Fast Food, Trans Fats, Food Nutrition

[Guest guest]

Fast Food, Trans Fats, Food Nutrition

JoAnn Guest

May 21, 2007 15:39 PDT

 

The following is an excerpt from The Willner Window radio show,

airing on January 9th. The show opened with a group discussion of

whether the average diet was lacking in nutrients, with reference to

studies of

fast food nutrition, changes in the content of vitamins in fruits

and vegetables, loss of nutrients in processed oatmeal, the value of

supplements and new studies on the herb, Butterbur, for treating

migraines.

 

Arnie: Good afternoon everyone, this is .... Welcome to The Willner

Window. For those of you who might be first-time listeners, the

focus of this show is nutritional supplements–vitamins, herbs,

homeopathic remedies–and their proper usage. With me this afternoon

is . .

 

Arnie: For the past couple of weeks, we have been addressing the

question raised by one of our callers, " why do we need to take

nutritional supplements? Why can't we just get what we need from

food? "

 

I think we've done a pretty good job of answering that question, but

it

is hard to ignore the constant stream of studies and research that

supports the need for supplements. So we want to run down a few of

them before we get to your telephone calls.

 

Sam: First, we could talk about studies that support the position

that it is unrealistic to think we can rely on diet alone. More to

the point, it is unrealistic to think that telling most Americans to

eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, is going to work.

 

First, you may have heard about the recent study published in the

medical journal, Lancet. This was a large, long study, and it looked

at

what happens to adults who eat frequently at fast-food restaurants.

 

Here is their conclusion: " After 15 years, those who ate at fast-

food restaurants more than twice each week had gained an extra ten pounds and

had a two-fold greater increase

in insulin resistance, a risk factor for type 2 diabetes. Diabetes is a major

risk factor for heart disease. "

 

They added the following comment: " It's extremely difficult to eat

in a healthy way at a fast-food restaurant. Despite some of their recent

healthful offerings, the menus still tend to include foods high in fat,

sugar and calories and low in fibre and nutrients. "

 

Dr. Podell: At the same time, the results of the latest A.C. Nielson

survey reveals " only 12% of Americans claim to eat the 5 recommended

servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

 

And approximately 1/3 of the calories that people do consume are

from nutrient-poor foods such as alcohol and soda. This combination has led to a

population that consumes too few nutrients, which according to the

Journal of American Medical Association puts people at risk for

long-term health concerns. "

 

Arnie: OK, so it should be obvious that while it would be nice if

most people derived their essential nutrients from foods, for many

reasons, it just isn't going to happen. Taking nutritional supplements is one

obvious way for most Americans to increase their intake of those

essential vitamins and minerals that they do not seem to be getting

from their diet.

 

To imply otherwise, as the caller may have been doing several weeks

ago,

is myopic at best, and delusional at worst.

 

Sam: To make matters even worse, even if you tried to eat a

healthier

diet, you might not be able to. According to a study published in

the

Journal of the American College of Nutrition, December

2004, " compared

to 50 years ago, today's fruits and vegetables carry smaller amounts

of

some key nutrients, including protein, calcium and vitamin C.

 

" Although there is probably more than one explanation, the trend may

be

largely due to farmers choosing to breed higher-yielding crops.

 

Plants have a fixed amount of energy they can spend and varieties

with

high yields may have less energy to take minerals from the soil and

transport them around the plant or to synthesize vitamins and amino

acids, which make up proteins. "

 

Arnie: This recent study is not the first that shows a decline in

the

nutrient content of fruits and vegetables. And, bear in mind, we are

talking, in these studies, about the raw, fresh fruits and

vegetables–not the nutritient content after they have been processed.

 

Processing, of course, results in further depletion.

 

Dr. Podell: This is not something to take lightly. There was an

article

in this week's New York Times by Marian Burros, talking about

oatmeal.

Oatmeal contains soluble fiber, and the health benefits of soluble

fiber

are so widely accepted that the government has allowed companies to

actually put a claim on their food label, to the effect of " Soluble

fiber from oatmeal, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and

cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease, " or " Diets low in

saturated fat and cholesterol that include three grams of soluble

fiber

from whole oats per day may reduce the risk of heart disease. "

 

Well, that is all well and good, but what kind of oatmeal do most

people

eat?

Rather than eat the old fashioned, steel-cut or rolled type, they

eat

the new flavored, instant oatmeal.

 

The problem is that these instant versions only contain one-half as

much, or less, soluble fiber!

 

So again, we are faced with certain facts. Saying that we don't need

supplements, and that we can get our nutrients from a healthy diet,

is

noble, but unrealistic. Supplements make sense.

 

.. . . especially if you are using the supplement as more than just a

source of nutrition. Oat bran, or soluble fiber, is a good example.

We

know that increased intake of soluble fiber–oat bran, psyllium, etc–

can

help lower elevated cholesterol. What is wrong with " supplementing "

your

diet with an oat bran, or other soluble fiber supplement?

 

Arnie: This ties in to one of the other arguments about the value of

supplements, of course, and this is when they are being used as

therapeutic agents, not just food.

 

When you take fish oil supplements, for example, you are not using

them

as a substitute for dinner. You are taking them because they contain

concentrated levels of omega-3 fatty acids, which have therapeutic

activity. The EPA and DHA fatty acids found in fish oil have been

proven

to help combat Crohn's disease, high blood pressure, high

triglycerides,

rheumatoid arthritis, and many other health problems.

 

Does it makes sense, with this being the case, to say " why do we

need

supplements? Why can't we just eat a health diet? "

 

Sam: Fish oil is a good example, because this is a good example of

when

the supplement is actually better than the food.

 

 

Dr. Podell: Taking it one step further, when we talk about

supplements,

we are not just talking about basic vitamins and minerals. We are

talking about herbs, enzymes, amino acids. Substances that, while

they

may be derived from natural sources, are not normally used as a

source

of food.

 

These supplements can have very useful therapeutic action, and can

oftentimes be used instead of more powerful, more potentially

haxardous,

drugs.

 

Let's take migraine headaches, for example. We know that magnesium

can

help. Vitamin B2, or riboflavin, can help. The herb feverfew has

long

been used for migraines.

 

In the case of vitamin B2, some studies, using doses in the area of

400

mg per day–much more than you need to prevent nutritional deficiency–

the

severity and frequency of migraines decreased from 50% to two-

thirds,

when compared to placebo.

 

Is a high daily does of vitamin B2 going to work for you? We don't

know.

But wouldn't it be a logical thing to try. It's cheap. It's safe.

And

there is good reason to think it might help.

 

Arnie: Here is another very impressive vote for the therapeutic

value of

supplements. According to a study published in the December 28th

issue

of Neurology, the herb butterbur, also known a Petasites hybridus,

is

effective for preventing migraines.

 

They ran a three-group, parallel trial, with a total of 245

patients.

There was a control group, and two groups on butterbur, ad different

dose levels. The study ran for four months. The results indicated

that

butterbur root extract, 75 mg, twice daily, reduced migraine attack

frequency approximately twice as much as the placebo. At this dose

level, 75 mg twice daily, the investigators say that Petasites, or

butterbur, is comparable to prescription preventive medications.

 

Sam: I guess we could again draw the parallel between the

supplement, an

extract of butterbur root, and the actual plant. Eating the plant

would

be ill-advised.

We carry butterbur, although it is not one of the more commonly used

herbs in this country. We have " Petasites Concentrate Drops, " by

Herb

Pharm, and " Urovex Butterbur Extract, " in softgels, by Source

Naturals.

 

The Source Naturals product is standardized at 50 mg, and is also

recommend for bladder control problems.

http://www.willner.com/radio_04-04-04.aspx?id=34

 

JoAnn Guest

mrsjo-

www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/