November 2006 | Whole Health
Portion Distortion
By Elizabeth Barker
It’s no secret that Americans’ bloated waistlines have much to do with our puffed-up portion sizes. But just how bad is our portion distortion? To find out, Rutgers University researchers recruited 177 college students and replicated a study originally published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association 22 years ago. Selecting food presented on a buffet table, students served themselves what they considered to be a typical portion of each item. Although the students chose smaller amounts of salad dressing and sugar (for their cereal), serving sizes had mostly swollen: The volunteers filled their OJ glasses 45 percent higher, poured nearly 30 percent more milk onto their cornflakes and dished out a third more fruit salad than their 1984 counterparts.
To keep your portions in check, the America Dietetic Association recommends using visual cues: Go for a tennis-ball-sized helping of pasta, three dominos’ worth of cheese, and a baked potato no bigger than your computer mouse. Meat and other proteins should match the palm of your hand, while veggies can equal about two fists.
Harmful Huffing
Alleviating anger with a little deep breathing may benefit your lungs in more ways than one, according to new research from the Harvard School of Public Health. In studying 670 generally healthy older men (average age: 62), researchers found that those who were chronically hostile had poorer lung function. And at an eight-year follow-up, the study’s grumpsters revealed more aging in their lungs than their cheerier counterparts.
Lead study author Laura Kubzansky, Ph.D., and her research team report that chronic hostility could weaken immune function and ultimately trigger inflammation in the lungs. The researchers also suggested that anger-prone people often lack strong social support, which may deny such individuals “the broad array of health outcomes” associated with friendship and other social connections.
Got Mineral Water?
Moo juice and milkshakes aren’t your only option for a drinkable source of calcium. A recent American Journal of Clinical Nutrition report suggests that mineral waters may provide a milk alternative for the lactose-intolerant, vegan or otherwise dairy-averse. After giving high-calcium mineral waters to a small group of women, study author Robert P. Heaney, M.D., discovered that the bone-builder absorbed just as well as calcium from milk. Heaney also reviewed previous studies on mineral waters and absorption, finding that women who frequently drink high-calcium waters may have higher spinal bone mineral density and reduced post-menopausal bone loss.
Heaney stresses that women should also seek out calcium from food sources in order to achieve adequate intake. Bottled waters such as Contrex contain nearly 500 mg of calcium per liter, about half of the 1,000 mg needed each day by adults up to age 50 (with those ages 51 and older requiring 1,200 mg daily).
Elizabeth Barker is a freelance writer living in LA.
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