Short & "Sweet"

This "Sweet Surprise" video by the Corn Refiners Association states that high fructose corn syrup "like sugar, is fine in moderation."

Princeton University begs to differ in their recent article: "Princeton researchers find that high-fructose corn syrup prompts considerably more weight gain."

"Considerably" more... Just the first three paragraphs are a shocker.

Who are you going to believe?

This article was sent my way by Nealon Hightower, whose blog Six Simple Truths (and forthcoming book by the same name) discusses what's wrong with the weight-loss industry and offers a new approach that has worked for him and many others suffering from obesity.

Diet for a Hot Planet

Thirty-nine years ago, Frances Moore Lappe published Diet for a Small Planet (I still have my grandmother's copy). Now her daughter, and co-founder of the Small Planet Institute, Anna Lappe, has published Diet for a Hot Planet, updating the world on the need to make sustainable food choices.

I highly recommend reading the book, but some of the things we can all do are to eat less meat and to make sustainable meat choices. Yes, grass-fed, local beef may be more expensive, but if you have to pay more and therefore eat less, you kind of get a diet at the same time--and you get higher quality meat that hasn't been feed antibiotics, even to healthy animals as Katie Couric explains on CBS, and also contains the right omega-6 to omega-3 ratio, which is crucial for brain health among other functions like reducing depression.

And here's the kicker: whole, healthy food like this satisfies you. Wouldn't you agree that you'd rather have a filet than a flank steak? Well, eating grass-fed beef is like getting filet all the time--and when you look at it that way, it's cheap.

The best grocery store in Charleston to buy local, quality meat is Earth Fare. Healthy Home Foods also offers customized meat service with local and organic meats and seafood. Restaurants like Cypress (and its sister restaurants Blossom and Magnolia), McCrady's, Hominy Grill, and High Cotton (and all Maverick Southern Kitchen restaurants) frequently if not exclusively purchase local beef, pork, chicken, and seafood, and Guerilla Cuisine, Charleston's underground dining experience, makes its focus local and sustainable food, whether meat or vegetables.

The other part of this "involuntary" diet is to cut back on junk food, which "may prove even more destructive than S.U.Vs." But we'll talk about that later.

Calcium Shocker from a Surprising Source

Normally I am a fan of Dr. Andrew Weil. However, his article on 4 Foods for Healthy Bones offers, in my opinion and based on research, some pretty dangerous information.

Problem # 1: nonfat dairy products. Nonfat dairy is more processed than full-fat dairy--and the fat isn't hurting you! What IS hurting you, among other things, is the homogenization process. Simply put, before homogenization, "large fat molecules cannot get through the intestinal wall into the bloodstream. ...Homogenization breaks up those large molecules into small ones that DO get into the bloodstream! This becomes an expressway for any fat-borne toxins (lead, dioxins, etc.) into your (otherwise) most protected organs."

Even more importantly, and Dr. Weil should know this, milk fat enables the better absorption of calcium. Dr. Spreen of the Health Science Institute does not even consider homogenized, pasteurized milk to be a food. Non-homogenized, full fat dairy is available in many natural grocery stores.

Problem #2: soy products. To be fair, Dr. Weil lists salmon and dark, leafy greens in the "non-dairy calcium" category. These are great sources of calcium that the body can absorb, and dark leafy greens are among the most missing in the American diet. However, his inclusion of calcium-fortified soymilk and orange juice is shocking. Not only are non-fermented soy products toxic to the body, but the rampant inclusion of soy in everything from bread to soup is contributing to a variety of health problems, including increased instances of mild hypothyroidism and the continued imbalance of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids, which Dr. Weil himself notes!

Not to mention that added calcium--or any added nutrients for that matter--is not as absorbable as calcium that naturally occurs in food. Dr. Weil does make an important point that magnesium is necessary to absorb calcium. Guess what? So is vitamin D, which we are in very short supply of. But the relationship between skin cancer, sunscreen, and the sun, our main source of vitamin D, is a discussion for another day.

The takeaway? Eat more dark, leafy greens like kale, chard, and collards. Not only do they contain absorbable calcium but they also are a great source of vitamin B, which many people are short of, and fiber, as well as being alkalizing, which reduces inflammation and is great for heart health. It might seem scary or gross to try these unfamiliar vegetables, but they can easily be mixed into salads or sauteed with lemon and garlic and a little cayenne pepper.

Check out these delicious recipes from EatingWell and Mighty Foods. If you're really not confident about cooking them, visit the Whole Foods deli counter and ask for a serving of their kale salad--along with a piece of salmon for a delicious dinner combo!

Brain Health Talk Tonight in Mt. Pleasant

Free, open to the public health talk at Whole Foods Market in Mt. Pleasant on Wed., March 10th from 6-7 pm.
The topic: "Holistic Regimens to Sharpen Your Thinking & Prevent Alzheimer's & Other Brain Diseases."

Dr. Patrick S. Lovegrove
Lovegrove Health Solutions
Holistic Preventive-Aging, Weight & Pain Management
Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464
Ph: 843-469-1001
www.LovegroveHealthSolutions.com