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Oct. 10, 2023 - Dr. Oz Podcast
42:41
10 Unexpected Ways to Use Your Microwave | Dr. Oz | S11 | Ep 84 | Full Episode
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Time Text
The microwave is the best tool.
We have 10 unexpected ways to use your microwave that will blow you away.
Eggplant parm in the microwave.
Use your microwave to cook and shuck the corn.
14 minutes and you got this baby.
And what's really the best microwave popcorn?
We investigate.
Plus, haven't started our System 20 plan yet?
There's still time.
We're revealing sleep hacks and stress busters for a restful new you.
Coming up next...
Are you ready for season 11?
Yeah!
Microwaves are often overlooked and seen as nothing more than a way to heat up leftovers or popcorn.
But microwave ovens are full of potential.
Today we're showing you 10 unexpected ways to use your microwave.
From veggies to chocolate, my favorite.
That'll leave you wondering, why do I even have an oven?
I'm ready, let's get started.
Julia Collin-Davidson has worked with America's Test Kitchen to actually test these microwave hacks so you can rely on them.
So in your opinion, why should we rethink the microwave?
Yeah, they're not just for reheating food and leftovers and warming up old coffee.
They can actually cook vegetables very healthy because you don't need to add oil.
And it also can help jumpstart cooking process for longer cooked foods.
So it's a valuable tool in the kitchen.
All right, we'll take you through this.
We've talked all about microwaves in this show, how they preserve nutrients.
For example, for example, as a doctor, you know, I've got so many ideas.
Let's just get to the hacks.
No, seriously, I've got so many concepts that should work here.
And a lot of these nutrients, we think they're better off if you boil the vegetable in the water.
It's not true.
So, let's show everyone how to make an eggplant parm, guys.
Eggplant parm in the microwave.
If you've got a little hack, first of all, deal with the eggplants.
That's right.
So, eggplants are like little sponges.
They just soak up all the cooking oil, and they're very hard to brown.
So, the way around this is to microwave the eggplant.
So, here you have eggplant not unmicrowaved, and here you have it microwaved.
Not much of a looker, but the microwave does two things.
It evaporates excess moisture so that it'll brown more quickly with less oil.
It also collapses the cell structure so that it won't absorb as much oil cooking.
No matter what you're cooking, if you're making eggplant parm or ratatouille or an eggplant salad or throwing it on the grill, always microwave it first.
All right, now it's my turn for the eggplant part.
You ready for this?
Very, very simple.
You take the eggplant that was made without being too moist in that, you peel it, you cut it up, put it into a bowl, right?
Then you layer it on top of the sauce, right?
And then add some cheese to that, and you've got your first layer.
Now, I've already done it for the first couple layers.
Very simply, bang out an extra layer here.
Super simple.
I like that it's chopped.
That makes it a lot easier to make.
Well, the best thing about it is you made it properly before I even started.
Then, pour a little sauce in there.
Be liberal with this, guys.
You're a natural.
Natural.
Then, do this.
Yeah.
Okay, now, here's the part.
You open up your microwave, toss it in there, 14 minutes, right?
14 minutes, and you got this baby dinner coming around, right?
Super simple.
But that, no one can tell.
You did not make that in a microwave or an oven.
They just don't know.
So text me the word EGGPLANT at 917-993-5487.
That's my text.
I will send you the full recipe to your phone.
No strings attached.
But guys, if you can do that in 14 minutes, 14 minutes you can do a workout, you can do your book.
Yes, yes.
No harm, no pain.
Takes a minute to make it, and you're good to go.
Homemade dinner.
Homemade dinner.
In 14 minutes.
And you're, Julia, you're endorsing it, which is what I love.
Yes.
Now next up, unexpectedly, you can use the microwave to make fried onions.
Yes.
These are fantastic over beans, zucchini, big juicy burgers like this.
Well, usually you'd fry them on the stovetop.
It's messy.
It's a pot and pan that you don't have to wash.
So instead, we're going to use the microwave.
So you just take some vegetable oil and some shallots, nicely thinly chopped shallots.
You're going to put it in the microwave for about two to three minutes.
You want to go in there and stir it every two to three minutes.
It takes about ten minutes, all told, and they just brown and fry in the microwave.
Oh, my goodness.
Yeah, isn't that amazing?
And then you drain off the oil.
Save the oil.
That oil is now shallot oil.
And you can use it in your vinaigrettes.
It tastes amazing.
And then look how crisp these are.
You just put them on top of a burger.
Every time I thought about microwaves, I thought about making things doughy or soft.
Not actually making them crispy.
That's right.
It's basically, you're using the oven to fry the shallots rather than do it on the stove top.
God bless you.
Yeah.
Changed my mind.
Next up, you can use your microwave very unexpectedly to shuck corn.
Oh, this is cool.
This is my usual task on the weekends.
Oh, is it?
Out back with the paper bag shucking the corn?
Shuck, shuck for huge parties.
Okay, so use your microwave to cook and shuck the corn.
So we have some ears of corn here.
What you want to do is you want to cut off the base just right past that first layer of corn.
So that's perfect.
Put it in the microwave.
You can do it for two to three minutes until it's warm.
Actually, you left the shucking part on.
Yeah!
It's that easy.
No more bags of shucking on the back porch.
You just shake it up and down, and then you can kind of just squeeze it out.
And if it doesn't come out easily, you throw it in there for another minute or two.
It's like popping a zit.
That's not appealing.
Metaphorically speaking, of course.
That's not appealing at all.
And you can just shake it out.
And so this I would pop in for another 30 seconds and it'll fall right out and it'll be perfectly cooked.
All right, leave that, put that back in there.
We're gonna come back to this.
We're gonna heat this baby up again one more time.
I'm gonna prove it to you because it does work.
You're trying.
And finally, the next I expect I'd use for your microwave is the toast nuts.
You know how much I love nuts.
Yes.
You're nuts for nuts.
I am nuts for nuts.
Everyone should have nuts in their pockets anyway.
So what's the secret?
So toasting nuts, it brings out their flavor.
Whenever you're baking with nuts, you should always toast them first.
They won't toast in the baked good.
You have to toast them first.
Use the microwave.
So doing it in the microwave just takes a few minutes.
You want to check them every minute or so.
Give them a shake.
When you start to see them turn brown, reduce it from a minute to 30 seconds.
And just do 30 seconds until they're nice and toasted.
And no more burned nuts.
As I was saying, these are raw.
Now here we are.
Here we are.
Yeah, you can see the difference.
Here, what do you want?
Let's get the audience to taste this, guys.
I want your honest opinions here.
You guys taste, when we come back, I'm gonna talk to you a little bit about it.
Just tell me if you enjoy them or not.
I think they're fantastic.
They're roasted and they work.
So I approve of this microwave hack if it means you're getting more almonds in your diet anyway.
All right, let's go back to this corn now.
I'll give you 30 seconds more.
That's it.
It's all you needed.
Oh, you can see that it started to really come away from the corn, and you just shake it out.
It works!
Yes!
Is this cooked?
Yes, it's actually, you can just slice it off and eat it.
You can eat it just like that.
Yes.
It worked!
Yeah, or you could throw it on the grill if you were gonna grill the corn.
No, no, it's moist.
This is a much...
Isn't that good?
The thing about microwaves that amaze me, it's not about making it almost as good as it would have been.
You can make it better than it was.
And it frees up your stove to cook other things.
Who wants corn?
Here it goes.
Catch.
Don't drop it.
Don't drop it.
All right.
Up next.
Oh, another microwave hack for all you chocolate candy bar lovers.
Y'all love chocolate?
Yes!
You're going to adore this.
Plus, big question.
He's eating at me.
Are microwaves really the best way to make potatoes?
Stay tuned.
Do you need a health reboot?
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A plan you can stick with because we made it easy.
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System 20 for 2020.
Today is microwave mania here at the Dr. R. Show because we are showing you how to use your microwave to make delicious, hot, and healthy food fast.
Take a look at this.
In our house, we love a baked potato.
We used to pop them in the microwave until we realized the microwave never cooked the microwave through.
Dr. Oz, are we missing something?
Is this a sign that we shouldn't eat our favorite car?
So is there a way to get this spud to be a stud?
That is the question.
Using the microwave.
You did an experiment microwaving potatoes.
You broke down all the barriers.
What did you find?
What's wrong with microwaving potatoes?
Well, so microwave is very fast, but it's very uneven.
So to illustrate this, we compared it to a potato that we boiled.
Now both of these were cooked for three minutes.
Okay, so simmered and microwaved.
Yeah, and now if you look at this simmered one, you can see there's a ring right around the inside.
That's undercooked, but it's only cooked around the edge.
So it's not cooked all the way through, but it's cooked nice and evenly around the edge.
Now over here, if you look at the microwaved potato, it's cooked in the middle right there, but you can see right there it's a little under, and right there it's a little under.
So it doesn't cook evenly, but it cooks more quickly.
Put ears on this thing.
And a smiley face.
This is a cool thing about science, when you begin to understand why these things occur.
So let me walk you through one of the reasons microwaving your potatoes is maybe not the cook's fault.
So you ever wonder why they get soggy?
Things in general get soggy in the microwave, right?
So according to America's Test Kitchen, here's what happens when you put your microwave With a potato inside of it, right?
There are hot spots, and there are cool spots, right?
180 degrees over here.
Way up top there, it's 205 degrees.
There's a big difference.
When you bite into this, that feels hot, this feels cold.
You'll sense it, right?
And we know that it heats the potato unevenly.
You just heard that from Julia.
But the cooking process takes place with a molecular reaction inside.
All these little cells, right, are rubbing each other, right?
And when they rub, they create friction, right?
And that causes the potato to increase its pressure, most likely, and that bursts these walls.
Boom!
Boom!
When those burls begin to collapse, you get this wet, soggy potato.
No one's happy.
But Julia, just like they say, actually the Goonies say this, right?
Never say die, right?
Yes, yes.
Neither is America's Test Kitchen.
Nope.
You guys keep hammering away.
You finally work around exclusively for Dr. Oz viewers.
That's it.
What do you got?
Well, so a baked potato takes about an hour, hour and 15 minutes, and it's lovely and fluffy.
But if you want to speed it up, we're going to use the microwaves for part of the cooking and finish it in the oven.
We're using a two-toned approach here.
So jumpstart it in the microwave, on high, about 10 minutes there about, and then you put it in a 500 degree oven.
Right before you put it in the oven, you brush it with oil.
That gets the skin nice and crisp.
We put a little salt on there.
The oil will help the salt stick.
And you bake it for about 15 minutes in a hot 500 degree oven.
On this rack, that allows the air to circulate all over.
And as soon as it comes out, you want to put an X right in there, and you want to open it up.
You want to release that steam.
I know, doesn't that look like an ad?
Yeah.
But it's fantastic looking, but why wouldn't you make the X before you put it in the oven?
No, you want the moisture to stay in to help cook through more evenly, but you gotta release that steam as soon as it comes out.
If that steam stays in there, that's when you get a soggy mess.
So the oven cooks it through more evenly, helps evaporate some of the moisture, and then doing this at the end helps get rid of that moisture so it stays fluffy.
So instead of the 75 minutes of doing this, it's 5 minutes microwave?
About 10 minutes in the microwave, and about 15 minutes in the oven.
So it's about half an hour all in.
I like it.
Time saver, and it tastes good.
It tastes good.
All right, next unexpected way to use your microwave.
You've been waiting for it.
Hold on here, guys.
It's to melt chocolate so you can make a chocolate bar.
Or put chocolate in anything else you want.
Now, I personally did not think there could possibly be a shortcut for using chocolate in the microwave.
Really?
It never crossed my mind as an option.
Oh, the microwave is the best tool for melting chocolate so it stays nice and glossy.
Can I see it?
Absolutely.
So you want to go in here.
Again, it takes about three and a half minutes to melt.
And you can see it just melts nice and evenly.
That's not what you do.
You do this.
Please, this is what you all do?
Oh wait, I'm learning.
Why don't you do this?
The kids do this, and then they check.
Now, 70% dark chocolate's my favorite kind for chocolate candy, so I challenge social media influencer, Carissa Benson from Physical Kitcheness, to use her microwave to make 70% dark chocolate candy bars.
Take a look at this.
You are going to love my healthier homemade candy bars made with 70% dark chocolate, blueberries, mixed nuts, and my secret weapon, orange zest.
Just five ingredients, under 30 minutes, and so totally decadent.
All you need is a microwave, a freezer, and a sweet tooth.
Let's get started.
All you're gonna do is break apart a few chocolate bars and put them in a microwave-safe dish.
Microwave the chocolate in 10-second intervals and mix them in between.
You'll do this for just under two minutes until the chocolate is all melty and drippy and heavenly.
Reserve a tablespoon of the chocolate and pour the remaining in a parchment-lined loaf pan.
Add the blueberries, sliced almonds, shelled pistachios, and then zest an orange over the top.
If desired, you can add some coarse salt too.
Then drizzle the reserved chocolate over the top and voila.
Transfer the pan to a freezer and chill for 15 minutes.
If you're serving these bars for later, move them into the fridge until they're ready.
The true test.
Hmm.
I'm not sharing these.
They're so good.
I'll tell you, that looks good.
It does look good.
All right, Krista, thank you, Julia.
It was always wonderful work.
You can sure check out the cookbook of America's Test Kitchen's 20th anniversary.
It's superb at everything else they do.
Next up, your favorite microwave food of all time, microwave popcorn.
I know you love it, right?
You all love it.
It's a big popcorn taste test coming up.
Results, you won't want to miss them.
Mm-hmm.
Thank you.
Husband of missing Connecticut mom now charged with her murder.
And why authorities believe he may not have acted alone.
To think that her final moments consisted of zip ties and an axe is just chilling.
That's coming up tomorrow.
The popcorn industry is a billion dollar business.
Billion with a B. But with over hundreds of kinds to choose from, it can get pretty confusing, no matter how beautiful they are doing somersaults in front of you.
Which one of these kernels is healthy?
And which one actually tastes like butter?
Luckily, our friends at America's Test Kitchen love to geek out over life's deep questions like those.
They did a blind taste test of seven of the top popcorn brands, and they are here to reveal which pop came up on top.
So give us that look behind the curtain.
First of all, who actually does the tasting?
How do I know they're actually qualified?
Are there small children there?
It's a good question.
We have a team of eight dedicated professional chefs and journalists that scour the market for the top-selling brands and the best products.
We conduct tastings of those that involve 21 members of America's Test Kitchen, so you have both professional and non-professional cooks.
And there's blind, randomized tastings that we figure out which is the best product.
And they actually get paid to do that, to taste popcorn.
We get paid.
Oh my goodness.
You're one of my bet.
All right, let's get to the test results.
The first is they taste tested microwave popcorn that's labeled natural.
Think about that word, natural.
What does that really mean?
How did the tasters react to this?
Well, this one was one of the better products on the market.
It had a nice, toasty, real corn flavor, but when it came to the butter flavoring, it was a little bit unnatural and bland.
So I gotta say, some experts believe labeling products as natural isn't as regulated as they would like, because frankly, there's not a lot of regulations around it.
That means it can gain flavor from many sources, some of them not all that natural.
In some cases of popcorn, we've found brands that use palm oil, which again isn't bad by itself, but it's not butter.
I don't want y'all getting confused with this.
Alright, next time you tasted something, these are the microwave popcorns that are supposed to be buttery.
They're labeled with words like butterithic or butter bomb.
That's one of my favorite ones.
How do tasters react to these?
Well, you expect them to be great, but the reality is that we found them to be very salty, very chewy, and again, that butter flavor, very unnatural, very processed, and somewhat bland.
You weren't happy with those?
Not at all.
All right, over the years, there's been a lot of questions raised about the health of microwave popcorn.
Let me just get this out of the way.
We confirmed with the Popcorn Council that the dangerous ingredient, diacetyl, has been removed from microwave popcorn.
It's not there anymore, so we don't have to worry about it anymore.
All right, that's good news.
I'm glad the industry responded because you guys were complaining about it.
You were worried about it.
So, even though the popcorn was labeled natural, let's get back to that term, there are things you found that might explain why it didn't quite taste as natural as you would have hoped.
Walk us through those.
Right, so in order to get this butter flavor, they're using a lot of various oils in these products, a lot of different coloring agents to make them look yellow like butter, and then things called natural flavors.
Aha.
In the end, we actually have no idea what's in these natural flavors because they're proprietary blends of butter flavoring.
So we don't know what we're actually eating.
Okay, so who won?
Who's the winner of the microwave popcorn taste test?
Homemade popcorn won the taste test, hands down.
Homemade popcorn?
Homemade popcorn.
Not these boxes?
None of these boxes.
People couldn't get enough of the real butter and real salt flavor, and it was a hands down winner.
Let's go help Danielle, a member of our audience.
She says she can't sit one more thing at her countertap, and she has been stacking on Airpop popcorn.
But like most people, there's not a lot of time or room to make the home version of this.
First of all, do you like air popped popcorn?
Yeah, it's delicious.
Buttery, salty, it's perfect.
Right.
Well, I'm glad to tell you that we can still use the microwave and we're gonna make our own version of bagged microwave popcorn.
All right, walk us through it.
Okay, so we're going to take a small brown paper bag.
We'll put about a quarter cup of popping kernels.
There's no lining on this, nothing.
It's just regular paper bag.
Nope.
And we're just gonna turn down the bag a couple of turns.
Just to seal it up.
And then we'll microwave this for two to three minutes until it starts to pop.
And then once it's out...
Oh, there's one in there.
Good.
Perfect.
Toss that in there.
Good.
I'll make one for later.
All right, so you didn't put any butter on this, no salt on this, or nothing?
No, nothing yet.
And you're just listening for the popping to stop?
Right.
You want to wait for about two to three seconds in between each pop, and you'll know it's done.
And when you pull it out, please be careful.
Don't burn your hands and then call and complain.
You took it out of the microwave, it might be hot.
Right, and you can unwrap it, and then we can add a little bit of melted butter to it here.
The good stuff.
The good stuff Danielle says, she admits.
That's the good stuff.
A pinch of salt and you can just turn the bag down, give it a quick shake and you're good to go.
One sec, we gotta...
Danielle, you be the taste test, you tell me.
I'll taste it.
You're actually not getting paid like he gets paid to taste popcorn.
I still can't pay, you get paid for that, it's unbelievable.
That's really good.
Is it?
That's actually really good.
Delicious.
Now, you said it took two or three minutes, right?
Yeah, very quick.
All right, so, guys, you don't need a lot of extra counter space to do this.
And it's inexpensive as well.
You'll save some money.
Correct.
But there's an old-fashioned way that you are still a fan of.
Right, and if you don't have a microwave, like some people, you could still pop popcorn in a Dutch oven like this.
As the oil is heating up with the kernels, just throw it all together.
And I like to throw in a couple of sprigs of fresh rosemary or thyme.
Cover it up.
Let it start popping.
Once it gets going, pull it off the heat, and you can toss it with a little bit of chili flakes, Parmesan cheese, black pepper.
And one of my favorite ingredients is nutritional yeast.
Oh, I love that.
We do that, too.
It has a great umami bomb.
You know, it's really savory.
And it comes across as salty, but there's very low sodium in there.
And things stick to it.
Yes.
All right.
I love eating popcorn, and you guys should too.
It's one of the only snacks out there.
It's 100% whole grain, has antioxidants, fiber, even more than some fruits.
So just limit the butter a little bit.
Try some of the alternatives that Brian mentioned, which I think are very smart.
And while you're doing that, be sure to check out America's Test Kitchen's podcast.
It's called Proof.
It's in its third season.
It's filled with great stories about the food that you all love.
I like the mezcal episode, by the way.
A little tequila going for you.
One tequila guy.
We'll be right back.
Thanks, Brian.
Nice job.
Up next, the big sugar breakup.
What science says to do to ditch the sweet stuff, and yes, even that emergency stash that I know you're hiding.
We got the tools to get you through your day without your sugar cravings breathing down your neck.
You've been with me through hard times and good times.
It's just so hard to let go for good.
Your sweet temptation is driving me crazy.
But there's no one like you.
Every time I think I'm done with you, you find a way to sweet-talk me back.
I get such a rush when I'm with you, but then I feel bad about myself afterwards.
I went to my friend's party the other night, and guess who showed up?
Sugar!
Why do you always find a way to creep back into my life?
When I'm going through a tough time and it's late at night, you're always there for me.
I've tried to cheat with artificial sugars, agave, honey, but you know what?
There's nothing like that first kiss of Sugar.
Sugar, I no longer want to see you.
I don't want to taste you.
I don't want to look at you.
I mean it this time.
I won't be back.
This toxic relationship has to stop.
I can't boo.
It's over.
Bye.
So everyone in my audience here has the sugar they want to break up with for good.
Hold them up, everybody.
Who wants to talk about their sugar?
Any sugar fans?
Come on.
You said something, Miss Sugar Lady up here.
Go ahead.
Oh, that would be me.
Here.
I never leave home without a bag of candy.
Never?
Never leave home without a bag of candy.
Is that your husband next to you?
Yeah.
Is that true, sir?
True.
She eats candy like you wouldn't believe.
My kids accuse me of that as well, that I never leave.
You all want to break your habits?
It's a big issue, isn't it?
You want to have it near you?
Well, I've got two world experts today.
It's time to say goodbye for good because we're giving you the power back with a new scientific way to combat sugar addiction.
Even if you feel like you're hardwired for craving the sweet stuff, sugar does not have to rule your life or stop you from hitting your health goals this year.
Here to shut down your cravings are two leading experts who are former sugar addicts.
They spent their careers studying sugar to solve one of the toughest health problems that crack.
Behavioralists who specialize in food relationships Molly Carmel is here and psychotherapist Mike Dow who has studied the sugar brain.
They both brought their sugar they used to struggle with.
Molly used to be the ultimate sugar addict who struggled with it for 20 years.
How did it affect your health?
How did it affect your weight?
You know, I'm the kind that's had this problem forever and ever and ever.
You know, I was at my first meeting trying to get help when I was seven years old, and that went on for so many years to the tune of 325 pounds.
I tried every single diet, and the only time that I ever found peace and love within myself and within my relationship with food was when I broke up with sugar, you know?
I see that before picture of you and I see you now.
I mean, you really deserve a lot of kudos.
That's unbelievable.
Yeah, yeah.
Congratulations.
It's been a rough run.
Thank you.
You made it happen.
Mike, you used to struggle with diet soda.
I did.
Which is interesting because you said self-blame was what was holding you back more than anything else.
It did.
It kept me locked in my relationship with diet soda.
I would drink six of these a day at least, sometimes up to a two liter a day.
Diet soda is just as bad as a regular soda, and the self-blame, what I would do, I think is what most Americans would do.
I would go cold turkey, then I would obsess about the diet soda, and then I would give in, and then I would be trapped in this downward spiral, because then I would blame myself, I would characterize myself as weak, and then it would start all over again.
And then, Dr. Oz, I had this aha moment when I came across this landmark study that showed that sugar shrinks the human brain.
And I thought, oh my gosh!
So I call this condition sugar brain.
And what's so interesting, when you have sugar brain, when you have this shrunken brain, it makes quitting harder.
So we'll get to a step-by-step plan that will empower all of you with the right foods, right, and the right behaviors to rewire your cravings.
If we do this right, Dr. Dow, how long will it take to rewire our brain, to get rid of the sugar brain?
Yeah, a month.
It takes a month to create new habits in the human brain.
So we need to actually swap out the sugar, the brain shrinking stuff, and swap in the brain growing stuff.
Let's do it.
The first big target.
Instead of the sugary coffee drinks, start your day off with the chocolate surprise smoothies.
Doesn't that sound good?
Chocolate surprise smoothies.
It'll cut down the cravings.
Dr. Dow, what are some of the surprising ingredients you've got in here?
So the big surprise here is coffee.
Cauliflower.
I know, cauliflower in a smoothie, ugh, I don't know about that, but I promise you, it's delicious.
And then, real fruit.
This is gonna give you the stuff that lasts all day.
Vitamins, minerals, all the good stuff.
You guys all excited about cauliflower?
That's what I'm talking about.
There's a lot of skeptics.
I'm gonna hand this out to the front row.
Hemp and chia, why is that important to break through cravings?
I gotta tell you, you know, I'm about full belly all day.
That's why I am the hugest fan like you of chia, chia, chia, all day, every day.
Love to throw it in salads.
Love a good chia pudding in the morning for breakfast or for my midday snack.
So we're gonna find out now if they're gonna stone you guys or celebrate you.
So you've been tasting the cauliflower chocolate surprise smoothie.
Thoughts on this?
Honest thoughts?
I like it.
Like good enough that you might tell your friends?
Yes, I would.
You all happy with this?
Who would have thought?
I'm actually surprised.
I thought they'd come after you, but anyway.
Delicious.
What do I know?
Up next is this issue with artificial sweeteners, which you were hung on to.
Yeah.
How do you curb the cravings there, Molly?
So the thing about the artificial sweeteners is that we've come to believe that they are actually better for us.
And that's a really questionable thing when it comes to sugar.
But the other thing, to me, is that when we're eating something with no calories, our brain and our belly are like, hello, where's the food, right?
Like, where's my calorie?
I need my thing in my belly.
And so then you're craving food over and over and over again.
And so artificial sweeteners have a little bit of the devil in them.
So, since you really don't want to have the sugar or the artificial sweetener with the extra little bit that you don't want, you argue that you've got a hack that'll get us off both of them.
And it is?
Gymnema tea.
So this, in some cultures, has been called the destroyer of sugar.
Thank you.
So it actually blocks the sugar receptor on your taste buds.
It comes in lozenges, but I really like it as a tea.
Number one, tastes delicious.
Number two, when you reach for something sweet at your next meal, it actually rewires your brain so that the next sweet thing that you taste doesn't taste as sweet.
So that 28-day period, it's like, Oh, I actually don't like the taste of sugar.
My mom used this strategy, and over her 28-day sugar brain fix, she lost 10 pounds.
Oh, my goodness.
And she used to love the taste of her diet soda and sugar.
If your mom is listening to you, you've done something remarkable.
I have not been able to accomplish that.
So what do you look for?
How do you find it?
So you want to look for 25% of the active ingredient, and you can find this at...
Which is Jemema.
Yes.
Health food stores and also online.
Really easy to find.
I'm going to toast you for the transformation you've had.
It's remarkable.
Thank you.
All right, when we come back, what do you do in a sugar emergency?
Stay with us.
Thank you.
Okay.
Thank you.
Abducted at birth.
Alexis was in fact baby Kamiya snatched from a Florida hospital.
Robin Roberts joins us with this shocking true story from real life to the small screen.
That is my baby.
That's coming up on Wednesday.
Thank you.
We're back with a big sugar break up with Dr. Mike Dowden and we just revealed the first two steps of the scientific plan to help you say sayonara to sugar this year.
There's a chocolate surprise smoothie in the morning that even the audience liked.
It's got cauliflower in it but lots of other tasty stuff.
And then you've got to cut your artificial sweeteners because they don't help you.
And we're going to use something called Gymnema.
Sounds like you're going to the gym, but you're not.
You're just calling it Gymnema tea to help curb cravings in between meals.
Now, next step is to make sure every meal has that tryptophan food to help boost your serotonin.
What are tryptophan foods?
I know turkey's one.
Yes, a lot of people think of turkey.
Think of high-protein food.
So eggs, chicken, fish, and yes, even delicious cheese.
And these friends, what do they do?
What's so important about serotonin if you're trying to beat the sugar craving?
Yeah, so what's so interesting is that sugar will increase serotonin in the brain.
So when you take away sugar, you're gonna be missing some of that serotonin.
But tryptophan will help your body to naturally manufacture serotonin.
So in a lot of ways, getting tryptophan in every meal is sort of like a smoker using a nicotine patch.
It's your replacement therapy.
And you won't be miserable to be around.
That's what happens when people give up their sugar.
How much do you eat?
What's the dose?
So, three ounces when it comes to the proteins, which is about the size of the palm of your hand, and when it comes to eggs, about three eggs.
You can have three eggs?
Three eggs.
Oh, yeah, that's not a bad deal.
It's a good trade-off.
All right, next up.
At some point, we all have our sugar emergencies.
Molly Carmel is back along with Jenny from our audience, who says she has sugar.
Oh, look at that.
That's not what happened.
Jenny's feeling that right now.
She says there's sugar emergencies.
She's got a stash, but you want to break up with your stash.
It's a very beautiful stash.
I'm not going to break up with this.
This is my go-to.
This is my lifesaver.
I love it.
What kinds of events cause emergencies for you?
Typical.
If I'm stressed, if I'm running late somewhere, I just take care of it just by going in here and Just one does it too?
Is there a dose?
Handful?
It has to be a handful.
It's not going to do it.
So Molly's big insight is that craving is all about five minutes.
Yeah.
But you need to have some kind of a hack to get you to those five minutes.
So what is it?
You know what the bigger problem is, is that when we go to sugar, when we have a craving, it's like putting gasoline on a flame.
It makes the craving worse, not better, right?
And so we have to find ways that aren't turning to sugar in order to get our relationship with food healthy, right?
Right.
And let me tell you something, if you would have told me this, I would have been like, I'm gonna talk to you about breathing, right?
Because a lot, when we are losing our minds, the breath helps to bring us back, right?
It cues this, it's almost like taking an anti-anxiety pill if you start to do the breathing that we're gonna talk about.
Four in, four out, how do you do it?
Well, so it's called pace breathing, and so we put our hands on our bellies, first and foremost, and we'll take a breath of four in, and then a breath of six out.
When we breathe out more than we breathe in, that's where the anti-anxiety comes in.
If I can share one insight with you, when I feel like I need to get something done quickly for my brain to work better, I'll take something very small.
I actually do eat the chocolate, but I take a tiny sliver of it, drink a glass of water, and I do this.
That way, you have a little temptation, because, you know, the first bite tastes really good, the second one's not nearly as good, and the third one's hedonistic.
And that would be, like, for my two o'clock binge?
Yes.
Right.
A piece of chocolate for your binge.
Right, exactly.
Thank you very much.
Two thumbs up.
You're strong enough to do it.
Come on over.
The next place is to replace your evening sweet treats with two tablespoons of cashew butter.
And you say you want to end your day with this, Dr. Dao.
Why is that?
Yeah, so I love cashew butter.
Why?
It has high levels of monounsaturated fat.
So it's a great sort of sweet treat that you can really feel like you're indulging and still scratch that itch, but not spiking your blood sugar.
And it's delicious.
Ma, what kind of freedom do you get if you kick the addiction to sugar?
Oh, you know, it's a funny thing because when you're really in the addiction, you don't actually realize how captive you are.
I think that there is almost nothing that you can't do when you break free from sugar.
Well, I'm proud of both of you.
Be sure to check out Molly's new book, Breaking Up With Sugar.
Also check out Dr. Dow's book, The Sugar Brain Fix.
We'll find the entire plan on drowdows.com.
Share it with people you care about.
We'll be right back.
Thanks.
Are you on System 20?
Well, it's not too late.
You can lose 20 pounds and reduce your risk for a bunch of diseases by up to 20% in 2020. That's a lot!
Coming up, it's System 20 CPACs and stress buzzers you will not want to miss.
System 20. A 20-point checklist to lose 20 pounds.
Reduce your risk of heart disease by 20% all in 2020. The hallmark of the plan, intermittent fasting.
And we're getting rid of breakfast.
You'll break your fast at 11 a.m.
with a meal of beans, greens, and protein.
There's no getting bored on this system because the Dishon Oz crew created recipes that actually taste good and fill you up.
With a full plan, go to DrOz.com slash system20.
Everyone is talking about System 20. In fact, on our digital platform, System 20 has been the most engaged with New Year's plan we've ever rolled out.
And if you haven't started System 20, it is not too late.
Super simple.
Go to DrRoz.com to print the System 20 checklist.
It's a shopping list.
It's a one sheet.
Become part of the system today.
We did all the homework for you.
But today we're going to reveal System 20 sleep hacks and stress busters.
Because a good night's sleep and the way we handle our stress are cornerstones to good health and weight loss.
We have finally cracked the code to finally get the rest you need to have your body feel better in 2020. First off, we want you to wake up at the same time every single day.
This establishes your circadian rhythm or your internal body clock.
Wake up the same time every day and your body will start to learn when to fall asleep too.
You're building a memory.
Next, you want caffeine at 3 p.m., right?
And no more after that.
Caffeine takes a while to wear off and can cause sleeping problems even if you don't feel it.
So if you don't want coffee, it's fine, but certainly if you're a drinker, not after 3 p.m.
And finally, put your phone down one hour before bedtime.
A couple reasons.
The phones emit something called blue light, which suppresses melatonin production.
So when you're looking at it, it'll turn off your brain's ability to shut down.
And friends, there's never any good news after 10 p.m., right?
So anything that comes in over your phone after 10 is just going to keep you up at night.
Now, Oz Team investigative reporter Marski Avocampo, along with our System 20 test group, have been documenting their journey for the past four weeks.
Take a look.
System 20 is more than a plan about what you eat.
It also includes how to handle stress and sleep.
It's 11 o'clock.
Time to turn off my phone.
Our System 20 testers have been monitoring their sleep and stress for the past month, documenting their success and struggles.
I've been meditating two minutes every morning.
It just gives me a supercharge.
Life seems to be getting easier.
I just looked at the clock and it is 3.06, which means I have missed my deadline for coffee.
It took a little bit of getting used to, maybe a week or so.
I'm feeling calmer and I'm sleeping better.
Putting my phone away an hour before bed is really hard.
I'm trying to figure out what I'm going to do for the next hour.
Like, I guess I could read a book.
Yikes!
I did not realize how hard that would be.
It's four weeks and getting up at 7 a.m.
I'm feeling much better because if I snooze, I lose.
So I told myself, I get up every day at 6 a.m.
and this is probably the hardest thing I've ever done.
This waking up at 6 a.m.
thing is actually not that bad after all.
To be honest, I have way more energy now.
Mara, you look very well rested.
Thank you, Dr. Ross.
How does System 20 help with your sleep?
You know, it's amazing how you can program your body because at first it's difficult, but now I want to fall asleep at the same time, and I naturally wake up at the same time, even on weekends.
So that's been great.
And I feel like, you know there's a saying, there's no problem that can't be solved with a good night's sleep.
It helps me manage my stress so much better.
Things just don't upset me as much.
The best feeling is just lying down while you've got a couple hours of peace and quiet.
Absolutely.
But you've got to set up.
It doesn't happen by accident.
So Tracy is here.
She has been tracking her sleep with the Sleep Score app.
So what changes has your Sleep Score actually revealed to you that you might not have appreciated?
Well, before System 20, my sleep was all over the place.
I was lucky if I got five, six hours of sleep a night, tossed and turned all night.
So you were kind enough to get us your sleep score data.
Yes.
So in that setting, your actual grade was a 60, which is, as you know, not quite good enough, like barely passing.
So you started taking some of the advice, and what happened?
And then when I started using the sleep app, I became more mindful of my sleep, and I'm happy to say I'm almost at that eight-hour mark.
You are?
Yes.
And you feel it?
Yeah, I definitely feel better during the day.
Because your sleep score number is, the last one we got was 86. That's a huge difference, guys.
Now, Mara, you were struggling with the 3 p.m.
caffeine cutoff.
That was hard.
I'm an Italian girl.
I need my espresso.
I drink it from when I wake up until about 7 or 8 at night.
It's my fuel for the day.
So I really, really struggled with that.
But I found that with good nutrition, you're getting your energy from other places.
I was relying on caffeine for my energy.
Come on, let's miss me.
Because Mary Lee had the same issue, same struggle.
And she came up with a System 20 snack because you used the list that we gave you.
We have all this helpful data, this information we can share with you guys as you print them out.
But the best part is this one pager and has 10 snacks on it.
So you put them together into what?
So I made a System 20 approved snack that uses all the ingredients and is also healthy and tasty at the same time.
I used ingredients like flaxseed crackers and chopped walnuts for crunch.
I used chickpeas, believe it or not.
Is that what that is?
Yeah, it is!
This is brilliant!
Isn't it?
That's why they're called Fierce Chick Bites.
Fierce chick bites.
These are chick bites.
Thank you, yeah.
And I also used 70% chocolate, chopped in there as well for the sweetness because we don't add any sugar.
And I used blueberries in this one too for the vitamin C. And I also used coconut.
There's no sugar in this?
No, there isn't.
Wow.
And the coconut is good along with the chocolate for brain and heart health.
So it's healthy and still tasty.
You are something else.
You came up with this idea?
Yes, I did.
I'm so proud of you, really.
Thank you.
You know why it's good for you, but the taste, forget about why it's good for you.
You would eat these.
I'd have to pull them away from you.
Maybe we can share this with the audience.
What do you think?
Oh, we should.
We should, absolutely.
You want to taste some of these?
Yes.
All right.
As soon as we're done this thing, we're bringing them over.
All right.
Finally, you got Carolyn here.
She's had trouble putting her phone down an hour before bed, which is actually my hardest thing to do.
I really struggle.
So you actually found an app that I did not know about that helps us do it.
Yes.
You know what, Dr. Oz?
There is an app.
You go to your iPhone.
I'm going to show you exactly how you do it.
Please take us through it.
So you get to your iPhone.
You go to your settings.
And then you go to screen time.
Well, there's actually a screen time Uh, icon.
Yeah, exactly.
I didn't realize that.
Then you go to downtime.
Of course, you gotta turn it on.
And then, for the sake of time, let's just say I'm gonna go to bed right now, for the sake of time.
So I'm gonna change the time.
You have to set it for the time that you actually want your phone to be shut down, or your apps to be shut down.
So it's 4.02.
And I'm going to now...
It all shut down.
TikTok, Instagram, Facebook.
So let's watch this.
Oh, I want to go check Facebook because I'm always on Facebook.
Nope, can't go.
I love this.
And then, okay, now let's try Instagram.
Nope, can't do it.
This is brilliant.
Yeah.
Obviously, it's important the manufacturers of these products realize it's good for us to be able to do this.
Thank you, Carolyn.
Up next, if meditation just isn't your thing, well, it could be because you're doing the wrong one.
When we come back, a quiz to find out your System 20 meditation type.
Stick around.
Husband of missing Connecticut mom now charged with her murder.
And why authorities believe he may not have acted alone.
To think that her final moments consisted of zip ties and an axe, it's just chilling.
Plus, the twisted details of the doomsday cult.
Two children vanished.
The mother refusing to cooperate with police.
The grandparents speak out about what they think really happened.
All New Oz.
That's coming up tomorrow.
If you're checking your New Year's resolution stress less boxes, but are having trouble shutting off your thoughts for the morning meditation, it might be because you're doing the wrong one.
So, we developed a System 20 What's Your Meditation Type Quiz?
And it all starts with everyone just stop what you're doing, close your eyes, and picture yourself at the beach, all right?
We want you to focus on your senses.
What do you see?
What do you hear?
What do you feel?
In fact, Renata's already at the beach.
She's practicing.
So again, which one stands out most to you?
Is it the colors, right?
The bright blue sky and binding sun.
Is it the sound of the waves crashing?
That's what's attracting your attention.
Or is it the feeling of the sand beneath your toes wiggling around because you're a tactile person?
So Renath, which sense is speaking to you?
The sound of the waves crashing definitely is speaking to me right now.
I knew you'd be auditory.
Yes, absolutely.
Come on up here.
This is fascinating, actually.
We don't all resonate to the same thing.
So you're going to use whatever you were paying attention to in that little meditation we're doing as your guide.
So if you're someone who likes to focus on a scene, for example, this beautiful ocean or any visualization, And it's fine.
Then you're a visual person, right?
Focus on an image that you find relaxing, fills you with that warm and fuzzy feeling.
For me, it's the grandkids.
Okay.
Yeah, put them up there.
If I have this in front of me, it just relaxes me.
You know, they don't usually lie like this peacefully, but when they do, you capture it, and it makes you happy.
Now, if you're a listener, like Renatha, you want to try a mantra meditation.
This type of meditation uses a repetitive sound to clear the mind.
You want to do one with me?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Renatha?
Okay, how about...
Three, two, one.
Oh!
Get my note, oh!
Yes!
You're all good at that.
And that'll get you in that place you want to be.
Sometimes, though, you're a tactile person.
You like this movement meditation approach.
So a simple stretch or a light jog will often free you so your mind can do what it needs to do, which is to relax.
I like a good stretch.
I do it through yoga, actually.
It works for me.
Okay.
So all the resources you need to get started on System 20, including a link to my favorite meditation app, Share Care, is on DrRoz.com slash System 20. Take advantage of it.
That's all free.
Remember, the power of change lies in the power of you.
One person, one voice, speaking the truth.
Goodbye, everybody.
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