Carbohydrates:

So are you surprised? Fallon and Price both basically state refined carbs are BAD BAD BAD!!!!! Digestion of refined carbs actually uses the body’s stores of vitamins and minerals just to digest and process them! We are usually taught that refined carbs are “empty” calories because they don’t harm or benefit… but actually they are “negative” calories. They actually rob our bodies of nutrients we had previously stored up.

Sugars and starches in their unrefined state are digested slowly and enter the blood stream over hours and keep the energy level consistent by releasing glucose at a controlled rate. When eating refined starches or sugars they are usually eaten alone without any fats or proteins so they enter the blood stream quickly which stresses the endocrine system. These foods are usually low in vitamins, minerals and enzymes.

“When the endocrine system thus becomes disturbed, numerous other pathological conditions soon manifest – degenerative diseases, allergies, obesity, alcoholism, drug addiction, depression, learning disabilities, and behavioral problems.” (Page 22)

Poor regulation of glucose causes diabetes or hypoglycemia. Both are caused by eating a lot of carbs which in turn contributes to blindness, gangrene, heart disease, diabetes, allergies, headaches, chronic fatigue, seizures, depression and more.

In 1821 the average sugar intake was 10 lbs per person per year. It has now increased to 170 lbs per person per year, becoming ¼ of all calories we consume on a daily basis. I never would have guessed!

There was research done in the 1970s that supported the fact that sugar and refined carbs are a contributor to heart disease. What happened? Why isn’t that believed anymore?

“More plagues than heart disease can be laid at sugar’s door. A survey of medical journals in the 1970s produced findings implicating sugar as a causative factor in kidney disease, liver disease, shortened life span, increased desire for coffee and tobacco, atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease. Sugar consumption is associated with hyperactivity, behavior problems, lack of concentration and violent tendencies. Sugar consumption encourages the overgrowth of candida albicans, a systemic fungus in the digestive tract, causing it to spread to the respiratory system, tissues and internal organs. Sugar consumption is positively associated with cancer in humans and test animals. Tumors are known to be enormous sugar absorbers. Research indicates that it is the fructose, not glucose, moiety of sugar that is the most harmful, especially for growing fructose corn syrup used in soft drinks, ketchup and many other fabricated foods aimed at children.” (pg 23 and 24)

Sugar also causes tooth decay not because it increases bacterial growth in the mouth but because it alters internal chemistry. We need a precise ratio of phosphate and calcium and sugar consumption alters that causing poor teeth and other health problems. Fallon recommends limited intake of raw honey, date sugar, rapadura and maple syrup and no table sugar, raw sugar, brown sugar corn syrup, fructose or large amounts of fruit juice.

Protein:

We all need protein for growth, milk production, blood clotting and hormone production. A decreased intake of protein does cause muscle loss which may be a factor in coronary heart disease.

Protein can’t be processed or efficiently utilized without fats which is why protein is often together in eggs, milk, meat and fish. Fallon has quite a lot to say about vegetarians, here is a case in point (page 27)

“Vegetarians often claim that animal products shorten life span, but the most cursory look at long-lived ethnic groups proves that this is not the case. Russians from the Caucasus Mountains, an area famous for longevity, eat lots of fatty meat and whole milk products. Studies of Soviet Georgian populations show that those who have the most meat and fat in their diets live the longest. Inhabitants of Vilcabamba in Equador, known for longevity, consume a variety of animal foods including whole milk and fatty pork. The long-lived people of Hunza consume animal protein in the form of high-fat goat milk products. On the other hand, the vegetarian inhabitants of southern India have one of the shortest life spans in the world.”

The best form of zinc is found in animal meat. Low zinc levels are linked to learning disabilities, mental retardation, and decreased fertility in men.

Usable vitamin B12 only occurs in animal products. Deficiencies in this vitamin cause pernicious anemia, impaired eyesight, panic attacks, schizophrenia, hallucinations, and nervous disorders such as weakness, numbness, loss of balance and other symptoms. Deficiencies have also been found is strictly breast fed babies of vegetarians.

There are multiple pages imploring vegetarians to eat meat. Fallon also stresses that not just any meat should be eaten. Grass fed meats, raw milk, and free range eggs are important. She goes on to talk about the statistics of meats and eggs. It is gross, and the illnesses that can be associated with it are astounding.

All meats with nitrates should be avoided as well. Examples of these meats are luncheon meats, bacon, hot dogs, etc. Nitrates and nitrites are linked to cancer of the esophagus, stomach, intestines, lungs and bladder.

Milk & Milk Products:

All of us need lactase to digest milk proteins. 30-40% of people produce lactase in adulthood… so many of us should have problems digesting milk. However, by fermenting or souring milk, lactose is broken down and even those with intolerances shouldn’t have problems, however there is still some lactose in butter and cream.

Cheese from raw milk has enzymes still in it that make it more easily digested. Processed cheeses should be avoided because they contain emulsifiers, extenders, phosphates and hydrogenated oils.

However, milk in the super market is bad for you. Cows today produce 3-4 times as much milk in a day as they did a century ago. Cows used to only produce 2-3 gallons of milk in a day. In order to increase the production cows are given growth hormones which causes them to secrete pus into the milk. They are also fed a lot of protein and soybean meal which increases production as well, but also gives them a high incidence of mastitis for which they would need antibiotics.

Grass fed cows produce milk with lots of beneficial vitamins and minerals. Raw milk also has lactic acid bacteria which helps protect against pathogens. Pasteurization and homogenization destroys these enzymes, vitamins and minerals.
Raw milk cheese is readily available and easy to find. Most imported cheeses are raw and many grocery stores that carry high quality foods would have them as well.

There was so much information in these topics that I don’t even feel like I’ve touched the tip of the iceberg. Almost every sentence I have written was to condense a few paragraphs, for which there was so much information; there really is no good way to summarize what was written! At least this gives you a taste for the wealth of knowledge the book contains. More to come!!!!!

Read Part IV