The medical community

[fawn]

I was so excited at school last night. I am in a health/nutrition class and my instructor told the class that the lowfat era of the 80's is responsible for the current obesity rate. You know I have heard that over and over in the last 6 years from my constituates on these boards and pro low carb advocates of various types but never have I heard anyone in the medical industry admit this valuable piece of information. It is so cool to hear. It amazes me as you can imagine what the college kids of this class do not know. Most of my class were born in the 80's so these kids have been raised of course in the era of lowfat.
My instructor is a dietician at Kaiser. I'm having fun

oh and I aced my test last night and....we had to do a fiber analysis on ourselves. On average I eat 35-45 gr. per day! The most out of the whole class including the instructor!
I love my class

[Elizellen]

Re: The medical community

Woohoo!!
Great to hear some of the medical profession are coming round to our way of thinking about eating!!

Congratulations on beating them all in the fibre stakes too - makes a mockery of the often stated disapproval of Atkins because 'you dont eat vegetables!'

[RationalBeing]

Re: The medical community

I personally do not think that low fat is responsible for the obesity rates we are seeing today.

I do however blame new technology advancements such as the microwave, and in foods that are easy to eat with no preparing. Probably transfats, fast food etc.

People were probably thinner in the 70s and such because if you wanted to eat something good you had to cook it! Now you can get a box of oreos that will last 7 years on the shelf and have them within seconds.

[ttdriver]

Re: The medical community

Fawn, sweetie, YOU ARE DA BOMB!!
HALLELUIA, FINALLY LOWFAT GETS THE BLAME IT DESERVES!

Betty

[fawn]

Re: The medical community

I personally do not think that low fat is responsible for the obesity rates we are seeing todayI'm sorry I wasn't clear on this. I'm such a short answer person......I don't explain myself sometimes.

Had lowfat of the 80's been introduced and encouraged correctly, the obesity rate would be lower and the success of lowfat higher.

When lowfat was introduced it was the intention of the medical community and the government to lower heart disease rates (of course they didn't question margarine at the time) so they encouraged low fat

Mr. McDougall comes along (lives in my area actually) and encouraged fat free. This was scarey I owned a deli at the time and he ate there as well as some of his patients. What did he order? I owned a hot italian sub sandwich shop and he would order iceberg lettuce, tomato, onion, peppers and if he splurged would add 1/4 of an avocado all with mustard on a white roll. How this guy stayed full I'll never know.

So, some people cut the fat all together becuase they thought that was healthy. The 1 gr. of fat or less rule came into play.

Bagel/coffee shops opened and people were hooked on fat free bagels and scones. Well, we all know the ingredients of these two items.

Then came snack wells. and fat free crackers, chips, bagels, bread, and many forms of fat free cookies. This raised the simple sugar consumption of this nation. I know many many MANY people who thought becuase it was fat free, it didn't matter how many they ate. Now it amazes me that so many women would stick with their diet pepsi/coke and eat these cookies likey they're a "free food"

Unfortunately, in the year 2006 the marketing campaigns are "adding" whole grains to foods.

Here we are so far ahead and yet still so terribly so far behind.

So, now you know where I'm coming from. People (the general public) are like sheep. Give them a television, tell them it's "good" for them and they will come......

BAAAHHHHHH!
I am so glad I found this wol and stuck with it AND stuck up for it. Guess what? People in my family are saying "you're right"

[Analog6]

Re: The medical community

This article on the first known low carb follower, William Banting, is very interesting. I read an article somewhere where Dr ATkins mentioned this man and that he had read of him and it sparked his interest in investigating low carb dieting many years ago.
http://www.second-opinions.co.uk/banting.html

Interesting results from the various diets down towards th end of the article:

In 1933, a clinical study carried out at the Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh studied the effects of low- and high-calorie diets, ranging from 800 to 2,700 kcals.

Average daily losses:
high carb/low fat diet - 49g [like a modern slimming diet]
high carb/low protein - 122g
low carb/high protein - 183g
low carbohydrate/high fat - 205g



Drs Lyon and Dunlop pointed out that:

'The most striking feature of the table is that the losses appear to be inversely proportionate to the carbohydrate content of the food. Where the carbohydrate intake is low the rate of loss in weight is greater and conversely.'

In other words, the less carbohydrate was eaten, the greater was the amount of weight lost.

[Elizellen]

Re: The medical community

Great reference, Odille!!
Thanks for finding and posting it.

[fluffyman]

Re: The medical community

Low fat was taken by many people as a license to eat freely. We as a society subconsciously decided that since it's low fat it's okay to eat more. No fat does not equal low calorie, unfortunately. This combined with a fast food society has resulted in more obesity now than ever before.

[Elizellen]

Re: The medical community

You are right fawn and fluffyman.

It is a pity that the manufacturers were not made to say 'added sugar' as well as being allowed to say 'low fat'!

People generally dont realise that this is how they make the 'lowfat' stuff taste at all acceptable!!

[ttdriver]

Re: The medical community

I'm sorry, I disagree. I think lowfat *is* majorly responsible for the obesity epidemic.

I ate lowfat and/or fatfree for years and all I got was BIGGER. They take out the fat (or reduce it) and add in the starchy fillers and/or sugar, which of course, leaves you feeling HUNGRIER so you, in turn eat MORE to satisfy your appetite.

Seems incredibly clear to me where the blame goes!

Eat fat; get thin.
Eat fat free; get fat(ter).

Betty

[Carrieh]

Re: The medical community

Fawn - I am very happy to hear that you are enjoying your class so much and that finally some in the medical field are finally understanding what all of the latest studies mean! You will be a wonderful addition to the profession!!!


However, I have to say that I agree with Betty as far as low fat diets are concerned. After all, the reason sugar was added to all those low-fat products was because removing or minimizing the fat content in foods also removed or minimized the flavor. And not only did some foods taste better with the fat in it, but it also made you feel satisfied. I was on and off low fat diets for years, and yes, they worked and I lost weight temporarily, but I was always hanging on by my fingernails because I was hungry all the time. I mean, wasn't the major emphasis of Atkins, that fat itself isn't the demon, but that a diet rich in fats along with refined carbs was? [And of course no one will dispute that trans fats are bad for everyone.] JMHO, of course.

[cmooregreen]

Re: The medical community

Yes, you are right, the low fat craze was a nutritional nightmare. But now that I am in Maintenance and have learned HOW to eat, I have learned to stay away from all of the junk that I used to pig out on (ex: gummy bears, low fat devils food cookies, rice krispie treats, diet sodas, flour). It really is just a matter of learning to keep away from unneeded sugar and a mainaining a properly balanced diet, including plenty of exercise and lots of hydrating water. I now know what "your body is a temple" means. It really is, and we have to give a lot of thought as to what we are going to put into it if we want it to work properly and look its best.

[fawn]

Re: The medical community

Yes, you are right, the low fat craze was a nutritional nightmare. But now that I am in Maintenance and have learned HOW to eat, I have learned to stay away from all of the junk that I used to pig out on (ex: gummy bears, low fat devils food cookies, rice krispie treats, diet sodas, flour). It really is just a matter of learning to keep away from unneeded sugar and a mainaining a properly balanced diet, including plenty of exercise and lots of hydrating water. I now know what "your body is a temple" means. It really is, and we have to give a lot of thought as to what we are going to put into it if we want it to work properly and look its best.

YES YES YES

Here is another phrase I have learned on maintenance that I love

PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY