"Nat TheBrat" <[email hidden]> wrote
Quoted message said:I'm new to LCing, but it seems to me that there are a number of
inaccuracies about LCing in the article, and I'd appreciate a critique
of the article by more knowledgable posters.
Quoting one critic of low carbing:
" 'In the long term, there is no question that low-carb diets will be
shown to be dangerous,' he says, noting that hundreds of
epidemiological studies around the world have demonstrated that
high-carbohydrate foods such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
reduce risk of heart disease and prevent cancer."
Does any LC eating plan keep one from eating vegetables and fruits?
You may be new to LC'ing, Nat, but you called this one right. It still
amazes me that highly credentialed "experts" feel free to critique LC diets
without apparently having any understanding of what they consist of, usually
a superficial media-based understanding at best.
Of course you can eat fruits and vegetables on LC. Fruit is normally
limited, but once you're past the initial stage (Induction on Atkins) you
can probably work up to about as many low-starch vegetables as you'd care to
eat. Granted it's possible to do LC in ways that are less healthy, but
that's not what most of the LC authors advise for ongoing weight loss and
maintenance.
Personally, I eat a ton of vegetables and even have fruit sometimes twice a
day. Yesterday, for instance, I had a wedge of melon for breakfast (along
with my eggs and ham), a huge salad for lunch full of all kinds of cut-up
vegetables, red cabbage and romaine lettuce, along with a couple hard-cooked
eggs, a small scoop of cottage cheese and a sprinkle of sunflower seeds -
probably 4-5 servings of vegetables (per official measurement designations)
just in the salad. For dinner, along with my chicken I sauteed a
medium-sized bunch of shredded collard greens and a little onion and garlic,
plus I had a big serving of sweet red bell pepper strips. And for dessert,
half a big peach topped with as-sweetened sour cream and sliced almonds. For
the day, 9-10 servings of vegetables/fruits - far more than most Americans
on a standard diet consume. And I'm low-carbing!
I've found that so long as I keep my carbs low enough to keep insulin levels
down and hunger under control, I can either maintain or lose weight,
depending on calorie intake. And for me, just being under 100 g carbs or so
does that. But everybody is different, and some people need to keep carbs
lower. Still, I also find that using veggies for my carbs has a much more
positive effect on my hunger levels than if I was to load up on crackers or
the various LC processed foods. Bottom line, LC can be done in very healthy
ways, or can be a nutritional disaster. It's the choice of the user.
Quoted message said:And is it only the high carb veggies that reduce the risk of heart
disease and cancer?
Actually, even whole grains offer a very low nutrient density, compared to
low-starch vegetables and low-sugar fruits. You don't miss out on all that
much cutting out, or way back on, grains. You miss out on ENORMOUS benefits
by skipping vegetables (especially) and berries. The most nutritionally
dense vegetables, calorie for calorie, are of course the dark green leafy
ones, and these are very low in carbs once you subtract out the fiber. Kale
rules, I use it all the time. It's good sauteed with a little olive oil and
garlic and/or onion, but it's also good to shred or chop leaves and add to
stews and soups. In fact, if you mince it finely it can be used in all the
same ways you'd use parsley. I often mince a good-sized leaf and add it to
my big green salads. Of all the vegetables, kale is up at about the top of
the list in terms of nutrient density, and it is very low in carbs.
Quoted message said:Seems to me that much of the criticism of LCing in the article has to
do with the new lc products coming out now. So how does that make LC
with naturally LC foods dangerous?
It doesn't of course, but there are a lot of nutritionists and dieticians
and physicians with a nanny complex, and they fear that we'll all end up
eating a diet of 100% bacon, cream, and marbled steaks with zero vegetables,
so best to warn us away. Plus they've been brainwashed by the low-fat mantra
that's been sounding for the last several decades.
HG
