Kind of an odd question....

bathedinshadow

So I've had this strange question floating around in my head since I was little and I thought I'd ask your thoughts on it. Perhaps this is the wrong category for it as it is pretty much the opposite of good nutrition, but there really isn't an area for how to consume bad foods.

Here it is: I'm wondering if you bought say a tub of ice cream and you sat down one night and ate the entire thing (I'm aware this is bad and probably couldn't do it if I tried but amuse me for sake of question) if it would some how digest (for lack of better word) and do less "harm" than if you ate some of it each day for a week. Kind of like how if you drank all of your weeks water in one day instead of spreading it out through the week... it would have a different affect on your body.

Kind of random, but I remember being little and getting junk food and just eating all of it to "get rid" of it because I felt like if I spread it out over each day it would be worse.

I'm sure I'll get all sorts of "don't do this," and I'm not planning on it. It's just a childhood question that I've never sought out an answer for.

bathedinshadow

So I've had this strange question floating around in my head since I was little and I thought I'd ask your thoughts on it. Perhaps this is the wrong category for it as it is pretty much the opposite of good nutrition, but there really isn't an area for how to consume bad foods.

Here it is: I'm wondering if you bought say a tub of ice cream and you sat down one night and ate the entire thing (I'm aware this is bad and probably couldn't do it if I tried but amuse me for sake of question) if it would some how digest (for lack of better word) and do less "harm" than if you ate some of it each day for a week. Kind of like how if you drank all of your weeks water in one day instead of spreading it out through the week... it would have a different affect on your body.

Kind of random, but I remember being little and getting junk food and just eating all of it to "get rid" of it because I felt like if I spread it out over each day it would be worse.

I'm sure I'll get all sorts of "don't do this," and I'm not planning on it. It's just a childhood question that I've never sought out an answer for.

jvandertuin

I would think, and I'm no nutritionist, but eating the tub of ice cream (or anything high in sugar) would be very bad for you. The primary reason is a spike in your sugar levels forcing your insulin to work overtime. Insulin acts as a bus, picking up sugar and transporting it into your cells for energy. Too much sugar, not enough insulin over time (I would guess). If you spread it out over a period of time, the body has time to accommodate to the smaller amounts of sugar needing to enter into the cells. Remember, sugar is a quick source of energy, then rapidly depletes. Plus, excess sugar will be stored for later use, (i.e. fat).

Again, I'm no nutritionist, but eating a tub of ice cream is not a healthy thing to do, especially if you do it on a regular basis. Hence the rise of diabetes in North America.

jvandertuin

I mean eating the ice cream in one sitting is worse for you then spreading it out over a period of time. Guess, I never really answered your question; I provided the explanation more so then answering it!

BrenNew

I have no idea as to the answer to your question. BUT, I CAN tell you that I know someone who used to sit and eat an entire half gallon of ice-cream at a single sitting! I couldn't believe it when she told me that! She said she'd have the container on a towel, since it would really start to sweat, as well as melt, by the time she got towards the end of it. :laugh:

pixiestick

I have no idea as to the answer to your question. BUT, I CAN tell you that I know someone who used to sit and eat an entire half gallon of ice-cream at a single sitting! I couldn't believe it when she told me that! She said she'd have the container on a towel, since it would really start to sweat, as well as melt, by the time she got towards the end of it. :laugh:

First of all, that is amazing (in a weird, almost scary sort of way).

Second, I have heard that it's "better" to splurge one crazy day than to half-splurge for several days. I only think that holds up if the "half-splurges" are still outside of the moderate portion range (ie eating a consistent 500+cals over your daily limit or eating one day of 2000+cals). I would think that having 180cals worth of sorbet every night of the week and factoring that into your daily calorie allowance would be more advisable than eating 1200+cals in one sitting.

bathedinshadow

I would think, and I'm no nutritionist, but eating the tub of ice cream (or anything high in sugar) would be very bad for you. The primary reason is a spike in your sugar levels forcing your insulin to work overtime. Insulin acts as a bus, picking up sugar and transporting it into your cells for energy. Too much sugar, not enough insulin over time (I would guess). If you spread it out over a period of time, the body has time to accommodate to the smaller amounts of sugar needing to enter into the cells. Remember, sugar is a quick source of energy, then rapidly depletes. Plus, excess sugar will be stored for later use, (i.e. fat).

Again, I'm no nutritionist, but eating a tub of ice cream is not a healthy thing to do, especially if you do it on a regular basis. Hence the rise of diabetes in North America.

Yes... like I said, I'm aware it's bad. That really wasn't what I was getting at though. But I promise you I won't eat the entire tub. haha.

beautifulmessxox

That is so funny. When I buy junk food (say.. a box of Girl Scout Cookies), I try to eat the thing as soon as possible so that I don't have to eat a few every day! However.. if you have calories allotted for it, I don't think it's bad to splurge every once in awhile. For example, I did yoga last week which burns a TON of calories.. I also woke up late, so ate very little. For dessert, I had 4 girl scout cookies. In that instance, I don't think it does much harm.

I say.. splurge if you want.. just do it in moderation.

thejarviclan

I guess I'm not really answering your question in the way you want, but this sort of behavior would be a red flag for obsessive-compulsive disorder. I have a 13 year-old OCD son and, while he doesn't eat an entire container of ice cream at once, he has similar odd eating behaviors.

stephaneyh

no one seems to 'get' what you're asking........will massive, excessive amounts of sugar and fat be more or less harmfull when consumed in one sitting, than the same massive, excessive amount being consumed over a period of 7 days.........the body can't process that much sugar and fat at one time, just as it can't process that much food at one time in your stomach...........your insulin levels your body produces in response to food aren't capable of the massive doses that would be required to break down all the sugar, your gallbladder can't process such large quantities of fat at one time, so they will trigger other responses in your body that you can't ignore, such as throwing up what's backed up in your stomach, and feeling extremely nauseous. There will never be a poop out the excess so you're home free on weight gain scenario. What excess you were able to consume before you started throwing up, will be stored as fat and in about 2 days you should see a big jump in your weight.

However, if you ate the same amount over a period of 7 days in equal portions, your insulin levels would have time to adjust to the new higher levels of sugar intake and so on and so forth. Satiation involves the brain, too, not just the stomach and I'll bet at some point during that 7 day period that ice cream won't taste anywhere near as good as it did on day one. That's the brain trying to stop you from harming the body, through your taste buds.

stephaneyh

I've had a similarly ponderous question:

How is it that my husband was diagnosed with diabetes when he turned 60, when he has never, EVER liked sweets?

I realize that carbs break down into sugar and he used to consume enough dry snack food and high fat snack food and beer to fill the stomach of a small horse, all in one sitting. But, my question is did his diet of high-carbs-turned-to-sugar damage his insulin production for the rest of his life, OR, is it strictly hereditary and somewhere in his 'tree' others had diabetes or is it an unknown factor, still today?

Of course, he doesn't eat like he used to, since being diagnosed, and he's not on pills for it, yet, but, the 'snacker' in him will not die and I'm afraid he just doesn't understand how foods break down, chemically, in his body.

Anyway, thanks for your answers in advance!

kerrilucko

The only thing it's better for is your teeth! Spreading out the consumptions of sugar puts your teeth through the ringer. The longer they are exposed to sugar, the more likely you are to get cavities so if you're having sweets, have them all at once, don't spread them out :laugh:

otherwise a calorie is a calorie. Trust me, it is very possible to gain a lb or 2 in a day if you eat enough.

songbyrdsweet

I've had a similarly ponderous question:

How is it that my husband was diagnosed with diabetes when he turned 60, when he has never, EVER liked sweets?

I realize that carbs break down into sugar and he used to consume enough dry snack food and high fat snack food and beer to fill the stomach of a small horse, all in one sitting. But, my question is did his diet of high-carbs-turned-to-sugar damage his insulin production for the rest of his life, OR, is it strictly hereditary and somewhere in his 'tree' others had diabetes or is it an unknown factor, still today?

Of course, he doesn't eat like he used to, since being diagnosed, and he's not on pills for it, yet, but, the 'snacker' in him will not die and I'm afraid he just doesn't understand how foods break down, chemically, in his body.

Anyway, thanks for your answers in advance!

Sweets aren't the only foods that cause an insulin response. Some complex carbohydrates, like white potatoes and some fruits, create a larger insulin response than something like ice cream because they're not accompanied by any fats to slow digestion and therefore the insulin spike. (Ice cream is actually low-GI ). And like you said, all carbohydrates are just sugar, and all of them need insulin to be taken up by cells.

It also depends on what type of diabetes he has. In general, late-onset diabetes is Type II and caused by a problem with the cells' sensitivity to insulin. After years of big insulin spikes or high insulin levels in general, the cells sort of become like 'addicts'--even high levels of the hormone don't cause them to react and take up the blood sugar. It's not a problem with insulin production.

On the other hand, early-onset diabetes, Type I, is usually hereditary or caused by some disease that has damaged the pancreas where insulin is produced. In this case, the body just can't produce enough insulin, so even though the cells will respond there's not enough hormone to get the sugar into the cells.

Fortunately, Type II diabetes can be improved through diet and exercise. Exercise will help increase your insulin sensitivity, and diet will keep the insulin levels in check. It's actually not bad at all to snack on little meals throughout the day to keep blood sugar levels stable, just as long as each meal contains a fat and protein and moderate amounts of carbohydrate.

SallyAnn

Calories are Calories and will put on pounds. With that said I would eat it over a period of time, say a month. It will satisfy any urges and can be worked into your daily calorie limit.

songbyrdsweet

So I've had this strange question floating around in my head since I was little and I thought I'd ask your thoughts on it. Perhaps this is the wrong category for it as it is pretty much the opposite of good nutrition, but there really isn't an area for how to consume bad foods.

Here it is: I'm wondering if you bought say a tub of ice cream and you sat down one night and ate the entire thing (I'm aware this is bad and probably couldn't do it if I tried but amuse me for sake of question) if it would some how digest (for lack of better word) and do less "harm" than if you ate some of it each day for a week. Kind of like how if you drank all of your weeks water in one day instead of spreading it out through the week... it would have a different affect on your body.

Kind of random, but I remember being little and getting junk food and just eating all of it to "get rid" of it because I felt like if I spread it out over each day it would be worse.

I'm sure I'll get all sorts of "don't do this," and I'm not planning on it. It's just a childhood question that I've never sought out an answer for.

Generally, if you eat a HUGE chunk of food, you can't absorb all of the calories as efficiently as you can with a small chunk of food because of how your intestines work.

Your intestines contract in a wavelike manner. As food moves down, it stimulates muscles behind it to contract and move it along further. There are also muscles that segment the big chunks into smaller ones and mix it all around to get the stuff from the middle to squish out to the outside. With a really thick chunk of food, even if it gets segmented, the chances are that it won't get absolutely everything from the middle to squish out, so no contact is made with some of the food and no nutrients can be absorbed from it.

The calories would probably be VERY few, especially with a liquid which is easier to mix. You'd probably just have a really bad stomach ache and gas from all the sugars.

Pebbles2

The problem with doing this is the overload of sugar,salt fat, might raise your blood sugar high, also high blood pressure, cholestorel ect.
Many years ago a dental hygenist told me, its better if the kids eat all there candy from Halloween the same day, this way the sugar overload on the teeth will only be for that day. Maybe less chance of tooth decay. But, she did not consider the stomach.
I am no expert but know for myself if I eat to much of one thing in one sitting I start to feel sick to my stomach, and start getting a headach.

Mommy2Girls

For your body - you would be better (if you had to) to eat a little bit of the ice cream everyday until it is gone. An average tub of ice cream has about 2500 cal and 125g of fat. If you were to consume this entire tub one night along with everything else you ate that day you would pretty much gaurentee yourself that you would gain a pound (atleast!) of fat as we all know 3500 cal = 1 lb lost or gained. Now, if you were to eat a cup of this ice cream which is equivilant to about 350 cal and 20g of fat along with everything else you ate that day your body would be more inclined to breaking down the sugars and fats from the ice cream and instead of gaining 1 lb that day you would most likely maintain your weight (not lose), however a splurge of a cup of ice cream here and there would eventually result in weight gain over time if it continued to put you over your cal intake. If you made room in your diet for that additional 320 cal then you could actually consume the ice cream with no overall affect on your body.

Bottom line - one tub of ice cream at one sitting would put your body into "overload". And as many other posts mentioned your insulin cannot work fast enough to break things down and your body would begin to store the sugars as fat.

Don't Do It!!!:laugh:

Nich0le

I think songbyrdsweet probably answered the best .

Simply put, excess calories are excess calories and excess calories that the body doesn't need are stored as fat. So if you eat all of them today or a little everyday you will end up with the same long term results, not to mention a horrible stomach ache and the runs to go along with it.

Answer, no, eating it all in one sitting does not cause less harm than eating a little each day.

stephaneyh

Yes, he has Type II diabetes, I forgot to say.

I found it astonishing that once it became full blown enough to show in tests, he became a sugar freak. He went for about 6 months, after getting the bad news, eating gallons of Blue Bunny ice cream, because that was the kind the nutritionist recommended. HE NEVER ATE ICE CREAM BEFORE THAT, he never ate pies, he never touched anything but his one piece of birthday cake each year and all of a sudden he became an eating machine.

He'd get up from the table, after consuming a supper of Salisbury steak w/gravy and mashed potatoes and seasoned green beans, biscuits and sugared tea and go straight to the food pantry for a box of cheese tid-bits or to the freezer for a BIG bowl of ice cream with cherries on top.

All I've ever hear him say was how I put too much food on his plate and how he didn't understand how I could eat so much , blah, blah, blah. And all of a sudden he was behaving as though he couldn't get full.

I was wondering if it was possibly more mental than a physical effect of the disease and he was wolfing down sweets because he had been told he shouldn't have them anymore.

What does everyone else think or know?

songbyrdsweet

It sounds mental to me. Had he increased his consumption of sweets prior to the diagnosis, you might be able to say the cravings could be caused by his body not receiving enough glucose, but if it just happened out of the blue post-diagnosis, that argument really isn't valid. His sugars would've been high for a while before the diagnosis. Actual symptoms of diabetes do include increased hunger (not just for sweets though), increased thirst, increased urination, weight loss, and glucose in the urine. I'm glad you guys caught it though and can now start to get it under control. :flowerforyou:

artschoolgirl

O-K, I guess here's the way I think when "splurging"....I zig-zag my calories, and one day a week I don't keep track of my calories. THis does not mean that I eat crazy, I still stay in my mental boundaries. I would never encourage you to every buy a whole gallon of ice cream or any other junk food, but if you're really craving it and you're up and up day where you're allowed more calories, maybe splurge on a small tub or frozen yogurt & try and include lots of fruits. I would not encourage this as a weekly thing. I also believe that everything should be in moderation. If we're having an office party, i don't refuse a slice of cake, or I don't deprive myself of a bit of my boyfriends desert if we're out to dinner, I think you need to be realistic and set achievable goals & think about how you're going to live once you've lost all the weight.

Honestly, there are sooooo many more things that are more satisfying than a tub of ice cream. If you take those little containers of yogurt and place them in the freezer, you would think that you were having super creamy, yummy ice cream! I love mixing granola or frozen blueberries in mine. Also, a bowl of granola or yummy cereal with soy milk I find way more satisfying.

Just some tips! Stay away from the ice cream!