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=★Bryan 姚詩豪★= 

隨著年紀步入中老年，三高威脅是否是隨著年紀增大後不可避免的？在初老階段，如何打造能夠無痛養成健康習慣的環境，進行健康扭轉，佳格邀請到專業專案管理師Bryan姚老師，為我們分享，他參與「佳格健康計畫」，實驗了一個月後的心得感想。

人生健康轉折點？體力下降的警訊

我太太對日本文化很熟悉，她日文也講得很好，她說，日本人有一個說法：男人到46歲是一個轉折點，剛好那年我是46歲，所以讓我印象很深刻。 

Q：您是在何時體會到健康的重要性呢？什麼契機讓您參與這次佳格健康計畫？

Bryan：非常確切地說，應該是在46歲那年，我認知到健康很重要。

我這一生從未住過醫院，至今也保持著無大病的紀錄，算是一個相當健康、在各方面體能都不錯的人，過去我也很喜歡參與運動，年輕時非常喜歡打籃球。

今年我剛滿50歲，回想起來，大概就是在我46歲那一年，整年都生病，雖然病情並不嚴重，僅是感冒或身體不適，卻持續了整整一年。與別人感冒一週就康復不同，我的一次感冒可能需要兩到三週才能復原，而且嚴重時躺在床上連動都有困難。

而且那一年，我又開了許多課程，工作繁重，使我深刻地記得46歲這個年齡。我原以為身體的衰退是漸漸地，而不是陡降地，但自那年起，我感到體力大幅度下降，我發現上課時也容易感到疲倦，以前曾經連續上4天整天的課，毫無問題，但後來只上1天的課，我就感到極度疲憊，第二天早晨甚至可能無法起床。

這幾年的經歷讓我開始認真關注大家所謂的養生，並進行了非常完整的健康檢查。我身邊跟我同年齡段的朋友，慢慢開始有糖尿病，想到我的胰島素阻抗數值也不佳，就開始擔心了起來。醫生也都建議，要適時減輕身體負擔，特別注意血脂、三酸甘油酯、膽固醇，這些其實我都是有紅字的，所以就開始認真思考要怎麼去控制，有了需要積極面對的想法。

讓健康成為「持續維持的習慣」竟是最難的

隨著年紀增長，我漸漸發現體重也跟著持續攀升，體脂率超標，於是我著手節食和運動。

嘗試過各種流行的飲食方法，如生酮飲食、地中海飲食、168斷食法等。我發現這些方法，其實多多少少都有用，可是重點都是要維持、持續，然後我才發現整件事情的問題癥結點在於，除非你能讓你的生活型態徹徹底底地改變，否則的話只是徒勞。

雖然一開始看似有成效，但我發現這需要極大的毅力。這個年齡段的工作量很大，將毅力都用在工作上之後，很難保留足夠的毅力處理飲食和運動習慣。

例如，整天講課8小時，工作強度很高的一天，晚上回到家還要忍受不進食的痛苦，這真的讓心情很差。運動也是同樣，有時候真的很累，週末想要稍微放鬆一下，就可能放棄運動。

所以，最大的挑戰實際上是找到一種可以融入生活、輕鬆持久且能應對變化的方式。這是相當困難的，特別是在我這個年齡段，保持健康身材真的不容易。

打造能輕鬆享受健康的生活環境

Q：您期許自己達成什麼樣的健康目標？

Bryan：在健康數字方面，我個人並非極度執迷。有些人很關心腰圍和體脂率等數值，但我對這些數字真的感覺還好。你問我想要達到的健康目標，我想，期望如果能藉著這個機會，讓我順利地過上健康的生活，輕鬆完成健康飲食和運動。我認為這其實比任何數字目標更不容易。

是否要在幾個月內達到特定的目標數值呢？我曾經嘗試過，像上述一樣，發現難以持久，我不會像以前每天都去量體重，每天都查看InBody，因為最終，你仍然需要享受食物，並在不需付出太多努力的情況下輕鬆準備食物，自然而然地讓它成為你的習慣。就像《原子習慣》這本書所言，最好的方式是改變你周圍的環境，讓一切無需耗費毅力，自然而然地走向目標。

因此，我有一個目標，我的目標是打造一個可以長期維持的健康環境，而不僅僅是追求單一的體重數字。一個健康的生活型態，是同時要搭配健康的飲食型態，這些都是長久並且要享受的事，這才是最難的。希望能在不自覺中，也許過了半年，某天我心血來潮量一下體重、做一下健康檢查，發現這些數字都下降了，這樣已經足夠。

營養師建議飲食方案＆使用心得

=★佳格營養師介紹★= 

Bryan的一般飲食（約5天/週）一日以1-2餐為主，並以外食居多；有講課時（約1-2天/週）是一日3餐。

早餐多為中式早餐，如無糖豆漿或紅茶搭配蛋餅或吐司；平日下午約2點飲食，叫外送或外食，如韓式炸雞、越南料理、速食、輕食便當，有儘量減少碳水攝取及增加蛋白質補充；有講課時中午就吃便當，由於下午的課需要消耗很多體力，因此大都會把便當吃完，下課後約晚上7點晚餐也是外食，如韓式泡菜鍋或拌飯等。

近三個月較忙碌，主要運動還是利用早上時間河堤快走40-60分鐘。保健品主要由太太購買，日常有補充魚油、維生素C和維生素D。

以下為營養師建議：

• 早上建議喝一瓶「桂格完膳100鉻無糖含纖配方」替代蛋餅或吐司等傳統早餐，減低碳水化合物攝取比例，並增加優質蛋白
• 每日飲食中其中一餐的主食，以「桂格即沖即時大燕麥片」替代精緻澱粉
• 飯後使用一包「天地合補EXX消化菌粉」促進代謝與維持消化道機能
• 下午或睡前點心喝一杯「桂格雙認證高鈣脫脂奶粉」攝取鈣質及維生素，此產品有通過雙效健康食品認證產品，零脂肪並含有可幫助醣類正常代謝的礦物質

飲食計畫：每日熱量攝取建議：1600大卡

【上課日】

• 早餐：「桂格完膳100鉻無糖含纖配方」一瓶+茶葉蛋一顆+水果一份+堅果一份
• 午餐：「桂格即沖即時大燕麥片」75g（取代白飯）+正常便當（白飯不吃或請店家將白飯換成蔬菜）+「天地合補EXX消化菌粉」一包
• 晚餐：五穀飯或烤地瓜1碗份量+蔬菜1碗+蛋白質類（去皮瘦肉）半掌大份量
• 點心：泡「桂格雙認證高鈣脫脂奶粉」1杯+水果一份

【無上課日】

• 早餐：「桂格完膳100鉻無糖含纖配方」一瓶+荷包蛋一顆+水果一份+堅果一份
• 午餐：「桂格即沖即時大燕麥片」75g（取代白飯）+蛋白質類（去皮瘦肉）半掌大份量+蔬菜大於1碗+「天地合補EXX消化菌粉」一包
• 晚餐：若肚子餓可吃半碗大燕麥片 37.5g，並搭配無糖豆漿一杯
• 點心：「桂格雙認證高鈣脫脂奶粉」1杯+水果一份

備註：

＊水果1份是指一個拳頭大小或切塊碗裝八分滿碗（如橘子一顆＝奇異果1.5顆=小根香蕉1根=小番茄八分滿碗）

＊堅果1份是指手抓一小把並且搖晃不掉落之份量（一份約10-15克）

＊蛋白質類選擇建議多以植物豆類如豆腐、豆干、毛豆、無糖豆漿和低脂白肉如魚肉、雞胸肉等為主，並建議選擇白斬白切、清蒸、滷、燙等少油烹調方式，避免選擇勾芡、燴、糖醋調理方式的食物，若有油炸請去皮和去裹粉

＊建議午、晚餐的蔬菜攝取份量以1碗起跳，蔬菜類如綠葉蔬菜、蘿蔔、海帶、菇類、瓜類等，大番茄亦屬於蔬菜類，飢餓或嘴饞時可多攝取無需控制攝取份量

＊提醒地瓜、馬鈴薯、玉米、蓮藕、紅豆綠豆等屬於主食澱粉類，如有吃到，建議減少當餐的米飯攝取

Q：這段時間您在日常飲食中採用營養師建議，使用佳格產品的心得，能跟我們分享一下？或是有任何問題想詢問營養師？

Bryan：這次我有兩個全新的體悟，我覺得是非常正向的。飲食控制計畫能不能持續，原來有兩個至關重要的關鍵點：飽足感及消化道健康。

在跟營養師討論的過程中，點醒了一個我以前沒有注意到的關鍵點，就是膳食纖維。我通常將減重歸納為控制糖分、油脂、以及總卡路里攝取等方面，這也是大家都熟知的觀念。可是膳食纖維，對我來說，我以前的了解僅限於其對消化道的幫助，認為它對於減重似乎不太相關，所以我從未認真將膳食纖維納入我的飲食控制計畫。

這次與佳格的討論中，營養師強調了膳食纖維的重要性，指出它能提供飽足感，而且本身熱量較低。當你感到飽足時，就不太容易中斷飲食結構。雖然當時我覺得這有道理，但並未深入思考。

這段期間我照著營養師建議，一餐替換成大燕麥片，桂格大燕麥片是我本來就有在吃的東西，小時候我爸爸煮麥片粥就是使用桂格，所以算是很習慣的口味，只是說以前沒有想到它跟膳食纖維有關，因為它本來就是我還滿喜歡的食物，搭上雙認證高鈣脫脂奶粉，我覺得吃起來滿好吃也滿有飽足感的。

膳食纖維是飲食控制中的關鍵角色

佳格營養師：確實在整個飲食控制階段，人們經常忽略了膳食纖維這個要素。這是因為在減重或熱量控制的過程中，我們通常第一時間聽到的建議就是減少碳水化合物攝取。然而，碳水化合物中實際上包含了一部分膳食纖維。因此當我們在減重初期戒斷碳水化合物時，往往也會同時戒斷膳食纖維。這解釋了為什麼在進行體重控制時，大多數人會感到很大的飢餓感，而膳食纖維的重要性正是在於提高飽足感，減輕因為飢餓造成的阻力。

燕麥片本身它裡面有非常高的水溶性膳食纖維，其實在泡到杯子裡面還沒有入口的時候，就可以感受到它一碰到水份，膨脹起來的濃稠感，所以會帶來飽足感，進而在我們做飲食控制的時候，比較不會有覺得好像很空虛或是很飢餓的感覺。

Bryan：我想問營養師，這次幫我設計的建議，其中有「一天至少吃兩次水果」，這個其實是我以前會忽略的，過去的飲食控制中，我通常不吃水果，覺得有吃蔬菜就夠了，因為我覺得水果含有的營養素蔬菜裡也會有，而且水果含有糖分好像不是很好，所以我其實很多年沒有認真吃水果。但這次我有照建議認真吃水果，我感覺好像對飽足感也有幫助，它的原理是什麼？

佳格營養師：膳食纖維分為兩種型態，一種是水溶性膳食纖維，另一種為非水溶性膳食纖維。在水果中，主要富含的膳食纖維是水溶性的。水溶性膳食纖維在身體中能夠吸收水分，在消化道內有膨脹感，因此食用後能產生飽足感。而全穀類或蔬菜等則屬於非水溶性纖維，其在消化道中的作用，主要是增加糞便體積，具有促進排便的效果。儘管這兩種膳食纖維都被歸為膳食纖維，但它們的功效有一些差異，在門診中，很多病患或營養諮詢者常問是否只食用蔬菜就夠了，對營養師而言，蔬菜和水果不僅在膳食纖維類型上有所不同，其中的營養素如維他命C、鐵、葉酸等也各有差異。

Bryan：所以適度攝取糖分，例如透過水果攝取糖分是可以的。或許以前我對糖的看法過於極端，但確實在最近一段時間，我按照建議吃，也包括進食水果，只是維持在每日一小份量，通常是便利商店的小盒裝水果。我發現，嘿，有時我太太買一些她喜歡的含糖飲料，我會想品嚐一兩口，但自從照著飲食方案吃之後，我發現這種渴望消失了！

或許是因為在吃水果時已經感受到了甜味，因此不再有進一步想吃其他含糖食物的渴望。如果飲食控制的限制太過嚴格，反而會一直想著吃甜的東西，這一點對持續下去很有幫助。

消化菌粉帶來意外收穫

Bryan：早餐安排的「桂格完膳100鉻無糖含纖配方」，它就是小小一瓶，跟我平常在喝的無糖豆漿其實是差不多的，口味也很不錯，喝起來有點像是燕麥奶，說它不含糖，可是又不完全是淡而無味，我現在每天喝，這段時間每天喝一瓶。我覺得非常好，第一個它的味道我可以接受，第二個就是它也會帶來飽足感，本來吃早餐的時候就會配飲料，現在只是把飲料改成完膳，我把它冰著喝，搭配雞蛋或茶葉蛋，相當不錯。

另外這次也試了「天地合補EXX消化菌粉」，我的體重最近減輕了2.5公斤，在過去幾週裡，作為一位非醫學背景的個人，我不能確定我的體重減輕是否與益生菌的攝取有關，但至少在開始食用後，我有一些觀察。首先，這款益生菌的口感很不錯，酸酸甜甜的味道很像養樂多；其次，我注意到這對我的排便產生了正面影響，也幫助順暢；第三，雖然我不確定是否有科學根據，但它似乎對我的睡眠有一些幫助，或許這是我的心理作用？我不太確定，但在過去的兩週中，每天食用這款益生菌，讓我有這樣的感覺。

佳格營養師：這次在向Bryan推薦時，我們背後的搭配邏輯是基於膳食纖維的一個特定類型，即水溶性膳食纖維。這種膳食纖維的型態提供腸道中的益生菌所需的能量。換句話說，當我在補充益生菌時，如果我沒有提供這些好菌足夠的營養，這些好菌在我身體內可能難以存活。因此，同時需要提供能夠供應好菌的食物。水溶性膳食纖維恰好是益生菌的一個能量來源。因此，在這次的搭配邏輯中，我們不僅考慮了老師的生活方式，還有現代大多數人膳食纖維攝取不足的現象。我們希望能夠提倡均衡飲食和更健康的概念，同時搭配這個消化菌粉是為了讓我們在日常飲食中，不僅能補充益生菌，還可以同時補充益生菌所需的營養。

Bryan：所以等於讓身體形成一個生態系。我們吃了益生菌，還要給它吃一點飼料，然後順便也讓我們有飽足感。

佳格營養師：剛剛有提到，感覺似乎吃益生菌，晚上會睡得特別好，這也是這幾年來滿多的研究開始在討論的，所謂我們的消化道與腦部的關係，許多學者正在研究這個議題。

推薦容易執行的飲食指南

Brian：這次參與佳格健康計畫，有一些體悟，很多人都在討論哪些飲食方法最有效，我以前也試過很多，效果也有限，可是我後來發現，那根本不是我的問題，每個方法只要是經過醫師及營養師認證，它多多少少都有效果，在我身上也都是有初始的效果，可是真正最難就是怎麼讓它融入我們生活才是最大的挑戰。

佳格營養師：對，而且還要長久。健康的飲食型態應是可以長久並且能夠享受的事，但這才是最難的。

Brian：這次嘗試，佳格推薦給我的方案，讓我比較容易執行，我覺得我好像沒有做什麼特別的改變，只是有時用麥片取代白飯，飯後吃一包消化菌粉、早上的飲料換成完膳營養素，就這樣而已，所以我覺得整個體驗是相當不錯的，總的來說，我對整體感到相當滿意。

<同場加映>：詳細訪談請看影片

Interview with Bryan YAO Shih-Hao, Co-founder of DarenCademy: Painlessly Cultivating Healthy Habits

As we grow older, are the threats of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and high blood sugar inevitable with the passage of time? When we enter middle age, how can we ensure our environment facilitates the painless cultivation of healthy habits for a transformative journey toward well-being? We invited professional project manager Bryan Yao to share his insights on these questions. Bryan experimented with the STANDARD FOODS HealthGO Program for a month, and here are his thoughts.

=★Bryan YAO Shih-Hao★= 

Turning Point in Health: Warning Signs of Declining Physical Strength

The year I turned 46, my wife shared an intriguing Japanese saying that had a lasting impact on me: "A man undergoes a turning point at the age of 46."

Q: When did you realize the importance of health, and what prompted your participation in the STANDARD FOODS HealthGO Program?

Bryan: I was 46 years old when I became aware of the importance of health. Throughout my life, I had never had to stay in a hospital, as I had a clean record of good health without major illnesses. I used to be actively involved in sports, and I have always particularly enjoying playing basketball.

Reflecting on it now, at 46, I realize I experienced health issues this year. While the illnesses were not severe—mostly colds or general discomfort—they persisted across several months. Unlike others who recover from a cold within a week, it would take me two to three weeks to fully recover, and at times, it was challenging to even move as the illnesses were so severe.

I also facilitated many educational courses, and the demanding workload has stuck in my memory. I initially thought that my inevitable decline in physical fitness would be gradual rather than abrupt, but starting from my 46th year, I felt a significant decrease in energy. Teaching, which used to be effortless, became a draining task. Even teaching for four consecutive days became exhausting. Just one day of teaching left me extremely fatigued, and the following mornings, I found getting out of bed to be a challenge.

From that point, I noticed a substantial decrease in energy. These experiences over the past few years have prompted me to seriously consider what people commonly refer to as health maintenance. I underwent comprehensive health checks and after seeing friends my age gradually develop diabetes, I became concerned about my insulin resistance. Doctors recommended I promptly address these issues, and emphasized I particularly focus on my cholesterol levels and fats found in blood cells (blood lipids like triglycerides), as my medical test results were concerning. This advice prompted me to take active steps to manage these health issues.

Establishing Health as a Sustainable Habit: The Most Challenging Endeavor

As I’ve grown older, I've noticed a gradual and persistent increase in my body weight and elevated body fat. Consequently, I began focusing on diet and exercise. I experimented with various popular dietary approaches, such as the keto diet, the Mediterranean diet, and intermittent fasting (e.g., the 16/8 method). I found these methods to be effective only if you are able to maintain and sustain them. It became clear to me that the crux of the matter rested on making a thorough and lasting change to one's lifestyle; otherwise, the efforts would be in vain.

Despite initially seeming effective, I realized that these methods required tremendous willpower. My workload is substantial, and after expending all my willpower on work, it became challenging to adequately manage improved dietary and exercise habits.

For instance, after a strenuous eight-hour day of lecturing, I find it difficult to fast or abstain from food. Sometimes not eating can really put you in a bad mood. The same goes for exercise. Sometimes you are really tired. If you want to relax a little on the weekend, you may forfeit exercise.

For me, the ultimate challenge lies in discovering an approach that can seamlessly be integrated into my life, is sustainable, and can adapt to changes. This is considerably challenging, especially in my age group, where maintaining a healthy physique is genuinely demanding.

Creating an Environment to Effortlessly Enjoy a Healthy Lifestyle

Q: What health goals do you aspire to achieve?

Bryan: I'm not fixated on health metrics. Some people are highly concerned about numbers like waist circumference, BMI, and body fat percentage, but I feel okay about those figures. The health goals I'd like to achieve are more broad: I hope to lead a healthy life, and effortlessly incorporate healthy eating and exercise. I believe this is actually more challenging than any numerical target.

Should one strive to reach specific numerical goals within a few months? I've attempted that before, as mentioned earlier, and found it challenging to sustain. I don't weigh myself every day or do daily InBody tests because, ultimately, you still need to enjoy food and prepare your meals without exerting too much effort, so these actions can become habitual. As James Clear advocates in his book Atomic Habits, the best way is to change your surrounding environment so that everything moves towards your goals effortlessly, without expending willpower.

In light of all this, my goal is to create an environment for long-term health maintenance, not an ideal figure or number. A healthy lifestyle requires a healthy diet, which need to be sustained and enjoyed for the long term, which is the most challenging part. I hope that unconsciously, perhaps after six months, I'll impulsively check my weight and undergo a health check, only to discover that these numbers have decreased—that would be a sufficient win.

Nutritionist-Recommended Dietary Plan & User Experience

★ Introducing Our Nutritionist ★
Amanda Ho graduated from Taipei Medical University's Institute of Health and Nutrition. She worked for several years as a clinical nutritionist at Chang Gung Hospital, Taipei. She has assisted in developing specialized formula foods for specific diseases and has also co-authored books on cancer diets. Amanda aims to help everyone understand their health better and lead a more fulfilling and satisfying life.

Bryan's typical diet (approximately 5 days/week) is composed of 1-2 meals per day, predominantly consisting of store-bought foods or dining out. On lecture days (approximately 1-2 days/week), he consumes three meals a day.

For breakfast, he often opts for a Chinese-style meal, such as unsweetened soy milk or black tea paired with an egg pancake or toast.

Around 2:00pm on weekdays when he doesn’t lecture, he orders delivery or dines out, choosing options like Korean fried chicken, Vietnamese cuisine, fast food, or a light lunch box. There is an effort to minimize carbohydrate intake and increase protein supplementation.

On lecture days, he has a lunch box at midday, as the afternoon classes demand substantial energy expenditure.

Dinner around 7:00pm is also usually restaurant-bought food, such as Korean kimchi hot pot or mixed rice.

He’s had a busier schedule over the past three months, so his main form of exercise is a 40-60 minute brisk walk along the riverbank in the morning.

Regarding supplements, Bryan's wife primarily handles the purchases and his daily supplements are fish oil, vitamin C, and vitamin D.

Nutritionist's Recommendations:

• In the morning, I suggest Bryan consume a bottle of "Quaker Complete Meal 100 Chromium Sugar-Free Fiber-Containing Formula" instead of traditional breakfast options like egg pancakes or toast. This will reduce his carbohydrate intake and increase the intake of quality protein
• For one meal a day, he can consider replacing refined starch with Quaker Oatmeal.
• After meals, use one packet of "TDHB Supplement EXX Digestive Bacteria Powder" to promote metabolism and maintain a functional and happy digestive system.
• For an afternoon or bedtime snack, Bryan can make a drink with our Quaker High-Calcium Fat-free Milk Powder to ensure he gets enough calcium and vitamins. This product is a double-certified health food that helps regulate carbohydrate metabolism. All of these products were recommended to Brian after he completed the #100Seconds2Health survey.

Recommended daily calorie intake: 1600 kilocalories.

Q: How was your experience using the nutritionist's recommendations and STANDARD FOODS’ products over the last month? Do you have any questions you'd like to ask the nutritionist?

Bryan: I've made two crucial discoveries: there are two factors that help sustain of a dietary control plan: satiety and digestive health.

In my discussions with STANDARD FOODS’ nutritionist, I became aware of a key point that I had not noticed before: dietary fiber. I usually associate weight loss with controlling sugar, fat, and overall calorie intake, which are well-known concepts. However, my previous understanding of dietary fiber was limited to its assistance in digestion, and I didn't consider it to be particularly relevant to weight loss. Therefore, I never seriously incorporated dietary fiber into my diet control plan.

In my discussion with STANDARD FOODS’ nutritionist, the importance of dietary fiber was emphasized,as it provides a sense of satiety and has lower calories. When you feel satisfied, you’re less likely to binge eat. Although it made sense to me at the time, I didn't experience this first-hand until now.

During this period, following the nutritionist's advice, I replaced one meal with oatmeal. I have been consuming Quaker Oats, and it's a taste I'm accustomed to since my dad used to make oatmeal porridge with Quaker oats when I was a child. I hadn't thought about its connection to dietary fiber before, as it was already a food I enjoyed. If i pair it with the double-certified high-calcium fat-free milk powder, I find it quite tasty and satisfying to eat.

Dietary Fiber Plays a Crucial Role in Dietary Control

STANDARD FOODS Nutritionist: Most people overlook the importance of dietary fiber when controlling their weight. This is because, in the process of weight loss or calorie control, the first advice we usually hear is to reduce carbohydrate intake. However, carbohydrates actually contain dietary fiber. Therefore, when we cut carbohydrates during the initial stage of weight loss, we often simultaneously cut dietary fiber. This explains why most people feel a significant sense of hunger. Dietary fiber helps to increase satiety, alleviating the resistance to a change in diet caused by hunger.

Oatmeal contains a high level of soluble dietary fiber. Even before it enters the mouth, when it comes into contact with water, you can feel its thick and dense texture as it swells up in the cup. This brings a sense of satiety, making it less likely to leave you feeling empty or hungry.

Bryan: One of the recommendations in the plan is to "consume at least two servings of fruit a day." This is something I used to overlook. I have never been in the habit of eating fruit, as I’ve always thought that vegetables provided sufficient nutrients and that the nutrients in fruits were also present in vegetables. I’m also aware that fruit contained sugars that might not be good. So, I haven't seriously eaten fruit for many years. However, I followed your advice for three weeks and regularly ate fruit. I feel like it helps with satiety. What's the principle behind this choice?

STANDARD FOODS Nutritionist: Dietary fiber is divided into two types: soluble dietary fiber and insoluble dietary fiber. Fruits mainly contain soluble dietary fiber. Soluble dietary fiber can absorb water in the body, causing a sense of expansion in the digestive tract, thereby creating a feeling of satiety after consumption. On the other hand, whole grains or vegetables belong to insoluble fiber, mainly increasing fecal volume in the digestive tract, promoting bowel movements. Although both types are classified under dietary fiber, they have different effects on the body. Many of my patients or nutrition seekers often ask if eating vegetables alone is enough. For a nutritionist, vegetables and fruits not only differ in the type of dietary fiber but also in nutrients such as vitamin C, iron, folic acid, etc.

Bryan: So, a moderate intake of sugars, via fruit, is acceptable. Perhaps my prior view on sugar was too extreme. I have noticed that after I started eating fruit, usually in small portions like those available in convenience store packs, I found that my cravings for the sweet drinks my wife buys have disappeared! Perhaps it's because I already enjoy the sweetness of fruit, so there's no longer a desire to consume other sugary foods. If dietary control is too restrictive, there may be a continuous desire for sweet things. This insight is helpful for understanding how to sustain a weight management program.

Unexpected Benefits of Digestive Enzyme Powder

Bryan: The "Quaker Complete Meal 100 Chromium Unsweetened Fiber Formula" that I have for breakfast comes in a small purple bottle, and tastes similar to the unsweetened soy milk I usually drink. The taste is good, somewhat like oat milk. Despite being sugar-free, it's quite tasty. I've been drinking one bottle every day over the last three weeks. I find it excellent; firstly, I like its taste, and secondly, it brings a sense of satiety. Normally, I used to pair a drink with breakfast, but now I drink this purple Complete Meal formula. I have it chilled, paired with a boiled egg or tea egg. It's quite good.

I also tried the EXX Digestive Enzyme Powder and noticed that my weight has decreased by 2.5 kilograms over the past three weeks. As someone without a medical background, I cannot confirm if the decrease in my weight is related to the intake of probiotics. Still, after drinking it, I made some observations. First, the powder tastes good: sweet and sour, similar to Yakult. Second, I noticed a positive impact on my bowel movements, making them smoother. Third, although I'm not sure there's scientific evidence, it seems to have some helpful effects on my sleep. Maybe it's just psychological? I'm not quite sure, but over the past two weeks, consuming this probiotic every day gave me that feeling.

STANDARD FOODS Nutritionist: That’s great! Let me explain the logic behind this combination. Alongside the digestive enzymes, this powder also contains prebiotics and probiotics.

I’m going to bring your attention back to the soluble dietary fiber found in fruit. Not only does it help with satiety, this type of dietary fiber provides energy for the probiotics in the intestines. In other words, even if I’m supplementing with probiotics, if I don't provide enough nutrition for theis good bacteria to feed on, they may struggle to survive in my body. Therefore, it's necessary to simultaneously take probiotics, and provide them with food–what we call prebiotics–that can supply nutrition to the probiotics. Soluble dietary fiber happens to be a great energy source prebiotics that feed probiotics.

Thus, with this combination, we not only considered Bryan's lifestyle but also the phenomenon of the insufficient dietary fiber intake that many people have. We hope to promote the concept of balanced eating and a healthier lifestyle, and the addition of this digestive enzyme powder allows us to not only supplement probiotics in our daily diet but also provide the necessary nutrition for probiotics.

Bryan: So it's like creating an ecosystem in the body. We take probiotics and also give feed them, all while achieving a sense of satiety.

STANDARD FOODS Nutritionist: It’s interesting that you noticed an improvement in sleep after taking probiotics. It’s not just psychological! This is a research topic that has been discussed in many studies in recent years. Many researchers have identified a direct relationship between our digestive system and the brain and are exploring this field in their work.

Recommendations for Easy-to-Follow Dietary Guidelines

Bryan: I gained some insight after participating in the STANDARD FOODS Health Plan. Many people are discussing which dietary methods are the most effective, and I've tried many before, with limited results. However, I realised that it wasn't really my problem. Any method that is certified by a doctor or nutritionist will more or less have an effect, and I did see initial results with each approach. But the real challenge is how to effectively integrate it into our lives, which is the most significant challenge.

STANDARD FOODS Nutritionist: Yes, it has to be sustainable. A healthy eating pattern should be something that can last for a long time and be enjoyable, but that's the most challenging part.

Bryan: Trying out this Standard Foods recommended plan is easy to follow. I feel like I haven't made any particularly significant changes: I now occasionally replace rice with oatmeal, take a packet of digestive enzyme powder after meals, and I’ve switched my morning beverage to the Complete Meal nutrient. That's all. I think the whole experience is quite good. Overall, I'm satisfied.