Monday, July 30, 2012

American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association take a BABY Step linking sugar to heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. At this rate, these deadly epidemics won't be stopped until the next century!

Click here to read the article

I am happy to see focus by the AHA and ADA on the sugar content of foods (specifically the content of sugar in soft drinks)...but they are focusing on only one small area of the macronutrient that is the primary cause of the obesity and type 2 diabetes epidemic today.  A high carbohydrate diet not only triggers weight gain in over 60% of the population, but also causes increased blood sugar, total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure, midline adiposity, visceral fat stores, fatty liver,  depression, Alzheimer’s disease, osteoporosis, breast/colon/skin/prostate cancer, and more. 

Stop the focus on calories, already.  The health problems that plague the majority of Americans are not related to calorie intake as much as they are related to the SOURCE of those calories.  And it’s not only sugar!  All carbohydrate foods change directly into blood sugar.  As blood sugar rises, it triggers the release of the fat gain hormone, insulin.  Millions of people who have the genetic propensity for over-release of insulin (over 60% of those who struggle with weight) gain weight and get fat on their body and in their blood from excess insulin response to ALL carbohydrate foods!  Sugar is just ONE source of carbohydrate.  At this rate, it will take the AHA and ADA until the next century to get to the “heart” of the matter…..the diet protocol that is already available in The Metabolism Miracle and The Diabetes Miracle.

Yes, sugar sweetened beverages are 100% carbohydrate.  A 12 ounce regular soda contains about 45 grams of net carbohydrate grams.  But, 12 ounces of orange juice, 12 ounces of grapefruit juice, a hard roll, a regular sandwich wrap,  the crust of a slice of pizza, about 1 cup of cooked pasta,  about 1 cup of rice, or  a restaurant sized baked  potato also contain 45 grams of carbohydrate.  If eliminating soda due to its carb content will decrease the epidemics of obesity and diabetes, we will have to eliminate other foods like soda that break 100% into blood sugar.

So....when we focus our attention squarely on added sugars....we are pigeon-holing the problem.  Yes, it is a step in the right direction....but why not let the cat out of the bag and get it over with?  Tell the American public the whole truth.  The traditional diet that has been promoted and prescribed for over 60 years for overweight, diabetes, hypertension, and cholesterol issues; the low calorie, low fat, low cholesterol diet DOES NOT WORK for the majority of dieters.  And, worse yet, this style of diet is ramping up the epidemics exponentially.

Research missed the mark back in the 1950's and 1960's.  The assumption was that our expanding waists, increasing blood lipids, blood pressure, and blood sugar were due to the fat in our diet.  The researchers and medical associations chose the wrong path almost 60 years ago.  The result?  Epidemics of overweight/obesity/diabetes.   It is now time to admit the error and clean up the mess.  The truth is...the comorbidities of metabolic syndrome are due to excess carbohydrate intake (all types of carbohydrates) PLUS our inactive lifestyle.  


I'm sure it will not be easy for the major medical associations to admit that they advised hundreds of millions of people incorrectly....that the diet protocol recommended for weight and diabetes was just not right and it needs to be changed ASAP. How about this?  Just tell the public that research has proven that the low fat, low calorie diet is appropriate for about 40% of overweight people, but will not work for the majority of those suffering from weight and weight related health issues.  


Medicine and science are dynamic fields and new information and research points us in the right direction to update and change our theories and guidelines accordingly.  Just say it was the latest research that lead you to the right diet prescription...but say something.  People are dying for lack of accurate information.

If you are interested in learning more about this topic and gaining control of your weight, health, and well-being....www.themetabolismmiracle.com.  The lifestyle program that can and will the epidemics of obesity, metabolic heart disease, and type 2 diabetes already exists.  It is available today in The Metabolism Miracle or for those with pre diabetes or type 2 diabetes, The Diabetes Miracle.  ***Guaranteed to be the programs the ADA and AHA promote by the turn of the next century.

Take good care of yourself. 

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Another Dr. Oz “Magic Pill”….Green Coffee Bean Extract

Another Dr. Oz Show topic makes “The Whistle Blog.”   What is he promoting now?  Well, not surprisingly, another dietary supplement.  This time the “miracle pill” and “magic pill”  (he used these two adjectives to describe the supplement)  is GREEN COFFEE EXTRACT.  Let’s talk reality about this “amazing discovery.”


Green coffee beans are coffee beans before they are roasted. Once roasted, they turn the characteristic brown color of coffee.  Green coffee beans are a very good source of chlorogenic acid.
Chlorogenic acid (CGA) is one of the most abundant polyphenols and antioxidants in the human diet.  Major food sources include coffee, blueberries, grapes, apples, sunflower seeds, broccoli, spinach, lettuce, Chinese parsley, eggplant.

Although it is present in many commonly consumed foods, it is considered a poorly absorbed dietary polyphenol.
On Dr. Oz’s program promoting green coffee bean extract, he spoke of the “staggering study” that showed proof of CGA’s miracle weight loss ability.

The “Staggering Study”:
****The study was funded by Applied Food Sciences, which makes the green coffee antioxidant supplement.

The findings were presented at “The American Chemical Society” in San Diego?????
Number of participants in the “staggering study?”   16
Length of the study? 12 weeks
Did  the study represent adults of all ages?  The participants were 22-46 years of age
Location of the study? Although the study is presented as being conducted by the University of Scranton, the study was actually conducted in India.  The study was led by Joe Vinson, professor of chemistry at the University of Scranton, Scranton, Pa.



Quote from Joe Vinson, professor of chemistry at the University of Scranton, “We don’t think it’s the caffeine in it.”
What was the weight status of study participants….”they were obese.”  “They did not change their diet during the course of the study...  average 2400 calories/day. They WERE physically active burning over 400 calories/day with exercise”.*  
***Please note that 2400 calories/day with a 400 calorie exercise burn is not a typical intake for an obese adult. A 2400 calorie dietary intake with 400 calories of exercise burn is typically a weight loss diet for an obese adult.”
Another Vinson quote: Vinson can’t say for sure why the coffee bean extract seems to help weight loss.  He suspects “one explanation is the unroasted beans’ chlorogenic acid.”

The Whistle Conclusion:
There does not appear to be any strong evidence that taking green coffee bean extract.   Dr. Oz’s guest recommends 800mg twice a day (nice income for Applied Food Sciences, the company who funded this study).  I’ve read that caution should be used in consuming green coffee bean extracts as they may contain high levels of caffeine as well.
I’ve also read some information about a 2006 study in which green coffee bean extract in a very low dose (140 mg) administered to hypertensive subjects resulted in a significant reduction in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels, without any observed side effects.  Dr. Oz’s guest presenter recommended 1600mg/day.
When the dust settles and all is said and done, green coffee extract may be a great antioxidant like the antioxidants in many other fruits and vegetables.  Does there appear to be any reason to start using it regularly at this point?  No.  Was this a staggering study?  No.  Is green coffee extract a “miracle pill” or “magic pill” (Dr. Oz quotes).  No