We are being told by government to eat low fat, low salt,high grain, low or NO meat and other animal products. We are being conditioned to think that animal foods are bad for us and that an unbalanced diet of mainly vegetables and grains is what we must eat for optimal health. It is crucial to note that indigenous groups throughout history thrived on unrefiined salt, organ meats,animal products,berries, insects, roots and tubers and some greens. History shows us that grains were consumed more often when there was a scarcity of animal products and that an agricultural society is what has allowed the population to grow beyond the earth's ability to provide a continuing hunter gatherer society. Grains are not necessarily our optimal food. If we do eat them, they need to be soaked , sprouted and or fermented. There are many anti-nutrients in grains which need to be neutralized. None of these neutralizing processes are being recommended by world and local governments. The vitamin K2 found in animal fats is crucial to the absorption of the fat soluble nutrients found in the vegetables and grains. So, not only are we being advised to consume anti-nutrients in the very large amount of grains being recommended...., we are also being told to avoid the exact healthy fats which help us to absorb the vitamins and minerals from our vegetables and grains. |
PART 2
Oh yeah – it's a nefarious plot by the USDA, who funnels unimaginable subsidies to the world's largest meat, dairy and feed industries.
ReplyDeleteLet's not eat what our ancestors and most "indigenous" groups ate, which is fruits, vegetables, starches and grains with very little meat.
Let's eat organ meat and buffalo fat so we can look pasty and bloated like Sally Fallon, whose quackademic organization is funded by those same industries' lobbying. Or we can look like the pasty, bloated Amish, who have the same rates of obesity and cardiovascular disease as average Americans, despite ample amounts of grassfed meat and milk, and regular, vigorous exercise.
If you want to live like a wild native American, please note that those fat-gobbling plains Indians of our imagination only lasted a couple generations after they were driven from their settled farming communities east of the Mississippi, where they fluorished on corn, beans, squash, fruits and vegetables.
It seems like you have a slightly hostile attitude. Maybe the right kind of fat would help to soothe. I found this article fascinating http://www.westonaprice.org/traditional-diets/guts-and-grease
ReplyDeleteYeah – I read this one years ago. Look who it's written by. Sally – is this you?
ReplyDelete- There are many contemporary accounts and archaeological records of native American diets. Before the introduction of horses and guns, meat was minimal and seasonal, except in the Northwest and Arctic. If you want to know why, try to hunt any animal but a crayfish or turtle without using metal.
- There are, however, innumerable edible wild and cultivated plants. Did you know that one of the most-cultivated pre-Columbian crops was lambsquarter, which is now a common weed? And one of the most-consumed foods was the acorn? Pick up a copy of "Nature's Garden" by Samuel Thayer for background on the food available to people without technology.
- Beyond that, look at the work of anthropologist Nathaniel Dominy, who essentially proves that the digestive evolution from apes to humans consists mainly of the ability to eat starches. The only meat-eating ape (chimp) eats less than 5% of its calories from animal sources.
- I'm not hostile to people who want to believe bad ideas and make themselves sick, but you're accusing vegetarianism of being a globalist plot, without a shred of proof, and with all evidence pointing to the contrary. I don't just take that personally. It's an attack on the gullible fools who will buy your superfoods and mail-order beef.
I certainly think that some starch and other nonmeat food should be part of our diet. Fruits, berries, nuts,fungi,roots,herbs, greens, tubers...etc. I am not advocating an all meat diet..or all fat...but a balanced diet with less emphasis on grains, especially genetically modified grains. But...before anyone believes either of us, they should read the following books, Deep Nutrition by Catherine Shanahan, The Vegetarian Myth, by Lierre Keith (I feel she makes good points despite some sarcasm), Trick or Treat, Vitamin K2 and the Calcium Paradox, and of course the landmark book Nutrition and Physical Degeneration.
ReplyDeleteNo, I am not Sally Fallon, just a chronic lyme patient who has improved with higher fat intake from grassfed animals, (anti-microbial and other benefits), cod liver oil,more veggies, nettles and a lower amounter of concentrated carbohydrates. Borrelia burgdorferi (the lyme pathogen) evidently thrives on carbohydrates...especially refined carbs. I advertise what makes sense to me and what has worked for me.I think that people ate more meat and fish when it was available and less meat and fish when it was not
I will check out Nathaniel Dominy to see what he has to say. None of us have all of the answers but Big Agriculture definitely makes more money...profit...from vegetables and grains over meat products. Big agriculture may destroy the environment and natural habitats of animals even more than raising cattle, chickens..e.tc. One of my main points is that we need to get back to more of us growing/raising our own food. If people want to be vegetarian that is fine, but there is the growing trend to recommend no fat (read Vitamin K2 and the Calcium Paradox)and absolutely no meat, fish or dairy...and I feel that is dangerous to the brain, bones/teeth. I think that if vegetarians are very careful with what they eat, that they can get by and be healthy but I do not feel the same way about veganism
Sorry to hear about your lyme – I'm afraid I don't know much about it.
DeleteIn my personal experience, I was a pretty sickly kid, then became an "ovo-lacto" vegetarian at ~18, mostly for ethical reasons, and had great health and immunity for 12 years. A couple years ago, I decided to start eating meat again, mostly in response to all the "grassfed" propaganda coming from people like Michael Pollan and the paleo supporters. I was never more sick in such a short period – horrible digestion, constipation, acid indigestion, various symptoms of what I was convinced was hyperthyroidism, numerous bouts of tonsillitis and other viruses. I didn't have the energy to exercise, couldn't sleep, was having panic attacks and heart palpitations.
I decided to do some actual research into diet, and came upon the China Study, Dr. McDougall, a very interesting book called "Healthy at 100" and similar material. Everything just clicked. Humans are biologically equipped to eat what was naturally available to us for eons – cooked starches, vegetables and fruits. Not oils, not meat, not the milk of other animals. We CAN eat all that stuff, just like we can smoke and eat skittles. But your biological processes, just like those of a chimp or gorilla, run on the things found in plants.
I've been eating basically a "McDougall diet" for a couple years now, and am feeling great. When you get enough calories and avoid oil or too many nuts, you end up with far better digestion, circulation, mental clarity, etc. You can exercise longer with less recovery time. You can breathe easier. And according to all the data, you can reverse or prevent the vast majority of chronic diseases dealt with by even the amish.
I've listened to Lierre Keith interviews, and heard her debunked by "durianrider" on YouTube. She was typical of a lot of vegans – uninformed, malnourished and under-carbed. It sounds like she ate an inadequate diet then crashed and binged on meat, and called herself a "vegan." What do rural asians, south americans and africans eat? Lots of rice, potatoes, millet, etc., cooked vegetables and fruit, and occasional meat (the long-lived Okinawans eat maybe a piece of fish a week). If you eat enough green leafy vegetables, you get more than enough K2, calcium and fat. It looks like that book argues that grassfed beef has more K2 than grain-fed beef, which is probably true. But you can just skip the beef and eat the plants.
As for "big agriculture," the big player you don't hear about is Cargill. Monsanto is nefarious, but Cargill is the world's largest private company. Their money is made by dominating grain trading, milling, exporting and meat packing, and betting for or against themselves in the futures market. They couldn't care less about the volume, as long as they're in control. Add their meat operations to Tyson, Smithfield, JBS, National Beef, and meat dwarfs vegetable production. Much of that monsanto corn and soybeans goes to feed animals and into ethanol and industrial uses. The USDA food pyramid in fact contains more meat and dairy than most competent scientists and nutritionists would allow. Look into Colin Campbell, who wrote "The China Study." He was one of the world's most respected biochemists, and was basically run out of academia when his huge study pointed to the superiority of a vegan diet. It's the industry lobbies, not the scientists, that keep meat in the picture.
Sorry to crash your blog with a dissenting view. I get pretty worked up when I think about all the people who are dead or dying because of bad information. My dad died at 49 because he was on immunosuppressing meds for his rheumatoid arthritis. Now I know he could have fixed the problem just by cutting out dairy and cleaning up his diet and exercise. I have friends and family with MS, diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity, heart disease, and they aren't receptive to the truth because they've been so conditioned to think there's something nutritionally necessary in meat. It's just not true. A little meat (like once or twice a month) isn't going to hurt anyone, and yes - naturally-raised meat is better in every regard, but people who eat meat, dairy or eggs 2 or 3 times a day are rolling the dice. You can get everything you need from plants without increasing the risk of chronic disease.
DeleteGood luck with your health. I hope you'll at least consider some of this for your own sake, and disabuse yourself of the notion that agribusiness and/or big pharma has any interest in people eating adequate starch-based vegan diets.