Harmful diets Diet fads come and go, some are better than others. The ones I think are the most harmful are the high protein diets (like Atkins, The Zone, and powdered protein drink based diets) that encourage people to eat large amounts of animal protein and very few vegitables, fruits, and grains. For years we have been taught that saturated fat is bad and that large quantities of the stuff clogs up our arteries. Have a look at some arteries before and after a high protein diet at Dr. Ornish's site. Even though the person who went on the high protien diet might have lost weight with it, they clogged up their arteries. Dr McDougall's site has some excellent articles on why one should not go on a high protein diet. High protien diets have also been known to drive people, inluding my own sister, into pre-diabetic states. In fact, I very recently learned that high fat diets cause diabetic sugar readings in even healthy college students (source, a McDougall presentation). You may also want to see what Weight Watchers says about the low-carb diets. Protein powder diets, on the other hand, have caused dangerous heart arithmias. Is that really what you want to do to yourself? If you want to loose weight, there are several healthier ways to do so.
By the way, some fat is needed in the diet, though it can be part of the food. See this article from The Heart Association However, any fat in the diet should be natural and not saturated or trans fats (trans fats are in partially hydrogenated oils). The best fats, in my opinion, are the ones naturally found in foods such as nuts, seeds, olives, and avocados. Use common sense and only use such things sparingly. Ideally, one should have 5-15% of calories from fat -- 30% is much to high for health.
"Rich" diets Our bodies are not made to eat a rich diet every day. My ancestors ate animal foods once a week, and then in small amounts. Likely the same thing applies to your ancestors. Animal protein, including meat, fish, chicken, and even fish, used to be harder to come by. My mom herself grew up with at most a bone in her soup during the week, but more likely vegitables, potatoes, and cornbread or biscuits. Because most of us eat what was once the food of the rich today, we are getting more and more diseases that used to belong exclusively to the rich. Do you want to loose weight or regain your health? Don't eat like a rich man every day.
Diet and Cancer Cancers can be encouraged or prevented by diet. It has long been known that those wanting to help prevent colon cancer, for example, should eat a high fiber diet. High fat diets encourage the growth of some cancers and that a low fat, high fiber diet rich in fruits and vegitables can help prevent and slow down the progression of such cancers including prostate cancer and other cancers including breast cancer. The Cancer Project is a good place to go for useful information on prevention and survival. Be aware that factors other than diet can place a person in danger. For example, parebens (such as methylparaben and ethylparaben) are used as a preservative in some personal care products in the US. Europe has banned it because of research that indicates a possible connection to some breast cancers. Do you really want to take the chance while more research is done? I don't.
See also Right foods Health Library and McDougall Wellness Center for information on other diseases.
Some healthy diets There are some healthy diets out there. The traditional diet of the Japanese, for example, was quite healthful. They ate rice and vegitables as the centerpiece and fish in small amounts. They did and do, however, eat too many pickled products and salt. Other diets out there that are healthful for both loosing weight and healing ones body are Dr. Ornish's diet for reversing heart disease (see his web site, though some would debate how healthy including even limited non-fat dairy products is to the human being (see Not Milk found linked from an Ornish Q&A page). Another eating plan that is helpful (the best one, in my opinion, for promoting health) is Dr. McDougall's program. Dr. McDougall's program is also low in fat, but it excludes all dairy products. This would be a good thing for those worried about hormones in milk, those with rhematoid arthritis, or a family history of breast diseases. You can see Dr. McDougall's web site also. For those worried that the vegetarian diet might not be healthful, please see the Mayo Clinc's information page on the vegetarian diet.
In my opinion, all women should be careful with their fat, meat, and dairy intakes to prevent (G-d forbid) breast cancer. Dairy has insuline-like growth factors. While these are good for growing baby cows, it is not good for people because it promotes cancer, especially breast and prostate cancer. Additionally, the China Study by T. Collin Campbell, shows that the milk protein casien promotes tumor growth. If you don't have disease, you might consider a vegan diet low in added fat, including the occasional nut such as walnuts or pecans.. count your fat grams if you include such higher fat foods. Or, at least, consider meat as an occasional special treat on holidays and such.
Vegies and Fruit No matter what else you eat, whether you want to loose weight or not, it is a good idea to eat plenty of fruits and vegies. We get most of our vitamins and minerals from them and deficiencies in some minerals not offered in supplement form can be quite dangerous. Lycopene, found in tomato products and watermelon, are essential for men's health. Magnesium and potassium found in oranges and banannas among other fruits, are essential for our heart health. Shiitake and maitaki mushrooms can boost ones immunity to fight the formation of disease, including cancer. Blueberries and billberries are good for the eye, among other things. We rob ourselves of health if we omit our fruits and vegies. James Duke, in "The Green Pharmacy: Anti-aging prescriptions" recommends we eat 7 varieties every day of fruits and vegies (they can be in a total of 5 servings) so that we get a variety of the nutrients in the fruits and vegitables and thus help to guard our health.
See also, some books I recommend reading
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