Take a look at our introductory video, produced for the YorIT Social Venture Challenge. This describes our effort to bring Healthy World Cafe to downtown York.
Sabtu, 12 Februari 2011
Minggu, 06 Februari 2011
What's Your Goal?
Do you want to improve your health and wellness ? Maximize your martial arts? Control your weight? Turn back the clock? Identify the areas you want to improve and let me guide you on the right path. Using the correct combination of my DVDs and resources will deliver your desired results. Shaolin Martial Arts challenges us and helps us to reach the full potential in ourselves that we only dreamt of before. Using the powerful life energy that exists inside our body, we can make ourselves healthy and balanced.
Health and Wellness
The Western focus on exercise has mainly been on making the body look beautiful through weight and cardio training. But this is starting to change. On the Oprah Winfrey show, Dr. Oz said, "If you want to be healthy and live to 100, do Qigong." How can Shaolin Monks train all their lives, while remaining free of injury and looking younger than their years? How can they be beaten with bricks or sticks and not feel any pain?
The answer is a magical combination of Qigong and Kung Fu. Qigong strengthens the immune system, rejuvenates the internal organs and protects and prevents premature effects of ageing. The Qigong Massage enhances the power of Qigong, helping the Qi and blood to flow properly, while strengthening the bones and keeping the skin soft and supple.
The wearing of Jade helps to banish the harmful effects of the environment. Just as a tree can purify the air, jade has healing powers; helping to purify the body and protect us against the harmful effects of computers, mobile phones or negative energy. It acts as a gentle reminder to us that we are Urban Shaolin Warriors. This means we take time to step back, relax and rejuvenate. Living in the moment is a powerful skill that helps us to be successful in everything we do.
Shifu Yan Lei recommends:
Instant Health: The Shaolin Qigong Workout For Longevity
Lose Weight
There are many workout plans that claim to be able to help you lose weight in two weeks, eight weeks or twelve weeks but what about after that time? How many exercise bikes have been bought then discarded? How many gym memberships not used?
The Shaolin Approach is to quit relying on willpower. Willpower is like petrol. It quickly runs out. But when willpower transforms into habit, you can slim down effortlessly and get your body into great shape.
Any workout programme will help you lose weight. The trick is to find something you enjoy. If you enjoy it, you will stick with it, and it will become a habit. Keep it simple. Don't think too much. I love Kung Fu so I do Kung Fu but if I loved ballet I'd do ballet.
Once you've found the workout you enjoy, do Qigong at least three times a week. Qigong is an important factor in weight loss because it helps to balance the hormones. An increase in cortisol for example, can mean that no matter how hard you work out, you will always have belly fat. But liposuction isn't necessary. Just do Qigong. If you find the slow movements boring then do Qigong For Upper Body and alternate this with Lower Body. This will give your internal organs a workout while toning your muscles at the same time.
Shifu Yan Lei recommends:
Instant Health: The Shaolin Qigong Workout For Longevity
Turn back The Clock
I don't think it's true that you are as old as you feel, I think you are as old as your body feels! So make it feel good. People who do Qigong have higher levels of an enzyme that protects cells against the build-up of a highly toxic free radical, which can cause ageing.
If you're new to Qigong then start with The Eight Treasures. Once you've learnt this, do some movements from The Qigong For Upper Body and Qigong For Lower Body. Yes, it's tough but it will strengthen your bones and help prevent osteoporosis. It's especially important to do these Qigong's if you're not doing any weight bearing exercise.
Wear jade. Chinese Jade Jewelry has been used by the Chinese for many thousands of years. We believe that Chinese Jade has the power to bring longevity, good health and peace of mind into our life.
Shifu Yan Lei recommends:
Instant Health: The Shaolin Qigong Workout For Longevity
All of the Qigong DVDS but if you don't have much time then:
Maximize Your Martial Arts
Thousands of years ago, Warrior monks spent their time in the mountains studying nature and seeing how they could maximize their martial arts. Usually when something becomes old it is put in the bin, but the Shaolin training has grown in value because it contains something of great value. It is a valuable jewel that has been passed down to us by our great Chinese masters. The jewel is right here; we just need to start the training so that we can discover the jewel for ourselves.
My Shaolin DVDs will transform your mind and body into the mind and body of a Shaolin Warrior, and I teach you how to do this step by step
Shifu Yan Lei recommends
Instant Health: The Shaolin Qigong Workout For Longevity.
High carbohydrate intake associated with breast cancer
This study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrituion 2008 May;87(5):1384-91
Study title and authors:
Carbohydrate intake, glycemic index, glycemic load, and risk of postmenopausal breast cancer in a prospective study of French women.
Lajous M, Boutron-Ruault MC, Fabre A, Clavel-Chapelon F, Romieu I.
INSERM, ERI 20, EA 4045, and Institut Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France.
This 9 year study of 62,739 postmenopausal women investigated the relationship between carbohydrate consumption and breast cancer.
The study found:
(a) Overweight women consuming the highest amounts of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates had a 35% increased risk of breast cancer.
(b) Women with largest waist circumference consuming the highest amounts of carbohydrates had a 28% increased risk of breast cancer.
(c) Carbohydrate intake was also associated with estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer.
The study shows that rapidly absorbed carbohydrates are associated with postmenopausal breast cancer risk among overweight women and women with a large waist circumference.
Sabtu, 05 Februari 2011
Evidence of Human Adaptation to Increased Carnivory
This post contains an article by Loren Cordain and a recipe for alfresco roast beef salad.
Metabolic Evidence of Human Adaptation to Increased Carnivory
by Loren Cordain, Ph.D.
IMPORTANT WORD DEFINITIONS: Dentition: Teeth. Hominids: Bipedal primates, including human beings and our bipedal ancestors in evolutionary prehistory. Obligate, as in "obligate carnivore" (cats are obligate carnivores in their natural environment): Able to exist or survive only in a particular environment or by assuming a particular role (definition from The American Heritage Dictionary, 3rd edition). Pongid: The class of ape mostly closely related to humans, consisting of--in order of genetic and evolutionary relatedness to us--the chimpanzee, gorilla, and orangutan. Plasma (as in "plasma levels of taurine"): Refers to levels of nutrients as measured in the blood. Precursor (as in "precursor fatty acids"): Dietary nutrients which can be converted by the body into other needed nutrients not obtained in the diet itself. Hepatic: Of, or related to, the liver. Lipids: Fatty acids, i.e., dietary "fats." Coprophagy: Ingestion of fecal material, whether intentional or unintentional.
Based on and edited from a posting to the Paleodiet listgroup on 1/15/98.
I am in agreement with previous posts that human dentition is adapted for a generalized diet composed of both plant and animal foods, and that human populations show amazing variability in their plant-to-animal food subsistence ratios. However, it is important to recognize that hominids have evolved important metabolic and biochemical adaptations which are indicative of an increasing physiological dependence upon animal-based foods. Further, comprehensive compilations of hunter-gatherer subsistence strategies indicate that whenever it is ecologically possible, humans will almost always consume more animal food than plant food.
Background: Hunter-gatherer plant/animal subsistence ratios.
Books:
Our laboratory has recently compiled the plant/animal-food subsistence ratio data in the Ethnographic Atlas [Murdock 1967] for all worldwide hunter-gatherer populations which have been studied either historically or
by contemporary anthropologists. The analysis shows that in the majority (61.3%) of worldwide hunter-gatherers, gathered plant food represents 35% or less of the total food utilized. Only 2.2% of the world's hunter-gatherers derive 66% or more of their total foods from plants. Further, not a single hunter-gather population derives 86% or more of its total calories from plant foods.
The most frequently occurring (mode) plant/animal subsistence ratio for worldwide hunter-gatherers is 16-25% plant/75-84% animal, and the median value is 26-35% plant/65-74% animal. These values corroborate five careful modern studies of hunter-gatherers showing a mean energy (caloric) intake from animal-food sources to be 59% [Leonard et al. 1994].
Comparing the human gut with ape guts and biochemical adaptations of carnivores.
Pongids (the primates that humans are most closely related to), because their diet is largely plant-based, must maintain large and metabolically active guts to process the fibrous plant foods which compose over 93% or greater of their dietary intake. In contrast, the human gut is much smaller and less metabolically active than the ape gut. Presumably this adaptation (reduction in gut size and metabolic activity) evolved in humans because the inclusion of nutrient-dense, animal-based foods by our early hominid ancestors allowed the selective pressure for a large, metabolically active gut to be relaxed [Leonard et al. 1994; Aiello and Wheeler 1995].
In addition to the smaller gut that humans maintain relative to apes, there are other metabolic and biochemical clues which point to increased utilization of animal food by humans over our evolutionary history. By evaluating the metabolic and biochemical dietary adaptations of cats (obligate carnivores) and those in humans (omnivores), it becomes apparent that evolution has shaped both hominid and feline metabolic machinery towards a diet in which animal food was predominant.
Obligate carnivores, such as cats, must obtain all of their nutrients from the flesh of other animals and have therefore evolved certain biochemical adaptations which are indicative of their total dietary dependence upon animal-based foods. Most of these biochemical adaptations involve either the loss (or reduced activity) of certain enzymes required for the synthesis of essential nutrients. These adaptations generally occurred because the evolutionary selection pressure to maintain these metabolic pathways was relaxed as cats gradually increased the amount of animal food in their diet as they evolutionarily progressed from omnivory into obligate carnivory.
Taurine
Taurine is an amino acid which is not found in any plant-based food [Laidlow et al. 1990] and which is an essential nutrient in all mammalian cells. Herbivores are able to synthesize taurine from precursor amino acids derived from plants, whereas cats have completely lost the ability to synthesize taurine [Knopf et al. 1978]. Since all animal-based foods (except cow's milk) are rich sources of taurine [Laidlow et al. 1990], cats have been able to relax the selective pressure required for taurine synthesis because they obtain all of this nutrient that they need from their exclusive meat-based diet.
Humans, unlike cats, still maintain the ability to synthesize taurine in the liver from precursor substances; however, this ability is quite limited and inefficient when compared to herbivores. Vegan vegetarians following diets devoid of animal products display low levels of both plasma and urinary taurine [Laidlow 1988]--levels which are indicative of the poor ability of humans to synthesize taurine. Similar to cats, this inability to efficiently synthesize taurine has come about because the selective pressure to produce this amino acid has been gradually reduced due to humankind's long reliance upon animal food, a food which is quite high in taurine.
20- and 22-carbon fatty acid requirements
Plant-based foods contain 18-carbon fatty acids of both the omega-3 and omega-6 families, but are virtually devoid of the 20- and 22-carbon fatty acids that are required for the normal functioning of all mammalian cells, whether the mammal is an herbivore or carnivore. Herbivores have evolved hepatic (liver) enzymes (desaturases and elongases) which allow these precursor, plant-based 18-carbon fatty acids to be chain-elongated and desaturated to their 20- and 22-carbon products.
Cats have extremely low levels of the enzymes required to make 20- and 22-carbon fatty acids from 18-carbon fatty acids [Salem et al. 1994]. Again, the selection pressure to synthesize 20- and 22-carbon lipids (fatty acids) has been almost entirely removed because cats obtain sufficient quantities of these long-chain fatty acids by eating animal tissues which are rich sources of these lipids. Humans, though not as inefficient as the cat, also have relatively inefficient elongase and desaturase enzymes [Salem et al. 1994]. Again, this metabolic change has occurred largely because the need to desaturate and chain-elongate 18-carbon plant fatty acids to their 20- and 22-carbon products has been reduced because humans, like cats, have obtained a large portion of their 20- and 22-carbon lipids directly by eating other animal tissues.
Vitamin A synthesis
All animals, whether herbivore or carnivore, require vitamin A. Vitamin A is not found in any plant-based food; consequently, herbivores must synthesize it in the liver from beta-carotene consumed from plant-based foods. Cats have lost the ability to synthesize vitamin A from beta-carotene [MacDonald et al. 1984], and must obtain all of their vitamin A from the organs (liver, kidney) of their prey. Again, cats have lost the ability to synthesize vitamin A because the selective pressure (need) to provide adaptive energy for the synthesis of proteins to catalyze the production of vitamin A was reduced as cats progressively increased the amount of animal foods in their diets.
Recently, it has been shown that humans have a limited capacity to absorb beta-carotene in plants [de Pee and West et al. 1995] (the bioavailability of beta-carotene from plants is low for humans compared to its bioavailability from other sources), presumably because humans, like cats, have consumed vitamin A-rich animal food sources for eons and are in a transitional state from omnivory to obligate carnivory.
Vitamin B-12
Vitamin B-12 is an essential nutrient for both herbivorous and carnivorous mammals. Because B-12 is not found in higher plants, herbivorous mammals must solely rely upon absorption of B-12 from bacteria that synthesize it in their gut. Cats can neither synthesize B-12 nor absorb it from their gut; consequently they have become wholly dependent upon animal flesh as their source for this essential nutrient.
Humans, like cats, cannot depend on the absorption of bacterially produced vitamin B-12 from the gut, and are reliant upon animal-based sources of this essential vitamin, since it does not occur in a biologically active form in any of the plant foods which humans normally eat. While some viable B-12 is synthesized in the human colon, the site of absorption is at the ileum, which is "upstream" from the colon at the lower end of the small intestine; thus for humans, B-12 synthesized in the colon is unavailable and must come from the food eaten [Herbert 1988]. Regarding possible B-12 synthesis in the small intestine above the ileum, the consensus of scientific literature indicates any amounts that may potentially be produced are not significant or reliable enough to serve as a dependable or sole source for most individuals.
Additionally, while most cases of B-12 deficiency in omnivores are due to problems of impaired absorption rather than a deficiency of nutritional intake [Herbert 1994], the opposite situation prevails in vegetarians eating only minimal amounts of animal by-products [Chanarin et al. 1988].
Further, studies in vegans have shown that despite physiological recycling and conservation mechanisms that become increasingly efficient as B-12 intake falls below normal daily requirements--so that very little is lost from the body--the likelihood is high that B-12 deficiency will eventually develop (after 20 years or more) in pure vegans who refrain without fail from ingesting any animal-based products or do not take B-12 supplements [Herbert 1994].
Recent work has delineated four stages of inadequate B-12 levels in strict vegetarians [Herbert 1994; Herbert 1988]. Vegans in early Stage I depletion--prior to ongoing depletion of stores and the declining blood levels of Stage II, biochemical deficiency and impaired DNA synthesis of Stage III, and clinical deficiencies of Stage IV--are able to maintain normal serum B-12 levels. However, this occurs by drawing from stored reserves in the liver and elsewhere which gradually become depleted, eventually to the point where actual deficiency develops many years later in those who maintain strict habits.
It is this negative metabolic B-12 balance which occurs soon after exogenous B-12 ceases to be ingested in appreciable quantities, many years prior to actual deficiency, which points to the human requirement for animal-based B-12 sources if one is to maintain a positive B-12 balance. One need not show actual cases of deficiency and end-stage megaloblastic anemia, but only the trend of long-term negative B-12 balance, to demonstrate the human metabolic need for animal-based foods to maintain a neutral or positive homeostatic balance.
It is now possible to determine negative homeostatic B-12 balance directly by distinguishing and measuring levels of the two forms in which B-12 is carried in the blood: either bound to the transcobalamin II "delivery" molecule (called TCII, for short), or bound to the haptocorrin molecule which is a form of "circulating storage." Haptocorrin maintains equilibrium with body stores, meaning that haptocorrin levels reflect current reserve stores of B-12. TCII, however, being the "delivery" molecule for B-12, transports and gives up its B-12 to cells that are actively using B-12 in DNA synthesis, and has a half-life in the blood of only 6 minutes. Thus, when exogenous intake of B-12 falls below normal, levels of TCII-carried B-12 begin to reflect the deficit rapidly, and subnormal levels will show up within one week, demonstrating negative B-12 balance. [Herbert 1994]
It is probable, therefore, that vegans with long-term normal B-12 balance are ingesting--inadvertently or otherwise--at least small amounts of B-12, if not from supplements, then from unreported animal-based sources in their food or contaminated by such sources. (In one study of vegans for which this has been observed, the cause was due to eating unwashed vegetables that had been grown in gardens containing intentionally manured soils, from which the B-12 came [Herbert 1988]. Ironically, the manure in this case was their own excrement, which as pointed out above harbors bacteria that produce B-12 in the human colon--where B-12 cannot be absorbed. Not unless, of course, it is reingested as in the unintentional coprophagy occurring in this instance, so that it can pass back through the small intestine again to the ileum where B-12 is actually absorbed.)
An indication of the masking effect of previously stored B-12 reserves in obscuring ongoing negative B-12 balance can be seen in long-term vegan mothers and their infants. Such mothers may maintain blood levels of haptocorrin B-12 in the normal range for lengthy periods (years) due to increasingly efficient recycling of B-12 as their reserve stores become depleted, and in adult vegans with such improved B-12 reabsorption, such clinical deficiency may take 20-30 years to manifest. However, infants of such mothers are born with almost no reserve stores (little or none are available in the mother's body to pass on to them) and go into clinical deficiency much more rapidly. [Herbert 1994]
In summary, the absence of the ability of humans to absorb bacterially produced B-12 in the colon, and the evidence that strictly behaving vegans will show negative TCII-carried B-12 balance even when total serum levels are in the normal range, is indicative of the long evolutionary history of animal-based foods in our diet.
Recap
These metabolic and biochemical adaptations in humans in response to increasingly meat-based diets, as well as the anthropological evidence provided by both contemporary and historical studies of hunter-gatherer diets, provide strong evidence for the central role of meat and animal tissues in the human diet. Although it is true that human populations can survive under broad plant/animal subsistence ratios, the consensus evidence supports the notion that whenever it was ecologically possible, animal calories would have always represented the majority of the total daily energy intake.
Loren Cordain, Ph.D.
REFERENCES
Aiello LC, Wheeler P (1995) "The expensive tissue hypothesis." Current Anthropology, vol. 36, pp. 199-221.
Chanarin I, Malkowska V, O'Hea A-M, Rinsler MG, Price AB (1985) "Megaloblastic anaemia in a vegetarian Hindu community." The Lancet, 1985(2), pp. 1168-1172.
de Pee S, West CE et al. (1995) "Lack of improvement in vitamin A status with increased consumption of dark leafy green vegetables." Lancet, vol. 346, pp. 75-81.
Herbert V (1994) "Staging vitamin B-12 (cobalamin) status in vegetarians." American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 59 (suppl.), pp. 1213S-1222S.
Herbert V (1988) "Vitamin B-12: plant sources, requirements, and assay." American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 48, pp. 852-858.
Knopf K et al. (1978) "Taurine: an essential nutrient for the cat." Journal of Nutrition, vol. 108, pp. 773-778.
Laidlow SA et al. (1990) "The taurine content of common foodstuffs." Journal of Parenteral Enteral Nutrition, vol. 14, pp. 183-188.
Laidlow SA (1988) "Plasma and urine levels in vegans." American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 47, pp. 660-663.
Leonard WR et al. (1994) "Evolutionary perspectives on human nutrition: the influence of brain and body size on diet and metabolism." American Journal of Human Biology, vol. 6, pp. 77-88.
MacDonald ML et al. (1984) "Nutrition of the domestic cat, a mammalian carnivore." Annual Review of Nutrition, vol. 4, pp. 521-562.
Murdock GP (1967) "Ethnographic atlas: a summary." Ethnology, vol. 6, pp. 109-236.
Salem N et al. (1994) "Arachidonate and docosahexaenoate biosynthesis in various species and compartments in vivo." World Review of Nutrition and Dietetics, vol. 75, pp. 114-119.
This article can be accessed at: http://web.archive.org/web/20080531035558/http://www.beyondveg.com/cordain-l/metab-carn/metabolic-carnivory-1a.shtml
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Recipe of the day
10ml/2tsp fresh thyme leaves
Metabolic Evidence of Human Adaptation to Increased Carnivory
by Loren Cordain, Ph.D.
IMPORTANT WORD DEFINITIONS: Dentition: Teeth. Hominids: Bipedal primates, including human beings and our bipedal ancestors in evolutionary prehistory. Obligate, as in "obligate carnivore" (cats are obligate carnivores in their natural environment): Able to exist or survive only in a particular environment or by assuming a particular role (definition from The American Heritage Dictionary, 3rd edition). Pongid: The class of ape mostly closely related to humans, consisting of--
Based on and edited from a posting to the Paleodiet listgroup on 1/15/98.
I am in agreement with previous posts that human dentition is adapted for a generalized diet composed of both plant and animal foods, and that human populations show amazing variability in their plant-to-animal food subsistence ratios. However, it is important to recognize that hominids have evolved important metabolic and biochemical adaptations which are indicative of an increasing physiological dependence upon animal-based foods. Further, comprehensive compilations of hunter-gatherer subsistence strategies indicate that whenever it is ecologically possible, humans will almost always consume more animal food than plant food.
Background: Hunter-gatherer plant/animal subsistence ratios.
Books:
Our laboratory has recently compiled the plant/animal-food subsistence ratio data in the Ethnographic Atlas [Murdock 1967] for all worldwide hunter-gatherer populations which have been studied either historically or by contemporary anthropologists. The analysis shows that in the majority (61.3%) of worldwide hunter-gatherers, gathered plant food represents 35% or less of the total food utilized. Only 2.2% of the world's hunter-gatherers derive 66% or more of their total foods from plants. Further, not a single hunter-gather population derives 86% or more of its total calories from plant foods.The most frequently occurring (mode) plant/animal subsistence ratio for worldwide hunter-gatherers is 16-25% plant/75-84% animal, and the median value is 26-35% plant/65-74% animal. These values corroborate five careful modern studies of hunter-gatherers showing a mean energy (caloric) intake from animal-food sources to be 59% [Leonard et al. 1994].
Comparing the human gut with ape guts and biochemical adaptations of carnivores.
Pongids (the primates that humans are most closely related to), because their diet is largely plant-based, must maintain large and metabolically active guts to process the fibrous plant foods which compose over 93% or greater of their dietary intake. In contrast, the human gut is much smaller and less metabolically active than the ape gut. Presumably this adaptation (reduction in gut size and metabolic activity) evolved in humans because the inclusion of nutrient-dense, animal-based foods by our early hominid ancestors allowed the selective pressure for a large, metabolically active gut to be relaxed [Leonard et al. 1994; Aiello and Wheeler 1995].
In addition to the smaller gut that humans maintain relative to apes, there are other metabolic and biochemical clues which point to increased utilization of animal food by humans over our evolutionary history. By evaluating the metabolic and biochemical dietary adaptations of cats (obligate carnivores) and those in humans (omnivores), it becomes apparent that evolution has shaped both hominid and feline metabolic machinery towards a diet in which animal food was predominant.
Obligate carnivores, such as cats, must obtain all of their nutrients from the flesh of other animals and have therefore evolved certain biochemical adaptations which are indicative of their total dietary dependence upon animal-based foods. Most of these biochemical adaptations involve either the loss (or reduced activity) of certain enzymes required for the synthesis of essential nutrients. These adaptations generally occurred because the evolutionary selection pressure to maintain these metabolic pathways was relaxed as cats gradually increased the amount of animal food in their diet as they evolutionarily progressed from omnivory into obligate carnivory.
Taurine
Taurine is an amino acid which is not found in any plant-based food [Laidlow et al. 1990] and which is an essential nutrient in all mammalian cells. Herbivores are able to synthesize taurine from precursor amino acids derived from plants, whereas cats have completely lost the ability to synthesize taurine [Knopf et al. 1978]. Since all animal-based foods (except cow's milk) are rich sources of taurine [Laidlow et al. 1990], cats have been able to relax the selective pressure required for taurine synthesis because they obtain all of this nutrient that they need from their exclusive meat-based diet.
Humans, unlike cats, still maintain the ability to synthesize taurine in the liver from precursor substances; however, this ability is quite limited and inefficient when compared to herbivores. Vegan vegetarians following diets devoid of animal products display low levels of both plasma and urinary taurine [Laidlow 1988]--levels which are indicative of the poor ability of humans to synthesize taurine. Similar to cats, this inability to efficiently synthesize taurine has come about because the selective pressure to produce this amino acid has been gradually reduced due to humankind's long reliance upon animal food, a food which is quite high in taurine.
20- and 22-carbon fatty acid requirements
Plant-based foods contain 18-carbon fatty acids of both the omega-3 and omega-6 families, but are virtually devoid of the 20- and 22-carbon fatty acids that are required for the normal functioning of all mammalian cells, whether the mammal is an herbivore or carnivore. Herbivores have evolved hepatic (liver) enzymes (desaturases and elongases) which allow these precursor, plant-based 18-carbon fatty acids to be chain-elongated and desaturated to their 20- and 22-carbon products.
Cats have extremely low levels of the enzymes required to make 20- and 22-carbon fatty acids from 18-carbon fatty acids [Salem et al. 1994]. Again, the selection pressure to synthesize 20- and 22-carbon lipids (fatty acids) has been almost entirely removed because cats obtain sufficient quantities of these long-chain fatty acids by eating animal tissues which are rich sources of these lipids. Humans, though not as inefficient as the cat, also have relatively inefficient elongase and desaturase enzymes [Salem et al. 1994]. Again, this metabolic change has occurred largely because the need to desaturate and chain-elongate 18-carbon plant fatty acids to their 20- and 22-carbon products has been reduced because humans, like cats, have obtained a large portion of their 20- and 22-carbon lipids directly by eating other animal tissues.
Vitamin A synthesis
All animals, whether herbivore or carnivore, require vitamin A. Vitamin A is not found in any plant-based food; consequently, herbivores must synthesize it in the liver from beta-carotene consumed from plant-based foods. Cats have lost the ability to synthesize vitamin A from beta-carotene [MacDonald et al. 1984], and must obtain all of their vitamin A from the organs (liver, kidney) of their prey. Again, cats have lost the ability to synthesize vitamin A because the selective pressure (need) to provide adaptive energy for the synthesis of proteins to catalyze the production of vitamin A was reduced as cats progressively increased the amount of animal foods in their diets.
Recently, it has been shown that humans have a limited capacity to absorb beta-carotene in plants [de Pee and West et al. 1995] (the bioavailability of beta-carotene from plants is low for humans compared to its bioavailability from other sources), presumably because humans, like cats, have consumed vitamin A-rich animal food sources for eons and are in a transitional state from omnivory to obligate carnivory.
Vitamin B-12
Vitamin B-12 is an essential nutrient for both herbivorous and carnivorous mammals. Because B-12 is not found in higher plants, herbivorous mammals must solely rely upon absorption of B-12 from bacteria that synthesize it in their gut. Cats can neither synthesize B-12 nor absorb it from their gut; consequently they have become wholly dependent upon animal flesh as their source for this essential nutrient.
Humans, like cats, cannot depend on the absorption of bacterially produced vitamin B-12 from the gut, and are reliant upon animal-based sources of this essential vitamin, since it does not occur in a biologically active form in any of the plant foods which humans normally eat. While some viable B-12 is synthesized in the human colon, the site of absorption is at the ileum, which is "upstream" from the colon at the lower end of the small intestine; thus for humans, B-12 synthesized in the colon is unavailable and must come from the food eaten [Herbert 1988]. Regarding possible B-12 synthesis in the small intestine above the ileum, the consensus of scientific literature indicates any amounts that may potentially be produced are not significant or reliable enough to serve as a dependable or sole source for most individuals.
Additionally, while most cases of B-12 deficiency in omnivores are due to problems of impaired absorption rather than a deficiency of nutritional intake [Herbert 1994], the opposite situation prevails in vegetarians eating only minimal amounts of animal by-products [Chanarin et al. 1988].
Further, studies in vegans have shown that despite physiological recycling and conservation mechanisms that become increasingly efficient as B-12 intake falls below normal daily requirements--so that very little is lost from the body--the likelihood is high that B-12 deficiency will eventually develop (after 20 years or more) in pure vegans who refrain without fail from ingesting any animal-based products or do not take B-12 supplements [Herbert 1994].
Recent work has delineated four stages of inadequate B-12 levels in strict vegetarians [Herbert 1994; Herbert 1988]. Vegans in early Stage I depletion--prior to ongoing depletion of stores and the declining blood levels of Stage II, biochemical deficiency and impaired DNA synthesis of Stage III, and clinical deficiencies of Stage IV--are able to maintain normal serum B-12 levels. However, this occurs by drawing from stored reserves in the liver and elsewhere which gradually become depleted, eventually to the point where actual deficiency develops many years later in those who maintain strict habits.
It is this negative metabolic B-12 balance which occurs soon after exogenous B-12 ceases to be ingested in appreciable quantities, many years prior to actual deficiency, which points to the human requirement for animal-based B-12 sources if one is to maintain a positive B-12 balance. One need not show actual cases of deficiency and end-stage megaloblastic anemia, but only the trend of long-term negative B-12 balance, to demonstrate the human metabolic need for animal-based foods to maintain a neutral or positive homeostatic balance.
It is now possible to determine negative homeostatic B-12 balance directly by distinguishing and measuring levels of the two forms in which B-12 is carried in the blood: either bound to the transcobalamin II "delivery" molecule (called TCII, for short), or bound to the haptocorrin molecule which is a form of "circulating storage." Haptocorrin maintains equilibrium with body stores, meaning that haptocorrin levels reflect current reserve stores of B-12. TCII, however, being the "delivery" molecule for B-12, transports and gives up its B-12 to cells that are actively using B-12 in DNA synthesis, and has a half-life in the blood of only 6 minutes. Thus, when exogenous intake of B-12 falls below normal, levels of TCII-carried B-12 begin to reflect the deficit rapidly, and subnormal levels will show up within one week, demonstrating negative B-12 balance. [Herbert 1994]
It is probable, therefore, that vegans with long-term normal B-12 balance are ingesting--inadvertently or otherwise--at least small amounts of B-12, if not from supplements, then from unreported animal-based sources in their food or contaminated by such sources. (In one study of vegans for which this has been observed, the cause was due to eating unwashed vegetables that had been grown in gardens containing intentionally manured soils, from which the B-12 came [Herbert 1988]. Ironically, the manure in this case was their own excrement, which as pointed out above harbors bacteria that produce B-12 in the human colon--where B-12 cannot be absorbed. Not unless, of course, it is reingested as in the unintentional coprophagy occurring in this instance, so that it can pass back through the small intestine again to the ileum where B-12 is actually absorbed.)
An indication of the masking effect of previously stored B-12 reserves in obscuring ongoing negative B-12 balance can be seen in long-term vegan mothers and their infants. Such mothers may maintain blood levels of haptocorrin B-12 in the normal range for lengthy periods (years) due to increasingly efficient recycling of B-12 as their reserve stores become depleted, and in adult vegans with such improved B-12 reabsorption, such clinical deficiency may take 20-30 years to manifest. However, infants of such mothers are born with almost no reserve stores (little or none are available in the mother's body to pass on to them) and go into clinical deficiency much more rapidly. [Herbert 1994]
In summary, the absence of the ability of humans to absorb bacterially produced B-12 in the colon, and the evidence that strictly behaving vegans will show negative TCII-carried B-12 balance even when total serum levels are in the normal range, is indicative of the long evolutionary history of animal-based foods in our diet.
Recap
These metabolic and biochemical adaptations in humans in response to increasingly meat-based diets, as well as the anthropological evidence provided by both contemporary and historical studies of hunter-gatherer diets, provide strong evidence for the central role of meat and animal tissues in the human diet. Although it is true that human populations can survive under broad plant/animal subsistence ratios, the consensus evidence supports the notion that whenever it was ecologically possible, animal calories would have always represented the majority of the total daily energy intake.
Loren Cordain, Ph.D.
REFERENCES
Aiello LC, Wheeler P (1995) "The expensive tissue hypothesis." Current Anthropology, vol. 36, pp. 199-221.
Chanarin I, Malkowska V, O'Hea A-M, Rinsler MG, Price AB (1985) "Megaloblastic anaemia in a vegetarian Hindu community." The Lancet, 1985(2), pp. 1168-1172.
de Pee S, West CE et al. (1995) "Lack of improvement in vitamin A status with increased consumption of dark leafy green vegetables." Lancet, vol. 346, pp. 75-81.
Herbert V (1994) "Staging vitamin B-12 (cobalamin) status in vegetarians." American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 59 (suppl.), pp. 1213S-1222S.
Herbert V (1988) "Vitamin B-12: plant sources, requirements, and assay." American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 48, pp. 852-858.
Knopf K et al. (1978) "Taurine: an essential nutrient for the cat." Journal of Nutrition, vol. 108, pp. 773-778.
Laidlow SA et al. (1990) "The taurine content of common foodstuffs." Journal of Parenteral Enteral Nutrition, vol. 14, pp. 183-188.
Laidlow SA (1988) "Plasma and urine levels in vegans." American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 47, pp. 660-663.
Leonard WR et al. (1994) "Evolutionary perspectives on human nutrition: the influence of brain and body size on diet and metabolism." American Journal of Human Biology, vol. 6, pp. 77-88.
MacDonald ML et al. (1984) "Nutrition of the domestic cat, a mammalian carnivore." Annual Review of Nutrition, vol. 4, pp. 521-562.
Murdock GP (1967) "Ethnographic atlas: a summary." Ethnology, vol. 6, pp. 109-236.
Salem N et al. (1994) "Arachidonate and docosahexaenoate biosynthesis in various species and compartments in vivo." World Review of Nutrition and Dietetics, vol. 75, pp. 114-119.
This article can be accessed at: http://web.archive.org/web/20080531035558/http://www.beyondveg.com/cordain-l/metab-carn/metabolic-carnivory-1a.shtml
More information on this subject: Books
: Scientific Studies : Websites : Videos : Food MallRecipe of the day
Alfresco Roast Beef Salad
Ingredients:
375g/12oz cooked, sliced cold roast beef
450g/1lb ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
Food Mall: Roast Beef
Food Mall: Roast Beef10ml/2tsp fresh thyme leaves1 small red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
125ml/4floz extra virgin olive oil
5ml/1tsp horseradish sauce
Salt and pepper
Extra fresh thyme leaves, to garnish
Method:
1.Put the roast beef in a large bowl with the tomatoes, thyme, onions, garlic, olive oil and horseradish. Season and lightly toss.
2.Cover and leave for 30 minutes in a cool place for the flavours to develop.
3.Toss the salad again thoroughly and scatter with extra fresh thyme leaves.
Jumat, 04 Februari 2011
Diabetics and non diabetics on a higher fat/low carbohydrate diet lose over 3 times as much weight as those on a "healthy-eating" (high carbohydrate/lower fat) diet
This post includes a synopsis of a study published in Diabetic Medicine 2007 Dec;24(12):1430-5 and a recipe for Tomato, chili pepper, and sweet onion frittata.
Study title and authors:
A low-carbohydrate diet is more effective in reducing body weight than healthy eating in both diabetic and non-diabetic subjects.
This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17971178
This study of 13 diabetic and 13 non diabetic subjects evaluated whether a low carbohydrate diet could allow diabetic and non diabetic subjects to lose weight.
Subjects followed either a higher fat/low carbohydrate diet or a "healthy eating
" (higher carbohydrate/lower fat) diet following Diabetes UK nutritional recommendations.
After 3 months both diabetics and non diabetics on the low carbohydrate diet lost over 3 times as much weight as those on the "healthy-eating" (high carbohydrate) diet.
Obesity is linked to diabetes so the weight reducing higher fat/low carbohydrate diet is more effective at treating diabetes than the Diabetes UK "healthy eating" diet.
More information on this subject: Books : Scientific Studies : Other Websites : Videos : Food Mall
Recipe of the day
Tomato, Chili Pepper, and Sweet Onion Frittata
Ingredient list:
1 10-ounce can of diced tomatoes and chilies
Garlic powder
Black pepper
Dried cilantro
Salt
Extra virgin olive oil
Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Chop enough onion to cover the bottom of a small frying pan. Open can and transfer tomatoes and chilies to an air-tight container to refrigerate leftovers. Crack three eggs into a small mixing bowl. Add salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and dried cilantro to taste. I’ve been on a cilantro-kick lately and have been adding it heavily. Stir with a fork or whisk to mix well.
Heat one tablespoon of oil in the bottom of a small frying pan over medium heat on the stove top. Add onion and let cook in the hot oil. Add tomatoes and chilies to the frying pan using a fork or slotted spoon to reduce the transfer of liquid. I need 2 fork full’s to cover the surface of the skillet. Let the mixture cook a bit, and then pour eggs over the vegetables and let cook until the edges begin to brown and can be edged away from the sides of the pan with a spatula (one or two minutes). Move the frying pan to the oven and let bake about six minutes until the eggs set fully and the top becomes firm to the touch. When done, remove from the oven and transfer to a plate.
Study title and authors:
A low-carbohydrate diet is more effective in reducing body weight than healthy eating in both diabetic and non-diabetic subjects.
Dyson PA, Beatty S, Matthews DR.
 |
| Books: |
Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Churchill Hospital, Oxford, UK. pam.dyson@orh.nhs.uk
This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17971178
This study of 13 diabetic and 13 non diabetic subjects evaluated whether a low carbohydrate diet could allow diabetic and non diabetic subjects to lose weight.
Subjects followed either a higher fat/low carbohydrate diet or a "healthy eating
" (higher carbohydrate/lower fat) diet following Diabetes UK nutritional recommendations.After 3 months both diabetics and non diabetics on the low carbohydrate diet lost over 3 times as much weight as those on the "healthy-eating" (high carbohydrate) diet.
Obesity is linked to diabetes so the weight reducing higher fat/low carbohydrate diet is more effective at treating diabetes than the Diabetes UK "healthy eating" diet.
More information on this subject: Books
: Scientific Studies : Other Websites : Videos : Food MallRecipe of the day
Tomato, Chili Pepper, and Sweet Onion Frittata
Ingredient list:
1 10-ounce can of diced tomatoes and chilies
 |
| Food Mall: Eggs |
Three fresh eggs
Sweet yellow onionGarlic powder
Black pepper
Dried cilantro
Salt
Extra virgin olive oil
Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Chop enough onion to cover the bottom of a small frying pan. Open can and transfer tomatoes and chilies to an air-tight container to refrigerate leftovers. Crack three eggs into a small mixing bowl. Add salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and dried cilantro to taste. I’ve been on a cilantro-kick lately and have been adding it heavily. Stir with a fork or whisk to mix well.
Heat one tablespoon of oil in the bottom of a small frying pan over medium heat on the stove top. Add onion and let cook in the hot oil. Add tomatoes and chilies to the frying pan using a fork or slotted spoon to reduce the transfer of liquid. I need 2 fork full’s to cover the surface of the skillet. Let the mixture cook a bit, and then pour eggs over the vegetables and let cook until the edges begin to brown and can be edged away from the sides of the pan with a spatula (one or two minutes). Move the frying pan to the oven and let bake about six minutes until the eggs set fully and the top becomes firm to the touch. When done, remove from the oven and transfer to a plate.
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| Tomato, Chili Pepper, and Sweet Onion Frittata |
Review of six studies finds that reduced carbohydrate diets are safe and effective for people with type 2 diabetes
This post includes a summary of a paper published in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics 2008 Dec;21(6):530-8 and a recipe for chili colorado.
This paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18759958
This review of six studies found that reduced carbohydrate diets are safe and effective for people with type 2 diabetes
.
All six studies also reported reductions in body weight.
More information on this subject: Books : Scientific Studies : Other Websites : Videos : Food Mall
Recipe of the day
Chili Colorado
Ingredients:
3 dried California chilies
3 dried Chile de Arbol
1 yellow onion, diced
5 garlic cloves, minced or 2 teaspoons crushed garlic
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2.5 lbs beef stew meat
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 cups beef broth
2 – 6oz cans of tomato paste
Black pepper and sea salt to taste
Instructions:
Rinse the dried chilies and place them in a pot with the 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil, turn the heat off and let the chilies soak in the water for 30 minutes. While the chilies are soaking, dice your onion and garlic. Heat the oil in a large soup pot and add the onions. Cook the onions until they start to brown. Add the garlic and the beef to the onions and brown the beef for 7-10 minutes. Add the beef broth, tomato paste, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper to the beef. Bring to a boil, turn down to medium low or low and let simmer. While the beef is simmering, it’s time to prepare the peppers. Remove the stems from the peppers and place the peppers in a food processor with half of the liquid that the peppers were boiling in. Pulse the peppers until smooth. Using a sieve, pour the ground peppers through the sieve and into the pot with the beef. Use a spoon to help the contents through the sieve, leaving behind the seeds and any of bits of pepper skin. Pour the remaining cooking liquid through the sieve as well into the pot. Bring to a boil, turn back down to low and let the Colorado simmer for 2 hours or until your meat is tender. Serve with avocado and cilantro.
Study title and author:
 |
| Books: |
A review of low and reduced carbohydrate diets and weight loss in type 2 diabetes.
Dyson PA.
Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology & Metabolism, Churchill Hospital, Headington, Oxford, UK. pamela.dyson@ocdem.ox.ac.uk
This paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18759958
This review of six studies found that reduced carbohydrate diets are safe and effective for people with type 2 diabetes
. All six studies also reported reductions in body weight.
More information on this subject: Books
: Scientific Studies : Other Websites : Videos : Food Mall Recipe of the day
Chili Colorado
Ingredients:
 |
| Food Mall: Beef Stew Meat |
4 cups water
7 dried New Mexico chilies3 dried California chilies
3 dried Chile de Arbol
1 yellow onion, diced
5 garlic cloves, minced or 2 teaspoons crushed garlic
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2.5 lbs beef stew meat
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 cups beef broth
2 – 6oz cans of tomato paste
Black pepper and sea salt to taste
Instructions:
Rinse the dried chilies and place them in a pot with the 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil, turn the heat off and let the chilies soak in the water for 30 minutes. While the chilies are soaking, dice your onion and garlic. Heat the oil in a large soup pot and add the onions. Cook the onions until they start to brown. Add the garlic and the beef to the onions and brown the beef for 7-10 minutes. Add the beef broth, tomato paste, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper to the beef. Bring to a boil, turn down to medium low or low and let simmer. While the beef is simmering, it’s time to prepare the peppers. Remove the stems from the peppers and place the peppers in a food processor with half of the liquid that the peppers were boiling in. Pulse the peppers until smooth. Using a sieve, pour the ground peppers through the sieve and into the pot with the beef. Use a spoon to help the contents through the sieve, leaving behind the seeds and any of bits of pepper skin. Pour the remaining cooking liquid through the sieve as well into the pot. Bring to a boil, turn back down to low and let the Colorado simmer for 2 hours or until your meat is tender. Serve with avocado and cilantro.
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| Chili Colorado |
34% more weight loss on a low carb diet compared to a low fat diet
This post includes a summary of a paper published in Cardiovascular diabetology 2009 Jul 18;8:36 and a recipe for chicken and chard.
Study title and authors:
A randomized controlled trial on the efficacy of carbohydrate-reduced or fat-reduced diets in patients attending a telemedically guided weight loss program.
This paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19615091
The study revealed that the carbohydrate-reduced diet was more beneficial with respect to weight loss
and cardiovascular risk factors compared to the fat-reduced diet.
Subjects lost 34% more weight on the low carb diet compared to the low fat diet.
More information on this subject: Books : Scientific Studies : Other Websites : Videos : Food Mall
Recipe of the day
Chicken and Chard
½ red onion, diced
2 bunches of rainbow chard, roughly choped
1.5 lbs boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1 – 4oz can of roasted diced green chile’s
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon of ground all spice
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
Small handful of raisins and raw sliced almonds for garnish
Instructions:
In a large wok or skillet heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until they start to turn translucent. Add the chicken and cook for 3-5 minutes or until almost cooked through. Add the garlic and saute together with the chicken and onions for another 2-3 minutes. Add the salt, pepper, cumin, allspice, and the can of chile’s and mix well. Add the chard and cook until the chard is wilted, about another 3-4 minutes. Serve with a sprinkle of raisins and almonds.
Study title and authors:
A randomized controlled trial on the efficacy of carbohydrate-reduced or fat-reduced diets in patients attending a telemedically guided weight loss program.
 |
| Books: |
Frisch S, Zittermann A, Berthold HK, Götting C, Kuhn J, Kleesiek K, Stehle P, Körtke H.
Klinik für Thorax- und Kardiovaskularchirurgie, Herzzentrum NRW, Ruhr Universität Bochum, Bad Oeynhausen, Germany. sfrisch@hdz-nrw.deThis paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19615091
The study revealed that the carbohydrate-reduced diet was more beneficial with respect to weight loss
and cardiovascular risk factors compared to the fat-reduced diet.Subjects lost 34% more weight on the low carb diet compared to the low fat diet.
More information on this subject: Books
: Scientific Studies : Other Websites : Videos : Food Mall Recipe of the day
Chicken and Chard
 |
| Food Mall: Boneless Chicken Breasts |
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons coconut oil
5 garlic cloves, minced½ red onion, diced
2 bunches of rainbow chard, roughly choped
1.5 lbs boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1 – 4oz can of roasted diced green chile’s
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon of ground all spice
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
Small handful of raisins and raw sliced almonds for garnish
Instructions:
In a large wok or skillet heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until they start to turn translucent. Add the chicken and cook for 3-5 minutes or until almost cooked through. Add the garlic and saute together with the chicken and onions for another 2-3 minutes. Add the salt, pepper, cumin, allspice, and the can of chile’s and mix well. Add the chard and cook until the chard is wilted, about another 3-4 minutes. Serve with a sprinkle of raisins and almonds.
 |
| Chicken and Chard |
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