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Dietary Goals

When it Comes to Eating Right & Meal Planning, it’s Time to Ask an Expert!

Dietician preparing a meal plan

Eating healthily for newbies can be a daunting task. Eating healthily for a newbie that has health complications like managing a chronic disease, living with a restrictive diet, and managing other elements of their life can feel like an impossible task. That is unfortunately why some people fall victim to fad diets, yo-yo dieting, and end up worse than when they started. 

But how does one manage to put themselves in any sort of restrictive lifestyle themselves while dealing with medical, social, and psychological pressures? Navigating daily life while trying to achieve a healthy and fitness goal can get pretty complicated. These are just some of the reasons someone should seek the help of a dietician. 

Dietitians are the experts in the area of Nutrition & Nourishment. Most of us may think of them as someone that treats people with obesity and weight issue, but there is so much more to it. 

A dietician can not only help you navigate healthy foods but also help you navigate healthy foods based on your pre-existing conditions. This may involve managing a chronic disease, re-storing your gut health, managing inflammation, and optimizing your lifestyle so your look and feel your best. We now know that what you eat on a day-to-day basis along with your other daily habits like exercise and meditation have a direct impact on your long-term health.

There are many things in life that we can’t plan for except our health. There are many studies and articles that support a balanced diet and exercise plan leading to a healthier lifestyle. However, it’s hard to put into practice without a plan.

Seeking advice from a Dietitian can help:

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1. Create a Customized Plan

Customized meal plan tailored for your specific requirements is the first step to your weigh loss journey.  A customized meal plan takes into account food allergies, caloric intake, protein requirement, food preferences and food intolerances. It gives you the freedom to enjoy foods that you love and make it easier to build a habit around it.

2. Meal Prep

Having a roadmap helps with meal prep, giving you a chance to have have better control of your weight loss. It decreases the time you spend for meal prepping and opens the door for variety foods.

3. Save Money

A customized meal plan saves you time & money by making planning and shopping easier and purposeful.

4. Metabolism Boost

Regular meals and snacks ensure that you have a balanced diet reducing cravings and hunger. It is a great way to reboot the metabolism and creating a healthy habit.

5. Accountability

The continual support/ coaching & guidance helps to keep you accountable and as a result have a better success.

6. Community Building

Being a part of a healthy community is the best part. People are often inspired to achieve their own goals by seeing examples of similar individuals that are further along in their journey. 

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Featured Nutritionists

What Not Drinking Enough Water Does to Your Body and Brain

There’s a good chance that you’re already dehydrated if water is on your mind. The good news is that increasing hydration levels is one of the easiest ways to change how you feel. It can even help you to look better, reach your health goals, and protect your brain against cognitive decline as you age. Yes, “simple” water really can do all that.

While most of us know that we need water to be healthy, a shocking number of people still allow themselves to become dehydrated. What’s even more shocking is that many people don’t recognize the signs of dehydration. This means they’re walking around feeling tired, sluggish, and weak without realizing that they don’t need to feel this way. 

Have you ever wondered what not drinking enough water does to your body and brain? 

Check out some facts that will inspire you to start counting every sip on your way to better health.

Shocking Fact: It Only Takes Two Hours to Feel the Effects of Dehydration

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Don’t be so sure that your body is all set just because you chugged water a few hours before starting a workout. New research reveals that we can become dangerously dehydrated in just two hours! A study released by the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta in 2022 found that just two hours of vigorous activity in the heat without drinking fluids or eating can significantly affect concentration.

The Symptoms of Dehydration

Could your general feelings of malaise and tiredness actually be caused by dehydration? It’s not out of the realm of possibility. That’s because dehydration produces a wide range of symptoms. While some symptoms are felt immediately, others take long-term tolls on your health. Here’s a look at the common symptoms of dehydration:

  • Feeling Thirsty: Yes, you’re already dehydrated if you feel thirsty. The goal when staying hydrated is to stay ahead of thirst cues.
  • Dark, strong-smelling Urine: Urine that’s a dark-yellow color is a sign that you’re dehydrated. Clear, odor-free urine is a sign that you’re properly hydrated.
  • Feeling Dizzy or Lightheaded: Feeling weak is a telltale sign of dehydration. Not every case of dizziness is due to dehydration. However, seeking help is essential if you feel you are about to pass out.
  • Tiredness: It’s common to feel exhausted when you’re dehydrated.
  • Dry Mouth/Cotton Mouth: Is your tongue feeling a little cottony? It’s a sign that you’re dehydrated to help restore saliva production in your mouth.
  • Dry Lips and Eyes: Your body is probably telling you it’s running out of moisture if you feel dryness on your lips and eyes.
  • Headaches: It’s very common to get a headache from dehydration. One of the best ways to test if your chronic headaches could be caused by dehydration is to see if your headache goes away after you drink a large glass of water.
  • Constipation: Dehydration is a common cause of constipation that few people know about. If the water receptors in your colon cannot pull water from the body, you end up with hard, dry stools.
  • Lackluster Skin: All the facial creams in the world can’t hydrate your skin from the inside. You may be dehydrated if you’re suffering from dry, dull skin. Many people find that radiance, plumpness, and elasticity begin to return once they get more consistent with water intake.
  • Brain Fog: If you’re constantly feeling confused and unfocused, a lack of water could be to blame.
  • Weight Gain: Yes, chronic dehydration can lead to weight gain. The most straightforward reason behind this is that people often mistake thirst cues for hunger cues! This means that they reach for snacks when their body actually needs water. Research shows that increased hydration is associated with weight loss.

Many people stay chronically dehydrated for so long that they think these symptoms are part of their “normal” life experience. While the answer isn’t always as simple as just drinking more water, the truth is that improving hydration is a great place to start. The importance of staying hydrated doesn’t just come down to feeling better at the moment. Chronic dehydration can have severe consequences for a person’s health and well-being. 

What Are the Long-Term Effects of Not Drinking Enough Water?

Your brain and body crave water. In fact, you may be living at much less than full speed if you’re not getting your full water intake daily. Let’s not forget that the human brain comprises 73% water. One study found that dehydration following exercise impaired both mood and concentration. Another study found that dehydration was detrimental to working memory. It also left people with feelings of anxiety and fatigue. 

 People perform at reduced capacity when they’re dehydrated. They also feel worse. While this information should be enough to inspire anyone to want to focus on drinking more water, the stakes go much higher. It turns out that chronic dehydration can cause brain cells to shrink! While this won’t happen overnight, it’s common in older adults living with prolonged dehydration. 

People who aren’t drinking enough water often live for years in a constant state of brain fog that makes it difficult to achieve focus, concentration, and mental clarity. This ultimately creates a situation where brain cells are negatively affected irreversibly.

Not Drinking Enough Water Can Hurt Your Immune System

You may already know that not drinking enough water can cause headaches, sluggishness, and weight gain. However, there’s an even more significant risk of staying dehydrated. Hydration is critical for a healthy immune system. The immune system is highly dependent on the nutrients in our bloodstream. As you may already know, the human bloodstream consists mainly of water. When the body lacks the proper amount of water, it becomes difficult for the bloodstream to properly transport nutrients to organs and tissue. This is actually why muscle cramping is so common when we’re dehydrated. However, a lack of water makes it impossible for the bloodstream to clear out detoxification pathways tied to lymphatic draining. That means that waste materials and dangerous invaders aren’t cleared out. Yes, that means that the immune system can become compromised over time.

Pursuing a More Hydrated Way of Life: How Can You Remember to Drink More Water?

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Don’t forget that much of the daily hydration that the human body needs can come from foods. A person who consumes lots of fruits and vegetables with high water content will naturally consume more water without necessarily drinking more. In addition, teas, smoothies, and fresh-pressed juices can also provide extra hydration. The real trick is that you may not have to drink more water to stay hydrated. 

It’s still important to focus on drinking enough water even if your diet contains lots of “watery” foods. The amount of water needed daily for good health can vary. Most adults need between 11.5 and 15.5 cups per day to stay healthy. While a person eating a balanced diet can expect about 20% of that water to come from the foods they eat, there’s simply no way around the fact that you’ll need to sip water throughout the day. A person who exercises will almost always need more water than the “average” person. Here are some tips for drinking more water:

  • Start your day with a full glass of water within minutes of waking up. Cold water in the morning can boost your alertness level!
  • Download an app that reminds you to take sips.
  • Buy several refillable water bottles that you can leave at home, at work, or in the car to ensure that you never get stuck without a way to drink water.
  • Drink a full glass of water with each meal.
  • Drink a full glass of water after every bathroom break.

The bottom line is that you never want to wait until you get thirsty to drink water! You’re already dehydrated if you’re feeling thirsty. That means you’re already on your way to headaches, muscle cramps, fatigue, decreased mood, lack of focus, and potential long-term cognitive impairment. Make hydration a part of your overall healthy meal plan to live the vibrant life you want to live!

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Dietary Goals

Boosting Your Brain Power with Choline-Packed Foods

Boosting Your Brain Power with Choline-Packed Foods

Choline, the Brain Booster

When you start learning about anything health-related, there are numerous vitamins and minerals that start showing up. You have your typical vitamin A, vitamin C, magnesium, and much more. However, there’s one crucial nutrient that you may not hear much about – Choline. You may not have heard much about choline because it was only recently discovered! It wasn’t even acknowledged as a crucial nutrient until 1998, which wasn’t that long ago. Choline is a special nutrient that is often referred to as vitamin B4. However, this vitamin is actually an essential dietary amine that we can both make internally and consume in our diets.

While, yes, we can make this nutrient on our own, we don’t create nearly enough needed for optimal health. Thus, we need to consume it in our diets to ensure the proper amounts!

In this post, we’re going to highlight the numerous benefits of choline and how you can get more of this nutrient in your diet!

What Choline Does for the Body

Your body makes choline mainly in the liver, and then you get the rest from food. As you consume or create this nutrient, it works on helping out your brain and nervous system. This means that it has a role in your movement, memory, and even mood! Without it, you might run into some trouble surrounding all of these mentioned functions.

In addition, you may find that choline helps with the formation of certain cell membranes. This is crucial for the protection and proper function of some critical processes that your body is constantly working on.

Our bodies are also made up of DNA. DNA basically writes the script for how we look, function, and grow. Choline actually has a role, along with other vitamins, to help aid in the synthesis of your DNA. You can only imagine how important this process is, as it’s going to play into the proper expression of your genetic code!

Choline and the Brain

As previously mentioned, choline is awesome for your brain health! Your brain uses an important neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, which is paramount for proper brain function in regard to memory, muscle control, and even mood. Without the necessary amounts of choline in your body, you can’t create the right amounts of acetylcholine. Therefore, the less choline you have, the less your brain can do its job the right way!

Choline and Mood

Choline also has an impact on something called dopaminergic function. Meaning, higher amounts of choline can lead to an increase in dopamine receptor densities. To put it plain and simple, it makes the things that uptake dopamine better. If you’ve heard of dopamine, you know that it plays a role in your overall mood regulation and much more. Certain imbalances here could lead to the development of certain mood or mental health disorders such as anxiety and depression. In one study done with choline, there was evidence showing an increase in anxiety among those with lower levels of choline. While this study showed a link to anxiety, it didn’t give a link to depression in those with lower levels of choline, however, it hasn’t been ruled out as a possibility. Mental health is extremely important for quality of life, and it’s something that a large majority of people struggle with. Therefore, if you can benefit in this area by getting the right nutrients, it’s worth the effort!

Choline and Brain Development During Pregnancy

While your brain health is important, when it comes to having kids, the development of their brain can be influenced by choline. As a mother is carrying through pregnancy, the state of her nutritional intake is crucial! There are multiple vitamins and minerals that go into the development of a child’s brain during pregnancy. While there aren’t many studies on humans in relation to choline and fetal brain development, there are currently studies showing a benefit to choline intake on mice and their fetal brain development. These mice are given choline supplementation during pregnancy, and this helped to improve the brain development in the growing fetus.

Choline and Your Memory

Memory and cognition are important for advancing into life, as well as keeping it long and fulfilling. We spend our lives creating memories and we never want to let those things go! So, it’s important that we take steps to make this happen in whatever ways we can. One great way is through nutrition and choline intake. Choline intake has been shown to help improve memory and cognition, and even has some promise for individuals with dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease. This makes it a potent nutrient that we need to take seriously.

It also needs to be considered that choline is a fairly new nutrient and is still being studied extensively. The research on its use for memory is still ongoing, and some results show it to be beneficial while some show it to have no effect. Regardless, we do know that it plays a role in brain health, which can improve memory all together!

What Happens Without Choline?

As with any nutrient, you need a certain amount. When that minimum amount isn’t reached over a period of time, you can end up with some adverse health problems. Being deficient in choline is no different.

While choline deficiencies can be hard to achieve, they do happen! When one is present, you can see symptoms and risks such as anxiety, fatty liver disease (non-alcoholic), muscle damage, kidney problems, some increased risk for heart disease, and an increased risk for some cancers.

In addition, while more research is needed, there could be associated risks for brain health, memory, and cognition without the proper amounts of choline in your diet.

Again, extreme deficiencies are rare when it comes to choline, but there is evidence to suggest that many people in western countries aren’t hitting the mark. Thus, it’s important that you take some steps to get that extra choline into your body!

Below you can find a table from the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements listing the recommended intakes of choline based on age!

The Brain Booster, Choline

Choline is a powerful nutrient that not only does good for your body and nervous system, but also your brain! It’s a precursor for some important compounds that are created in your body, and this makes it paramount for proper function. While still a fairly new nutrient in terms of discovery, its importance is profound. We can consume it to boost our natural levels of choline, and this is how you’ll avoid being deficient in it!

Great Sources of Choline

While your body can synthesize some choline naturally, most of it needs to be consumed from the diet. If you miss out on including it, you could see some trouble when trying to keep up with an adequate intake. So, let’s talk about some great sources of choline that you can easily get in your diet.

Beans

All kinds of beans are a great source of choline. This includes soybeans, lima beans, and even kidney beans. Any kind of legume is going to be a big part of the choline game. Not only do they contain tons of this essential nutrient, but you’re also getting high amounts of protein and fiber. You can easily mix these in with other foods containing choline to get your daily intake.

Quinoa

This grain has become a staple in healthy meals. Not only is it packed with fiber and lower in calories, but it contains protein. This makes it great for someone trying to pack some muscle or lose some body fat! Luckily for you, quinoa is also a fantastic way to get in more choline. This is another one of those foods that can be paired with other choline boosters for a supercharged meal.

Nuts

Foods like almonds are a natural, easy to get source of choline. They can be carried around for convenient snacks or even turned into something like a butter for toast. This makes getting choline in super easy, as you can just take them with you!

Cruciferous Veggies

You can get up to 13% of your daily choline needs with just a cup of cooked cauliflower. The same can be done with other cruciferous veggies like broccoli or Brussel sprouts. They pair well with other foods that contain choline, and you can easily make a great tasting meal with them. Not to mention the numerous other health benefits that these veggies come along with!

Poultry

Turkey and chicken are great ways to get a lean source of protein. They’re low in calories, high in protein, and packed with choline. They’re often used as the base for a healthy meal and can easily be adapted for tons of flavor and meal prep options!

Beef

While most tend to shy away from beef, that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have a place in a well-balanced diet. Beef is packed with tons of nutrients, of which are extremely bioavailable. Beef also touts some of the highest amounts of choline in animal foods! In addition to your normal cuts of beef like steak or roast, other parts of these land animals are great sources of choline. Beef liver and other organs are packed full of this essential nutrient. You can eat just 3 ounces of cooked beef liver and get 65% of your recommended intake of choline. While beef liver may not normally be on the menu, this is a great opportunity to try some new things!

Mushrooms

Fungi are a great way to add flavor and texture to dishes. They’re also powerhouses when it comes to nutrients. Mushrooms are rich in vitamin D, B vitamins, and choline. They’re a great option for the plant-based choline seeker.

Fish

Most fatty fish will come with a whopping amount of choline. This includes salmon, tuna, and cod which are also full of other essential nutrients. Most individuals who consume lower amounts of fish tend to have lower levels of choline as well. This goes to show that there’s some relationship between the two! There’s a lot that you can do with these kinds of fish when it comes to meal prep, which makes them a perfect protein source.

Whole Eggs

While you may hear that the whole egg is bad for you, this isn’t necessarily the case. In fact, the yolks of eggs are packed with multiple nutrients needed for good health. Of these nutrients is of course choline! If you tend to only eat the egg whites, you’re actually missing out on one of the highest sources of choline you can find. Egg yolks contain up to 147mg of choline, which means you can eat 2 whole eggs to hit 54% of your recommended intake.

Conclusion

Alright, you’ve been given the run down on choline and what it can do for not only your body but your brain. It’s a crucial nutrient for your nervous system, memory, and even mood. While a deficiency in choline can be rare, it does happen, and many people miss the mark. Your body can only make so much of your needed choline, once you hit your cap you need to consume more in your diet.

Luckily, there are numerous ways of finding and consuming choline in foods. Plus, it’s what we do best here at LoCal Foodz! We create personalized meals for your needs, and most of the foods we have to offer contain choline naturally. So, not only can you find something to fuel your workouts or lifestyle, but you’ll also be getting a boost to the brain!

What new ways are you going to get choline into your diet?

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