"Everything in excess is opposed to nature" 

  - Hippocrates circa 431 B.C.

Avoid Extreme Diets

One man’s food can be another’s poison. Every person is born with his or her own physique, genetic disposition or body constitution. Together with other differences such as sex, age, work, lifestyle, geographic location, climate and culture, there is no one ideal diet that can fit all. 

Many of the popular diets are just hypes and do not last with the test of time. They are extreme diets which can lead to extreme conditions and imbalances. That is how all sickness started. Health is only possible when the body is in balance. When choosing a diet to follow, it is important to know the pros and cons of each one, understand how far it deviates from a balanced diet and how it can match your needs.

High protein diet – We need some protein in our diet to act as building blocks for muscle building and maintenance. But too much protein can stress the kidneys and increase the risk of liver disorders, gout, coronary heart disease, stroke and several types of cancer. It is because meats are extremely acidic and hard to digest. Excessive protein can cause calcium to be excreted from our body. Protein from meat takes much longer to digest and pass out of our body. They are the breading ground for bacteria growth and cancer. When one is on high protein diet, the person is lacking all the living enzyme and fiber from fruits and vegetables and they will suffer from deficiencies in all these essential nutrients. 

Low carbohydrate diet – This diet is for losing weight quickly but it can starve the brain, cause constipation and reduce energy. It is important to know the difference between good and bad carbohydrates. Good carbohydrates are whole foods such as grains, fruits and vegetables and they are high in fiber, vitamins and minerals, and they are filling and can satisfy hunger without having to eat too much. Bad carbohydrates are refined carbohydrates with a lot of its nutrients already gone after all the processing. They are just lumps of sugar. We need a lot of good carbohydrates in our diet for fiber, for essential nutrients and energy for our body and brain. We don’t need bad carbohydrates which can cause obesity, diabetes and metabolic syndrome. When people are on low carbohydrate diet, they have to be on high protein diet to fill hunger and they are getting the worst from the two diets.  

High carbohydrate diet - Over eating carbohydrates will lead to obesity because all the excess calories will be stored in our body as fat. And with frequent supply of glucose from the diet, the body will lose it natural mechanism of drawing energy from stored fat which will lead to a decrease in endurance and an increase in fat stored. When there is excessive glucose in the body, it will trigger the pancreas to produce more insulin to process the glucose which will lead to insulin resistance over time and will result in type II diabetes. Highly refined carbohydrates such as sugar and bread, pastries, noodles and pasta made from flour should be avoided as much as possible. Taking moderate amount of complex carbohydrates from whole grains, vegetables and fruits is necessary to provide fuel for energy for our body.

Low fat diet – There are good fats and bad fats. Saturated fats and hydrogenated fats are bad fats. They can clot arteries and cause heart disease. Low-fat diets can cause quicker digestion and absorption of carbohydrates in the form of sugar. It can also cause cellular malfunction and pre-matured aging. By adding some good fats to our diet, it can slow digestion and absorption. It can also moderate insulin reaction. We need some good fats to maintain healthy cellular functions because fat is the neurotransmitter in cells. Our fat intake has to be in balance with more of omega-3 essential fatty acid, some omega-6 and a small amount of saturated fat. Fat intake should not exceed more than 20% of our total calories intake. It can go up to 30% for people living in very cold climate.  

Vegetarian diet – Vegetarian diet is essentially extreme carbohydrate diet and is not easy to obtain and maintain balanced nutrition. It can cause deficiency in some key nutrients only found in meat such as vitamin B12, high quality protein and good saturated fat. Too much plant protein especially from GMO soy has been found to interfere with natural hormonal functions. It is quite common for people on vegetarian diet to become over weight due to too much sugar and starch found in most fruits and vegetables.  

Raw food diet – For people who are born with yin or cold constitution, they are generally weaker and colder in nature and not suitable for this very yin diet. It is because in winter months, raw food can drive the body further away from reaching internal balance. The symptoms are cold hands and feet, anemic, irregular body functions and bloating. Raw food is more suitable for people with yang constitution. It is good for summer months only when the weather is extremely hot. Many root vegetables, grains and herbs which are rich in minerals and phytonutrients cannot be eaten raw and is missing from this diet. It is like a retro diet which is deprived and limited. Raw food can be good if it is only a small part of a balanced diet.   

 

A Balanced Diet 

Diet has been the most controversial subject ever and experts have been changing their stands all the time. Fat is once regarded as the villain for decades is now recommended to be as high as 50% to 60% of our calorie intake. Whole grain was once a healthy choice and is now recommended by some experts to be taken off our diet completely. Meat protein with the high price tag was once less consumed by people especially the poor and now with large scale commercial farming, meats are plentiful and affordable.  The increased consumption of meat has brought along huge increase in health problems such as heart disease and cancer, environmental pollution and stavation in pooer countries competing with animals for basic food such as corn.  

In order to choose a balanced diet for ourselves, we need to apply a lot of common sense and need to know how much essential nutrient is needed to support our specific needs such as lifestyle, physical activities and genetic predisposition.  People in Asia eating a traditional diet of primarily rice, vegetables, soy beans and little red meat have been living long with relatively few modern diseases. The Eskimos eating a very high fat and animal protein diet seems to be doing just fine too. The typical standard American diet (SAD) made up of mostly pre-processed foods is causing huge health problems. There are enough references for us to see what is good and what is bad.   

What we believe to be the good basis of a healthy balanced diet are:

1. A rich plant based diet  with grain to fill hunger and provide trace minerals, seeds and nuts to provide good fats, vegetables to provide phytonutrients and fiber, fruits to provide essential vitamins and digestive enzymes.

2. Small amount of quality protein from organic egg, wild seafood, free-ranged poultries and grass-fed kettles.

3. Low salt, low sugar and low heat cooking with small amount of good fats such as olive oil, coconut oil, peanut oil, sesame oil and grape seeds oil.

4. No unhealthy indulgence such as cigarette, alcohol, sugar drinks, caffeine, artificial sweeteners, food colouring, pre-processed and over processed food, and deep fried food.

5. EAT LESS. Eating only up to 70% full can slow down aging and prolong life.

If we can follow largely this guideline, our food will be working for our health and we will never be overweight. There is no need to be on calorie counting or being too concern about the exact proportion of each food group in our diet.