Thoughtfulhealth Product Review: SiselLean Protein/Weight Management Shake

All natural. 74 calories per scoop. Powerful nutrition. $50 bucks for a one month supply. Score!

When it comes to protein shakes it is certain that not all are created equal. In fact most protein/weight management shakes are filled with incredibly toxic and inflammation causing ingredients. It has been my observation that most people consuming these protein products are in one way or another health conscious. Whether you endeavor to lose weight or pack on extra muscle ultimately your health is affected.

Personally I fill that whatever your intentions for consuming protein shakes it should not cause you harm. If you are currently consuming a protein shake let's take a look at a few of the readily available ingredients you would find in most "off-the-shelf" products.

• Whey protein: Derived from dairy sources that are usually laced with hormones, pesticides and antibiotics. To add insult there are only two to three companies out there that actually removes the lactose for our lactose intolerant friends. Ouch!
• Isolates (soy, whey, etc): Proudly displayed on the packaging but the truth is they most companies use cheap fillers that have chemical toxins associated with them increasing inflammation and acidity in the body.
• Artificial sweeteners (sucralose, splenda, aspartame,acesulfame potassiun etc.): Drives up insulin levels in the body increasing sensitivity which leads to fat storage, slows liver function which can lead to weight gain over the long run, causes inflammation in the body increasing water and sodium retention that can lead to hypertension.
• Maltodextrin: Generally used as a sweetener there is a 95% chance that it is genetically modified and is more than likely one of 4 to 5 sugars on the label!Not all maltodextrin is used as a sweetner, however. Some products use it as a source of fiber. Knowing how the company sources their maltodextrin is important.
• GMO's: More and more evidence is mounting that products containing GMO's cause serious adverse health events. Most manufacturers will use GMO ingredients because they are cheap but while the cost to you in the near term is less the long term cost could be downright devastating!

Why I like SiselLean

I have consumed SisleLean for almost two years now and I am thoroughly convinced that it has helped me maintain a body weight and level of health and vitality I did not previously have. With proper eating habits, moderate exercise and supplementing 1 or 2 meals per day I have not had any trouble losing over 30 lbs and keeping it off. The shake is delicious without being chalky and I can feel the energy provided by the vitamins and minerals. I will discuss a few of the key ingredients to give you an idea of why I have experienced my results.

Three Quality Proteins

Whey Protein: SiselLean contains whey protein but in the right way. The protein is sourced from all natural milk (no hormones or antibiotics). Also, all the lactose is removed for those of us who are lactose intolerant. It is cold processed so the protein is not denatured making it readily available for assimilation by the body without creating inflammation. Pea and chia proteins are also used because they are easily assimilated by the body combining with the whey to ensure extensive bioavailabilty for a wide range of people.

Vitamins and Minerals

Another aspect of this shake I like very much is the vitamins and minerals it packs. Most protein shakes on the market use cheap synthetic vitamins and minerals that are usually not absorbed by the body. In fact, they usually go unrecognized which triggers an immune response. Now you have increased your level of inflammation and given the immune system extra duty! Not so with SiselLean. All of the ingredients including the vitamins and minerals are all natural (no synthetics here). In addition, the amount of protein per scoop is within normal protein consumption range for the average person. What these two things mean is you will not be causing inflammation in the body with this product. Inflammation is a key factor in weight gain and almost all chronic illnesses. In addition, there is no soy and no GMO ingredient whatsover. With over 60 vitamins and minerals to include B vitamin complex I am left energized and ready to tackle the day.  

There is so much more to this shake but I don't want to ramble on. Check out this link for more information and if you decide to order this awesome shake please know that it is not necessary to autoship your purchase. You can order as you please when you please if you opt to do so.

All natural. 74 calories per scoop. Powerful nutrition. $50 bucks for a one month supply. Score!

For additional helpful tips regarding protein follow the link provided: http://thoughtfulhealth.blogspot.com/2010/11/protein-fallacy-and-how-best-to-utilize.html

The Story of Cholesterol: The Good and Bad About "Clinical Studies"

We all have heard at one time or another some announcer on television or radio say "clinical studies have shown..." and what follows is thought or assumed to be credible information. Rightfully so when it is considered that all clinical studies follow the scientific method, right? For the most part yes but there is more to the story and studies involving cholesterol aren't always what they seem to be.

The Bad

Scientist pride themselves on the scientific method and why not. Surely if you want to propose that a thing or an outcome is "true" you have to observe it over and over again and let the data tell you what is real and what is not. The problem, from time to time, is that scientist are human and are subject to the frailties associated with being such. Pride, arrogance, and greed, especially greed, has steered many doctors and scientist astray while conducting clinical studies. We, the non-clinical study conducting types, have our part to play as well by allowing people with profit driven agendas to run these drug studies without demanding a neutral third party either run a concurrent study or run the entire study outright. After all its only our health at stake. At this point I would like to be clear about one thing: I do not mind people making a profit. I just don't like it when it is at the expense of others as opposed to the benefit of others (and this is where I digress).

Cholesterol studies have long been plagued by biased research. One of the largest and most damaging of these studies was the Framingham Heart Study (FHS). The FHS began in 1948 in Framingham, Massachusetts involving 5,000 residents of the town. Follow up was conducted with the residents for 16 years. In the end it was claimed that a direct link between cholesterol and heart disease had been firmly established. This study has been heavily cited in order to defend the "cholesterol-causes-heart disease" hypothesis and helped form a $30 billion per year cholesterol drug industry. There are several key points to consider with this study that some would find alarming and the main ones are these:

• During the study it was found that cardiovascular disease struck people with both high and low cholesterol (some levels as low as 150 mg/dl)
• Thirty years after the study it was found that people with higher cholesterol levels lived just as long or longer, on average, as those with low cholesterol

According to this study cholesterol levels seemed to imply adverse cardiovascular health only for white men who had a heart attack before the age of 48. There was very little, if any, information garnered by this study that had any broad cholesterol "doom and gloom" appeal for the general population. In fact, the study director, Dr. William Castelli acknowledged in an article written in 1992 in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine that those people who participated in the study who consumed the most saturated fat, calories and cholesterol tended to have lower blood serum cholesterol levels, were the most active and weighed the least all while not experiencing any statistically significant increase in poor cardiovascular health outcomes.

The Good

One of the longest and most comprehensive studies ever undertaken was called the Nurses' Health Study conducted by Harvard University. The goal was to determine the risk factors for cancer and heart disease. Researchers conducted an extensive analysis of over 84,000 women and made a startling discovery. They determined that there were five essential contributing factors regarding cancer and heart disease in 82 percent of the women and they are as follows:

• Smoking
• Sedentary lifestyle (little to no daily exercise)
• Excessive alcohol consumption
• Poor weight maintenance
• Diet that did not consist of whole foods, whole grains (fiber intake) and was high in sugar.

Did you notice cholesterol didn't make the list? You can believe the drug companies did not want to hear any part of this because this study definitely had the potential to interfere with profits! In the end, however,  it is a lot easier for patients and lucrative for the drug pushers to take a pill than it is to lead a healthy lifestyle so the study fell mostly on deaf ears and those who did hear and believe were ridiculed or ostracized by "scientist" backed by big money from pharmaceutical companies. 

In the next installment we will discuss the true villain when it comes to heart disease: inflammation!

If you would like to read about more studies and the cholesterol myth (in case you just can't wait for the next article) I recommend reading "The Great Cholesterol Myth" written by Dr. Jonny Bowden and Dr. Stephen Sinatra.