Matt Metzgar

Palm Oil

I bought some palm oil at the store this weekend.  I've read that it's used more in Europe and other countries, and so it seemed worth a try.  I actually had trouble finding it - there was only one brand in the organic section of the grocery.

Here's a New York Times article about a recent controversy involving palm oil.  It appears the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is against palm oil due to the saturated fat content.  From what I recall, this Center is some joke organization that I think may even be against meat in general.  They just seem to be plowing ahead with the ineffective low-fat message that hasn't worked the last 30-plus years.  Someone even got mad enough to put up this website, CSPI Scam, that shows all the inconsistencies and problems with the CSPI. 

At any rate, I tried the palm oil on some meat tonight, and it tasted pretty good.  At the very least, it's a way to provide a little diversity in flavors and micronutrients.  With the phasing out of trans fat, palm oil use seems to be on the rise.  More background information on palm oil in America is available at this site. 

Paleo Cooking II

The crockpot has definitely turned out to be a winner, as far as cooking.  It's very ease to use, and I have been putting it to good use.  You just load in some vegetables and meat, add in some liquid, and turn the switch. 

The picture above is a simple Paleo dinner of chicken, carrots, yams, lettuce, and some spices.  It took just a few minutes of prep time and produced a great meal.

A Pound of Vegetables

I read on another website where a person starts off each day with a pound of vegetables.  This seemed like a lot, but I thought I would give it a try.  So along with my usual breakfast the other day, I ate a pound of carrots afterwards.

First, it really didn't seem like that much to eat.  A pound of vegetables sounds scarier than it really is.  Second, I felt it helped even out my energy levels a little better than usual.

Third, this newer study (described in this press article) shows that vegetable but not fruit consumption significantly reduces the risk of diabetes.  Those with the highest consumption of vegetables had an almost 30 percent reduction in their risk of diabetes.  It pays to eat those veggies.

The Carbohydrate Problem

Almost everything I've read shows the problem of body fat to be connected to carbohydrate.  Researchers slice and dice things, but in the end, it is all related to carbohydrates.  The sub-issues of glycemic index, glycemic load, total grams of carb, etc., all play a role (and are interrelated).  But if you have a body fat problem, you have a carb problem.  Maybe an exception would be if someone is high-dosing tons of bad fat (perhaps via fast food), but this would seem to be rare.

Individual experimentation is probably key for solving the carb problem.  Carb tolerance also changes over time due to aging, and is affected by exercise and conditioning levels.  Sugar and refined carbs benefit no one, and only the young and athletic seem to be able to abuse them and get away with it (in terms of low body fat).  But bad carbs will catch up with anyone in the end, and it's best to replace them with healthy fruits and vegetables.

Potato Skins

One thing I got from reading "The Saccharine Disease" is the importance of potato skins.  Eating the skins with potatoes apparently has a few benefits.  First, it adds fiber which lowers the glycemic index.  Second, the skin appears to be a source of additional vitamins.

Honestly, I had never thought about this before.  But I have been eating whole potatoes with the skins lately, and it has been pretty neat.  Adding some oil to a hot potato makes for a tasty food choice.

Carbs and Muscle

I have been adding in more (Paleo) carbs to help with the muscle-building, and it has definitely made a difference.  I don't count carbs or anything, so I don't know the before-and-after differences.  But whatever my previous carb intake was, it was hard to even maintain weight even though I was eating a ton more fat.

Just by adding more carbs via additional potatoes and sweet potatoes, it has made the difference in terms of weight maintenance/weight gain.  Apparently, I'm not the only this has happened to.  Here's a quote by low-carb researcher Jeff Volek:

"If you are trying to gain weight," writes Volek in the November 2001 issue of Muscular Development magazine, "my experience is that it is very difficult to prevent weight loss, let alone gain weight, on a strict ketogenic diet."

My simple way of thinking about this is that glucose storage is a higher priority for the body than is amino acid storage (muscle).  If you have insufficient glucose available, the body is less likely to build muscle.  If glucose stores are full, then the body can move on to building muscle.  I've seen bodybuilders refer to this as carbs being "protein-sparing". 

Paleo Cooking

I am trying to upgrade my limited cooking skills, so of course, I've turned to ancient ways.  From what I've read, hunter-gatherers engaged in a lot of "slow cooking" - putting meat and vegetables into a stone oven of sorts.

I dug up our own crockpot this weekend, and I am giving it a go.  I've got some chicken and vegetables in today, so we'll see how it turns out later.  At the very least, it is a simple way to cook.  You just put everything in and push the button.

Benefits of Honey

How many more reasons are needed to consume honey (a seasonal favorite of hunter-gatherers)?  I've seen a ton of different studies on this, all showing a wide variety of benefit from eating honey.

Here's an older link that shows how honey may help fight cancer.  If everyone just substituted honey for their normal sugar intake, the world would be a much healthier place.

Carbs and HDL

Here's a link to a study that was published last year.  The study found that higher carb consumption, and particularly higher refined-carb consumption, led to lower HDL cholesterol ("good" cholesterol) levels.  Triglyceride levels were positively corrleated with carb intake, as expected.

Just another reason to limit refined carbs...

Low-Carb Diets: A Mixed Bag

Low-carb diets have definitely picked up steam the last few years.  Certainly, many people have benefited from them, and research shows they are as effective and often more effective than traditional low-fat diets.

But I wonder, given my last couple posts about cycles, if low-carb diets have some structural flaws.  What I'm thinking is that a combination of moderate (Paleo) carb days combined with intermittent fasting is better than a continual low-carb approach.  This way you get to truly cycle out the glucose supply of the body, and then resupply it with an influx of carbs.

I think low-carb diets show many benefits because they partially mimic intermittent fasting.  Low-carb diets lower insulin levels, but the fastest way to lower insulin levels is just to simply not eat anything (intermittent fasting). 

I've also found that low-carb diets aren't quick enough for my tastes in resupplying glucose after a fast or a hard workout.  With a low-carb diet, it seems to take days to get the glucose levels back up.  And while this may be great for fat-burning, I don't think it helps muscle-building.  It doesn't help my mood either, and so lately I have been taking more carbs in during the post-workout window.