Off the fair weigh

RICHARD LAUTENS/TORONTO STAR

When it comes to eating protein, my girlfriends accuse me of being a nag. Sorry, but a morning muffin or a bagel with a coffee, or a piece of fruit and herbal tea, ain't going to cut it after 8-10 hours of not eating. A midday salad without meat, chicken, fish, cheese, beans or tofu is not gonna do ya through the afternoon. You can't have some sushi or a veggie pasta for dinner and think you've had your protein for the day.

Your body needs a steady supply, every few hours, not only to stave off hunger but to keep you fit, strong and healthy through the years.

Now science has confirmed what this old gray mare has long been saying. After a certain age, women's bodies have a tough time maintaining muscle mass, even if they pump iron.

Experts at the Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis, Missouri, USA, and at The University of Nottingham, UK, funded by the US National Institutes of Health, studied 29 men and women aged 65-80 years old who were in good health. They examined the ability to respond to food meant to build muscle mass. It was found that post-menopausal women were less able to respond to this food than men, who were able to store protein in the muscle.

The scientists attribute this change to hormonal adjustments that occur with menopause. Specifically, the suspicion falls on estrogen, which is already known to be necessary in both women and men to help maintain bone mass. According to the researchers, these findings corroborate other preliminary results indicating that women are less able to repsond to build muscle after resistance exercise, such as lifting weights in the gym. Younger men and women, who have not reached menopause, do not seem to show any discrepancy in muscle mass potential.

Regarding this finding, Michael Rennie, Professor of Clinical Physiology at The University of Nottingham, said: "Nobody has ever discovered any mechanistic differences between men and women in muscle loss before. This is a significant finding for the maintenance of better health in old age and reducing demands on the National Health Service."

There is advice for older women to help combat this degeneration. These new results underscore the importance of a diet sufficient in protein, including foods such as eggs, fish, chicken, and lean red meat, as well as resistance exercise.

"Rather than eating more, older people should focus on eating a higher proportion of protein in their everyday diet. In conjunction with resistance exercise, this should help to reduce the loss of muscle mass over time. There is also a case for the beneficial hormonal effect of limited HRT, although this has to be balanced against the other risks associated with such treatment," continues Rennie.

The original scientific journal article is here.

Getting more protein doesn't mean going on one of those high-fat, low-carb ''diets.'' It means eating a couple of ounces every meal, and between meals as well, preferably balanced with some healthy carbs. Carrot sticks dipped in a couple tablespoons of hummus. A small handful of nuts and a piece of fruit. A low-fat yogurt and some crackers. A hard-boiled egg and a piece of toast. The more fibre, the fuller you will be - and the less likely you will gorge at your next meal.

If you're one of those people - and I know you're out there because you have been writing to me - who pigs out after dinner, maybe evening out your eating during the day will help stave off the midnight munchies.

Speaking of how unfair it is to be a woman in the battle of the bulge, here's a depressing story from the New York Times, about how we face more discrimination than overweight men.

The notion that society is less tolerant of weight gain in women than men is just one of the findings suggested by a new report from the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at Yale University, published this month in the International Journal of Obesity.

For the study, researchers documented the prevalence of self-reported weight discrimination and compared it to experiences of discrimination based on race and gender among a nationally representative sample of adults ages 25 to 74. The data was obtained from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States.

Overall, the study showed that weight discrimination, particularly against women, is as common as racial discrimination. But the researchers also identified the amount of weight gain that triggers a discriminatory backlash. They found that women appear to be at risk for discrimination at far lower weights, relative to their body size, than men.

Based on body mass index, which is a measure of body fat based on height and weight, a normal weight is in the range of 18.5 to 24.9. The study found that women begin to experience noticeable weight bias — such as problems at work or difficulty in personal relationships — when they reach a body mass index, or B.M.I., of 27. For a 5-foot-5-inch woman, that means discrimination starts once she reaches a weight of 162 pounds — or about 13 pounds more than her highest healthy weight, based on B.M.I. charts.

But the researchers found that men can bulk up far more without experiencing discrimination. Weight bias against men becomes noticeable when a man reaches a B.M.I. of 35 or higher. A 5-foot-9-inch man has a B.M.I. of 35 if he weighs 237 pounds — or 68 pounds above his highest healthy weight.

So, not only do men get away with less discrimination based on their weight - it's just a beer belly, right? - they are less likely to pack it on because they have more muscle, which they need not work as hard to keep.

Great.

I so enjoy being a girl.

Which brings me to today's treeware exchange with my colleague Judy Gerstel on the ''joys'' of menopause.

Judy: It was a good thing for the menopause industry, for sure – for Big Pharma and Manitoba farmers breeding mares for HRT. For book publishers and alternative medicine purveyors. For women? Depends on where you're coming from and where you want to go.

Antonia: Oh yeah, it's great – for air conditioning manufacturers. Now I know why some northern cultures would set their old women on ice floes and out to sea. There are other good things, like not getting pregnant and ... um ... I forget.

Judy: Well, I can see where you're coming from, Antonia. Me, I kind of think it's the original women's liberation. You're no longer in thrall to your reproductive system and hormone fluctuations. In a way, you get to be you again. It's like a power surge that picks up from when you were a tomboy before you started menstruating, became fertile and figured you could take on the world.

Antonia: Maybe I was lucky, or maybe I just ate right, exercised and managed that time of the month with Aspirin but, aside from a little bloat and bitchiness, I could swim with sharks in a white bathing suit, if you get my drift. The only surge I feel right now starts around mid-chest level, powers up to the top of my head and frizzes my hair. And, while I needn't worry about birth control, I find that seeking respite in the guest room bed when I am too sweaty to sleep with my partner is not only a great form of contraception, but exhausting. I'm tired. All the time!

Judy: And maybe I've just been lucky with menopause but I think women make too much about the symptoms. Like pregnancy, it's temporary. It's really only about one out of 10 women who suffers so much she needs drugs to manage. C'mon, toughing it out isn't so terrible. But you know what can be pretty awful? Being seen as "an older woman" – which often means not being seen at all.

Antonia: Hey, I am not saying there aren't advantages. I have all kinds of extra space in my bathroom cabinets now that I don't have an array of tampons, pads and shields, all of which are unfairly made more expensive because of the GST. (Mind you, I figure eventually, all this will eventually be replaced by Depends.) And while I may be mopping my brow and bosom every time I feel any stress, I do admit I am not sweating the small stuff anymore. But I don't buy that "older woman" thing, not if you don't give up on taking care of yourself. In fact, I find that men, including younger men, relax and open up around me, and not necessarily in a filial sense. Times are changing and for the better in that regard.

Please, read the whole thing. And for those of you who are not growing old and liking it, don't miss Judy's list of online resources, down the right-hand side of our discussion.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I am going to turn on the A/C.

Oh, and by the way, 16 pounds down, 34 to go.

Comments

[sheena]

GST = Girls Sexuality Taxation.

[Evil 905 Resident]

How come todays column on dumping all over 905 isn't posted so we can post witty retorts on you very neutral writings? :-)

Even though you resent all us evil 905 people driving into the city you can still use the airport in Mississauga.

Wish we had better public transit or chance-it as we refer to it hear in Mississauga. That way us 905'ers wouldn't crowd up your subways. Some of our provincial & federal tax dollars do find its way to Toronto to help with the TTC although not enough.

Montreal and the suburbs have way better transit than here in the GTA. From Greenfield Park, QC where I grew up we could take one bus right into the city.

Live in Mississauga. Will still read your observations on life, still wish you wrote about the media.

[Jim Rootham]

I've been meaning to send you this link for a while http://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/

It's called "The Hacker's Diet" but it's really instructions on how to apply industrial process control principles to using a scale. That may or may not appeal to you, but I thought you might like to take a look at another approach to weight issues.

[YayaCanada]

Antonia! Don't know where I've been lately, but have only just become aware that you are blogging again! Congratulations, and good on the Star for realizing and utilizing one of your greatest talents!

As someone who's been there, I'm so happy that you are up-playing the sensible alternatives to the pharm trap in dealing with menopause. I have never forgiven Dr. W. Gifford Jones (not surprised he never used his real name)for the Kingston Whig Standard article years ago in which he said that menopause was a "disease of aging". Way to boost the dividends from his big pharm shares! I absolutely believe that putting stress on the spine (as in a simple Yoga shoulder stand) is the best hedge against the medical term "osteoporosis". Unfortunately, when the chilluns have flown the coop, too many women start to take life easy.

Congrats again. I know you don't need any advice from me (but don't forget to dress in layers) and you may actually inspire me to get serious about losing my embarrassing tummy roll.