Jimmy Moore’s March 2009 Health Headlines Commentary

We are inundated with information galore about our health these days and it comes at you sometimes like a ton of bricks. What are you supposed to believe about it all? How is the news you read on the Internet and in newspapers and hear about on television and the radio supposed to impact your life? Those are some difficult questions to answer when you are going about living your life as healthy as you know how and depending on the wisdom of the health “experts” to always tell you the truth. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen–especially when low-carb diets are brought up.

Although I am not a trained nutritionist or doctor, I do try to stay informed about anything related to diet, nutrition, health, and fitness through the prism of livin’ la vida low-carb. Whenever I see a health headline or web site making a claim about what is “good” or “bad” for people, I immediately filter that information through the cumulative knowledge I have gained through my own research and from the real experts I have had the privilege of interviewing in the past. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the health and low-carb headlines from March 2009 that are worthy of your attention.

MAYO CLINIC NUTRITIONISTS PUSHING HIGH-CARB FOR DIABETICS

Apparently the Mayo Clinic is jumping into the Atkins-bashing business with this column from two of their top dietitians Jennifer Nelson and Katherine Zeratsky. They openly warn diabetics against consuming eggs lest they start “asking for trouble” in managing their disease and instead recklessly promote “up to 65 percent of calories from carbohydrates” to be consumed. WHAT THE?! Are you serious about this, Mayo Clinic? It is a well-known fact that carbohydrates raise insulin and blood sugar levels–something you DON’T want to happen if you have a condition like diabetes, insulin resistance, or metabolic syndrome. I think it’s funny that after a quite a few comments of outrage were posted in response to this article, they changed the named of the article from “When low-carb means high-fat, it spells trouble for people with diabetes” to “For those with diabetes — there’s more to it than carbs.” Try, try as they may, these pro-high-carb, low-fatties will NEVER be able to make a convincing case that diabetics need to eat any other way but high-fat, low-carb. Feel free to leave your own comments and set the record straight, especially if you have a personal experience.

ATKINS NUTRITIONALS DOES VOLUNTARY PEANUT RECALL

We’ve all heard about the tainted peanut products from a plant in Blakely, Georgia forcing the peanut industry to suffer an estimated $1 billion in lost revenue over the past few months. One of the major low-carb companies Atkins Nutritionals decided to take action to recall their products although none of their inventory was affected by the plant that was identified as the source of the problem. This voluntary recall that began in January 2009 was only a precautionary measure and Atkins states their products have been “rigorously tested” and found to be safe for consumption. They hope to have all of their inventory back in stock on store shelves by May 2009. If anyone has any peanut-based Atkins products in their possession, then you can call the Atkins Consumer Hotline number–1-800-628-5467 for replacements.

IT SEEMS HFCS IS FAR WORSE THAN WE THOUGHT!

We all know about the research from people like Dr. Richard Johnson stating that food additives such as high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) are detrimental to your health because of their negative impact on blood sugar, insulin, and weight. But what if there was more to worry about when you consume something with HFCS? According to the Grist column I linked, it’s true and the FDA is behind a scandalous cover-up (gee, that’s so surprising!). It seems HFCS contains high amounts of mercury according to this published study in Environmental Health and the U.S. Food & Drug Administration has known about this since 2005 choosing to remain silent about it. It’s two chemicals commonly found in HFCS–caustic soda and hydrochloric acid–that contain the mercury. Then Sen. Barack Obama previously introduced a bill a few years back that would have required mercury to be removed from HFCS production, but it failed. Now that he is president, perhaps we’ll see him use the bully pulpit of the White House to bring back the legislation and make it the law of the land because nobody should be ingesting heavy metals like this! And the FDA is 100% liable for any damage that has been done.

UK’S FOOD STANDARDS AGENCY WAR ON SATURATED FAT

We know how much the media and the so-called health “experts” like to hyperbolize and demonize what they think is that most dastardly of all ingredients in the food supply–SATURATED FAT! In fact, you can hardly ever read a news story about saturated fat without seeing the inaccurate description “artery-clogging” in front of it as Dr. Mary Dan Eades noted in the FATHEAD documentary. So it should come as no surprise to see the British version of “that guy from CSPI” (for those of you who’ve watched Tom Naughton’s brilliant film!) warning people against eating saturated fat in a new television ad. See how they distort the truth by analogizing the human body with the pipes in your kitchen sink. To the uneducated person, this seems to make logical sense. But your body actually uses saturated fat for fuel when you keep your carbohydrate intake low and it is the carbohydrate you consume that leads to inflammation behind the arterial walls that “clogs” them. Wanna see an entertaining and accurate explanation of this? Watch FATHEAD for yourself!

MAN EATS 16 EGGS A DAY TO TRY TO GET SIX-PACK ABS

When I saw this CNN story about a man named Jason Dinant who made it his New Year’s resolution this year to get six-pack abs by his 10-year high school reunion this summer, I was intrigued by how he wanted to accomplish this task. He committed to eating a total of 16 eggs a day to his diet in addition to strength-building abdominal exercises. As you read the story, you’ll see he’s severely limiting his carbs and fat consumption by eating “lean” versions of protein sources and only the egg whites which is not exactly the best way to burn stored body fat. But even the nutritionist from the American Dietetic Association noted Jason could stand to consume a little more omega-3 fats in order to “definitely get a six-pack with this diet.” While I disagree with what they said about saturated fats and the need to consume “good” carbohydrates such as brown rice, oatmeal and sweet potatoes, I think the overall message is positive for people who support livin’ la vida low-carb because it promotes the accurate concept that eggs can indeed be a major part of a healthy and fit lifestyle (despite what Sally Squires had to say about them in a column last year).

STUDY: A SHORT-TERM PALEO DIET CAN IMPROVE HEALTH

One of the primary messages most low-carb advocates attempt to convey is for people to return to the diet of their hunter-gatherer Paleolithic ancestors to see incredible improvements in their health even without weight loss. Some say they don’t need to be on a low-carbohydrate plan because they’re not fat, but it’s not about obesity according to a study published in the February 11, 2009 issue of the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Nine non-obese study participants ate their usual diet for three days followed by increasing levels of fiber and potassium for a week and then a paleolithic type diet of lean meat, fruits, vegetables and nuts for 10 days. The results? Blood pressure and glucose tolerance improved, insulin secretion dropped, insulin sensitivity and lipid profiles were improved all without the need for weight loss. What’s the take-home message: just because you’re not fat doesn’t mean you’re healthy and a low-carb diet is likely beneficial to virtually anyone who tries it. But you and I knew that already. By the way, I’ll be sharing a podcast interview with Mr. Paleo Diet himself, Loren Cordain, on April 23, 2009.

NY GOVERNOR ATTEMPTS 18-PERCENT OBESITY TAX ON SODA

The governor of the state of New York is attempting to follow in the “nanny state” footsteps of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg who has tried hard to legislate healthy living to the residents there. Now Gov. David Patterson has taken it upon himself to put his own stamp on the obesity epidemic by proposing an 18 percent tax on sugary sodas and fruit drinks. His analysis of the proposal found that it would generate an extra $1 billion in revenue for the state while cutting consumption of the beverages by 5 percent. While this legislation never saw the light of day, it brings up an interesting question: should there be an obesity tax? If so, then what other foods and beverages should be included in the list besides sugary sodas? I personally think this idea is utterly ridiculous because it opens the door to more governmental regulation of what is healthy and what is not. Taxing my “high-saturated-fat” meat that is perfectly good for my low-carb lifestyle is discriminatory on the basis of dietary preference. In the end, tax or no tax people need to be the final arbiter of what they allow to go inside their mouth. And they don’t need the government to legislate that for them!

HAMBURGERS ARE THE ‘HUMMER’ OF FOODS IN GLOBAL WARMING

Echoing a proclamation by the United Nations last year that meat consumption is directly responsible for global warming, we have scientists in Canada who are characterizing beef like you find in hamburgers to the gas-guzzling Hummer in terms of the impact on global warming. It is meant to engender a negative picture of meat-eating while simultaneously extolling the virtues of vegetables. While I don’t have anything eating veggies (especially the non-starchy ones that we love and enjoy on a healthy low-carb lifestyle), I take great offense to the notion that my dietary choices are harming the planet as these PETA-loving, anti-meat activists would have you believe. If you want a good laugh, go visit their EatLowCarbon.org web site and use their calculator to see YOUR impact on the environment your food choices is having. Mine broke the thermometer!!!

FDA STUDY EXAMINES ‘LOW-CARB’ FOOD CLAIMS

While I’m not one to think too much about anything coming out of the FDA anymore given their poor track record, I was pleased to see this “Experimental Study of Carbohydrate Claims on Food Packages” because it harps on something I’ve often warned people who start livin’ la vida low-carb about. If you choose to consume products that are labeled “low-carb,” then you had better do your own personal due diligence to make sure that clever marketing term on the front of the packaging is valid. It’s one of the reasons why low-carb products that dominated the store shelves in 2003-04 were such a dismal failure because they gave the impression they were good for people on a low-carb diet while containing such high-carb crap as sugar and white flour. You have to READ YOUR NUTRITION LABELS to see what’s in that “low-carb” food and even then you have to be careful about some shifty labeling practices allowed by the FDA (see, I told you to be skeptical about them). They study concluded that most consumers are falsely led to believe a product is “low-carb” by a front panel marketing slogan when the product actually is. The bottom line: DON’T believe the hype and always flip it over to read the ingredients list and nutritional label. You’ll be glad you did!

HARVARD HEALTH PROF WALTER WILLETT WEIGHS IN ON CARBS

Somebody asked a very good question in U.S. News & World Report last month that I think is on the minds of a lot of health-conscious Americans: Do carbohydrates really pose health risks? This question gets to the heart of what I do here at my blog and what people like Gary Taubes wrote about in his sensational book Good Calories, Bad Calories. To answer this question, the magazine got their resident nutrition and health expert Dr. Walter Willett from the Harvard School of Public Health to do it. While Dr. Willett is not even close to being a pro-low-carb voice, he does articulate an important message that most Americans should heed–EAT LESS REFINED CARBOHYDRATES because of their negative impact on health. If the majority of the country would just cut out potatoes, white rice, pasta, sugar, HFCS, and other high-carb food sources from their diet, then most of the modern-day obesity and preventable diseases could virtually be eradicated by the end of the year. Dr. Willett is still stuck on whole grains as being “healthy,” but he’s most of the way there philosophically with what most low-carb advocates believe.

DIABETES RATES UP 75 PERCENT IN THE UK ALONE

It should come as no surprise to anyone that diabetes is exploding all around the world right now as people continue to ignore the carbohydrate connection to diabetes–namely increases in blood sugar, insulin, and weight. This triple whammy cascades as people ignore the warnings about what they are eating and how it is harming their bodies. Of course, most of the new cases referred to in this story are Type 2 diabetes–the most PREVENTABLE of them all! As Dr. Mary C. Vernon explained in this video, insulin resistance all comes down to carbs at the end of the day. Until this fact is understood and embraced, that record rise in diabetes will continue not just in the UK but around the world.

OMEGA-3 FATS FINALLY GETTING THE ATTENTION THEY DESERVE

In the fat-phobic world we live in, seeing a story published on MSNBC hailing the healthy benefits of omega-3 fatty acids is such a refreshing change of pace. The article acknowledges how EATING FAT is actually GOOD for your heart, organs, and brain which is comprised of 60 percent fat (see, we are all a bunch of “fat heads!”). They even talk about the glut of omega-6 fats that dominate the typical American diet and even push a test you can have done to see if you are getting enough omega-3s to counteract the omega-6s. This is a long read, but well worth your time to absorb the message.

WOMEN AND BODY IMAGE: TEN DISTURBING FACTS

Most women (and even some men) have a problem with the way they look. The expectation level of what a woman is supposed to look like is unreasonable and everyone knows it. Yet, how many of females walk around thinking they have to have the body of a supermodel or Hollywood actress? But what’s the reality? This list from MomGrind provides some very sobering statistics about women in terms of their weight, how they view themselves, and what effect this has on their self-image.

DR. NEAL BARNARD: VEGANISM CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE!

I came across this interview with Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) President Dr. Neal Barnard promoting the virtues of going vegan. This PETA front group purports to be all about bringing “responsibility” and “ethics” to the medical field, but what you’ll generally find is they demand everyone give up meat and become a full-fledged vegan. As enthusiastic as I am about low-carb living, even I don’t say that EVERYBODY should eat this way. If you choose to eat low-carb, then that’s great. But if you think veganism is appealing and want to do it, then who am I to stand in your way? Do what’s right for you if it helps manage your weight and health, but don’t raise a ruckus about how I eat if it’s working for me. This interview with Dr. Barnard was a bit concerning because he’s making a big push to instill vegan nutrition into medical school training. While I agree there is a severe lack of nutritional knowledge being taught to our future doctors, the education should not be monopolized by low-fat, veganism. All the latest science about a high-saturated-fat, animal-based, low-carb diet should also be taught to these people who will be treating their patients dealing with obesity and disease. And what Dr. Barnard had to say about Type 2 diabetes is absolutely frightening to those of us who know the truth about controlling insulin and blood sugar.

INDIAN TRIBE ENCOURAGES ‘FIRST FOODS’ LOW-CARB DIET

In a move reminiscent of the First Nations study conducted by Dr. Jay Wortman in Canada featured in the 2008 documentary My Big Fat Diet, Indian tribes in the Northwest are encouraging their people to preserve the “first foods” of their ancestors, including salmon, wild game, roots, berries and clear, pure water. Hmmm, those foods sure do look a whole lot like the Atkins low-carb diet and that would be the perfect way to go back to the days when obesity and diabetes were nonexistent in the tribes. Makes you kinda long for us to hearken back to our own hunter/gatherer ancestors, doesn’t it?

That’s plenty of low-carb diet and health information for you to consume for now. I have plenty more to share and always welcome your e-mails anytime at livinlowcarbman@charter.net. Feel free to respond to these headlines I’ve shared today and tell us what YOU think.