From processed foods at the grocery store to drive-through dinners, it’s no wonder that more people than ever are overfed but undernourished. There’s a tsunami of research on how food affects the human body. We need to realize that food is actually medicine. The abuse of food is widely accepted as likely being the underlying cause of almost every degenerative conditions you can suffer from.
The Problem with Inflammation
The 5 major degenerative conditions are cancer, neurological issues like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, heart disease, arthritis, and diabetes. Underlying all of these is an issue with inflammation, which is directly related to the kind of food we eat. The biggest culprit seems to be omega-6 oils; these are found in all the commonest cooking oils on the market, whereas olive, coconut & avocado have proven to be much better for us.
The oils you want to avoid like the plague are the following:
- Canola
- Grapeseed
- Peanut
- Soybean
- Corn
- Vegetable
These are all very high in omega-6 fatty acids. Most of the research strongly suggests that those oils are the cause of many health troubles. In a perfect scenario, the ratio of omega-3s (which are very good for brain and heart health) relative to omega-6s should be around 1:2 (3s to 6s), and most of us are at 15-20:1 (6s to 3s)!
Give up Seed Oils
Dr. Matheson‘s first recommendation is to give up all the seed oils! Start looking closely at the products you buy . . . see if canola is the first product in the ingredient list. Try to avoid any products with canola oil and the other harmful ones. Next, eat more friendly fats (butter, coconut oil, avocados, olives, etc.). The great news is these all taste fantastic!
According to a massive research study undertaken a few years ago in Australia, we should be using olive oil for everything – cooking and eating. Coconut oil came in as a close second. None of the other types of oils came close, and the study proved that the ‘breakdown end-products’ are very toxic to the human body.
Watch Your Carb Consumption
It’s not surprising that many people eat a diet laden with useless carbs. Although carbs are somewhat necessary in the diet, most people eat way too many. Did you know that the Standard American Diet (SAD) consists of upwards of 350 grams of carbs a day? Humans would be far better off to stay below 100 grams a day. While you don’t have to be on the keto diet, it’s a good idea to get rid of all the “foods” that are high in carbs. These include sugar-based desserts, crackers, chips, high-fructose corn syrup, bad oils and even a lot of fruits and vegetables that are high in sugar.
Diabetes Doesn’t Have to Be in Your Future
A diabetic will get progressively worse whether they know it or not-unless they make changes to their diet. Their insulin dose will slowly increase because the body becomes ‘insensitive’ to it. More becomes the norm & it is a downward spiral from there. Eventually, most of those with diabetes will likely have heart disease, blindness or kidney issues, needing dialysis or even amputation.
Dr. Jason Fung, a world-famous nephrologist (kidney specialist) was taking kidneys out of probably 80% of his patients who were having issues with dialysis-were diabetic. He decided to look at the root cause and realized very quickly it was related to carbohydrate-related insulin sensitivity issues. Dr. Fung now runs a large clinic in Toronto and in most cases (by controlling what & when his patients eat), he is able to reverse diabetes and get most of them off their insulin + other meds within a month for the most part.
Intermittent Fasting
Dr. Matheson also recommends intermittent fasting. What this means is not eating for an extended period of time, often 18 hours or more at a time. Restricting eating to a 6-hour window daily, can reset many of your biomarkers which are direct indicators of your real health. Intermittent fasting alone has been shown to help improve diabetes.
Children today are being diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at an alarming rate. Dr. Matheson has young patients who are starting insulin. He lets them know it’s possible to get them off of their meds & insulin, sometimes in as little as a month, but they say they’re OK, meaning, these individuals want to continue eating what they like and don’t mind being on medication. We want you to know that it doesn’t have to be that way, nor is it the least bit good for your health.
For more information or to schedule an appointment, call (519) 332-8133 today.