This is the weekly digest for my Low Carb Nugget podcast. The latest episodes look at an expert's argument for feeding your brain meat, not veggies; consider the difference between rigorous exercise and frequent activity, and which may keep you alive longer; and, finally, critique a recent example of dietary advice in mainstream media. … [Read more...]
This week’s nuggets: July 18-22, 2017
Discussed on the podcast this week were the role of sardines in an LCHF diet, the connection of sugar consumption to markers of obesity, and a comparison of low-carb and low-fat diet-results in an interesting new study. Subscribe to the Low Carb Nugget through any of the following services: Apple Podcasts Google Play Music Stitcher TuneIn (With the Amazon Echo, use the command, “Alexa, play The Low Carb Nugget Podcast on TuneIn.”) … [Read more...]
This week’s nuggets: June 27-July 1, 2017
On the Nugget this week: finding "hidden sugar" on food labels (learn its many names), exercising to lose weight (don't bother), and eating like a Revolutionary War soldier (mix flour and water, form into a cake, cook over an open flame). Subscribe to the Low Carb Nugget via any of the following services: Apple Podcasts Google Play Music Stitcher TuneIn (On the Amazon Echo, use the command, "Alexa, play The Low Carb Nugget Podcast on TuneIn.") … [Read more...]
This week’s nuggets: June 13-17, 2017
This week on the Low Carb Nugget Podcast, I attacked sugar and defended saturated fat. In other words, it was business as usual, but at least I had my voice back. Take a listen! You can subscribe to the Nugget via any of the following: Apple Podcasts Google Play Music Stitcher TuneIn (If you have an Amazon Echo, try the command, "Alexa, play The Low Carb Nugget Podcast on TuneIn.") #16 What's in a name? Does it make a difference what you call a diet? Should Jim call his diet “low-carb” … [Read more...]
Mindful eating: slow down and smell the pork chop
On Episode 6 of The Low Carb Nugget podcast, Jim examines the conflict between "grabbing a bite" and "mindful eating." There's an expression in American English, an idiom, "to grab a bite." Some variations include "grab a bite to eat," "grab something to eat" or just "get a bite." I haven't done extensive research on this idiom, but what I have done suggests it is, indeed, of American origin. That makes sense. The idiom perfectly suits the American mind-set. It turns getting a meal into a … [Read more...]
Study: low-carb diet reduces food cravings
A study in The FASEB Journal (which, as you probably know, well-read person that you are, is the Official Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology) finds that consuming a low-carb, high-fat diet is "associated with reductions in cravings for all food categories." The researchers define a craving as "an intense desire to consume a particular food that is difficult to resist." … [Read more...]
Sugar, soybean oil, and you
Saturday Short Takes 1. Putting Added Sugar in Context The FDA is proposing to add information to food labels that would tell you the percent of the daily value of added sugar you'll be getting per serving ("Proposed Label Would Give Context to Sugar in Foods," Mary Clare Jalonick, Associated Press). The base recommendation would be to consume no more than 50 grams of added sugar in a day, which is ten percent of a 2,000 calorie diet. One bottle of soda pop could blow your daily sugar … [Read more...]
Shoddy reporting on the diet science beat
Saturday Short Takes When it comes to reporting on the latest diet science news, it's hard to know who to trust. Reporters covering the diet science beat seldom display much in the way of scientific acumen or plain curiosity. Their editors don't seem to care as long as they can illustrate the stories with close-ups of pretty girls putting things in their mouths. 1. The Great Chocolate Con Can eating dark chocolate every day help help you lose weight? Yes, according to a study published … [Read more...]
Obesity is about what we eat
I was obese for several years before I began eating low-carb high-fat in March 2011, with a body mass index hovering in the neighborhood of 33 - 34. That's not a great neighborhood to hover in. A person with a BMI of 30 or greater is considered obese. Most of my extra weight was around my middle, too, which is the worst place for it. I have managed to keep my BMI under the obesity line for the past four years. Just barely, at some points, but I've done it. For the past four years, I've been … [Read more...]
The world goes paleo
Saturday Short Takes My focus this week is on the Paleo Diet, which gets a lot of press all over the world, pro and con. The basic premise of paleo eating is that the 10,000 years of the agricultural era has been too short a span for evolution to adapt us to farmed foodstuffs. So the paleo dieter avoids grains, dairy, and legumes. Cutting grains generally means cutting carbs, whether or not cutting carbs is the stated goal. Therefore, I view paleo as in the family of LCHF diets. Frequently, … [Read more...]