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5 Common Myths About Strength Training
Originally Published: January 28th, 2007 by: Carol BardelliViews: 3,011
Fact - If I had a penny for every time I've heard this myth used as an excuse I'd be able to buy out Donald Trump. This muscle bulking is virtually impossible in women unless you have rare genetics AND train extremely hard with very heavy weights AND inject anabolic steroids AND take male hormones (which ... (read more)
31 Tips for Your Low Carb Lifestyle
Originally Published: January 3rd, 2007 by: Jonny Bowden, M.A., C.N.S.Views: 5,698
The following is an excerpt from the book You're trying to bring mindfulness and consciousness to the table when it comes to eating so that you can reduce some of the automatic eating that takes place when you're thinking about other things. A good way to do that is to make eating time eating time, not reading the paper time or watching television time. The more you can do this, the better, and the less likely you are to consume food while you... (read more)
Adventures in Diet: Part 1
Originally Published: August 23rd, 2007 by: Vilhjalmur StefanssonViews: 3,629
In 1906 I went to the Arctic with the food tastes and beliefs of the average American. By 1918, after eleven years as an Eskimo among Eskimos, I had learned things which caused me to shed most of those beliefs. Ten years later I began to realize that what I had learned was going to influence materially the sciences of medicine and dietetics. However, what finally impressed the scientists and converted many during the last two or three years, was a series of confirmatory experiments upon... (read more)
Now that the experiments in diet which Karsen Anderson and I undertook at Bellevue Hospital have been accepted by the medical world, it is difficult to realize that there could have been such a storm of excitement about the announcement of the plan, such a violent clash of opinions, such near unanimity to the prediction of dire results.The feeling that decisive controlled test were needed began to spread after I told one of the scientific heads of the Food Administrat... (read more)
Scurvy has been the great enemy of explorers. When Magellan sailed around the world four hundred years ago many of his crew died from it and most of the others were at times so weakened that they could barely handle the ships. When Scott's party of four went to the South Pole twenty three years ago their strength was sapped by scurvy; they were unable to maintain their travel schedule and died. Nor has scurvy been the nemesis of explorers only. Twenty years ago the British Army in ... (read more)
An Example of Junk Science
Originally Published: August 13th, 2007 by: Mary Enig, PhDViews: 2,519
While the establishment is finally recognizing the dangers of trans fatty acids, conventional dietary gurus continue to warn the public about the alleged dangers of saturated fats. Arthur Agatston, author of the best-selling South Beach Diet refers to this research when he states: "The major problem I have with the Atkins Diet is the liberal intake of saturated fats. There is evidence now that immediately following a meal of saturated fats, there is dysfunction in the arteries, including those that supply the heart muscle with blood. As a result, the lining of the arteries (the endothelium) is predisposed to constriction and clotting. Imagine: Under the right... (read more)
A Reply to Ray Peat on Essential Fatty Acid Deficiency
Originally Published: September 2nd, 2007 by: Mary Enig, PhDViews: 3,384
Ray Peat, PhD, is an influential health writer who claims that there is no such thing as essential fatty acid (EFA) deficiency. According to Peat, the body can make its own EFAs; furthermore, he claims that EFAs in the body become rancid and cause cancer. Unfortunately, Peat does not understand the use of EFA by the human body. He is trained in hormone therapy and his training in fats and oils has been limited to misinformation as far as the polyunsaturated fats and oils are concerned.Research on EFAs is voluminous and consistent: EFAs are types of fatty acids that the body cannot make, but must obtain from food. We do not make them because they exist in virtually all foods, and the body needs them only in small amount... (read more)
Fats and Oils: Typical Questions and Misconceptions
This column is dedicated to answering some of the questions on fats and oils that we receive. They are indicative of the many unfortunate misconceptions found in the popular literature, which lead to much confusion for the consumer. Question: I have read that carbohydrates should not be eaten with fats as this exacerbates the oxidizing problem and insulin issues of carbs and fats. Is a low-carb diet necessary to keep saturated fats from oxidizing in the body and hence becoming dangerous?Answer: There are many misconceptions all mixed up here. First, only carbohydrates create "insulin issues." The body require... (read more)
In Pursuit of Health, Serotonin and Dopamine
Originally Published: August 16th, 2014 by: Carol BardelliViews: 5,382
I'd like to touch on the single most important reason the low carbohydrate community exists and why we advocate our chosen lifestyle - the pursuit of good health. Good health is key to every other good thing we all wish for ourselves and our loved ones, including quality of life, meaningful relationships, career success, satisfying recreational pursuits, an active sex life, the ability to negotiate our busy days with a modicum of sanity and achievement.Too many people view overweight and obesity as a cosmetic problem, even though we're bombarded by news stories about the health risks at every turn. Denial is at play, you b... (read more)
Mineral Primer
Originally Published: August 12th, 2007 by: Mary Enig, PhD and Sally FallonViews: 3,197
As the remarkable properties of vitamins have revealed themselves to investigators, so too have those of the various minerals in our food and water. The seven macrominerals-- calcium, chloride, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium and sulphur--now share the research spotlight with a longer list of essential trace minerals. These are needed only in minute amounts, but their absence results in many disease conditions. The number of trace minerals known to be essential to life now exceeds thirty, and some researchers believe that for optimum health we need to take in every substance found in the earth's crust. Along with famil... (read more)
The Benefits of High Cholesterol
Originally Published: August 16th, 2014 by: Uffe Ravnskov, MD, PhDViews: 6,511
People with high cholesterol live the longest. This statement seems so incredible that it takes a long time to clear one´s brainwashed mind to fully understand its importance. Yet the fact that people with high cholesterol live the longest emerges clearly from many scientific papers. Consider the finding of Dr. Harlan Krumholz of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at Yale University, who reported in 1994 that old people with low cholesterol died twice as often from a heart ... (read more)
The Truth About Saturated Fats
Originally Published: December 19th, 2006 by: Mary Enig, PhD and Sally FallonViews: 4,064
Fats from animal and vegetable sources provide a concentrated source of energy in the diet; they also provide the building blocks for cell membranes and a variety of hormones and hormone like substances. Fats as part of a meal slow down absorption so that we can go longer without feeling hungry. In addition, they act as carriers for important fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K. Dietary fats are needed for the conversion of carotene to vitamin A, for mineral absorption and for a host of ... (read more)
Vitamin Primer
The discovery of the first vitamins, in the early 1900s, began the era of modern interest in diet and nutrition. Pioneering chemists found that certain "unknown substances" in food were essential to life. They discovered that fat-soluble vitamin D and water-soluble B vitamins were necessary to prevent diseases like rickets, beriberi and pellagra; and that vitamin C, a factor present in many fresh foods, prevented scurvy. By the 1930s, scientists had discovered many more vitamins and had catalogued their effects. Public interest in the subject was intense, and articles on vitamins often appeared in magazines and newspapers.The study of vitamins has not waned since the e... (read more)
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5 Common Myths About Strength Training31 Tips for Your Low Carb LifestyleAdventures in Diet: Part 1Adventures in Diet: Part 2Adventures in Diet: Part 3An Example of Junk ScienceA Reply to Ray Peat on Essential Fatty Acid DeficiencyFats and Oils: Typical Questions and MisconceptionsIn Pursuit of Health, Serotonin and DopamineMineral PrimerBenefits of High CholesterolThe Truth About Saturated FatsVitamin Primer