Low carbohydrate diets are now the craze in the U.S.A. Fast food stores even offer hamburgers in lettuce rather than in
buns (still with the fats of meat and sauces). Breads and pastries modified for lower carbohydrates are now making
fortunes for suppliers. "Low carb salads", still drenched with high fat dressings, are offered for "dieting."
So what?
This is a costly, stupid, perhaps health threatening fad.
When I was growing up, I did not understand that biblical quotation of "Man does not live by bread alone", attributed to Moses (old testament, torah) and Jesus (new testament). Well, I understood that the message was meant to be "People have spiritual as well as physical needs." But I had no idea how people could live very long on bread. At that time, I was used to spongy white bread with no character.
Somewhere along the way, I learned about whole grain breads, and how peasants through the centuries had lived mostly on
dark breads that Marie Antoinnette would have rejected, with occasional fortifications of cheese, eggs, sometimes meat. Peasants tended to eat vegetables, but knights and nobles often dismissed such as "farmers' fare", preferring lots of
meat, alcoholic beverages, pastries. Few people lived long in those days, so statistical studies of life span versus
diet were not performed. (Statistics were not well known.)
So I read up on bread recipes, found a few health gurus who argued for blends of whole grain wheat, cornmeal, rye, and soy flour. A fairly recent development is triticale, a long sought hybrid of wheat and rye. Why these blends? It turns out that grains and legumes can provide all the balanced
protein that we need, without meat. Verrrry interesting! Also, such blends contain valuable dietary fiber.
The prayer, "Give us this day our daily bread", is now explained. Properly made, bread really can be "the staff of life."
I have learned to love Asian foods that make heavy use of soy beans, such as tempeh and tofu with noodles and stir fry
vegetables. I usually am turned off by soy based foods that pretend to be something else, such as soy burgers, soy cutlets, soy cheeses. In fact, the fake foods not only can taste far from real, but those which contain Hydrolyzed Plant Protein (HP) inflame my tongue and cause me anxiety,
just as foods with a lot of Monosodium Glutamate (MSG).
Side observation: a chunk of land producing balanced protein from grains and legumes can support about 20 times as many people as the same land producing four legged meats. Oh, and the people getting most of their proteins and calories from plant sources are far less likely to have heart attacks, strokes, cancers, et cetera, than the big meat eaters.
I have written elsewhere that selecting sensible foods means one never has to count calories. I'll go further and say that most carbohydrate restrictions are dumb.
Here are the only carbohydrate restrictions I recommend.
• all refined sugars
(cane, beet, high fructose corn syrup,
sorghum molasses, maple syrup, etc.)
• beer in large quantities
• anything made from white flour, even if "enriched"
If you have a craving for sweets that you just can't break (which I don't belive), learn how fruits and nuts together can taste very sweet. Also, the unsaturated fat in the nuts (or edible seeds, such as sunflower) will satisfy hunger with no risk to the arteries. My favorite is raisins and
almonds, perhaps with some fresh red delicious apple slices.
Pasta, preferably made from whole grains, is healthful, if not served with lots of cheese, oil, sauces which contain oil, sugar, cheese. Noodles with little meat is a main menu item in the Orient.
Oh, about carbohydrates in potatoes: they are harmless if you don't add butter, margarine, fat from frying, sour cream for topping, and other insults to a great food.
People in parts of Central and South America eat little more than potatoes of traditional breeds.
Why
Your Diet May Not Be Working!
by: Nishanth Reddy
Jennifer, a middle-aged single mother with one
six-year-old daughter, has been skipping sweets for a few weeks now. She’s
also become a stickler for portion control. She feels as if she’s eating
less than ever, and she’s been diligently exercising for an hour at a time
at least four days a week. Yet, she hasn’t lost a single pound. The
question is, “Why?”
This is a dilemma which affects dieters the world over.
They think they are taking the steps necessary to lose weight, but nothing
seems to be happening. In essence, they are trapped in a dieting rut and
they don’t know how to free themselves. As a result, they become
frustrated and depressed and may then engage in binge eating.
One of the problems with diets is that they are often
standardized. As a result, they don’t take into consideration your
individual physiology and metabolism. They provide a cookie-cutter
approach to weight loss—an approach which may not work in your individual
case. As a result, an increasing number of people are turning to
dieticians to formulate a person weight loss strategy for them. This
process has been made easier through the Internet, where you can
correspond with a dietician any time of the day or night via e-mail. The
dietician can also act as your personal coach, helping you through your
dieting dilemmas.
Another reason that you may be failing at your diet is
because of a lack of support. You may have family members who can eat
whatever they want and seemingly not gain a pound. As a result, they may
fill your refrigerator with junk food, leading you into temptation. Also,
you may feel as if you have no one to turn to in order to discuss your
weight problems. In order to solve this problem, many individuals look to
psychotherapists to help them with their food-related issues. This can be
particularly important if an individual has turned to purging in an effort
to combat their weight problems. Bulimia is a serious disease which must
be treated in order to ensure the good health of the patient. Thankfully,
there are a number of treatment programs throughout the U.S. specifically
focusing on bulimia.
Yet another reason for diet failure is hidden calories.
You may literally be consuming calories and not even realize it. For
instance, the frappucinos that are so popular today are loaded with
calories—as many as 600 in a single serving! You may also be indulging in
sugary sodas—another source of extra calories. By taking a few simple
steps, such as eliminating the exotic coffee drinks from your diet and
substituting skim milk for whole milk, you may be able to eliminate the
hidden calories that are denying you dieting success.
Lack of consistency can also be a diet-killer. You might
go on a diet for a while, then quit before you’ve made any measurable
progress. It’s only natural to want to see quick results. The problem is
that healthy weight loss involves losing only a couple of pounds a week.
That means you’ll have to stay on your diet for months before you see
appreciable weight loss. Discouraging? It can be, but if you keep a
positive attitude you can achieve your ideal weight.
You may also be more successful in your dieting if you
consider it to be a lifestyle change. Therefore, your diet becomes a meal
plan for life. This means that you must change the way you look at food.
It is designed to be fuel for your body, and nothing more. As a result,
you should not turn to food to make you feel better or to provide you with
a sense of comfort. A lifestyle change implies commitment; it means that
you are prepared to follow the plan for the long haul. If you feel as if
you cannot be on your diet for any appreciable length of time, perhaps
it’s time to consider a different diet. Your aim ultimately should be not
simply to lose weight, but to become healthier. A fad diet will not allow
you to reach that milestone. Therefore, you must choose your diet
carefully.
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