"Forks Over Knives" vs meat vs whatever diets

[K.L. Davis]

Just a note from your friendly mod: it is perfectly okay to argue ideas, but if it gets off in the weeds and offers nothing... it is a waste of space, and ink is expensive.

[austinN4]

I'm far out of my lane but this is what I've been doing lately.

1) Portion control
2) Lower sugar, starch and bread intake
3) High fiber, wheat bran, veggies, lentils, beans, legumes, etc.
4) Little to no fried food
5) Lower saturated fat and higher mono/polyunsaturated fat
6) Small snack of a handful of uncooked nuts, almonds, pecans, walnuts, etc. for added protein and Omega-3
7) Low to moderate amount of dairy
8) If I eat fish it's either grilled trout, salmon or shrimp.
9) If I eat chicken, pork or beef I try to keep the portion the size of a deck of cards or smaller.

The typical American diet sucks. It is loaded with saturated fat, salt and sugar from low quality food.

I pretty much now subscribe to the diet you described and was able to get off all related meds by significantly lowering my blood sugar, cholestoral, and blood pressure.

I also lost about 12% of weight I didn't need which was a byproduct, not an objective. Getting off the meds was the objective and it worked for me as I don't need them anymore. I also feel a lot better.

[WillBrink]

A coworker mentioned this new movie/book/website/craze full of celebrity endorsements. Obviously vegan and vegetarian diets are nothing new but how is this any different other than some PETA celebs raving about how awesome it is?

My coworker went on about how he had went on this diet and lost a lot of weight, dropped his cholesterol by a hundred points, triglycerides cut in half, etc, etc. That was after he quit eating mostly fast food everyday. So yeah, anything would've been an improvement.

https://www.forksoverknives.com/


I'm far out of my lane but this is what I've been doing lately.

1) Portion control
2) Lower sugar, starch and bread intake
3) High fiber, wheat bran, veggies, lentils, beans, legumes, etc.
4) Little to no fried food
5) Lower saturated fat and higher mono/polyunsaturated fat
6) Small snack of a handful of uncooked nuts, almonds, pecans, walnuts, etc. for added protein and Omega-3
7) Low to moderate amount of dairy
8) If I eat fish it's either grilled trout, salmon or shrimp.
9) If I eat chicken, pork or beef I try to keep the portion the size of a deck of cards or smaller.

How am I doing so far? I.e., what seems lacking or am I missing anything critical?

I am not looking to diet to lose weight, just going over healthier food options.

As a basic strategy goes, sounds like you're on target. No reason to consider vegan per se,

[Co-gnARR]

Some opinions I have about Forks Over Knives after watching it a few years ago:
-The website is click bait store front with no valid data to back claims (this was 5-6 years ago; unsure what it is like now)
-The documentary is anti-animal protein with minimal evidence provided, to the point that it felt evangelical, ie, this is the truth! Follow us to salvation! Just believe what we say!
-Oreos are mentioned as vegan, so they must be better source of nutrition than a steak.
-The China Study has been widely criticized and its veracity is in doubt. This is out of my lane in terms of structuring a study, collecting/evaluating data, etc, but seeing numerous criticisms from a variety of sources raises alarms for me.

That said, your dietary choices are similar to mine, and over the years it has worked very well for me in terms of maintaining muscle mass w/o excessive fat gain, healthy blood pressure and good numbers for blood work.

[austinN4]

-The China Study has been widely criticized and its veracity is in doubt. This is out of my lane in terms of structuring a study, collecting/evaluating data, etc, but seeing numerous criticisms from a variety of sources raises alarms for me.

I would offer that the veracity of the criticism is in doubt as well. Big Food has much to gain from the status quo, and a lot to lose from healthy eating.

Do you know where the Food Pyramid originated? The USDA whose constituency is the agriculture producers, not the users:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_pyramid_(nutrition)
https://nareeeab.ree.usda.gov/membership/board-members

Ever wonder why so much added salt and sugar is in nearly all processed food?

[Co-gnARR]

I would offer that the veracity of the criticism is in doubt as well. Big Food has much to gain from the status quo, and a lot to lose from healthy eating.

Do you know where the Food Pyramid originated? The USDA whose constituency is the agriculture producers, not the users:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_pyramid_(nutrition)
https://nareeeab.ree.usda.gov/membership/board-members

Ever wonder why so much added salt and sugar is in nearly all processed food?

I am not arguing that at all, and in fact I have ignored that USDA nonsense my entire life, without ill effect. What I am saying is tha FOK is a bit too preachy IMO without citing actual evidence. Nothing more, nothing less.

[tylerw02]

I'm probably alone on this, but I hate the phrase "processed foods". All food is processed unless you go to the pasture and take a bite out of a cow's ass. I wish people were more specific when calling out foods that are bad for your body.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[scooter22]

I'm probably alone on this, but I hate the phrase "processed foods". All food is processed unless you go to the pasture and take a bite out of a cow's ass. I wish people were more specific when calling out foods that are bad for your body.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

When I say "processed", I mean things that contain "excessive" ingredients and preservatives.

[tylerw02]

I get that. But define excessive...? It's vague and a blanket term that really has no meaning anymore. That's why our diets suck so bad. Anyway, rant over.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[scooter22]

I get that. But define excessive...? It's vague and a blanket term that really has no meaning anymore. That's why our diets suck so bad. Anyway, rant over.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The only thing I put in my body that has multiple ingredients and comes in a package is whey and Ezekiel bread.