Hungry for Change, the Documentary

Hungry for Change

EDIT: Please read my Nearly 3 Years Later: 3 Broken Bones & 200+ Pounds - The Long-Term Effects of Juice Fasting update before considering juice fasting.  I hope that my experience will provide you with real-world information about long-term juicing.




The producers of Food, Inc. have posted their latest documentary, Hungry for Change, on their website for people to watch for free through 31 March 2012 (this Saturday).

I haven't watched it yet, but the blog Runs for Cookies states that it looks at sugar, high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, etc.  And you all know how I feel about sugar!!! 

Also, it supposedly recommend juicing!

Please feel free to comment on the movie if you've seen it.  I would love to hear what you think about it!

Sugar Addiction and Fasting

EDIT: Please read my Nearly 3 Years Later: 3 Broken Bones & 200+ Pounds - The Long-Term Effects of Juice Fasting update before considering juice fasting.  I hope that my experience will provide you with real-world information about long-term juicing.



It's a love/hate relationships for me and the "I am addicted to food" rational.  Sometimes I feel that this mentality is nothing more than an excuse to consume and not take responsibility.  Believe me when I say that I have used this many times, but I know deep down inside it's a behavior issue.  However, when it comes to sugar, I am a firm believer that sugar can be addictive.

I base my beliefs on both scientific research as well as my own personal experience - though the science field doesn't agree 100 percent, which is great!  (That's the researcher in me.  Challenge everything to ensure that every possible angle has been validated.)

My personal experience comes from my first juice fast.  Severe detoxes were pretty normal throughout the 40 days, but around day 36 or so, something strange happened: I experienced intense withdrawal symptoms.

I was irritable; couldn't concentrate; couldn't sit still; my heart was racing; my thoughts were racing;  I was anxious; I ended up pacing up and down the hallway at work over and over again.  The intense, overwhelming feeling wouldn't stop!  And yet, for some reason, I knew somewhere deep down inside of me that if I just had one morsel of sugar it would all stop.  But I refrained.

The very next day, my body expelled loads of dead candida - something that depends on and thrives on sugar!  I can honestly say that from that moment on, I have not been a slave to sugar.  It doesn't "please" me the way it used to.  It doesn't satisfy me.  It doesn't comfort me.  I am free!  I honestly don't think I would have broken the addiction if it weren't for juice fasting.

I will also add that since then, sweet foods that used to be so delicious to me are too sweet for me now.  It almost causes me to wince the way sour foods do for most people.  If I need something sweet, I tend to use raw honey.  In fact, Really Raw^® Honey seems to provide such nourishment and joy to me.

Please, don't just take my word for it.  Research for yourself. 

Articles on sugar research:

Sugar Addiction In Your Body, Not Just Your Mind

Sugar as addictive as cocaine, heroin, studies suggest

Sugar is an Addictive Drug? Eh...Sort Of

Book:

Sugar Blues

Liver Gallbladder Flushes

EDIT: Please read my Nearly 3 Years Later: 3 Broken Bones & 200+ Pounds - The Long-Term Effects of Juice Fasting update before considering juice fasting.  I hope that my experience will provide you with real-world information about long-term juicing.



Liver/gallbladder flushes are one of the hottest trends for those who do detoxes, and I must admit that I tried it.  Yes, I did expel what looked like "stones".  However, since I never leave a stone unturned (tacky, I know), I used a tool to place one onto something to examine it.  I used the tool to press it, and what do you know?  It completely disintegrated and was very oily.

Here's what I know: The Epsom salt flush was a horrendous experience for me.  My kidneys took a beating and they were sore for a day or two.  Do not do this "flush"!

For a more scientific explanation of this trendy flush, read Why You Should Never Do a Liver Flush.

Fasting and Hair Loss

EDIT: Please read my Nearly 3 Years Later: 3 Broken Bones & 200+ Pounds - The Long-Term Effects of Juice Fasting update before considering juice fasting.  I hope that my experience will provide you with real-world information about long-term juicing.



I am sharing this story, because no one ever warned me about this.  

After my first fast, I lost a lot of hair.  We're talking plugs of hair.  It didn't start until about four to six weeks after my very first juice fast ended, and I was horrified.  I would wake up and there would be a thin layer of my hair all over my pillow.  When I would shower, I would pull small chunks out all at once. I actually ran my fingers through my hair while sitting in a coworker's office one day, and I pulled out a large chunk.  I simply broke down and cried in his office.

My hair was never *great* beforehand; it was a bit dull, flat and rather oily.  The whole hair-loss process lasted about one month and my hair was pretty thin by the end of it all...

...and then it grew back.  Not just "back".  It grew back thicker, shinier, fuller, even a lighter color.  After about a year from when my hair started growing back, my hair was thicker than it was before the first fast. 

When my hair first started growing back and the new hairs were about 1" long, I had a mini-mohawk down the part of my hair.  Once the new little hairs were about 2" long, it looked like I was constantly suffering from static electricity as they stood on end all around my head.

To this day, my hair is still extremely soft, full, wavy and has a lot of body.

I warned my friend who attempted a 40-day juice fast, and her hair did the same thing.  Her hair also regrew beautifully!

I was talking to a hair dresser about my first juice fast, and he immediately asked if my hair started to fall out.  Surprised, I asked him how he knew.  He said that this is pretty typical for anyone who "shocks their system with a significant diet change."   I would love to understand the physiology of it, and I welcome any information. 

I do not fully understand why this happened.  I don't know if it is normal. Please talk to a physician if you have any concerns.  I do take this seriously.  But I also wanted to give other future fasters a heads up so you do not panic the way I did.  Also, this only happened after my first fast and never happened again.

EDIT (10 September 2012): About 5 months after I ended the 2012 fast, my hair started to fall out again, but it was not as drastic as this first experience.  I also talk about this in my 6-month post-fast update. It has since stopped.  I will let you all know if anything else happens if and when it does.


EDIT (26 October 2012): I have received a lot of feedback on this post from readers who are sharing their experiences regarding fasting and hair loss.  Please take the time to read others' experience in the comments section below.  After all, my experience is not the end-all, be-all of fasting.

Also, my hair continues to do well.  It has not fallen out for a while, though I have not seen a "halo" of new growth yet. 

Tip: Beware of the Pear!!!

Pears are full of pectin.

Beware of juicing pears!  They are full of pectin, which is a dietary fiber, and these little tasty gems will clean you out.  In fact, I am sure you can think of two or three over-the-counter drugs with some form of "pectin" in its name. 

Pears are wonderful if you think you need a little help moving things along in your bowels.  And it's natural.  Whenever I get grumpy or irritable, I throw a pear into my smoothie and by the end of the day I am back to my normal self.  The same is true when used in juices.

I once made a juice for my mentor so she could see that fresh homemade juices can be quite tasty.  Halfway home from her house, I suddenly remembered that I had put pear in the juice.  I called her immediately and said, "No matter what, if you think you have to flatulate within 30-45 minutes of finishing your drink, do yourself a favor and go to the bathroom just in case."   She just chuckled a little and said, "Oh, oooookay."

As soon as I arrived home about 30 minutes later, she called me and all she would say was, "Thank you so much for warning me!"

So, beware: If you have a pear in your juice, and your think you might have to flatulate within 30-45 minutes of finishing your juice, go to the bathroom just in case.

Day 2: I survived the first day...and it wasn't that bad

EDIT: Please read my Nearly 3 Years Later: 3 Broken Bones & 200+ Pounds - The Long-Term Effects of Juice Fasting update before considering juice fasting.  I hope that my experience will provide you with real-world information about long-term juicing.


Stats:
Weight: 163.6lb
BMI: 36.3%
Metabolic age: 50

I think the 4-pound drop is pretty normal during the first few days; plus my body is still recovering from the crazy southern food that I indulged in while in Savannah last week.  The hunger pangs aren't terrible since I simply drink my juice whenever I am hungry. I had a lull of a headache yesterday and slept pretty hard despite not being to get to sleep initially.

Work and school are both stressing me out.  I wish I could be done with both.  Hopefully this juice will help my moods to level out.  I had to report an ethics violation on my boss last week since she instructed us to change the color of certain monies so that she is not connected with a certain company and can work for them.  A former sponsor of a program that I worked on has been indited doing something very similar and a lot of my former employees have been subpoenaed to testify.  I am trying to keep my nose clean while waiting for it to hit the fan.

My significant other and I talked last night about my weight.  His point was that he loved me as a person.  My point was I loathed myself being fat and am very unhappy.   He had once told me about Gwyneth Paltrow complaining about how poorly she was treated when she was in her fat suit.  I explained that when I lost the weight for the first time, suddenly people were treating me well and with respect; however things are going back to the way they were as my weight crept back up.  I told him that this is the first time I have normal social relationships and have had friends...and it's slipping through my fingers again.  I know my friends aren't shallow, but I end up in this abyss of depression and won't allow anyone to be near me.

I remember one of the doctor shows talking about that belly fat is known for absorbing hormones and causing mood swings and depression, so there is some level of physiological explanation for this phenomenon.

All in all, the first day was generally positive.

Day 1: I cannot believe I let myself go to this extent

EDIT: Please read my Nearly 3 Years Later: 3 Broken Bones & 200+ Pounds - The Long-Term Effects of Juice Fasting update before considering juice fasting.  I hope that my experience will provide you with real-world information about long-term juicing.



Stats:
Weight: 167.5lb
BMI: 37.5%
Metabolic age: 50
Waist: 33"
Belly: 42"
Hips: 44.5"
Chest: 43"
R Thigh: 26"
L Thigh: 25.5"
R Upper Arm: 13"
L Upper Arm: 12.5"

I just weighed myself this morning for the first time in almost a year.  167.5 pounds!!!  How could that have happened???  And then I start getting angry - angry at myself and angry at my significant other.  He is also overweight.  I have begged and begged for him to not bring certain foods into the house, and yet he continues to do so.

Why is that when someone puts alcohol in front of a former alcoholic, the person is chastised and looked down upon as being an evil tempter?  And yet, when someone puts rich foods in front of someone who is a former fatty, the former fatty is looked down upon for having "no self control"???

When I finished my first juice fast, I had lost 20 pounds.  I began eating well and lost another 50 pounds.  As soon as I started dating my significant other, I started gaining and gaining and gaining.  I begged and begged him to not bring cheese into the house, wine, etc.  I have a weakness for it. He would always pull the "Oh just one time won't hurt you," over and over again until it became all of the time. I cannot live like this.

Last Week
Last week I spent a week in Savannah for a business meeting.   Since I was going to start juicing today, Savannah ended up becoming my Mardi Gras.  I drank a lot, ate a lot, etc.

It was amazingly horrifying.  I try to eat whole foods and control what I eat.  In fact, I rarely eat in restaurants.  By the end of the week, my ankles were so swollen that they looked like I was wearing a fat suit.  My legs were throbbing and I was going through boughts of mood swings.  The mood swings were induced by the alcohol, which has been a known issue for me. 

I am terrified that once I am done with this fast that I am just going to go right back to where I started without the support or team work of my significant other.  And that's just depressing.