New Year's Resolution 2011: The Mac Diet

The Mac Diet 2011

As another year comes to a close and a New Year approaches, many of us are once again vowing to lose unwanted pounds. But with obesity increasing at alarming levels, the Macs are urging a combination of short and long term approaches to help fight our ever increasing waist lines.


Over the past three decades, obesity rates in the U.S. alone have soared among all age groups, particularly among youth where the rate has more than tripled, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While many weight loss efforts fail, the Macs encourage an adoption of small lifestyle changes that will prevent future weight gain.


"Instant results combined with small changes can produce big results," says Dr. Mac, co-owner of The Mac Institute.  "Optimizing Hormones, Eating a Whole Food Low Glycemic Diet, Optimizing Liver Function, Increasing Strength and Flexibility and Utilizing a Health Coach” can take weight off rapidly to satisfy our desire for instant gratification, and then with the help of a health coach--keep it off. In our next poset we will talk of the different methods we can use to optimize hormones.


The Macs

The Day in the Life #2

Blood Sugar or Don’t Let Insulin Spike

This is the second of a series that follows what I do on a daily basis.  Before I blog, Vicky and I would like to thank everyone that has supported us in our new permanent location in Modesto.  Our first week was absolutely amazing!

So, you have already learned how to lose twelve pounds the easy way, weigh yourself daily! 

After, I have weighed and recorded my weight; I check my blood sugar levels.  I cannot stress enough on how important it is to record your blood sugar levels when you are on any anti-aging program. In my case, I have or had 15 aunts and uncles who have or had diabetes.  Nearly every family member that has passed away, has passed due to complications of diabetes.

Through "The Mac Diet," I have been able to reduce my sugar from the 300s to a 30 day average of less than 100. I am now having days in the 80s.  The most important thing: I was able to quit all three of my medications.

We all know why diabetics should check their blood sugar levels, but I find it important that all of us should check fasting levels. Diabetics should on a daily basis.  Non diabetics may check theirs on a once a week basis but no less than that.

Why?  Blood sugar is an indication of insulin levels.  If blood sugar is down, insulin is up. If blood sugar is up insulin may be down but in many cases it's not that insulin is down it is because our cells have become resistant to insulin.  Insulin is like a key that opens the doors to our cells so that sugar may enter.  When we eat the wrong foods and become overweight the cells' locks become distorted and the key doesn't fit.  The sugar is then unable to enter our cells.  This causes the sugar to accumulate in your blood.  Sugar then coats all of our cells, tissues and organs. The more sugar coated our tissues become the less quality of life we have and the less life we have.

We have found that there are two hormones that are always challenging us during our weight loss programs, cortisol and insulin.  Both of these hormones are fat hoarders.  In reality, they turn off the fat burning hormones.  To keep insulin in check while you are on The Mac Diet, we only allow foods that are low on the glycemic index.  It is always amazing to watch blood sugar levels normalize while on The Mac Diet.

Insulin levels are a very important bio-marker within the anti aging field.  One way to keep tabs on your insulin is to check your blood sugar on a regular basis. Normal blood sugar levels indicate normal insulin levels. By checking our blood sugar levels regularly, we will know if our diet is good or bad for us. We want to keep our fasting blood sugar levels as close to 80 as possible and postprandial (1-2 hours after a meal) blood sugar levels should not exceed 160.  Blood sugar levels at bedtime should not exceed 120.  I have found when our blood sugar remain at these levels we will be healthy, be happy and look terrific.

The Macs

www.30lbsin30days.com

The day in the life a of a weight loss guru

After a great night of sleep, I wake and open my eyes. I roll over and cuddle with my beautiful wife. This is the most pleasurable moment of the day. I then thank God that someone loves me and that I love someone.

After ten minutes or so of just holding her in the soft morning light, I slowly move to the side of the bed. (Even if you're not an old fart like me, always get out of bed correctly.) Turn onto your side, get into the fetus position, let your legs fall off the side of the bed and at the same time use your elbow to raise your trunk while gravity assists in placing you into a sitting position.

I look around and allow my eyes to adjust to the morning glow. I stand and thank God that I can. I bend forward and holding my elbows let my back and legs stretch. This is a relaxed stretch. I then meander to the restroom. I urinate.

I now weigh. I weigh everyday. I use an Ironman scale from Tanita that I purchased at www.thecompetitiveedge.com.

You should weigh everyday. A study done at tIn 2005 by researchers at the University of Minnesota found that people who weighed daily lost an average of 12 pounds over the term of the study, 2 years. Those that weighed weekly lost an average of 6 pounds. And those that did not gained 4 pounds.

www.springerlink.com/content/rt13885t4216106l/

Did you go to Church today?

If you did, you can expect to live longer,

And it's almost as beneficial as exercise!



A study using data from the Women's Health Initiative found that women aged 50 and up were 20% less likely to die in any given year if they attended religious services weekly (15% reduction if they attended less than weekly) compared to those that never attend religious services. This analysis was controlled for age, ethnicity, income level and (most importantly) current health status. The data was collected through surveys and an annual review of medical records. What was interesting was that the religion effect applied to overall risk of death, but not to risk of death from heart conditions. There is no explanation for why that might be. The fact that the study controlled for overall health status makes it more possible that attending religious services has a positive impact on health (not just that healthier people go to services more often).
Add 2 to 3 Years with Religion

Another study also found benefit to attending religion services, this time expressed in added years of life. Researchers have found that weekly attendance at religious services is associated with 2 to 3 additional years of life. These findings were controlled for other factors such as amount of physical exercise and taking cholesterol medications.

How Good Are 2 to 3 Additional Years?

Pretty good. Exercise will increase life expectancy by 3 to 5 years.

The Macs

Will Calorie Restriction Work at My Age?

Research presented at the British Society for Research on Aging conference, held July 15-16 in Newcastle, England reveals that calorie restriction, even started later in life, reduces age related cellular deterioration: a major cause of aging.

Researchers at Newcastle University fed adult mice a calorie restricted diet and found a decrease of age related cellular deterioration. They also found that the animals' telomeres, which are protective caps on the ends of the chromosomes that prevent DNA mutation were better maintained, also oxidative stress caused by free radicals was reduced.

"Many people will have heard of the theory that eating a very low calorie diet can help to extend life span and there is a lot of evidence that this is true," lead researcher Chunfang Wang commented. "It's particularly exciting that our experiments found this effect when food restriction was applied in later life," added Professor Thomas von Zglinicki, who contributed to the work.

Why Restrict Calories?

Calorie Restriction

Since the 1930s extensive scientific research has shown that calorie restricted diets improve health and increases life spans. Nearly every species tested, including worms, spiders, rodents, dogs, cows and monkeys have documented increased life spans and improved health with calorie restricted diets. The Mac Diet embraces not only a calorie restricted diet but a calorie restricted diet utilizing a whole food, plant based, lean protein, low glycemic, anti-inflammatory, high fiber diet; the perfect diet.

Calorie restriction is more efficient than a regular weight loss program because weight loss diets are aimed at shedding excess pounds, either for aesthetic or health reasons. By contrast, the goal of The Mac Anti-aging Diet is extending our lifespan and improving health. Weight loss is a side effect. In fact, calorie restriction's anti-aging effects manifest themselves even in organisms with a 'healthy' weight.
One thing you'll find out quite early on in your journey into The Mac Diet's caloric restriction is that you'll have to stop eating the great American diet of sugar, salt, fat and processed foods. If you were eating an unhealthy diet before caloric restriction, you'll probably notice the benefits of healthy eating within a few weeks. Your palate will become more sensitive to subtle tastes, you'll sleep better, feel more alert, and mood swings will be diminished. You will feel a dramatic positive influence from the The Mac's Diet calorie restricted diet that will keep you motivated to stay on track, and begin to lead a healthy lifestyle.
You do not need to be on The Mac Diet to start caloric restriction. Start reducing calories today and live longer and better immediately. We will address how calorie restriction increases lifespan on the next blog.

Dr. Mac

Vitamin D Testing & Pharmaceutical Grade D3

Vitamin D

Have you heard the latest buzz in the medical community? Vitamin D lowers cancer risk and prevents a multitude of other degenerative diseases.

People can get the vitamin D they need through sunlight exposure. It can also be obtained through the diet, but very few foods naturally contain vitamin D. These foods include fatty fish, fish liver oil, and eggs. Most dietary vitamin D comes from fortified foods, such as milk, juices, yogurt, bread and breakfast cereals. Vitamin D can also be obtained through supplements.

Unfortunately most people do not get adequate vitamin D from these sources and insufficiency is literally an epidemic. New statistics extracted from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) found that more than 90% of the population with pigmented skin, and 75% of the white population, have insufficient levels of vitamin D.

Several studies have demonstrated that adequate levels of vitamin D can decrease the risk and improve survival rates for several types of cancers including breast, rectum, ovary, prostate, stomach, bladder, esophagus, kidney, lung, pancreas, uterus, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and multiple myeloma.

It is estimated that 85,000 cases of breast cancer and 60,000 cases of colorectal cancer could be prevented in North America alone with sufficient vitamin D levels. A recent study compiled data on breast and colon cancer and vitamin D levels and found that dosages of 3500 IU/day would reduce breast cancer and 2000 IU/day would reduce colon cancer by 50%. The current median adult intake of vitamin D in the US is 230 IU/day.

Other studies relating cancer to vitamin D have shown that people living at higher latitudes are at increased risk for Hodgkin lymphoma as well as colon, pancreatic, prostate, ovarian, breast and other cancers. In addition, people living at higher latitudes are more likely to die from these cancers compared with those living at lower latitudes.

The current recommended daily allowance of vitamin D in the United States is 200IU/day for children and adults up to 50 years of age, 400IU for 51-70 years, and 600 IU for those >70 years old. However, the emerging evidence on the non-skeletal benefits of vitamin D has made these recommendations obsolete. Doses as high as 10,000 IU/day have been shown to be safely tolerated.

People are more likely to not get enough vitamin D than to get too much. Monitoring therapy is important to ensure adequate, but not excessive dosage.

The Mac Protocol and our related clinics throughout Northern California are pleased to offer a vitamin D test at wholesale prices. This inexpensive, quick and easy to use test will enable you to test and monitor vitamin D levels without the inconvenience of venipuncture. Call us today to have your vitamin D levels checked. The total cost for the test is $99. We also provide our patients with compounded pharmaceutical Vitamin D supplementation. This means we call in the order and they make it today and send it to us today at our pharmacy. You will not be able to get a higher quality supplement than that, guaranteed! The cost for 250 tablets at 5000 IUs a tablet is $40.

Dr. & Vicky Mac