The message of livin’ la vida low-carb is EXPLODING in Sweden
Imagine one day waking up to the following scenario in the United States of America…
After months of controversy over her use of a high-fat, low-carb diet with her obese and diabetic patients as a result of two dietitians who are members of Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) complaining because she was causing irreparable harm with her treatment, Dr. Mary C. Vernon is vindicated by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) when they declare that low-carb diets are “in accordance with science and well-tried experience for reducing obesity and Type 2 diabetes.” This lights a fire in other practicing physicians who had previously been too afraid to show their open support for carbohydrate-restriction to help their patients improve their weight and health. Now they prominently advertise their use of low-carb diets with patients to draw them in.
Could you imagine these being the bestselling books in America?
Nationwide interest in the healthy low-carb lifestyle begins to spread like wildfire and the online presence of low-carb web sites, including blogs, recipe sites, scientists, doctors, and more sees a nearly ten-fold increase in traffic virtually overnight. The #1 selling health books on Amazon.com tout high-fat, low-carb diets like Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution, Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes, and Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb (hey, it’s my dream–it could happen!). Newspaper stories, radio talk shows, and television commentary all start questioning the low-fat diet advice that has dominated for over three decades while simultaneously talking up the positive benefits of livin’ la vida low-carb–all the while, the truth about low-carb living starts to sink into the hearts and minds of the average American watching all of this unfold right before their very eyes.
If high-fat, low-carb was deemed “healthy,” what happens to this symbol?
Furthermore, some of the biggest manufacturer supporters of the American Heart Association’s “heart-healthy” low-fat diet come under major scrutiny as sales of fake fats like margarine take a nosedive and the AHA succumbs to public pressure to end their lucrative sponsorship contract with the low-fat product companies using their heart healthy symbol on their packaging because of the limited scientific support that low-fat diets are healthy. Trying to save face, these companies band together what’s left of their marketing resources and try to organize a seminar for the media to educate them on why dietary fat is unhealthy and the outcry of disgust forced them to cancel the event just one day before it was scheduled to happen.
As if that wasn’t enough, a major advertising ethics committee pressures the margarine company to pull their ads immediately for being “exaggerated and untruthful.” Meanwhile, one of the top world champion athletes Michael Phelps comes out in support of eating a high-fat, low-carb diet to keep his body in tip-top condition for competition.
Wouldn’t this be great to see happening in our country which is being starved to death by the lack of truth about low-carb living? And yet doesn’t all of this sound just a bit too far-fetched for your imagination to believe could actually happen in the United States of America? Well, what if I told you every bit of that above scenario is already happening–in the country of Sweden? Would that get you excited about the future prospects of livin’ la vida low-carb?
It’s time to get excited low-carb lovers because that’s EXACTLY what is happening in Sweden and I’m thrilled to share with you these amazing details today. You’ll recall my exclusive podcast interview with Dr. Annika Dahlqvist in January 2008 who was the physician sued by two dietitians before that country’s government agency called The National Board of Health and Welfare (equivalent to our FDA, USDA, or Surgeon General’s office) publicly declared on January 16, 2008 that a low-carb diet is “in accordance with science and well-tried experience for reducing obesity and Type 2 diabetes.” Ever since Dr. Dahlqvist has been vindicated for promoting what they call LCHF (low-carb, high-fat diets), the public interest in livin’ la vida low-carb has absolutely exploded.
We’ve seen the leading advocates of carbohydrate-restriction like Dr. Dahlqvist debating the major concepts of this way of eating with the conventional health leaders there and standing their ground quite well. Get up-to-date on what all has happened over most of the past year in my interview with Swedish low-carb activist Per Wikholm from last summer. But the good news continues to happen in 2009.
According to my friend and a fellow low-carb blogger down in Sweden named Dr. Andreas Eenfeldt, the positive news coverage of the low-carb lifestyle has been frenetic unlike anything they’ve ever seen before. Check out the English translation of Dr. Eenfeldt’s Kostdoktorn.se blog so you can read all of his wonderful posts about these developments. He told me this time last year his blog reached about 1,000 visitors per day. Today, that number is 8,000, or nearly a quarter million readers a month! That’s an estimated 3 million people set to come to a blog dedicated to low-carb diet in 2009. WOW!
Other key low-carb blogs and web sites in Sweden include:
- Dr. Annika Dahlqvist
- Kolhydrater Fokus (Carbohydrate Focus)
- LowCarbKost
- Vägen Från 137kg (The Road From 300 Pounds)
- Arne Anderson’s Low-Carb Blog
- fetsmart
- Johanna Söderlund
This is by no means a comprehensive list, but rather a representation of the kind of online support sites advocating the high-fat, low-carb lifestyle in Sweden. If you’re interested in seeing even more pro-low-carb web sites and blogs that are active in that country, then browse through this HUGE blog links list on Dr. Dahlqvist’s site.
As low-carb books and resources climb to the top of the bestsellers charts, the gig is up on companies who have relied on the low-fat diet being “heart healthy.” One such company is the UK-based Unilever, the largest manufacturer of margarine in Sweden and around the world. Since the debate over fat became a national issue for discussion last year, sales of margarine have tanked. And just like in America, Unilever has been placing the “heart healthy” symbol on their products for years in a cozy multi-million dollar deal with the Heart-Lung Foundation, Sweden’s equivalent of the American Heart Association (AHA).
But not anymore.
The Heart-Lung Foundation has now terminated their relationship with Unilever because of their concerns over the limited scientific support that margarine is healthier than the saturated-fat-filled butter. As Dr. Eenfeldt notes, this is a “big blow for Unilever” who has relied on the public perception that their products are healthy for consumers to market them. Now what are they gonna say to people who are no longer fearful of fat?
In an attempt to save face, Unilever tried to hold a seminar for health journalists in Sweden to attempt to “educate” them about why fat is bad for your health. But once the television networks caught wind of this and exposed the ruse that was happening, Unilever abruptly canceled their event just one day before it was supposed to happen! And then just this week, an advertising ethics committee told Unilever that their television commercials promoting margarine as “heart healthy” are now deemed to be “exaggerated and untruthful.” You know, all of this could make you start feeling sorry for a company like Unilever–NOT!
Swedish triathlon world champion Jonas Colting eats low-carb
Finally (as if all of that wasn’t enough to lift your low-carb spirits!), a top Swedish triathlete named Jonas Colting was featured in a major fitness magazine this month called Runners World and discussed his promotion of a low-carb workout regimen while eschewing the traditional “carbing up” that many of his peers engage in to fuel their workouts. It’s quite a refreshing perspective from such a world-class athlete (I have requested an interview with Jonas for my podcast show to talk about his diet and fitness routine).
Why do I share this story about Sweden with you today when things seems so far from happening like that in the U.S.? Because it just goes to show you how quickly the public can be convinced to change their habits with even an inkling of education about what is truly healthy. While many throw their hands up in the air in disgust at the inconsistencies they have been hearing about nutrition and health in recent years, the fact is they are very open to finding out the truth to solve their own weight and/or health concern.
I’m almost BEGGING some cocky, hot shot dietitians or activists with PCRM to sue somebody like Dr. Vernon, Dr. Richard Bernstein, Dr. Eric Westman, or any of the fine low-carb doctors out there who are helping their patients get better with carbohydrate-restriction so we could get the ball rolling on what is happening in Sweden to happen here. Bring it on if you think you can handle having the low-fat diet come under fire and survive the low-carb tsunami just waiting to be released. That’s why you never hear any of these opponents of low-carb diets talking about lawsuits–because they KNOW they’d lose!
I for one am very proud of our fellow champions of low-carb living in Sweden for their brave efforts to keep the momentum going and getting the public on their side. If all of this could happen within the short span of just one year, then think about how quickly this same thing would take place in the United States of America. Knowledge is power and it’s all a matter of empowering the average Joe and Jane with the education they need to begin making better choices for themselves and their family. It may take many more years before this happens, but Sweden’s example gives me hope that it will happen much sooner than we ever expected!
You forgot to mention that lowcarb highfat books are the number one selling ones now
I did not know that Johan, but it’s something else to add to my analogy.
–Jimmy
Hi Jimmy, if I may correct you the association corresponding to your AHA isn’t called AHA, but The Heart-Lung Foundation (Hjärt-lungfonden in Swedish)
http://www.hjart-lungfonden.se/sv/HLF/In-English/
Yes, great things are happening here now. Once the snowball gets rolling… it hopefully keeps rolling!
THANKS Hemul! I just completed the article after my initial tease from this morning and it includes the Heart-Lung Foundation. The analogy was as if what happened in Sweden happened in America. I appreciate the accuracy, though.
–Jimmy
As a part of the Swedish low-carb explosion, I’d just like to say thanks for a pretty damn accurate analogy.
It should be added that the Swedish nutrition establishment is trying to fight back, with the food safety agency in the lead. (They are under the department of agriculture – big shocka!) To some degree the low-glycemic-index (GI) diet gurus are also trying to stem the tide, for obvious reasons. (GI was the big thing before low-carb. This was pretty useful, as it made people aware that insulin matters).
Still, the problem the naysayers face is simple: People’s personal experience of Low-carb is generally very positive. And in a smaller country like Sweden, trends can become pervasive much quicker than in a larger country like the US.
Personally, I started lower-carbing about a year ago, was on-and off summer-fall, and then went strict LCHF mid-december. Total weight lost, a bit more than 50 pounds. I’ve become something of a low-carbomanic when it comes to reading blogs, etc. too, and I want to give a special thanks for your very informative and entertaining podcast!
Greets from Sweden!
THANKS for being on the front lines of the LCHF movement in Sweden, Fasching!
–Jimmy
Oops! I didn’t notice the “Imagine one day” part. Sorry.
No problem, my friend!
–Jimmy
I should add that the stance of the food safety agency (Livsmedelsverket) has triggered a fun little inter-agency spat between them and the National Board for Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen, the controlling health care authority).
Needless to say, the food people are furious at the health care people for greenlighting high-fat diets on the health care side of things.
You´re a great source of inspiration for us all, Jimmy! And yes, you’re absolutely right, things are really starting to move in the right direction here in Sweden, diet-wise.
And b.t.w. thanks for your brief visit to my humble blog…
/(fat)smart
I LOVE your blog, fetsmart, so keep up the GREAT work! Sweden has got me pumped!
–Jimmy
Hi Jimmy. I’m a low carbing Swede in America and I was so stoked to read this blogg entry by you. I have lost 50 lbs by reading and following the advise of Dr. Dahlqvist and Eenfeldt and with support from Kolhydrater i Fokus. Anyhow, clicked on the links to see if I could visit those other fav. bloggs of mine from this site and all the links lead back to Dr. Eenfeldts blogg. Love him but I don’t think that’s what you had in mind… Was it?
No, Gabi. I’ll work on fixing that now. THANK YOU! ALL FIXED NOW! TY!
–Jimmy
Jimmy, I would absolutely love to see such positive reaction from the vast majority of population in the US.
I have to say though that as long as big pharma, agra, et al have boatloads of money to throw around, we’ve still got quite the battle here in the US.
Not that I don’t have hope though, it will happen… it is happening and people are clueing in to those who stand to gain in keeping American’s fat and unhealthy.
Keep up your good work Jimmy
Its gives hope for future. I am with Low Carbohydrates diet freed my self from anxiety, hyperactivity and many more health problems, all thou my BMI is normal.
Wish you all the strength it exists!!!!!! Good luck!
Jimmy, I started crying when I read this news…it is so fantastic!
Think how many people will helped by these changes! This is AWESOME!! I can’t wait for the day when this happens in America, and Kraft and Johnson &Johnson have to back peddle!
Jimmy,
Recently, while attending a course on Crisis and Risk Communication, I developed new respect for “framing” a message and how it can affect people’s reaction (minimizing the paralyzing effects of fear, for example), taking into consideration the audience’s state of mind. What a great impact your “imagine one day . . .” framing has! Michael Phelps indeed! What a turnabout that would be if our celebrities endorsed real food and inlightened low carb eating instead of rushing to sign up with the processed grain megaliths.
This is all tremendously exciting. I think it’s a demonstration of the inevitable result when a “product,” with results so dramatic that sells itself, achieves a certain threshold of visibility. That has apparently happened in Sweden, and it could happen here once the low carb groundswell crests the wall of resistance.
Thanks for all the links. Great reading! And Google does a surprisingly good job with the translation.
Steve
Love your blog, Jimmy!
Runners World come in different language versions – just so you don’t send you your readers on a wild goose chase after the US version that problably won’t feature Jonas.
THANKS for the clarification, Katarina. Yes, it’s the SWEDISH version that Jonas appeared in.
–Jimmy
Hi Jimmy, damn good article you have written. Me I am also one of the Swedish lowcarbers that are out there.
And well just need to tell you, my doctor didn´t believe me when I told him how I ate. That I ate lchf because my health control showed the best results ever. I were the best one they had seen for some month and the nurse asked to get the info about the lchf and off cores she got it.
But the best is my eating disorders, that is all gone. No anorexia, no bulimia, no overeating. And of cores a big minus on the scale. =)
Maybe it is time to get the Americans to start enjoy this awesome diet, or rather this lifestyle as it is. Once you go low carb, you never go back.
(and for those that is unsure due to not eating desserts well, you can still do it with this diet.)
Jimmy keep up the good work, you will be listed in the menu, so more of the swedes finds your blog, we will keep track on the development in the us.
Remember, lowcarb is a lifestyle, that brings so many good things not only to the table, but to your health and life.
Thanks for a awesome Blog.
Nadia
THANK YOU, Nadia! Keep fighting the good fight.
–Jimmy
Hi there! There really IS a revolution here in Sweden and many people are going for the Low Carb High Fat diet now! Even though our equivalent of FDA are fighting for their scientific lives now when the low fat diets starts to crumble.
Funny that a knowledge that has been around fpr hundreds of years suddenly became untrue since the 50’s. In a recent article in a major swedish newspaper they quoted a brochure from over a hundred years ago telling fat people to keep off potatoes, bread and eating vegetables, meat and natural fat! Nothing new about LCHF.
Where did it all go wrong…
Im a swede that got the diagnos typ 2 diabetes this summer.
My local doctor told me to consither to study the new discoveris that has been done regarding low carb and blood suger levels. It was my desition if I wanted to start medicate or maybe test this new way of eating.
I did not hesitet and started to eat LCHF. And when I come back to a follow up meeting 2 weeks later, my blood levels was normal and I had lost 3 kg, so we decided to wait with medication.
Now 6 month later my bloodglucose levels are normal and my BMI is normal, and im 15 kg lighter. And no medication.
I’m so glad that Annika Dahlquist took the fight with the authorities. The publicity reached my doctor and she gave me the opportunity to choose a better life.
OUTSTANDING, Stefan! That’s why I would love to see a revolution like this in America. We are on the verge of a shift if people, and especially doctors, are armed with the truth.
–Jimmy
I´d love to be part of your podcast series (check private e-mail) and I liked the analogy of being compared to Phelps; although he´s obviously in an entirely different league of excellence than I am.
Nonetheless, My article has stirred some controversy in Sweden as I pinpoint how the sponsorship of Swedish Sports through major carbmanufacturers (pasta, bread, grains, sugar etc) have warped the general populations (not only athletes) view what´s to be considered as healthy and primary to fuel oneself with…Typically Swedish xc-skiiers are notorious for their vast intake of carbs and they are incidentally also notorious for being sick with infections time and time again.
Although I wouldn’t go as far as calling myself a true low-carb athlete I advocate fats and protein during everyday eating whereas carbs come in handy during strenous endurance efforts. This is known as “train low-race high” and is way different from overeating sugary carbs for every meal around the clock.
Check out the coming podcast!
//Jonas
Jonas, THANK YOU! I think your voice in this is an important one even if you don’t have the same kind of notoriety as Phelps.
We’ll be in touch.
–Jimmy
Jimmy, thanks for this news. It’s a great breakthrough. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if, somehow, the news leaked to our American media news broadcasts and they did a talk-talk feature on it. I wonder who might convince them to cover this major nutritional breakthrough. An entire country going low carb! Fantastic! Thanks for letting us know.
We are hoping to get South Africa next on the map ! hehe… yea ok.. a dream… but possible!
You’ll get there!
–Jimmy
Uhm, wait a minute.
“Could you imagine these being the bestselling books in America?”
Atkins New Diet Revolution was one of the best selling books in America already… From The Publisher’s description of DANDR Revised:
“Spending over four years on the New York Times bestseller list, Dr. Atkins’s nutritional approach has taken America by storm.”
Taubes a little less so. It’s a denser book not really meant for consumers. Or if it was, the eggheadiness of the general book consumer was greatly overestimated.
Of course it was at one time, ML Harris, but I’m talking about in 2009 America.
–Jimmy
I think you’re wrong about Jonas Colting. He eats all kinds of carbs.
“Between stages I ate non-stop; Recovery drinks, rice pudding, bananas, Clif-bars, candy, chips, water, cookies and some normal meals like Thai food after the first day and fresh fish and mashed potatoes after day 2. My appetite was great all through out and I didn’t have any of that bloating that sometimes occurs during massive physical activity. Except for on the bike during the first day, but I know why that happened. ”
http://www.slowtwitch.com/Interview/Jonas_Colting_and_the_Soul_of_Ultraman_Hawaii_141.html
THANKS Craig! We’ll find out when I interview him for my podcast show. THANKS!
–Jimmy
I think we have the Internet to thank for this happening in Sweden. We haven’t really had any big LC craze before, as you have had in the U.S. When we at last got on the wagon, the Internet was there, ready to spread the words of people like Dr. Annika Dahlqvist to far more eager minds than she could have reached, say, 10 or 15 years years ago. It’s all about timing. Everyone knows how to google, how to check facts and how to pass the word on.
The fact that we are a small country, by comparison to U.S. very small, may also have an impact. Mouth to mouth passing of information simply has a deeper impact.
Jimmy, this is AWESOME news!! Hooray for Sweden!! Hopefully the message will continue to spread and eventually your dream (including the Livin La Vida Low Carb best seller!) will be reality in every country.
I’m tickled to see Jonas’ comments above and can hardly wait to hear the podcast.
Unilever is a huge global company and most people would be surprised to see how many different products here in the US they sell. They are most likely planning massive low fat marketing campaigns worldwide in an attempt to prevent revolutions like we’re seeing in Sweden. I see they have a whole nutrition section on their website devoted to promoting a low fat diet.
Craig,
you need to put that in context of the event of the Ultraman.
It presents physical strains 99.9% of the population will never face and during any kind of event like this, the first priority is to promote digestion.
Also, as this is an extremely hot and humid event the carbs loads the body on fluids as one gram om carb binds four grams of water.
So although I did consume some fast and generally unhealthy carbs I also ate healthy foods and furthermore spent the hundreds and hundreds of days prior to the event maximizing metabolism and health through training and a balanced diet.
I´m not a die-hard low-carb person in every stretch but rather believe in the “train low-race high” concept which includes more carbs during ardous endurance events. None of the negative side effects of excess insulin etc will then occur.
Jonas
Thank you Jonas for the response!
I’m not an athlete, and do not know how to manage digestion and energy in the face of a extreme event. From your perspective, I think you should do whatever it takes to win!
Hi there, found your blog today, looks great! Good job!
I´m a man from Sweden and I started with LCHF in middle november 2008, and I have right now lost 11,5 kg. My goal is to lose 7kg more.
WAY TO GO, Robert!!!
–Jimmy
As an American living in Sweden, I’ve gotten to see the low carb, high fat debate up close and personal. My husband started talking about changing our eating habits to LCHF 9-12 months ago when he heard about Dr. Dalhqvist. We started for real in mid-November. I’ve been looking for low carb blogs written in English, since it is my native tongue, so imagine my delight when a Swedish blog pointed me to yours.
WELCOME to my blog, Sandy! I’m so happy to have you here.
–Jimmy
Readers of your blog who want to read the Swedish blogs may like to know that google translate
http://translate.google.com/translate_t?hl=en&sl=sv&tl=en#
does a fairly good job of it. It can mangle some of the words so you have to use your own knowledge of low carbohydrate basics to grasp where the computer translation is garbled.
All you need to do cut & paste URL of Swedish site into the Googletranslate searchbox select Swedish/English and read. I started with Dr Dahlqvist’s diet after you interviewed her about a year ago and lost over 45lbs in six months and haven’t regained it or stopped eating low carbohydrate.
I agree the Google translate works remarkably well. A lot of Swedish readers have done the opposite to translate my blog into Swedish. YOU GOTTA LOVE IT! CONGRATS on your success and I’m sure Dr. Dahlqvist (who understands English!) would LOVE to know about it.
–Jimmy
Hi Jimmy and thanks for a great blog!
Me and my fiancée are livin’ la vida low-carb since mid-july of 2008, and we’re very excited about our results.
We have both been able to cut down alot on our sleeping medication, anxiety pills, and generally feeling alot happier. No crazy bloodsugar rushes up or down to make us feel weird or queasy and constantly wanting to eat sugary stuffs.
Me, being a diabetic and very overweight, I have been able to trim down my insulin dosages to half of what I used to take, and both longterm bloodsugar (Hba1C) and blood pressure are considerably lower. I have also been able to loose 25 pounds in the last 2½ month only, now that my body has recovered totally from previous diet-attempts. I have also stopped being an over-eater, as have the fiancée.
For us, the monthly food-budget also dropped about 400SEK / month (about 45 dollars) just because we didn’t need all the candy, flour-stuff, juices, and ice-cream anymore.
Thanks for the input on swedish LCHF’ing. I’m trying constantly (not preaching, just telling) to make friends that are addicted to sugar to at least TRY it for a few weeks, so that they at least loose the addiction, and every post in the matter counts!
Best Wishes
Helene and Jesper , Stockholm Sweden.
Hi! I’m so glad because of your wonderful blog! I’m on Atkins since one year ago and I’ve lost 15 kilos. Now I’m ready for the second phase.
KEEP IT UP, Belle!
–Jimmy
Hi Jimmy,
I tried to find that Runners World article on Jonas Colting and I couldn’t find it through either Google or searching directly on the Runners World website. Do you have a link to it?
Could they possibly have ditched the article because it conflicts with their view of the world so strongly? I ran a marathon about 6 years ago, training with the National AIDS Marathon Training Program, in San Francisco, to raise funds. The training table at the end of each weekly group long run was always stocked with sugary junk food. I was reading about low carb then and trying to incorporate it, but it was really swimming against the current of nutritional thinking in distance running circles, that’s for sure.
Thanks for this post. I gave you a boost on my little blog when I wrote about Paleo/Primal and low carb recently. Keep up the good work! I love your podcasts.
Thank you so much for your support, Jeanmarie! If you’re looking for the issue of RUNNER’S WORLD Jonas appeared in, you can find it here. Hope this helps!
–Jimmy
Well… something might worth knowing is the fact that Björn Ferry, The Swedish Olympic Winner in biathlon is on a strict LCHF-diet. He refused to eat bakery during a tv-interview but politely said that he would happily add some cream in his coffe instead.
http://www.bjornferry.com/
Nice posts about LCHF. Although I’m not all that hyped up about “loooooow carb” or “hiiiiiiiigh fat” I still tend to eat fewer carbs than I’m supposed to, and increase my “healthy fats” more, usch as olive oil, avocado, fish oil and things of that nature, and boost my protein too. I only eat chicken breast, olive oil, TOOONS of veggies, maybe cottage cheese etc for lunch (or similar)…
You don’t get fat from fat, but you don’t get fat from carbs either, you get fat from excess calories, protein, carbs or fat doesn’t matter. Eating balanced and keeping the refined foods out is best in my opinion. Like good piece of lean protein, veggies, good carb such as brown rice or whatever and some olive oil is great
I don’t know if this counts as “low card high fat” or not, but if it does then I’m def in favor of it.. haha.
I tend to burn my calories through exercise instead (I’ve got time, lol)
Don’t agree with your conclusions, but I appreciate you commenting at my blog.