1. Margarine
2. Fat-free cheese
3. Skim or low-fat milk
4. Ultra-pasteurized dairy
5. Light yogurt
6. Cool Whip
7. Wonder bread
8. Egg whites without the yolk
9. Soy protein bars/shakes
10. Extra lean ground beef
Friday, April 10, 2009
Thursday, April 9, 2009
At least we are talking about fat, finally!
Mass dieting has been around since 1948 with the advent of TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) and since then, we have been searching for the miracle cure for obesity. We want something that doesn't require any effort or change on our part and something that lasts forever.
Well, the next "miracle" cure is brown fat. Fat in our bodies comes in brown and white/yellow. Most of us are loaded up with the white/yellow fat that doesn't burn as much energy as the brown fat. Babies have lots of brown fat, but most of it is gone or inactive by adulthood. People with more brown fat tend to be leaner than people with little brown fat. Brown fat burns more energy in the cold, too, so turning down the thermostat may be another miracle cure.
Naturally, scientists are trying to figure out a way to put brown fat in a pill or potion, or maybe an injection so people can eat all the crappy food they want and still look like a Victoria Secret's model. If all you want to do is look good in your coffin, this just may be the ticket for you, though, you'll probably be dead before they get it on the market. You may want to find a few more baskets to put your eggs in just in case.
The good news is that we are actually talking about fat being "good" and even though the purpose is to find an expensive cure for obesity, we are heading in a better direction because fat is good and good for you. We need fat to function, especially saturated fat. If you stroll down memory lane, you'll find that we developed obesity while decreasing saturated fat and increasing our intake of vegetable oils (polyunsaturated fat). Saturated fat keeps our skin firm so we don't need expensive anti-aging creams, it is incorporated into the lining of the lungs to help prevent asthma and allergies, it is the main fuel source for the heart and it is the building blocks for all the important hormones in the body like estrogen and testosterone.
We need fat; good, healthy saturated fat. If we eat saturated fat, we won't have to worry about how much or how little brown fat we have under our skin and we won't have to freeze to death to lose weight, either.
Well, the next "miracle" cure is brown fat. Fat in our bodies comes in brown and white/yellow. Most of us are loaded up with the white/yellow fat that doesn't burn as much energy as the brown fat. Babies have lots of brown fat, but most of it is gone or inactive by adulthood. People with more brown fat tend to be leaner than people with little brown fat. Brown fat burns more energy in the cold, too, so turning down the thermostat may be another miracle cure.
Naturally, scientists are trying to figure out a way to put brown fat in a pill or potion, or maybe an injection so people can eat all the crappy food they want and still look like a Victoria Secret's model. If all you want to do is look good in your coffin, this just may be the ticket for you, though, you'll probably be dead before they get it on the market. You may want to find a few more baskets to put your eggs in just in case.
The good news is that we are actually talking about fat being "good" and even though the purpose is to find an expensive cure for obesity, we are heading in a better direction because fat is good and good for you. We need fat to function, especially saturated fat. If you stroll down memory lane, you'll find that we developed obesity while decreasing saturated fat and increasing our intake of vegetable oils (polyunsaturated fat). Saturated fat keeps our skin firm so we don't need expensive anti-aging creams, it is incorporated into the lining of the lungs to help prevent asthma and allergies, it is the main fuel source for the heart and it is the building blocks for all the important hormones in the body like estrogen and testosterone.
We need fat; good, healthy saturated fat. If we eat saturated fat, we won't have to worry about how much or how little brown fat we have under our skin and we won't have to freeze to death to lose weight, either.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Preschool Obesity
Obesity appears to be on the rise in our precious preschoolers. The blame is on poverty, uneducated parents and of course, the old standby; a high fat diet along with excess calories and lack of exercise. Poverty definitely contributes because all the inexpensive foods are carbohydrates and carbohydrates make us fat. I'm not so sure uneducated parents are to blame, but rather mis-educated parents. We are all taught to follow the food guide pyramid and avoid fat. Parents, trying to do the right thing for their kids, will buy low-fat cookies, crackers and ding dongs totally unaware that junk food, whether low or high in fat, is still junk food and most junk food is high in carbohydrates.
We didn't have problems with obesity 100 years ago. We have been dieting for over 30 years now on low-fat, high carbohydrate foods. We even have calorie free artificial sweeteners and what have we got to show for it all? Obesity is on the rise, even in preschoolers. I find it interesting that we blame obesity on saturated fat when our girths have exploded while decreasing saturated fat intake and increasing vegetable oil and carbohydrate intake.
But we continue to dole out the same advice: Avoid saturated fat, eat lots of whole grains, fruits and veggies. What do they call you when you do the same thing over and over while expecting different results? Oh yea, insane.
Basically, we have a bunch of insane people running around (no, they probably don't run...) in government teaching us all how to get fat in the guise of losing weight and then when we get fat, they blame us for eating too much of the fat we have been avoiding in order not to get fat. Now our children will be joining in on the fun.
If you're like me and want out of that game, ignore the food guide pyramid. Eat lots of saturated fat, no vegetable oils and no high fructose corn syrup. Feed yourself and your kids real food the way God made it and spend a little time each day running after the little tykes.
We didn't have problems with obesity 100 years ago. We have been dieting for over 30 years now on low-fat, high carbohydrate foods. We even have calorie free artificial sweeteners and what have we got to show for it all? Obesity is on the rise, even in preschoolers. I find it interesting that we blame obesity on saturated fat when our girths have exploded while decreasing saturated fat intake and increasing vegetable oil and carbohydrate intake.
But we continue to dole out the same advice: Avoid saturated fat, eat lots of whole grains, fruits and veggies. What do they call you when you do the same thing over and over while expecting different results? Oh yea, insane.
Basically, we have a bunch of insane people running around (no, they probably don't run...) in government teaching us all how to get fat in the guise of losing weight and then when we get fat, they blame us for eating too much of the fat we have been avoiding in order not to get fat. Now our children will be joining in on the fun.
If you're like me and want out of that game, ignore the food guide pyramid. Eat lots of saturated fat, no vegetable oils and no high fructose corn syrup. Feed yourself and your kids real food the way God made it and spend a little time each day running after the little tykes.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Obesity Causing Global Warming?
Reuters reported from Geneva that obesity is contributing to global warming. A team at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine claims that obese people eat more and require more fuel to get around (because they are more likely to ride in a car than walk) adding to food shortages and higher energy costs.
Before I go on, I have to say this is the most insane and ludicrous thing I have ever heard!
Aside from the fact that global warming is a made-up-bunch-of -bull (pardon my French), blaming obese people for it is just another scare tactic to convince government to spend more money studying obesity and global warming. The Body Mass Index, BMI, is used to classify people as normal weight, overweight and obese, yet it is simply a measurement of proportional weight to height. It doesn't tell you if you're fat or muscular, nor does it tell you what kind of appetite you have.
Many athletes fall into the overweight and obese category according to BMI and they also eat more than the average person. Perhaps we should blame athletes for global warming. After all, they waste a lot of fuel traveling to and from competitions. While we're playing the blame game, what about pregnant and nursing women? They eat more than the average person and are more likely to ride in cars than walk.
What's next? Diet Prison to starve obese people until they reach an arbitrary number on the scale? Shall we end all athletic competitions to save fuel costs and deny people the right to bear children to solve a non-existant problem?
Blaming the obese for global warming is like blaming the fire department for setting a fire. Why not blame the food and diet industries that create obesity? Get rid of snack food, hydrogenated oil, high fructose corn syrup and MSG and obesity rates will decline. Give people time to cook healthy meals and stop bringing donuts to meetings. Force restaurants to serve reasonable portion sizes.
If you want to end global warming (which is a bunch of hooey) don't blame the obese, blame the industries and corporations that manufacture fake food and overwork their employees, making it extremely difficult for anyone to maintain or achieve an "ideal" weight.
Before I go on, I have to say this is the most insane and ludicrous thing I have ever heard!
Aside from the fact that global warming is a made-up-bunch-of -bull (pardon my French), blaming obese people for it is just another scare tactic to convince government to spend more money studying obesity and global warming. The Body Mass Index, BMI, is used to classify people as normal weight, overweight and obese, yet it is simply a measurement of proportional weight to height. It doesn't tell you if you're fat or muscular, nor does it tell you what kind of appetite you have.
Many athletes fall into the overweight and obese category according to BMI and they also eat more than the average person. Perhaps we should blame athletes for global warming. After all, they waste a lot of fuel traveling to and from competitions. While we're playing the blame game, what about pregnant and nursing women? They eat more than the average person and are more likely to ride in cars than walk.
What's next? Diet Prison to starve obese people until they reach an arbitrary number on the scale? Shall we end all athletic competitions to save fuel costs and deny people the right to bear children to solve a non-existant problem?
Blaming the obese for global warming is like blaming the fire department for setting a fire. Why not blame the food and diet industries that create obesity? Get rid of snack food, hydrogenated oil, high fructose corn syrup and MSG and obesity rates will decline. Give people time to cook healthy meals and stop bringing donuts to meetings. Force restaurants to serve reasonable portion sizes.
If you want to end global warming (which is a bunch of hooey) don't blame the obese, blame the industries and corporations that manufacture fake food and overwork their employees, making it extremely difficult for anyone to maintain or achieve an "ideal" weight.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
FDA allows false labeling
In case you don’t know, the FDA, due to pressure from the California Almond Board, is requiring that all almonds sold in the US be pasteurized, but they are allowing these pasteurized almonds to be labeled as ‘raw.’ This took effect last month.
One of the methods approved for pasteurization is the use of propylene oxide which is a hazardous material that the EPA declared in 1996 to violate the Delaney Clause. The Delaney Clause states “no additive shall be deemed safe if it has been found to induce cancer when ingested by man or animal.” Propylene oxide is banned in Canada, Mexico and the European Union.
Propylene oxide is a carcinogen that is being added, without our knowledge, to a healthy food that many doctors and dietitians tell us to eat.
Almonds treated with propylene oxide remain at a high temperature for more than 4 hours. Heat destroys many nutrients such as vitamin E. Almonds are one of the best sources of vitamin E.
Vitamin E is needed for circulation, tissue repair and healing. It deactivates free radicals (cancer causing agents) and retards the aging process. Vitamin E along with zinc and selenium also helps to prevent cancer and cardiovascular disease.
A diet high in polyunsaturated oils (soybean, cottonseed, canola, corn) increases your need for vitamin E. Most health authorities and government nutrition policies tell us to consume more of these oils and less animal fats.
The FDA protects food and drug companies, not consumers. They are slowly taking away our right to choose healthy and wholesome foods.
Stop eating almonds unless you are absolutely sure they are raw (not pasteurized in any way, shape or form). Contact the California Almond Board and the FDA and let them know that you want pasteurized almonds to be labeled properly so you can make an informed choice.
One of the methods approved for pasteurization is the use of propylene oxide which is a hazardous material that the EPA declared in 1996 to violate the Delaney Clause. The Delaney Clause states “no additive shall be deemed safe if it has been found to induce cancer when ingested by man or animal.” Propylene oxide is banned in Canada, Mexico and the European Union.
Propylene oxide is a carcinogen that is being added, without our knowledge, to a healthy food that many doctors and dietitians tell us to eat.
Almonds treated with propylene oxide remain at a high temperature for more than 4 hours. Heat destroys many nutrients such as vitamin E. Almonds are one of the best sources of vitamin E.
Vitamin E is needed for circulation, tissue repair and healing. It deactivates free radicals (cancer causing agents) and retards the aging process. Vitamin E along with zinc and selenium also helps to prevent cancer and cardiovascular disease.
A diet high in polyunsaturated oils (soybean, cottonseed, canola, corn) increases your need for vitamin E. Most health authorities and government nutrition policies tell us to consume more of these oils and less animal fats.
The FDA protects food and drug companies, not consumers. They are slowly taking away our right to choose healthy and wholesome foods.
Stop eating almonds unless you are absolutely sure they are raw (not pasteurized in any way, shape or form). Contact the California Almond Board and the FDA and let them know that you want pasteurized almonds to be labeled properly so you can make an informed choice.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Saturated fat prevents diabetes
Here is an interesting article about a group of scientists who found that shorter chain fatty acids can prevent the development of diabetes in mice, even if they are obese (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071002/sc_nm/diabetes_japan_fat_dc).
This is interesting because shorter fatty acid chains only exist as saturated fat, the kind we are told to avoid. The unsaturated fatty acids are all long chain.
Is it possible that the reason we haven't solved the diabetes issue is because we are telling people to eat long chain fatty acids in the form of soybean, corn, cottonseed, canola and olive oils? And because we are telling people to avoid the shorter chain fatty acids in butter and coconut oil?
I think we need to rethink our fat intake. We should eat the fats our ancestors ate before we started developing diabetes and other chronic disease. They just happen to be things like butter and cream. They didn't eat vegetable oils. And they definitely did not eat hydrogenated oils.
So, eat your butter and live happily ever after.
This is interesting because shorter fatty acid chains only exist as saturated fat, the kind we are told to avoid. The unsaturated fatty acids are all long chain.
Is it possible that the reason we haven't solved the diabetes issue is because we are telling people to eat long chain fatty acids in the form of soybean, corn, cottonseed, canola and olive oils? And because we are telling people to avoid the shorter chain fatty acids in butter and coconut oil?
I think we need to rethink our fat intake. We should eat the fats our ancestors ate before we started developing diabetes and other chronic disease. They just happen to be things like butter and cream. They didn't eat vegetable oils. And they definitely did not eat hydrogenated oils.
So, eat your butter and live happily ever after.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Weight loss surgery study
The US and Sweden have both conducted a long term study to determine the effectiveness of weight loss surgery. The results are in and it appears that the surgeries save lives and produce lasting weight loss. Now that there is support for the proceedures, insurance companies may be more willing to pay for them and the guidelines may be lowered so that more people can be put under the knife. The article is available at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20395008/wid/11915773?gt1=10252.
The Swedish study found that the surgery group lost 14 to 25% of their weight compared to 2% from the non-surgery group. The death rate was 5% for the surgery group and 6% for the non surgery group.
The US study took 7,000 plus surgery patients and compared them to the same number of obese people. They found the obese people by looking at height and weight on driver's licenses. After 7 years, 2.6% of the surgery patients were dead compared to 4% of the driver's license people. This study did not look at weight loss.
They also found that people who have the surgeries are more likely to die from accidents, suicide and other non-disease related deaths but they couldn't explain this phenomenom.
Before you sign up for gastric bypass, there are some problems with the studies and with the surgery. So stop and think before you go under.
First, people undergoing weight loss surgeries are given detailed diet instruction months before they go under. They have to prove that they are willing to do what it takes to lose weight before a surgeon will cut them open. These people see a Registered Dietitian on a regular basis months before and months after. You still have to follow a rigid diet after the surgery because the stomach will grow again if you eat too much.
So what the studies are comparing is a group of committed people who have constant support to a group of people who have no support and aren't all that committed. For the study to be really good, they should have given the same diet instruction and support to the non-surgery group.
The US study is a load of crap, pardon my French. They didn't even look at weight loss and they compared the committed and supported people to people who weren't even trying to lose weight and, therefore, most likely had terrrible health habits which would explain the extra deaths.
A very strict low fat diet has to be followed for gastric bypass. After the bypass, you go on a liquid diet and gradually increase diet consistency, but the surgery and lack of nutrition leaves you open to nutrient deficiencies. These deficiencies and lack of fat and cholesterol are probably why there are more suicides and accidents in the surgery group. Low fat diets also cause gall bladder disease so you are likely to have to go under the knife again to remove the gall bladder.
A much better and safer way to lose weight is to eat whole, unprocessed foods, limit carbs (72 grams is ideal, but keep it under 120 at least) and eat lots of saturated fat. Get some exercise and limit portion sizes. This way, you get to eat food that actually tastes good, supplies your body with the nutrients it needs to stay healthy and it satisfies so you don't feel hungry again in an hour.
Also, learn to recognize the truth about who you are. You are not what you weigh and your worth as a person has nothing to do with the size of your body. And you don't need to look like the people on magazine covers. They don't even look like that, so stop believing the lies.
You are a beautiful, talented and unique individual who was created by God for a purpose. Focus on your purpose, not your weight.
The Swedish study found that the surgery group lost 14 to 25% of their weight compared to 2% from the non-surgery group. The death rate was 5% for the surgery group and 6% for the non surgery group.
The US study took 7,000 plus surgery patients and compared them to the same number of obese people. They found the obese people by looking at height and weight on driver's licenses. After 7 years, 2.6% of the surgery patients were dead compared to 4% of the driver's license people. This study did not look at weight loss.
They also found that people who have the surgeries are more likely to die from accidents, suicide and other non-disease related deaths but they couldn't explain this phenomenom.
Before you sign up for gastric bypass, there are some problems with the studies and with the surgery. So stop and think before you go under.
First, people undergoing weight loss surgeries are given detailed diet instruction months before they go under. They have to prove that they are willing to do what it takes to lose weight before a surgeon will cut them open. These people see a Registered Dietitian on a regular basis months before and months after. You still have to follow a rigid diet after the surgery because the stomach will grow again if you eat too much.
So what the studies are comparing is a group of committed people who have constant support to a group of people who have no support and aren't all that committed. For the study to be really good, they should have given the same diet instruction and support to the non-surgery group.
The US study is a load of crap, pardon my French. They didn't even look at weight loss and they compared the committed and supported people to people who weren't even trying to lose weight and, therefore, most likely had terrrible health habits which would explain the extra deaths.
A very strict low fat diet has to be followed for gastric bypass. After the bypass, you go on a liquid diet and gradually increase diet consistency, but the surgery and lack of nutrition leaves you open to nutrient deficiencies. These deficiencies and lack of fat and cholesterol are probably why there are more suicides and accidents in the surgery group. Low fat diets also cause gall bladder disease so you are likely to have to go under the knife again to remove the gall bladder.
A much better and safer way to lose weight is to eat whole, unprocessed foods, limit carbs (72 grams is ideal, but keep it under 120 at least) and eat lots of saturated fat. Get some exercise and limit portion sizes. This way, you get to eat food that actually tastes good, supplies your body with the nutrients it needs to stay healthy and it satisfies so you don't feel hungry again in an hour.
Also, learn to recognize the truth about who you are. You are not what you weigh and your worth as a person has nothing to do with the size of your body. And you don't need to look like the people on magazine covers. They don't even look like that, so stop believing the lies.
You are a beautiful, talented and unique individual who was created by God for a purpose. Focus on your purpose, not your weight.
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