Posts Tagged ‘diabetes’
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…)
Tags: African savannah, cardiovascular disease, cave man diet, diabetes, human evolution, lose weight, nutrition facts, Paleo diet, Paleo diet dangers, Plant-based nutrition, Smithsonian, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Plant-based nutrition | 3 Comments »
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…)
Tags: barley, cardiovascular disease, corn, diabetes, fiber, getting healthy, lose weight, nutrition facts, oats, phytochemicals, Plant-based nutrition, quinoa, reverse chronic disease, rice, weight loss, whole foods, whole foods plant-based diet, whole grains, whole wheat
Posted in Plant-based nutrition | Comments Off on The Truth About Whole Grains
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…)
Tags: aging, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, getting healthy, longevity, phytochemicals, Plant-based nutrition, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | Comments Off on The Healthy Longevity Secret
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…)
Tags: cardiovascular disease, diabetes, dieting, getting healthy, lose weight, Perfect Formula Diet, reverse chronic disease, weight loss, Weight Watchers, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in weight loss | 1 Comment »
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…)
Tags: cardiovascular disease, diabetes, Forks Over Knives, getting healthy, Janice Stanger, lose weight, Plant-based nutrition, reverse chronic disease, San'Dera Prude, The Lancet, weight loss, Weight Watchers, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in weight loss | 3 Comments »
Saturday, August 20th, 2011
Tracy shows off some ingredietns she uses to create amazing whole foods, plant-based recipes
Tracy Childs Teaches How to Cook Health and Great Meals At The Same Time
A commonplace perception is that whole foods, plant-based diets are healthy, but perhaps lacking in taste, variety, and satisfaction. Tracy Childs is working to change that misperception, showing her students that whole foods, plant-based recipes can delight their taste, fill their stomachs, and please their families.
I met Tracy, a fellow San Diegan, a couple of years ago. Since then I have been fortunate to (more…)
Tags: cooking classes, diabetes, getting healthy, Janice Stanger, lose weight, PCRM, Plant-based nutrition, Recipes, The Cancer Project, Tracy Childs, Veg-Appeal, vegan parent, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, August 9th, 2011
Mike Vee, dressed in black, in the days when he was eating meat and processed food and struggling with one health problem after another.
Mike Vee Is Transformed From Dead to Vigorous on a Whole Foods, Plant-Based Diet
Mike Vee is an amazing Facebook friend. I always enjoyed his posts, but when I learned he died in the emergency room and then was revived, I had to know more and wanted to share his story. Mike Vee has been working as a clinical dietitian for 25 years and presently provides medical nutritional therapy through a Federally Funded Grant for people living with HIV/AIDS in Trenton NJ. He reduced the number of meds he takes from ten to zero solely with a whole foods, plant-based diet.
What kinds of foods did you grow up eating?
Growing up as third generation Italian-Americans, our home life reflected this. We would have the prerequisite spaghetti and meatballs, veal and chicken parmigiana, escarole and beans, pork chops, flounder, beef stew, hamburgers and hot dogs and TV dinners. Most of the vegetables we ate came from a can and were heated up to a point of ashen green that shouldn’t be allowed on the color wheel in the scheme of things. My mom liked to bake more than she liked to cook and our waistlines often reflected this.
What kinds of foods do you eat now?
If it is in the plant family, I’ll eat it. Suffice to say, on occasion I do tangle with (more…)
Tags: cardiovascular disease, diabetes, getting healthy, Janice Stanger, lose weight, making a difference now, Mike Vee, Plant-based nutrition, reverse chronic disease, vegetables, weight loss, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, July 26th, 2011
This Forks Over Knives Patient Shares Her Journey From Junk Food to Whole Food
With her warm smile, San'Dera Prude invites you to share her story in the film Forks Over Knives
The film Forks Over Knives colorfully illustrates critical nutritional facts about a whole foods, plant-based diet. This eating plan can help you reverse just about any chronic illness, from diabetes to heart disease and even cancer. Yet it’s the patients in the film who bring these facts to life and give the movie its emotional impact and power to change lives. Their stories leave you cheering.
San’Dera Prude’s warm smile, articulate sharing, and heartfelt honesty moved me each of the three times I’ve seen Forks Over Knives. I wanted to find out how she became part of the film and learn more about her current success. San’Dera spoke with me recently and generously shared more about how she achieved and continues her new healthy life. (Note: since Forks Over Knives was made, San’Dera has celebrated her marriage and has her new last name of Prude instead of Nation.)
Before she met Dr. Esselstyn, San’Dera’s diabetes and hypertension were fueled by fast food three times a day. She would grab a fast food breakfast if she was running late in the morning. At work, everyone was (more…)
Tags: diabetes, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Forks Over Knives, getting healthy, hummus, Janice Stanger, Plant-based nutrition, process of change, San'Dera Prude, Sue Cotey, whole foods, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 1 Comment »
Saturday, June 4th, 2011
Todd after 7 months on a whole foods, plant-based diet
Todd Rosenthal Shares Recipes and Secrets of His Four-Step Eating Plan
Todd Rosenthal changed his diet “on a dime” in November 2010, plummeting his fasting blood sugar from 310 to below 100 in a month without drugs. He enjoys sharing his success as we discuss what he’s learned.
Todd ate “the Standard American Diet” growing up. His eating habits deteriorated even more when he began working as a small town journalist. Always on the go to cover the news, Todd consumed a diet he describes as “90% fat.” His favorite foods were barbecued ribs, ice cream, frozen dinners, and snack items. Later, when he switched careers to a family-owned business and then Internet sales, he continued the same food habits. Todd notes “I logged a million miles in the fast food lane.”
One visit to the doctor changed all that. In addition to his scary fasting blood sugar of 310, Todd had numbness in his limbs and extremities, low energy, and a constant grumpy mood. “If you don’t change, you won’t be here in two years,” his doctor advised.
The physician’s idea of change centered on taking lots of meds, but Todd pushed back. He researched the drug side effects and grappled with the need to take them for life.
The timing was perfect for a trip from Todd’s Florida home to visit a San Diego couple who are close friends. Tracy Childs and Steve Sarnoff are long-time vegans who advocate a whole foods, plant-based diet. Tracy gave Todd two books to read during his stay. The first was (more…)
Tags: diabetes, Dr. Neal Barnard, getting healthy, green smoothies, home run diet, Janice Stanger, lose weight, making a difference now, Plant-based nutrition, reverse chronic disease, Steve Sarnoff, Todd Rosenthal, Tracy Childs, whole foods, whole foods plant-based diet
Posted in Health | 1 Comment »
