Stupid diet tricks

[RAE]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RonBoyd That also describes Fiber and there are a lot of folks on that Bandwagon... probably including you.

As I said, my main emphasis is to try to eat only real foods. If there is naturally-occurring fiber in some of those things (like many vegetables), great........but I don't make any special effort to include extra fiber in my diet.

Although neither may be digested by the body, I think there is a significant difference between naturally-occurring fiber in foods, versus man-made food additives that are made by altering the chemical structure of a compound. Fiber in foods (which is mostly the cell walls of plant cells) is recognized by the body for what it is, and passed through. It is not fully known yet what the body does with altered compounds that it does not recognize, and that's why I don't want to consume them.

You asked earlier about alternatives to sugar. Since I started eating the way I do now, I really don't crave sweet foods, so I don't see a need to use sweeteners of any kind. Very rarely (like maybe a few times per year) I will use a little bit of real maple syrup or honey on something, and I do eat some dark chocolate (which has a minor amount of sugar), but that's about it.

[RonBoyd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RAE the problem is, you never know until you’re already sick.

That also describes Type 2 Diabetes (unless one heeds the warning signs found through blood work.)

Quote:

Evidence that there are side effects of Splenda is accumulating little by little. Sucralose has been implicated as a possible migraine trigger, for example. Self-reported adverse reactions to Splenda or sucralose collected by the Sucralose Toxicity Information Center include skin rashes/flushing, panic-like agitation, dizziness and numbness, diarrhea, swelling, muscle aches, headaches, intestinal cramping, bladder issues, and stomach pain.

I have always thought of these "sicknesses" as temporary conditions, or at least, treatable. Type 2 Diabetes is incurable -- in can be held somewhat under control, however.

Quote:

The manufacturer’s own short-term studies showed that very high doses of sucralose (far beyond what would be expected in an ordinary diet) caused shrunken thymus glands, enlarged livers, and kidney disorders in rodents. (A more recent study also shows that Splenda significantly decreases beneficial gut flora.) But in this case, the FDA decided that because these studies weren’t based on human test animals, they were not conclusive.

And that's the Science behind claiming that modest amounts of Sucralose is harmful? Well, there, also, are well-documented cases of ingesting massive amounts of water (H2O) causing death.

Yes, the Boogy Man probably lives under my bed but I don't lie awake worrying about it.

[HFWR]

Another data point...

Max Condition Training and Fitness: Low Carb Dogma

[HFWR]

An interesting study...

Physical inactivity as the culprit of metabolic inflexibility: evidence from bed-rest studies

Quote:

Our aim is to provide evidence that supports the hypothesis that physical inactivity per se is one of the primary causes in the development of metabolic inflexibility. This evidence will focus on four main tenants of metabolic inflexiblity: 1) insulin resistance, 2) impaired lipid trafficking and hyperlipidemia, 3) a shift in substrate use toward glucose, and 4) a shift in muscle fiber type and ectopic fat storage. Altogether, this hypothesis places sedentary behaviors upstream on the list of factors involved in metabolic inflexibility, which is considered to be a primary impairment in several metabolic disorders such as obesity, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes mellitus.

[obgyn65]

This depends on what your definition of "safe" is. This topic is controversial.

Quote:

Originally Posted by smr91481 What's the problem with diet soda? What makes artificial sweeteners bad for you?

[Chuckanut]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cute fuzzy bunny After looking at diet advice and what the experts had to say, there were so many contradictions, backtracks and funny science that I started reading the actual studies. Of course, if you do that, you realize that they're all a bunch of crap.

I have recently watched two films on how to improve our American diet.
One is Fathead which seems to favor the low-carb, lots of meat, full fat dairy, eggs approach. The other is Forks over Knives which favors a plant based diet consisting of minimal processing other than cooking, and discourages meat and dairy products.

Two very opposite points of view on diet, and both with experts to back up their claims.

What is interesting is where they are in agreement:

1. Government recommendations on healthy eating are heavily influenced by the food industry.

2. Neither diet permits adding sugar to our food.

3. Both were unhappy with the trend towards removing fat from dairy products.

One film claimed that removing the fat from dairy products raised those nasty carbs. I did some comparison and that is correct. Example: low-fat yogurt has almost twice the carbs of full fat yogart.

The other film claimed that removing fat from dairy products raised the protein levels (the film is critical of animal protein.) Again, I found that to be true. Low fat yogurt has about 50% more protein that full fat yogurt.

[HFWR]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuckanut I have recently watched two films on how to improve our American diet. One is Fathead which seems to favor the low-carb, lots of meat, full fat dairy, eggs approach. The other is Forks over Knives which favors a plant based diet consisting of minimal processing other than cooking, and discourages meat and dairy products. Two very opposite points of view on diet, and both with experts to back up their claims. What is interesting is where they are in agreement: 1. Government recommendations on healthy eating are heavily influenced by the food industry. 2. Neither diet permits adding sugar to our food. 3. Both were unhappy with the trend towards removing fat from dairy products. One film claimed that removing the fat from dairy products raised those nasty carbs. I did some comparison and that is correct. Example: low-fat yogurt has almost twice the carbs of full fat yogart. The other film claimed that removing fat from dairy products raised the protein levels (the film is critical of animal protein.) Again, I found that to be true. Low fat yogurt has about 50% more protein that full fat yogurt.

How about a meat and veggie diet, without the wheat, corn, and sugar?

For what it's worth, all fat is removed from milk during processing, and is then added back to make 2% or "whole" milk...

[Chuckanut]

Here is one view of high fructose corn syrup:

http://sweetsurprise.com/about-hfcs

[RonBoyd]

This is like the article in USAToday yesterday (or the day before) on the 10 "Healthiest" foods to be found at airports (10 healthy snacks you can buy at the airport) -- all ten are super high in sugar (carbohydrates) and super low in fat; a required nutrient..

[Chuckanut]

How about existing only on Sunlight like this lady, named Shine. Well, she does cheat a bit putting milk in her tea. She does not plan to die. I think she will be in for one heck of a surprise.

Eastside woman eschews food to live on sunlight | Local News | The Seattle Times

[haha]

I guess the world has always been full of lunatics, but it seems that they are thick on the ground lately.

She does look pretty good for 43 days with no food except a little milk in her tea. I think I would be long dead before 43 days elapsed if I tried that.

Ha

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuckanut How about existing only on Sunlight like this lady, named Shine. Well, she does cheat a bit putting milk in her tea. She does not plan to die. I think she will be in for one heck of a surprise. Eastside woman eschews food to live on sunlight | Local News | The Seattle Times

That is sad. How can seemingly intelligent people just want to believe something that is clearly so wrong and dangerous?

Quote:

Shine is the 65-year-old Eastside woman who had decided to test out whether people can live just on light. You know, sunlight, the stuff of life. “It would be the most powerful thing this world could have,” she says. No more hunger problems. On her Facebook page, she enthusiastically writes about how: “Can you imagine, if we did not have to eat, just how free our lives would be?” Really, it is unbounded enthusiasm. “If humans did not have to eat, we could turn our planet back into a place of beauty,” writes Shine. “Chemicals in the soil would no longer be needed and neither would all the destruction from the highly mechanized food industries.

Isn't it obvious that all those poor starving people in Africa have access to lots and lots of sunshine?

This is as stupid as saying I'm going to jump off a 30 story building to test if gravity is still working, because you know, it could be really great if we didn't have gravity always dragging us down.

-ERD50

[Bestwifeever]

She thinks she's turned into an air fern.

[RonBoyd]

She does remind me a little of Spanish Moss.

[bjorn2bwild]

Reminds me of a passage in the original "Survival into the 21st Century" by Viktoras Kulvinskas, about "breathairians" who could exist on just air and water. Supposedly they could somehow turn nitrogen in the air into protein etc...

[Amethyst]

This is food for thought (pun not intended, but I'm OK w/it). For the last 8-9 years I've been suffering more and more ear-nose-throat allergic symptoms. I used to be able to control them with Flonase (inhaled steroid) in the spring and fall, but now the Dr. has me on Flonase year round and it still isn't keeping my ears clear. 2005 or 2006 is when I switched from aspartame to Splenda, on a friend's advice. Will have to try cutting out the Splenda for a few weeks, to see if the ears clear up.

Amethyst

" appears that a small number of people do have experiences resembling allergic reactions to the sweetener. Although we couldn’t find reliable human studies that measured or confirmed these symptoms’ relation to sucralose, there are probably enough stories out there to suggest that people play it safe and “test” their reaction to the sweetener with small doses initially."

[bjorn2bwild]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amethyst This is food for thought (pun not intended, but I'm OK w/it). For the last 8-9 years I've been suffering more and more ear-nose-throat allergic symptoms. I used to be able to control them with Flonase (inhaled steroid) in the spring and fall, but now the Dr. has me on Flonase year round and it still isn't keeping my ears clear. 2005 or 2006 is when I switched from aspartame to Splenda, on a friend's advice. Will have to try cutting out the Splenda for a few weeks, to see if the ears clear up. Amethyst"

I have no experience with Splenda, but I do with Flonase. (off the food topic for a moment)
I also suffer from seasonal allergies, both nasal and lung (asthma). Flovent (same drug as Flonase) works great on my asthma, but Flonase gave me terrible nose bleeds and was quite ineffective at relieving my nasal congestion. I switched to nasal inhalation of a salt solution (about 1 rounded tsp/8oz water) and that cleared my sinuses without side effects. Its a little unpleasant - pour a little solution into a cupped palm and inhale through your nose, spit out. 2-3 times a day. Its worth a try.

[Nodak]

This poor lady may find that she has serious problems when she decides to start eating again. Years ago a friend of mine decided to lose a lot of weight so he did a very low calorie diet and lost the weight. When he started to eat normally again he had all sorts of stomach and bowel problems. These took about two years to get resolved.

[RonBoyd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bjorn2bgy I switched to nasal inhalation of a salt solution (about 1 rounded tsp/8oz water) and that cleared my sinuses without side effects. Its a little unpleasant - pour a little solution into a cupped palm and inhale through your nose, spit out. 2-3 times a day. Its worth a try.

This may be a little more pleasant: How to Make Saline Nose Spray | Saline Nose Wash

[bjorn2bwild]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RonBoyd This may be a little more pleasant: How to Make Saline Nose Spray | Saline Nose Wash

Thanks for the link.
And its always a good advice to avoid the "brain eating amoeba".