My son's food diary (as promised)

[mzteris]

A few weeks (months) back, I got into a whole - er - discussion - about weight and diet. There are those who believe that all overweight people must be eating too much and not exercising enough. Evidently they don't understand that metabolic disorders can wreak havoc with the body and food/calorie processing.

I've been keeping a food diary for my son's nutritionist - who is part of a team consisting also of a Pediatric Endocrinologist and exercise physiologist.

My son is ll (will be twelve next week!), is about 5'3.5" and weighs about 200 lbs. Last weighed in two months ago. He has not gone through puberty. He has incredible muscle mass and large bones (he's African American). He's had a full body scan and the doc says that even if we drained "all the fat from his body, he'd still be bigger than most other kids). He's "insulin resistant" and we're working very hard to keep him from that tilting point to diabetes. His cholesterol was traditionally very good, but two years ago they had me take off of the low-fat diet (his brother requires) and it's not as good now, but still okay in the ratio department.


I'm not posting the whole diary, just a few days worth, but you get the gist.

At the nutritionists direction, we added "extra protein" to breakfast, limited fruit to one serving a day, added a morning & afternoon snack consisting of at least carb/protein.

Breakfast
1-½ - eggs scrambled
1 slice WW DP toast w/ ½ t Earth Balance "butter"
2 - MorningStar Sausage Links (this is a vegetarian product - all "meat references are vegetarian products)

Snack: 1 T - Sundried Tomato Hummus, 7 - Wholewheat saltines

Lunch:
1 - egg salad sandwich: ~¼ c - egg salad (eggs, mayo, S&P), 2 pcs Double Protein Whole Wheat Bread

Salad:
~2/3 c - baby lettuce/spinach blend
1 slice - Soy Cheddar
1/4 sm avocado
1 slice Morningstar bacon, crumbled
2 t - Sesame Ginger Dressing

1- 100 cal pack cookies
½ c - grapes - green & red

Snack: 5 Ritz, 5 saltine, 2 T - Peanut Butter (natural)

Dinner
1 c - Quinoa w/ chopped vegetables stir fry (zucchini, squash, onions, eggplant, carrots)
w/ ¼ c - Quorn chicken pieces (a vegetarian product)
½ c - baby butter beans (cooked in veg broth)

Salad: Salad: 2/3 c spinach/lettuce, ¼ c edamame, 2 T sesame ginger dressing, ¼ t sunflower seeds,

******
Breakfast
2/3 c Honey Nut Cheerios, ½ c Rice Milk
1 slice - Whole wheat double protein toast with peanut butter (natural)
1 slice - MorningStar Bacon (veggie)

Snack: 1 T - Tomato Basil Hummus. 5 - WW Ritz, 5 - WW saltines

Lunch
Sandwich: 2 slices Double Protein whole wheat bread,
4 pcs - Yves brand “Salami” (This is a vegetarian product)
1 T - Mayo
1/3 c - Lettuce/Spinach blend
1 slice - Soy Cheddar

1 Apple
1 100 cal pk cookies

Snack
½ (~ 4”) - Quiznos: Rosemary bread, Mushrooms, Tomato, Guac, Blk Olives

Dinner
1 c pasta (½ whole wheat, ½ Barilla plus)
½ c Navy Beans
1 T cubed soy mozzeralla
¼ sm Tomato chopped
1 T boiled egg mashed
1-½ strips MS Bacon

1 Smart Sausage LifeLight Brand Italian Style

Salad: 2/3 c Spinach/lettuce mix, ¼ small chopped tomato, 1 t boiled egg mashed, 2 t Soy/ginger dressing

*****
Breakfast
1-½ - Eggs scrambled w/ 1 serving of GimmieLean Lightife Brand ground sausage
½ - whole wheat bagel, ½ T - Soy Cream Cheese

Snack 1 - apple (med)
½ - whole wheat Bagel, ½ T Soy Cream Cheese

Lunch
Salad:
2/3 c - Spinach/Lettuce
1-½ strips - Smart Brand “Chicken”
¼ - sm Avocado cubed
2 - slice Tomato cubed
½ t - Raw sunflower seeds
¼ t - Chia seeds
1 T - edamame
1 T - Soy/Ginger Dressing

2 flax seed cookies

snack: ½ c - nut mix (raw almond, raw sunflower, toasted soy nuts, roasted pistachio, natural coconut flakes)
1 sm orange

Dinner:
1 - Gardien Chicken Marinara
1 c - pasta (WW & Barilla blend)
1/3 c pasta sauce
½ c - steamed broccoli w/ ½ t Earth Balance

Salad: 2/3 c Spinach/lettuce mix, ¼ small chopped tomato, sunflower seeds 2 t Soy/ginger dressing

**********
Breakfast
2 - multigrain Waffles, ½ t - Earth Balance Butter, 1 t - syrup (lite log cabin)
2 MorningStar sausage links

Snack: 5 Ritz, Saltine, 2-½ T - Black Bean Hummus

Lunch:

2 slices Double Protein Whole Wheat bread
1 T - Natural Peanut Butter
1 t - Fruit Jelly - no sugar added.

1 pear
1 100 cal pack

Dinner
1 Quorn Chicken Filet
1 serving Mushroom/Onion Polenta
½ c - Baby Butter Beans
2 T - Hain Brown Gravy
Salad: 2/3 c spinach/lettuce w/ 2 t Soy Ginger dressing, ¼ t sunflower seeds, ¼ small tomato chopped.


*************
Breakfast
1 whole wheat 10-grain toast w/ 1 soy cheese slice
1-½ scr egg
1-½ strip MorningStar Bacon

Snack: 1 Boiled Egg, 7 - multigrain Wheat Thins, 8 - SDT Wheat Thins

Lunch
Sandwich: 2 slices 10 grain bread w/ ½ c BBQ Seitan

Salad: 1 c Spinach/lettuce, ¼ c chopped tomato, 1 t raw sunflower seeds, 2 t - Sesame Ginger, 1 T soy cheese shreds

1 sm orange
1 100 cal pack cookies

Snack: 1 T - SDT Hummus, 5 Ritz
1 - Nature Valley Oats N Honey Granola Bar


Dinner
1-½ c pasta (blend)
½ c Tomato Basil Sauce
1 Smart Sausage LifeLight Brand Italian Style

Salad: 1 c spinach, 1T Sesame Ginger, 1 T Boiled Egg, 2 T diced Tomato, ¼ sm Avocado, 1 T soy cheddar shreds

************
Breakfast
1 - egg, scrambled
1 - MS sausage patty
1 - 10-Grain Toast w/ slice of soy cheese

Snack: 5 ww Ritz, 2 ww Saltine, 2-½ T - Black Bean Hummus

Lunch:

Sandwich:
2 pc 10 grain bread
4 slices Yves Baloney (vegetarian)
1/3 c Spinach/Lettuce
1 T Mayo
1 slice soy cheese

1-100 cal pk cookies
6 sm chunks pineapple
10 raspberries

Snack
1 Morningstar veggie Burger patty w/ 1 slice WW 10 gr. bread

Dinner:

1 c pasta (½ 22, ½ Barilla plus)
½ c Navy Beans
1 T cubed soy mozzeralla
¼ sm Tomato chopped
1 T boiled egg mashed
1-½ strips Morningstar Bacon (vegetarian)

1 Smart Sausage LifeLight Brand Italian Style

2/3 c Spinach/lettuce, 2 t - Soy Ginger Dressing, sunflower seed, ¼ tomato, 1 t boiled egg, 1/2 strip MS bacon crumbled




He drinks water for breakfast, lunch, dinner. We are currently on a "dairy -free" diet to see if it makes a difference in how he feels. He uses rice milk on his cereal & I use that to cook with. He has about one soft drink a month - but only with a meal.

Football ended yesterday. Before, he had practice T/W/F for 2 hours, w/a game on Saturdays - he played the WHOLE game - offense & defense.

Dance rehearsal is M/W/S for about 3.5 hours. Two weeks ago an hour rehearsal on Sun was added for Nutcracker.

He rides his bike from school to dance 2 days a week - it's a mile.

He's going for another blood draw on November 9th to check insulin, cholesterol. I've put in a request to check thyroid levels again, too.

I've been concerned because recently he's been complaining about being "cold" a lot - typically he is very hot natured. His skin is dry - but this is fairly typical of AA's, so not sure if need to worry about that. He's also complaining of "being tired" a lot - but with his schedule - and school is harder with lot of homework this year - that may be lifestyle, too. Still, it won't hurt to check the thyroid again.

I'm looking for another activity to replace football. Running is really bad on his knees (osgood schlatters - though they're much better with the (whispers) acupuncture - still don't want to aggravate them). And basketball is too - and they meet on the wrong nights for us. I'd love to get him swimming but that would necessitate joining the Y - AND he HATES being seen in a swimsuit!)

[pnwmom]

1. My nephew really enjoys rowing, and it provides a terrific workout.

Sorry for your son's trials. I'm sure it's tough on both of you.

[monmouth]

2. I must say that diet sounds delicious. Is it very expensive?...n/t

[mzteris]

3. well -

veggie "meat" products are expensive - but it's been a long time since I compared it to buying real meat, so I'm not sure.

and fresh veggies/fruits aren't cheap.

And the eggs - I get the cage-free, no anti-biotic, Omega added kind - so they get pricey, too.

I don't think too much about it anymore. I have to buy these things so I spend a lot on groceries and have for a long time. I used to worry so much about it, but it is what it is. I just want my kids to be healthy. I do feel guilty sometimes about not buying more "organic" products - but then cost gets really crazy.

Fortunately I am now among the ranks of the employed - getting off of foodstamps! YAY!! - and hopefully will be able to buy even better qualify products. The issue now is, less time to cook!!!

Mornings are particularly stressful - I'm making a big breakfast, making his lunch, and two separate snacks.

I'm getting home so late now that dinner is becoming a challenge. I realized when I was typing up the diary that we need more fresh veggies - I rely too much on Spinach/lettuce blend salads.

I'm glad you like it, though.

Sometimes our food choices seem strange to his friends. I particularly love it when he asks for a "salad lunch". . . lol

[monmouth]

6. God bless you both. Good things will happen I'm sure...n/t

[tabatha]

7. Watch for GMO Soy.

Not good. Also the estrogen-like effect of soy is not too good for men.

[mzteris]

8. the "estrogen-like effect" on men has been totally debunked. n/t

[tabatha]

9. That is good news.

Do you have a link?

[Codeine]

17. If that were true

several hundred generations of Asian men would be walking around with tits. Absolute bunk promoted by the quackadoodles at the Weston A. Price Foundation. Complete hokum.

[tabatha]

18. There is a difference between fermented soy and soy.

Asians eat fermented soy.

[Codeine]

19. Not so.

Tofu and soymilk are unfermented products, and edamame are just steamed soybeans eaten right outta the pod. More Weston A. Price propaganda. Pure hogwash.

[kickysnana]

4. Thanks for doing this...

I had two sons two years apart our grocery bill dropped in half. When the first one who always wore skinny pants went off to college. In the household was myself, my Aunt and my younger son's best friend who was staying with us so he could finish high School after his father died suddenly and his sickly mother moved out of state to live with her relatives.

My oldest was eating as much as two sedentary adults and two active 17 year olds.

Science is catching up but misinformation and prejudice die hard.

You are a great mother for doing this. Hope your medical team finds a balance that will work.

[yellerpup]

5. You must be very proud of him!

For feeling cold and having dry skin, a thyroid test might be in order. Good luck to you both!

[Tumbulu]

10. You and your son are amazing!

I hope that it all works out soon. My goodness, so much physical activity and how many calories in a day for all this?

[BadgerKid]

11. Some thoughts/questions

First of all, your son has complicated metabolic issues, and I hope for a successful outcome for you both.

I wondered if it every came up whether your son was actually getting enough calories (for all 16.5!!! hours of activity and impending adolescence)? That could be several thousand of kcals, depending on activity level. It is said that additional *lean* protein intake is really helpful for higher activity levels, especially if there is already a (intentional or not) caloric net deficit in place. (There are non-whey protein powders out there, like pea protein.) That practice/observation seems to strike a chord with your post, so I thought I would mention it. How that might integrate with his endocrine issues is beyond my knowledge base.

If you haven't already, also consider asking his nutritionist about supplementing with fish oil. Too many benefits to list.

[renate]

16. I second that suggestion re fish oil

Insulin resistance is linked to inflammation (as is obesity itself, in a positive-feedback way), so anything you can do to reduce inflammation would be good. Turmeric is an excellent anti-inflammatory herb, for example, and it couldn't have been tested in a larger population (a billion-plus people in India), so it's very safe.

I really, really admire your son's dedication (and yours). His diet is amazingly healthy, especially for a teenaged boy. In fact, I wonder whether he's eating enough--with all his physical activity and on limited calories, could his body be in starvation mode, trying to hang on to every possible lipid molecule?

[tinrobot]

21. Turmeric is also anti-angiogenic

Which means it prevents new blood vessels from growing.

This helps in cancer prevention because tumors can't get blood supply. But it also helps with obesity because new fat in the body also needs new blood cells.

There are plenty of other anti-angiogenic foods besides turmeric, here's a list: http://blog.ted.com/2010/02/10/dr_william_lis/

[trotsky]

12. I do not wish to wade into the weight vs. calotic intake discussion, but I am curious...

do you observe your son 24/7 such that you can say unequivocally that there is NO way he is sneaking food, either from your house, from a friend's house, or at school?

[Big Blue Marble]

13. Have you researched the impact of the hormone

leptin in metabolic disease? This is a great resource:
http://www.wellnessresources.com/weight/articles/what_is_leptin/">Link

This site also have wonderful information on nutrition, weight loss, and insulin
sensitivity.

As someone who is very well versed in low glycemic eating, I am surprised to see foods like saltine, Ritz
incorporated as snacks. Eating these foods especially as snacks will increase the insulin response.

You also, maybe surprised to know that whole wheat products can also accelerate the insulin response.
Ezekiel bread and cereal products are a wonderful and tasty substitution.

Are you familiar with The Gabriel Method? Jon Gabriel lost over 220 pounds without dieting.
His book can makes important contributions to any weight loss program It deals with both
the mental and physical aspects of the process. He is currently working on a book especially
for children.

As you are learning, metabolic disease is multi-layered and far more complex that most people realize.
It is so much more than calories in and calories out. As someone who struggled for years with this
syndrome, I have finally found the answers that work for me and in the last year and one half, have lost
nearly 60 pounds and have reshaped my body. I wish this for your wonderful son so that he may have
a full and healthy life.

[SheilaT]

14. If he has dry skin

using lotion is a very good idea. I'm a Caucasian with extremely dry skin and I use lots of lotion on my skin every day. Otherwise I'd be constantly itchy from the dryness.

I had two sons, the older of whom ate so little that I used to joke that there was no point in feeding him unless there were witnesses around. I was naturally thin and to this day eats a better diet than I do. Younger son, equally skinny, tends to eat more fast food. Both are amazingly healthy.

I also wonder if you are really able to monitor him 24/7/365 so that you honestly know he is never consuming any food other than what you give him. I am not assuming that he's eating anything else, but recognize the reality that he might be.

[MorningGlow]

15. Thoughts

First of all, thank you for making such an effort as to post your son's food diary. That truly is above and beyond the call to prove your point to the doubters. (And you know I'm not one. ;) )

This is a very fair diet for a young person trying to lose weight. He SHOULD be losing weight on that type of meal plan, but as you say, he has metabolic problems, and that means that he won't.

You noted that he's often cold--has this tendency coincided with when he started this diet? If so, he could be getting too few calories (weird, but true). And when we get too few calories, our metabolism shuts down even worse--goes into "starvation mode" and hangs onto every ounce. (That happened to me when I thought I could lose weight working out at the gym and living on nutrition bars.) Being cold is also a trait of a sluggish metabolism (as you most likely know quite well by now).

And your son's experience reminds me of my own, before I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism--my not-very-bright GP at the time told me to keep a food diary for a week. I kept it for a month. And when he looked at it, he said, "Ah hah. You had four Wendy's chicken nuggets for lunch one day. There's your problem." Seriously. FOUR nuggets (NOTHING else except unsweetened iced tea) for lunch. ONE lunch out of an entire MONTH'S worth of meals. I said, "Seriously? Four nuggets in 30 days is going to make me gain 30 lbs. out of nowhere?" And he looked me in the eye and said, "Yep." :eyes: I "fired" him soon afterward. One of the smartest moves I ever made.

MZ, you said your son's thyroid was normal, correct? Because if it isn't, eating soy would be very bad--it slows a sluggish metabolism even more. (Just for future reference.)

[SheilaT]

20. What I love about that story

of the 4 nuggets in a month being the absolute cause of your weight gain is how totally ludicrous that is. So okay, maybe none of us should ever eat fast food, but 4 nuggets??!! So glad you fired him. what an idiot.

[Systematic Chaos]

22. That diet is horribly high in fat, and dietary fat a major contributor to insulin resistance.

More complex starches like potatoes and brown rice, and less of the eggs, fake meats and mayo would help him a lot, I think.