Duets

March 24, 2010

Institute For Medical Wellness Healthy Living Report

Duets

There have been many in our time.

Many I understand, and some not quite as much.

First there was Adam and Eve.

In the Entertainment industry there was Laurel and Hardy, and Sonny and Cher.

Let us not forget Mickey and Minnie, or Batman and Robin.

Raising a daughter, I got to know Bert and Ernie as well as Ken and Barbie.

Politically speaking, we can not forget about Bill and Hillary or their television clones Homer and Marge ;0)

The latest duet, however, comes from New Zealand, and is a highly unusual pair, if I may say so myself.

Would you believe Weight Watchers and McDonalds !!!

You see, Weight Watchers has come to an agreement with McDonalds in New Zealand to endorse some of their products, including Chicken McNuggets and their Filet-of-Fish sandwiches.

I am told that McDonalds Chicken McNuggets are just 12 Weight Watchers points, whatever that means.

Now most of you know that I am not a believer in eating processed foods.

So let us take a look at the ingredients in McDonalds Chicken McNuggets and Filet of Fish, from McDonalds website, and decide if they contain processed ingredients.

Chicken McNuggets®:
White boneless chicken, water, food starch-modified, salt, seasoning (autolyzed yeast extract, salt, wheat starch, natural flavoring (botanical source), safflower oil, dextrose, citric acid, rosemary), sodium phosphates, seasoning (canola oil, mono- and diglycerides, extractives of rosemary). Battered and breaded with: water, enriched flour (bleached wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), yellow corn flour, food starch-modified, salt, leavening (baking soda, sodium acid pyrophosphate, sodium aluminum phosphate, monocalcium phosphate, calcium lactate), spices, wheat starch, whey, corn starch. Prepared in vegetable oil (Canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with TBHQ and citric acid added to preserve freshness). Dimethylpolysiloxane added as an antifoaming agent.
CONTAINS: WHEAT AND MILK.


Fish Filet Patty:
Fish Filet (Hoki and Pollock), water, food starch-modified, yellow corn flour, bleached wheat flour, salt, whey, dextrose, dried yeast, sugar, sodium polyphosphate, potassium polyphosphate, cellulose gum, paprika and turmeric extract (color), natural flavors (plant source). Prepared in vegetable oil (Canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with TBHQ and citric acid added to preserve freshness). Dimethylpolysiloxane added as an antifoaming agent.
CONTAINS: FISH (HOKI AND POLLOCK), WHEAT AND MILK.

Yum Yum.

It is like eating something I concocted in high school chemistry lab!

Just what I want to eat for good health and weight loss??

I don't think so !!!

I prefer to eat real non-processed food, where the ingredient list is 4 items or less, and contains real food, not items such as autolyzed yeast extract, sodium phosphates, food startch-modified, sodium acid-pyrophosphate, hydrogenated soybean oil with TBHQ, and on and on and on......

Actually I find Weight Watchers name is actually very appropriate. You join weight watchers and watch your weight go down a little, and then up a little, but do you ever really get anywhere? For those of you who do lose weight on weight watchers, how much of your loss is actually fat loss, as opposed to water or muscle? A truly healthy weight loss for overweight or obese individuals should compose of greater than 90% fat loss. This can be easily measured in our office with a body fat analyzer and is a part of our Healthy Weight Programs.

Achieving a healthy weight can be difficult, but the know-how to achieve a healthy weight should not be. That is what our Traditional Healthy Weight Program, and our Healthy Weight Program-Lite edition are all about. Teaching you how to alter your diet for your individual lifestyle and metabolism.

Now, you actually can lose weight eating fast food meals, if you alter the meals by avoiding the carbohydrates. Have a Big Mac, but eat it open-faced, without the bun, even if draws some funny looks. There was a very funny movie I viewed recently, Fat Head, and I highly recommend it. In the movie, which is actually a documentary, the writer actually lost weight and fat while eating nothing but fast food. So he proved you can lose weight eating at McDonalds, but at what cost? All the processed ingredients and chemicals, preservatives, etc, etc, may end up costing him in the end!

I guess my major issue is more with Weight Watchers than with McDonalds. We all know McDonalds is in business to sell you food. Weight Watchers, is supposed to help you lose weight, and to be on your side, not beholden to any corporate interests. Can you tell me that the dollars moving from McDonalds to Weight Watchers corporate office for their endorsement will not cause any conflicts of interest? Is it any different from big political donors bribing coercing politicians to vote a certain way?

I don't think so!

If you have any other duets you find amusing, please let me know!!!

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Institute For Medical Wellness New Offers:

Phone Consults have been available at The Institute for Medical Wellness since January 2010.

While many patient's take it for granted that doctor's will prescribe treatment over the phone, it is not always good sound medical practice, nor the best for patient care. But many patient's in my practice have strongly requested these consults. Thus, I have added phone consultations to the services I offer, in the hope that when used in the proper circumstances will be of benefit to you. Phone consultations simply consists of phone time spent with you evaluating your health complaints, and prescribing treatment. For example, if you are feeling ill, but stuck at work or home, you can arrange a phone consultation.

The following fees will be charged dependent upon the time spent on consultation or if treatment is ordered or prescribed:

5 minutes or less without treatment prescribed = No charge
10 minutes or less with treatment prescribed = $45
11-15 minutes with treatment prescribed = $75

Any consultation that would require more than 15 minutes requires an in-office evaluation. Phone consultations will most often be used to evaluate and treat recurrent illnesses such as allergies, sinusitis or urinary tract infections. This service is not available to new patient's, nor to any condition that requires an in-office evaluation. Phone consults also need to be scheduled during regular office hours.

To schedule a phone consult, please call our office at 856-231-0590. A valid credit card is required.

Telephone consult fees are not applicable for the following:

* Quick follow-up phone conversations about a recent office evaluation.
* Wellness plan members, as these services are already included as part of your plan.
* As Medicare rules are vague on telephone consults, this service is not available to Traditional Medicare patients.
* Routine requests such as pharmacy refills, appointments or non-physician requests.
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Healthcare Reform Update:

I have decided to refrain from further reform updates in these newsletters. Instead I have set up a separate blog that will give my opinions of what healthcare reform will mean now and in the future. So for those of you who are interested in my opinions on these issues, you can find this new blog here, which will not be sent out as a newsletter. Instead, I encourage you to sign up on the blog to receive new issues as they are published.


To Good Health!


Steven Horvitz, D.O,
Board Certified Family Practice
Founder of The Institute For Medical Wellness
128 Borton Landing Road, Suite Two
Moorestown, NJ 08057
Phone 856-231-0590
Fax 856-294-0311
www.drhorvitz.com