index", eat a small amount in conjunction with foods that make it harder to have an immediate opportunity to raise your blood sugar.
--I have also found that"high glycemic" foods are best tolerated if eaten earlier in the day, so they have a better opportunity to be used in conjunction with your physical activity, rather than late in the day, when you're just not burning as many calories.

Nutritiondata.com recommends that glycemic load for a day be kept below 100. I would add to that, that the more the total can be spread across the day, the better.

Many of you already know you're insulin resistant, and are receiving medical attention for that. Here are the basic nutrition and lifestyle actions you can take to further help minimize the impact of that issue on your pregnancy success.

1. Move! I'm a distance runner. As much as I love running, however, I have a lot of other activities I love to do. Having a variety of activities to rotate through prevents boredom, and it involves different muscle groups in exercise. I learned to vary after a ski injury that sidelined my running for a year. You don't want that to happen, to become so dependent on one activity that you set yourself up to lose activity completely. These days I run, but I also walk, rollerblade, garden, hike, golf, swim and do yoga. (Ivonne recently talked me into trying a tango class. I think dancing is my new favorite!) Any little thing you can do that tells your body it needs to get better at moving glucose into muscle cells…is what you need to do.

2. Commit yourself to better sleeping habits. Poor sleep, either few hours or bad quality, interferes with insulin function. The clients I work with who prioritize better sleep are the ones who notice feeling better the soonest. It can be a hard one if you love the late night shows, easily get lost in the Internet, or don't set good boundaries with others. But good sleep is one of the most important things you can give yourself. If you search"sleep" in this blog there is a lot of information about how to achieve this.

3. Watch the caffeine. This goes hand in hand with #2. Caffeine in coffee, tea (it's in green tea, too, so be aware), chocolate…it all challenges healthy sleep. It's something you are best to live without during pregnancy anyway, so why not get used to decaffeinated life now if that's where you want to be?

4. Be aware of glycemic index. Foods with a low glycemic index are foods that don't challenge your insulin function as much as other foods. It's not that high glycemic foods are"bad", it's just that they should not be eaten as often. In order to make a MEAL lower-glycemic, be sure you have a good balance of carbs, fats, and proteins. People eating on the run tend to challenge glycemic function either by eating large quantities of fast food or nibbling all day long on carbs without making time for protein.

5. Pay attention to your fats. One reason I push the fish oil so much is that it really helps to improve insulin function."S" and"C" oils--safflower, sunflower, soybean, corn, cottonseed…tend to worsen glycemic function. They're found in processed foods, baked goods, and salad dressings. One reason I love teaching my classes at Whole Foods is that their entire deli uses only olive and canola (the only"C" exception) and you can literally choose what you want without ingredient anxiety.

6. Add a little cinnamon to your low-glycemic oatmeal. It has been found to improve insulin function…and it's tasty!

A word about metformin. Some women complain about digestive disturbances with this medication. A physician once shared that if you eat a lot of carbs (particularly sweets) while on the medication, it can cause diarrhea. So be forewarned, taking the medication is not a license to eat what you want, assuming metformin is going to do all the work. Metformin is most effective if you use it in conjunction with the guidelines in this post.

Next progesterone post we'll talk about poor nutrition. It is very important!

We've been doing some business with companies working with nopales (prickly pear cactus pads). I'd seen a lot of research suggesting that nopales are good for quite a few health issues, particularly blood glucose.

We started selling Ibitta's products a couple of months ago and I was amazed at where the orders were coming from — Memphis, Philadelphia, not simply Arizona and California like I'd expected! I finally called one customer to see why she'd ordered it. Apparently her mother had been bugging her to try it as it is a popular Mexican supplement for weight loss. When her mother finally gave her a bag, she felt it couldn't hurt to try it. She noticed that when she stirred a couple of spoonfuls of Pinalinaza into a glass of water and drank it before a meal, it helped her appetite. And over a couple of months she lost 20 pounds.

Another woman with PCOS, in military basic training, wrote:

I just wanted to give you an update. Although I knew that Nopales was used…in my Hispanic heritage, I didn't know that it would help me out with my sugar so much!! I ordered the products that you hosted on this site (Pinalinaz … a, etc…) and can't wait to start them! In the mean time, I am eating nopales I bought from the local store. For one week, I've eaten them in the morning every other day. I lost 3 pounds and during that week I was only able to walk for exercise as the week was too busy. I have kept track of my sugar and the nopales has regulated it so much so that now I am falling into a Hypoglycemic instead of Diabetic. I am determining how I can balance it, however this is an awesome break through for me. I was doing the military basic training for two months and only lost 5 lbs because of PCOS. Now that I incorporated nopales, the stubborn sugar is being removed!! I can't wait for shipment!! This is a big breakthrough for me, it is extremely hard for me to digest the sugar and the nopales are doing something right!!

Last Friday, I gave a presentation on PCOS at the local Indian Health Service Hospital here in Phoenix. One of my clients made a big batch of nopales salad for everyone to try. It was lunchtime about an hour and a half later, and several people noted that they weren't really very hungry.

There is research to support these testimonials. A 2007 study reported that 85 g nopales with a meal reduced the glycemic index of the meal. Way back in 1991, researchers reported that nopal had a glucose-lowering effect.

For the non-native eater, the prospect of de-stickering a cactus pad, not to mention what to do with the cactus once that's done, likely keeps many people from trying it. In Phoenix, we have a company, Oro Verde Products, that sells ready-to-prepare cactus pads as well as chopped nopales ready to add to your recipe. It's popular in salads, stews, and scrambled eggs. I've even heard of some people juicing it if they have a powerful blender. Check Oro Verde's website for information and recipes.

Ibitta's products are nice because they're powdered and mixed with flax. I've used them on my oatmeal, in smoothies, in vinaigrettes, and breadings. I even made a vanilla cheesecake with the hibiscus (Jamaica) flavored variety in the crust. They're very versatile and more user-friendly in the typical American kitchen.

These we do carry in the store, if you're interested in ordering.

If you live in Los Angeles, look for Nopatillas, a tortilla made with nopal. This would be super easy to include in breakfast burritos, lunch wraps, etc.

Wherever you are, however you eat it, be sure to try nopales. They could be a great way to help control your blood glucose.

Bacardi-Gascon M, Dueñas-Mena D, Jimenez-Cruz A. Lowering effect on postprandial glycemic response of nopales added to Mexican breakfasts. Diabetes Care.2007 May;30(5):1264-5. Epub 2007 Feb 26.

Frati AC, Gordillo BE, Altamirano P, Ariza CR, Cortés-Franco R, Chávez-Negrete A, Islas-Andrade S. Influence of nopal intake upon fasting glycemia in type II diabetics and healthy subjects. Arch Invest Med (Mex). 1991 Jan-Mar;22(1):51-6.

Over a year ago, inCYSTer Ivonne Ward e-mailed me about a product she'd found, called Pinalinaza. Pinalinaza is part of a family of products created by the Ibitta company. Eventually, we made contact with each other, and on a recent trip to Los Angeles, I made time to visit Vice President Frank Medina at the company headquarters in Southgate.

The Medina family, of Mexican heritage, out of a desire to put a dent in the dismal incidence of diabetes in their culture, has decided to create line of products based on native foods. Pinalinaza and Nopalinaza are blends of ground flax (linaza is the Spanish word for flax) and nopal powder. Nopal is a cactus pad that is high in soluble fiber, known to help reduce glycemic index as well as blood lipids. Nopalinaza is the unflavored version of this mix, while Pinalinaza is pineapple flavored.

A third version, Fibrajamaica, is hibiscus-flavored. If you're a follower of this blog, you will recall that I wrote about hibiscus, with its high anthocyanin content, as being our Southwest antioxidant version of the popular blueberry.

These powders are designed so that they can be stirred into a glass of water or juice and consumed daily as a supplement. But I've also been experimenting with them in my kitchen. I recently attended a potluck dinner where I made a vanilla-hibiscus cheesecake with a crust including Fibrajamaica. It was well received!

Fibramanzana, the fourth variety of this product line, is apple-flavored. It is my favorite one to use on oatmeal, and to bake into breads, muffins. etc.

If you're into prebiotics (they're the favorite food of probiotics, the good bacteria in your gut), Ibitta has a carob-flavored inulin product I have quickly came to love.

It's perfect stirred into milk, or Greek yogurt, topped with nuts, if you prefer to dress it up a bit. You can even blend it into smoothies if that's your favorite breakfast.

Inulin is the source of the prebiotics, and it is found in agave plants native to Mexico. I've written about inulin in another post, if you're interested in more detail. It has a lot of health benefits, but because of the controversy over agave, they sometimes don't get the attention they deserve.

Ibitta has also created a very clever product that is consistently described as"addictive" by everyone I've known who has tried it. Called Kakty, the best way to describe this is a chili-lime flavor dried cactus snack. It's got a bit of a gummy bear-like texture; all it is, is dried nopal with a tiny bit of sugar with a predominant chili-lime flavor. It's low glycemic and perfect for the afternoon munchies.

I often send food samples to my dad for taste testing. He has more of a normal American appetite than me, and his feedback helps me to gauge what's going to work on a large scale. Kakty is the one food I've ever sent him that he asked me how he could buy it locally. That says a lot!

What has also gotten my attention about this company is that ever since we wrote about it, it's consistently one of the most common search words that brings people to this blog. It's clearly popular with those who know about it.

Stomping out diabetes is a big job, and the Medinas have a big vision. But they've also got big potential. We're proud to have them join our eMarket.

Reminder: From now through Labor Day, 100% of all profits generated by the inCYST eMarket will be devoted to the inCYST Institute nonprofit division. We've got startup costs to account for before we can get down to the basics of funding research. This is one way we plan to generate those funds. You can help to make it happen!

There has been a lot of information circulating around the Internet recently about the dangers of agave nectar. It prompted me to take a little closer look. And I'm glad I did. What I've learned will be part of an ongoing series about the benefits and disadvantages of different types of sugar. It's a complex issue, so to make it more understandable, I thought I'd break it into installments. If you have comments about any of this, please feel free to post. I do moderate comments and won't be putting any up until the series is finished, in case you get ahead of me. I will take your comments into consideration as I proceed with this topic. Thanks for understanding.

According to a 2010 report in the European Journal of Food Safety, a comprehensive review of studies evaluating the effects of various carbohydrates and sugars on metabolism, simple sugars begin to have negative effects on health when they exceed 20% of total calories. That is simple sugars of all kinds--sucrose, fructose, and galactose. Here is how that translates into diets of varying calorie levels, so you can put this information into perspective.

Calorie level Healthful limit for sugar intake, calories Healthful limit for sugar intake, grams
1500 300 75
1600 320 80
1700 340 85
1800 360 90
1900 380 95
2000 400 100
2100 420 105
2200 440 110
2300 460 115

With fructose, the threshold is 7.5% of total calories; more than that, and negative health effects, such as elevated triglycerides, begin to appear. In other words, fructose should be used judiciously, even though it has a lower glycemic index.

Calorie level Healthful limit for fructose intake, calories Healthful limit for fructose intake, grams
1500 112 28
1600 120 30
1700 128 32
1800 136 34
1900 144 36
2000 152 38
2100 160 40
2200 168 42
2300 176 44

A can of soda would contain the following, based on the type of sweetener it contained. It mathematically fits into the above guidelines, but in a way that makes it hard to consume fruits, which also contain fructose, and stay within the calculated limits.
Sugar calories Sugar grams Fructose calories Fructose grams
Cane sugar 150 38 75 19
Beet sugar 150 38 75 19
High fructose corn syrup 140 35 77 19
Agave nectar* 102 25 87 22

*Agave nectar was a little bit harder to figure out. I did manage to find a Denver-based company called Oogave that makes sodas using agave nectar. Their Esteban's Root Beer is what I used for the above analysis.

My first find in a Google search brought me to Full Throttle, an energy drink manufactured by Coca Cola. Unbelievably, the"blue agave" flavor of this product contains no agave nectar at all, is sweetened with high fructose corn syrup, and contains 220 calories in a can! They are definitely hoping the consumer would jump to conclusions about this product.

Are you juicing at home?

Here's how the same volume of a 1/3, 1/3, 1/3 mix of beet, carrot, and spinach juice compares.
Sugar calories Sugar grams Fructose calories Fructose grams
120 24 31 7.8
Calories are not that much different, and total sugar, but the sugar type does. If you were to add fruit, that value would go up.

To give you an idea of what happens when you switch from sugar to agave nectar in the same recipe, I analyzed the same amount of watermelon Arnold Palmer recipe from last week's post. I adjusted the amount of agave nectar based on the fact that agave nectar is 72% sweeter than sugar.

Sugar calories Sugar grams Fructose calories Fructose grams
Made with sugar 20 5 9 2.3
Made with agave 18 4.5 10 2.5
Takeaway messages:
1. Any sweetened beverage,"healthy", or homemade, soda or juice, regardless of how it is sweetened, is a significant source of sugar and fructose. It is a dietary choice that should be made with respect, and sparingly.
2. Soda made in Mexico, even though it doesn't have high fructose corn syrup in it, is still problematic in large quantities.
3. The advantage to agave nectar is that it can help you to cut your total sugar intake, and reduce your glycemic load, but you still need to be aware of the quantity you consume.
European Food Safety Authority. Scientific Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for carbohydrates and dietary fibre. EFAS Journal 2010; 8(3): 1462.

http://www.nutritiondata.com/

http://www.livestrong.com/

These days it seems that all a product has to do is contain something from a coconut…and the immediate assumption is that it is healthy, no matter how much of it is consumed.

I'm not sure where this false idea comes from, given the statistics of diabetes prevalance in Pacific Island peoples:
--Native Hawaiians, in Hawaii, have higher diabetes mortality rates than any other ethnic group, and Hawaiians with diabetes are more likely to be eating at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables than any other ethnic group.
--Indonesia has the second highest prevalence of diabetes of all of the countries in the world.

Of course, modernization of all cultures has significantly affected these statistics. However, as you can see in these historical photos of King Kamehameha and Queen Liliuokalani, native Pacific Islanders weren't skinny minnies when they first met the missionaries, when white rice and SPAM were not even concepts in the islands.

By no means am I intending to insult my friends in Hawaii. I'm simply trying to illustrate the potential harm that can occur when nutrition misinformation is parroted, repeated, and distributed without checking facts.

Coconut products definitely have their place in healthy diets; however, only if used with knowledge and respect and without the concept that somehow coconut products have magical, supernatural, and/or anti-caloric properties. I put together a summary of the coconut products currently in vogue, as a reference for those of you with questions about whether or how you should be using them.

Shredded Coconut Meat
1 cup contains 466 calories, 33 grams fat, 44 grams carbohydrate
Inflammatory rating: Strongly inflammatory

Coconut Flour
1 cup contains 480 calories, 12 grams of fat, 80 grams of carbohydrate (32 net, 48 dietary fiber), 16 grams protein

This product is a byproduct of the coconut oil industry, so provided you've purchased your flour from an origin where the coconuts are sustainably produced (not making coconut sugar), it is sustainable. You can see however, it is not smart to assume that because coconut oil has been pressed out of coconut meat…that it does not contain fat or calories. It is gluten-free. Not listed in the Nutrition Data database so inflammatory index is unknown.

Coconut Sugar
1 cup contains 160 calories, 40 grams of carbohydrate, lower glycemic index than regular sugar.

According to Tropical Traditions, coconut sugar is obtained by collecting sap from the trees that produce coconuts, rendering them incapable of producing those coconuts. Because Americans have such a sweet tooth and the demand for the ultimate alternative sweetener seems to have no upper price point, coconut farmers are sacrificing their coconut crops to cash in on this craze while they can. Coconut sugar is NOT a sustainable product and if supported, may reduce the availability of coconut oil.

Coconut Milk, canned
1 cup contains 445 calories, 48 grams of fat, 6 grams of carbohydrate
Rated as strongly inflammatory

Coconut Milk, raw
1 cup contains 552 calories, 57 grams of fat, 13 grams of carbohydrate
Rated as strongy inflammatory

Coconut Water
1 cup contains 46 calories, 9 grams of carbohydrate (6 net, 3 fiber)
Rated as mildly inflammatory

Ahem…inflammatory? Aren't sports recovery drinks supposed to be ANTI-inflammatory?

Coconut Oil
1 cup contains 1879 calories, 218 grams of fat
Rated as strongly inflammatory

Lauric acid content is high in coconut oil, but there is absolutely no research to prove that it erases the calorie content. Use as your cooking oil in healthy proportions and you should benefit. Eat by the tablespoon and you could be causing more problems than you solve.

As long as we don't eat too much coconut sugar, this industry can be sustainable.

Coconut vinegar
1 cup contains 80 calories

Used wisely, coconut products are a great way to vary your diet, especially if you're gluten-free. However, in excess, as with any food, they lose their health benefit. It is not a magic, calorie-free food, by any stretch of the imagination.

If coconut is your food religion, it's likely these numbers won't matter. But I wanted to write about them nevertheless. In order for your choices regarding coconut products to be informed, you need more information than that which comes from people who also practice coconut-ism or want to profit from your lack of adequate information.

http://hawaii.gov/health/family-child-health/chronic-disease/diabetes/pdf/diabetesreport.pdf
http://www.who.int/diabetes/facts/en/diabcare0504.pdf
http://www.nutritiondata.com/

Just received an e-mail from our friends at Shape Foods (they're the ones coming out with the flavored flax oils we found at Natural Products West). They've got another wonderful product (in conjunction with Flax USA) that's only been on grocery shelves for 9 days…flax milk!

Andrew Lis of Shape Foods provided this interesting information about their product:

The key ingredient comes from our flax oil. Due to the superior quality of our oil and since we remove the impurities that can cause the oil to go rancid prematurely through our proprietary manufacturing process, it was the only flax oil on the market that was able to survive pasteurization without going rancid. That is why we are the exclusive ingredient supplier for this type of product.

This product is available at most Walmart stores, so intern Sarah Jones and I set out to find it. Here is Sarah with the original-flavored version (there is also vanilla-flavored).

This carton, here in Phoenix, is priced at $2.98, and it is in the refrigerator case near the other milks and milk substitutes.

It is a dairy-free, lactose-free, soy-free, and gluten-free product. Even though it's primarily fat-based, 8 ounces of the original flavor only contains 50 calories.

Here's the fatty acid profile on the side of the carton. As you can see, it's got a great omega-6 to omega-3 ratio.

The important thing to keep in mind is that this product is made with an oil, and it contains 0 protein. If you use this in place of milk on your cereal, be sure to add another protein source to that meal to keep your glycemic index in check.

I bet this would be a great substitute for creamer in coffee (you'd be hard-pressed to find another way to get omega-3's into your coffee!).

And if you have a fancy blender that makes ice creams, the vanilla version is likely going to be a nice treat. If anyone tries this in their kitchen, please share how you used it!

This product is available exclusively at Walmart.

Not long ago I mentioned some research suggesting that vinegar consumed with a meal can help to reduce the glycemic index of that meal. I'm not big on drinking vinegar myself, so I've had my eyes open for tasty ways to make that interaction work for you in real life.

One great food to keep in mind is the Argentinian condiment chimichurri. I call it South American pesto, the big difference being that chimichurri is most often made with parsley instead of basil. That's ok, parsley is absolutely loaded with vitamin A and lots of other nutritional goodness we lose out on because we tend to think it is only useful as a garnish.

Here is a great recipe with some serving ideas. It's barbecue season so it's a great time to get friendly with this sauce! While the Argentinians are famous for their love of beef, this sauce is great on anything you wish to barbecue, such as the salmon in the photo.

As chimichurri becomes more popular in the United States, pre-prepared versions are becoming more common. I've even seen it on the shelves at Trader Joe's, both plain and as part of some of their packaged dishes.

The other day I stopped at a demo table at my neighborhood store and met the president of Magic Road International, a company devoted to importing Argentinian foods. She shared that they have a chimichurri sauce (Estancia Lucia) that they're working to bring to your table, made with great ingredients such as native Argentinian olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It's become one of my favorite condiments because it's so tasty and versatile.

Be on the lookout and fire up that grill!

I've been researching agave nectar over the past few weeks. I'm learning is that even though it is not a miracle food, and cannot be eaten in endless quantities without consequences, it's a viable option for a sweetener.

In order to get to that conclusion, I had to swim through quite a few websites, tweets, and Facebook posts. Many of them sounded formidable. However, what I discovered in the proccess, was that a few posts and tweets that were getting the most circulation, could be traced back to a few sources.

One of those sources was a very official looking website. At first glance, it appears that this organization is accredited and connected to several credible organizations, including the American Diabetes Association, the American Dietetic Association, the US Department of Agriculture, and the US Food and Drug Administration. Their logos all appear on the home page.

However, when I decided to fact check, both ADA's responded to my inquiry by denying any official type of affiliation. I'm pasting excerpts from the USDA's response below.

The website apparently has patents on its name, the lead researcher's name, among others, so I will oblige them and not mention them here. Suffice it to say you'll find it pretty easily if you're researching agave nectar and/or glycemic index.

It's easy to find yourself swimming in all kinds of information from"experts" and organizations. But because it takes a little bit of time to fact check, many people don't bother.

What I ask all of you to do in your own Internet activity, is to resist the impulse to tweet or hit the send button unless you are confident that what you're reading can be supported with facts. All four of the organizations I contacted were more than expedient with their responses and willing to help me understand what was true and what was not. I encourage you to use them in your own fact checking ventures.

********************************************************************************

Here is what the FDA said:

For your information, the linked articles that are…attributed to USDA, while apparently legitimate, may not have been properly cited as to the original source, and in one case, gives the appearance of being a USDA publication in error. The articles …were originally published on the USDA/ARS’ Web site in 2005 and 2007.

The first article listed under the USDA logo, is not actually a “publication” …posted on the USDA site (nor is this a USDA publication, as it may appear), but rather a comment made during the formation of the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans and submitted to USDA and the Department of Health and Human Services. You can view the original comment in the comment database here (which is accessible to the public): http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/comments/ViewTopics.asp?TopicID=5&SubTopicID=22&submit1=Submit

I had a bag of really sweet plums this week, as well as a few frozen chicken breasts. So I Googled both of these with the word"salad"…and found this really nice recipe from the Northwest Cherry Growers:

I didn't use the rice, and I bet if you like quinoa, as shown in the picture and in this second recipe, you could substitute that to further improve the protein content and glycemic index. I also used only half of the canola oil, and threw in a handful of sliced almonds instead.

Fruit and protein are a great combination for an easy summer dinner. And an easy way to get ideas, is to do what I did, Google the fruit and protein you have along with the word"salad". There's a pretty good chance someone has posted a recipe somewhere!

PLUM GINGER CHICKEN SALAD

Makes 4 servings, each serving equals three 5 A Day servings.

Ingredients

• 1 (4-to 6-ounce) package long grain and wild rice mix
• 2 cups cooked boneless chicken breast cubes
• 1/2 cup sliced green onions
• 4 plums, sliced
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger

Prepare rice mix as directed; cool to room temperature.

Combine rice, chicken, green onions and sliced plums in large mixing bowl.

To prepare dressing, combine oil, lemon juice, soy sauce and ginger; pour over rice mixture and toss lightly.

Chill until served.

Enjoy!

•“If I have a bite of this, I’ve ruined my eating plan, so I might just as well go ALL the way and eat whatever I want for the rest of the day (or week, or month, or the next time a doctor strikes fear in my heart).”

•“There’s NOTHING I can do to fix PCOS anyway – I can’t make it go away – might as well just (fill in the blank with your favorite unhealthy habit).”

•“I’ve been doing EVERYTHING possible to stabilize my hormones, and it’s just not working (so I’m going to a) quit taking fish oil; b) quit going to the doctor; c) ignore the glycemic index).”

•“NOTHING changes in my body, no matter how much I exercise (might as well resume sleeping in and skip the gym).”

How often have you said something like the above, internally or out loud? These are examples of ALL or NOTHING thinking, which is a self-destructive kind of thinking pattern that drags you down. Whenever we get into this kind of bifurcated, black and white mode, it’s a cue that there’s probably some self-sabotaging going on, or we’re looking for an excuse to cover the damage that’s already been done. And there’s sure to be guilt that follows, as well as confusion, delay, and indecision, and all sorts of other thoughts and feelings that slow you up for a bit.

I’m reminded of the rules for fighting fair in a couples relationship – warning bells should ring when one of you starts saying ALL or NOTHING. While many things in life are non-negotiable (death, taxes, and the DMV regulations come to mind), much, if not all, of our personal behavior and relationships can be negotiated. Certainly, most aspects of health care are an ongoing negotiation. You’ve got negotiations with your family, restauranteurs who offer up unhealthy foods, medical providers, mental health practitioners, and of course, your SELF!

These latter ones – the negotiations with your self – are often the most tricky. We have very clever brains that can manufacture excuses for just about anything, especially when there are gourmet cupcakes involved. We manipulate our brains into thinking that something is ALL bad, or ALL good. We create all sorts of angst deciding where the lines are, and what the consequences are (or aren’t) if we cross them. We make up crazy rules (they often include the words ALL or NOTHING) that we’re bound to violate – thus giving us space to do what we really wanted to do in the first place. Food and exercise are the obvious and highly relevant examples, but this kind of thinking pollutes work interactions (“you NEVER give me enough time to finish projects”), friendships (“you’re ALWAYS late for our lunch dates”), and other relationships.
Be mindful of the times you start using or over-using the words ALL, NOTHING, ALWAYS, and NEVER. When you notice yourself starting to use some or all of those words, pause. The more you’re saying them, the more you’re dancing around your own boundaries. Yes, I said it.

You’re responsible for making your own rules. Almost ALL of them. Might as well make them healthy, functional rules that respect the fact that most of life is, indeed, quite gray.

Gretchen Kubacky, Psy.D. is a Health Psychologist in private practice in West Los Angeles, California. She has completed the inCYST training. She specializes in counseling women and couples who are coping with infertility, PCOS, and related endocrine disorders and chronic illnesses.

If you would like to learn more about Dr. HOUSE or her practice, or obtain referrals in the Los Angeles area, please visit her website at www.drhousemd.com, or e-mail her at AskDrHouseMD@gmail.com. You can also follow her on Twitter @askdrhousemd.

It's the end of summer and the basil plant on my patio is huge. Time for pesto!

Pesto sauce is a great PCOS food. It's based on olive oil, the pine nuts have a healthy omega-6 to omega-3 ratio, garlic has its health benefits we have all heard of. Add some parmesan cheese for calcium and voila! You're there!

Who knew the basil was throwing in its own punch? The oils found in basil leaves have anti-inflammatory activity (remember, PCOS is an inflammatory condition). It's also high in beta-carotene, antioxidants, magnesium, iron, calcium, potassium, and vitamin C.

If you're trying to watch your glycemic index, try quinoa pasta. It's a high protein, low GI grain that is now sold in spaghetti and pasta forms. Pesto also makes a good sandwich spread, a topper for grilled meat, and you can put it on baked potatoes or portabella mushrooms if you're a veggie! I recently found some pesto turkey burgers at Trader Joe's--all they did was mix some pesto sauce in with the turkey meat before making patties…something you can easily replicate at home.

It's easy to find the ready made version in just about any store these days, but it's super easy to make at home. Here is one recipe I found online.

One of the most frustrating things for me, when working with people who want to eat healthier…is their focus on wanting me to tell them what NOT to eat. The fact is…when you're eating healthfully, you're likely to be eating many more foods than you do when you're out of balance. Most people get into ruts and eat the same few foods over and over, because it's easy and convenient.

I always like to tell clients that my job is to get them eating a whole lot more variety, and to make eating FUN, not about deprivation. That way, if there ARE foods you need to cut back on, it will be a little bit easier because you're adding new and fun foods in their place.

So…I thought that challenging blog readers to incorporate a new food a week might be a fun way to move them (that means YOU) gradually toward more balanced eating.

This week I chose hummous. Way back when I was in college, this was pretty much a food that you could only find in esoteric vegetarian restaurants and middle Eastern grocers. Now, I see it in my local grocery store. And I see it in many new and different flavors…garlic, black bean, jalapeno/cilantro, sun-dried tomato…I know I'm leaving out some good ones, but you get the point.

From a medical/nutritional standpoint, I like hummous, because it shows up low on the glycemic index scale (means your blood sugar will like this food!). It's also typically made with olive oil, which is a better fat than the fats you'll find in some other processed foods. From a practical standpoint, it's cheap and it's ready made. On baked pita chips or with vegetables, it makes a great snack.

Last weekend I was doing a demo for a client at Whole Foods and the local hummous guy was down the aisle. His samples were flying off the table faster than he could serve them up, and practically everyone walking by MY demo had a box of pita chips and a package of hummous in their cart. So I'm not just pushing something because of my personal taste. I know that if you've never tried this gem, it's worth being curious to see what the buzz is about.

You can make hummous yourself if you plan ahead and have the ingredients on hand. There are a gazillion recipes to Google, so I'll let you do that legwork.

But for the next 7 days, I challenge you to try hummous. And if you think of it, share your comments. They might make it easier for another blog reader to try something new. What's your favorite brand? How do you like to eat it?

Why would I pick such an esoteric fruit for this blog? I've got several reasons.

1. I have been asked to be part of a committee here in Phoenix that organizes Get Your PHX, monthly events promoting local businesses. Because my specialty is nutrition, I've been assigned the task of finding food for these parties. It's a great opportunity to give my fellow Phoenicians a chance to try some of the principles promoted on this blog--eat a variety of foods, organic and locally grown when possible--and to see that it actually tastes great!

The restaurant I am working with for next week's event is called The Breadfruit. It's a small but very popular joint in downtown Phoenix that obtains quite a few of its ingredients from the farmer's market around the corner. I joined The Breadfruit's Facebook fan page, and Sasha Ottey of PCOS Challenge, who is originally from Jamaica, commented that the breadfruit is a staple of Jamaica. So, for Sasha, I'm highlighting this food.

2. Women with PCOS often cut back what they are eating to just a small list of foods that they've culled from the Internet, at the expense of their dietary variety. I worked with eating disorders before specializing in PCOS, and my observation is that there is a lot more fear about food with PCOS than with eating disorders. I would guess, it has to do with wanting so badly to conceive, or lose weight, or whatever, that (unrealistic) magical powers to help or hurt PCOS start to be attached to certain food. There is no such top ten list of PCOS cure foods. In fact, the more varied your diet, the more nutrients you can get. So I wanted to pick a food that challenged all of you to think outside of that top ten list.

3. Dietary regimens for PCOS take all the fun out of food. It becomes a chore, eating the same foods over and over becomes boring, and eventually the backlash is likely to become a binge on foods that are counterproductive to PCOS. I encourage you all to have fun with food! Even if you're not coming to Get Your PHX next week, if you have an opportunity to try Jamaican food, or Korean food, or Bolivian food…don't pass it up! You might find something you like that you can add to your routine.

Back to breadfruit. What is it? It's a starchy staple of tropical nations around the world. It is typically cooked before eating, and it gets its name from its bread-like flavor. It can also be stored, fermented, and turned into a paste.

In economically disadvanted countries, breadfruit is consumed in large quantities that would not be appropriate for someone trying to balance their carbohydrate, protein, and fat intake. As a side dish, in moderation, it does provide vitamin C, choline, thiamine, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, and a lot of dietary fiber--11 grams per serving! And even though it is starchy, its glycemic index is not high, likely due to its fiber content.

So if you're out having fun, and the menu includes something exotic, don't pass it up just because it's not salmon, broccoli, walnuts, or blueberries. Mother Earth has a bounty of options that are good for you, fun to try, and pleasing to your palate.

I was a little uninspired for this weekly feature until I made breakfast. Oatmeal is such a staple for me, it hadn't even occurred to me that I could talk about it here. It's not fancy, it's not expensive, it's not glamorous…it's just oatmeal. But it's filling, and it can be dressed up in so many different ways that, at least for me, it never feels like the same breakfast twice.

I like to put nuts, raisins, and dried fruit on my oatmeal. I also add my Omega 3 Brain Booster powder as a way to boost the nutritional content. I bought a bunch of glass canisters at IKEA, and I use them to store/display my oatmeal and all my different fixins'. They look so pretty and healthy it makes me want to use them, which is exactly the point!

Oatmeal has a great glycemic index, meaning it won't wreak havoc on your blood sugar. And that means you're less likely to be hungry in the morning because your blood sugar dropped at a time when lunch was still a ways away and there were donuts sitting in the break room.

A special oatmeal note for you frequent flyers. The international terminal at JFK airport (New York) has a wonderful oatmeal bar! You can fix it with just about anything you would want. I was so thrilled to find this, since much airport food can't even really be thought of as food. Check it out and enjoy!

Something interesting I find in our audience, is holding on to the belief that if the doctor has not officially said you are insulin resistant, your PCOS cannot possibly be that bad. But did you know, it's not what your fasting blood glucose says in the doctor's office that matters? The problem with PCOS is how well your body handles the carbohydrates you DO eat, in REAL time. That is why I like to challenge clients to purchase a glucose meter (you can get them at Walgreen's or any drugstore), and test glucose in their own bodies. What will you learn? 1. You will learn what your own body does morning, noon, and night. 2. Rather than work off of a generic glycemic index list, you will know exactly which foods cause spikes in blood glucose. You can customize your own program. 3. You can start to make connections between how you feel and what your blood glucose readings are. One of my clients, for example, has started to see that after she eats something very high in carbohydrate, she feels sleepy, and it goes away when she eats protein. She is gradually learning how to eat to avoid the sleepy part because her own numbers are more meaningful than any theories I might tell her. She won't need to test for the rest of her life, she just needed to do it long enough to learn what that sleepiness was telling her about her own personal metabolism. 4. You will find it harder to convince yourself"just one soda can't make that much difference", because you can visually SEE what difference it IS making. 5. You will find it easier to exercise, because you will see the power that exercise has on keeping your body using carbohydrates efficiently. 6. If you use this technique to minimize your blood sugar fluctuations, it makes it so much easier for those trying to help you balance your hormones, get an idea of what is going on. When your blood sugar is erratic and your hormones are out of balance as well, who knows what's causing the moodiness, the depression, the hunger? Tackling the glucose is relatively easy, and it also makes the hard part of the equation much easier to address. One of the reasons it is hard to make behavior changes, is that it is hard to take vague, general information and believe that this is how your own body works. It's hard to stay in denial when you're looking at your own measurements. If you'd like to do some glucose tracking, where you get the numbers and we interpret them together…that can be a useful type of inCYST consultation.

Have you ever heard of Freekeh? I had not, until this past spring at Natural Products West. It is a roasted green wheat that originated in the Middle East. Like quinoa and farro, it is higher in protein than traditional grain products. It also has a relatively low glycemic index. Freekeh has been a bit of an underground favorite, but has recently been showing up in stores like Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. It is great in pilafs and all things Mediterranean, simply use as the grain base in your favorite recipe. However, if you'd prefer, I'm posting a couple of recipes I found here for you to try. Here is a simple Freekeh breakfast recipe provided by the Greenwheat Freekeh people. You can also buy their product online " />

buy their product online if you can't find it in your local grocer. Freekeh(TM) Breakfast 1 or 2 Granny smith apples one box of 400gm Freekeh cinnamon any dried fruit you like (ie raisins and apricots) as much as you like. Method First cook the whole grain Freekeh (or cracked grain Freekeh for some variation). All you need to do is to empty the whole box of grains in a pot and cover with water plus a little more (Freekeh cannot be over cooked and is very resilient). Cook for about 35 minutes or so until the grains are soft. If using cracked Freekeh only cook for about 15-20 minutes. (One other possibility is instead of cooking the Freekeh to simply soak it overnight in the fridge with water with a towel on top) While waiting for the grains to cook, chop and dice one or two apples (no need to peel, and Granny smith are best). Place the diced apples in a dry pot on low heat and stir for about 1 -2 minutes. Add only less than 1 teaspoon of water. Add cinnamon and stir for one more minute. Wash as many dried fruits as you like (dried apricots and raisins are good) and add to the apples. Stir for 1 more minute or so. Tip the fruit mixture over the already cooked grains and mix well. Let cool. Place in the fridge. The breakfast cereal should keep for 10 days or even more. To eat. Take a scoop or two of the mixture add some milk and put some wallnuts or cashew nuts or both on top. Heat in the microwave for about 1-2 minutes. Remove from the microwave and place a dollop of vanilla yogurt in the middle. In the summer you do not need to heat in the microwave and only use the yogurt without the milk… but then again you may come up with new variations to this recipe! From Bon Appetit Magazine comes this recipe for Chicken with Kale and Freekeh-Lentil Pilaf Ingredients Vinaigrette 2 tablespoons cumin seeds 1/2 cup Sherry vinegar 2 small garlic cloves, minced 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons finely chopped Hunza raisins 2 teaspoons whole grain mustard 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice Kosher salt Pilaf and Chicken 4 tablespoons (or more) olive oil, divided 1 1/2 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2"-thick cutlets Kosher salt 1 tablespoon unsalted butter 1 garlic clove, smashed 1 pound kale, large center ribs and stems removed, torn into pieces 1 cup cooked freekeh 1 cup cooked lentils Preparation Vinaigrette Stir cumin in a small dry skillet over medium heat until toasted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat; add vinegar and garlic. Let stand for 30 seconds. Transfer to a blender; add oil and next 3 ingredients. Purée. Season with salt. Pilaf and Chicken Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large, heavy nonstick skillet over medium heat. Season chicken with salt. Working in 2 batches and adding 1 Tbsp. oil between batches, cook chicken in single layers until browned on both sides and just cooked through, 2–3minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm. Remove pan from heat; add 1/4 cup water. Stir, scraping up browned bits. Whisk in 1/4 cup vinaigrette. Scrape sauce into a bowl. Melt butter with 1 Tbsp. oil in same skillet over medium-low heat. Add garlic and cook until just beginning to brown, 1–2 minutes. Discard garlic. Working in 3 batches and adding more oil as needed, add kale to skillet and toss until wilted, 1–2 minutes per batch. Transfer to a large bowl. Season lightly with salt. Cover to keep warm. Add freekeh and lentils to same skillet. Increase heat; stir until warm, 2–3 minutes. Spoon pilaf onto plates. Top with chicken. Whisk juices from plate with chicken into sauce; drizzle over chicken and pilaf. Top with kale.

Hello,

I'm glad you stopped by the blog. I thought I would answer your question since it's likely one that others have. It's a little more complicated of an answer than you might have anticipated.

SCENARIO ONE: Empowered Use of Ice Cream

If you're eating well in general, and you'd like to have a little bit of ice cream once in awhile, good for you! It turns out that ice cream, because of its fat content, has a lower glycemic index than many people would anticipate. And…women who eat at least one fat-containing serving of dairy are more fertile than women who do not. The best way to capitalize on this, is to eat ice cream in conjunction with a meal, so that the protein and the fat from that meal further modulate blood glucose levels. The fewer ingredients, preservatives, additives, and stablizers your ice cream has, the better. Eat it at the table, not standing in the kitchen, not out of the carton, not sitting in front of the TV. Savor every delicious spoonful.

SCENARIO TWO: Ice Cream's Calling the Shots

The worst way you can ever eat ice cream, is by the bowlful, right before bedtime. Raising your blood sugar around bedtime increases the risk of precipitous drops in blood glucose during sleep. In response, your body will secrete cortisol to bring the blood sugar back up, so that when you wake up, you've got a high fasting blood sugar. It is why you may not be hungry for breakfast. Start to take notice — what was going on in your food world the 12 hours before you woke up not hungry? If you can identify either a long stretch of not eating, or eating something high in sugar, not balanced with protein…figure out a way to change it.

The most important question I might ask you here, is why you're looking for PCOS-friendly ice cream. If the answer is, you're not quite ready to make true PCOS-friendly changes, and hoping there is a way for you to continue along your path that, while comfortable, is heading you down a serious path of medical complications, you're in denial. It simply doesn't work that way.

There is no ice cream, no ice cream at all, that is PCOS-friendly when eaten as an emotional outlet for loneliness, stress, anger, frustration, or any other emotion you're struggling with. You're only fueling your PCOS fire and making it worse by using food to cope with the emotions the disease is intensifying. Perhaps your PCOS diagnosis is your invitation to learn to use other outlets for those emotions, rather than hiding from them or self-medicating. If that is what you want, you need to be honest with yourself. You're looking for binge-friendly foods, not PCOS friendly foods. That's NOT what we write about or support.

Last week I posted a quote on my Facebook page that came across my Twitterfeed:"Resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die". I got more than a dozen"likes" for that one. If you're bingeing on ice cream because you're angry at your spouse, your doctor, me, your diagnosis, your body, whatever…all of us walk away unscathed. The only person you're hurting is you.

Make this the day that ice cream becomes something you have a little taste of after a satisfying meal, and stops being the thing you turn to when something is feeling out of control.