"The Great Canadian Cauliflower Crisis"

Real food seems to be having an impact...

January 27, 2016 at 05:33AM
via Diet Doctor http://ift.tt/1PDpW0U

"Alcoholic Liver Disease: Update on the Role of Dietary Fat"

Avoid Linoleic Acid as best you can, if you drink alcohol or eat carbohydrates:

"In conclusion, there is convincing experimental evidence demonstrating the differential effects of different types of dietary lipids in the pathogenesis of ALD. While the protective effects of dietary SF and deleterious effects of dietary USF (primarily rich in LA, an ω-6 PUFA) on ethanol-induced intestinal and liver injury have been well documented in animal models (Figure 4), the effects of dietary ω-3 PUFAs as well as the significance of the dietary PUFA ω-3/ω-6 ratio in ALD development and progression are not completely understood. The role and the significance of oxidized lipids, both dietary and in vivo-produced, as well as possible mechanisms underlying their beneficial or deleterious effects in liver pathology remain to be determined. Different types of dietary fat may differentially modulate the gut-liver axis, including EtOH [ethanol]-induced changes in the gut microbiota. This important aspect needs to be considered when evaluating the effects of EtOH consumption on the gut microbiota composition and function. Given that there is no FDA-approved therapy for any stage of ALD, dietary fat may play an important role in the management of ALD."

Fish oil and too much alcohol appears even worse, btw, so don't over-consume fish oil and booze!

"Sport nutrition: could carb-loading be at an end for triathletes?"

"Endurance athletes who restrict carbohydrates burn more than twice as much fat as high-carbohydrate athletes.’ The headline-grabbing study from Ohio University made news as ‘fat expert’ professor Jeff Volek proclaimed it the highest fat-burning rates he’d ever seen.
"The study involved 20 top-end ultra-endurance runners. One group of 10 were habitual low-carb consumers, their daily diet consisting of 70% fat, 19% protein and just 11% carbs. The 10 high-carb athletes’ fuelling plan comprised 59% carbs, 25% fat and 14% protein.
"Volek had the subjects run at 64% of maximal oxygen capacity for 3hrs to determine metabolic response. The low-carb group’s fat-burning rate was 2.3 times higher than the high-carb – 1.5g per minute compared to 0.67g.
"“This represents a paradigm shift in sports nutrition,” says Volek. “Maybe we need to re-examine what we’ve been telling athletes about carb-loading for the last 40 years.”..."

January 25, 2016 at 08:30AM
via Google Alert - volek FASTER

Ascend Mont Blanc with Kilian Journet, and Ski Back Down

This is cool.  They used to let you travel up one of the ski trails in Chamonix to the base of the ski area, but now you can travel all the way to the summit of the highest peak in Western Europe:

"By working with legendary adventurers, the Street View team was able to capture the spirit of the massif in a way few witness firsthand. Run on the summit with Kilian Jornet—he holds the speed record for ascending and descending Mont Blanc in just 4 hours 57 minutes! Ice climb up a serac with record-setting alpine climber Ueli Steck, or go knee deep in powder alongside 14-time ski mountaineering champion Laetitia Roux and famed guide Patrick Gabarrou."

Check it out! (More videos at the link at the top.)

"Monkeys Banned From Eating Bananas at Devon Zoo"

"Zookeepers say the stereotypical food actually makes monkeys more aggressive, rots their teeth and can lead to diabetes" 

"...the fruit grown and exported for human consumption have far higher levels of sugar than the ones monkeys would eat in the wild – to the point that it’s bad for their teeth and can lead to diabetes. 

"Despite the obvious cliché, the animals are now only allowed to have bananas as a special treat or when they need medication. Nutritionists likened it to giving children cake and chocolate, but added that unlike children the deprived monkeys “can’t complain” 

"Experts at Paignton Zoo, Devon, said the sugar-free diet was working wonders for the animals – even making them calmer and more sociable. 

"Senior head keeper of mammals Matthew Webb said: “We have noticed an improvement in the condition of primate coats - in particular the colour and thickness of the fur of the Sulawesi crested black macaques...."

The Paleo Diet for monkeys.  Hardly surprising that this works.  They're primates like we are, but less-adapted to a high-glucose diet.

So much for the "30 Bananas a Day" crowd.  Rug yanked.

via Peter @ Hyperlipid, a reliable source of valuable information.

Thyroid and Low-Carb: What Do Thyroid Hormones Do?

There's much too-ing and fro-ing over thyroid hormones and low-carb diets on the interwebs, in the paleo and now endurance communities, as low-carb or ketogenic diets have become popular.

Typical was this post by Anthony Colpo from a few years ago: "Is a Low Carb Diet Diet Bad For Your Thyroid?"

"Over the years, an abundance of research has gathered to indicate that, for those who wish to maintain optimal thyroid function, very low-carbohydrate diets aren’t a wise idea."

He then goes through a bunch of studies which all, pretty much, detail that thyroid hormones go down on a low-carb diet.

This post has moved to Substack.