#1Welcome back to the DietDoctor podcast
I'm your host Dr. Bret Scher
the low-carb cardiologist.
Today I'm joined by Lauren Bartel Weiss
from lajollanutritionalhealth.com.
Now as you're going to hear me say
this is a special interview for me
because Lauren and I actually grew up
across the street from each other.
How often does that happen?
You know somebody practically your whole life,
you go to school with them,
you grow up across the street
and then just lose touch for years
and then reconnect
over the low-carb lifestyle.
She found out what I was doing and she is
amazingly qualified for what she's doing.
So let me tell you about it.
She got her Masters
of nutritional biochemistry from Tufts,
then she got a PhD in behavioral nutrition
from Columbia,
then she became board certified
as a clinical nutrition specialist scholar.
Then she's done research with both academic
and Pharma-based research
and she has her own clinical practice
where she's helping teens, she's helping adults
and she's helping them improve their lives
with a low-carb lifestyle.
She has a number of practical tips,
a lot from the behavioral side,
which we probably don't spend
enough time talking about.
So I hope you walk away from this interview
with a lot of those little pearls,
because she really has a lot of them
and she knows what she's talking about,
she has a lot of experience, 
a lot of education
and her passion for helping people
really comes out.
So I truly enjoy this interview,
it had a very special meaning for me.
I hope you can appreciate that
and enjoy it as well.
So if you want the full transcripts
go to DietDoctor.com
and of course you can go to learn all about
our guides and our recipes and meal plans.
There is a ton of information
on DietDoctor.com.
So enjoy this interview today
with Lauren Bartel Weiss.
Lauren Bartel Weiss, thank you so much
for joining me on the DietDoctor podcast.
#2Thank you for having me.
#1Well, this is 
a very special interview for me
because we grew up
across the street from each other.
We went to the same schools, we've known
each other since we were little kids
and then we sort of went apart
during college and after college.
But now reconnecting through the world
of nutrition and low-carb.
Who would have guess this when 
we were walking to high school together?
#2Right.
#1A pretty strange a situation
how that worked.
But you are training to get
to this point in nutrition.
It's pretty amazing, I mean a Masters
in nutritional biochemistry from Tufts,
a PhD in nutrition from Columbia and now
a board certified clinical nutrition specialist.
I mean you've got the training in nutrition,
yet you're not singing the usual song
that most nutritionists are singing.
So tell us a little bit
about your nutritional journey
and how you got to the point
where you are now
with how your helping people with nutrition?
#2Right, so the journey,  my nutritional journey
has not been linear whatsoever.
I think there's been a lot of paths 
along the way
that have gotten me to the place I'm at now
as a low-carb... well, I consider myself
a low-carb nutritionist.
In grad school I was more
of a Mediterranean diet person,
but I soon came to realize that the effect
that carbohydrates have on our body
and on our insulin levels
and doing trial and error and myself I decided
that low-carb was really the way to go
and the way to have long-term success
with weight loss
and keeping the weight off
over long-term.
#1Yeah, and you had mentioned,
we were talking off-line,
how a lot of people in the low-carb world
seemed to have this personal journey.
Because it's not been taught,
it's not taught in nutrition schools,
it's not taught in medical school.
So we almost have to find it on our own.
And that's why I think it's so important
for people like you
to now be promoting this message,
to have the academic certifications
and to be promoting the message.
#2Right.
#1So when you started your career though
after your PhD,
you went right into research.
So the clinical counseling came later
and I want to get into all that.
But you went right into research
and tell us a little bit
about your initial research project,
the Omega-3 Omega-6
in hip fractures, right?
#2Right, so my PhD work was--
I was really interested in inflammation
so originally how it relates to bone health,
the risk of osteoporosis.
So I found a data set that had information on
Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids
and I continued looking at that
for my dissertation research.
I looked at the ratio of Omega-3 to Omega-6
and how that affected bone health,
I looked at Omega-3 intake and fish intake
for the risk of Alzheimer's disease 
and dementia
and then I continued on
with the Omega-3s for my postdoc
which I did at Rady Children's Hospital.
And I actually looked at the intake
of fatty acids in pregnant mothers
and the risk of a birth defect,
called gastroschisis in the babies
and what I found pretty consistently
was the benefit of the Omega-3 fatty acids
and the detriment of the Omega-6 fatty acids.
#1So for the fractures, for cognitive
dysfunction and for the birth defects.
And you found all three of those related
to a lower Omega-6--
Sorry, the beneficial effects would be related
to a lower Omega-6/Omega-3 ratio
and more likely to be at risk
with a higher Omega-6/Omega-3 ratio.
#2Right.
#1Is that what you are looking at specifically?
The ratio?
#2For the bone density
I looked specifically at the ratio
and with the Alzheimer's I just looked
at the Omega-3 intake.
And with the gastroschisis
I just looked at the Omega-6 intake.
#1So I'm not all that knowledgeable
about getting your PhD thesis,
but usually I think people do one study.
But it looks that you did three studies,
all for your PhD?
#2I actually did four studies
and I also looked at leptin,
which is a satiety hormone
that you're probably familiar with.
And at the effect on bone density for that.
So I did kind of go outside the box
and look at different studies
just more to get research experience.
But all kind of came back
to that inflammation theory.
#1So you're looking at the data set.
So the data has already been collected,
the people have already gone
through the process,
it was observational,
it wasn't randomized
and you are mining the data for associations.
So you have to do what you have to do
to get your PhD thesis.
You don't have a lot of funding,
you don't have a lot of time,
you need research experience
and you need to publish.
So what does that say about 
sort of the quality of that research though?
#2So I used a prospective cohort study,
it's about a 20, 25 year study,
so you can imagine the loads of data
that you have
and the access to the data you have
and I was always taught to come up
with an a priori hypothesis
and not to go on what we call
a fishing expedition.
So having that a priori hypothesis
is super important,
but that doesn't always mean
that you stick with that hypothesis.
So yes a fishing expedition could happen.
I think I was lucky and I really had my theory
and my hypothesis ready and organized
and I found something 
that I expected to find,
but as with another large data sets,
and we know the issues in nutritional epi,
that the observational studies
and the cohort studies,
it's really hard to assess diet
to get accurate measurements of diet
and to weed out individual nutrients
and how those are related to disease.
It's very, very difficult,
but that's really all we have now.
#1Yeah, and when you're using
food frequency questionnaires
and looking at data that's confounded
by so many confounding variables
and healthy user bias--
I get it, you know, we need to get data
from somewhere,
but the problem comes taking that data
and then shouting from the rooftops
as if it is fact.
So we can say from your study,
your study showed an association between
higher Omega-6 and hip fractures.
It does not prove that Omega-6
causes hip fracture.
#2Absolutely.
#1But you could see how, you know,
Time magazine or something
could run that type of cover.
And that's what's happening so much
in nutritional epidemiology studies.
But then after that you transitioned
into working with a drug company
on a sarcopenia study.
So tell us how that was different.
#2I told myself I would never ever do
a drug clinical trial,
but somehow I ended up running one
and it was a really interesting experience.
You have to completely follow a protocol,
even when I try to deviate from the protocol
or share my opinion whether I thought
something was right or wrong,
I was knocked down immediately.
So it was a little bit
of a different experience for me.
But yeah, having everything
completely controlled
is different than going and analyzing data.
You don't know who collected it,
you don't know the participants
that were involved.
So it is a really different experience.
Why I did do this clinical trial is because
it was a drug plus an exercise program.
My justification was if we're going to be doing
some kind of exercise with these participants
then I was okay doing do it.
#1So where they randomized
into drug plus exercise or exercise alone?
#2Everybody got exercise
and they were randomized
into three different levels of the drug.
#1I see.
#2And everybody had to meet
a certain criteria for protein
which is big for sarcopenia
and big for older adults.
So most of them did not meet
that criteria on their own
and had to be supplemented with protein.
#1What was the age...
The average age of the patients?
#2It was above 70.
#1So do you remember what protein level
you were shooting for?
#2It was the RDA level,
0.8 kg per body weight
but the research that I've done
they're saying that's just really not enough
for older adults.
#1So it's interesting, as the requirement
should go up as we age,
the recommendations
don't necessarily reflect that.
#2That is very true.
#1So then the quality of the data
that comes out from the drug company
sponsored randomized trial
that was probably funded with plenty of money
versus the looking through cohort study
that had already been done
on a shoestring budget,
the quality is a little different
in terms of what I can tell you.
#2Right.
#1And I think that's
what people kind of need to realize
about the difference of nutritional research
that is out there
versus the drug company research
that's out there
and how the funding can impact it.
But also how you are
more of a cog in the wheel,
I mean like you didn't have a chance to let
your expertise and your experience
guide how this could be a better study.
They wanted it one way.
And the skeptic could say
it's because they had it in a certain way
to make their drug look better.
So the skeptic would say--
yeah, I think it's really interesting.
And so you're still on staff at UCSD
still doing research,
but now you've branched out
to do more clinical work
and actually help people one-on-one.
And that's where your background
as a behavioral nutritionist
I think probably really shines,
because we can talk about what to eat
all day long,
but if people aren't going to actually take
the steps to make that part of their lifestyle,
it doesn't matter.
I think a lot of people are unfamiliar
probably with behavioral nutrition.
I have to admit I was,
I didn't realize you could get a degree
in behavioral nutrition until we reconnected.
And I think that's fantastic
because it's so important.
So walk us through 
sort of the thought process
of what makes behavioral nutrition
different from just nutritional science.
#2So behavioral nutrition is really the link
between nutrition and psychology.
So as you said
you can tell someone what to eat,
but how to get someone to change
what they've eaten for 10, 15, 20 years
is very, very difficult.
Not only that you have to educate them
on what to eat,
but you have to educate them
how to incorporate that into your lifestyle.
Everybody has different lifestyles.
One eating plan or diet will work for one
and not work for the other,
but in order to progress somebody to achieving
long-term dietary behavior change success
it has to be guided by some kind
of behavioral change along the way.
#1Yeah, and so there are different stages
of people being ready for behavioral change
or where they are so... tell us about that,
so people can sort of learn 
to sort of internalize this with themselves
and kind of figure out
where they are in that stage
and I'm curious how you approach people
differently depending on what stage they're in.
#2So there is really two major theories
that behavioral nutritionists use
that comes from psychology research
of behavior change for other conditions
such as smoking cessation or...
even for physical activity.
You know, nutrition is different
because everybody has to eat.
So figuring out what to eat
and how to incorporate that into your life
is not as easy.
So there's social cognitive theories
which really look at and try to identify beliefs
and attitudes about what they're eating,
about how they want to be,
about what changes they want to make.
So there's a lot of different determinants
that can be identified in people
as to what's going to create a change.
There's health belief model
that looks at perceived risk.
So what's the risk of not making the change?
So I do that with people who have
family histories of chronic disease.
Someone with a family history
of heart disease or diabetes.
I say, look, you have a family history...
Your father had diabetes,
your grandfather had diabetes.
You could be next in line
if you don't make the change.
So you have to to kind of create
this risk in their mind
and that's a little manipulation
but that's kind of what these theories do,
is they bring this information out
for people to really think about it
or perceived benefits,
what are the benefits of making a change?
Or the perceived barriers,
what barriers do you see that are in the way
of making the change?
So we work through that and incorporate that
into the straight nutrition education.
Then you also have the stages models,
which you're probably familiar
with the trans-theoretical model
or the stages of change.
#1Yeah, so before you get to the stages,
I want to get into that,
but this first model you talked about,
sort of like the carrot-and-stick model,
and I think it's interesting because, you know,
read behavioral therapy that are--
or behavioral science that our brains are wired
for the negative far more than the positive.
#2Right.
#1So do you find that-- the stick...
the "watch out this is where you're headed,
this is where you could be"
works better than the carrot,
than these are the benefits you might get?
#2It's really individual, it depends on--
you have to get to know that person
and have to kind of get a feeling
for what's going to work in that person.
Sometimes I try one thing
and I'm like, "Oh, that didn't work.
I'm going to have to try another thing."
So really is getting to know the person
and trying to figure out
how am I going to motivate them,
how am I going to really get this information
and then put it to good use.
And it really is a skill which is why I spent
10 years studying behavioral nutrition,
because it's not just a book that I can read
and say, I will try this 
and if that doesn't work then too bad.
So it really is a skill that I acquired
that took a very long time
in trying to read the person and figure out
which determinant and which motivator
or mediator is going to work
to get them to say,
"I need to make this change",
and along the way trying to identify
the mediators
that will help progress that person
through the journey.
#1Yeah, the clients who I work with,
their individual consulting
in my six-month program,
I always want them
to write down their goals.
-A lot of people think it's kind of hokey...
#2-It's a great way.
#1And they are,
"Why do I need to write it down?"
But it's such an important step like
you're saying trying to find their motivator,
because it's something you need to come back
to over and over again.
And for some it could be avoiding the negative
and people could be promoting the positive.
#2Right, I always do goalsetting,
that's one of the first things I do
in my first sessions,
it's short-term goal-setting,
so goal-setting within a week,
and so the next time I see them,
I want to know if those goals have been met
and what obstacles or barriers
did not allow them to meet those goals.
We will go through that and work through that
and then set new goals for every week.
And hopefully by the end
they have all these great goals
that have helped them get through
for long-term success
and then there's always a few longer-term goals
that are really more like 3 to 6 months out.
And goal-setting is a super important part.
#1Yeah, great point about the difference
between the short-term and long-term goals,
because if all you set are six month
or two year goals,
it's so easy to get frustrated
and give up when you're not progressing.
#2Especially with my teenage clients
we do a lot of goal-setting
and there are very short-term goals.
#1Because that positive feedback is so great
if you can achieve the short-term goal,
it really gives you 
more motivation to continue.
#2Absolutely.
#1Okay, I interrupted you, you were about
to talk about the different stages.
#2Yeah, so I was talking
about the stages of change model
and that really says that people
in different stages,
whether they are in precontemplation,
or contemplation, or action,
they need different motivators.
Or we need to identify different mediators that
will help them progress through those stages.
So I usually use a combination of all theories
and all the mediators
depending on what I see my client needs,
but a big thing for the stages 
of change of self-efficacy,
in other words for self-confidence.
So it's really giving these people
the self-confidence
that they can make this change,
because that's the biggest thing.
Making a dietary change
is a huge lifestyle change, it's not very easy.
So you have to figure out
how am I going to increase confidence,
how am I going to empower them to be able
to be successful with this change
and be okay with being out for dinner or 
in social settings and sticking to their plan
and giving them the tools
to get through difficult times like that.
#1So you mentioned
the precontemplation stage,
such as one of the first stage where they're not
even really considering the change yet.
There is not a whole lot to do at that point.
#2There is not a whole lot to do.
Unless there is a risk of some condition,
unless there is an obesity
or something that needs to be done
that you can try to get them through
to the contemplation stage.
So that basically, they don't come to me
in a precontemplation stage.
I usually have to seek people out or I hear,
"I have this sleep apnea..." or some condition
and I say, "You should do something about it"
and then I try to work
with them through that.
So the other, precontemplation
is hard to work with,
but it's my goal to get them to contemplation
and then to preparation.
#1I think unfortunately I see far more
precontemplation subjects than you do
because they're in with their heart attack
or their complications from diabetes
or high blood pressure
and they are not even willing to consider
changing their lifestyle yet.
And unfortunately sometimes you have to use
that negative as as the motivator
but once they get into the contemplation stage
then you sort of get your hands on them,
because now they're thinking about it,
now it's in their brain.
And so how do you help them
transition to action?
#2So that's when we start setting goals
and talking about barriers
and talking about perceived risks and talking
about benefits of making the change.
So depending on what the person situation is
I really try to use those determinants
of behavior change
to really get them into action.
And then education is really important
in the contemplation stage too.
Educating them about nutrition and about food
and using evidence-based research
to really show this is where all the research is
and this is where you are and we really want
to be in a different place.
#1So they've gotten into the contemplation stage,
they are starting to think about it,
you are educating them,
you are goal-setting with them
and now it's time for action.
So the action stage is more about the logistics
like the recipes and how to do things...?
#2Action is like I'm ready to go tomorrow.
So that's really setting them up
for long-term success.
And it is a journey
and it is a journey to get there.
I have a lot of people
that already come in action
who have tried many diets, unsuccessful,
have tried the keto diet
or not doing it correctly,
can't figure out what's going on.
So I do get a lot of people 
already in action,
I just have to have them take a step back,
reassess and move forward correctly.
#1Yeah, it's not like it's a linear process.
Nothing in life is linear.
It's always going to be sort of back and forth
and having to reassess and adjust.
#2And the stages of change really incorporate
the idea of relapse and setbacks.
So there is determinants that are
incorporated into that model too
that when there is a setback or relapse,
they haven't completely given up.
You provide them with skills and tools...
"Okay you had a little a little hiccup here,
don't worry about it.
"This is what we're going to do
next time you're in this situation,
this is what you're going to do."
#1Yeah, so if someone is just learning
about keto on social media
and they are in one of the social media sites
where everybody loves keto,
everybody loves low-carb high-fat, it's the
best thing ever, you'll get all these benefits
and then they start it and they don't
necessarily see all those benefits at first,
and they are going to get frustrated
and they're going to give up.
So that's where someone could benefit
working with someone like you,
because you would-- how would you prepare
them for a different course?
#2Well I mean I would explain to them that
"You are not going to lose the 20 pounds
in the first week."
And with my keto clients now
I'm in daily communication with them.
They need to now-- I check in on them,
I have a few saying, "We're not losing weight.
I've been on it a week",
and I have to keep them motivated
and tweak things if they need to be tweaked
but you have to keep them motivated
especially in the beginning
if they're not seeing the immediate effects
and that's why I do what I do.
I love doing that, I don't mind being texted
at 9 o'clock at night--
"I'm at this restaurant, there is nothing...
what do I do?"
Or, "I am not feeling that great".
I like to keep them motivated
and that really is an important part
and really close to my heart
that this is an individualized,
personalized approach.
And to get some people through it,
I just have to be there for them
until they can really go on their own
and as I talked about having the self-efficacy
to take it and run with it.
I love that passion, I love that commitment
and that's certainly not what you'll get
if you just ask your local doctor
for nutritional advice.
So speaking of which,
just jumping around a little bit,
you actually taught nutrition
in medical school.
If you want to call that,
the way you describe your experience
sounds like you're extremely limited
on what you can do.
Tell me about that experience.
#2Right. I taught the only nutrition class
at this certain medical school,
and I was given 15 minutes to talk
to 2nd year medical school students,
basically about nutritional epi.
There really wasn't time
to go into anything about food,
anything about insulin,
anything about carbohydrates.
It was basically different study designs
that you can use for nutrition studies
and different dietary assessment methods.
And that was basically it.
I did sit in on a couple of small groups which
where they bring in the simulated patients,
they bring in an obese patient
and the students have to assess the patient
and the patient leaves
and they come back with dietary advice.
And I was just blown away
by some of the conversations
that the medical students were having
with these simulated patients because
there was no basis for the information.
And it just really bumps me out,
that these medical students
are not getting more nutrition education.
#1But then you've mentioned that 
they've started to ask for it, is that right?
#2Yes, I did read recent study that Harvard did
and they've asked the medical students
about having a lifestyle medicine incorporated
into their curriculum;
seems that everybody really wants it,
because doctors are going to be asked
about nutrition.
And if they don't have the right education,
they really shouldn't be giving
this information to people
and they should be referred
to dietitians or to nutritionists.
Yes, it seems that medical students want it,
I just don't know how they're going
to ever figure out the place
to put it in medical school curriculum,
unless it's totally revamped.
#1And what to teach in that segment?
I mean a lot of the big push now is you have
to teach a vegetarian low fat approach,
and if that's what medical students are being
taught as the one way to eat for health,
and you're almost better off
not teaching them at all.
That's sort of a double--
#2This is very true.
It's very hard to get a really good education
in nutrition
stuck into a block somewhere
in medical school.
I think we have a long way to go with that,
but hopefully we'll find the solution
and really try to incorporate nutrition
maybe into the different blocks,
maybe a few nutrition lectures
in the different blocks
as it relates to that disease condition
or that organ system.
#1Like the diabetes discussion
has to have a low-carb nutrition... part.
#2It has to have a low-carb nutrition part.
It's a long way, and people I know
are working hard, to go in that direction.
#1When you first were saying
like the only class you taught
was about the different types of studies
in epidemiology,
my first thought was like what a waste,
but I guess if you only have 15 minutes
that's probably the best thing to talk about
because then hopefully you're arming them
to make the decisions on their own.
As long as they're not indoctrinated so deep
in one dogma that they can't see,
can't think on their own,
interpret these studies on their own.
#2Right, it was more on these are the types
of nutrition studies that happen,
these are the strengths and limitations
of the different study designs,
here's the strengths and limitations
of the different dietary assessment tools,
so at least it gives them some kind of skill
when they are reading the nutrition literature
to be able to critically think about the
take-home message for those research papers.
#1Being published in peer review journal
does not mean it is worthy
of changing our life around
and saying that this is the one way
to do things.
#2Right.
#1Yes, okay. Well, transitioning back
to the more practical side of things...
You're mentioning how you're constantly
helping your clients sort of change
and to understand that is not one straight line
process which I think is so important.
But what are some of the biggest road blocks
you see in your clients,
the road blocks to sort of get started
and then once they've been added
for like six months or something
and starting to slip a little bit.
Give us some of the common road blocks
you see
and how you can help people through those.
#2Right, a common road block, I think
in the beginning it's just pure education,
and knowledge about the different types
of eating plans that are out there,
talking about their goals and what kind of plan
would fit in with their goals
and fit in with their lifestyles.
Upfront it really is about educating,
and then once things get rolling,
then we talk about the other barriers;
time, money, family commitment,
social commitments, there are really...
I call them pros and cons,
the cons being the reasons
why I don't want to make the change
but they're really excuses
for not making the change.
I do a lot of pros and cons, this is called
decisional balance kind of deciding
which is the better way to go to list the pros,
and these are going to be the benefits.
Or to list the cons and be okay with,
well it's just too hard,
or I don't have time,
or carbs are easy to get and cheap.
And I go through those cons with them,
and try to work through them,
and turn them into pros.
#1Yes, and then you see some other things,
when someone has been added dietary change
for three months, or six months
or is it sort of a new set of issues
that popup at that point?
#2Usually there are new sets
which is why we completely set new goals.
Almost every week we're setting new goals,
and sometimes there are relapses
and we have to work through those too.
I think that social gatherings, 
family vacations,
I think those are some of the big road blocks
that we have to work through a lot.
Travelling is very difficult,
those are important road blocks
that need to be addressed
hopefully prior to the vacations,
or the travelling,
but sometimes they happen after
and we have to reset.
#1And now you've gravitated
to a mostly low-carb approach,
but not necessarily for everybody,
and definitely not keto for everybody
and you see like a range, and you
really approach people as individual.
Give us some of the guidelines you use
to say how do you decide what carb level
is right for somebody
or how aggressive
to be with the low-carb approach.
#2I am definitely a low-carb nutritionist;
I don't advocate anything
except some version of a low-carb.
I discuss keto with people,
most people are coming to me
saying "I've heard that keto diet is fabulous,
I want to get on it."
When they leave, 
and I tell them how strict it is
and how motivated you have to be, 
and that is really restrictive,
a lot of them say,
"I can't do this, what are my other options?"
Then I go into a low-carb Paleo,
which is always an option,
or a low-carb Mediterranean
which is an option,
so I do take some
of these more popular eating styles,
and just make them more low-carb... 
I'm big on low glycemic index.
I think that most of my clients that come in
and want keto
leave doing more of a low glycemic index
eating plan,
because it's just better 
for their life style.
I basically have to figure out their lifestyle,
figure out what they do on the weekends,
and whether this eating plan
is maintainable for them,
and when I get someone that says,
"I just can't give up my beer on the weekends",
I have to re-think that, and find another plan
that's going to work,
keeping them on something five days a week,
and letting them slip a little bit,
teaching them how to slip correctly,
and hopefully then having success with that.
It really depends on each individual person.
#1Yes, it's so interesting.
Every time I hear someone like you just did say,
keto diet is very restrictive and very limited,
and for the people who works for,
it's not restrictive or limited at all.
They like love it, they can't imagine
any other way,
but in our society, in our average society,
it is extraordinarily restrictive and limited.
But really shouldn't be,
I mean it shouldn't be sort of the default,
but our society has twisted that completely
around so that it appears so restrictive.
#2Right, for my keto clients
that are successful,
they absolutely love it and they
couldn't think of eating any other way.
For those, I'm not sure that keto for the long,
long term is good for them,
it just depends on the person,
and whether they can sustain that lifestyle.
For those people when they're closer
around their goal,
we try to find another low-carb version
of another eating plan
that they can incorporate
without having the weight gain,
but it's trial and error, it's not
always going to be a perfect science.
Someone could get off of keto stay
on a low-carb diet,
still gain a little weight back.
It takes a while to figure out
what works for somebody,
and whether they're going to be happy
with their lifestyle
and eating lifestyle that they're choosing.
#1You also work
with two different population sets
which I imagine take
a completely different approach,
because you work with adults,
and you work with teens.
I imagine teens are a whole another species
when it comes to nutritional changes,
because their friends are going out
for pizza and ice cream
and they're having sodas
with lunch every day, and their friends are--
and there's probably a lot of peer pressure and
social pressure and a whole another mindset.
How do you approach teens differently?
#2Teens definitely
have to be approached differently.
Not only that I have to work with teens
but I have to work and convince the parents
that what I'm doing with their teenagers
is going to be beneficial.
I have a lot of teens coming with,
"My parents want me on the keto."
And then I have to explain to them
what exactly the keto is,
then when your friends are out at McDonald's
or having cupcakes you just can't participate,
and I had a couple of clients saying,
"All of my friends are eating cupcakes.
I pulled out my seaweed crackers 
or something."
#1That's impressive.
#2Right, so it just needs to be a plan
that teenagers can withstand through social
pressures, and through just being a teenager.
I don't advocate keto diet for teens
unless there is some major weight issue,
and the weight needs to come off
pretty quickly.
But they have to be super motivated,
the parents have to be on board,
everybody has to be on board
for something like that.
Most of my teenagers end up doing either 
a low carb Paleo, or a low glycemic index,
which allows someone to enjoy a cupcake if they
want to enjoy a cup cake with their friends,
just knowing that you're going to have
to find a fat somewhere to eat it with,
and you may have a little bit
of a blood sugar set back that day.
But I educate these teens,
they know what happens now when they eat
something with the high glycemic index carb.
They are aware, "I just ate in 20 minutes,
my blood sugar is going to spike
and I'm not going to feel that good."
They have to make those decisions.
#1That would be really important connecting
with teenagers and adolescents,
connecting them with better understanding
of how they feel
and how's that related to their actions,
because most of the time most people probably
don't have that much of a good body awareness
and cause and effect.
"I feel kind of lethargic and tired, 
I probably just didn't sleep last night"
as opposed to "I just ate a bunch of junk
20-30 minutes ago and that's why I feel bad."
#2I do educate them on a biochemistry,
biochemistry one-on-one.
I do educate them in teenage terms,
this is what happens to your body
when you eat the different food.
These are the food we need,
and I think that that really helps.
I mean we do a lot of behavioral
interventions with teenagers,
a lot of goal-setting,
a lot of getting over the obstacles,
a lot of them text me "I'm going out to pizza
with my friends, what are my options today?"
So we work through a lot,
and I have to be there for them too.
#1Yes, and I remember
you mentioned difference
between like one-on-one consulting
and group consulting.
And how group consulting can be
so beneficial for teens
because then they see that connection.
"Oh, yes, here's someone like me doing this."
It gives them that sort of connection
of building a community.
Do you still do that a lot,
group consulting with teens?
#2I only have either two on one,
so usually someone brings a friend.
And they have someone to work with
and someone to shoot ideas off with
and then group setting are really good
unless someone really wants to come in
and see me alone which is kind of boring
when you're not with a friend.
I see mostly groups of teens, and they can
all learn how to eat healthy together,
I don't chose people out
for what their goals are.
The goals they work with me
are personal goals,
they're not really shared with the group
unless they want to be shared.
But the overall nutritional education and
working through some of these obstacles,
they're basically the same
with other teenagers.
#1And then how about athletes?
Because I know we were talking before
you saw a couple teenager water polo players
and they actually wanted
to go on a ketogenic diet,
but you sort of talked them out of it.
Tell me about your approach with athletes
and how's that different as well.
#2I think athletes
are a different group.
I think that if they are athletes,
if they're not marathon runners,
they can survive off some kind
of modified low carbohydrate diet.
I know when I was at Tufts in grad school
and everybody became a triathlete,
I said, 
"Okay, I want to become triathlete too"
and I was working out three, four,
five hours a day,
and then go into Jumbo Juice
and getting a smoothie and a bagel,
and I couldn't figure out
why I was the heaviest that I've ever been.
There is education for athletes,
that there is a fine balance,
and yes you might need
some healthier whole grains
and some lower glycemic index carbs
to kind of get you through your sport,
but the days that you're not really exercising
a lot, you don't need to be carb loading.
And I think that this whole carb loading issue
came about from marathon runners,
but a lot of athletes think
I absolutely have to carb-load
and those recreational athletes
really don't need that.
Everybody is individual, I have to see
how much energy has been expended,
how quick they need the energy.
And then on their off times I tried to get them
to a low carbohydrate plan,
if weight loss is a goal.
#1I think it's a good approach,
selective carbohydrates
right before a big workout or a competition
and the maybe right after
and then the rest of the time
trying to go for a lower carb variety.
I think it's an interesting approach,
and again teenagers and adults
probably eat a little different
because for that teenager
that football game will be the most important
part of their life at that moment,
where for an adult, they workout at the gym
not quite the same emotional connection to it.
Being at your absolute best
might not be the requirement.
You can do that workout fasted
or low-carb as an adult,
but as a teen you may need those carbs
for the extra energy.
When you were talking about carbohydrates
you've mentioned healthy whole grains
and I think it's so interesting how it's almost
become one word "healthy-whole-grains".
I want to explore that a little bit with you.
It's interesting when you look 
at the research of whole grain;
give me your idea or your understanding
of the research of whole grains,
and what makes them healthy whole grains.
#2Well the reason I call them healthy is they
contain some important nutrients and fiber
as a big one that I see on a keto diet.
Some people are having issues
related to not getting enough fiber,
they are not going out
of their weight with vegetables.
Incorporating whole grains
into a lifestyle the correct way
on say low glycemic plan is okay,
however the glycemic index
of most whole grain is still very high.
Finding the right place for them,
if they are required,
because they do have important nutrients
especially for the teenagers.
I don't know if whole grains are required
if you really seek out the nutrients that
are in whole grains in other types of food.
But fibers might be big for the whole grains,
and that's really important
to be getting regular fiber.
#1It's a good point, because I think an adult
who's going low-carb and keto
might be much more conducive to eating
just a plethora of vegetables
to get other fiber and get other nutrients,
whereas a teen, might not,
they might not want to do those vegetable,
it's going to be a challenge
to get them in them,
so maybe they do need the whole grain
from that standpoint.
And that's also interesting
about whole grain research,
if you compare to refined grains
it's going to show a benefit.
But, it's never actually been compared
to a low-carb high vegetable,
high meat kind of a diet.
That comparison hasn't been done.
I think it's so interesting, but again the age
of the patient might make a big difference.
And fruit as well... fruit is
promoted as healthy, and nutritious,
and I'm sure a lot of the teenage athletes
are having fruit with every meal 
to get their carbs.
And again if your goals
are athletic performance, maybe that's okay,
but if your goal is weight lost,
you approach it differently.
#2Absolutely. I think fruit is sugar
no matter in what form it comes in,
it still increases our insulin, it still does
the same thing as a normally carb does.
I'm more on the keto bandwagon,
the berries are super important,
they are great sources of vitamins
and minerals, antioxidants,
I think there's a place
where they are lower under glycemic index.
In terms of the normal adult,
if they want
to incorporate some fruit into their day,
you can have some of the berries,
have them early
and teenagers 
especially if they're exercising,
I think that fruits are an important part
of their growth and development,
but I think you can overdo the fruit
thinking on I'm eating only fruit,
because it's really healthy,
and it actually is a carbohydrate.
#1Right, giving you sugar, insulin is raising
and gaining weight, right.
You said early in the day,
tell me more about that,
because that's a very important concept.
#2It took me a long time to get to this plan that
works for me and now I advocate to my clients.
If I'm not doing keto which happens sometimes
I develop this plan,
after three o'clock is my last
any type of basically carbohydrate meal.
At three o'clock I can have a snack,
if I want the carbs,
the lower glycemic carbs
I allow myself.
Usually I don't want them,
but if I have to have them,
or I want a bowl of fruit or something
at that point, three o'clock is my last time.
And the theory behind that
is by five or around five o'clock
my blood sugar, my insulin level
have now tapered off,
they're enough stabilized, and then
I eat my dinner, basically a keto dinner
with a glycemic index under 20
which I developed myself calling
a very low glycemic index.
So, if you're eating a food which is
basically a protein and green vegetable
because there's really nothing left to eat.
If you're eating a glycemic index under 20,
then your insulin is low,
and you're not building
the fat basically while you sleep.
It's kind of a mechanism to either not build
or try to lose some fat while you're sleeping.
#1Yes, good point.
And the research actually here 
at Salk Institute
was such impounded in the circadian rhythm
of our insulin cycles basically
and that we're more insulin sensitive
in the morning,
less insulin sensitive in the evening
and that makes sense as well.
Not only from a social standpoint,
because if you don't have that restriction,
you can snack all night long with carby food,
or certainly kids could
but you said that restriction is more in line
with our circadian rhythm or insulin
and keeps you from snacking
any unhealthier food at night.
I think it's really helpful,
so you can burn that fat while you sleep.
#2Right it's a really good plan
for teenagers
because they know
if they're going be studding all night
that they can't be snacking on the gold fish
and snacking on the chips.
Coming up with creative low glycemic index
snacks after dinner is difficult,
but we do find some that teens are okay with it,
and it really does,
because they're snacking all night
when they're doing homework,
so it really is coming up with the plan 
for them and that 3pm cutoff seems to work.
#1Yes. Now with the lot of clients weight loss
is sort of the biggest goal,
but you also have clients who have trouble
with weight gain
or they feel better on the keto diet,
but they're actually losing weight
and don't want to,
and you have to find tips for them
to maintain weight?
#2Yes, definitely. I mean if I go on a keto diet
for an extended period of time,
I'm in a weight that is too light
and not comfortable where I want to be.
It does happen the other reverse
but it's finding ways to maintain that balance
and everybody is different,
and that's when I try to transition them
to maybe a low-carb Mediterranean
or a low glycemic index.
It's different for everybody,
people who want to stay on the keto,
then I've got to figure out a way for them
to eat or eat more,
or get some more fats in.
But it is difficult to get someone
to gain too much weight on a keto diet.
#1I try to find macadamia nuts 
or any salty nuts
is a great source of a snack
for extra calories,
but then if you're not trying to gain weight
and you have that as a snack regularly,
it's a huge impediment to weight loss.
#2Right that's something I found
with the keto diet,
which has been little frustrating for me is
all everybody talks about the saturated fats.
I can eat eggs, I can eat bacon,
I can eat sausage but there is not--
And my feeling there is not enough emphasis
on the healthier fats.
They're harder to get,
the Omega 3s,
the mono and saturated fats
like avocado and olive oil,
it seems like those are not as readily used
on the keto diet
and I feel like those should be emphasized
because they're just better for our health,
and they give us more health benefits.
I'm not anti-saturated fat but I think
there definitely should be a balance
of the healthier unsaturated fats
with the saturated fats.
#1Yes, it's interesting and I think
that's a great point that you make.
I have a little trouble
with healthier fats/ unhealthier...
because it implies that the other fats
are unhealthy
which I don't think is what you're saying.
But I think that's the implication
most people get,
if those fats are healthy, then the other fats
must be unhealthy right?
That's not necessarily the way it is.
#2Some of the unsaturated fats just have
additional benefits.
Some monounsaturated fats 
are cholesterol lowering,
or increase your HDL level.
so there are additional benefits
to the unsaturated fats
and I just don't feel like there's enough
emphasis in the keto diet
that we really need
some of these unsaturated fats
and we need to kind of balance out
the saturated with the unsaturated.
I don't think that saturated fats are unhealthy
they're certainly better than a carbohydrate,
but I think there are options and balance
that need to occur during a keto diet.
#1Yes, it's interesting to put ourselves
into perspective
of someone who's learning about a low-carb
keto diet for the first time,
where they're going to get the information from
and what that information is.
It could be so variable depending on where
you're going, social media or in the news.
A lot of time it is butter, baking, cream,
cheese and that's all it is.
For some people that's fantastic but
for other people that might not work as well.
Now let's transition for a second away from
your role as a nutritionist and as a scientist,
and in your role as a mom.
You've got two daughters,
who are very active and athletic and are kids,
and will probably eat like kids,
and act like kids.
How do you balance that role as mom,
letting your kids be kids,
but knowing what you know
about the nutrition and the science
and want your kids to know that as well?
#2Yes it's an interesting balance.
I certainly do not advocate
low-carb eating plans from my active children
but we do on most nights of the week
eat low glycemic.
There are some nights, like today
it's a no carb night,
and we're just not doing the carbs,
and we do the protein and vegetables,
and they're okay with that and
they understand they know what mommy does,
they know what mommy looks like,
they know that mommy is healthy.
I approach that in a very delicate way,
I don't make a big deal about it,
I don't talk about bodies,
or weight or anything.
But they do know what carbohydrate does,
they're probably one of the two most educated
8 and 11 year old girls in nutrition,
they could probably sit here and do
a really interesting podcast for you one day.
#1We might actually do that, yes.
#2But they understand what happens,
they now about insulin,
they know what carbohydrates do,
they are educated
and sometimes my eight-year-old would say,
"I'm just not going to eat my carbs today."
But not in a negative way,
I think there is ways to approach that.
I watched Peter Attia's podcast
talking about his daughters.
That was interesting, my daughter and I
actually watched that podcast together,
and it sparked a conversation
about the different eating plans.
He said his daughters think he's crazy,
my kids sometimes say,
"Just eat one bite of this cookie."
And I am like "I don't want it."
"Come on, one bite is not going to hurt you."
You don't want to be crazy about it,
but I say, "You know what? That's my rules."
And they're like, "It's only 3:05"
and I'm like, "It's after three.
If I allow 3:05, then I allow 3:30,
and I allow 4:00, and this is my rule."
They have fun with it,
I don't think it's going to develop
any unhealthy eating issues
but they're very educated.
We had dinner the other night
and my daughter said,
"Who would ever dream
of being a nutritionist for a job?"
#1She said that?
#2I have no idea where that came from,
and I said "You are so lucky that you have
the knowledge you have about food and nutrition
because this you can care with you
for a lifetime."
I said "People never learn information
that you have, and how to stay healthy,
and how to be fit
and how to be a great athlete".
I said "You guys have 
a really big advantage."
#1And you present it in a way that's great,
you don't make it a struggle,
you don't make it a you have to do this,
you make it more of education,
which I think is so important.
And that's one thing I thought it's so
interesting with my interview with Peter Attia,
which was our second episode
on the DietDoctor Podcast,
but he said he wanted to stop being keto
because he thought his daughter
saw him as like a freak that he was doing this,
and he was crazy and if she's going to have
a cake, he's going to have a cake.
And I thought that's interesting,
because you could look it in two ways;
you could also look at it
just as a teaching moment,
to say "I chose not to do this for X, Y and Z"
and you make your own decision.
You can approach it, in other way,
I respect you for making that decision.
Personally I take the other approach,
and my kids know,
daddy is not going to eat cake,
daddy is not going to have ice cream,
daddy is not going to have that.
And, that's okay, I don't say,
"You shouldn't have it either."
Just say "This is my choice, and this is why,
and you guys make your own choice."
It's an education... they frequently ask me
as they're eating their cake,
"This have a lot of carbohydrates?
This is bad for me?",
and I'm like "Oh, yes..." 
as the the scoop goes into their mouth.
But it's a process.
You have to start somewhere.
#2It's a process
and loading them with the education
will really help them in the future
and without restricting kids at this point.
You'd have to approach it very sensitively
and I'm in your camp,
mom is not going to eat that,
I'm sure it tastes really good...
so "Enjoy it."
#1And then again, for the parents that don't have
the knowledge or the time, or the interest,
you got to feel for those kids
because they grow up not knowing anything,
just all they know is that low fat milk
they get at school,
and the vending machines 
they get at school,
and the chips, the Fretaleze 
and Chitos and whatever it is.
And that's why we have so many people
that we need to work with
as they get in adolescence and adults,
and I wish there was an easy way to change it
when they were younger.
#2Unfortunately we grow up
after food guide pyramid
with the 6 to 11 servings of grains a day,
and that's kind of how we grew up,
that's how our parents grew up,
and they don't really know anything different.
And it's going to take a lot of time
and education
to change people's thought process
about that.
And hopefully this low-carb movement
and these low-carbers
are really going to help
expedite that process
because there is a major weight
and obesity problem
and not only in this country but in this world,
and how we're going to approach it,
and try to change it and fix it,
it's going to take just as many years
as it took to develop 30 years of guidelines
telling us to eat the carbohydrates.
I'm glad to be part of this process,
and I hope that I can really impact
as many people as I can with my journey
and with my knowledge.
#1I think that's a great place to end at,
I mean your passion, your energy
and your knowledge is very clear
and hopefully you'll help a lot of people
along the way.
Again thank you so much for joining me
and again where can people find you
to learn more about you?
#2Lajollanutritionalhealth.com
is my consulting business.
#1Alright, very good Lauren Bartell Weiss,
thank you so much.
#2Thank you.
