26.7% of U.S. are obese

[voidisyinyang]

100,000 "chocolate-covered bacon" strips sold at the Wisconsin state fair last year -- and 7,000 Krispy Kreme donut cheeseburgers planned to be sold this year:

 

http://www.disinfo.com/2010/08/wisconsins-answer-to-the-obesity-crisis-the-krispykreme-cheeseburger/

Edited August 8, 2010 by drewhempel

[Mokona]

A conversation like this would benefit from recommended cookbooks, go!

[voidisyinyang]

[Mokona]

Are their any natural teas that help combat fatigue? I saw that your posts on vinegar show the many uses and fighting fatigue is one i'm gunning for. Dropping all caffiene sources and reducing my sugar is something to really look forward to, in my opinion.

[voidisyinyang]

Are their any natural teas that help combat fatigue? I saw that your posts on vinegar show the many uses and fighting fatigue is one i'm gunning for. Dropping all caffiene sources and reducing my sugar is something to really look forward to, in my opinion.

 

Oh most definitely -- because sugar and caffeine both create this amazing depletion of energy -- refined sugar that is. What happens is that your insulin spikes so you get the sugar and caffeine buzz. But then because it's too much insulin then the hit the "sugar blues" as lack of energy. So to counteract the low energy your body then extracts more glucose from your extremities.

 

This is why drinking too much caffeine causes fear because the kidney energy is depleted -- the adrenaline gets used up. It's also why drinking too much caffeine and too much sugar causes cold extremities -- cold hands and feet -- because due to the insulin spike, then the body has to extract energy from the extremities of the body in a mad search to overcome too much insulin.

 

Herbal tea is a great way to go -- there's tons of options - there's even a "happy tea." So any herbal tea will increase energy.

[Mokona]

Oh most definitely -- because sugar and caffeine both create this amazing depletion of energy -- refined sugar that is. What happens is that your insulin spikes so you get the sugar and caffeine buzz. But then because it's too much insulin then the hit the "sugar blues" as lack of energy. So to counteract the low energy your body then extracts more glucose from your extremities.

 

This is why drinking too much caffeine causes fear because the kidney energy is depleted -- the adrenaline gets used up. It's also why drinking too much caffeine and too much sugar causes cold extremities -- cold hands and feet -- because due to the insulin spike, then the body has to extract energy from the extremities of the body in a mad search to overcome too much insulin.

 

Herbal tea is a great way to go -- there's tons of options - there's even a "happy tea." So any herbal tea will increase energy.

 

Thanks and actually drinking loads of caffeine in coffee and soda has become almost normal for a while and then also noticed that my hands and feet have been amazingly cold(as you've mentioned above) and I've become more suseptable to getting sick. In which case, I can't seem to get completely over whatever I caught that is mixed into the dust out here, and I never get very sick anymore.

 

But that's why reading and working on these things helps so much

[rsalazar]

Really? So what about the other 73.3% of the US population? HFCS is in everything so why isn't everyone fat?

Hello Mantis,

 

While the obesity epidemic in this country has roots in both the overabundance of sugar and fat (easy to access and it's cheap, also part of the poverty-obesity paradox) as well as the underabundance of physical exercise, it's a little more complicated - the answer to your question is that we are all genetically unique, so effects of any particular diet will vary with the genetics of the individual. Consider how some portion of the population gets better results from one OTC (say Advil), while others get better results from aspirin, all this is rooted in individual genetics - for a great breakdown of this, check out Roger Williams' classic Biochemical Individuality:

http://books.google.com/books?id=o_HUXwbnsEoC&printsec=frontcover&dq=biochemical+individuality&hl=en&ei=A6VgTLaKNoWClAfJmcWZCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

n

 

Some portion of the population will be more affected than others, but even in those not showing overt effects, there are still problems at a cellular level (decreasing insulin sensitivity for one thing).

 

In the end, our bodies were designed for a lot more physical activity and to run on a lot less energy-dense food. The changes in our environment (diet and physical activity requirements) over the past 100 years or so have thrown a huge monkey wrench in the feedback loops that regulate our body homeostasis.

 

Cheers,

Rene'

[rsalazar]

I just wanted to add a couple of links of interest here:

 

While Supersize Me and Food, Inc. are great summaries of the current problems, another great video on hulu is The Future of Food - although it's a bit dated, it is thought-provoking, getting you to think about where you get your food:

 

This book is another classic, documenting a lot of the problems we see more publicized today - back in the 1930's the author observed what happens in different cultures across the globe when they switch out of their native diets and adopt more refined Westernized ones:

http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library/price/pricetoc.html

 

In the attached nutritional review of dried fruits, check out Fig.4 - it's now a standard lab practice to lower antioxidant activity in the plasma by having a subject drink a can of Sprite, this effect lasts for 4 hours. Think about those people that drink several sugary sodas every day, on top of a fast food diet . . .

 

On the other hand,if you want to improve your diet, ramp up your fruit and veggie intake -the data showing the power of fruits like blueberries and strawberries to help reverse age-related changes (such as in the nervous system) is pretty compelling. I've attached a 1999 review from a high-profile neuroscience journal for your perusal.

 

Although I'm in no way a vegetarian (I still enjoy dead animal now and then), I find equally compelling the power of vegetarian diets to lower overall probability for chronic diseases we see today that are overloading our healthcare system

 

The China Study by T.Colin Campbell

http://books.google.com/books?id=KgRR12F0RPAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=the+china+study&hl=en&ei=B8hgTK7VFcSclgeZgbGwCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CC4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Reversing Heart Disease by Julian Whitaker

http://books.google.com/books?id=EPB0rdl0yZQC&printsec=frontcover&dq=reversing+heart+disease&hl=en&ei=eshgTNLpOMH6lwees8maCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Overall, you will go a long ways to helping yourself by finding any excuse to eat whole foods and more fruits and veggies.

 

My 2 cents,

Rene'

driedfruitsrev.pdf

blueberry8114.pdf

[Christoph]

The China Study is utter rubbish and has been extensively de-bunked as an exercise in extreme confirmation bias.

 

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/cancer/the-china-study-vs-the-china-study/

 

lack of exercise-how do you think people will feel like exercising when they are metabolically damaged,endocrine system unbalanced and 40 lbs overweight?proper food-metabolic recovery-then exercise

 

plant enzymes are for the metabolic functions of the plant and have absolutely nothing to do with human digestion except in rare instances like papaya and pineapple

[rsalazar]

The China Study is utter rubbish and has been extensively de-bunked as an exercise in extreme confirmation bias.

 

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/cancer/the-china-study-vs-the-china-study/

 

lack of exercise-how do you think people will feel like exercising when they are metabolically damaged,endocrine system unbalanced and 40 lbs overweight?proper food-metabolic recovery-then exercise

 

plant enzymes are for the metabolic functions of the plant and have absolutely nothing to do with human digestion except in rare instances like papaya and pineapple

 

That's an interesting link,but I would caution about throwing the baby out with the bathwater - Eades goes off on how it's mainly an "observational" study, but if you read it there is plenty of experimental work that make it compelling if you read the book - after Eades also fires off on the strain of rats, I'd still say there is useful information to be had - keep in mind most pharm companies and universities use these rats as well - of course, nothing is ideal, including this study, but you can throw out Campbell's work and you are still faced with data aplenty pointing to potential benefits for most people with more of a plant-based diet - I would agree that if a person is bedridden and can't exercise, recovery is crucial, but otherwise I believe there needs to be an exercise stimulus to go along with an improved diet, the body adapts to changes in the different feedback loops.

 

Cheers,

R

[宁]

The China Study is utter rubbish and has been extensively de-bunked as an exercise in extreme confirmation bias.

 

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/cancer/the-china-study-vs-the-china-study/

 

lack of exercise-how do you think people will feel like exercising when they are metabolically damaged,endocrine system unbalanced and 40 lbs overweight?proper food-metabolic recovery-then exercise

 

plant enzymes are for the metabolic functions of the plant and have absolutely nothing to do with human digestion except in rare instances like papaya and pineapple

 

You know your stuff! Bravo!

[mantis]

Hello Mantis,

 

While the obesity epidemic in this country has roots in both the overabundance of sugar and fat (easy to access and it's cheap, also part of the poverty-obesity paradox) as well as the underabundance of physical exercise, it's a little more complicated - the answer to your question is that we are all genetically unique, so effects of any particular diet will vary with the genetics of the individual. Consider how some portion of the population gets better results from one OTC (say Advil), while others get better results from aspirin, all this is rooted in individual genetics - for a great breakdown of this, check out Roger Williams' classic Biochemical Individuality:

http://books.google.com/books?id=o_HUXwbnsEoC&printsec=frontcover&dq=biochemical+individuality&hl=en&ei=A6VgTLaKNoWClAfJmcWZCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

n

 

Some portion of the population will be more affected than others, but even in those not showing overt effects, there are still problems at a cellular level (decreasing insulin sensitivity for one thing).

 

In the end, our bodies were designed for a lot more physical activity and to run on a lot less energy-dense food. The changes in our environment (diet and physical activity requirements) over the past 100 years or so have thrown a huge monkey wrench in the feedback loops that regulate our body homeostasis.

 

Cheers,

Rene'

 

rsalazar,

 

Thanks for taking the time to write a well thought out response, in part, I agree with you. The point I was trying to make was that with exercise you could essentially cure the obesity "epidemic." The vibe I'm getting from this thread is that HFCS or MSG or whatever is making people fat when it's not, it's lack of exercise. I went through a phase where I ate a disgusting amount of junk food - literally repulsive amounts and yes, I did gain some fat, but I did not turn into an oxygen thief that gasps for air while riding in those handicap carts at Wal-mart.

 

There is a distinct difference between being thin and healthy but if you ask 5 people what being healthy is there is a good chance you'll get 5 different responses, so that's neither here nor there.

 

I hope I got my point across better this time.

[voidisyinyang]

http://ajpregu.physiology.org/cgi/content/full/295/5/R1370

 

Absence of anorexic response to intraperitoneal leptin injection was associated with 25.7% decrease in hypothalamic signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 phosphorylation in the high-fructose-fed rats compared with controls (P = 0.015). Subsequent exposure of the fructose-mediated, leptin-resistant rats to a high-fat diet led to exacerbated weight gain (50.2 ± 2 g) compared with correspondingly fed leptin-responsive animals that were pretreated with the fructose-free diet (30.4 ± 5.8 g, P = 0.012).

 

In this study, we tested the hypothesis that chronic fructose feeding induces leptin resistance, which in turn could predispose animals to increased weight gain in response to a high-fat diet. Several salient findings were observed. First, chronic fructose feeding caused functional leptin resistance as demonstrated by an absent anorexic response to exogenous leptin. Interestingly, this leptin resistance occurred in the absence of either increased body weight or elevated serum leptin: fructose-fed and control-fed rats had the same body weight and serum leptin levels. Second, after the onset of leptin resistance, switching to a Western-type diet resulted in significantly increased energy intake, adiposity levels, and weight gain compared with control rats provided the same diet. Finally, we documented diminished pSTAT3 (one downstream component of the leptin receptor signaling cascade) in fructose-fed rats. This diminished pSTAT3 occurred despite equivalent expression of leptin receptors in the hypothalamus. In conclusion, these studies provide the first documentation that high-fructose diets can induce leptin resistance that subsequently predisposes the animal to the development of dietary obesity.

 

These studies demonstrate that chronic fructose feeding renders animals leptin resistant. A leptin-resistant state disrupts normal energy homeostasis, favors positive energy storage, and thus predisposes to obesity. As such, when fructose-fed, leptin-resistant animals are provided with a calorie-rich diet, the rate and extent of body weight and adiposity are augmented compared with control leptin-responsive rats switched to the calorie-rich diet. A key finding in this study is that a silent leptin resistance has occurred with almost no physiological or biochemical differences detected between the fructose- and control-fed groups. Thus, a high-fructose diet predisposes to obesity, and deleterious effects of chronic fructose consumption develop long before any visible signs of elevated leptin or the metabolic syndrome. The significance is that this mechanism might well explain why fructose ingestion is associated with obesity. While these studies were performed in rats exposed to high-fructose concentrations, it demonstrates a potential mechanism for the development of obesity in response to fructose that should be explored in future clinical studies.

Edited August 20, 2010 by drewhempel