2010 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee

I notice the 2010 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee was chosen by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Ed Schafer, and Mike Leavitt, former Health and Human Services Secretary.

Mike Leavitt is a politician with a bachelor’s degree in economics and business. Leavitt came under strong criticism in 1998, while Governor of Utah, when he defended polygamy. He was later forced to backpedal and claimed that polygamy should be against the law. He also came under criticism for racking-up $700,000 worth of flight time in the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Emergency Response aircraft to promote Medicare while forcing the CDC, during 2 separate emergency occassions, to privately charter a different plane since the CDC’s Emergency Response aircraft was in use for political reasons by Leavitt. There has also been controversy over Leavitt’s family charitable foundation, the Dixie and Anne Leavitt Foundation, which has provided the family with big-time tax write-offs for around $9 million in donated assets, a third of which have been loaned back to Leavitt family businesses.

Ed Schafer, another politician (former governor of North Dakota) holds a (unkown) bachelor’s degree from the University of North Dakota, and an M.B.A. from the University of Denver. Schafer was in office (Secretary of Agriculture) just a few days when a major scandal concerning cruelty and unsafe food production erupted at the Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Company, where he took the uncanny position that there was no need for a ban on downed cattle in the food supply. Schafer, who takes his responsibility in promoting big industrial agriculture (an obvious conflict of interest, regarding U.S. dietary recommendations) very seriously, was quoted saying in November, 2008, “America’s agriculture continues a positive growth – a fifth straight year of record crop receipts, historically sound farm asset balance, and the third-highest net cash income over the last 33 years.”

The result of Schafer & Leavitt’s collective lack of qualifications regarding nutrition, controversial political/business practices and conflicts of interest was to put together a Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee completely void of even one individual representing “low-carb” research experts, despite the fact that several prominent low-carb researchers and practitioners were nominated to be on this panel. These nominations included Eric C. Westman, M.D., M.H.S from Duke University, Mary C. Vernon, M.D. from The University of Kansas, Richard D. Feinman, Ph.D. from SUNY Downstate, Stephen Phinney, M.D. from The University of California-Davis, and Jeff S. Volek, Ph.D. from The University of Connecticut. All of the low-carb nominees who were under consideration were summarily rejected for inclusion in this vitally important nutritional advisory committee.

I expect nothing but more recommendations to eat more of the the heavily subsidized, high-starch foods that have become so profitable for big industrial agriculture and, indirectly, the pharmaceutical industry, who makes billions treating the symptoms of eating a diet high in sugar, starch, and high fructose corn syrup.

For those who choose to control their diabetes through exercise and sugar/starch governance, there’s no doubt the “Written Public Comments” page concerning the U.S. dietary recommendations serve as nothing more than a “placebo button”…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo_button

Edit: I really don’t like the term, “low carb”, because it’s not all carbs we should be turning down, but the starchy carbs, especially grains which we eat in great excess, that ought to be governed, in my honest opinion.  Less than excess isn’t necessarily “low”.

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.

Addressing the grain-defense brigade (vested interest much?)…

“glad no one told our ancesters that grains were not fit for human consumption! our species just might not have made it through the famines without the wholesome grains”

_

Wholesome foods don’t require synthetic vitamin chasers to prevent deficiencies, although you’re right on one account.  Grains are famine-food, but remember, famines usually last a limited time, from a few months to a few years.  The longer our ancestors were forced to eat famine-food , the more they suffered. But within a limited time and in the absence of more nutritious foods, nutrient deficient/high starch (sugar) foods like grains, can be beneficial, in fact, lifesaving.  So, “thank you, Grain”, but please let me say…

Over $100 billion annually being spent on grain subsidies in the US.  Too bad the grain industry chooses NOT to take advantage of their annual $100+ Billion per year taxpayer-funded subsidies to help out famines occurring in the world today.  Rather, they’re turning an even bigger profit by lying to the American people telling them that grains are rich in fiber, when they’re not.  In fact, they’re rich in starch (sugar).   Americans are also being told grains are rich in vitamins, (they’re not). Besides causing excess starch (sugar) consumption (see: Roszler’s Loop), whole grains cause vitamin deficiencies, such as folate deficiencies.  Folate deficiencies are known to cause serious birth defects of the brain and spinal cord (see: spina bifida).  You’ve probably heard of the synthetic version of folate…folic acid.

“It has been known for years women don’t get enough folic acid, that is why we have multivitamins. There are other foods completely void of nutrional value that are staples. But they are cheap and that is all some people can afford”

Yes, whole grains are nutritionally deficient and unless supplemented with vitamins will cause deficiencies.  Vitamin deficiencies cause disease. Grains are cheap because there is over $100 billion in taxpayer-funded subsidies granted to them annually, making them artificially cheap compared to broccoli or spinach or any of the other wide-spectrum/nutrient-rich foods who’s growers aren’t SUBSIDIZED but enjoy regional market monopolies, created by Big Grain’s virtual monopoly of the subsidies.

Wholesome foods don’t require multivitamin chasers.  Period.

“This is not new information. When you bring new and relevant information to the table let us know. Are you just taking this out of text books and copying it or what?”

Not new information to whom?  You?  In that case, do you mind if I share this information with the rest of the world, or do you intend to be stingy with it?  And yes, these are facts that come right out of any human physiology textbook, so your opinion is rather irrelevant.

Facts trump opinion.  Every time.

By they way, popcorn is rich in…

…you guessed it.  STARCH (not fiber).

ps…starch is sugar!

ps2…whole popping corn is deficient in important nutrients, such as folate (this deficiency is linked to spina bifida)

ps3…Most of the popcorn that people buy gives off fumes that have been found to cause lung cancer.

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.

The New Whole Grain Conundrum: Folate

As if the high starch (sugar) content wasn’t enough…

As the husband of someone previously diagnosed with diabetes and brother of someone born with spina bifida, I’m particularly offended by the American Diabetic Association’s push for consumers to consume ever more increasing amounts of whole grains.

By looking at the graphs below, you can see that brown rice is deficient in variety of vitamins when compared to broccoli.  This is a constant when comparing any whole grain to any of the much healthier non-starchy vegetables.

In fact, when whole grains are refined, the short-spectrum nutrient profiled nutrition in grains is stripped.  So, by law, manufacturers must “enrich” or “fortify” the product with vitamins and other nutrients (albeit, synthetic versions).  So while the refined grains are excessively high in starch (sugar), just like the whole grains, as well as having a low fiber/starch ratio, at least they are fortified with folic acid (the synthetic version of folate).

Folate is important because folate deficiencies result in higher rates of birth defects involving the brain and/or spinal cord.

Women in the United States are not eating enough folate, says a survey by government researchers. According to the study’s authors, two-thirds of women do not eat the recommended daily amount of the vitamin, which helps to prevent severe birth defects. And levels of folate in the diet have actually declined since 1999, they report.  The decline may be due to increased consumption of whole grain breads and cereals…[LINK]

So, now the American Diabetic Association, which is heavily sponsored by the grain industry and the pharmaceutical industry, must try to maintain it’s house of cards built on promoting a nutrient-deficient, starchy (sugary), grain-based American diet.

Conclusion:  In addition to the fact that grains contain excessive amounts of starch (sugar), which is harmful to diabetics and forces them to take ever-graduating amounts of drugs & insulin, their new, upgraded conundrum is…

1.  Refined grains have already been cast aside because of their decreased fiber content and higher glycemic index, although they are fortified with (synthetic) vitamins.

2.  Whole grains contain little folate, which is feared will cause increasing rates of spina bifida and other spinal and brain birth defects in babies.  I guess one option for them is to now fortify whole grains with synthetic folate (folic acid), but that reveals the  fact that even whole grains, completely void of such an important nutrient such as folate, are not fit for human consumption, especially as a staple.  Apparently it is deficient, even in it’s whole form.

“BUT YOU CAN TAKE MULTIVITAMINS!!!”, they cry.

Why should I have to, if grains were wholesome?

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.

The Healthcare Crisis: Following the money.

Below, you will see a bar graph depicting the macronutrients in a typical “whole grain”.  Obviously once you see this, you realize that even whole grains are made primarily of starch.  The statement that “whole grains are high in fiber” is simply a myth.  Starch is made of repeating units of sugar and something called amylase in your saliva begins the quick work of breaking the starch into it’s individual units (sugars) just as soon as you start chewing it.  Remember, youshould chew your food well, which is to say, the body’s biochemistry is apathetic as to whether your grains are milled by the enamel in your teeth or an industrial milling machine.  All grains are processed in one way or another.  If there is any doubt in your mind about the accuracy of this graph, please check it against your favorite whole grain by visiting the USDA website and looking it up.

In every practical way except sweetness, every gram of starch is a gram of sugar.

Keeping the facts above in mind, see the flowchart below to see the flow of money within the machine that’s creating the healthcare crisis.

Roszlers Loop™

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.

Roszler’s Loop™ : are you stuck in it?

For most people, the advice to eat lots of whole grain means consuming excessive amounts of starch.  (See the graph below.  If there is any doubt in your mind about the accuracy of this graph, please check it against your favorite whole grain by visiting the USDA website and looking it up.)

In every practical way except sweetness, every gram of starch is a gram of sugar (see: amylase).  In most cases, this causes chronic high insulin (chronic hyperinsulinemia) and chronic high blood glucose (chronic hyperglycemia), both of which have been linked to a myriad of ill health effects, including diabetes, obesity and heart disease.  When someone eats a diet resulting in chronic high blood sugar in constant need of insulin correction, this is what I call Roszler’s Loop™.

Edit:  BG=Blood Glucose

If you’re working with someone who’s supposedly helping you with your nutrition, make sure and check to see if their advice keeps you trapped within Roszler’s Loop™.  Roszler’s Loop™ is something I use periodically with my athletes in order to “carb-up” when certain factors call for it, but most athletes who spend most of their time in Roszler’s Loop™ will build up an insulin resistance and gain excess bodyfat, worsening their power-to-weight ratio which takes a tremendous toll on performance.

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.

The Lion’s Share Diet

The Lion’s Share Diet is what I also call the 3/4 Diet and is effective for weight loss (fat-loss) and for a slower introduction of carbohydrates into the bloodstream, reducing post-meal blood sugar highs. 

As a general rule, try covering the Lion’s Share (3/4) of your plate with one or a combination of more of these carbohydrate foods from the Lion’s List served fresh, steamed, baked, fried-but-not-breaded, cooked in a hot-air oven (yum), etc….and see what happens. 

The Lion’s List:
Broccoli
Green Beans
Yellow Summer Squash
Kale
Spinach
Brussels Sprouts
Mustard Greens
Collard Greens
Cauliflower
Cabbage
Alfalfa Sprouts
zucchini
Lettuce (all varieties)
Eggplant
Cucumber
Celery
Asparagus
Artichoke
Snow peas

The other 1/4 of the plate is for protein: eggs, fish, poultry and meats of all kinds except for those preseasoned or cured.

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.

The other 1/4 of the plate is for protein: eggs, fish, poultry and meats of all kinds except for those preseasoned or cured.The Lion’s Share Diet is what I call a 3/4 Diet and is effective for weight loss (fat-loss) and for a slower introduction of carbohydrates into the bloodstream, reducing post-meal blood sugar highs.

As a general rule, try covering the Lion’s Share (3/4) of your plate with one or a combination of more of these carbohydrate foods from the Lion’s List served fresh, steamed, baked, fried-but-not-breaded, cooked in a hot-air oven (yum), etc….and see what happens.

The Lion’s List:

Broccoli

Green Beans

Yellow Summer Squash

Kale

Spinach

Brussels Sprouts

Mustard Greens

Collard Greens

Cauliflower

Cabbage

Alfalfa Sprouts

zucchini

Lettuce (all varieties)

Eggplant

Cucumber

Celery

Asparagus

Artichoke

Snow peas

The other 1/4 of the plate is for protein: eggs, fish, poultry and meats of all kinds except for those preseasoned or cured.

Exercise a Goldmine for Diabetics

I have spent the last several months perusing diabetic-support message boards and I am alarmed by the fact that the majority of type-2 diabetics aren’t aware of the huge benefits they stand to gain from resistance-exercise.

Here’s a short list of articles and studies on the benefits of resistance-exercise for diabetics…

STUDY CONCLUSIONS: Moderate-intensity PRT for 3 months resulted in significant improvement in insulin sensitivity, glycemia, lipids, and truncal and peripheral SCAT in patients with type 2 diabetes. Resistance training should be an integral part of exercise regimen in Asian Indians with type 2 diabetes.

STUDY CONCLUSIONS – PRT as an adjunct to standard of care is feasible and effective in improving glycemic control and some of the abnormalities associated with the metabolic syndrome among high-risk older adults with type 2 diabetes.

The first clue that exercise might enhance the ability of insulin to stimulate muscle glucose utilization was probably provided by Per Bjorntorp and his co-workers in Gothenberg, Sweden in the early 1970s. In 1972, they reported that glucose tolerance was better and plasma insulin levels lower in middle-aged Swedish men who regularly participated in competitive sports than in age- and weight-matched control men.

This study shows that individuals with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes (characterized by poor glycemic control and sustained hyperglycemia), undergoing moderate to high intensity resistance exercise training for 16 weeks, exhibit a significant increase in D-glucose co-transporter (hSGLT3) and protein levels in skeletal muscle tissue.  A concomitant increase in glucose disposal (muscle glycogen stores) and muscle strength were observed with resistance training. Moreover, the observed increase expression in hSGLT3 was significantly associated with improved glycemic control and functional capacity.

STUDY CONCLUSIONS:  These findings suggest a protective effect of resistance exercise, independent of total PA time, on impaired glucose metabolism in adults. Resistance exercise should be considered in programs addressing the primary prevention of diabetes in persons with impaired glucose metabolism.

I realize that doctors are not trained or educated in nutrition or exercise.  This is painfully obvious when you see just how overweight and unhealthy the majority of doctors are, themselves, as a group.  I recommend they abandon haphazard pharmacology and revisit human physiology.

Like I said earlier, I’ve been reading these diabetes-support forums, and few people are exercising!  There’s lot’s of discussion about dealing with amputations, blindness, metformin, glucophage, etc…but little discussion on exercise.

They have NO IDEA what they’re missing.

My message to diabetics:  Abandon inactivity.  You are not a brain in a petri dish.  You have arms, legs, muscles, bones, ligaments and tendons.  You are supposed to be MOVING.

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.

Super-low glycemic index foods

Here’s a question I was presented with recently…

“I have been diabetic for a few years now. I stumbled on this site quite by accident looking for a way to lose weight. It is a major problem for me.”

My reply:

“Steps I would take…

1. Start a resistance-exercise program, pushing, pulling and handling with your legs as heavy a weight as you can perform with good form. This lowers insulin resistance, boosts the metabolism through the exercise itself, and prevents muscle wasting during weight loss.

2. Realize that starch is sugar, usually glucose. Just because Kraft, General Mills and Mrs. Baird don’t sublist it under the total carbohydrate count doesn’t mean it’s not there. It is there, it’s sugar, and it ought to be listed.

Treat starch as you would sugar. Only your tongue thinks there’s a difference. But be ready to request your doctor turn down your medication (a good thing).

3. Realize the healthiest carbohydrates for overweight people and diabetics aren’t usually listed on glycemic index lists (like spinach and broccoli). This is because they don’t significantly raise blood glucose levels above normal. In other words, the foods that have been attributed as being “low glycemic” are still raising blood glucose levels significantly.

I call these foods that don’t raise glucose levels significantly “super-low glycemic” foods.

Quick List… spinach, broccoli, brussels sprouts, green beans, mustard greens, cauliflower, sprouts, cabbage, yellow summer squash, etc…

Does anyone else find it odd that on a forum about diabetes, the spell-check feature doesn’t recognize the word “glycemic”?”

Which was soon followed by another question by another poster:

“Garland, is there a site that shows this list of foods that are lower than low – ones that don’t have an affect on BG?”

First, let’s make sure we all understand what foods we’re talking about here – carbohydrate foods.  Second, I didn’t say they don’t have an affect on blood glucose.  But I did say their affect on blood glucose is not significant, which is a significant issue for diabetics and overweight people.

So here’s a more comprehensive list  of carbohydrate foods who’s glycemic index is so low (15 or under), they aren’t usually listed on most glycemic index lists.  Lately, these foods are showing up more frequently on glycemic index lists, but they are listed along with carbohydrate foods with a glycemic index of 55 or less (so-called “low-glycemic).  If a person’s daily activity level warrants a fuel-source with a glycemic index of 55, they probably aren’t diabetic and a diabetic consuming carbohydrates with a glycemic index of 55 will require medication unless their activity level is in the “high” category.  30-50 on the glycemic index is not low, and the reason I know this is because, as a professional nationally certified strength and conditioning specialist, I’ve been matching glycemic index to activities for the past 10 years in order to maximize long-term athletic performance.  Remember, the glycemic index refers to how high a food raises your blood glucose level ABOVE NORMAL.  That’s why the higher-glycemic-index-eating diabetics require more medication from their pharmacy and suffer more of the side effects of a broken fuel-management system.

I call these super-low glycemic foods and for over 10 years, I’ve paid attention to diabetics who manage their starch/sugar intake, and usually nullify the need for medication (according to their doctor) by limiting their carbohydrate foods to this list until (and this is paramount) a healthy bodyfat percentage is reached AND their activity level warrants more starch/sugar.  Notice the “AND” in that sentence and note that it’s not an “OR”.  Just remember, my program is geared toward non-diabetic athletes.  If you’re on insulin or drugs, I definitely recommend you consult with your doctor before making any drastic changes to your sugar/starch intake level (see: glycemic load).

I give you “the list”….

Broccoli

Green Beans

Yellow Summer Squash

Kale

Spinach

Brussels Sprouts

Mustard Greens

Collard Greens

Cauliflower

Cabbage

Alfalfa Sprouts

zucchini

Lettuce (all varieties)

Eggplant

Cucumber

Celery

Asparagus

Artichoke

Snow peas

Of course, this is just a simple list and some people can take it and run with it, but beating diabetes requires a variation of recipe ideas, eating-out and holiday strategies, and an overall lifestyle change for the better (much).

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.

Texas drops health.

While obesity and diabetes climb above epidemic standards among people of all ages, including children, the Education Commissioner Robert Scott announces that Texas will no longer require health education as a requirement to graduate from high school.  One of just a few states institutionally sanctioning sloth and gluttony to an ever increasing obese and diabetic population of young people during a healthcare crisis.

Can you say, “Not brilliant”? LINK

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.

When is carbing-up for workouts a bad thing?

Bodyfat is stored fuel you pull around with you.

When someone says they are “carbing-up”, it means they are consuming sugar, which is the “nitromethane (race-car fuel)” of athletic performance.  But there is a specific situation when carbing-up is detrimental to the athlete’s competition performance.  Keep in mind, there are 2 primary kinds of performance for the athlete; training performance and competition performance.  These two must be differentiated to maximize competition performance, which is where the measurements that matter happen.

So here’s a story to help you understand.

There were two brothers who decided to become race car drivers, so they each purchased a 1978 Camaro, which they’d heard make good entry-level race cars.  Brother A bought a blue Camaro, and Brother B bought a red Camaro.  Strangely enough, both cars came connected to 3 full trailers of unleaded gasoline and the trailers were rigged so that they could only be unhitched after they had been emptied via running the engine.

So, the 2 brothers drive up to the garage of the local racetrack, pulling the trailers.

The track mechanic greets them just outside the garage.  He tells the brothers about a big race they should enter.  It’s only 3 weeks away, so it’s fortunate they came in today, because they must start practicing right away.

Brother B asks the mechanic, “Hey, can I get some of that nitromethane race car fuel?”.  The mechanic says, “Sure!”, and proceeds to fill the tank of Brother B’s car with nitromethane.  When he’s finished, the mechanic turns to Brother A asks him if also wants nitromethane.  Now, Brother A, who scored a little higher on his SAT, declines the high-performance fuel (for now).

That day during practice, Brother B just destroys Brother A on the track…ran circles around him…literally.  And Brother B won’t let Brother A hear the end of it, but Brother A just grins.

This continues for a whole week, until Brother A burns up all the unleaded fuel in one of his trailers and gets to unhitch from it.

And on the first day of the second week, Brother A was dead-even with Brother B, even though he wasn’t burning high-performance race car fuel.

Then, on the first day of the 3rd week, Brother A was able to unhitch from a second trailer…

…and on that day, Brother A ran circles around Brother B, even though Brother A was burning regular unleaded gasoline.

By the time race day arrived, Brother A had just unhitched from the last trailer.

On this day, Brother A went looking for the mechanic and had him fill his car’s fuel-tank with nitromethane.  The mechanic obliged , and then filled up Brother B’s tank with nitromethane, as well.

Brother A went on to win 1st place, and Brother B blew his transmission half-way through the race, because it just wasn’t designed to pull that much stored fuel.

James Garland does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.