This Was My Post on A Site Discussing Childhood Obesity

Click Here to read the article I responded to.

I really liked this post and feel the need to make some statements. I am a family physician who focuses on the use of nutrition to treat a whole host of medical problems. A major medical problem I see on a daily basis is obesity. It is shocking the numbers of obese people, especially children, that are out there. The problem with childhood obesity, which for the most part is treatable, preventable and curable; is that the medical profession, with all its major breakthroughs, does not understand what is causing the obesity epidemic (pandemic?); despite the fact the answer is right in front of their eyes.

I agree the first reason a child becomes overweight is due to their genetics, which they cannot change. The second major reason children (and adults) are over weight is due to the medical profession's profound ignorance of dietary science. Sure eating at, say, McDonald's is not helpful and lack of exercise plays a role, but the 2 major reasons we have an obesity pandemic is genetics and physician ignorance.

Now let's take this a step further. Let me run through the 4 biggest dietary myths we continually see and hear on a daily basis;

Myth # 1--Eating fat makes us fat. False. Eating fat (including saturated fat, which everyone likes to pick on, but we actually should be eating more of it, not less) does not make us fat, so long we are not eating too many carbohydrates along with that fat.

Myth # 2--Eating cholesterol and saturated fatty containing foods causes not only obesity, but increases one's risk for heart disease. False. Not only is this not true, by eating more saturated fat and cholesterol containing foods, we will decrease one's risk for not only heart disease, but obesity, diabetes and cancer.

Myth # 3--The calorie means something in human nutrition. False. the calorie means nothing. Do not use them or count them, they need to be ignored.

Myth # 4--We need to exercise in order to lose weight. False. We do not need to exercise to lose weight. Of course, it is best to exercise for heart health and all; but forcing a 200+ child to exercise is just plain negligent and could put them in harms way.

I know the above statements will, for most, appear controversial; but they are all true. They are facts. The above myths are not what I 'believe', they are not my theories, suppositions or opinions...they are factual. It must be understood that all of the extra weight we carry around as fat on our bodies is actually stored 'carbohydrate' from the diet, not stored fat from the diet.

Everyone needs to understand that sugar is sugar is sugar and that no matter where the sugar comes from, well, it is still sugar. There really is no such thing as a natural sugar molecule. Our bodies do not know a sugar molecule came from a piece of whole wheat bread, or fruit or a snickers bar. All our bodies see is sugar and once that sugar molecule gets inside our cells, if we have eaten too many carbs,which is very easy to do if one has the genetics for obesity, that sugar molecule will be transformed into either plaque forming deadly cholesterol or stored as fat.

These are the facts.

To cure the childhood obesity epidemic, or the whole obesity pandemic, those individuals need to be eating more fat, cholesterol and protein, and much, much, less in the way of carbs. For anyone interested in further inquiry, go to my website www.drjamescarlson.com and read the first ten chapters of my groundbreaking, whistle blowing, I-no-longer-have-any-physician-friends-and-the-pharmaceutical-companies-hate-me-too book Genocide:How Your Doctor's Dietary Ignorance Will Kill You.

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Dr Jim

A special hello goes out to my 8th follower, Matt! Thanks for joining!

Click Here to read the first ten chapters of my book for free.