A Massive Dietary Delusion

A delusion is defined as a 'fixed false personal belief.' When it comes to the correct way to eat there is a massive delusion in thinking that low fat, low cholesterol is the right way to eat....it is not. Either I am correct when I tell my patients to lower their carbs and eat more fat, cholesterol and protein..or I am not. Since I have seen patient after patient for the last 14 years now (i've been practicing for over 20) do phenomenally well when they start eating less carbs and more of the things they've been brainwashed to think are bad for them, I figure I must be on to something here :-)

Oh wait, "what about the long term effects of eating that way"my delusional critics often exclaim. Well, umm, the long-term effects are that people will stay healthier longer and will require very little if any medications.

To continue to believe low fat, low cholesterol diets are healthy, is to continue on in a delusional state. But how do we cure this delusion? No amount of antipsychotics will change the delusional dietary thinker around, the eureka moment has to come when they (and 'they' represents millions and millions of people and huge, oftentimes government funded 3 letter entities) begin to understand the correct way to eat.

Hey, I'm not even talking about complicated biochemical facts, I'm talking about basic nutritional biochemistry here. Such as cholesterol and fat production starts with glucose and fructose; that the more insulin one secretes (as a result of eating carbohydrates), the fatter we get, the more cholesterol we produce, the more cell damage occurs.....I can go on and on here but my point is that the reality, the truth of the correct way to eat is out there, one just needs to understand it.

I had the pleasure to speak with a producer for the Martha Stewart show last Friday and when I explained the correct way to eat to her, she exclaimed what many people still think "I've never heard that before, that is a very interesting concept." Those of us who understand the correct way to eat need to continue to tell others, so that they may be as healthy and enjoy life longer, healthier just like us.

Thanks for taking the time to read my Blog today and go to www.cjbk.com next Thursday between 10-11 am EST where I will be interviewed live on a London, Ontario based radio show.

Enjoy!

dr jim:-)
www.drjamescarlson.com
drjim@drjamescarlson.com
CLICK HERE to order my Whistle Blowing Book on Physician's dietary ignorance!

Here's My Answer to a Question Posed to Me on My Website About Cholesterol Profiles

Dr. Carlson,
I have listened to your thoughts on low carb from your interview with Jimmy Moore and wanted to get your advice. I had my cholesterol checked 2 days ago and here are the comparisons from my previous results.
From August of 2009 before starting low carb:

LDL = 153 HDL= 54 Trigs= 50

Yesterday's Results:

LDL= 158 HDL= 65 Trigs=37

The nurse told my wife that she was gonna talk to the doc and that something had to be done (I'm assuming statins). Tell me your thoughts...... Also, what are those equations Total/HDL or Trig/Total or something? I would think my risks would be lower now with the better HDL and lower Trigs.

Thanks!!!

My response:

Hi There!

First off, your numbers are obviously better. I noticed you didn't mention what the Total Cholesterol was; that is good because it means nothing anyway. I ignore the LDL because it is usually calculated and I can guarantee by the way you reported it to me it was.

So the only 2 numbers you need to worry about are the HDL and the Trigs.Notice your HDL went higher and your Trigs went lower. Once the HDL becomes greater than 59, you have a negative risk for heart disease (and many other disease processes).

Now the ratio I use is the Trig/HDL ratio and I want this at 2 or less. Yours is obviously less than 1. Great job!

My only argument for the use of statins is for plaque stabilization. That is, if there is plaque already on an artery, the statins make it less likely for the plaque to rupture as it is the rupturing of plaque that causes the heart attacks and strokes.

How do you know if you have plaque on the coronary arteries? Well, if you've been eating low fat/cholesterol and you're in your forties, you probably have plaque within your coronary arteries.

Important point: the plaque that builds up on our arterial walls comes from the modification of sugar molecules in the diet NOT from the fat/cholesterol in the foods we eat.Most doctors think the opposite to be true.

So if you're in your forties, been eating low fat/cholesterol, you probably have plaque. I generally start a statin while I'm waiting for the HDL to raise, once I get my patient on the right way to eat. But your HDL is 65, so I could easily argue against the use of a statin.

BTW, if your doc tries to start you on anything other than a statin...just say no. The agents such as Zetia, Tricor and Trilipex are a waste of a drug, and the only docs who use them are the one's who are ignorant of the correct way to eat. Oh wait, that means just about every doctor...

One last thing. An indirect way to assess if you might have coronary artery plaque is by having a carotid Doppler done. If you have mild thickening on the carotids, studies have shown you most likely have thickening on the smaller diameter coronary arteries. In this case I start my patients on a baby aspirin (so long they are not pregnant or nursing).

If no plaque is present, and I start you on the correct way to eat, no matter what your lipid panel is to start---YOU GET NO CHOLESTEROL LOWERING MEDS FROM ME!

And I'll leave with the statement "Lowering total cholesterol has never been shown to lower one's risk for heart disease.never,ever,ever..."Hope that helps!

Dr Jim

Diet Coke is Now 'In Support of Women's Heart Health Programs.'

My first thought when I saw this on the 12 pack of Diet coke I bought over the weekend was, uh oh. So I just went to the site a few minutes ago to review what they think is the proper 'heart health.' Turns out Diet Coke has teamed up with the American Dietetic Association (also known as the ADA; remember the other ADA is the American Diabetes Association), and is promoting the ADA's view on what the ADA feels is the right way to eat. Here are a couple of excerpts I am taking verbatim (I tried to cut and paste but I wasn't allowed for some reason);

'When it comes to fruits and vegetables,more matters'

The site goes on to say;

'Here are some easy ways to meet your daily recommendation:

Toss a handful of berries or sliced fruit on cereal, pancakes or waffles or in a cup of plain low-fat yogurt.

Add a refreshing crunch to sandwiches with a slice of pineapple or apple. Replace jelly with banana slices on a peanut butter sandwich.

Fruit is an excellent on-the-go snack. Bring an apple with you in your gym bag, throw a banana in your briefcase or a plum in your purse.

Pack more nutrition into pasta dishes by adding colorful steamed vegetables.

Boost your intake by adding vegetables to sandwiches and pizzas.'

My comment;

OMG! Are they serious? Remember the whole sugar is sugar is sugar thing? Uh, I hate to break the bad news, but most of what was written on that site I could write a whole book on why it's wrong....Oh wait, I did that already:-)

Another comment taken directly from the Diet Coke site;

'Which is healthier, butter or margarine?'

The ADA's answer, on Diet Coke's site;

'From a fat and calorie standpoint, butter and margarine are the same with about 35 calories and four grams of fat per teaspoon. Both are primarily fat; only the source differs. Butter contains more saturated fat than most margarine. Because margarine is made from vegetable oil, it has no cholesterol.

For a spread with less saturated fat and minimal or no trans fat, buy soft tub or liquid margarine. Whipped versions of butter or margarine have less fat per tablespoon, too. Reduced-fat margarine is also available but is not suitable for some recipes.

Whether you prefer the taste of butter or margarine, enjoy in small portions. And for margarine, choose liquid or tub, rather than stick.'

My comment-

obviously the ADA feels that margarine is better than butter, which is completely false from a biochemical perspective. They did mention trans fats, but failed to mention that the majority (if not all)of margarines contain trans fats.Hmmm, I guess the ADA isn't aware of how dangerous trans fats are and the fact that margarine implicitly has trans fats contained within it.

I really don't know what I was thinking. I should've known better when I saw Diet Coke trying to be heart healthy..is that, like, an oxy-moron. Any way, I had to check out the website to see what they had to say. There was so much wrong on this site I just hope no woman goes to this site for information.

And why would they; I mean, does anyone equate Diet Coke with being healthy--I know, I know, how can I pick on them when I drink it myself. I'm not bashing diet coke per se, moreso the fact they think they are providing us with useful information..it is anything but...

Bye for now...

Dr Jim