Posts Tagged ‘cardiovascular disease’

The Paleo Diet Dangers and Distortions

Saturday, September 15th, 2012

Early cave men did not look like this, and they did not eat the Paleo diet either. But good myths are hard to get rid of.

Still Another “High-Protein” Diet Threatens Your Health

The Paleo Diet can hook you with its story. This “cave man” diet promises to reunite you with your ancestors from 2.5 million years ago through the simple act of eating meat. In this complex era of busy lives and disconnected community, this is an appealing picture. Agriculture, which began 10,000 years ago, is the story’s villain, supposedly leading people away from the hunt to an unnatural diet.

Loren Cordain, PhD and professor at Colorado State, launched the Paleo Diet with his book of the same name. This restrictive eating plan forbids all grains, potatoes and legumes (peas, lentils, beans) as well as dairy and processed foods (including processed meats). You eat all you want of meat, fish, vegetables, and fruit. Bone marrow, animal organs, and meat from wild animals are all on the menu.

The book represents that you can cure just about any chronic illness, from heart disease to cancer, by eating this way because it would match the way your distant ancestors ate for over two million years. You are also supposed to (more…)

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The Truth About Whole Grains

Thursday, August 23rd, 2012

Whole grains are lovely as they grow. You can clearly see in this picture that the grains of wheat are seeds that form in a cluster on a grassy plant.

A Seed by Any Other Name is Still a Seed

Real world studies of what people eat show, over and over again, that if you consume whole grains you will be healthier and thinner. Yet outlandish statements in the popular media, and even “nutrition” books, may keep you from enjoying and benefitting from these most basic of all foods. When you know the facts, you won’t deprive yourself.

Whole grains are seeds. You might hear silly statements such as “Whole grains are not healthy, but quinoa is because it’s a seed.” If you hear anything like this, you know whoever is telling you knows zero about plants or nutrition, and you can boost your health by tuning out.

Another mundane myth is that people did not start to eat whole grains until these plants were domesticated about 10,000 years ago. Why would people have gone to all the trouble of deliberately cultivating a plant that they never ate before? Were our ancestors that misguided? The truth is that people ate wild grain seeds long before they started to plant them. In some parts of the world, wild grains still (more…)

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The Healthy Longevity Secret

Sunday, February 5th, 2012

Getting older does not have to mean slowing down.

Six Ways Whole Foods Fuel Long and Active Years

An enjoyable retirement is a great American dream. People save up financially for decades, often planning to spend retirement traveling, with family, and fulfilling long-postponed goals.

The sad fact is that many have their retirement kidnapped by poor health. Americans with Medicare see an average of seven different physicians in a year. Even at age 55, more than half of people have more than one chronic health condition. These medical problems vacuum up money needed for more fun and meaningful activities. The pain and disability of illness are potent barriers to desired activities and quality of life. Yet much of this suffering can be avoided and even reversed.

Whole plant foods are healthy life span enhancers that work together as a powerful team. Here are six reasons why.

• Protective phytochemicals

• Perfectly packaged nutrition (more…)

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How To Go From Size 26 to Size 8 Without Being Hungry

Saturday, January 14th, 2012

Lynne Morrissey is now thriving on a whole foods, plant-based diet.

Lynne Morrissey Sheds $300 of Monthly Medical Costs Along with 111 Pounds

Lynne Morrissey is a Facebook friend with an inspiring story of survival against heavy genetic odds. Lynne, who lives near St. Louis, Missouri, just turned 50 and has four adult children. She is sharing her achievements so she can show others to never give up. Health is just a forkful away.

Lynne has a frightening family history. She lost her Dad to a heart attack when he was only 33 and she was 3. Even as a normal-weight child, she had cholesterol levels over 200, as did both her brothers. The young siblings were put into a diet and cholesterol study. Her older brother was started on an experimental medication and told to eat margarine. Tragically, none of the medical interventions worked. He died of a massive heart attack at age 35. His cholesterol was over 600. Several other family members on her Dad’s side suffered severe heart disease.

Lynne was fatalistic. “I believed there was nothing I could do, that I was (more…)

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Eight Key Questions to Ask Before Going on a Diet

Monday, January 2nd, 2012

Selecting a diet is an important decision. It's worth the time to think it through and get some facts first.

And Why the Best Diet Is No Diet At All

Going on a diet is a serious decision. The eating plan you choose will impact your health, appearance, quality of life, self-image, and self-confidence. With so many diet choices, it’s easy to just go ahead with whatever is trendy or to follow the lead of co-workers, family, or friends.

You can lose weight on just about any combination of foods as long as you keep calories in check. But if you are undermining your health and metabolism in the process, you are making yourself into a time bomb for illness and future stubborn weight. Getting thinner will do you little good if your health and energy deteriorate.

With so much at stake, you can maximize your success by doing a little probing before making your choice. Here are the eight key questions that will guide you to the effective answer.

ONE. How fast will I lose weight? The answer you want to hear is “a pound or two a week.” This may sound slow to you compared to brash promises of some programs. Actually this rate of weight loss is sustainable and can be geared to fat loss (rather than the temporary water loss that is often a hallmark of rapid weight decreases). Plus cutting food intake (more…)

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The Perfect Formula Diet Top 10 List of Plant-Based Happenings in 2011

Sunday, December 18th, 2011

The Perfect Formula Diet awards for plant-based happenings in 2011. The "top 10" list with 11 awards for an important year for the plant-based world.

Actually Eleven of the Top Good, Bad, and So-What Legacies of 2011

As 2011 speeds to its end, it’s time to reflect on the top events, organizations, trends, and people that will have a lasting impact on American food choices. The Perfect Formula Diet (PFD) 2011 awards point the way to making 2012 a better year for you and the planet.

THE BEST FOOD OF THE YEAR:

Kale – Kale was all over the media in 2011. This vegetable is universally recognized as dense with minerals, vitamins, phytochemicals (beneficial nutrients found only in plants), and fiber – all with barely any calories. WebMD calls kale “the queen of greens” and notes it is growing in popularity.

A recent Huffington Post blogger calls kale “the new beef.” This is way too kind to the beef industry. However, the point is that you can get all the nutrients in animal foods by eating kale, in a way that is infinitely healthier for you and the planet. Kale comes in many varieties and colors, with flat or curly leaves. You can enjoy kale raw or include it in just about anything you cook. Find this easy-to-grow powerhouse in farmers markets and supermarkets all over the country.

MOST FUN WAY TO CONSUME THE BEST FOOD OF THE YEAR:

Green smoothies– In recent years, (more…)

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How To Make the Best Soup for a Cold Even More Powerful

Sunday, November 20th, 2011

Mushrooms, as an ingredient in a lightly cooked vegetable soup, make for a super soup to stay warm and healthy on a cold day

Why Mushrooms Tune-Up Your Immune System to Stop Colds and Flu

Is there really a way, through diet, to treat and stop a cold or the flu? While chicken soup is routinely believed to be good for a cold, my post “What Kind of Soup Is Best for Colds” shows that lightly cooked vegetable soup is your most potent ally. That post tells why such soup is healing and how best to spice and eat it. The soup is best for a cold day even if you aren’t sick and just (more…)

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How To Beat Depression and Look Twenty Years Younger

Sunday, October 16th, 2011

Deborah and her husband Gerry enjoy some impressive banana squash they harvested

Deborah Pageau Hit Rock Bottom On Health and Found a Simple Way Out

In spreading the message that fish contains worm larvae, I posted my blog on this topic on VegSource. Deborah Pageau replied from Canada with her story of witnessing live worm larvae wriggling in a fried fish on a Friday “fish and chip”night.

I immediately wanted to know more and share Deborah’s experience. Here she generously shares how she, her husband, and her daughter eliminated a range of health problems by eating a whole foods, plant-based diet. Yes, whole – vegan junk foods are rarely (more…)

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Fish Contains Worm Larvae

Sunday, October 2nd, 2011

This beautiful fish enjoys her ocean home, just as nature intended

Ten Reasons Seafood Is Not Safe or Appetizing

Government, media, and even health professionals flood you with advice to load up your diet with fish and fish oil. The alleged health benefits of eating fish center on a two nutrients: omega-3 fatty acids and protein.

Don’t be fooled by industry and government hype. Plants are the base of the food chain on planet earth. Plants are nutrient factories, while animals are nutrient consumers. Fish are animals, and as such get all their nutrients from plants or from (more…)

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Why the Much-Hyped Weight Watchers Study Sets You Up for Disappointment

Sunday, September 11th, 2011

Can your doctor really help you lose weight? How does physician treatment compare to a commercial weight loss program?

Is the Glass 6 Pounds Full or 42 Pounds Empty?

The media have been overflowing with a recent British study that compared weight loss results of visits to a doctor vs. the Weight Watchers program. A Google search for the common headline “Weight Watchers Doubles Weight Loss” got me 2.7 million results.

This research, published in the prestigious medical journal The Lancet, is based on a year-long study of 772 overweight and obese adults in the UK, Germany, and Australia. About half were randomly assigned to see their doctor regularly to help them lose weight (called “standard care”), while the other half (more…)

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