Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss (9 page)
Read Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss Online
Authors: Joel Fuhrman
People who consume the most high-fiber foods are the healthiest, as determined by better waist measurements, lower insulin levels, and other markers of disease risk. Indeed, this is one of the key themes of this book—for anyone to consider his or her diet healthy, it must be predominantly composed of high-fiber, natural foods.
It is not the fiber extracted from the plant package that has miraculous health properties. It is the entire plant package considered as a whole, containing nature’s anti-cancer nutrients as well as being rich in fiber.
Phytochemicals: Nature’s “Magic” Pills
Case Study:
Julia lost over one hundred pounds and has turned her life around!After three heart attacks within three months and five angioplasties in a three-year period, I knew my health was in a critical state. I almost died after the last angioplasty and had internal bleeding that was difficult to stop. The torture of all my medical problems made me think I would be better off if I had died. I weighed 225 pounds, suffered from unstable angina, and could not walk one block. I was on ten medications and considered myself a cardiac cripple at the age of sixty.
Luckily, I learned about Dr. Fuhrman and read his books. I felt as if it was my last chance to try to get back any quality of life. I was determined. Within three months of following his plan, my chest pain was gone and I went from not being able to walk one block to being able to walk two miles with no problems. Within seven months, I weighed 135 pounds. I had lost ninety pounds without even trying to lose weight. I just wanted to be healthier and live again. I continued with the plan and kept losing weight.
I had always considered myself a vegetarian but never liked vegetables! So at first, the whole vegetable thing was difficult for me. In the beginning I ate a lot of the same things over and over again because I liked them the best. It probably took me a month to get over the toxic cravings. Then I began to enjoy the natural flavors of food, and I liked everything. Kale, which I had never tried before, became my favorite vegetable. I never felt hungry.
I enjoy every day of my life now. I exercise. I garden. I cook. I do everything that I couldn’t do for more than ten years of my life. I look and feel healthy. It’s wonderful. I’m having a love affair with a plant-based diet.
When I think back to how sick I was, it is frightening. In addition to my cardiac ailments, I suffered from daily migraines and had bleeding ulcers from all the medications that I was on. Today I weigh 120 pounds, walk three miles a day, go to yoga classes, and enjoy life immensely. I know I would not be alive if it was not for Dr. Fuhrman’s program. I am so grateful.
You have to just do it. Keep your eyes on the prize. I always said that to myself every day—“Think of what lies ahead.”
T
here are clear reasons why heart attacks and cancer prevail as our number one and number two killers. Let’s examine them.
The American Diet: Designed for Disease
Americans currently consume about 25.5 percent of their calories from fiberless animal foods and another 62 percent from highly processed refined carbohydrates and extracted oils.
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Almost half of all vegetables consumed are potatoes, and half of the potatoes consumed are in the form of fries or chips. Furthermore, potatoes are one of the least nutritious vegetables.
The same studies that show the anti-cancer effects of green leafy vegetables and fruits and beans suggest that potato-heavy diets are not healthy and show a positive association with colon cancer.
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Possibly this association exists because of the way potatoes are consumed—fried or with butter or other dangerous fats. Excluding potatoes, Americans consume a mere 5 percent of their calories from fruits, vegetables, and legumes.
U.S. FOOD CONSUMPTION BY CALORIES
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| 100 CALORIES OF | BAKED POTATO | BAKED SWEET POTATO | FROZEN SPINACH |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protein | 2.1 g | 1.7 g | 12.2 g |
| Fiber | 1.6 g | 3.0 g | 17.36 g |
| Calcium | 5.4 mg | 28 mg | 462 mg |
| Iron | .38 mg | .45 mg | 8.5 mg |
| Magnesium | 27 mg | 20 mg | 242 mg |
| Zinc | .31 mg | .29 mg | 1.8 mg |
| Selenium | .32 mcg | .7 mcg | 5.8 mcg |
| Vitamin C | 13.8 mg | 24 mg | 100 mg |
| Vitamin E | .43 mg | .28 mg | 4.0 mg |
| Vitamin A | near zero | 21,822 IU | 32,324 IU |
| Volume | 1 cup | ½ cup | 3 cups |
Cheese consumption increased 180 percent between 1970 and 2003, and cheese is the primary source of saturated fat in our diet.
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Convenience foods have probably been the driving force behind this increase. In fact, two-thirds of our nation’s cheese production is for commercially prepared foods, such as pizza, tacos, nachos, fast-food meals, spreads, sauces, and packaged snacks.
From convenience foods to fast-food restaurants, our fast-paced society has divorced itself from healthful eating. It may be convenient to pick up soda, burgers, fries, or pizza, but that convenience is not without its price; the result is that we are sicker than ever, and our medical costs are skyrocketing out of control.
I insist that our low consumption of unrefined plant foods is largely responsible for our dismal mortality statistics.
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Most of us perish prematurely as a result of our dietary folly.
THE MAJOR KILLERS OF AMERICANS
| | PERCENT OF ALL DEATHS 6 |
|---|---|
| Heart attacks, diabetes, and strokes | 40 |
| All cancers | 22 |
MAJOR FOODS: U.S. PER CAPITA FOOD SUPPLY, 2008
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| | PERCENTAGE BY CALORIES |
|---|---|
| Meats | 14.7 |
| Eggs | 1.4 |
| Dairy | 11.9 |
| Fruits and vegetables | 5.4 |
| White potatoes | 2.5 |
| Refined oils | 21.1 |
| Sweeteners | 17.2 |
| Wheat flour (over 95% white) | 16.3 |
| Other processed foods | 9.6 |
Populations with low death rates from the major killer diseases—populations that almost never have overweight members—consume more than 75 percent of their calories from unrefined plant substances. This is at least ten times more than what the average American consumes.
UNREFINED PLANT FOOD CONSUMPTION VS. THE KILLER DISEASES
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So why is this the case? Why do we see so much heart disease and cancer in wealthier societies? Is it animal products that are so deadly? Are refined carbohydrates solely to blame? Or is it just that plant foods are so miraculously wonderful at protecting us against disease? Or is it all three?
Obviously, the economically poorer regions of the world have significant public health problems: poor sanitation; poverty and malnutrition; high infant-mortality rates; high rates of infectious disease, including AIDS, parasitic diseases, and even tuberculosis. However, in spite of all these things that cause an early death, if we look at the cause-of-death statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO) for people between the ages of fifty-five and seventy-five, we find very few cancer deaths and heart attack deaths in those poor societies.
The diseases of poverty are mostly infectious diseases and are found in areas of the world with compromised nutrition. Heart attacks and the most common cancers (breast, colon, prostate) are found in rich societies where nutritional extravagance is the rule. Nowhere in the world today can we find a society that combines economic wealth with a high intake and variety of unrefined plant foods.
Can you imagine the health potential of a society that would be able to enjoy excellent sanitation, emergency medical care, refrigeration, clean water, flush toilets, and availability of fresh produce year-round and yet avoid nutritional ignorance and nutritional extravagance? We have this opportunity today, an unprecedented opportunity in human history, the opportunity to live a long and healthy life without the fear of disease. This opportunity can be yours.
Nutritional Powerhouses: Plant Foods
Natural plant foods, though usually carbohydrate-rich, also contain protein and fats. On average, 25 percent of the calories in vegetables are from protein. Romaine lettuce, for example, is rich
in both protein and essential fatty acids, giving us those healthy fats our bodies require. For more information about essential fats and the protein content of vegetables and various other foods, see chapter five.
Many large-scale epidemiological studies have shown conclusively that certain plant foods play a role in protecting the body against diseases that affect—and kill—at least 500,000 Americans each year. There is no longer any question about the importance of fruits and vegetables in our diet. The greater the quantity and assortment of fruits and vegetables consumed, the lower the incidence of heart attacks, strokes, and cancer.
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There is still some controversy about which foods cause which cancers and whether certain types of fat are the culprits with certain cancers, but there’s one thing we know for sure: raw vegetables and fresh fruits have powerful anti-cancer agents. Studies have repeatedly shown the correlation between consumption of these foods and a lower incidence of various cancers, including those of the breast, colon, rectum, lung, stomach, prostate, and pancreas.
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This means that your risk of cancer decreases with an increased intake of fruits and vegetables, and the earlier in life you start eating large amounts of these foods, the more protection you get.