Jimmy Moore's Livin' La Vida Low Carb Blog » James Carlson

Is There A Low-Carb Cooking Show Coming To Television?

Jimmy Moore — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:55:13 +0000

People are always asking me, “Jimmy, when are we going to see a low-carb cooking show on television?” Ever since George Stella was taken off of The Food Network and Blaine Jelus had his “Blaine’s Low-Carb Cooking” show removed from FIT TV in the past few years, the healthy low-carb message has been eerily silent. With high-profile cooking shows on television now like Gordon Ramsey’s “Hell’s Kitchen,” Bravo’s “Top Chef,” and “The Next Food Network Star,” I’m very surprised we haven’t seen a Paleo or low-carb chef featured on any of these shows. What an opportunity it would be to take dishes that have traditionally been full of carbage and make them into something that tastes amazing while maintaining the nutritional integrity of a carbohydrate-restricted lifestyle change. Surely there is SOMEBODY out there who can deliver the goods and make this happen!

Well, it just so happens there is! A promising new television cooking show is in the works featuring the most widely-recognized name in low-carb cookbooks in the world teaming up with a rambunctious and highly-knowledgable practicing physician who understands the proper role nutrition plays as a therapeutic measure for people desiring weight loss and improved health. They are the bestselling author of a series of low-carb cookbooks named Dana Carpender and the low-carb “Shock Doc” himself Dr. James Carlson. Both Dana and Dr. Jim have been guest speakers in the past few years on the Low-Carb Cruise as well as on “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show” podcast (listen to Dana in Episode 158 and Dr. Jim in Episode 145, Episode 146, Episode 215).

Now these two are taking their combined passion, knowledge and experience to create a brand new television show they are calling “Your Doctor’s in the Kitchen.” Go right now to the official Facebook page for this TV Show and press “Like” to help them capture the attention of television stations and networks that desperately need to be sharing this message with frustrated television viewers who are obese, diabetic and need someone to show them how easy it is to cook and eat healthy–the low-carb way! Paula Deen is missing her golden opportunity to create a show like this to educate her fans, but Dana and Dr. Jim have gotten creative making two video samples of what their new low-carb cooking TV show would look like. Check this out!

Your Doctor’s in the Kitchen Promo

http://youtu.be/pdBVXmVp71M

Your Doctor’s in the Kitchen – How To Make Rice-A-Phony

http://youtu.be/Shnm4vuB1Xk

WOW, wouldn’t this be incredible to see on cable or network television someday? It’s both educational and entertaining that reminds me of the wackiness of somebody like Alton Brown on The Food Network. And yet it maintains the dietary integrity of what high-fat, moderate protein, low-carb living is all about and passing on that message to the television viewers at home. Here’s our chance low-carb community to rally around an exciting new project that could penetrate the truths about the low-carb lifestyle into our culture. Show your support for “Your Doctor’s in the Kitchen” by CLICKING HERE and hitting the “Like” button. This could very well make a REAL difference in helping make that paradigm shift in thinking about low-carb living happen. On behalf of Dana Carpender and Dr. James Carlson, THANK YOU for your support of this exciting new venture.

Google AdSense Turns To Nonsense: Low-Carb Physician Dr. James Carlson’s Account ‘Posed A Significant Risk’

Jimmy Moore — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 00:34:34 +0000

Did Google Adwords ban Dr. James Carlson for his low-carb promotion?

As more and more people begin turning to the Internet for useful online information about their health, a popular way for bloggers to bring in a little extra money is through affiliate programs. One of the most predominant ones out there has got to be Google AdSense. If you’ve been on just about any web site lately, then no doubt you’ve seen text ads that look like these:

Keywords from the content of the site you are on are matched with AdWords advertisers who pay Google to post their text ad according to suggested keywords in an effort to reach people who would be interested in purchasing their product or service who then in turn pay publishers (blog and web site owners) a small referral fee to them for providing a prospective customer. As you can see from those examples above (pulled from the Google ads on my blog), the advertisers aren’t exactly for the best products in the world related to diet and health. Even still, every little bit helps and most of the low-carb diet and health bloggers I know use Google ads.

One such blogger who I love and respect for what he is doing to spread the healthy low-carb message is Dr. James E. Carlson, author of the fabulous low-carb book Genocide: How Your Doctor’s Dietary Ignorance Will Kill You. I first interviewed him in June 2008 (listen here and here) and then again for “Encore Week” in January 2009. People immediately connected with the no-holds-barred, in-your-face, blunt style of Dr. Carlson because he refuses to sugarcoat the truth (it’s too high-carb anyway!). He joined us on The 2nd Annual Low-Carb Cruise in 2009 and will again be one of the featured guest speakers in our upcoming March 2010 cruise to the Bahamas. The man exudes passion about “low carbs” as he calls it and even launched his own weekly television show recently.

But as with any rising star in an important movement, there are those who look to stand in the way of their progress and surprisingly this time around it’s an unexpected one for Dr. Carlson — Google! That’s right, in case you didn’t know it, the good folks from the world’s largest search engine company apparently feel threatened by the low-carb message he shares to the point that they would take drastic measures to “disable” the AdSense account of an outspoken low-carb blogger like Dr. Carlson. I was shocked when I first read about this and the following response Google sent to him attempting to explain the situation was absolutely breathtaking:

Hello,

While going through our records recently, we found that your AdSense account has posed a significant risk to our AdWords advertisers. Since keeping your account in our publisher network may financially damage our advertisers in the future, we’ve decided to disable your account. Please understand that we consider this a necessary step to protect the interests of both our advertisers and our other AdSense publishers. We realize the inconvenience this may cause you, and we thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation. If you have any questions about your account or the actions we’ve taken, please do not reply to this email.

Sincerely,

The Google AdSense Team

Un-freakin’-real! Let’s briefly analyze part of this message from Google:

“going through our records”

What kind of “records” are they talking about? Traffic? Clicks? More likely, it’s some kind of content manager with a clipboard looking through their various AdSense publishers to see what they’re actually writing about. They wouldn’t want to be affiliated with any nut cases, ya know. Like those wacky low-carb people!

“Your AdSense account has posed a significant risk”

Not just a light “risk,” Dr. Carlson, but you are a SIGNIFICANT risk. Ooooo! I wonder what the heck you did to raise the ire of Google to such a degree. Red alert, red alert, the bald physician with the glasses is blogging again! HA! What the heck does it mean that your account “has posed a significant risk?” Not explaining what this means is the height of idiocy on their part.

“Keeping your account…may financially damage our advertisers”

Man, Dr. Carlson, Google must REALLY fear what you are doing claiming that you are harming them and their advertisers with the columns you are posting at your blog. I guess sharing with people about how they can lose weight, improve their health, and beat back some of today’s most hideous preventable diseases makes you as threatening as a terrorist apparently. I still don’t get it other than some nimrod at Google is anti-low-carb.

“We’ve decided to disable your account”

Well that’s mighty fine of you, Google. But you just take this dictatorial action without any explanation whatsoever and refuse to engage in a conversation with the person you are perpetrating this one? That’s just bad business and not the way you should be treating one of your publishers. The very least Dr. Carlson is owed is a REAL explanation for why this happened. Do you have the kahunas to tell him or will you cower behind your form response?

The rest of that bogus letter from the “Google AdSense Team” isn’t worth bothering with. What’s done is done and apparently it’s final. And Dr. Carlson himself wasn’t too thrilled with this action that was taken against him.

Gee, thanks Google, especially the part where I cannot even question your decision, even though we all know why I was kicked off. How cool is that, Google hates me now.

We all know why he was kicked off, right? It’s gotta be the content of his message…although many other blogs, including mine, have not been targeted by Google yet. Well, at least not yet anyway. What could have set them off on Dr. Carlson’s blog? Hmmm…

He notes that “my fight (with Google) has only just begun,” so I’m not sure what this doctor/lawyer has in mind yet. There may be a discrimination lawsuit involved in this somehow, so I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. Even Dr. Carlson isn’t crying over this decision, though, since the Google ads that displayed on his blog were not exactly the highest quality in the world.

For anyone who actually clicked on them, they deal mainly with other diets and meds and just other health food products. Funny thing is, most of the advertisements were for diets that just are not right and for products that are a bunch of malarkey.

Amen to that! It’s too bad Google doesn’t allow their publishers to customize the ads that would best fit with their message, but it doesn’t work that way unfortunately. So why even let these Google ads on his site to begin with?

Well, why not? Anyone who clicked on an ad could easily ask me what my thoughts were on a particular product or service and you have. I felt they stimulated useful dialogue. And most of the time, like I already stated, the product or service was either not helpful and just a waste of money or in some cases even harmful.

Interesting take. And I agree that they serve a mutually beneficial purpose inasmuch as readers can click on them with no obligation to purchase anything while the blog owner is given a few pennies for each click. If 1,000 people a day clicked on those Google ads, then that would net several hundred dollars to help defray the costs of running the site. It’s a win-win for both the readers and the blog owners like Dr. Carlson. Or at least it was until he was banned!

Dr. Carlson has his theory about why he was singled out.

So why shut me down now Google? Obviously someone over at Google or maybe it was one of their advertisers who actually read the contents of my web site or blog and since I sit at odds with a lot of these useless or even harmful products or diets, they pulled their ads from my sites. I guess Google feared that it would lose millions (billions?) in advertising funds because of me telling the truth.

He jokingly added, “Am I becoming more popular than I realize?” Apparently you are, Dr. Carlson, apparently you are! Keep fighting the good fight and doing what you do to spread the healthy low-carb message with the world. By the way, you can access his “Nutritional Wellness” television show from Dream Weaver Radio for FREE now. WOO HOO! Just register here to access all of these wonderfully hilarious and educational videos from Dr. James Carlson.

Fun-Filled Friday: MSN, Leno/Conan, POTG, Christine Hair, Cat Jury Duty, Jibberish Dog, And Dr. Carlson Snippet

Jimmy Moore — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 00:59:38 +0000

Traffic today has been WAY up thanks to MSN Careers column

Whew, what a day this has been! I noticed fairly early this morning that this wasn’t gonna be a typical Friday. Traffic tends to slow down a bit by the end of the work week, but at 11:00AM this morning I had already surpassed the average pageviews seen on a regular Friday. But this was no “normal” day thanks to this column on MSN today written by CareerBuilder.com contributing writer Rachel Zupek about careers that didn’t exist 10 years ago. At the top of the list was my “dream job” — BLOGGING! I was quoted by name in the story and a link to my official web site for the “Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb” brand was provided. E-mails from curious people looking to make blogging their career choice have been pouring in and I’ve even chatted with several of them on the telephone to offer some tips for getting started. WHAT FUN!

Well, this is “Fun-Filled Friday” after all, so what did you expect? There’s always stuff to talk about that doesn’t necessarily fit within the teeny tiny box of diet, health, and nutrition. And boy is there ever a plethora of stuff to talk about that interests me outside of my normal blogging topics this week!

Let’s start with the whole Jay Leno/Conan O’Brien/NBC drama that has dominated entertainment headlines for most of the past week or so. This is one messed-up situation and I blame NBC for not taking care of its talent better than this. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno was the #1 late night television program by a mile when Conan took over in mid-2009 as he was contractually promised five years prior. To appease Leno and keep him from bolting to another network, the executives offered him a prime time slot at 10:00PM nightly on NBC. It was a bold move that was supposed to revolutionize television and was aimed at saving production dollars to turn a profit. But this experiment failed miserably in the ratings and the local affiliates expressed their outrage for the poor lead-in to their late news.

It was at this point that NBC had a chance to do right by everyone. They could have bid a fond farewell to Jay Leno thanking him for nearly two decades of service to the network and sent him off with an amazing tribute show for his many years of service. While Conan’s Tonight Show ratings against Letterman at 11:35PM weren’t as good as what Jay had before he left, the fact remains that the transition had already taken place. Leno had a good run following the great Johnny Carson and this was Conan’s show to build a fan base for the next umpteen years. But NBC didn’t see it that way. They created this feud that will likely end ugly with Conan leaving the network altogether (and possibly going to a competitor for another talk show) and Leno sheepishly going back to his old job where he will have a tarnished image from this fiasco. U-G-L-Y! You gotta admire how these guys can still crack jokes through all this career turmoil:

Crazy stuff! I’m not a personal fan of Conan O’Brien’s style of comedy, but I at least think the guy deserved better than this. What a crying shame. If NBC was smart they’d hire the “Pants On The Ground” guy named General Larry Platt from American Idol this week who was the most entertaining act they had on the show for the debut week:

Is it creepy that I’ve been singing this song around the house all week? Christine has told me to “SHUT UP!” a time or two over that one. Speaking of my darling, did you catch her hairdo following neck surgery on Monday this week? It’s a classic reminding me of Heath Ledger’s hair as the Joker in The Dark Night!

Oh, I’m so dead meat now! Quick, let me show a cute little kitty video before she notices:

Awwww, I’m a sucker for this kinda stuff! Speaking of cats, did you hear about the cat in Boston, Massachusetts named Sal who has been called for jury duty? This is no joke and the jury commissioner insists the cat must report for his legal duty. Check it out:

Oh, won’t they be the fools if they make this owner take her cat for jury duty. How do you vote — MEEEOOWWWW! Too funny. Maybe they could put this dog on the jury:

LOL! Why does he sound so eerily similar to Steve Carrell from The Office, though? Scary stuff! But not nearly as scary as what this American Diabetes Association support group is doing for a fundraiser. WHACKED! I’m sure the amazing Dr. James E. Carlson would have something to say about that:

Can’t wait to see him and his lovely Monica on The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise to the Bahamas coming March 6-11, 2010 leaving out of Jacksonville, Florida. We’ve had six more people sign up to join us this week and we’d still love to have you come, too. It’s gonna be the time of your life! Drop me an e-mail at livinlowcarbman@charter.net for further details. That’s all for this “Fun-Filled Friday” and I’ll be back next week with even more stuff to chat about that will bring a big smile to your face! Have an awesome weekend. And if you found my blog from that MSN column, WELCOME and stick around a while. We’d love to see you here early and often.

2010 Low-Carb Cruise To The Bahamas Update: Dates Changed To March 6-11th And More Guest Speakers

Jimmy Moore — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 19:07:24 +0000

We have some important updates about the 2010 Low-Carb Cruise

Back in April, you’ll recall that I announced we would be going on The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise to the Bahamas leaving out of Jacksonville, Florida port from March 1-6, 2010 on the Carnival Fascination. Many of you have already signed up to be a part of this special event featuring guest speakers like Drs. Mike & Mary Dan Eades, Dr. Eric Westman, Dr. William Davis, Dr. James E. Carlson, Jackie Eberstein, and Karly Pitman and we’re so excited about the prospect of having well over 100 enthusiastic low-carbers on board with us this year. But there’s been a slight change in the dates because of circumstances out of our control.

Our cruise coordinator Becky Gandy informed me of the bad news recently that a very large group booked the entire ship with Carnival for the original dates of our cruise. UGH! After planning for March 1-6, 2010 and then announcing it with banners and blog posts, this was a bit depressing. But thanks to the yeoman’s work that Becky and our Vacations To Go travel representative who is helping us with the booking of this cruise, we were able keep the same port of departure (Jacksonville), the same ship (Carnival Fascination), and virtually the same ticket price (actually it’s now slightly cheaper at just $366/person for two people in a cabin). There were only slight changes in the dates we travel and the ports of call in the Bahamas.

The NEW dates we will be traveling down to the Bahamas on the cruise will be MARCH 6-11, 2010. Our original cruise was going to be making luxurious stops in Key West, Florida and Nassau, Bahamas. But the NEW ports of call will be Nassau, Bahamas on that Monday and then Half Moon Cay, Bahamas on that Tuesday. I’m a little disappointed we won’t be going to Key West, but now the cruise will truly be a Bahamas vacation! Everything else about this 5-day cruise will be the same as it was when we first announced it.

If you have already made a reservation to come on The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise, then your spot has already been transferred over to the new date and you won’t need to do anything. If you are making payments, then the next deposit is due in August. However, if this date change makes it impossible for you to come on the cruise, then Vacations To Go will be happy to issue you an immediate refund. Simply e-mail your request to Sue Hidlebaugh and she’ll take care of you! If you have any questions about booking the cruise then Sue is also the person to contact. For questions about the activities happening on the ship with the low-carb group, you can address those to Becky Gandy or me.

I apologize to those of you who had already booked your plane tickets and other accommodations with the original dates, but we are super-excited about the 2010 cruise with a bunch of passionate low-carb lovers on board sharing the TRUTH about healthy eating. Even with our small group last year, we made quite an impression on the people who were passing by our room where the speakers were sharing about livin’ la vida low-carb. You just never know who might have their life changed forever because of something they hear on this cruise. I so hope you have a chance to be a part of this historic event!

This gives me the PERFECT opportunity to share with you even MORE special guests who will be attending The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise to the Bahamas in addition to all those I listed at the top of this column:

DRS. MIKE & MARY DAN EADES

The king and queen of livin’ la vida low-carb and passionate defenders of this way of eating, the Eades are probably the last remaining and most famous of the high-fat, low-carb diet authors from earlier this century. Noted for their Protein Power work, these two are constantly working on new projects to educate people about healthy low-carb living. By the time we go on this cruise, their new book The 6-Week Cure for the Middle-Aged Middle: The Simple Plan to Flatten Your Belly Fast! will be out and no doubt they’ll be sharing more about it and what’s going on in their lives with all of us. I’m honored they accepted my invitation to come with us on the 2010 cruise.

DR. ERIC WESTMAN

After having such a moving experience on the 2009 cruise, Dr. Eric Westman said he wouldn’t miss coming back again in 2010. Known for his commitment to quality research on the subject of low-carbohydrate nutrition at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, Dr. Westman also runs the Duke Lifestyle Medicine Clinic there helping real patients overcome obesity, diabetes, and other health issues related to their diet. A humble and kind man, he is certainly a rare breed when it comes to a physician and researcher. I proudly call him a friend and look forward to sharing all of his knowledge and wisdom with the low-carb cruise passengers who come.

DR. WILLIAM DAVIS

You’ve heard him speak on my podcast show and now he’s gonna be coming LIVE on the cruise to the Bahamas with us–Dr. William Davis from “The Heart Scan” blog! This cardiologist is on the cutting-edge of sharing some of the most amazing technology regarding heart health, including the promotion of regular heart scans so you can Track Your Plaque build-up as well as pushing high-dosage Vitamin D supplements for improving health. I’ve been positively influenced by the work of this man and I know all of us will be in for a treat when he comes with us on the cruise.

DR. JAMES E. CARLSON

Another repeat guest from the 2009 cruise, I have so much respect for what Dr. James E. Carlson is doing on behalf of high-fat, low-carb eating and I am confident you will learn much from what this man has to say. Author of an explosive book entitled Genocide: Why Your Doctor’s Dietary Ignorance Will Kill You, the man pulls no punches with his matter-of-fact speaking style. Spending time with him and his soon-to-be wife Monica on this year’s cruise was a lot of fun and I have no doubt in my mind 2010 to the Bahamas will be just as good!

JACKIE EBERSTEIN

How can you have a low-carb cruise and not have who is arguably the #1 authority on the Atkins diet on board with you? She’s registered nurse Jackie Eberstein from Controlled Carbohydrate Nutrition and I’m so excited that she’ll be coming back again to share about her experiences working directly with the late, great Dr. Robert C. Atkins for three decades. The talk she gave this year about the complementary medical practice that Dr. Atkins ran was sensational and I have no doubt in my mind that next year will be EVEN BETTER!

KARLY PITMAN

Finally, another one of my favorite podcast interviews was with Karly Pitman from First Ourselves. Unlike all the other special guest speakers who will be coming with us on the cruise in 2010, Karly is not a researcher, medical professional, or dietitian. She’s a mom who understands what it’s like for women to live in the real world keeping track of the family, the home, and everything else. Karly’s message of hope and inspiration to remember to take care of yourself first is one we will all benefit from when she shares with us.

FRED HAHN

No, that’s not Chuck Norris, but it is his low-carb look-a-like Fred Hahn. He is the author of the bestselling Slow Burn Fitness Revolution book with the Eades as well as his new children’s fitness book entitled Strong Kids, Healthy Kids. If you’ve ever wondered about the benefits of the “slow lifting” approach to fitness, then Fred’s your man! He’ll be demonstrating this unique resistance training technique on the cruise.

DANA CARPENDER

She was a hit on the 2009 cruise and now Dana Carpender will be joining us again in 2010! If you’ve ever wanted to know how to give your low-carb lifestyle some pizzazz and razzle-dazzle, then look no further than any of her bestselling low-carb recipe cookbooks that are out there today. Dana’s staunch defense of livin’ la vida low-carb makes her presentations pop as she shares so openly about how this healthy way of eating radically changed her life forever!

CONNIE BENNETT

If you’ve ever tried giving up sugar in your diet, then no doubt you’ve come across the work of Connie Bennett a time or two. Her 2006 book releaseSUGAR SHOCK! outlined how sugar is destroying the lives of so many people and what they can do to beat it! She’ll be sharing more of her sugar-shunning secrets with us on board this Bahamas cruise.

LAURA DOLSON

Friend and fellow low-carb blogger Laura Dolson from the About.com Low-Carb Diets web site will be joining us on-board this cruise. In my podcast interview with her earlier this year as well as meeting her in person a couple of times at low-carb science conferences, Laura has been nothing but a sweetheart to be around. She’s very interested in talking about the research behind low-carb living and will provide some poignant questions for our prestigious guest panel to ponder.

ANDREW DIMINO

As the founder and president of CarbSmart.com for the past decade, Andrew DiMino has seen a lot in the world of low-carb. Providing quality low-carb products to enhance the lifestyle choices for those of us who prefer a carbohydrate-restricted diet, Andrew is excited to be joining us in 2010 and providing plenty of door prizes for you to win while on board.

CAMEO “THE SPIKY HAIRED GIRL” WATKINS

You’ve seen her outstanding YouTube videos and even heard her on my podcast show. Now meet Internet low-carb superstar Cameo Watkins in the flesh and see for yourself why they call her the “spiky-haired girl!” Super-nice girl who is on fire for the healthy low-carb lifestyle.

JIMMY AND CHRISTINE MOORE

Who?! Just kidding. Yep, Christine and I will be on the cruise and I’ll be introducing the special guest speakers for their exciting seminar presentations. Just don’t let Christine tell you all of our secrets before the week is over!

WHEW, that’s a lot of low-carb royalty who’ll be joining us for this year’s cruise. And we may just have a few more join us as well. I guess you’ll have to come to see who else will be in attendance. We’ll be working diligently on the schedule to give everyone an opportunity to hear from their favorite guests who will be on board The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise to the Bahamas.

All that’s left is to tell you how to sign up. Just CLICK HERE to register and book your cabin. That’s it! Be sure to pop on over to our low-carb cruise forum as well as the Facebook page for the cruise for updates, announcements, and messages from our cruise director Becky.

Again, SIGN UP FOR THE CRUISE HERE and we’ll look forward to seeing you March 6-11, 2010 on The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise to the Bahamas!

More Low-Carb News And Health Headlines For April 2009

Jimmy Moore — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 21:43:01 +0000

One of the most favorite parts of my blog according to reader feedback is finding out all the latest news and information in the world of nutrition, diet and health–especially when it is related to healthy low-carb living. You may not find out about a lot of the things I share here which is why I enjoy researching, reporting, and writing about them as often as possible. Today I’m loaded with some more low-carb news and health headlines for April 2009, so hang on tight and let’s learn something together!

NEW STUDY SHOWS TIE BETWEEN FRUCTOSE AND INSULIN RESISTANCE

In the “well, ya think?” department comes a study published in the March 4, 2009 issue of Cell Metabolism that showed mice fed a high-fructose diet developed non-alcoholic fatty liver disease which leads to insulin resistance and eventually Type 2 diabetes. The researchers focused in on a gene called PGC-1b that when inhibited negated the detrimental impact of fructose consumption. No doubt they’ll be looking for some sort of pharmaceutical way to do this while the obvious stares them in the face–TELL PEOPLE TO STOP EATING FRUCTOSE IN THEIR DIET! DUH! No doubt fructose researcher Dr. Richard Johnson would wholeheartedly agree.

NEBRASKA POLICE OFFICER FIRED FOR BEING ‘OBESE’ REINSTATED

When I saw this story in the Omaha World-Herald, it reminded me of a November 2006 blog post I wrote about a police chief who was fired for sending out an e-mail to his officers to eat better and lose weight. 25-year veteran Officer Christopher Parent from the Bellevue, Nebraska Police Department was fired in 2007 after a poor performance in a shooting exercise. Oh yeah, by the way, Parent weighs over 300 pounds on 5’9″ body frame which makes him morbidly obese. The policy at the time was that officers must be physically fit to perform the duties of their job, but there was wording in the policy that only required a “fair” level of fitness following the Wellness Program Manual (this section of the policy has since been replaced with more stringent language regarding fitness requirements). Parent is excited about going back to work again after a judge reversed the termination last month, but the PD is pursuing further legal action to keep the officer off the streets. Is this experienced obese officer that much of a danger to the people of Bellevue that they need to continue to block his access to his old job? What say YOU?

ARTICLE: HOW A LOW-CARB DIABETES DIET HELPS MY DAD

Did you see this story in U.S. News & World Report last month? The author January Payne talked about her father living with Type 2 diabetes for most of his life having trouble getting his blood sugar and A1c levels under control until he started livin’ la vida low-carb in 2008. He learned about the importance of counting carbs and this one line from January says everything a diabetic needs to know about controlling their disease: The more carbs you eat, the higher your blood sugar reading is, and the more you need insulin. Interestingly, her column talked about a Type 1 diabetic who said he learned about carbohydrate counting when he worked with the American Diabetes Association on their board of directors in 2002-2003. What the? Well, if they know so much about this and the benefits of restricting carbohydrates, then why has the ADA been so dead set against low-carb living for so many years? It’s good to know the work of Dr. Richard Bernstein and others is finally receiving the vindication it deserves. Be sure to check out this companion column in U.S. News & World Report with tips for following a low-carb diabetes diet. They’re almost all the way there…ALMOST!

SILVER CLOUD DIET WEB SITE IS LAUNCHED

You might recall my November 2008 podcast interview with Dr. John Salerno where he discussed a somewhat controversial weight loss method that involved a four week “fat fast” consisting of a very high-fat intake combined with a very low-carb nutritional approach. Former Atkins Center contributor Dr. Salerno now has a book contract and will be articulating these concepts even further. In anticipation of the book release, they have created a new web site called SilverCloudDiet.com as well as a companion blog which feature loads of information about this project. Keep checking for updates about this developing low-carb book coming out in late 2009/early 2010.

TOM NAUGHTON INTERVIEWED BY MICHAEL BLOWHARD

The low-carb media darling of 2009 has got to be FAT HEAD documentary filmmaker Tom Naughton. This funny-man-turned-filmmaker has made quite a splash within diet and health circles with his hilariously funny and witty take on the state of nutritional science in America today. As I like to tell people, it’s Good Calories, Bad Calories-lite! Not surprisingly, Tom has had the opportunity to share about his movie with interested health bloggers and this new one from 2Blowhards is yet another addition to the fray. ENJOY! By the way, you’ll recall Tom posted Part 1 of an interview with me yesterday. Well, Part 2 is now online where he asks me about the business of blogging for a living. I’d love to know what you think!

A GRAIN-FREE DIET PLUS VITAMIN D MEANS HEALTHY TEETH?

One of my blog readers told me about this blog by Stephan, a doctoral candidate in neurobiology who has an excellent blog called Whole Health Source. His recent post “Reversing Tooth Decay” was quite educational and gave validation to the low-carb way of eating for dental health. He notes a 1932 study by Dr. Edward Mellanby (who discovered Vitamin D, by the way) that compared one of three diets: A normal diet plus oatmeal, a normal diet plus Vitamin D, and a grain-free diet plus Vitamin D. The first diet led to new cavities, the second diet led to less cavities to be formed, but it was what happened to the third diet group participants that was most stunning. Nearly all the cavities healed and very few new cavities developed. Stephan theorized the phytic acid in grains is the main culprit in tooth decay and removing grains from the diet would show improvements. The great work of low-carb pioneer Dr. Weston A. Price is also noted in the column. This one is worth your time to check out!

MY FIRST GRASSROOTS HEALTH ‘D-ACTION’ RESULTS

Speaking of Vitamin D, last month I blogged about this important supplement to your healthy low-carb diet and noted my relatively low score of 42 ng/mL reading. According to Dr. William Davis from “The Heart Scan” blog, your Vitamin D3 level should be between 60-70 for optimal health. While my reading wasn’t nearly as bad as my wife Christine’s–a mere 9 ng/mL–I knew I needed to do something about it. So in the Fall 2008 I began taking 10,000IU of Vitamin D3 daily. These are pretty inexpensive and can be found in 2,000IU gel caps. Six months after starting this aggressive daily regimen, I had my blood tested again and I’m THRILLED to report the results. As of April 2, 2009, my Vitamin D3 levels are at 68 ng/mL! WOO HOO! I HIGHLY encourage you to get your D3 levels checked and take appropriate action with sunlight exposure, healthy diet, and supplementation to get yours up to snuff.

CARLSON COLUMN CHALLENGES ‘ACCEPTED APPROACH’ TO EATING

I have nothing but respect and admiration for the work Dr. James E. Carlson is doing on behalf of livin’ la vida low-carb right now. His thought-provoking book Genocide: Why Your Doctor’s Dietary Ignorance Will Kill You convinced me that we have a real advocate on our side to articulate the benefits of livin’ la vida low-carb which is why I was happy to have him as a guest speaker on the 2009 low-carb cruise to Mexico in January and why he’ll be coming back again on our March 2010 low-carb cruise to the Bahamas. In a column published at Health News Digest entitled “Eating Healthy–Accepted Approach Is Not Correct Approach,” Dr. Carlson makes a convincing case that the low-fat, high-carb diet that has been deemed as “healthy” for so long is precisely why people are overweight and unhealthy today. You’re gonna LOVE it!

MEN’S HEALTH COLUMN ON DR. MARY VERNON STILL CHANGING LIVES

You might recall back in November 2006 a pretty amazing column entitled “The Cure For Diabetes” was shared in Men’s Health magazine about the work Dr. Mary C. Vernon is doing to help diabetic patients beat their disease with a low-carb nutritional approach. The author of that column was Adam Campbell and he caught a lot of flack at the time about extolling the virtues of low-carb living as a means for controlling diabetes. Despite the negative feedback he received at the time, Adam stood by his story and recently received an e-mail from a man whose life was changed for the better because of his encounter with Dr. Vernon after reading about her in Men’s Health. You gotta read about this on Adam Campbell’s “The Fitness Insider” blog by clicking here. Simply AMAZING!

PISTACHIO RECALL WEB SITE SET UP BY THE FDA

The recent Salmonella scare with pistachios has caused some low-carbers to be concerned about the safety of this popular low-carb snack item. That’s why PistachioRecall.org was created to inform the public of the brands that are not a part of the pistachios from Setton Farms or Terra Bella. You shouldn’t have to give up this delicious low-carb nut if you choose the companies that are unaffected by this recall.

‘KIMMER’ NOW A PAID EXPERT DIET COACH–I’M NOT KIDDING!

If this were only a joke, then I’d be laughing about it now. But unfortunately, it is not. Despite her Kimkins web site being named Worst Diet Product of 2008, Heidi “Kimmer” Diaz is back to her scheming ways yet again. Not only has she created a new diet web site but she is now listed as an “expert” on LivePerson. OMG! Her description states she is a “Diet Coach with 13+ years experience helping thousands with fast weight loss, overcoming stalled weight loss and body cleansing detox.” Did they conveniently forget to mention she also has helped destroy the health of thousands and is the subject of a class action lawsuit against her? How about the fact that she weighs nearly 300 pounds? And let’s not forget the words of “Kimmer” herself where she lied repeatedly to me in an interview with her about her alleged 200-pound weight loss success and a multitude of other subjects. Scam artists like this need to be behind bars and I sincerely hope nobody seriously pays this woman $60/hour for online consulting. And do you notice you can’t reach her by phone? Hmmm…. BUYER BEWARE!

YOU CAN’T BE ATHLETIC FOLLOWING THE LOW-CARB LIFESTYLE?

I’m cranking out the podcast interviews this month in preparation for the next few months of my podcast “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore” and I had the chance to interview a man named Dr. Joe Leonardi from the “Fat Then Fit Now” blog two weeks ago. This man is a barrel of energy and living proof that low-carb and fitness are NOT mutually exclusive. He read my previous low-carb news and health headlines post where I featured a column by an athlete who called us low-carbers a bunch of “carbophobes” and that you can’t properly train without eating carbohydrates. Dr. Leonardo thought that was bologna and penned his brilliant personal take on the issue in a response column called “You can’t be athletic following a low carb lifestyle?” ENJOY!

GOOGLE CHROME SOFTWARE DESIGNER AN ATKINS SUCCESS

This Financial Times story on Lars Bak who created the new Google Chrome web browser had a very brief mention about a recent diet he went on to lose weight. “The developer community in the US can be intense, the lifestyle unhealthy. When Bak returned to Denmark, he lost 20kg in two months (thanks to that very American phenomenon, the Atkins diet), and he hasn’t put it back on. SWEET! That’s a good chunk of weight to lose in such a short amount of time and to keep it off he’s probably still livin’ la vida low-carb. I’ve contacted Google about setting up an interview with Lars, but no response yet. We’ll keep trying! There was one other line in the article about his diet that you might find interesting: “But there’s no canteen, just a kitchen with a nut dispenser and a fridge full of bottled water and Diet Coke. Bak has introduced a no-sugar policy: ‘It’s not no sugar as such – you get natural sugar from fruit. But no chocolate, no obvious candy.’” Sounds like an excellent low-carb plan to me!

STUDY: WALNUTS, FISH IMPROVE HEART HEALTH RISKS

A new study published in the April 1, 2009 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that omega-3-loaded low-carb walnuts helped to reduce total and LDL cholesterol compared to consuming fish. However, the omega-3 fatty acid-rich fish tended to raise HDL “good” cholesterol while lowering triglycerides. Many studies have been conducted on the role of omega fats in heart health, but this was the first study to look at the different role various types of omega-3s played on cardiovascular disease risks. The take-home message: EAT MORE WALNUTS AND FISH! They’re both low-carb and delicious.

STUDY: JUNK FOOD MAKES KIDS FATTER, BUT HAPPIER?

What a dopey study published this month in the Journal of Happiness Studies (is that a REAL journal or is this some strange prank?). Did you see this one yet? The researchers attempted to examine the childhood obesity epidemic and wanted to look at the relationship between unhealthy eating and how children feel about themselves. For their study, they looked at how fast food and soda impacted body weight and their happiness level. Not surprisingly, the more fast food and sugary soda the kids ate, the fatter they got. But also the HAPPIER they got. But so freakin’ what! I guess this begs the question: is it better to be fat and happy than thin and unhappy? And what’s to say that these kids couldn’t find happiness in eating something healthier than junk foods? One more question–what kind of happiness will those fast food eating kids have about themselves when they grow into morbidly obese adults? Just something to think about.

MODERATE PROTEIN BETTER THAN HIGH-CARB DIET FOR HEALTH

If you have not been following the research of Dr. Donald Layman on the role of protein in a healthy fat-burning diet, then you owe it to yourself to check it out. His latest study published in the March 2009 issue of the Journal of Nutrition found that replacing at least some of the carbohydrates in your diet for protein–upwards of 30 percent of daily calories–will produce fat loss and improvements in HDL and triglycerides. Cutting carbs alone will do those things as well and my only concern is that Dr. Layman doesn’t encourage a low enough level of carbohydrates with his Zone diet-like recommendation of 40 percent carbs to go along with 30 percent fat and protein levels. I’ll be meeting him in person again later this week at the Metabolism Society conference in Charleston, SC and will be requesting an interview with Dr. Layman to discuss this further on my podcast show.

MICHELLE HEATON SHEDS THE POUNDS ON A NO-CARB DIET

You gotta love any positive publicity for livin’ la vida low-carb when it is embraced by a celebrity and this Daily Mail column about Michelle Heaton’s low-carb transformation is incredible! A former member of the British pop group Liberty X has done so well in her carb-shunning eating that she is showing off her new body to the world in a photo shoot mimicking the one done by supermodel Cindy Crawford tearing a loaf of bread in half in last month’s Allure magazine. It’s a pretty cool shot and they show both Michelle and Cindy’s photos in this story as well as what Michelle looked like before her weight loss. Be inspired!

Got a low-carb news or health story to share with me? I’m all ears anytime, so feel free to e-mail me the details at livinlowcarbman@charter.net.

Come On The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise To The Bahamas

Jimmy Moore — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 01:19:52 +0000

2010 Low-Carb Cruise sailing to the Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

For the past couple of years, I’ve had the privilege of joining nearly 100 people on a cruise ship during the cold days of winter as we set sail for a luxurious trip to much warmer climates on the beaches of Mexico, relaxing in comfortable surroundings, and having a truly amazing time with people who all had one thing in common–we absolutely love and adore healthy low-carb living! Our first low-carb cruise in February 2008 was so much fun meeting up with fellow low-carbers that we just HAD to do another one for January 2009. For this year’s cruise we decided to invite some of my low-carb expert friends to join us and it was so magical that I’m itching to go back again.

And we are in 2010…it’s gonna be bigger and better than ever before!

After leaving out of Galveston, Texas port on the Carnival Ecstasy for our first two low-carb cruises down to Cozumel and Progreso, Mexico, we decided to switch destinations and boats for The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise. This time around, we will be leaving out of Jacksonville, Florida port on the Carnival Fascination making our way to luxurious stops in Key West, Florida and Nassau, Bahamas. This will be a pretty nostalgic trip for me and my wife Christine because we went on a cruise down to the Bahamas for our honeymoon way back in 1995. It’ll be the perfect celebration of our 15 glorious years of marriage together. I CAN’T WAIT!

But, what about everyone else? What’s the allure of coming on a cruise like this other than getting to meet some new low-carb friends who you’ve only known online up until now (which is really neat in and of itself, by the way!)? I’m so glad you asked because this year’s list of guest speakers was THE highlight of the cruise (well, that and this karaoke low-carb parody song Dr. Eric Westman and I performed–oh the memories made!).

With that in mind, I’m privileged to announce the first exclusive look at the special speakers we already have lined up to come with board the Carnival Fascination with us on The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise in March 2010:

DRS. MIKE & MARY DAN EADES

DR. ERIC WESTMAN

DR. WILLIAM DAVIS

DR. JAMES E. CARLSON

JACKIE EBERSTEIN

KARLY PITMAN

PRETTY AMAZING GUEST SPEAKERS, HUH?! Well, that’s who we have coming…SO FAR! A few others have been asked and I’m waiting to hear back from them to confirm. Obviously, I’ll let you know when I find out for sure. I am thrilled beyond imagination about this next cruise and anticipate we will be having a very large crowd of enthusiastic low-carbers this time around. If you missed out in 2008 or 2009, then don’t let the 2010 Low-Carb Cruise to the Bahamas pass you by!

Once again, we have the wonderful direction of our cruise director Becky Gandy leading the way organizing the cruise for us. She’s a godsend for doing this because I don’t have the time or patience to deal with putting something like this together from an administrative standpoint. And anyone who has gone on the first two cruises knows just how hard Becky worked to make them the spectacular successes that they were! This next one will be no different and she’s already kicked into high gear with keeping you in the loop about what’s happening.

Please visit our official Low-Carb Cruise Facebook page and join in if you are even remotely interested in going. This will be a great way to get your questions answered by Becky, me, or any of the other Cruise Assistants. Also, there’s a Low-Carb Cruise Community Forum set up so you can get to know your fellow passengers BEFORE getting on the ship together. Of course, we’ll also be talking about it at my low-carb discussion forum quite often, so feel free to share your questions and comments about the cruise there.

Okay, now that you know the who, what, where, why and how, it’s time to tell you about the when and the how much. And I think you’re gonna like it!

Departure from the Jacksonville, FL port will be on Monday, March 1, 2010 at 4:00pm. They generally let you begin boarding early at around noon, although at this year’s cruise there was a two-hour delay getting on the ship. That’s not normal but you should try to arrive early enough so you don’t miss sailing off. We’ll be going to Key West, FL on Wednesday, March 3rd and then Nassau, Bahamas on Thursday, March 4th. The Carnival Fascination will return to Jacksonville, FL port bright and early at 8:00am on Saturday, March 6, 2010. Are you getting excited yet?

Alright, so you’re ready to join us, but are bracing for the cost, huh? Well, if you haven’t been on a cruise before or it’s been a long time, lemme tell you–it’s TOTALLY worth the price of admission and you DEFINITELY get your money’s worth! The 3rd Annual Low-Carb Cruise to the Bahamas costs just $371.46 per person based on a double occupancy inside room. And, surprisingly, Oceanview rooms are just $50 more per person at $421.46. We’ve stayed in both of these kinds of rooms the past couple of years and the room with a window (Oceanview) is WAY cooler. Of course, you won’t be spending much time in there, so it’s your choice.

Something else that was a pleasant surprise the past couple of years is the book company we use called Vacations To Go gave each cabin a $75 credit that can be spent like cash on board the cruise. So it’s like you get a slight refund of your trip instantly when you set sail. And this year we also got a refund from Carnival for part of the fuel surcharge we paid that amounted to about $100, so you won’t have to spend as much extra money for activities and fun on the ship. That was a wonderful thing on the 2009 cruise.

If you’re ready to book this trip now, then CLICK HERE and follow the instructions about putting down your deposit and information. However, you can find out more about the trip, read frequently asked questions, take a closer look at the Carnival Fascination ship, add travel insurance to your trip, and so much more simply by visiting the Low-Carb Cruise page at Vacations To Go.

One final note: Although this is a cruise designed to gather together a bunch of people dedicated to the healthy low-carb lifestyle, ANYONE and EVERYONE is welcome to come including spouses, children, and friends who may or may not be into low-carb diets. We’d love to have you and don’t be surprised if you learn something from the guest speakers who will be giving mini-seminar presentations during the week. And the food served on the cruise is not necessarily catered to low-carb living, although I proved you can easily eat low-carb on a cruise.

Hope to see you in Jacksonville come March 1, 2010!