About Dr. Gourmet

My name is Timothy Harlan and I am both a physician and a chef. This blog is a general collection of information and random ideas on eating great food and eating healthy.

You can find out more at the Dr. Gourmet web site. Eat well, eat healthy, enjoy life!

Categories

Losing Weight After 40; Menopause; Salt : Ask Dr. Gourmet

Dear Dr. Gourmet,

Q: I’ve been following a Weight Watchers type diet for 2 1/2 months now. I’m 44 yrs old, 5′4″ and weigh just over 150 lbs. In the past, as recently as last year, I have been able to go a month or two [...]

Health and Heredity, Aluminum, Food Starch : Ask Dr. Gourmet Newsletter

Dear Dr. Gourmet,

Q: I have to ask if you think it is wise to propose using aluminum foil at all given the possibility of it perhaps, after long usage, contributing to Alzheimer’s? Apparently there is some concern about pots made from aluminum.

Nuts Still the Best Snacks : Dr. Gourmet's Health and Nutrition Bites

When I’m giving a lecture about eating healthy, someone invariably asks about snacking. As you may already know, I’m not a big fan of snacking between meals when you’re trying to lose weight. All too often that snacking simply adds calories that you don’t need. [...]

How to Get Kids to Eat More Vegetables

As I noted last week, small children won’t eat what they don’t like, and vegetables are at the top of the list of things that small children don’t like and won’t eat. So it’s probably no surprise that children don’t get enough vegetables in their [...]

Dr. Gourmet's Health and Nutrition Bites: August 24, 2011

Do family meals affect family weight?

In the past thirty years or so we’ve seen fewer families eating dinner together regularly, and this has coincided with the increase in individual’s waistlines. Plenty of studies have looked at the relationship between family meals and weight in children, [...]

Ask Dr. Gourmet Newsletter for August 16, 2011

Dear Dr. Gourmet,

Q: I’ve been diagnosed with hemachromatosis. Can you recommend a diet that is low in iron and iron retaining content?

A: Hemochromatosis (for those readers who [...]

Whole Grains and Belly Fat: Dr. Gourmet's Health and Nutrition Bites

For the last few weeks I’ve been writing about the effects of the Mediterranean Diet in general and some of the specific components of the Mediterranean Diet on abdominal fat deposition (read: belly fat). My patients are often concerned about belly fat, not because of its [...]

Mediterranean Diet Advantages Not Limited to Normal Weight

A lot of articles about research studies make it sound like overweight or obesity is a direct cause of conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. This isn’t true. While we know that there is a statistical link between having excess body weight and having [...]

What Not To Eat: High Fructose Corn Syrup Edition

Dr. Tim Says….

I suppose that I can’t put this off any longer. The discussion about high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) can really get people riled up. At virtually every single talk that I give, someone in the audience asks about it. Something seemingly simple like, “What about [...]

In Memoriam : Dr. Gourmet Newsletter

Dr. Tim Says….

This week’s death of Blair River, the 575 pound spokesperson for the Heart Attack Grill is disturbing to be sure. First and foremost because this young man was only 29 years old. This means that he lived a scant 11 years as an [...]