Monthly Archives: December 2015

Is fruit up for judgement?

The dietitian advice opposing my view in this article takes up the standard line that fruit is good for us because of the vitamins, fibre and, throws in the big word, phytonutrients.

The truth is that green leafy vegetables on the whole, gram for gram, beat fruit for vitamins, fibre, minerals and phytonutrients.

http://coach.ninemsn.com.au/2015/12/14/11/51/fruit-on-trial

Fruit does not have to be part of a balanced diet. The 5/2 vegetables and fruit recommendations were just made up numbers in the early 90’s, by the American food and agricultural industry.

The vegetables come without the fructose and sugar load which has been significantly altered with our out of season fruit made available at the supermarkets.

The common banana has between 13 to 21% sugar. Compare that to Coca Cola at 10.6% sugar.

If you want to have your fruit then be aware of what is in it and realise that it will probably make you hungry. There are healthier options available in the vegetable section.

If you want my perspective on the history and the science, then this was my debated topic recently for science week.

http://youtu.be/od9PEH7rnY8

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=935222553238863&id=393958287365295

Sugar consumption more likely to be associated with type 1 Diabetes. This is a game changer.

Type 1 Diabetes is on the increase in children and in adults.

Type 1 Diabetes is an autoimmune disease which affects the pancreatic beta cells. As they are knocked off the individual cannot secrete enough insulin to cope with the sugar and carbohydrate load received in the diet, hence my recommendation of reducing that sugar and carbohydrate load in the first place.

This is a well constructed prospective study over 12 years that shows that in a group of people predisposed to Type 1 diabetes that sugar consumption and particularly sugar sweetened beverages increased the likelihood of that susceptible group developing into Type 1 diabetes themselves.

The take home message is still the same. Reducing the amount and frequency of sugar intake (fructose and glucose) is a good thing, both as prevention and treatment of all diabetes.

http://www.nofructose.com/health-issues/diabetes/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/26048237/

https://www.facebook.com/393958287365295/photos/a.407869679307489.94446.393958287365295/936210803140038/?type=3

Loneliness, inflammation and Christmas. Time to reach out to those around you.

Inflammation well and truly sits behind virtually all modern disease. I believe nutrition and the modern diet are central to that inflammation but it is clearly not everything.

I have come across this recent work that builds on the relationship of loneliness, even perceived loneliness and inflammation. It is not a temporary effect either with potential effects over 12 months. It also appears to be …separate to stress and depression.

Christmas is a time of celebration and coming together of families but it is a time of social isolation for many, and loneliness is at the top of that list.

All of this may go part way to the increased risk of a variety of health issues in those with mental stresses. Nutrition is part of that cycle and is one thing that can be modified, so can reaching out to someone around you. Christmas is a good time to start.

“What the research team found is that perceived social isolation—the “feeling of loneliness”—was strongly linked to two critical physiological responses in a group of 141 older adults: compromised immune systems and increased cellular inflammation. Both outcomes are thought to hinge on how loneliness affects the expression of genes through a phenomenon the researchers call “conserved transcriptional response to adversity,” or CTRA.

The longer someone experiences loneliness, the greater the influence of CTRA on the expression of genes related to white blood cells (aka, leukocytes, the cells involved in protecting us against infections) and inflammation.”

http://www.forbes.com/…/loneliness-destroys-physical-healt…/

The full study
http://www.pnas.org/content/112/49/15142.full

https://www.facebook.com/393958287365295/photos/a.407869679307489.94446.393958287365295/937131779714607/?type=3

Continue reading →

Fruit juice off the menu

Seattle's Swedish Hospital first in U.S. to take juice off the menu

Some hospitals are starting to wake up. Fruit juice is nearly the same as sugar sweetened beverages (soft drink) when it comes to sugar content.

Excessive sugar and fructose intake are associated with non alcoholic fatty liver disease which is becoming prevalent in children.

Time to take excessive sugar off the menu in hospitals. Please.

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Seattles-Swedish-Hospital-first-in-US-to-take-juice-off-the-menu-361496321.html

Investment bankers taking a further interest in sugar

Sugar addiction – breaking the cycle

It’s always interesting to find out what the investment sector thinks about a topic. They are interested in the hard figures and try to make predictions going forward.

Obesity is a bigger economic problem than famine – a massive turnaround over 22 years.

The full report looks at economics over a 20 year period.

Continuing with a high sugar load leaves us with predictably 60% of the population obese, diabetes affecting at least 12% of the population (I have seen figures quoted as much higher). A lowering of sugar intake would see a drop in diabetes rate but a prediction of obesity dropping towards zero!

“It is a truth almost universally acknowledged that sugar-sweetened beverages are the easiest means of adding empty calories and gaining weight.

But one does not need to be sipping Coca-Cola or chewing on a favourite marzipan bar to fall prey to sugar.

From fibre-rich cereal to fat-free yogurt, from old-fashioned ketch-up to exotic teriyaki sauce, one finds added sugar in 80% of the foods in our supermarkets, including many of the perceived “healthy” varieties.”

https://www.platinum.com.au/Journal/Articles/Sugar-addiction–breaking-the-cycle/

https://www.platinum.com.au/Images/Articles/Sugar%20addiction%20-%20Breaking%20the%20cycle.pdf

Ben Elton contact?

Ben Elton contact details in Fremantle, Western Australia

A strange request but I would like to contact Ben Elton with an idea. He is one of my favourite authors.

If anyone has a way of contacting him separate to his publicity agent could they pass on his details in a private message. Please do not put them on here publicly. I will respect those details if they come my way.

Thank you team for any help along the Low Carb and Healthy Fat way.