Nutritional guidelines

In a previous post, we highlighted the physical activity guidelines promoted by HHS, which can be considered a decent baseline. Sadly, we cannot say the same of their nutritional guidelines: they advocate for too many carbohydrates, and their daily dairy consumption is outrageous and absolutely not supported by science. It is only the result of lobbying.

Many factors contribute to making nutritional recommendations very confusing. First, the big food lobby has a strong incentive to make it sound complex and time-consuming to cook your food, so you stop trying and buy the ultra-processed high-profit food-like products they engineer and sell. Second, to promote these highly processed products and create confusion, the food industry spends billions of dollars a year sponsoring ‘pseudo-scientific” studies. Finally, nutritional science is complex because of all the factors that influence our health: our specific characteristics like genetic factors, lifestyle, and food-specific factors like whole-grain versus highly refined flour. For example, studies using cornfed vs. pasture-raised beef or farm-raised and cornfed vs. wild salmon will come up with opposite conclusions regarding their health benefits. If we don’t differentiate between cornfed and non-cornfed, we would not know that cornfed animal products are pro-inflammatory, whereas pasture-raised or wild ones are anti-inflammatory. For plant-derived products, the way plants are grown matters. For example, industrial farms will use chemical pesticides like glyphosate that disrupt many of our biochemical pathways and usually contain smaller amounts of nutrients than their organic counterparts.

When it comes to dietary recommendations, we need to be precise enough to avoid making wrong statements like “fat is bad” or “carbs are bad.” There are healthy and unhealthy choices for protein, fats, and carbohydrates.

Simple principles for a healthy diet

  • Eat mostly vegetables, organic if possible, at least for the dirty dozen (link in references) to reduce exposure to biochemicals and toxins.
  • Eat high-quality proteins (pasture-raised beef, lamb, pork and poultry, wild seafood)
  • Eat fruits
  • Mix Protein, Fat, and Carbs at every meal to feel full longer
  • Add fiber to carbs-heavier meals to avoid blood sugar spikes.
  • Hydrate enough

Avoid the following food:

  • simple and refined carbs like sugar and flour
  • hydrogenated fats
  • highly processed foods

References

  • The Pegan Diet, Mark Hyman, MD
  • Food: What the heck should I eat, Mark Hyman, MD
  • Food: What the heck should I cook, Mark Hyman, MD
  • Genius living, Max Lugavere. Collection