Tell me what I am supposed to eat

[amirm]

OK guys. This is getting old. Just watched 60 minutes news program and they say research shows sugar is the bad guy now: causes heart disease and cancer.

Is this the flavor of the month? First it was fat, now it is sugar?

Is there a consensus on what is good or bad anymore?

 

[fas42]

I have fun just watching the dark chocolate, and red wine indices: one month they're up, next they're down. A bloke would go crazy trying to follow all this nonsense, and you end up dying from a stress related condition ...

Frank

 

[JackD201]

Amir,

You think you have dietary confusion syndrome? Bah!

I'm a stone former, calcium oxalate to be exact. Fat is bad and so is sugar, the uric acid in meats is a no-no as well. So supposedly I should be doing fish and veggies. As a C-O former however, lots of greens aren't allowed and neither are many fresh water fish!

I tell you in a past life I must have been a bad dolphin and this is my karma.

 

[Johnny Vinyl]

We need fats and sugar....moderation is key however.

 

[NorthStar]

Molasses is very good for you. :b ...Very true too.

And almonds, and royal jelly; for energy.

And you can drink one liter of wine per day (good wine).

Do you like cigars? Cuba have the best ones.

 

[flez007]

I fight a metabolic syndrome as well, all of the above lines apply IMO, moderation, staying away from obvious "offending" food and not become obsesive with dietary issues.

 

[MylesBAstor]

We need fats and sugar....moderation is key however.

Of course we need fats, in fact more than people realize. That is of course, the right fats. And not all saturated fats are bad and raise cholesterol and LDL. Most people will need between 20-40% fat as a total of their calories, in their diets.

As has been mentioned before, the CURRENT hypothesis is that it's the very low density, small lipoprotein particles that are the most problematic, because of their proclivity undergo oxidation. That oxidation fuels the inflammatory process, something that many feel is an underlying issue with a variety of diseases such as diabetes, CHD and cancer.

 

[MylesBAstor]

OK guys. This is getting old. Just watched 60 minutes news program and they say research shows sugar is the bad guy now: causes heart disease and cancer.

Is this the flavor of the month? First it was fat, now it is sugar?

Is there a consensus on what is good or bad anymore?

One thing that they neglected to mention in this report was a recently published study showing that continual insulin rushes (brought on by sugar intake) was NOT linked to CHD. (Those insulin surges over many years, were previously thought to be linked to CHD).

Fat is not BAD! In fact, the latest study on red meat was a joke. Much of the fat in red meat is stearic acid, which doesn't affect LDL or cholesterol. We need fat for many biochemical processes including health of our nervous system, absorption of fat soluble vitamins, synthesis of sex hormones, cell membrane structure, etc. (I think I posted a while back a long list of fats roles in our body's metabolic health.)

Now do I think sugar is bad? I recommend avoiding it like all processed foods. As Jack LaLanne said, "If man made it, don't eat it."

 

[Peter Breuninger]

As Jack LaLanne said, "If man made it, don't eat it."

amen

 

[Johnny Vinyl]

Now do I think sugar is bad? I recommend avoiding it like all processed foods. As Jack LaLanne said, "If man made it, don't eat it."

True enough, however it's pretty difficult to avoid. Having said that, I use less than a 2KG bag of sugar a year, and the majority of that is used for baking. I suspect I get processed sugar from other sources though. There really is no easy way to avoid processed sugar and it's simplistic to say not to eat it.

 

[FrantzM]

Of course we need fats, in fact more than people realize. That is of course, the right fats. And not all saturated fats are bad and raise cholesterol and LDL. Most people will need between 20-40% fat as a total of their calories, in their diets.

As has been mentioned before, the CURRENT hypothesis is that it's the very low density, small lipoprotein particles that are the most problematic, because of their proclivity undergo oxidation. That oxidation fuels the inflammatory process, something that many feel is an underlying issue with a variety of diseases such as diabetes, CHD and cancer.

I hate it when I find myself in agreement with Myles ... Fat has been ostracized as the bad guy to the extent that people eat al non-fat things .. We need fat, beter we need sturated fat. As someone in the thread said it's all in moderation. Sugar, especially the white stuff, is really bad .. So if one could avoid, especially the processed ones (White and the horrible HFC) one will lose weight and become healthier... As for fats, I repeat, Myles point one needs fat and one should avoid oxydized fat, like margarine that is so claimed as healthy, use butter, instead... One should also aoid vegetable Oil which have to be oxydized to have a shelf life .. I feel too lazy to point you toward the source . Google Mary G. Enig + Fat... Controversial indeed but her views are becoming more and more accepted and her research is strong...

 

[MylesBAstor]

I hate it when I find myself in agreement with Myles ... Fat has been ostracized as the bad guy to the extent that people eat al non-fat things .. We need fat, beter we need sturated fat. As someone in the thread said it's all in moderation. Sugar, especially the white stuff, is really bad .. So if one could avoid, especially the processed ones (White and the horrible HFC) one will lose weight and become healthier... As for fats, I repeat, Myles point one needs fat and one should avoid oxydized fat, like margarine that is so claimed as healthy, use butter,

Yes we're talking trans-fats here; NYS has taken the lead in prohibiting the sale of products or cooking with, trans-fat containing substances.

I'll also add that your body type may be a tip off to whether you're carbohydrate intolerant. Those with ectomorphic bodies (long legs, short trunk) may be better able to metabolize carbs and their diets could include say up to 40% carbs/20% fat/40% protein; those with mesomorphic bodies (shorter legs, longer trunk for example) might be around 30% carbs/30% fat/40% protein; those endomorphs (pear shaped) don't process carbs as well and are better off including around 20% carbs/40% fat/40% protein.

That said, one way of looking at your diet is to eat 2 portions of protein (men) and one (women) with every meal. On days you work out, you can eat complex carbs; on non-workout days, simple carbs, being two types of vegetables with every meal. (we'll skip the new topic of intermittent fasting for the sake of this thread.)

instead... One should also aoid vegetable Oil which have to be oxydized to have a shelf life .. I feel too lazy to point you toward the source . Google Mary G. Enig + Fat... Controversial indeed but her views are becoming more and more accepted and her research is strong...

Here we're getting more into the ratio of omega-6 (inflammatory)/omega-3s (anti-inflammatory) fats in your diet. Normally, the ratio should be around 4:1 but in our society, the ratio may be skewed to greater than 40:1. So it's best to try and avoid those vegetable oils and instead use peanut, canola, sesame or olive oils.

Disclaimer: these are only recommendation for health people and those without any medical conditions such as CHD, diabetes, cancer, etc. For those issues, one needs to seek the advice of a trained RD who deals with this particular scenario.

 

[MylesBAstor]

True enough, however it's pretty difficult to avoid. Having said that, I use less than a 2KG bag of sugar a year, and the majority of that is used for baking. I suspect I get processed sugar from other sources though. There really is no easy way to avoid processed sugar and it's simplistic to say not to eat it.

That's where paying attention to the food labels (however accurate they are) comes into the picture. And one can seek out alternative recipes that omit sugar.

And fruits do have simple sugars that are quickly released into the blood ergo you're better off eating an orange than drinking OJ. But one must always look at glycemic load (not perfect but the best measure at the moment) rather than glycemic index.

 

[Lorrie]

I have to stop eating marshmallows. I was dreaming about them the other night and when I woke up, my best pillows were gone! harming my memory clearly

 

[Gregadd]

Processed or junk food is the evil. Eg concentrated amounts of most foods is a bag thing. Fire needs fuel but don't throw gas on it.
A balanced diet with complex carbohydrates and avoid transfat.

 

[NorthStar]

I have to stop eating marshmallows. I was dreaming about them the other night and when I woke up, my best pillows were gone! harming my memory clearly

---- Interesting and coincidental that you just mentioned that because I just started eating "marshmallows" about a week ago, after a very long break of twenty years or so. ...Very true.

* I still have my pillows though. :b

 

[carolkoh]

Everything in moderation. I have been going through this "healthy" eating thing with my doctor for years until as part of my health regime, I had a Berkely Heart Lab DNA test done which included a number of consultations with a dietitian - whom I demanded be Asian - and together with my own research and reading, I take everything my doctor says about diet with a grain of sale.

One thing that came out of the test is that I *can* have a glass of red wine with dinner - in fact - it's good for my heart. Dark chocolates are good for me too!

 

[Peter Breuninger]

My tests show that Rolo chocolate covered caramels and Dogfish Indian Brown Ale is good for me. Who wouda thunk?

Everything in moderation. I have been going through this "healthy" eating thing with my doctor for years until as part of my health regime, I had a Berkely Heart Lab DNA test done which included a number of consultations with a dietitian - whom I demanded be Asian - and together with my own research and reading, I take everything my doctor says about diet with a grain of sale.

One thing that came out of the test is that I *can* have a glass of red wine with dinner - in fact - it's good for my heart. Dark chocolates are good for me too!

 

[cjfrbw]

I have two noisy parrots that I have had for 28 years. All the bird advice said to avoid fats, just "healthy" grains, fruits and vegetables. The birds would always light on the margarine dish that I kept them away from for years. Finally, I thought, these bastards have lived so long anyway, let them have at it. Maybe they will get clogged arteries and keel.

After eating margarine on a daily basis, which they treat like ice cream, their feathers became shinier, they became noisier and healthier, and they even smell better.

Nutritional advice seems to reverse itself with a half life of about seven years or so. That indicates that nutrition is still a mystery, too complex to unravel and subject to too many genetic variables from individual to individual to make any generalization. A lot of nutritional advice is lobbying by economic interests. Take away the lobbying, there tends to be much less real advice or information. Scientists who want money for research feel compelled to make sweeping generalizations to justify their monies. Sweeping generalizations lead to sweeping, nonsensical policies and advice.

 

[Bill Hart]

For what it's worth, and it may be nothing, when we travel, say, to a place like Sicily, or even to the countryside in France, everything just has more taste- the fish, the vegetables, the fruits. Even buying the best 'organic' fancy stuff here in the States somehow just doesn't compare. It's got to be all the pollution ~ I'm not a tree-hugger, but in places that are largely agrarian (and even though France is an industrialized country, it is still very much a farm country), the raw products (except for the beef, which hands down is better here in the States) just seems to have more taste. (And I'm not talking about all the bio-engineered, agra-biz stuff here that has bar codes embedded into it).