How to Live to be 100
The High Protein Diet
This article was first published in Health View, October 2002.
The holidays are now over, and we must attempt to shed a few pounds. Some may even have more than holiday weight to lose in order to live to be 100. I started last month reviewing Sugar Busters since it is a diet I sometimes recommend to my patients. This month, I will change gears and focus on one that I never recommend, the high-protein diet. Since this diet is so popular right now, I feel it is necessary to take a look at the dangers of it.
The high-protein diet seems to be appealing because you can continue to enjoy the rich foods we have become accustomed to eating. If you have been reading my past articles, you know I am totally opposed to consuming the very foods that are recommended in the various high-protein diets. Not only is there plenty of medical research that supports the dangers of high fat foods, but also numerous well-known health organizations have recently recommended eating fewer animal products and more plant foods. A meat-based, low-fiber diet like the Atkin's diet with no fruit or starchy vegetables will almost double your risk of certain cancers. Even though I believe in taking supplements, I think it is very important to get a lot of your nutrients from eating plenty of fruits and vegetables that will help guard against cancer.
Not only does eating animal fat increase your risk of cancer and heart disease, it also contributes to bone loss. This is a very well researched fact; the more animal foods you eat, the more your kidneys are forced to pump calcium out from your body, which causes more kidney stones. The pH balance of the human body is slightly alkaline. Since the body carefully guards its pH balance, the abundance of acids from a diet rich in animal protein must be buffered. The bones are the body's primary buffering system. When excess acids pour into the body, the bones release calcium and phosphorous into the blood. The calcium and other bone materials that were washed from the bone are then excreted by the kidneys and are gone from the body. Considering the large amounts of meat, poultry, eggs and dairy foods we consume in this country, it is not surprising that osteoporosis has reached epidemic levels. Research also indicates that hip fractures are more prevalent in countries where there is a great deal of animal protein consumption.
A person can lose weight on a high-protein diet, but most of the initial weight loss is from metabolized water. Fat is not burned until the patient goes into ketosis. Ketosis is not a healthy state for your body to stay in. An increased stress is placed on your kidneys. Dr. Atkins claims the ketotic state will lower cholesterol. This is true, but people have to remain in ketosis to have that effect. One instance of cheating can knock the body out of ketosis and unleash all that cholesterol to attack your arteries. It's hard not to occasionally cheat. And remember, you do not necessarily have to have high cholesterol to have heart disease. Animal fat clogs up coronary arteries, no doubt about it.
This month marks five years since my precious mother died. She ate bacon and eggs regularly. She usually had meat at every meal and liked ice cream for dessert. Shortly before her death, it was discovered she had triple vessel coronary heart disease and severe osteoporosis. She probably would have had a good chance of living to be 100 if she would have eaten less meat and dairy products and more fruits, vegetables and whole grains. I sure do miss her.
I'll have more good health tips for you next month. My wife's recipe for Pasta Primavera can be found below:
Pasta Primavera
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 medium yellow squash, sliced
1 zucchini, sliced
1 small bunch broccoli, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 large carrot, sliced
1 can tomatoes or 2 large tomatoes
Salt to taste
Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil. Add squash, zucchini, broccoli, bell pepper and carrot. Cook 5 minutes stirring frequently. Add tomatoes and cook until vegetables are desired tenderness. Serve over whole wheat pasta.
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