Nutrition

By Jon T. Stevens For most of my life, or at least as long as I can remember, I have been overweight. No let me rephrase. I have been fat. Yes, fat. Not just a little overweight, not big boned, not plus sized or comfortably large. Not weight challenged or in need of loosing a few pounds. I was fat. Fat, fat, fat. Fat to the point of being teased and of having problems finding cloths that fit. Fat to the point of just being miserable. It was amazing how one aspect of my life could so completely take control of my life. One day, while on vacation, I noticed a couple on the beach obviously enjoying each other and life in general. Yes, they were fit and trim just like the perfect picture we all know about. I don’t know for sure what it was about them that hit me the way it did. After all, it wasn’t like I had never seen happy, fit people before. Maybe it was the fact that being alone the way I was, I often found myself in a state of introspection especially when on a vacation. But that scene, of those two people, changed my life forever. Right then and there, I decided I was going to lose weight and keep it off, no matter what it took. I decided that I was strong enough to do this and I was going to prove it to the world – at least my world. I was going to be trim, fit and happy with the girl of my dreams.

Contributed by Nancy Appleton, PhD – Author of the book Lick The Sugar Habit In addition to throwing off the body’s homeostasis, excess sugar may result in a number of other significant consequences. The following is a listing of some of sugar’s metabolic consequences from a variety of medical journals and other scientific publications. Sugar […]

Contributed by Nancy Appleton, PhD – Author of the book Lick The Sugar Habit In addition to throwing off the body’s homeostasis, excess sugar may result in a number of other significant consequences. The following is a listing of some of sugar’s metabolic consequences from a variety of medical journals and other scientific publications. Sugar […] The post 76 Ways Sugar Harms Your Health (at least) appeared first on Dr. Keith Scott-Mumby.

Review by Stephen Byrnes, PhD With the popularity of low-carb diets reaching a high point recently, it was only a matter of time before someone adjusted it into “nutritional correctness.” Enter The South Beach Diet by cardiologist Arthur Agatston, MD, of Miami, Florida, which has sold millions of copies and has remained on the best-seller list for many months. The South Beach Diet is most certainly a low-carb eating regime with the usual carbohydrate foods such as bread (even whole grain), fruit, fruit juices, and rice, potatoes, and pasta excluded (or kept to a bare minimum). Of course, white sugar is out, as well as the whole gamut of processed carbohydrate snack foods. So far, so good. But then the book gets the dieter into trouble because the author urges high protein consumption in the form of skim milk, lean meat and other non-fat foods, and prohibits the use of animal fats, a dangerous combination that rapidly depletes vitamin A stores leading to auto-immune diseases and under-active thyroid (which can cause weight gain) and even cancer and heart disease.

Review by Stephen Byrnes, PhD With the popularity of low-carb diets reaching a high point recently, it was only a matter of time before someone adjusted it into “nutritional correctness.” Enter The South Beach Diet by cardiologist Arthur Agatston, MD, of Miami, Florida, which has sold millions of copies and has remained on the best-seller list for many months. The South Beach Diet is most certainly a low-carb eating regime with the usual carbohydrate foods such as bread (even whole grain), fruit, fruit juices, and rice, potatoes, and pasta excluded (or kept to a bare minimum). Of course, white sugar is out, as well as the whole gamut of processed carbohydrate snack foods. So far, so good. But then the book gets the dieter into trouble because the author urges high protein consumption in the form of skim milk, lean meat and other non-fat foods, and prohibits the use of animal fats, a dangerous combination that rapidly depletes vitamin A stores leading to auto-immune diseases and under-active thyroid (which can cause weight gain) and even cancer and heart disease.

Coconut Oil: The Healthiest Oil on Earth By Brian Shilhavy “Coconut oil is the healthiest oil on earth,” says Dr. Bruce Fife, a naturopathic doctor and the author of the book The Healing Miracles of Coconut Oil. Modern research seems to back up this bold statement. Once wrongly accused of increasing cholesterol levels, coconut oil is now actually being used by doctors in the treatment of a variety of disorders. Clinical studies have shown that coconut oil has anti-microbial and anti-viral properties, and is now even being used in treating AIDS patients. Studies conducted in the Philippines last year showed that coconut oil does indeed reduce the viral load in AIDS patients.

Coconut Oil: The Healthiest Oil on Earth By Brian Shilhavy “Coconut oil is the healthiest oil on earth,” says Dr. Bruce Fife, a naturopathic doctor and the author of the book The Healing Miracles of Coconut Oil. Modern research seems to back up this bold statement. Once wrongly accused of increasing cholesterol levels, coconut oil is now actually being used by doctors in the treatment of a variety of disorders. Clinical studies have shown that coconut oil has anti-microbial and anti-viral properties, and is now even being used in treating AIDS patients. Studies conducted in the Philippines last year showed that coconut oil does indeed reduce the viral load in AIDS patients.

By Ray Peat This is a slightly modified version of Ray Peat’s article which can be found at http://www.efn.org/~raypeat/ He does some fine paintings too! I have already discussed the many toxic effects of the unsaturated oils, and I have frequently mentioned that coconut oil doesn’t have those toxic effects, though it does contain a small amount of the unsaturated oils. Many people have asked me to write something on coconut oil. I thought I might write a small book on it, but I realize that there are no suitable channels for distributing such a book — if the seed-oil industry can eliminate major corporate food products that have used coconut oil for a hundred years, they certainly have the power to prevent dealers from selling a book that would affect their market more seriously. For the present, I will just outline some of the virtues of coconut oil.

By Ray Peat This is a slightly modified version of Ray Peat’s article which can be found at http://www.efn.org/~raypeat/ He does some fine paintings too! I have already discussed the many toxic effects of the unsaturated oils, and I have frequently mentioned that coconut oil doesn’t have those toxic effects, though it does contain a small amount of the unsaturated oils. Many people have asked me to write something on coconut oil. I thought I might write a small book on it, but I realize that there are no suitable channels for distributing such a book — if the seed-oil industry can eliminate major corporate food products that have used coconut oil for a hundred years, they certainly have the power to prevent dealers from selling a book that would affect their market more seriously. For the present, I will just outline some of the virtues of coconut oil.

Well, they are not necessarily good, in fact. There are several types of fatty acids and you need to understand them, at least in outline, otherwise enthusiastic supplementation will make your health worse. Here is a simple tutorial that will clear away the confusion. It does away with the tendency to explain it all in excruciating detail, so that it becomes too much for the layman. Start by dividing essential fatty acids (EFAs) in your mind into 3 groups: the omega-3 fatty acids the omega-6 fatty acids and “the rest”. Then it gets easy because we can: drop “the rest” (omega-9s and stuff), you can make special enquiries if you are interested. state that everyone is getting far far too much of the omega-6 fatty acids and you should not supplement them at all, unless you are already on a really tip top diet. Talk about urgent supplementation of omega-3s, which is one of the biggest and most disastrous nutritional shortages in our civilized world. You see essential fatty acids are just what they are named “essential” (don’t worry about why they are fats or why they are called acids). In a sense these fatty acids are like vitamins; your body cannot make them but needs them for optimal health. Lack of essential fatty acids, we now know, can lead to premature ageing, cancer, arthritis and a host of other ills. Fatty acids are essential for maintaining healthy cell membranes and that means they have impact on all aspects of our health. But probably the most important organ is the brain, which is approximately 40% fats and needs to be maintained properly.

Well, they are not necessarily good, in fact. There are several types of fatty acids and you need to understand them, at least in outline, otherwise enthusiastic supplementation will make your health worse. Here is a simple tutorial that will clear away the confusion. It does away with the tendency to explain it all in excruciating detail, so that it becomes too much for the layman. Start by dividing essential fatty acids (EFAs) in your mind into 3 groups: the omega-3 fatty acids the omega-6 fatty acids and “the rest”. Then it gets easy because we can: drop “the rest” (omega-9s and stuff), you can make special enquiries if you are interested. state that everyone is getting far far too much of the omega-6 fatty acids and you should not supplement them at all, unless you are already on a really tip top diet. Talk about urgent supplementation of omega-3s, which is one of the biggest and most disastrous nutritional shortages in our civilized world. You see essential fatty acids are just what they are named “essential” (don’t worry about why they are fats or why they are called acids). In a sense these fatty acids are like vitamins; your body cannot make them but needs them for optimal health. Lack of essential fatty acids, we now know, can lead to premature ageing, cancer, arthritis and a host of other ills. Fatty acids are essential for maintaining healthy cell membranes and that means they have impact on all aspects of our health. But probably the most important organ is the brain, which is approximately 40% fats and needs to be maintained properly.

We are not all alike. The needs for your particular lifestyle must be adequately covered, preferably through eating more of the appropriate kinds of foods. In cases where nutritional deficiencies are causing health problems, the use of nutritional supplements may also be helpful. For example, if you smoke and drink alcohol frequently your nutritional needs will be higher. If you are pregnant, if you live in a polluted environment, if you have a high stress occupation or are suffering emotional stress, if you suffer from allergies, if you have any sort of disease, degenerative illness or inherited weakness – all of these factors may increase your needs.