new research debunks trad views on nutrition

[Mason Farm and Ranch]

That diet is a lot harder than it sounds. It works great, but you have to keep eating a diet pretty close to it for the rest of your life or you risk gaining it all back and then some. Drink lots of water, watch for kidney stones and constipation that can lead to bowel blockage.

Congratulations You must be very proud of yourself, and are certainly feeling better.

At one point in life I was restricted from eating red meat, dark green leafy vegetables, dairy...all of it, no processed grains, no added sugars, no nightshade veggies, no nuts, no white rice, ..... they kept adding to the list until it consisted of nothing but foods I hate. I stuck with it for a year before I decided they were all morons and causing more health issues than they were fixing.

I think I could handle it.

 

[KToddy]

So the beauty of eating this way is how satiated I am- I literally (for the first time in 20 yrs of sickness/doctors/medicines) don’t care about going back to eating any of the carbs or whatever. If I am hungry- I eat- and a steak & eggs or shimp sounds fantastic to me! If it doesn’t sound great- I am actually just not hungry . Once I broke free of the carbs & the strangle hold they have on our mental & physical & hormonal systems… life has become so simple, and healthy!

 

[Ursuline Chick]

I am so glad we are having this conversation. I have used a similar way of eating twice in my life, with great results. I have also known people who had problems (physical) from similar diets. I am going to tell on myself, I am a small boned person and just under 5' tall. During Covid I slowly gained more and more weight until I now weigh 150 pounds (before Covid I weighed 110). I am also 66 years old, this is the most I have ever weighed, even when I was pregnant. So, I really need to go back on something similar to what you are talking about, I expect it to be hard for the first couple of weeks, but know I will be happy with the results in the end.
Your posts have reminded me of some of the yummy things I cooked at home, while "dieting". It felt like eating at a fine restaurant for every meal. Thank you, I really needed some encouragement, instead of "oh, well I am 66 and it doesn't really matter at this point."

 

[Krugerrand]

Linoleic Acid: A Narrative Review of the Effects of Increased Intake in the Standard American Diet and Associations with Chronic Disease

https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/15/14/3129
(file attached for clicking convenience)

Animals are typically fed corn, soy, or other seeds and grains, which is radically different from their native, traditional, or ancestral diet. This presents a problem for nonruminant animals due to the concentration of LA in the seeds and grains they are fed. Ruminants are animals with multiple parts to their stomachs. This includes cows, buffalo, sheep, lamb, goats, deer, elk, and many other game animals.
Ruminants have low LA in both their meat and milk, no matter what they eat [149]. This is because their stomach has a ‘biohydrogenation chamber’ that contains bacteria that can convert the high LA fat they eat from grains and seeds into saturated and monounsaturated fats. This is in contrast to animals with one stomach, such as chickens and pigs, that when fed a diet high in LA, including corn and soy, experience an increase in high levels of LA in their tissues, similar to the process that has been observed in humans.
...
Even if chickens and pigs are fed organic soy and corn, they typically contain substantial
amounts of LA, resulting in most chicken and porcine (pig) meat containing over 25% LA. Chicken eggs, as opposed to the meat, are acceptable, as each egg contains less than 1 g of LA, assuming they are not fed commercial feeds with high concentrations of LA. Chickens can also be farm-raised or free range to control their feed intake and reduce the high LA content.

 

[Perris]

Another section worth excerpting is on p.13 of that paper:
"olive oil demonstrated a nearly 10-fold wide variability in the percentage of
LA and the vast majority of commercial olive oil, and avocado oils, are adulterated with seed oils. A recent study evaluated 89 olive cultivars and found a range of 3% to 27% levels of LA [142]. Tests have also revealed that anywhere from 60 to 90% of the olive oils sold in American grocery stores and restaurants are adulterated with cheap, oxidized, omega-6 vegetable oils, such as sunflower oil or peanut oil, or nonhuman-grade olive oils, which are harmful to health in a number of ways [143].
Although this problem is concerning, instead of avoiding all cooking oils (e.g., vegetable and seed oil), healthier choices include those that have been used for centuries, such as butter and beef tallow. In addition to containing the lowest LA content, these sources of fats also provide the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, and K2."

That apart, it was a pleasant surprise to see lard looked an even better choice than olive oil, and even more surprising to see butter was best of all the oils in table 2!

Thanks @Krugerrand for posting the link to that paper. It's very heavy going in parts, but worth the slog.

 

[Krugerrand]

Another section worth excerpting is on p.13 of that paper:
"olive oil demonstrated a nearly 10-fold wide variability in the percentage of
LA and the vast majority of commercial olive oil, and avocado oils, are adulterated with seed oils. A recent study evaluated 89 olive cultivars and found a range of 3% to 27% levels of LA [142]. Tests have also revealed that anywhere from 60 to 90% of the olive oils sold in American grocery stores and restaurants are adulterated with cheap, oxidized, omega-6 vegetable oils, such as sunflower oil or peanut oil, or nonhuman-grade olive oils, which are harmful to health in a number of ways [143].
Although this problem is concerning, instead of avoiding all cooking oils (e.g., vegetable and seed oil), healthier choices include those that have been used for centuries, such as butter and beef tallow. In addition to containing the lowest LA content, these sources of fats also provide the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, and K2."

That apart, it was a pleasant surprise to see lard looked an even better choice than olive oil, and even more surprising to see butter was best of all the oils in table 2!

Thanks @Krugerrand for posting the link to that paper. It's very heavy going in parts, but worth the slog.

I've seen the adulterated oil a number of times ... but what can the end consumer really do? Not sure how to test those things at home.

 

[Molpet]

I've seen the adulterated oil a number of times ... but what can the end consumer really do? Not sure how to test those things at home.

There's a company that you have to pay to see the report, but they test

https://www.consumerlab.com/reviews/extra-virgin-olive-oil-review/evoo/#toppicks

 

[Perris]

I've seen the adulterated oil a number of times ... but what can the end consumer really do? Not sure how to test those things at home.

the simple (but relatively expensive) way is to choose to buy an oil that is from a single estate, not blended with who knows what in enormous vats.

 

[iriedeby]

One of my students recently did an experiment that addresses this issue directly. We wanted to test whole grains with no milling.

What happened with the experiment??

 

[saysfaa]

"Ulta-Processed People" by
Chris van Tulleken explains what oleo, crisco, and modified food starch are in a way that makes much, much more sense to me than any other source has. For example, he talks about how and why modified food starch can do different things depending on how it is modified. And how and why so many plant (or even animal) products can provide the raw material to be modified.

I should probably wait until I finish the other 90% of the book. And listen to it again when i can give it my full attention. But even just the above is worth checking this book out.

And
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2023/07/31/ultra-processed-people-chris-van-tulleken-book-review

is also worth reading.

For what it is worth, I think the New Yorker went too far in giving perspective. Dose matters (degree in this case). There is a LOT of difference between most of the food processed traditionally and modified food starch. Or crisco. Or oleo.