chapter 1 food choices and human health

Food

Health

Choices

Human

Images from Wikipedia

What is Healthy?

A: Egg McMuffin with sausage

B: Starbucks Venti Mocha Frappuccino & bran muffin

C: 1 cup of bran flakes with 1 cup 2% milk and ½ cup berries

D: Large doughnut (4 ½” diameter)

E: Bagel (4 ½” diameter) with cream cheese (3 tablespoons)

Images from Wikipedia

What is Healthy?

A B C D E

Image from The Paleo Diet

Not in AgreementLoren Cordain, PhD

Leading expert on evolutionary diets

Paleo Diet: Eat like our ancestors

Not in Agreement

FishMeatVegetables

GrainsSugarDairyLegumes

Cons

ume

Limit

Image from The Paleo Diet

Image from NealBarnard.org

Not in Agreement

Neal Barnard, MD

Founder of the PCRM

Advocates whole food, plant based diet

Image from NealBarnard.org

Not in Agreement

Whole foodsPlant foodsGrainsLegumes

Animal foods* Meat* Fish* Dairy

Cons

ume

Limit

Not in AgreementWilliam Davis, MD

Cardiologist, author of Wheat Belly

Modern wheat causes chronic disease

Image from WheatBellyBlog.com

Image from WheatBellyBlog.com

Not in Agreement

FruitVegetablesMeat

All wheat(bread, crackers, pastas, etc)

Cons

ume

Limit

Not in AgreementT. Colin Campbell, PhD

Nutritional Biochemist: The China Study

Animal protein causes chronic disease

Image from Wikipedia

Not in Agreement

Image from Wikipedia

Whole FoodsPlant FoodsGrainsLegumes

Animal foods* Meat* Fish * Dairy

Cons

ume

Limit

Not in AgreementRobert Lustig, MD

Sugar: The Bitter Truth (video went viral)

Sugar (fructose) is causing chronic disease

Image from ucsfbenioffchildrens.org

Not in Agreement

Image from ucsf.edu

“Real Food” Sugar * added sugar* fruit juice* soda

Cons

ume

Limit

Not in Agreement

Caldwell Esselstyn, MD

Author of Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease

Reversed heart disease with a low fat/non fat diet

Image from heartattackproof.com

Not in Agreement

Image from heartattackproof.com

Whole grainsLegumesFruitsVegetables

All fat* Plant fat* Animal fatAnimal foods

Cons

ume

Limit

Images from Wikipedia

Not in AgreementDavid Perlmutter, MD

Neurologist and author of Grain Brain

Avoid grains, eat fat and cholesterol

Images from Wikipedia

Not in Agreement

VegetablesFruitsMeats

Grains* WheatSugar

Cons

ume

Limit

Who To Believe?

Avoid fat Avoid grains

Avoid animal foods

Avoid wheat

Avoid animal protein

Avoid sugar

Avoid grains

Who To Believe?

Avoid fat Avoid grains

Avoid animal foods

Avoid wheat

Avoid animal protein

Avoid sugar

Avoid grains

Whole Foods Plant Based Diet

Who To Believe?

Avoid fat Avoid grains

Avoid animal foods

Avoid wheat

Avoid animal protein

Avoid sugar

Avoid grains

saturated fat is healthywhole wheat bread is not healthy

Who To Believe?

Avoid fat Avoid grains

Avoid animal foods

Avoid wheat

Avoid animal protein

Avoid sugar

Avoid grains

It’s not fat or grains, it’s sugar

Avoid fat Avoid grains

Avoid animal foods

Avoid wheat

Avoid animal protein

Avoid sugar

Avoid grains

Common Theme?

Avoid sugarAvoid processed foods

Eat vegetables

Image by The Bitten Word on FlickrCC

"The Masai subsist on cattle blood and meat and milk and little else. Native Americans subsist on beans and maize. And the Inuit in Greenland subsist on whale blubber and a little bit of lichen. The irony is, the one diet we have invented for ourselves -- the Western diet -- is the one that makes us sick.”

Michael Pollan

Image by The Bitten Word on FlickrCC

Western Diet

Image by The Bitten Word on FlickrCC

SADStandard

American

Diet

Image by The Bitten Word on FlickrCC

HEALTHY

healthywhole veggies

whole fruits

whole grains

good fats

mod calories

physical activity

limit processed

fats limit

processed meats

Limit refined grains

limit alcohol intake

avoid tobacco

avoid food

additives

CHRONIC

DISEASEslow

long

lacks quick cure

Leading Causes of Death in USRelated to Nutrition!

WhoWantsDisease?

CHRONIC DISEASE

diseaseGenetics

Viral infections

Lifestyle choices

Environmental factors

Poor nutrition Physical Inactivity

Socio-economic

Low birth weight

Aging

Stress

CHRONIC DISEASE

diseaseGenetics

Viral infections

Lifestyle choices

Environmental factors

Poor nutrition Physical Inactivity

Socio-economic

Low birth weight

Aging

Stress

What Can We Do About It?

Image by The Bitten Word on FlickrCC

Food RulesDon’t eat anything your grandmother wouldn’t recognize

Don’t eat anything with more than 5 ingredients

Don’t eat anything with ingredients you wouldn’t recognize

Don’t eat anything that won’t eventually rot

If a product has to tell you it’s healthy, it probably isn’t

• Modified from Food Rules by Michael Pollan

FOOD CHOICES Factors Affecting ChoiceAvailabilityToo many choices?

CostEnvironmentFriends

MusicLighting

ConveniencePlate SizeCulturalReligiousHunger

Social valuesAnimal rightsEnvironmentAdvertising

Taste

Brian Wansink

FOOD CHOICES Factors Affecting Choice

Nutrition

ESSENTIAL NUTRIENTS

Nutrients needed by the body

Necessary for health and/or survival

Cannot be made by the body

Cannot be made in sufficient amounts

Must be obtained from food

ESSENTIAL NUTRIENTS Carbohydrates

Fat

Protein

Vitamins

Minerals

Water

NUTRIENTS

MacronutrientsCarbohydrates

Fat

Protein

MicronutrientsVitamins

Minerals

Water

NUTRIENTS MacronutrientsCarbohydratesStarch

SugarFiberFatMono

PolyProtein

MicronutrientsVitaminsMinerals

Water

ENERGY

Carbohydrates

Fat

Protein

yielding

ENERGY

Carbohydrates: 4 calories/gram

Fat: 9 calories/gram

Protein: 4 calories/gram

yielding

What is a Calorie?

Unit of

Food Energy

What is a Calorie?

. of

. .

images from Wikipedia and Open Clip Art

What is a Calorie?

.

.

..

images from Wikipedia and Open Clip Art

ORGANIC

Carbohydrates

Fat

Protein

Vitamins

Energy Yielding and Organic?

Carbohydrates

Fat

Protein

Whole Foods

Image by Yvon on FlickerCC

Packaged

Packaged

Processe

d

Processed

Processed?

The further a food appears from how it existed in nature, the less nutritious

Natural

No legal definition

Does NOT mean healthy

Don’t be fooled

Variety

Adequacy

Balance

Moderation

Calorie Control

Characteristics of Nutritious Diet

Variety

Adequacy

Balance

Moderation

Images by Anathea Utley and Anne Heathen on FlickrCC

Supplements

SupplementsDon’t

supplements

for real food

substitute

RESEARCH

Observation Hypothesis Test

Case Study

Individual Too Little of Nutrient X Develops Illness Y

Case Study

Child Mercury in diet Develops autism

Case Study

Mercury Causes autism? Can’t make that conclusion

Epidemiologic

Disease & Lifestyle

Connections

Populations

Epidemiologic

Mediterranean Countries Diet high in olive oil Lower incidence of heart disease

Olive oil Prevents heart disease? Can’t make that conclusion

Epidemiologic

Two groups of peoples Provided two different diets Measure outcomes

Interventional

Two groups of people High carb vs low carb diet

Measure weight loss & blood lipids

Interventional

Double Blind Placebo Controlled

Randomized Interventional Trial

Gold Standard

Reliable ResourcesAcademic journals

University websites

Informational websites with reliable authors:• Look for credentials, degrees, affiliations• Author of the article has been published by a University press• Author is associated with a University• Author has academic affiliations, has published in a scholarly journalMajor news sources (eg: NPR, ABC, NBC, CNN) • If the news source is reporting on a "new study" the study should ALWAYS be

cited.

Look at the url, look for .gov, .edu or .org

Biased WebsitesSponsored by a Lobbyist Group

• Always check the “About Us” page

Site with an Agenda

• Eg: tobacco industry

Trying to sell you something

Author is not listed

No studies cited

• A hyperlink or in AMA format

Citations: AMA Format

THE END