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Did Food Enrichment Cause The Obesity Epidemic?
In recent years, it’s become fashionable for Americans to avoid bread, wheat and gluten in order to lose weight and improve their health. It’s easy to find gluten-free options in most American restaurants. However, the very idea that wheat promotes obesity is easily debunked by looking at the populations that consume more wheat than Americans do.
For instance, France has one of the lowest obesity rates of any nation in the developed world. Yet, they eat 40% more wheat than Americans do — much of it refined — and they have 1/3 the obesity level. They eat the same modern semi-dwarf wheat that we do but somehow avoid the health problems that many attribute to wheat and carbohydrates. Gluten-free diets are not popular in France and it can be difficult to find gluten-free options in French restaurants.
The number of French who are considered “overweight” has very recently skyrocketed since smoking plummeted in France. Hunger and caloric intake is a side-effect of smoking cessation. Despite this very recent development, the French remain one of the thinnest populations.
From the dawn of civilization, right up until the Industrial Revolution, whole grain bread was considered to be the most nourishing article of food, and gluten was thought to be the most nourishing ingredient. Some early Asian cultures even added wheat gluten to their food to promote health.
Furthermore, there is debate as to whether Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity (NCGS) is even a real disease — there is no blood test or biomarker that can diagnose it. In the US, gluten sensitivity was extremely rare before 1950. NCGS is usually cured by wheat avoidance or by eating bread baked in France. All of this implies that something else is making Americans intolerant to wheat.
The latest anti-obesity fad in America is CrossFit™ — bodybuilding gyms promoting intense military-style workout regimens coupled with an extreme Paleo™ diet. Meanwhile, exercise and gyms are not popular in France and the French burn their calories through the occasional football game and active social activities. This raises the question….
How is this dichotomy possible?
Few have ever tried to answer this stark paradox. However, I and my collaborators came up with an hypothesis inspired by the research of Jane Karlsson, PhD, Oxford.
France does not fortify its flour, while the US significantly increased fortification of iron, an oxidant, to all refined carbohydrates after WWII.
In short, we eat bread and pasta with high levels of iron fortifications that “rust” in the body, while the French eat unadulterated wheat. Populations with high iron intakes are more likely to be obese.
Sure enough, there is a treasure trove of research linking excess dietary iron and disruptions of iron homeostasis to a wide range of chronic diseases, including cancer, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and neurological disorders. Obesity is now seen as a disruption of iron homeostasis that often presents with anemic serum levels, and iron deposits in the brain and adipose tissue.
There is also evidence that iron enrichment disrupts the gut flora, potentially making it difficult for Americans to digest wheat. This may explain why gluten avoidance is popular in fortified countries.
Fortification was instituted in the US during WWII, to remedy deficiencies after The Great Depression. In 1983, the FDA increased fortification levels by 40%, at a time when people were already eating more meat, resulting in one of the highest iron intakes of any nation.
Despite unprecedented levels of iron intakes, fortification has been ineffective at preventing anemia in the US. Meanwhile, abolishment of iron fortification in Europe has not resulted in increased anemia.
Only three developed nations enrich flour, pasta, grits or rice with iron: the USA, Canada and Britain. Fortification is done almost exclusively by developing and third-world countries. Some European countries, like Denmark and Sweden, have even banned fortification.
A 2014 study also confirms the trend across developed countries — correlating the timing of obesity epidemics to government-mandated increases in fortification. The trend can even be found in states that adopted mandatory fortification laws during the 1950s.
Industrial countries may be particularly vulnerable as HFCS and refined oils significantly increase iron absorption. And, a new study shows that high levels of iron in the body significantly increases appetite.
Mineral Balance and Gut Flora
The main problem with food enrichment is that if one absorbs fortified iron, it promotes an imbalance of micronutrients — the body obtains iron but no other opposing or synergistic minerals. And if one doesn’t absorb that iron, as much of it is poorly absorbed, it may promote pathogenic gut flora in the colon, which is also linked to disease.
In whole foods, such as whole-grain wheat, iron is always balanced with high levels of manganese, copper, and antioxidants because the plants require these micronutrients and phytonutrients to manage the oxidative stress from iron and sugars. We do too. Manganese and copper are required for the creation of crucial enzymes that are responsible for our most powerful endogenous antioxidants, SOD and MnSOD.
Copper is also required for getting iron in and out of cells properly. It’s been known since at least the 1930s that copper can help cure iron deficiency anemia. High iron consumption increases one’s copper requirement. Sadly, most Americans have low copper intakes.
Since metabolisms are strikingly similar across all species, whole plants and animals require this same balance of micronutrients. Carnivores obtain this balance from eating whole carcasses — muscle meat is high in iron, intestines are rich in manganese, and organs are rich in copper. A diet very high in muscle meat is linked to diabetes, which is linked to excess iron.
Like muscle meat, fortified foods have lots of iron, but very little manganese or copper to counterbalance iron. So fortified foods exacerbate a micronutrient imbalance that promotes oxidative stress — excess iron stores can oxidize and cause free-radical damage in tissues and organs. Some researchers have even said that most free radical injury is iron related.
Known mineral interactions can be seen in the following graphic.
Fortifying foods with only one mineral, such as iron, promotes a mineral imbalance. Unfortunately, iron happens to be one of the most reactive metals and is prone to oxidation. It rusts.
When you eat real whole foods, you don’t need to worry about that chart. The seeds, whole plant, or whole carcass you are swallowing had to figure it out in order to thrive and exist in the first place. It’s only when you refine foods, preferentially select parts of foods, or fortify foods that you promote an imbalance. The French or Japanese, who consume white flour or white rice, often consume other foods (cacao, seaweed, hemp, etc.) to make up for the loss of micronutrients in refined foods.
The Enrichment-Free Diet
What do all successful diets have in common? They all avoid fortified foods. Gluten-free flours, and real whole grains like brown rice and spelt aren’t fortified. However, it can be difficult to avoid fortified foods when eating out. While the French consume pastries with low levels of obesity, it’s nearly impossible to find wheat products that aren’t fortified in English-speaking nations.
The easiest way to emulate all successful diets is to simply avoid eating fortified foods and favor whole foods. Demand organic flours and whole grain flours, which are not fortified in the US.
In Britain, where fortification is added to all white flour, including organic flour, the Real Bread Campaign has questioned the necessity of flour fortification. Spreading the word to local bakers and chefs that enriched flours are not real foods is a step in the right direction.
Organic produce is popular, but few ever pay attention to the adulterations in their flour. Pizzerias use organic toppings but rarely take the steps to use organic and unfortified flour. Even Whole Foods™ doesn’t pay attention to flour — their aisles and bakeries are mainly filled with enriched products.
A large body of scientific evidence shows excess iron contributes to metabolic issues. Let’s follow Europe’s lead and end mass food fortification.
Related Information:
Iron, Food Enrichment and The Theory of Everything
How Wheat Went From Superfood To Liability
Iron The Most Toxic Metal, by Jym Moon, PhD
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31 CommentsThoughts? Comments?
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PG (Pierre-Guy) Veer September 24, 2015 , 10:05 pm Vote0
I disagree. While, yes the French eat more bread, they also eat MUCH more saturated fat. I see it with my brother-in-law, who cooks everything in butter and yet has a waist comparable to mine (I don’t eat bread). In fact, when you look at the correlation (I know it may not be causation, but still) between obesity rates and the low-fat, high-carb diet recommended by government…
http://authoritynutrition.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/low-fat-guidelines.jpg
Also, don’t forget that the very definition of obesity was changed arbitrarily about 10-15 years ago, instantly making previously healthy people overweight.
So while the enriched food may indeed cause imbalance in the body, you also have to look at even the “pure” form of the product you talk about to make sure it’s actually nutritious
Richard Nikoley September 24, 2015 , 10:20 pm Vote0
Yes, Pierre, we’ve looked at that too, quite extensively.
http://freetheanimal.com/2015/08/wheat-superfood-liability.html
…With more to follow soon…the actual mineral imbalance mechanism in a testable hypothesis.
Richard Nikoley September 25, 2015 , 3:40 am Vote0
I should add that this is a highly abridged 1,500 word version of this 6,000 word post:
http://freetheanimal.com/2015/06/enrichment-theory-everything.html
Martin Brock September 25, 2015 , 1:38 pm Vote2
I agree with PG that high carb, low fat diets are responsible for the obesity epidemic. When we consume most of our calories as carbs, we never reach the metabolic state in which fat burning occurs. To reach this state, we need to consume more fat calories (from foods like olives and avocados) and fewer carb calories.
This advice seems contradictory until one understands ketosis. We have two, distinct energy sources, glucose and ketones. We produce ketones by burning fat, but ketones are a backup energy source, like the gasoline in a Chevy Volt, that kicks in only when we have no glucose to burn. When we consume practically all calories as carbs or proteins, hunger drives us to consume more calories before we reach the fat burning stage, so the battery is never depleted and the gasoline engine never kicks in.
When we consume mostly fat calories and very few carbs, we’re always using the gasoline engine. We crave carbs in this state, but hunger doesn’t drive us to over-consume fat calories in the same way.
Most people also eat too much protein compared to healthy fats, but despite the anti-gluten fad, the most fattening calories in bread are not from the gluten, which is a protein rather than a carbohydrate. If you want to enjoy bread, you can use a low carb flour for baking, but these flours still contain a lot of gluten.
Richard Nikoley September 25, 2015 , 8:31 pm Vote1
“I agree with PG that high carb, low fat diets are responsible for the obesity epidemic”
Unfortunately, this is likely impossible given that’s exactly how all of humanity used to eat up until the 19th century, with very low obesity.
The idea that carbohydrates are bad, and the way they are metabolized is harmful, is based on a theory that has never been proven. Unfortunately, the theory is not supported by the historical record. For instance, please refer to How Wheat Went From Superfood to Liability…
http://freetheanimal.com/2015/08/wheat-superfood-liability.html
…which clearly shows how whole carbohydrates themselves could not possibly be responsible for the metabolic issues we now face in the modern world.
As you can see, history does not support your thesis. As the article shows, everybody—including 19th century encyclopedias—believed that whole grain carbohydrates were the most nourishing and most health promoting of all foods.
As for evidence of this, the article cites Dr. Weston Price’s Chapter 3 of his book Nutrition and Physical Degeneration…
http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#ch3
…where Price noted that the isolated Swiss villages he visited had excellent health eating mainly whole rye breads, dairy and only one serving of meat per week. No obesity there either.
To claim that all carbohydrates are bad is to ignore both ancient and pre-modern history. It makes no sense.
If you are going to form a hypothesis on obesity, at least make sure it aligns with reality and the recorded history of Western civilization.
Two more things.
First, Gary Taubes’ (friend of mine, BTW) insulin hypothesis is finally being tested, as he asked.
A New Human Trial Undermines the Carbohydrate-insulin Hypothesis of Obesity, Again
http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2015/08/a-new-human-trial-seriously-undermines.html
More Thoughts on the Recent Low-fat vs. Low-carb Metabolic Ward Study
http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2015/08/more-thoughts-on-recent-low-fat-vs-low.html
See that 2nd one, in particular, in order to get over these notions that eating carbohydrates somehow makes it difficult for our metabolisms to burn fat.
Second, I had a big, rather public dispute with my friend Dr. Michael Eades, author of the whole Atkins follow-on Protein Power series. Bottom line, the Inuit are no example of ketosis and Stefansson was an opportunist and liar.
Leaving The Inuit Behind: Hormesis For The Rest Of Us
http://freetheanimal.com/2014/11/leaving-behind-hormesis.html
That was the final post and lists the previous 17 posts. Mike Eades and I got together for lunch, buried the hatchet and I had the pleasure of an overnight stay in their Montecito home a few months back.
The Hormesis Files: Chronic Ketosis and The Case of The Missing Glutathione
http://freetheanimal.com/2014/11/hormesis-missing-glutathione.html
…Look, there was almost nobody more promoting of the narrative of low carb high fat than I, but because I get thousands of comments on my blog, I was eventually unable to ignore all the problems is was causing for lots of people, mostly 40+ yoa, and mostly women. Since then, I have been honestly evaluating the science and have seen hundreds of heath turnarounds by introducing a lot more carbohydrate.
However, just as high protein/fat does not equal pepperoni, neither does high(er) carb equal sugar water and processed food in boxes and bags.
Martin Brock September 25, 2015 , 9:10 pm Vote1
Up until the 19th century, human beings didn’t have a practically unlimited supply of the simplest carbohydrates to consume. In the 18th century, people literally kept their sugar under lock and key. Carbohydrates are not bad. Having all the carbs you want at arms reach all of the time is bad. Wheat specifically is no worse than other carb sources.
A low carb (ketogenic) diet is not high protein. A ketogenic diet is eating like a squirrel. The mix of carbs, fats and proteins in tree nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds) is ketogenic. The great majority of calories are in the fats, not the proteins. In the past, I don’t suppose people ate this way routinely, but people commonly experienced extended periods of eating this way.
Eating carbs doesn’t make it difficult for our metabolisms to burn fat, but restricting calories on a high carb diet enough to burn fat is more difficult than restricting calories similarly on a high fat diet. Burning fat requires a calorie deficit in either case.
Eating a balanced diet while radically restricting carbs is not easy or natural, so I agree that dieting this way can result in nutritional deficits, but the same is true on any sort of diet.
Martin Brock September 25, 2015 , 10:17 pm Vote0
Here’s the best presentation on a ketogenic diet that I’ve seen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqwvcrA7oe8
Richard Nikoley September 25, 2015 , 11:27 pm Vote0
“Up until the 19th century, human beings didn’t have a practically unlimited supply of the simplest carbohydrates to consume. In the 18th century, people literally kept their sugar under lock and key. Carbohydrates are not bad. Having all the carbs you want at arms reach all of the time is bad. Wheat specifically is no worse than other carb sources.”
Oh, you’re going to change the story line and pretend like you knew it all along.
I always dismiss dishonest people, liberty oriented to not.
“Here’s the best presentation on a ketogenic diet that I’ve seen”
Peter is also a friend of mine. I count him as more honest than I count you.”
You wish to pretend that a video from 2 years ago is cutting edge? I doubt Peter would say that.
Martin Brock September 26, 2015 , 3:21 pm Vote0
I haven’t changed anything. My first post explicitly states, “When we consume practically all calories as carbs or proteins, hunger drives us to consume more calories before we reach the fat burning stage.” This statement does not state or imply that burning fat on a high carb diet is not possible, only that eating so few carbs on a high carb diet is difficult.
Calling people “dishonest” and storming off is a denial tactic.
I have no idea what Peter would say. If you have something more recent from him, honestly, I’d like to see it.
Ryan Ferguson September 26, 2015 , 4:39 pm Vote0
Thanks for the article Richard. I had never heard of this before. It is very interesting, and after looking at the laws in Canada I was a little shocked. I had no idea that government policies were dictating how people make wheat.
Here is a clip from the Canadian regulation:
“The standard for flour (also known as “white flour”, “enriched flour” or “enriched white flour”) in the FDR requires the mandatory addition of thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid and iron. The addition of vitamin B6, pantothenic acid, magnesium and calcium is optional. All white flour sold in Canada for food use, whether for use in further manufacturing or for sale directly to the consumer, must be enriched. Consequently, all foods sold in Canada that contain white flour must be made with enriched white flour. The sale of unenriched white flour or its use is not permitted in Canada. The only exception to this requirement is white flour sold for the production of gluten or starch.”
Something Clever September 29, 2015 , 4:13 pm Vote0
Eating carbs raises blood sugar. Rising blood sugar triggers insulin release. Insulin release stores energy as body fat. Therefore: if carbs, then body fat.
You can lay this one at the feet of the government in many ways: food stamps, food pyramid, subsidies, whatever. Sugar and refined carbs are now some of the cheapest things you can eat, and there is a direct correlation between people eating more carbs and getting fatter. You can’t prove this by association, of course; to understand the causality of why we get fat, you merely need to understand basic endocrinology and transitive logic.
Also, while most people probably don’t need to avoid wheat (although I myself do), there’s nothing wrong with cutting it out of your diet–doing so is quite difficult and severely limits menu options. Anyway, I don’t understand the gluten apologists. Why do you care?
Most people think that multivitamins, that they need 64 ounces of water a day, that fat makes them fat, that salt causes high blood pressure, etc. Hell, I still hear people talking about their overall cholesterol level, as if this was indicative of health! This is all totally wrong. Admittedly wrong. Anyone who thinks otherwise hasn’t been reading nutritional news in the last couple years.
Richard Nikoley September 29, 2015 , 4:30 pm Vote1
“Eating carbs raises blood sugar. Rising blood sugar triggers insulin release. Insulin release stores energy as body fat. Therefore: if carbs, then body fat.”
Tell that to billions of Chinese, moron.
Dismissed.
Something Clever September 29, 2015 , 5:20 pm
@rnikoley That’s one way to respond to a comment on an article!
I get my facts from the work of Gary Taubes, Peter Attila, Kelly Brogan, and David Perlmutter. The books Good Calories, Bad Calories, Why We Get Fat, and Grain Brain are all worth your time.
Assuming we had a perfect record of what the Chinese ate, I would tell that to them, because nobody disputes the if a ->b, if b-> c part of what you quoted. It’s a scientific certainty that everyone agrees on.
The people (public health doctors) who fail to understand that if A then B, if B then C, THEREFORE if A then C are the problem.
Now, I’ll concede that there is still much about diet that we don’t know, but we do know exactly how to fatten a human. The fact that this is in dispute is a testament to how unbelievably poor nutritional science is. A few really terrible scientists convinced people that they were correct in the absence of evidence, and we all changed our diet to correct a problem that didn’t exist, thereby creating new problems.
Martin Brock September 29, 2015 , 6:29 pm
@somethingclever Eating carbs doesn’t automatically make you fat, but eating too many carbs certainly does, and eating few carbs when surrounded by carbs is difficult. A billion Chinese don’t contradict this reasoning, because most of China is still relatively poor. Obesity rates across China are low, but rates in more prosperous, urban areas are much greater.
My simple, reductionist theory of a natural human diet goes like this. We’re designed to eat as much fruit as we can half of the time and to eat nuts the other half. Natural man never worried about getting fat by eating too many carbs, because winter and a scarcity of carbs was always a few months away.
Richard Nikoley September 29, 2015 , 6:37 pm Vote0
“That’s one way to respond to a comment on an article!”
Dismissal is pretty common. Everyone needs to do it more, every day. It might help stem the tide of ignorance. To wit:
“I get my facts from the work of Gary Taubes, Peter Attila, Kelly Brogan, and David Perlmutter. The books Good Calories, Bad Calories, Why We Get Fat, and Grain Brain are all worth your time.”
Well, beyond admonishing that you might want to get some facts from “SW,” how about you email my friend Gary and ask him about the discussions in-person and in email since about 2011 (we’ve given talks at the same symposium twice) ? In fact, we even had an email exchange on this topic. It was very early on, he wasn’t convinced, and I haven’t had a chance to close the loop since the 6,000 word post this is based on (which is linked, but you haven’t read, I’m betting).
As to my friend Peter, ask him about the dinner at Left Bank in Menlo Park, where the next table was eavesdropping on our conversation (this was when NUSI was justing getting started).
Don’t know of Brogan, and Perlmutter sent me his book, but I wasn’t interested to review it. No William Davis? I believe he’s actually beginning to rethink a few things (yea, I know him too).
You’ve made gross assumptions that were false. Why? Because you don’t even bother to check my background, freetheanimal.com, where I have been at this, with all these people since 2008.
You just thought you’d get your dick out and slap me in the face.
Well, look who’s been schooled.
Now, go fuck yourself, and you’re still dismissed. I have no toleration for H. sapiens who begin with “I get my facts from…”
Richard Nikoley September 29, 2015 , 6:51 pm Vote0
SW, I’ll toss you a bone, though it’s more for others stopping by, because you’re calling to authorities I’ve know for years, like it’s news to me.
The Carbohydrates-Insulin hypothesis is an unproven hypothesis that is not supported by all of the scientific literature. In fact, it fails in recent tests:
http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2015/08/a-new-human-trial-seriously-undermines.html
http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2015/08/more-thoughts-on-recent-low-fat-vs-low.html
Both of those studies contemplate Gary’s alternative hypothesis and the author of those posts also knows Gary personally, as i know both of them. Stephan Guyenet is an obesity researcher who used to be pretty keen on Gary’s hypothesis but not anymore.
High carb cultures such as the Swiss, French, Danes, Swedes, Chinese, Southeast Asians, Aka, Mbuti, Hadza, Hunza, Efe, Magars, Shenko, and Efe, to name a few do not become obese.
All of humanity ate high levels of carbohydrate from antiquity right up until the Industrial Revolution, with very low levels of obesity.
William Banting was one of the first Westerners to ever float the idea of a low carb diet. Few people ever needed to eat this way before him. He did this in 1863, when sugar and white flour were becoming very popular and fiber was being refined out of the American diet. Banting’s own doctor did not believe that everyone needed to avoid carbohydrates to remain lean—he only created the diet for Banting because he would not avoid sweets and white flour. And thus, the low carb diet was born.
If your hypothesis cannot explain history and cultures worldwide, there is something wrong with your hypothesis and it’s dismissible.
PG (Pierre-Guy) Veer September 29, 2015 , 7:48 pm Vote0
@rnikoley You fail to mention that, even though the French eat a lot of carbs they ALSO eat a lot of fat (saturated and otherwise). Same thing with the Japanese; they eat a LOT of fat fish (i.e. omega 3). Compare that to the crap meat we eat in North America (stuffed with corn, i.e. inflammation-inducing omega 6) and the highly refined oils (corn, soya, canola) we ingest
Martin Brock September 29, 2015 , 9:33 pm Vote1
@pgveer Duck!
I agree that the combination of high carbs, particularly simple carbs, and low fat is the problem. This diet (like eating fruits) signals plenty, so your body tells you to fill up. You feel hungry even after eating a lot, because you’re fattening up for the winter. A low carb, high fat diet (like eating nuts) signals scarcity, so your body tells you to eat conservatively and burns fat.
Richard Nikoley September 30, 2015 , 12:28 am Vote0
“You fail”
No, Pierre. You fail. Just as with “SW,” you make assumptions and try to go at me with a different approach.
Perhaps you might check out my book on Amazon. I believe I mention the French there.
You could also read our actual article on this subject (this is abridged) where it’s veritably inspired by the French.
My blog features French dishes going back years, because I lived and worked in France. I was the navigator on both FNS COLBERT and FNS DUQUESNE.
Prior to that, I lived in Japan for 5 years, out in the local economy and in fact, was the only gaijin in town. The Japanese to not eat a LOT of fish. Well, collectively they do, but individually, they don’t eat a LOT of much of anything. Occam’s Razor.
Moreover, the whole Omega-3 myth is crashing. You can google it. In a nutshell, it began because Inuit were presumed to be very healthy, they eat a lot of marine, ergo, let’s isolate fish fat and down it like crazy.
Come to find out they evolved a unique metabolism. It’s called the CPT1A mutation, and it makes it very difficult for them to use ketones (oh, yes, Inuit are not ever in ketosis, never measured—this too is on FreeTheAnimal.com, my blog). Infants can die if not fed absolutely regularly. Anyway, tuns out the tradeoff is that they are super metabolizers of N-3 for heat. So now researchers speculate that N-3 is necessary for them, not so great for the rest of us.
So, when are you idiots going to stop assuming that I need your schooling about all this basic shit I’ve been blogging about for years, have an audience of 100,000 per month, have spoken at Paleo diet gigs, am on numerous podcasts, 4,000 posts at FreeTheAnimal.com, along with over 100,000 comments from people who actually engage, rather than assume I just wandered in with some crackpot theory.
You guys are so fucking dumb in this, you make it look like I set it up.
Richard Nikoley September 30, 2015 , 12:46 am Vote0
“I agree that the combination of high carbs, particularly simple carbs, and low fat is the problem.”
This is simplistic bullshit too.
Look, I was a fanboy LC – HFLC – Keto Paleo advocate for years. I could no longer contentiously advocate it in that way, given the thousands of commenters people who developed serious health problems, from abnormal BG regulations to hypothyroidism to auto-immune exacerbations. Thing is, once you understand what’s fucktarded about LC, it fits perfectly.
Exchanging with you guys is like being in my own blog comments in 2011 and 2012.
Something Clever September 30, 2015 , 1:30 am
@rnikoley Can you lay off the ad hominem stuff? Obviously we’re all interested in and passionate about the subject. I think we’d agree on quite a bit.
Richard Masta September 30, 2015 , 12:13 pm Vote0
Well…I see value in this hypothesis being explored. Thanks for sharing it here. Keeping an eye on the foods I eat that are higher carb and enriched will be interesting from now on. Hopefully some of the critics recall you did mention its a ‘hypothesis’….
It’s pretty apparent in the ‘paleosohere’ that LCHF is not a blanketing truth, and most of the outlets out there are coming around to a more balanced approach. I’m also more convinced the health problems have more to do with Industrialization related changes to food than simple macronutrient levels. (It’s the ‘conventional wisdom’ that relies on oversimplification, remember?!)
Martin Brock September 30, 2015 , 1:40 pm Vote0
@rnikoley I’m not a LC fanboy any more than you’re an iron enrichment fanboy, Ron. Everything I’ve said to you on this subject is on this page, so anyone can compare what I say to what you infer. You reflexively bicker with straw men and insult anyone disagreeing with you. Specifically, you suggest that I think Attia’s presentation, linked above, is the last word on the subject, though I never say anything remotely similar. You insinuate that his position has changed, but I ask you for something more recent, and you do not respond. I explicitly state that I’m oversimplifying, and you respond by labeling me “dishonest”and “stupid”. It’s all up there.
I never suggest that wheat or gluten or any high carb food is poison. I’ve seen some theory behind a ketogenic diet and some research on its application to weight loss, and I’ve experimented successfully with the diet myself. I could add more links to research on ketogenic diets for weight loss, as you know, but you clearly don’t want a civil discussion here. You want reinforcement of your own theory and to silence disagreement, in your own mind at least, with invective. The tactic is all too common.
Martin Brock September 30, 2015 , 1:41 pm Vote0
@rnikoley Richard, that is.
Martin Brock September 30, 2015 , 1:53 pm Vote0
Here’s a survey article from the NIH, published last year, on the efficacy of a ketogenic diet for weight loss.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3945587/
Ian Katur October 4, 2015 , 7:55 pm Vote0
Martin,
I’m not sure I understand why you are advertising a ketogenic diet here. The whole point of this article seems to be that fad diets—like the ketogenic diet, or low carb diets—aren’t very popular, or necessary, in unfortified countries. Now we know why. It’s only the fortified countries where these fad diets have become popular.
The only exception might be Sweden, ended iron fortification in 1995. Actually, low carb diets only became popular in Sweden 10 years ago, after the PR fallout when Annika Dahlquist was stripped of her license for recommending LCHF to diabetic and obese patients. The media storm literally created the LCHF movement in Sweden, and it’s well known that Sweden’s decision to end fortification was done because the iron was causing health issues.
Ian Katur October 4, 2015 , 8:05 pm Vote0
That should have read:
“The only exception might be Sweden, _which_ ended iron fortification in 1995
Martin Brock October 4, 2015 , 9:13 pm Vote0
@iankatur I’m not sure why you characterize my words as “advertising a fad” while you do not characterize your words similarly when you suggest that the obesity epidemic is all down to iron fortification. Antonio Paoli’s article in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health last year cites dozens of peer reviewed articles on a ketogenic diet and its application to obesity. Is he also advertising a fad? He concludes, “A period of low carbohydrate ketogenic diet may help to control hunger and may improve fat oxidative metabolism and therefore reduce body weight.” [my emphasis] I say the same above. I never anywhere suggest that eating carbs is harmful per se or that anyone should severely restrict carbs indefinitely.
I don’t know the research on iron fortification as it relates to obesity, and I have never personally experimented with a diet lower in iron. I’ve never taken the gluten scare seriously either, but I have successfully shed fat on a ketogenic diet, and I’m discussing my understanding of the reasons, not advertising anything. I have no weight loss blog. I sell no weight loss products. I own stock in no weight loss companies. I have nothing to advertise here but my own experience and the related, theoretical explanations of people like Peter Attia.
Martin Brock October 4, 2015 , 9:35 pm Vote0
Also, I have never followed the Atkins diet or any similar diet, and I don’t use Atkins branded products or similar brands. As I say above, I eat whole foods like avocados and olives, almonds, pecans and other nuts, high fiber green vegetables like spinach and asparagus, meats like bacon and sausage primarily as flavor enhancers, some eggs and cheese. I drink coconut milk. I eat whole wheat bread occasionally, usually one slice with an open faced sandwich. I’ll add whey protein to an avocado shake, but I don’t use many processed foods. I avoid potatoes and white bread, so I’m not eating iron fortified products, but I doubt that the absence of iron fortification accounts for the success of this diet. Maybe it does, but the other explanations I’ve learned make sense to me.
Ian Katur October 4, 2015 , 10:54 pm Vote0
“I’m not sure why you characterize my words as “advertising a fad””
I characterize it that way because you are continuing to speak about a fringe diet that has absolutely nothing to do with the article. It borders on trolling—you can’t stop talking about it, but it’s irrelevant to the article and it’s irrelevant to all of the populations in unfortified countries that do not need to each such a diet to maintain their weight.
I’m sure there are *lots* of diets that control hunger and weight. Should we examine each one? No. Because the point of the article is that these diets are not needed in unfortified countries.
“I have successfully shed fat on a ketogenic diet, and I’m discussing my understanding of the reasons, not advertising anything”
With whom? Richard has no interest in discussing ketogenic diets. Many of his readers became sick on such a diet.
http://freetheanimal.com/2014/02/ketogenic-diets-news.html
http://freetheanimal.com/2014/01/carbing-this-beast.html
“I have never personally experimented with a diet lower in iron”
Again, I think you have missed the point. The article is mainly about avoiding a mineral imbalance (eat *whole* foods), not necessarily avoiding iron. The article suggests that fortified foods and high meat diets promote such a mineral imbalance by increasing iron uptake without necessary co-factors like Mn and Cu.
Martin Brock October 5, 2015 , 9:43 pm Vote0
I had stopped talking about it before you posted your comment. Am I not supposed to reply to you?