[podcast]http://www.thelivinlowcarbshow.com/shownotes/wp-content/uploads/llvlc4.mp3[/podcast]
Greetings low-carbers! Welcome to another power-packed episode of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore.”
Proponents of the low-fat diet fad often whine and complain about the safety of low-carb dieting by declaring it has never been proven by long-term studies. Well, so much for that excuse because as of last week that is no longer the case.
The results are in and the real long-term threat to dieters seems to be the heavy glycemic load created by the over-publicized and highly-touted low-fat, high-carb diet! Tune in to this week’s show to learn all about how science really is catching up with the reality that livin’ la vida low-carb is the real deal that’s here to stay–LONG-TERM!
LINKS MENTIONED IN EPISODE 4
– Jimmy’s blog post about the Harvard study
– The study as published in The New England Journal of Medicine
– Jimmy Moore’s interview with Dr. Dean Ornish
– Two recent examples of the continued vicious media bias against low-carb: Kathy Goodwin and Vee Jefferson.
Did you miss anything Jimmy said in this week’s episode of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show?” Well, then, go back and listen to the show again! 🙂 Or, you can click below for a full transcript…
TRANSCRIPT of EPISODE 4
Welcome back to Episode 4 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore” brought to you by our sponsor ChocoPerfection bars. Visit ChocoPerfection.com to learn more about what I believe is the best-tasting low-carb chocolate bar that’s ever been created! I have some very exciting news to share with you in today’s podcast that hit the news last Thursday and very well could put the low-carb lifestyle back on the proverbial map in the nutrition debate.
In fact, what I am about to share with you today will probably change the way you look at diet and health forever. Or at least it should. When you buck the trend of conventional wisdom, as so many of us who are on a low-carbohydrate program have, then you are bound to upset the very foundation that those in authority hold so near and dear to their hearts. But science continues to move forward full speed ahead and occasionally creates such massive paradigm shifts in the way we think that the passive observer just can’t help but notice. Today we see one such example of this.
If you are on a low-carb diet, then you have probably run a few examples of ignorance about this way of eating. Statements like “The Atkins Diet is dangerous for your heart!” or “If you eat all that fat on low-carb, you’ll have a heart attack!” Or, how about this one–“Who cares about your weight loss, you’re destroying your health!” For those of us on the low-carb lifestyle, hearing such ridiculous comments like these has become yet another challenges to overcome on our way to losing weight and improving our health. Even after losing nearly 200 pounds on the Atkins diet and keeping it off for the past three years, can you believe that I STILL have people who debate me about the so-called “dangers” of low-carb diets because of the health problems they cause, especially to my heart. You don’t know how bad I want to grab these people by the collar and shake them into making sense while asking the question “WHEN am I supposed to start having all these devastating problems with my heart, kidneys, liver and whatever else?” It hasn’t happened yet! In fact, I’ve never been in better shape in my entire life than I am right now.
More than any other comments which have been made to me about livin’ la vida low-carb, though, there is one that rises above all the rest especially in the context of debating the health claims that we low-carbers make about this way of eating. It’s the “gotcha” reply that opponents of low-carb like to pull out of their bag of tricks when they start losing in a debate. What is it? See if this rings familiar to you. “There have been no long-term studies showing low-carb is safe!” Let me say that again–“There have been no long-term studies showing low-carb is safe!” Ah, this has been the good ole reliable defense that so many opponents of low-carb diets have thrown out in the arena of ideas to try to silence low-carbers who make bold claims about how healthy the low-carb nutritional approach is. But now these people are just going to have to come up with another excuse because of the bombshell long-term–yes, I did say LONG-TERM–study published in The New England Journal Of Medicine late last week quite literally vindicates all of us who have made low-carb living our permanent lifestyle change. I’ve posted a link to it in the show notes section at thelivinlowcarbshow.com. It’s a fascinating study out of Harvard that should have made front-page news since it pretty much obliterates one of the most absurd criticisms of low-carb living.
The 20-year study was conducted by Tom Halton, he’s a former doctoral student in the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health, and along with direction from lead researcher and associate professor of nutrition and epidemiology Dr. Frank Hu. They looked at the heart health effects of low-carb diet programs such as the Atkins diet in the first such study on the long-term effects of low-carbohydrate diets to be released to the public. Did you hear that all you anti-Atkins idiots? It’s a LONG-TERM study just in case you missed it. Keep paying attention, too, because it’s only gonna get worse for you. Much worse.
The researchers looked at the data from the Nurses’ Health Study over the past two decades that included nearly 83,000 women in a very large-scale pool of study participants. They divided the ladies up into different categories based on the amount of fat, protein and carbohydrates they consumed and were given a score based on that. The low-fat, low-protein, high-carb dieters were labeled “low-fat-diet score” while the high-fat, high-protein, low-carb dieters were given the designation “low-carbohydrate-diet score.” Halton was curious about the breakdown of the low-carbohydrate-diet score even further, so he split them into two subgroups: one that primarily ate animal fat and protein and one that mostly ate vegetable fat and protein. Are you still with me? This is about to get very, very interesting.
Halton noticed there were close to 2,000 cases of coronary heart disease over the 20 years of the study and made the amazing discovery that the low-carbohydrate diet score participants were NOT a major part of those numbers. In fact, he called this an “eye-opening” moment in his research because he fully expected the ones who developed heart disease would be the low-carbers who ate mostly fat. Even better was the realization that consuming high amounts of vegetable fat and vegetable protein reduced the risk of developing coronary heart disease by 30 percent, another “shocking” observation in the study.
At the same time, the low-fat-diet score participants tended to eat more excessive refined carbs that have a high glycemic load causing their blood sugar levels to spike and actually led to a DOUBLING of their risk for cardiovascular disease. Halton said it succinctly when he declared that the American low-fat diet fad that we have endured for the past three decades is one of the major reasons why the rate of heart disease among this group has specifically gone way up. Here’s what he said: “The way Americans are going low-fat is very unhealthy. They have a very high glycemic load. They’re taking sugar. They’re taking white bread. They’re taking white rice and pasta. That certainly isn’t the answer.” Halton concluded that his study should begin to ease the concerns of those who are worried that the low-carb diets are increasing the risks for heart disease because the evidence shows they are really no worse than the low-fat diets–actually, in some ways, they are better. You might be interested in knowing that this study was paid for with grants from the National Institutes of Health.
What an amazing study, huh? After all these years of pontificating by the low-fat diet activists that they have the far superior and most healthy way of eating, FINALLY we have that coveted LONG-TERM study that they’ve been taunting low-carbers to show them. Well, here it is you low-fatties! What do you have to say for yourselves now? My goal all along has never been to say low-fat is wrong and low-carb is right, but to simply allow people to have all the evidence so they can make up their minds which one they want to do for the sake of their own health weight. Too often we have heard from anti-low-carb voices when they portend low-carb might be good for weight loss, but you’ll be harming your health in the process. Baloney! We now know those concerns were greatly exaggerated and quite possibly turned off millions of would-be low-carb diet success stories from even trying this amazingly healthy diet all because of needless fearmongering.
Apparently, the misconceptions about low-carb even extend to the researchers themselves, though. When asked to explain how people should respond to the results of this study, Dr. Hu said it “doesn’t mean that you should load your plate with steak and bacon.” Hmmm, I wonder what gives him the idea that eating a low-carbohydrate diet is all about loading up on animal foods like steak and bacon at every meal? Could it be because that’s been the most oft-repeated LIE spread by those in the media and from the so-called health “experts” about the low-carb lifestyle since it rose to widespread popularity? Anyone who has read virtually any low-carb book, including Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution, knows this lifestyle change is so much more than just eating meat. Those of us in the real world of livin’ la vida low-carb know that we can eat a very flavorful variety of not just meats, but cheese, eggs, low-glycemic fruits, and non-starchy vegetables. This is yet another perversion of reality when it comes to low-carb living.
Check this out, though! Dr. Hu said even if people on a low-carb diet do eat more animal-based sources of fat and protein, he concluded that “the adverse effects of animal products might be counterbalanced by reducing refined carbohydrates.” Holy cow, did you just hear that? This highly-respected Harvard professor just said there is nothing wrong with eating animal products as part of a healthy diet if combined with a low-refined-carb diet. Is this the beginning of the rebirth of a dietary revolution here people? Studies like this are exactly why I keep telling people to just ignore those who seek to tear them down just because they are livin’ la vida low-carb. Keep smiling, do what you know you are supposed to do, and one day YOU will have the last laugh. Science is catching up to us and fast!
Well, it should come as no surprise that not everyone was thrilled about this study. Low-fat diet guru Dr. Dean Ornish, who I had the privilege of interviewing recently at my LivinLaVidaLowCarb.com blog, said he is worried this study “will confuse people and potentially mislead them to think that low-fat diets don’t decrease your risk of heart disease, because they do.” Oooookay, my response to that is “What’s your point?,” Dr. Ornish. There is no confusion or misleading going on here with this study. If people want to eat a low-fat diet for the sake of their heart health, then this study changes nothing about that. But what we do see in this study is that people eating a low-carb diet can and will experience the same if not BETTER heart health benefits than the over-hyped, highly-touted, don’t-you-dare-ever-challenge-its-worthiness low-fat diet. This is why the dietary recommendations by health groups like the USDA and the FDA are becoming more and more irrelevant.
Dr. Ornish was quick to point out that the results of this study does not mean the Atkins diet should come back. HA! For one thing, Dr. Ornish, the Atkins diet never went away in the first place. I started on it in the year of the supposed decline in 2004 and I’m STILL doing it today. The only thing that went away about low-carb was all the obnoxious and annoying hype and hoopla that came with the media’s interpretation of what they thought was a “meat, cheese and eggs” diet. While the hyperbolic descriptions of low-carb have slowed down somewhat, we are still subjected to columns that describe the Atkins/low-carb diet in extremely derogatory ways. Go to the show notes section at thelivinlowcarbshow.com for two examples of this that I have blogged about in the past week or so. So, in that sense, Dr. Ornish, the Atkins diet has never really left us. But more directly on the point of having people try Atkins for their health, why the heck not? If the age-old question of “Do low-carb diets increase the risk of heart disease?” has now been answered with a vehement NO, then what is holding people back from trying it NOW, hmmm? If we are all in this debate of ideas over diet, nutrition, and health to genuinely help people find a way to become fit and trim while improving their health, then who in their right mind would stand in the way of ANYONE wanting to start livin’ la vida low-carb? Opponents of low-carb only have to ask themselves one question in light of this new evidence: Are the tens of millions of people who are suffering from obesity and heart-related problems in America RIGHT NOW worth sacrificing at the altar of an outdated and increasingly fallacious low-fat dogma? What harm is going to come to those who make this their permanent diet for life? It’s certainly NOT coronary heart disease as this study I highlighted today so beautifully confirms.
If you share my belief that there is no such thing as a monopoly on what works for people regarding weight loss and improving their health, then I encourage you to tell others about this study regardless of how you or they feel about low-carb diets because people deserve to hear the truth. Give people the facts, let them decide what to do with them. If they ignore this study and keep on thinking low-carb is unhealthy for them, then that’s their prerogative. But I believe many more will be astonished to hear the good news that livin’ la vida low-carb is indeed a very safe, effective and healthy way to eat for the rest of their lives. There’s just no denying it now.
Should you choose to sweep this latest evidence underneath the carpet of your belief system, then all you are doing is robbing those who rely on you to keep them informed about the latest diet and health news that could really help them. You shouldn’t be surprised if they stop trusting you someday when they come across this information on their own. When the cat is out of the bag, then your credibility will be out the window! Are all you low-fat activists listening to this right now? It’s YOUR responsibility to be good stewards of the latest research that comes out whether it supports your nutritional worldview or not. You see, this isn’t just some passing headline news that’s here today, gone tomorrow. The ramifications of a long-term study like this putting low-carb in a favorable light has the potential to unravel a lot of the dietary garbage science we have unfortunately put up with for far too long. Government and health leaders need to take notice of this study and broadcast it to every man, woman and child in the United States of America. This isn’t a game, it’s the future of this country we’re talking about. Will we continue to wallow in the obselete theories of our past which have been the foundation of what we believe? Or do we learn from our mistakes, admit we were wrong, and begin moving forward with educating the public that there are other ways to bring about improvements in weight and health besides the low-fat diet? That’s the crossroads that we stand at as we knock on the door of 2007. Are you ready for the rebirth of a dietary revolution?
Special thanks again to ChocoPerfection bars for sponsoring Episode 4 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore” and until next time, keep on livin’ la vida low-carb!