This is where I disagree with Dr.Strange.
Make meat the center of your diet.
Not just any meat though.
Chris, there is whole lot of good science showing direct line correlation between increasing meat consumption and all the dreaded, debilitating, often fatal diseases. Correlation is not causation but the amount and variety of evidence is overwhelming if you really look into it. Everyone wants to keep doing their favorite things, eating their favorite foods, hear good things about their bad habits. But you can pretty easily develop new favorites and really, just look a bit wider than Weston Price Foundation and the adolesecent wanna be cave men.
Again, it goes back to personal body chemistry. Ability to process, digest, and utilize what you put into it, and so much of that has to do with your personal genetics, and tolerance
Drop an urban dweller in a remote Eskimo village in far north Alaska, they will not survive on the traditional diet that provides full nutrition for the natives. Completely different DNA, stomach flora, etc.
Two urban dwellers next door to each other. One guy eats a lot of meat, maintains healthy vital functions including healthy cholesterol levels. If the guy next door eats the same way, his stomach is constantly upset, his cholesterol skyrockets, and he can’t take a decent crap to save his life.
Think we all agree that simple carbos, sugars and ‘bad’ fats are just plain bad for the body, and that g Greens, fruit (too much can cause pre-diabetic conditions due to constantly elevated glucose levels), healthy fats and oils, are all good for you.
Where things become individually tailored is on wheat and milk products. some get a lot of wholesome nutrition from it, others just can’t process it, and their bodies suffer trying. And only so many basics to choose from.
Fish, preferably non-farmed free swimmers all good, providing the respective mercury levels aren’t too high. Which is why Alaskan Sockeye salmon is one of the safest and healthiest to eat. Lot of buzz around Krill oil, live too short a life to absorb mercury, don’t feed on anything that ingest mercury, their oil thought to have the strongest anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
Chicken. Free range only, otherwise eating polluted flesh filled with antibiotics and artificial hormones.
Soy. Fine for some. Terrible for others, especially anyone with thyroid or hormone issues.
Beef. Cholesterol levels. Two biggest drivers for that are 1) large amounts of protein do over stimulate liver production of cholesterol 2) the hormones the animals are pumped full of to maximize body weight at end of life for maximum $$ return, is another cholesterol causing agent. So if eating beef, never more then 4 to 6 oz, free range without antibiotics or hormones. And some free range cattle are taken to the feedlot just prior to slaughtering to be fattened up, and the grain there is hormone added. If certified organic, it never went to the feedlot. Pricey.
Biggest problem we are having with vegetables these days? First off, piss poor nutrition from it, because the land it is grown on is completely exhausted of nutrients, so the amount of vitamins and proteins in less then 10% of what the same crops offered decades ago. And then of course there is the pollution levels from pesticides and fertilizers. Pure toxins.
So regardless of your diet, if you are really into your nutrition, whatever sources you choose, where you get them from is as important as what they are. And that means additional $$. Free range, organic, all better for you, all cost a lot more, and for many like muyself, means an hour drive to a decent store.
And some don’t have any choice in the matter.
Couple years ago, late September I got stopped on the Little Nestucca Road here in Oregon, they were doing some road work, pulled to a stop next to the flagger, skinny guy, shivering a bit, wearing a thin sweatshirt under his orange safety vest, even though it was pretty cold.
We get to talking. Say it must be pretty boring work. Hell no, he replied, haven’t worked in two months, been living on nothing but Top Ramen from the Dollar Store, 4 for a buck. Getting my first paycheck on this job after work today, been dreaming about 2 Big Mac’s and a large bag of fries all week.
When he told me I could go, I grabbed the spare jacket I always keep in the back of my van and handed it to him out the window, drove off before he could make much fuss about it.
So we’re the fortunate ones that we even get to have this discussion.
And personally, leaning towards a lot less carbs, little more healthy meat, keep up the fish and chicken, more greens, and eat even less sugar then I already do, which isn’t much.
Icc: Very well written.
I have studied Nutrition since 1979 and worked in the food industry for 35 years.
Has you had said we are all different.
What I was trying to throw out there with the book I just read called, “WHEAT BELLY” by Dr Davis even though DR STRANGE may not agree is that we eat too much of it.
Breakfast: Biscuits, Toast, Donuts, Pastries, Pancakes, French Toast,
Lunch: Buns, Bread, Flour Tortillas.
Dinner: Bread, Pizza, Pasta, Cakes, Cookies.
Wheat was 4 feet tall a few decades ago and lower gluten levels.
Today it is only 18" and very high in Water Insoluble Protein (GLUTEN).
OK we need to feed a lot of people and Wheat grown today is very efficient in doing so.
When the Spaniards came over to the America’s they burned the non gluten forming grains to plant wheat crops to make breads for the Aristocrates.
Non Gluten forming grains that the Indians were eating was considered low class.
Little did science know our bodies have a hard time with digesting Gluten.
Some of us have developed intolerance to it.
Some have not been effected and generically wired to tolerant it.
Omitting Wheat from your diet will not kill you.
You may have better adsorption of Nutrients?
I’ve seen Love Handles disappear with a gluten/wheat free diet on friends who choose this method of weight loss.
Better that Jenny Craig or Akin diets.
Dairy, Meat and processed foods are other issues!
I agree with a lot of this and take your word on the rest… I wonder though if the correlation that you speak of is from “correct” meat or the meat most of us buy in the grocery store? And, what are the combinations of other foods that are being eaten with the bad meat? What about the studies of societies that fly in the face of that correlation? We’ve been shown that animal fat does not equal the diseases that we think that it does. Seems to me that there must be a combination of foods that causes the dreaded diseases…
That being said, everybody should do what works for them. Unfortunately we don’t always get immediate feedback on what our food is doing to us. Long term can be devastating.
I do agree most eat too much “wheat” though what they are eating is almost exclusively nutrient depleted, super high glycemic white flour versions of it. If they were eating intact, whole, wheat berries, either boiled or first sprouted then eaten either raw or cooked, they likely would not be consuming nearlly as much. And even then at least 30% of population would still have problems from the gluten. But for the rest…no worries
Chris, even “correct”, formerly healthy, happy meat has much too high levels of heme type iron which can easily accumulate in our bodies far beyond what is vitally needed and become significant disease risk. Also, the “high biological value protein” as opposed to the “lessor value” plant protein, greatly increases secretion of IGF-1 which is not widely recognized as a cancer risk (colon, prostate, breast, and others) (since the '90’s there have been over 70 clinical trials involving cancer drugs that specifically target IGF-1 pathways with good success). Also, elevated IGF-1 level tends to impede the reduction of cholesterol levels (and may even increase them) as well as promoting insulin resistance (prediabetes and diabetes).
“Correct” meat is for sure less bad and small amounts, condiment amounts of a couple oz per day seem to be fine. As intake increases though, problems tend to. At least according to the bulk of good research so far.
One could say that this short video illustrates a big part of our problems
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=WfGMYdalClU
But then I have always been a bit of Luddite 
Myth: Whole Wheat bread is better for you!
Then why does your GI index increase 30% or higher from Whole Wheat verses White Flour?
The process of milling Wheat into Flour is part of the problem.
Most of the nutrients are stripped away during milling.
Leaving us with a 87% Starch and 13% Proteins.
Our bodies must convert this starch into sugar so we can digest it.
(Diastatic Activity )= conversion of starch to sugar
This makes our bodies produce high levels of Insulin in order to digest which raises our GI index to harmful levels.
OK there may be a small percentage of Lipids and Ash (0.49 - 0.51%) as well.
1/3 the population is far to high.
Kind regards,
surfding
Saw that. Seems to be spot on. So far at least. Funny and depressing…
DrStrange, have you read “Diet For A New America”?
John Mellor was kind enough to send me a copy. I’m in the middle of it right now.
Also, I’m not familiar with “Weston Price”… Do they have to do with exposing Ancel Keyes’ fraud?
Have not read Robbin’s book, but I think much on same page. WPA si pretty nutty; they have taken what was good science for its day perhaps though weak in present analysis, and grossly misinterpreted it to promote meat and saturated fat based diet. Read Price’s actual book for a much better view. As for Keyes (and WPA, and Taube, and…) this site has a lot of excellent, debunking material and pretty easy to search for what you want
http://www.plantpositive.com/display/Search?moduleId=15352313&searchQuery=ancel+keyes
I wonder if this is due to getting rid of the gluten or because of what you replace it with (or rather don’t). If you stop eating gluten then donuts, cookies, muffins, cakes, sandwiches, burgers, pasta and a number of other easily accessible junky food which is tasty but have a high calorie density are out of the question. It means you cannot grab a bite at 7-eleven, so you will most likely eat regular, well prepared, healthy meals. And you no longer eat the food that may have accounted for anywhere from 50 to 90% of your calorie intake. All things depending, but I think in many cases you would have to be very consious about your calorie intake to keep it up at the level you had before you stopped eating gluten.
IMO being on just about any diet (as long as it’s not completely bonkers) gives you an edge as you are consciuos about what you eat.
Your are more conscious about what goes into your body!
Kind regards,
surfding
Robbins published that book in 87’. Followed up in 2001 with “The Food Revolution” which represented his progress, and he just updated the book with his latest thoughts, refreshed and on Amazon…
Calories are not necessarily a problem.
Calories = energy.
Calories that have little to no nutrients for your body are “empty”.
Eating empty calories is a waste.
We need to redefine food.
Something that we eat that contains calories but little to no nutrients should not be called food.
This describes most of what we can find at a typical grocery store.
It is not food. Even though it is commonly called that.
"Something that we eat that contains calories but little to no nutrients should not be called food."
I call those “manufactured food like substances”.
haha, yup
first rule of good nutrition - if it comes ready to eat in a box…don’t eat it…
Interesting reading through this thread as I’m on the other end of the dietary spectrum from the Paleo diet, having been vegan for 20+ years.
Any discussion about diet is a worthwhile one. Like most things, the more you can educate yourself the better off you will be.
Also like most things, it seems the simple path is also the most effective one. Eat a balanced diet and take in the appropriate amount of calories per your lifestyle. If you’re more active, eat more calories (in a balanced manner).
People tend to want quick fixes or overly simplistic solutions (especially here in the US) but the reality is you have to educate yourself about the food you eat and make educated choices based on your lifestyle.
I know people personally who have battled cancer with diet only (no chemo) and beaten it. You are what you eat, both good and bad.
On a surfing note, I’ve found that a handful of almonds and a banana is a great quick dawn patrol breakfast. It’s protein, potassium, light carbs and some B6 to kick-start metabolism. I’ll burn through that surfing then eat a bigger meal or smoothie to recharge post-session.
Another good book for educated eating is “Diet and Nutrition - A Holistic Approach” -
http://www.amazon.com/Diet-Nutrition-A-Holistic-Approach/dp/0893890480
Diet and excercise can cure most illness much quicker than medicines can. This book is a great reference on how to help your body heal itself with food.
So far, my all time favorite summary comes from Michale Pollen, I think in book “In Defense of Food”. In response to question he gets asked most often, “What should I eat?”
Eat food [I think he means "real" food!], mostly plants, not too much.