The Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) giveth to the low-carb community, and it taketh away. In late June 2011, the HSPH published a study singling out potatoes as a particularly fattening food, especially in the form of french fries. Having sworn off fries forever as part of my low-carb way of eating, I applauded the brilliance of the findings. I also liked the general conclusion that all calories are not equal when it comes to packing on pounds. Now I'm wondering what could have caused … [Read more...]
Beliefs can cause inflammation of the brain
How dangerous is that beef-steak? Beliefs, dogmas and habits of mind are powerful things. I'd sooner have them on my side in an argument than the puny forces of reason and evidence. Take the belief that saturated fat is the source of all evil in the modern diet. It's a deeply and widely held notion in the Western World. Somehow, we all just know that eating red meat will kill us by clogging up our arteries with its saturated fat. Doctors, nutritionists, media pundits and ordinary people have … [Read more...]
Low-carb brunch on a summer Sunday
I took a walk this morning, swinging around the city cemetery (always inspirational), and came loping home with an appetite. That, of course, is the rub for all those who think they can work-out to lose weight. The more you work, the hungrier you get. Having eaten a modest breakfast four-and-a-half hours earlier, I figured a low-carb brunch was in order. Here's what I made myself: Pictured are two eggs scrambled in coconut oil, a salmon patty, and five halved fresh strawberries. The salmon … [Read more...]
Flax seed meal revisited: nutritious and low carb
A while ago, I wrote about flax seed meal in a post entitled Great foods for a low-carb diet (part 2): seeds. I was mildly disparaging, not about the obvious nutritional benefits of flax seed meal, but about the taste and consistency. Having now finished my first bag of flax seed meal, it's a good time for a second-look. My overall impression is positive. Flax seed meal satisfies my craving for a hot cereal that is easy to prepare and non-grain based. Pictured is the actual one-pound bag of … [Read more...]
Coffee = Life = Coffee
Early on in my low-carb adventure, I ran across the advice to stop drinking coffee. That nearly ended my low-carb adventure right then. There are some things you can't give up. Coffee's at the top of my list. Repeat after me, friends: "Coffee is life, life is coffee." That is all ye know on earth, and all ye need to know. Coffee is low-carb -- right? There are carbs in black coffee -- about a tenth of a gram in a cup. S0 coffee is low-carb, though not quite as low-carb as plain water. In … [Read more...]
Why Americans say they diet
More American adults say they have changed their diets to increase their intake of fruits and vegetables (71%) than say they have changed their diets to lose weight (65%). Right away, you have to wonder how honest the people polled were. Or you have to wonder if they know what constitutes a fruit and vegetable. Two-thirds of Americans say they changed their diet to improve their health. Only one-third say it was to change their appearance. I'm with the majority on this question, but who … [Read more...]
McDonald’s makes changes, but so do I
It's common place to criticize McDonald's and other fast-food franchises for marketing fattening food to kids. This week McDonald's has responded by changing the composition of their famous Happy Meals. The toy is still in the box, though. McDonald's and I go back a long way. I'm old enough to remember when they sold their hamburgers for 15 cents. There was no seating. You just walked up between the Golden Arches and placed your order. Then you went home, or sat in your car, to eat … [Read more...]
Pasty cravings
I am just back from a quick trip to Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It was my first visit to the UP since going low-carb. My main observation from the trip is that someone needs to invent a low-carb pasty. First, a little history. In 1835-36, the Territory of Michigan and the State of Ohio fought a war over the Toledo Strip, a parcel of border land that includes the present-day city of Toledo, Ohio. You may think Ohio won the war, given that it currently possesses the Toledo Strip. In … [Read more...]
Two upward trends: drinking calories and getting diabetes
I was born in a simpler time. Back then, soda pop was an occasional treat, not an everyday (or twice a day) habit. In 1952, Americans on average drank 11.5 gallons of carbonated, caloric soft drinks per year. I doubt that I personally accounted for any of 1,786,100,000 gallons of cola, root beer, red pop, etc., produced and consumed in the U.S. that year, but a decade later, when per capita availability had increased to 14.5 gallons per year, I was doing my part. I continued drinking my … [Read more...]
Big lunch can be dinner, too
It's funny how after you've been eating low-carb for a while, you look at food differently than you did before. Looking over the high-calorie entrees pictured in the Xtreme Eating Awards 2011 (PDF file) from the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), I notice the carbs first, which come in the form of bread, buns and fries. There's also a pasta dish and a porterhouse steak accompanied by a big serving of mashed potatoes. The accompanying text from the CSPI focuses on the … [Read more...]
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