You Are What You Eat - or Not
by Nancy Mills
Now we know for sure that a low-fat diet doesn't do us any good...right? Somehow, I don't believe that the study just published in The Journal of the American Medical Association is really going to be the last word. But it is going to confuse a lot of people and no doubt help improve business at fast food restaurants. (Where, by the way, most frying is now being done in vegetable oil, not in lard as in the bad old days! So even the fats used to cook all those fries aren't as bad as they once were.)
The study by the Women's Health Initiative of the National Institutes of Health concluded that a low-fat diet had no effect on the risk of getting cancer or heart disease. It followed about 49,000 women aged 50-79 for eight years.
I've never gone for the diet crazes. I don't follow a low-fat meal plan. But I am aware of the kinds of fat I consume. I use olive oil instead of animal fats...it tastes so good and all those healthy older people in Sicily couldn't be wrong! I've substituted frozen yogurt for ice cream (most of the time) and veggie burgers for beef (all of the time). Bascially, I believe in balance and variety and a little dark chocolate every day. I also love fresh fruit, salads and whole grain breads and cereal. Eating this way might not prevent cancer or heart disease, but for me, it prevents "dis - ease" - it's easier to digest and makes me feel better.
No one has done a $ 415 million, eight-year federal study on the Mediterranean diet yet. But maybe someday they will - and prove that the food I love also prevents illness. Until then, I'll continue to enjoy meals with family and friends and to feel grateful that I have access to such an abundance of wonderful food every day!
Now we know for sure that a low-fat diet doesn't do us any good...right? Somehow, I don't believe that the study just published in The Journal of the American Medical Association is really going to be the last word. But it is going to confuse a lot of people and no doubt help improve business at fast food restaurants. (Where, by the way, most frying is now being done in vegetable oil, not in lard as in the bad old days! So even the fats used to cook all those fries aren't as bad as they once were.)
The study by the Women's Health Initiative of the National Institutes of Health concluded that a low-fat diet had no effect on the risk of getting cancer or heart disease. It followed about 49,000 women aged 50-79 for eight years.
I've never gone for the diet crazes. I don't follow a low-fat meal plan. But I am aware of the kinds of fat I consume. I use olive oil instead of animal fats...it tastes so good and all those healthy older people in Sicily couldn't be wrong! I've substituted frozen yogurt for ice cream (most of the time) and veggie burgers for beef (all of the time). Bascially, I believe in balance and variety and a little dark chocolate every day. I also love fresh fruit, salads and whole grain breads and cereal. Eating this way might not prevent cancer or heart disease, but for me, it prevents "dis - ease" - it's easier to digest and makes me feel better.
No one has done a $ 415 million, eight-year federal study on the Mediterranean diet yet. But maybe someday they will - and prove that the food I love also prevents illness. Until then, I'll continue to enjoy meals with family and friends and to feel grateful that I have access to such an abundance of wonderful food every day!
posted at 4:22 PM
3 Comments:
Despite the sound bites from the media, the study appears to have a number of problems. No weight loss, no excercise tracking, no differentiation between saturated fats, trans fats, mono/poly fats. I haven't read the study but from little I have seen/heard, it is no surprise that no change was detected.
I haven't read the entire study either and never will; however, I have heard one of the authors discuss the findings and clearly they acknowledge that the types of fats one consumes is a critical factor. In fact, I hear little new news in this study. Once again we are being told to eat a varied and sensible diet that is low in trans and saturated fats, processed carbs and overall calories, and rich in whole grains, fruits and vegetables. How many times do we have to hear this? Call it whatever you want - Mediterranean or the Sensible or the No-Diet or the What-Your-Mother-Always-Told-You Diet - the same point has been made ad nauseum. When are we going to stop dieting and start eating to live? If our generation had simply banked all the money we've spent over the last 30 years on eating to excess and buying diet industry products and exercise videos, we could be using our collective bank roll to rescue the SS system.
I've been doing research on an antioxidant called resveratrol. It's in red wine. It might make people live longer. Anybody else heard of this?? www.Resveratrolnetwork.com is a good place to learn. Let me know what you guys think!!! Fran
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