Dr. Chet’s Health Memos
If it’s in the health news today, I’ll be writing about it as soon as I read the research, both old and new. With my email Health Memos, you’ll know more about making lifestyle choices that will help you get and keep good health. These free, concise updates on health are emailed to subscribers twice a week. Subscribe today and get a free MP3, in English or Spanish, of Dr. Chet’s Top Ten Tips—Small Changes for a Healthier Life.
How to Bust a Plateau
It happens to everyone when we lose weight: the scale stops moving downward even though we’re doing everything the same as we’ve been doing. How do we start losing again? Patience. While the scale may not move, there’s a lot going on. Hundreds of changes are happening in just about every cell of your body […]
What’s Your Body Mass Index?
You may be tempted to measure how you’re doing on the way to your health goals with body composition read-outs on scales and other outputs related to body fat analytics, but how accurate are they? If the device used is one that has you stand on a scale or hang on to handles of some […]
The End of Constipation
I had a question recently about the difference between a laxative such as Miralax and fiber. While they’re both safe, there are similarities and there are differences. They are similar in that they draw fluid into the intestines. Miralax uses chemicals while fiber uses plant sources; both draw fluid into the gut to soften the […]
The Keto Diet and Fiber
More and more people are trying the ketogenic diet. If you do, the directions recommend that you eat plenty of green leafy vegetables for the vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, and especially the fiber. The problem is that many people cut the carbs from all sources and that includes vegetables. The simplest way to give yourself some […]
Food Is Better Than Supplements, But …
Getting your nutrients from food by eating a healthy diet is the most desirable way of getting vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. Period. If we could all do it, no question that’s the best way. But you and I don’t live in some fantasy world. We’re busy. We don’t always have enough time to shop and […]
Food vs. Supplements: A Closer Look
There’s no question National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) has done the best job of collecting data on nutritional intake in large-scale studies. I’ve applauded it in the past, and I’m not going to change now just because there’s an NHANES-based paper that critiques the use of supplements. NHANES data were used by one […]
Food vs. Supplements
Last week, the health headlines blared that nutrients from foods were better than nutrients from supplements—specifically that excess calcium from supplements was associated with an increased risk of dying from cancer. That will get your attention if you take supplemental calcium, especially if you’re taking calcium because your physician told you to take it because […]
Supplementing Your Diet
Last week, a study was published that concluded that nutrients from food are better than nutrients from supplements. Does that mean you can throw out the supplements and just eat more? Short answer: no. Did you ever notice that one week some vitamin is good for you and the next it’s supposed to be bad […]
Subscriber Update
How are you doing on the push-up challenge? I know some of you have begun with wall push-ups and are continuing to improve. Don’t forget to let me know when you make it. I finally got to 41 myself and continue to try to hit that number. No matter where you began, you can continue […]
Finding Your Health Partners
I finished Thursday’s Memo by saying there may be hope for physicians when dealing with overweight patients. It was another viewpoint written by two clinicians. They say learning about diet and nutrition and how to interact with patients were not priorities in medical school; I’ve confirmed that with physicians I know. The authors put together […]
