Natures Guidelines

The Protein-Fat partnership
I have noticed that in nature, protiens come with various amounts of fat ranging from 4g/100g milk ( relatively low due to a high water content) to an average of 50g in nuts ( possibly due to the high protein content eg about 25g of protein in peanuts and high fiber content also present. Fiber appears, and you will know this fron experience, to be the best appetite control mechanism preventing over consumption.  The main point I am making here however is that most animal protein sources such as fish, meat, eggs and dairy products all come generously clad in fat!

 I am therefore suggesting that we have evolved to eat these nutrients together and that our palat for fat does not mearly have something to do with our nutritional fatty acid and triglyceride requirements but is also associated with proein requirements, digestion and that our feelings of hunger and satiation have evolved around this healthy partnership. Eating the fat on its own is not a natural human compulsion and so rather than removing the fat, enjoy  it with satisfaction, as part of a well balance meal which, according to guidelines published by most reputable nutritional bodies eg the BNF (largly based on studies which correlate saturated fat intake with cardiovascular disease) includes an average of 20g of saturated fat (1.5 tblespoons and equivalent to approximately 200 calories a day). http://www.netrition.com/rdi_page.html. The rest of your fat intake (a total reccommended daily ammount of 65g and  approximately 600 calories/day (30% of your calorific intake) should then ideally come from unsaturated fat sources such as oily fish, seed, olive, and avocado oils.

No Carbs Without fiber

Fiber on the other hand tends to occur in combination with carbohydrates and with plant proteins (as pointed out in the example of nuts.) Examples range from fruit to grains and pulses. Fiber appears, and you will know this fron experience, to be the best appetite control mechanism preventing over consumption. Remove the fiber and  you tend to feel less full, hence the urge to eat more. The latter can only be a good thing if you're an extreme athlete,  or worryingly underweight. So by default, should we not be eating the whole fruit rather than just drinking the extracted juice as if feeding an infant without teeth? Similarly  what business do we have extracting the sugar and consuming it in vast quantities whilst throwing away the skins (which is where the bulk of vitamins and minerals are found) and the flesh with its soluble and insoluble fiber ( our natural appetite suppressant.) ? Eat too much fibre and the bloated sensation, flatulence, slight tummy upset with frequent visits tot the loo will tell you all about it! It takes a whole lot more refined sugar and hence calories to reach this point of discomfort and for for some people, the cut out switch has all but disappeared  Instead a sugar dependence akin to addiction has developed.


Can these patterns and combinations that naturally occur in our food sources be the nutritional blueprint found in human DNA that is designed to make us best adapted to life on this planet? Surely these are not mere subliminal messages or coincidence but according to the laws of evolution, they have everything to do with how we ought to be eating in order to ensure the success of our species! In a world where we have tampered with our food from its genetics to its finished composition, and in a world where geography places no limits on the variety of choice we have on the menu every day,  looking to nature alone to provides us with solutions to our modern dietary woes would be an ignorant thing to suggest....On the other hand have others (with superior health records and life expectancy  from various religions or cultures not already led us in this direction?

To my mind this is suggestive of an hypothesis that goes something like this:
1.Our human omnivorous diet/digestive system has evolved around these food sources in their natural form.
2.Our digestive system and metabolic systems have not changed much over the 200 000 years that humans are  estimated to have been on earth.
3. Humans have altered the natural compositions quite dramatically eg extracting and refining sugars, hence consuming them in large concentrated doses, separate  from the fibre with which they naturally occur.
 Or, as in the case of fats, skimming the cream off and separating it from dairy proteins, extracting plant oils instead of eating the entire seed/nut complete with the plant protein.
4. Urgo, the human body has not had enough time to evolve to suit a refined diet, and is highly unlikely to since to do so results in all manner of dietary diseases. Only the fittest survive, so the whole foods diet is destined to remain the optimum form of nutrition for human kind, regardless of our indulgent and addictive traits.

The question is how do we turn  the clock ' back to the future'and render ourselves modern day time-tabled,button pushing, tv watching,  car driving, logging on, texting and gaming hunter-gatherers....... for the sake of restoring nutritional harmony between nature and ourselves.

The answer as with everything else is sever our dependency on The Man (this of includes the big supermarket chains) , and take responsibility for every ingredient that we put inside our body. The food industry was never going to and never will have our interests at heart so why do we sacrifice our longevity and wellbeing for the convenience they offer? Like the addicts they have turned us into we fall pray for their salt and sugar logged, nutrient and fibre depleted merchandise. What for? To save money? You know that this is false economy both in the long and the short term.(I will elaborate later on) To save time? Now who are you kidding? What you really mean is to save you the energy  expenditure.......the very reason you are not burning all those excessive calories you're consuming! Oh but I have to direct my energy elsewhere...Then I can only surmise that you do not love life enough to make health, fitness and longevity your top priorities. Or have you taken you eye off the ball? The clocks ticking, but you think you can get away with abusing and neglecting your body indefinitely, under the pretext that your having fun! Thats what they they all say when they start on drugs......A bit harsh and judgemental? You decide.

If you can afford your own nutritionist and cook or frequent an organic/ whole foods restaurant for most of your meals, then all power to you. But for the rest of us mere mortals we are faced the challenge of finding a way to maintain an optimum weight and a healthy lifestyle whilst juggling work, family and personal interests, hopefully without becoming social misfits or joining any particular lifestyle group, religion, or  cult.

This is my current endever.

Personal Energy Requirements

I am a 44 year old women, of average ( for a multiracial  British population) weight (60kg) and height (1.64m).

My job is neither sedetary nor manual (teaching, so moving on my feet for the majority of my day, 6am to 8pm) including a 30m intense work out 4 days on week-days and approx 3hrs of power walking/swimming at the weekend.

According to the BNF my estimated BMR (energy ecpenditure when resting) is 1.1kcal per min x 12hrs of sleeping and sitting/day;
when on my feet my energy expenditure is 1.6 x 1.1 for my general activity level for 10.5hrs/day and
 1.8x1.1 for an average of 30m intense exercise per day ( the equivalent of 60min moderate intensity).

My estimated total energy expenditure is 792+ 1108+120= 2020kcal/day on average. This is based on my sex, age, weight and activity level using the established data  and not according to direct measurements.

According to Department of health recommendations young people should have 60mins at least moderate intensity exercise/ day 5 days per week or more. For older people its 30mins/day of at least moderate exercise (advice published as part of their campaign to reduce Britain's obesity levels).

The Premise

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2013/mar/20/sugar-deadly-obesity-epidemic

5 RULES OF THUMB:

1.Its okay to eat fat with a good protein source because this is generally (with a few exceptions in fruits such as olives and avocados)how they occur in nature. However be mindful of a healthy fatty acids intake: roughly 5%-10% sat 15% mono/omega and 15% polyunsaturated fatty acids and an average of 30- 40%  of calories in total.

2. Eat fibre with carbs. NO EXTRACTED SUGARS OR ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS.

3. Break the rule once or twice a week/special occasions if you must, with a small snack size treat eg desert straight after Sunday roast dinner and/or glass of wine or 2, twice a week, preferably taken with a well- balanced meal which helps the  liver to metabolise it more efficiently .

4. Fast for 18-24hrs once or  twice a week in whichever manner you can manage to cut your calorie intake by 2/3eg a 600 calorie supper as the only meal that day).

5. Maintain an active lifestyle (eg moving on your feet for most of the day as opposed to sedentary activity.
Match intensive exercise sessions to occupation eg a sedentary occupation requires more than the statuary 3 times a week for half an hour of doubling your resting heart rate whereas a manual labourer may not require  any supplimentary exercise to maintain a strong heart and lungs.

These rules may help weight loss and subsequent maintenance as part of a reduced portion healthy  diet plan for life as per the studies into the health benefits of caloric restriction. They may also have self regulating ways of  controlling weight according the well documented bulking effect of fibre and the satiating and sustaining effects of low GI (slow gradual energy release from energy sources) . The easiest most straight forward way of making this happen is to eat whole foods, nothing added or taken away except for inedible bitter and humanly indigestible cellulose such as husks and banana skins etc. This incidentally results in maximisation of nutrient intake from foods and the hence revitalisation and slowing down of the aging process.

Refines foods contain many empty calories, and most vitamins are contained just under the skin of plant foods. Additionally there is the undoubted benefit to control of type 2 diabetes, improved bowl function and prevention of a myriad of diet related diseases including several types of cancer...to name but a few pluses.

My premise for this diet plan is that nature has designed food in such a way that there are clear pointers on how to eat food stuffs that occur in nature and obvious signs of the inedible. If we keep insisting on isolating substances that should be eaten together with the rest of the food source, dietary imbalances will occur.

This essentially  means no added extracted sugars or extracted fats, unless a minimal amount is used for the frying stage of cooking. In this case some very low carb veg which also have negligible fat eg greens, spinach, cucumbers, mushrooms etc served alongside the meal will compensate for refined carbohydrates like white rice and lean cuts of meat can compensate for added extracted oils. Scientific data confirms these GI lowering stratergies to be effective.  Even honey should be eaten with the honey comb to lower its GI.

My current thinking is in a dynamic state of ongoing literature research and self experimentation. However my ideas are hopefully based on a pretty solid scientific background, since I have an MSc in Nutrition from Kings College London and have been keeping abreast of the latest and well renowned  peer reviewed studies, which hopefully I will be able to site on this blog, when I go into more detail.

However, I admit to somewhat going out on a whim here, and if I have overlooked any important facts, scientific studies etc or if you have any personal testimonies or practical ideas on weaning ourselves off the sweet tooth and extracted fat/oil thirst that is ingrained in our culture eg delicious wholesome recipes, natural substitutes etc, I would be delighted if you could share these , and enguage in some healthy discussion/debate on this forum. Who knows where this could go or what it could lead to.

Bon voyage!