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Basic Nutrition

Basic is the operative word  This is obviously a topic that can cover

several courses.  We have several in Kinesiology

 Kin 110 Human Nutrition: Current Issues  Kin 111 Food and Food Safety  Kin 212 Food and Society  Kin 311 Applied Human Nutrition  Kin 312 Nutrition for Fitness and Sport  And we are currently developing more

Nutrition is complex & controversial   There is little doubt that nutrition evokes more

controversy and passion than most other areas of human health research.

  I am cognoscente of the fact that what I present to you is a reflection of my own personal agreement or disagreement with conflicting research.

  Having said that….. I can at least say I have completely changed my view of nutrition over the last two years due to the amount of research I have read on this topic.

Kin 143 Focus   In Kin 143 I just want you to:

  understand the importance of proper nutrition

  challenge some contentious and pervasive beliefs

  get you thinking about your diet and point you in the direction of further reading (if you are interested – not for the exam)

  Look specific nutritional requirements related to exercising populations

Essential Nutrients  Macronutrients (energy providing):

 Carbohydrates  Lipids (fats)  Protein

 Micronutrients:  Vitamins  Minerals

 Water

Too complex to track all of these?

Is it this simple?

Does everyone agree with this view?

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Obviously it isn’t that simple because that food

rainbow is new. Previously the following slide was Canada’s food rainbow

Notice the difference?

3/25/09 3/25/09

Is it still helpful?

So grains got demoted!

What is a serving?

Who counts?

Low Fat, High Carb   In 1970 30% of the U.S. population was

overweight or obese.   The “fat is the problem”, “fat is bad” mantra

was really taking hold of “popular wisdom”.

Soy Products Grain Products

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U.S. Food Pyramid The result?   By the early 1990’s, 65% of USA population was

classified as “overweight” or “obese”.   So why did “low fat” fail?   Lack of exercise?   Heavy reliance of refined carbohydrate?   Grains only available for last 10,000 years.   Human physiology unchanged for last 30,000 yrs.   Q: So what did humans eat before grains??   A: Meat and vegetables/fruit. Hunter gather

diets were varied but grains were not part of the diet and total carbohydrate content was often low.

Is Saturated Fat Really Bad? The whole premise that eating fat (and saturated fat in particular) would lead to heart disease is primarily based on two studies.

Rabbits?   In 1950 research showed that if rabbits

were fed a cholesterol-rich diet, it would cause blockages in their arteries.

  Yet, rabbits are only designed to eat plant life, which has no cholesterol. The clogged arteries were caused by feeding them an unnatural diet.

  It could have been an allergic response.   It could have been……….   Who actually thought this was a good

study???????

Ancel Keyes   In1953 an American called Ansel Keyes,

charted six countries’ consumption of fat, compared with their rates of heart disease and found a perfect curve upwards when he started with Japan at the bottom (low consumption) and America at the top (high consumption).

  Keyes had access to data from 22 countries, but simply ignored 16 countries which didn’t suit his hypothesis.

Influence?

  It may seem that two “dubious” studies wouldn’t change too much.

 However, Keyes was very influential and his hypothesis was endorsed by a government sub-committee developing nutrition guidelines for the US and it became mainstream.

  Low-fat has been the mantra ever since!

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Spanish Paradox as an example   A study published in 1995 noted that heart

disease deaths in Spain (1966-1990) dropped by 25% for men and by 34% in women.

  The study published a table which indicated that between 1964 and 1991  bread consumption fell by 55%, rice consumption

fell by 35%, and potato consumption fell by 53%.  At the same time consumption of beef went up

96%, pork went up by 382%, poultry was up by 312%, and full-cream milk went up by 73%.

  You might expect that the authors would suggest that these changes were responsible for the changes in patterns of heart disease. But paradoxically, they didn't. To say such a thing, when 'everyone knows' that fats and meat are bad for you, isn't politically correct.

  What they did say in their conclusions was: "Nevertheless, our results, in the context of current knowledge about the relation between diet and health, suggest several dietary recommendations that might be applied to the prevention of CVD in Spain:

Hard to believe?

 Promote moderate consumption of all meat (beef and pork in particular)

  Increase consumption of foods rich in complex carbohydrates (bread ... rice)

 Encourage use of skim milk and low-fat cheese?”

  In other words, stop the Spanish eating their protective diet, and get them to change!!!!

Hard to believe?

 Promote moderate consumption of all meat (beef and pork in particular)

  Increase consumption of foods rich in complex carbohydrates (bread ... rice)

 Encourage use of skim milk and low-fat cheese?”

  In other words, stop the Spanish eating their protective diet, and get them to change!!!!

Gary Taubes likens diet research and advice

over the last few decades as being

promoted like a religion

Paradox?   Ever since we “decided” that fat was the

problem we have had to deal with several “minor problems”.

  French Paradox – high fat, low CHD   Spanish Paradox – high fat, low CHD   Gary Taubes makes the simple observation

that if you keep having to make lots of ad hoc adjustments to your theory maybe the theory is the problem (i.e. it is wrong!).

Dr. John Yudkin   John Yudkin, Nutritionist: born London 8

August 1910 (died 1995); Professor of Physiology, Queen Elizabeth College, London 1945-54, Professor of Nutrition 1954-71 (Emeritus); Honorary Fellow, Hebrew University of Jerusalem 1993.

  “His idea that too much sugar is harmful brought him into conflict with powerful lobbies but he was never afraid to question established dogma”.

  http://www.naturodoc.com/library/nutrition/sugar.htm

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Dr. (Peter) T.L. Cleave “For a modern disease to be related to an old-fashioned food is one of the most ludicrous things I ever heard in my life”.

Surgeon Captain TL Cleave FRCP   Manufactured food of the type typically supplied

to the British Nation [and N.A.] is stuffed with cheap processed fats and sugars; and it is no surprise that food manufacturers, and their defenders, reject Cleave’s message.

  http://www.mccarrisonsociety.org.uk/content/view/133/144/1/1/

Occam's razor   The principle states that the explanation of any

phenomenon should make as few assumptions as possible, eliminating those that make no difference in the observable predictions of the explanatory hypothesis or theory.

  This is often paraphrased as "All other things being equal, the simplest solution is the best."

  In other words, when multiple competing theories are equal in other respects, the principle recommends selecting the theory that introduces the fewest assumptions and postulates the fewest entities.

Udo Erasmus, Ph.D http://udoerasmus.com/firstscreen.htm (little detail on his web about his background)

  Many people argue that the government-ordained food pyramids (and food rainbow in Canada) are inadequate as health guidelines.

  For example, in May, 2003, the White House strongly recommended that the US Departments of Agriculture and Health & Human Services revise the food guide pyramid and dietary guidelines to increase Omega-3 fats and decrease trans fats for better health.

16/11/08 1:40 PMUdo's Choice™ FOOD PYRAMID for ACTIVE PEOPLE!

Page 1 of 1http://www.udoerasmus.com/pyramid/pyr_food/pyramid_active.htm

Udo's Choice Food Pyramid for Active People increases two food categories - FUELS for performance, and good

fats and protein to build and recontstitute tissues. Fuels which include complex carbs, essential fats and other

fats, can be increased along with fruit. As always with FUEL FOODS, eat only what you burn. Proteins must be

increased for rebuilding tissue. As always, avoid "white foods" and foods rendered toxic by processing or

overheating!Print This Page Text Version Of Diagram Close Window

Other Food Pyramids   http://intraspec.ca/food-pyramids.php   The Healthy Eating Pyramid (next slide) was built by the

faculty in the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health.

  Based on the latest science, and “unaffected by businesses and organizations with a stake in its messages”.

  Its foundation is daily exercise and weight control, since these two related elements strongly influence your chances of staying healthy.

High Fat Content?

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Diet and Exercise   Note that the Harvard food pyramid includes

exercise. This is because they are very related!

  CrossFit has a definition of fitness that starts with dietary advice.

  P90X program include diet in its plan.   Do you consider fitness to include you diet…

or a healthy diet to be based on exercise?   Wellness?

Confused?   I am not surprised people are confused.   Harvard medical school promotes a very

different food pyramid and openly criticizes the government’s food pyramid as biased.

  Furthermore, the epidemiology on which Harvard’s food pyramid is based would have to have been largely based on sedentary populations.

  Is this applicable to me?   To you?

Many (and I agree with them) would also criticize this pyramid as many of the plant oils listed are new to the human diet.

Epidemiology   You have to question if even the “good”

epidemiological studies are applicable to you.   By this I mean that these studies are done on

“general populations” and their results “may” be applicable to this population.

  Is your lifestyle similar to the average of the study group?

  For me I do not think they are, so I tend see if the results make sense in terms of human physiology and logic.

Paleolithic Nutrition   Many argue that the prevalence in modern

societies of many chronic diseases is the consequence of a mismatch between modern dietary patterns and the type of diet that our species evolved to eat as prehistoric hunter-gatherers.

  There is good logic and research evidence to support this argument.

  However, humans have evolved not to subsist on a single Paleolithic diet, but to be flexible eaters.

Paleo Food Pyramid

Two food groups

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Variations in human diets   Variations due to differences

in geography, season and glaciations

  Inuit = no carbs and mostly fat with no ill effects.

  Masai = drank cow blood and milk and ate LOTS of meat

  Island of Okinawa = vegetables and rice with some fish and little meat, high in carbs, low in fat.

  All groups have good health

 How is human health when eating Paleolithic diet and unprocessed foods?

 What happens when humans start eating a modern and processed diet?

Nutrition and health among people on traditional diets in the 1930s http://www.westonaprice.org/splash_2.htm

 14 human groups  From isolated Irish and Swiss,

to Eskimos and Africans  Almost every member enjoyed

superb health  Free of chronic diseases  Free of dental decay  Free of mental illness  Strong, sturdy and attractive  Produced healthy children

with ease Weston A. Price, D.D.S.

Historical experience of indigenous/traditional peoples   No cancer, cardiovascular

diseases, type 2 diabetes or dental caries   Independent observations of

anthropologists, physicians, missionaries, explorers, etc.

 e.g. !Kung San people in the Kalahari dessert

  These disease appear as soon as these groups change environment and lifestyle, particularly diet.

Adult Melanesians at Kitava

  Tubers, fruits, vegetables, fish and coconuts

  Fatty fish and cocunut = high fat diet.

  Unaffected by western diet  No oils, margarine,

cereals, sugar and salt

Adult Melanesians at Kitava

  PhD study 1994   Apparent absence of

 stroke and heart attacks

 hypertension  overweight  malnutrition  acne Staffan Lindeberg, MD, PhD

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Seminole Indians in Everglades (FL) on traditional (left) or ”white man’s diet” Despite the evidence…….

 …..you will still see slides like the following

Types of fats? Taubes argues most research

has been looking for the association between fats and disease – biased research?

What Paleolithic people didn’t eat

  Cow’s milk, cereal grains   Table salt (NaCl)   Potatoes (after 1540)   White sugar (after 1800)   Highly processed foods (mostly

after 1800)   Pesticide residues (after 1930),

radioactive foods (after 1945)   Artificial/synthetic additives

(mostly after 1950)   Genetically modified food (since

the 1990s)

Low fat tends to imply High CHO

  This may not be a terrible thing if the carbohydrate is from good sources (green leafy vegetables, orange veg, etc.)

  But in our society most of the CHO has a relatively high GI

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What is the Glycemic Index?   The glycemic index is a ranking of

carbohydrates based on their immediate effect on blood glucose (blood sugar) levels.

  Carbohydrates that breakdown quickly during digestion have the highest glycemic indexes. The blood glucose response is fast and high.

  Carbohydrates that break down slowly, releasing glucose gradually into the blood stream, have low glycemic indexes.

  http://www.glycemicindex.com/

What is the Significance of the GI?   Low GI means a smaller rise in blood

glucose levels after meals   Low GI diets can help people lose weight   Low GI diets can improve the body's

sensitivity to insulin   High GI foods help re-fuel carbohydrate

stores after exercise   Low GI can improve diabetes control   Low GI foods keep you fuller for longer   Low GI can prolong physical endurance

Epidemiology Issues Again  Problems with the “Meat & Potatoes Man”?

  Men who eat red meat as a main dish 5 times a week have 4 times the risk of colon cancer over those eating red meat once a month

  More prostate cancer

  Fruits and vegetables reduce stroke

 Question: Is it the red meat (fat content?) or other things that these type of individuals eat and/or do? Potatoes are high glycemic!

Hyperinsulinaemia - the big bad wolf   Carbohydrate-dominated

diets with high glycaemic index (GI) hyperinsulinemia insulin resistance

  High-glycemic foods are a novel environmental factor which humans are not well adapted to

  Tip of the iceberg?

Hyperinsulinaemia   May lead to

 cancer: breasts, prostate, colon/rectum  acne  polycystic ovaries  myopia  obesity  type 2 diabetes  hypertension  high blood triglycerides  cardiovascular disease

Metabolic syndrome Syndrome X

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Essential Dietary Fats   Primary fat sources:

(Omega 3’s)  Fish, Flaxseed, Olive,

Canola oils  Secondary fat sources

(Omega 6’s)  Vegetable, Sunflower,

Peanut, Sesame oils   Least desirable fat sources

 Animal Fats  Dairy

Omega 3 Fatty Acids   Increasing intake of Omega 3’s can

potentially:   Increase insulin sensitivity in muscle,   Decrease sensitivity in fat,   Reduce body fat,   Decrease muscle damage and soreness,   Decrease disease or injury-induced

inflammation

Omega 6/Omega 3 Ratio

  There is nothing wrong with omega-6 fats in the sense that they are a natural food.

  However, the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 has been skewed by dietary changes from 1-2:1 in the Paleolithic era to….

  10:1 in the USA.   It is suggested by experts that a 1:1 ratio

would be optimal.

Quick and Simple Advice   Stay active – native groups have that in

common…… the benefits of proper nutrition and exercise combine well!

  Avoid or at least reduce reliance on processed foods

  Eat real food   Avoid (drastically reduce?)

 Sugar  High-Fructose Corn Syrup  Trans - fat

Some good links   http://www.paleodiet.com/   http://www.modernforager.com/blog/

2008/06/04/nutrition-101-the-one-rule-to-remember/

  http://www.modernforager.com/blog/2008/06/18/nutrition-102-furthering-eat-real-food/

  http://www.crossfit.com/cf-info/start-diet.html   http://www.udoerasmus.com/pyramid/

pyr_index.htm

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CrossFit Nutrition  Eat meat and

vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar.

 Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.

Scott Kustes (he is not a “formal” nutritionist, but I agree with his interpretation of the research) http://lifespotlight.com/

  His take on those studies linking red meat and colorectal cancer

  “Eating large amounts of red or processed meat over a long period of time can indeed raise colorectal cancer risk. But the risks from such a diet are smaller than those from obesity and lack of exercise, both for colon cancer and for overall health. [Scot’s emphasis]

  The general belief is a reduction of red meat intake [reduces colorectal cancer risk], and subsequent nutritional advice usually strongly recommends this. Paradoxically, beef together with whole milk and dairy derivatives, are almost the only sources for conjugated linoleic acid (CLAs) family. Furthermore CLAs are the only natural fatty acids accepted by the National Academy of Sciences of USA as exhibiting consistent antitumor properties at levels as low as 0.25 to 1.0 per cent of total fats.

  Grass fed versus grain fed meats (CLA)   Processed red meat versus fresh (Nitrate?)   http://lifespotlight.com/health/2008/10/13/does-red-

meat-cause-colon-cancer/

Scott Kustes [Nutrition 101]

White List (cornerstones of your meals)  Meat  Eggs  All vegetables - especially dark green leafy

vegetables (possibly except potatoes)  Fermented foods  Salt/vinegar preserved foods  Raw nuts

My additions in blue italics

Gray List (moderate consumption)   Fruit (Daily – don’t overdo as modern fruits

are bred to have very high fructose content)   Beer and wine (Less than daily)   Potatoes (just don’t overdo them)   Bread, pasta, and other grain products (whole

grain and weekly at most)   Dairy (not an easy call but milk and cheese are

processed foods - so due to pasteurization and vitamin D fortification I suggest limiting intake – get out in the sun for Vitamin D!)

Black List (do not eat)   Everything with a cartoon character on the

packaging   Most everything with a celebrity endorsement   Anything with man-made fats or processed

sugars (avoid sugar, High-Fructose-Corn-Syrup, hydrogenated trans fats)

  Unfermented soy (genetically modified and added to lots of foods)

  Anything you couldn’t realistically make at home   If it says it wills still be edible 3+ months from

now (without canning or freezing)… don’t eat it!