Better Breakfasts for Dh?

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My dh eats a substantial breakfast, at the very least 2 eggs, 4 pieces of toast and juice. He prefers the ham & eggs, sausage & eggs, bacon & eggs type meal instead. Pancakes, french toast, a pile of hashbrowns etc. make it that much better. By 10 a.m., he is ready for muffins, donuts, leftover pizza or whatever to hold him over till a big dinner at 1 p.m. He seems to not be able to get by without this type of eating. Although he tests negative for hypoglycemia, he has most of the symptoms if he does not eat this way (nausea, weakness, breaks out in a cold sweat, etc). Unbelieveably, he is at the same weight as when he entered college at age 17 or so, (he is 64 now), and is very trim and fit, actually almost thin. He never has a cholesterol problem. His doctors, whom he works with daily so they see what he eats, just shake their heads and roll their eyes, but admit all his test results are always excellent. (I never eat like this and guess who has to watch their weight and cholesterol!)

I do try to feed him healthy food, but obviously the term is relative here...how do you fix "healthy" bacon and fried potatoes every morning?! He won't eat cereal, hot or cold, and honestly, it would probably last him all of 10 minutes before he burned it up and was hungry again. He is definately not interested in any vegetarian or tofu style meals, either.

Any ideas for substantial "man-style" breakfasts that would be healthier than what he's eating now? I fear his diet will catch up with him someday. I'm afraid this is a lost cause, LOL. But if anyone can come up with ideas, I know you guys will!

-- Lenette (kigervixen@webtv.net), January 23, 2002

Answers

I really do mean this in a nice way- if it ain't broke, don't fix it! Sure wish I had a metabolism like that. Sigh...

-- Jean (schiszik@tbcnet.com), January 23, 2002.

I agree - it's obvious he can handle that type of eating. Not much you can do to make it healthy really without a big change - which just must cause him trouble! Good luck.

-- Katie (homesteader@accessnevada.com), January 23, 2002.

You might try and throw in milk (fat-free) to drink and fruit instead of juice. Fruit in the whole form is more filling than juice, and just make sure he gets plenty of vegetables with all that meat, I guess!

I eat what I please -- do people pick on him because he can eat like that and not gain weight? I get that sometimes, but I know my time is coming, and I thank God that I do love vegetables!

-- Christine in OK (cljford@mmcable.com), January 23, 2002.


Same advice from me...be thankful and keep cooking! My husband is the same way..he eats more than anybody I have ever met in my life and most of it is nearly pure grease every three hours or so..yet God love him, his cholesterol is lower than normal, his heart if fine..he is not overweight and he is exceedingly healthy and 59 years old...At your husbands' age, nothing is likely to creep up on him that isn't already there! My grandmother smoked three packs of Camels a day from age 15 until she died two months short of her 95th birthday...no cancer, no heart disease..she had an infection in her hip..that defies alot of medical experience..I have seen a great deal of folks die from lung cancer from smoking a single pack for 25 years in their 40s...go figure..I wouldn't worry about your husband at ALL!

-- lesley (martchas@bellsouth.net), January 23, 2002.

My husband is the same. Before bed every night it's a big bowl of ice cream. He even tries to gain weight. Wish I could eat like he does. Although, he does eat his veggies and fruit too. Tom gets teased at family reunions and such because he's always the last one eating, usually on his 3rd or 4th plate of food. His bp is always in the 90/60 range, low cholesterol, lipid profiles that are perfect. I guess if they are that healthy there's nothing to be worried about.

-- vicki in NW OH (thga76@aol.com), January 24, 2002.


Thanks, everyone. Not having to change anything is definately the easiest solution for me! I'm relieved to hear he's not the only one that eats like that. And yes, he eats a huge bowl of ice cream every night also. AFTER coming home from work and eating a big bowl of chips, or tortilla chips with salsa and sour cream, and then supper. He does have a very fast metabolism, but he also works hard, at least 2 hours of farm chores every day in addition to a full time job, and works hard on the place all weekend. Guess I will just leave things be and quit worrying. :)

-- Lenette (kigervixen@webtv.net), January 24, 2002.

My husband is the same way.

Some tips though: try using egg whites, and just one yolk to make the scrambled eggs. Fry in high quality olive oil. There is a huge difference in quality of sausage, what we buy from a friend is much lower in fat that store bought. So you can make little changes here and there. We love grape juice too, which is supposed to be good for the heart.

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), January 24, 2002.


Lenette- at the risk of repeating everyone else-My husband is the same way. One thought-you say he eats a big dinner-what does he eat? If you all are not eating fast food, or packaged food (like tv dinners) I wouldn't worry either. We found that after giving up fast food (ok, 99% of the time) we could eat more homecooked food without weight gain.

-- Kelly(KY) (homearts2002@yahoo.com), January 24, 2002.

You know the food and diet "guru's" may have it all wrong. Your husbands prove the point that diet is not everything. You have to take into account exercise and genes. I was reading in Reader's Digest last nite about a study where they let one group eat "fats" such as olive oil, nuts, avocados. They lost more weight than the group on a no-fat diet. I think our bodies need all the foods (that's why God made them). Just try to eat natural fats like butter and stay away from the man-made like Crisco. And moderation in all , of course. Just my two cents worth.

-- connie in nm (karrelandconnie@msn.com), January 24, 2002.

I had a friend like that and found out he had a very over active thyorid. Seems like they just gave him some pills to take and then he had to watch what he ate so he did not gain weight. LOL Thank you so much for your help doc!!! LOL He said he can't have bacon and eggs everyday for breakfast and is supost to make him live longer. He said I don't know if it is going to make me live longer but it is sure going to seem alot longer not haveing the things I like. LOL

-- Teresa (c3ranch@socket.net), January 24, 2002.


I would suggest that you simply make sure that the quality of the food he is eating is sound - organic eggs, organic, farm-raised meat, "real" orange juice, real milk, whole wheat toast, home made jelly. You get the picture. He obviously uses all he eats, so just making sure that there is less "crap" for his body to deal with in the form of preservatives, icky-poo chemicals, hormones, etc will help to ensure that he remains a healthy and happy hubby.

-- Soni (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), January 30, 2002.

Wish I could eat like that...I love ice cream and bread is my biggest downfall. But you can make sneaky little changes (I grew up with my Dad, Mr. Meat and Potatoes) and my mom would do little things, like only use vegetable oil, or use 2% milk instead of whole. When she cooked cakes she would leave out one of the eggs or use only 1 whole egg and 1 white. Little things like that so he wouldn't notice, but it was so much healthier for Dad. If you worry, then you can add more veggies too, but don't do like I do and add bacon fat to your green beans :>)

Good luck - mighty hard to change an old dog's tricks...

-- Cindy (colawson@mindspring.com), January 30, 2002.


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