On Food and Health
Archives: May 2004
The Health Benefits of Wine
The U.S. Department of Agriculture notes in the 2000 edition of Dietary Guidelines for Americans, that “If adults choose to drink alcoholic beverages, they should consume them only in moderation and with meals to slow alcohol absorption.” The USDA defines moderation as no more than two, 5-ounce glasses of wine for men and one, 5-ounce glass of wine for women. The difference between the two is based on weight and metabolism. It further states that “drinking in moderation may lower risk for coronary heart disease.” Other factors like a diet rich in nutrients from whole foods and vegetable protein, physical activity, avoidance of smoking and keeping a healthy weight also contribute to a lower risk of heart and other diseases. More...
To carb or not to carb? That is the question
Low carbohydrate dieting is in vogue. Dr. Atkins introduced low carbohydrate, high protein dieting to the mainstream in the 70s, but it didn’t catch on until Y2K. Today we see an abundance of low-carbohydrate food products in restaurants and supermarkets, including low-carb breads and pastas. The Atkins diet is an effective way to loose weight, but recent research findings from Professor Arne Astrup, from the Royal Veterinary & Agricultural University in Copenhagen suggest that it works for the same reasons calorie restrictive diets work: dieters consume fewer calories than they need and their body burns fat to make up the difference, eventually resulting in a slimmer you. Apparently, high protein diets work by suppressing appetite. Dr. Atkins believed you could eat as much as you wanted on his diet and still lose weight because excess protein (and its’ calories) would be “pee-ed” away. In this regard, it seems that he was mistaken; there is no caloric loss through urine while on high protein diets. The Atkins diet works for the same reason all other diets work – calorie restriction. More...