Workplace ban on sugary drinks may yield some sweet results
Q: They just restocked all our vending machines at work and now there aren’t any sodas or other sweet drinks available! I used to get a cola in the afternoon to avoid that midday slump, but the powers that be decided that those beverages were bad for the workforce. Shouldn’t we be able to make our own choices? Daryl B., Tallahassee, Fla.
A: Your company is looking out for your wellbeing, Daryl. And you’ll thank them when you see the positive results.
In 2010 the Cleveland Clinic stopped selling food or drinks with added sugar or sugar variants (things like fructose, etc., that end with “-ose”). Initially, that made some folks so mad that Dr. Mike, at his Clinic Wellness Center, received emailed death threats. But the amazing results of the initiative, combined with more than 80 innovative programs designed to improve employees’ health, has made believers of employees and patients, and saved the clinic and employees more than $800 million over the past eight years!
Another example: In 2015, the University of California, San Francisco, stopped the sale of sugaradded drinks on campuses and in medical facilities, replacing them with flavored and sparkling waters and unsweetened coffees and teas. A new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine evaluates the results: While the university didn’t ban sugary drinks, by just not selling them in the workplace they saw employees who drank the most sugary beverages slash their intake from 35 ounces a day to 18 ounces. A subgroup who attended a brief motivational intervention reduced their intake from 25.6 ounces daily to 9.6 ounces. As a result, their workforce reduced belly fat (collectively, waistlines shrunk by an inch) within 10 months. We know losing that visceral belly fat reduces bodywide inflammation, which is associated with diabetes, heart disease and some cancers.
So to avoid that afternoon slump, Daryl, have a cup of coffee or tea (no sugary or fatty additives, please) and some nuts or a piece of fruit. You’ll feel better and get a healthy boost.
Q: I have to go to the dentist, and because I recently had a hip replacement, I have to take antibiotics before my cleaning. Problem is they always mess up my guts. Is there anything I can do to stop that from happening? Christine T., Chillicothe, Ohio
A: Yes, there is. After you take your antibiotics, start taking a probiotic.
We like lactobacillus or a spore-form probiotic. Also, increase your intake of prebiotics (prebiotics provide fuel that helps good intestinal bacteria thrive). They are found in asparagus, onions, garlic, artichokes, bananas, chicory root and legumes. Taking both a probiotic and prebiotic together is considered microbiome therapy. It will help restore a healthy balance in your gut.
Then, keep it up; this should be how you tend to your gut long term, too. Negative changes in the gut microbiome are associated with obesity, diabetes, liver disease, cancer and neurodegenerative problems.
Other gut-friendly habits: A recent study from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston found that caffeinated coffee drinkers had an “increased richness and evenness of the mucosaassociated gut microbiota, and higher relative abundance of anti-inflammatory bacteria.” So have a cup of joe with your proand prebiotics.
But antibiotics aren’t the only meds that mess with your gut biome. A recent study from the University Medical Center Groningen in the Netherlands, presented at the United European Gastroenterology Week in Barcelona, found that proton pump inhibitors such as Prilosec, Prevacid and Nexium, laxatives and the diabetes drug metformin are also gut biome busters!
If you use these, ask your doc about alternative medications and lifestyle approaches to handle the conditions they address. But remember, there are times when antibiotics, PPIs for GERD, as well as metformin and laxatives are essential tools to protect your health. So use them when they’re needed, and ask your doc about replacing them with alternatives if they are not essential.