Consider skipping that steak for dinner...

[Moscyn]

Everything in moderation. I try not to eat too much of a particular meat though I favor chicken and fish most of the time.

[keegs]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moscyn Everything in moderation. I try not to eat too much of a particular meat though I favor chicken and fish most of the time.

+1...

[obgyn65]

I have cut my meat intake drastically over the last few years and increased my portions of vegetables and fruits. It has helped me maintained my BMI < 25.

[Ronstar]

Quote:

Originally Posted by obgyn65 I have cut my meat intake drastically over the last few years and increased my portions of vegetables and fruits. It has helped me maintained my BMI < 25.

+1 But I did have a steak last night. I try to limit myself to red meat once a week.

[braumeister]

Eat, drink, and be merry. For tomorrow we die.

[MichaelB]

Will science look back 50 or 100 years from now and see our views on food in the same way we look back on medicine of 100 years ago? Woody Allen's "Sleeper" comes to mind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yCeFmn_e2c

[donheff]

I will take that study with a lot of grains of salt. Cholesterol used to be bad for you, fat was horrible, loads of complex carbs were wonderful and many of us who listened slowly grew at about 1 pound per year. I switched around 180 degrees with lots of proteins (red, white, fish, nuts), loads of fat, and a modicum of whole grains and starches and almost instantly dropped back to college weight. All of these cholesterol, fat and red meat studies are epidemiological, meaning they show correlation, not causation. Loosing that 30 pounds has a huge correlation with health compared to any possible gains due to dropping red meat.

Pass me the bacon cheeseburger and leave half the bun in the kitchen. I'm sticking with my unhealthy diet.

[REWahoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by donheff I will take that study with a lot of grains of salt.

Salt is sooo unhealthy...

What is known to be good for you today is bad for you tomorrow - and determined to be wrong the day after tomorrow. 'All things in moderation' works for me, but you don't hear much about it since it is hard to sell diet books or get money to fund medical research using that philosophy.

However, I'm sure there is some scientific fact behind the impact to human health based on what we eat. Take a look at dogs for example: they eat all sorts of unhealthy and unsavory stuff - and only live 1/7th as long as humans....

[Nodak]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ziggy29 I have a rack of ribs smoking all day, should be done in about an hour. I put a couple of baking potatoes in there about a half hour ago, and DW just got some corn bread ready to pop into the oven. In any event, I tune out all these health scares and just live with "all things in moderation." I think the reduced stress about what you are putting into your bodies has to offset some of the "badness" of some of what you are eating.

+2

[Sue]

Interesting that the lead scientist on this study has significantly reduced his comsumption of red meat.

[Chuckanut]

Quote:

Originally Posted by donheff I will take that study with a lot of grains of salt. Cholesterol used to be bad for you, fat was horrible, loads of complex carbs were wonderful and many of us who listened slowly grew at about 1 pound per year.

+1

I wonder how much damage I did to myself with several decades of eating 'healthy' margarine and solid vegetable shortening loaded with trans-fats instead of butter. Then we gave up natural fats for added sugars and highly processed carbs, only to find that sugar and processed carbs are now thought to be more harmful than the saturated fats we gave up. Apparently carbs fuel production of the more damaging LDL particles while saturated fats increase the more benign LDL particles. At least that is the current thinking.

My three diet rules: Eat a diverse diet, moderation in all things, and JERF (Just Eat Real Food).

[Midpack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuckanut +1 I wonder how much damage I did to myself with several decades of eating 'healthy' margarine and solid vegetable shortening loaded with trans-fats instead of butter. Then we gave up natural fats for added sugars and highly processed carbs, only to find that sugar and processed carbs are now thought to be more harmful than the saturated fats we gave up. Apparently carbs fuel production of the more damaging LDL particles while saturated fats increase the more benign LDL particles. At least that is the current thinking. My three diet rules: Eat a diverse diet, moderation in all things, and JERF (Just Eat Real Food).

We came to the same conclusion. I eat red meat probably once or twice a month, DW never. We use butter sparingly, not chemical substitutes. We use real sugar sparingly, not substitutes. We eat very few prepared or processed foods. If it's a food that was available when I was growing up, it's an option when grocery shopping. If there are ingredients on the label we can't pronounce/don't know what it is - we don't buy it. I could go on and on...

[Ready]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Midpack We came to the same conclusion. I eat red meat probably once or twice a month, DW never. We use butter sparingly, not chemical substitutes. We use real sugar sparingly, not substitutes. We eat very few prepared or processed foods. If it's a food that was available when I was growing up, it's an option when grocery shopping. If there are ingredients on the label we can't pronounce/don't know what it is - we don't buy it. I could go on and on...

+1

My thoughts exactly. Processed food has done so much damage to our country. It's the main reason, IMO, that Americans have such a high rate of obesity. The fast food industry knows it but cares only about profits, and is happy to produce large amounts of cheap, high fat/sugar/salt foods that appeal to the average consumer. Lack of education, lack of time, and probably a whole host of other reasons has kept Americans on this treadmill with little desire to change. Until we decide as a country to do something about, I suspect it will never change. As much as people make fun of Bloomberg for trying to limit drink sizes or publishing calorie counts on menus, I applaud him for trying to do something to solve the problem.

[Chuckanut]

I thought of a third way these food studies have potentially harmed me. I greatly reduced my coffee consumption years ago after reading about its harmful effects.

Now, I find that coffee significantly reduces the rate of prostate cancer in men, lessens the chances of getting diabetes and reduces the rate of dementia. Thanks to Starbucks, I did not avoid coffee for nearly as long as I ate trans-fat laden margarine.

[HFWR]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ready +1 My thoughts exactly. Processed food has done so much damage to our country. It's the main reason, IMO, that Americans have such a high rate of obesity. The fast food industry knows it but cares only about profits, and is happy to produce large amounts of cheap, high fat/sugar/salt foods that appeal to the average consumer. Lack of education, lack of time, and probably a whole host of other reasons has kept Americans on this treadmill with little desire to change. Until we decide as a country to do something about, I suspect it will never change. As much as people make fun of Bloomberg for trying to limit drink sizes or publishing calorie counts on menus, I applaud him for trying to do something to solve the problem.

Arguments about the accuracy and efficacy of the "food pyramid" aside, food labeling and PSAs et al are there for anyone to find.

I do agree with little desire to change...

[Midpack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ready Processed food has done so much damage to our country. It's the main reason, IMO, that Americans have such a high rate of obesity. The fast food industry knows it but cares only about profits, and is happy to produce large amounts of cheap, high fat/sugar/salt foods that appeal to the average consumer. Lack of education, lack of time, and probably a whole host of other reasons has kept Americans on this treadmill with little desire to change. Until we decide as a country to do something about, I suspect it will never change.

The information is out there, and I suspect most people have seen/heard it more than once. If Americans decided to eat healthy and simply refused to eat processed and fast food, I guarantee those products would quickly disappear. You'd have "the industry" falling all over themselves to offer a product that consumers would buy. Most fast food places have offered healthy alternatives like salads for decades, it's not their fault that most people order double cheese Whoppers with fries and a shake.

Though without turning this into a political topic, subsidies for sugar, corn, etc. have evidently compounded the problem by making some processed/fast foods appear cheaper than they might otherwise be.

I am not defending fast food, but consumers are at least equally responsible IMO. There is nothing stopping consumers right now, not knowing better is an unacceptable excuse IMO.

[freebird5825]

I like steak, hamburger (as taco meat), pork and bacon. However, I prefer chicken and seafood. And of course the veggies I grow myself. I consume a lot of mushrooms, tomatoes and peppers on a weekly basis. I use real butter.

Therefore, beef and pork are a smaller part of my diet.

Pizza and chicken wings (baked) still tops my list of favorite foods.

[timo2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeWras Q: What do you call a bald guy eating a steak? A: A dead man. (According to our media, that is.)

don't forget the ear crease!

[Buckeye]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sue Interesting that the lead scientist on this study has significantly reduced his consumption of red meat.

+1

He's now eating half the portion he used to eat half as often. Significant reduction.

[sengsational]

You can buy L-Carnitine as a suppliment. I've seen it in the vitamin section. Not sure what it's supposed to help, though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by braumeister Where do I sign up to eat steaks for the sake of science?

Me too!

Quote:

Originally Posted by donheff Pass me the bacon cheeseburger and leave half the bun in the kitchen. I'm sticking with my unhealthy diet.

Well there's one thing we can agree on! Except I'd take it without a bun at all!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuckanut I wonder how much damage I did to myself with several decades of eating 'healthy' margarine and solid vegetable shortening loaded with trans-fats instead of butter. Then we gave up natural fats for added sugars and highly processed carbs, only to find that sugar and processed carbs are now thought to be more harmful than the saturated fats we gave up. Apparently carbs fuel production of the more damaging LDL particles while saturated fats increase the more benign LDL particles. At least that is the current thinking.

I just got done reading The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living: An Expert Guide to Making the Life-Saving Benefits of Carbohydrate Restriction Sustainable and Enjoyable: Stephen D. Phinney, Jeff S. Volek: 9780983490708: Amazon.com: Books. It's packed with study after study on how the science has changed, but has been meeting with serious resistance. This book is really written for doctors (or maybe that's just his way to sell more books, hehe). But the idea is that some people have a "carbohydrate intolerance" that leads to metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Midpack The information is out there, and I suspect most people have seen/heard it more than once.

The problem is that there are mixed messages, and people don't know what to think any more. Contrast what Phinney et al say in the above book vs the food pyramid and it's 12 servings of starch and grains (or whatever it is).