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I haven't read them yet, but it's not the first time hearing such analysis. I'm not sure how things will shake out, but it looks like we are starting to understand nutrition in a totally different way. I have seen a mounting pile of evidence that shows the link between sat-fats and cardiovascular disease was either over emphasized or simply incorrect. Most likely, there will shake out many causal links that often go along with the saturated fats instead of the fats themselves. Like simply having much higher total fats or higher caloric intake (just two ideas off the top of my head) but time and research will tell.
I was reading up on low carb diets. Atkins and South Beach. I had always considered those to be unhealthy because of the lack of balance in the diets.
The big food industry was basically forced to go away from high fat in favor of carbs due to the fear of cardiovascular disease. It seems life expectancy has gone up, but the population is now obese which leads to a different set of problems.
On the other hand, life expectancy could have gone up for a number of reasons. Like better tools and diagnostic abilities, better living through chemistry, less violent crime, less physical work.
I was reading up on low carb diets. Atkins and South Beach. I had always considered those to be unhealthy because of the lack of balance in the diets.
The big food industry was basically forced to go away from high fat in favor of carbs due to the fear of cardiovascular disease. It seems life expectancy has gone up, but the population is now obese which leads to a different set of problems.
On the other hand, life expectancy could have gone up for a number of reasons. Like better tools and diagnostic abilities, better living through chemistry, less violent crime, less physical work.

That same helmet saved my fathers life once when he was thrown 18 feet onto his head. The helmet cracked instead of his skull, he woke up in an ambulance with temporary amnesia, but I have no doubt that the difference between a bad concussion and death was that helmet.
No, I was editing in the word same "style" helmet when you posted you post.I hope its not the same helmet! But as someone who was hit by a car while biking and also ended up with a cracked helmet vs skull, I'd say they do protect your head.
I can tell you from my personal anecdotal experience, low carb diets are healthy, can help lose weight, but weightloss is not a given. I have done several including the Atkins, which was the most successful for me for about a month, but then I just stopped losing weight.
What I am realizing is that a mix of low carb and calorie restriction is the way to go. And as far as carbs go, what types of carbs seem to matter very much, person to person. But most people sugar and wheat seem to be a couple of the worst. I don't worry at all about what type of fats I eat, but I do try to have a limited amount of fatty items, not because the fat is bad but because the fat is so high in calories.
Exercise also has to be a huge part of any diet, especially one in which you wish to eat some high cholesterol foods. Before I was exercising, but still eating a decent diet, my Doc told me I was pre-diabetic and had high blood pressure. Since incorporating significant exercise (mostly cycling and hiking) into my daily routine, I have been checked at the doc, and although I am still 100lbs overweight (down 25lbs so far), I am no longer pre-diabetic and my blood pressure is perfect! In fact, after doing a full blood workup, the Doc told me I am in "shockingly great shape" for being as fat as I am.
So as far as I can tell, a low carb modest calorie diet to lose weight, and an aggressive athletic routine for better health. Add those two together and that will leave you in much better shape in life. Below is a pic of me today at work, still in my bike clothes since I biked hard for 1.5h this morning.
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When you get older, it's harder to lose weight.
Sounds like you are off to a good start. The sweet thing is trying, but after a while it's not what bugs me, it's the veggies and fruit that are high in carbs. But once you have been good for three weeks, it actually helps to have an occasional cheat day, just make sure you never cheat two days in a row, that's just called not dieting. But for me, when I would do a cheat day I would go to a farmers market and buy fresh fruit and corn and satisfy all my cravings.So I'm trying the low carb thing and it's not too bad. The hardest part is figuring out what kind of foods to eat.
For low carbs, there isn't anything really good to satisfy a craving for something sweet. I've found a couple of things, though, that aren' too bad.
I put two teaspoons of peanut butter, a teaspoon of zevia, and a teaspoon of low carb cocoa powder in a blender with a cup of almond milk. Yummy.
I also found a low carb vanilla yogurt that tastes real sweet.
Going out to eat at restaurants is really easy. Roast chicken and a salad and steamed vegetables. There's a place nearby that has these rattlesnake jalapeño peppers wrapped in bacon as an appetizer and they have great cheeseburgers (no bun, of course).
The really tough one is breakfast. Fruit is high in carbs, and I really like it as a side dish for breakfast. Bacon, Sausage, and Eggs are great, but I'm probably going to get real tired of the same thing every day
It's been 3 days and I've lost about 6 pounds. I'm aiming to eat 50g carbs or less, and I've been having a hard time breaking 20.
I just read up on "net carbs" and I think I'm going to count those instead of raw carbs. But I'm only going to take raw carb # and subtract fiber. The sugar alcohol bit seems like a scam to me.
I can tell you from my personal anecdotal experience, low carb diets are healthy, can help lose weight, but weightloss is not a given. I have done several including the Atkins, which was the most successful for me for about a month, but then I just stopped losing weight.
What I am realizing is that a mix of low carb and calorie restriction is the way to go. And as far as carbs go, what types of carbs seem to matter very much, person to person. But most people sugar and wheat seem to be a couple of the worst. I don't worry at all about what type of fats I eat, but I do try to have a limited amount of fatty items, not because the fat is bad but because the fat is so high in calories.
Exercise also has to be a huge part of any diet, especially one in which you wish to eat some high cholesterol foods. Before I was exercising, but still eating a decent diet, my Doc told me I was pre-diabetic and had high blood pressure. Since incorporating significant exercise (mostly cycling and hiking) into my daily routine, I have been checked at the doc, and although I am still 100lbs overweight (down 25lbs so far), I am no longer pre-diabetic and my blood pressure is perfect! In fact, after doing a full blood workup, the Doc told me I am in "shockingly great shape" for being as fat as I am.
So as far as I can tell, a low carb modest calorie diet to lose weight, and an aggressive athletic routine for better health. Add those two together and that will leave you in much better shape in life. Below is a pic of me today at work, still in my bike clothes since I biked hard for 1.5h this morning.
![]()
You kind of resemble Jon Lovitz.
His first wife was Morgan Fairchild.
I still think the advice in Omnivore's Dilemma is sound. Eat food. Mostly plants. In moderation.
He advises not to eat anything your grandmother would not recognize as food. I'm sure my grandmothers never ate bok choy but would clearly recognize it as food. (They'd probably ask in Yiddish, so what kind of cabbage is that?)
Actually I was doing really well until my cat disappeared, instead of going to gym after work and walking before I spent all my time searching for her and stopped caring what I ate. Now all my jeans are tight. I just started going back to the gym (it's so easy to find excuses to not go!). But this Friday is the company barbecue. They are setting up five barbecue pits featuring five regional barbecue styles (Memphis, Kansas City, Texas, Carolina, Hawaii). Not exactly diet food!
