Nearly two-thirds of Americans are overweight, based on a ratio of weight to height known as BMI (body mass index), and about half of those are considered obese. Obesity raises the chances of heart disease, some cancers and other health problems and adds billions of dollars in health-care costs. About 9 million children over age six are obese, according to an Institute of Medicine report released last September. The independent group that advises the government called on the food, beverage and entertainment industries to self-regulate how they sell food and drink to children. Some critics of the fast-food industry partly blame shrewd marketing for an increase in obesity, arguing that food too high in calories or fat should not be advertised to kids. A Health Reuters press release issued on Friday, March 11, 2005 announced that the U.S. government will not ban or limit junk-food advertising to children, but wants the industry to set new guidelines to promote healthy eating and minimize obesity.
The sad state of our dietary habits was recently brought to full view by a study of 4,700 adults that showed despite the increased popularity of low- carbohydrate diets, almost one-third of Americans' calories are coming from 'empty calorie' foods such as sweets and desserts, soft drinks, and alcoholic beverages. Salty snacks and fruit-flavored drinks make up another five percent. Sodas contributed 7.1 percent of the total calories eaten. Sweets topped the list, followed by hamburgers, pizza, and potato chips. By contrast, fruits and vegetables made up only about 10 percent of calories in the diet. The lead researcher was Gladys Block, a professor of epidemiology and public health nutrition at University of California, Berkeley. "We know people are eating a lot of junk food, but to have almost one-third of Americans' calories coming from those categories is a shocker. It's no wonder there's an obesity epidemic in this country," Block said in a statement.
“The China Study” by T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D., released by First BenBella Books in January 2005, makes it astonishingly clear how our junk-food diet affects our health. The results of this twenty-year project completely dispenses with fad diets, relying on solid and convincing evidence. The study is clearly the most comprehensive study of diet, lifestyle and disease ever done with humans in the history of biomedical research. It was a massive undertaking jointly arranged through Cornell University, Oxford University and the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine. The NEW YORK TIMES called it the 'Grand Prix of Epidemiology.' This project surveyed a vast range of diseases and diet and lifestyle factors in rural China and, more recently, in Taiwan. More commonly known as the China Study, this project eventually produced more than 8,000 STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN VARIOUS DIETARY FACTORS AND DISEASE!
In the words of Dr. Campbell, “What made this project especially remarkable is that, among the many associations that are relevant to diet and disease, so many pointed to the same finding: people who ate the most animal-based foods got the most chronic disease. Even relatively small intakes of animal-based food were associated with adverse effects. People who ate the most plant-based foods were the healthiest and tended to avoid chronic disease. These results could not be ignored. From the initial experimental animal studies on animal protein effects to this massive human study on dietary patterns, the findings proved to be consistent. These findings show that heart disease, diabetes and obesity can be reversed by a healthy diet. Other research shows that various cancers, autoimmune diseases, bone health, kidney health, vision and brain disorders in old age (like cognitive dysfunction and Alzheimer's) are convincingly influenced by diet. Most importantly, the diet that has time and again been shown to reverse and/or prevent these diseases is the same whole foods, plant-based diet that I had found to promote optimal health in my laboratory research and in the China study.”
The study showed that the Chinese consume a third of the amount of fat that Americans do and get almost three times as much dietary fiber. They also consume a third less protein. More importantly, their protein source was only 10% from animals and diary products compared to Americans, who get 80% of their protein from animal sources. The average cholesterol levels in the Chinese is a remarkable 127 compared to 215 for Americans. The consequence is that heart disease is almost unheard of in China, whereas heart disease is the number one killer in the United States.
These studies confirm the importance of replacing junk-food with alkaline foods, such as fruits and vegetables. We recommend limiting the intake of animal protein and diary products, especially if you suffer from a degenerative disease. We also recommend supplementing with a quality micronutrient/antioxidant formula (Essentials), get enough essential fatty acids (Optomega) and try to consume at least 33 grams of fiber (Fibergy) each day. If you are concerned about high cholesterol we recommend Wings Heart Drops, Lypo enzymes, and support the liver with Stanatox-E.
This information has not been reviewed by the FDA and is not meant to cure, diagnose, or treat any disease.
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