The Starch Solution (23 page)

Governments and health organizations worldwide have raised concerns about the effects of isolated soy proteins found in foods and infant formulas. After a year of study, a committee of experts from the Israeli Ministry of Health warned that babies should not be fed soy formula, and that children should eat no more than 1 ounce of soy per day, no more than three times per week. They suggested that adults should exercise caution because of adverse effects on fertility and increased breast cancer risk.
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The French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety was the first government agency to require removal of isoflavones from infant formula, and to require warning labels on packages of soy foods and soy milk.
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Child advocacy groups in New Zealand and Canada have taken this concern for soy’s effects on the young a step further and are lobbying
to have soy formulas removed from the general markets and made available only with a doctor’s prescription.
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Vegans already have made a radical change based on their commitment to bettering the world. Yet, like the vast majority of Americans (and many others around the world) who follow a Western diet, most vegans continue to get the bulk of their calories from fat and protein. Going one step further, to base their diets on starch, would be far from a sacrifice. Instead, it would mean greater satisfaction and better health, while deepening their commitment to their own lives and that of our planet.

Even my Coke-and-potato chips intern back in Honolulu had alternatives during his 100-hours-a-week stint in the hospital. The dining room served oatmeal and cold grain cereals with fruit juice for breakfast. For lunch and dinner, he could have chosen salads with vinegar or salsa, rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, beans, low-fat vegetable soups, vegetables, and fruit. With just a little knowledge and minimal effort, he could have been a more effective doctor and a far more influential crusader with his peers and patients for a cause dear to his heart: saving animals’ lives.

I admire vegans’ character, self-sacrifice, and commitment to making a difference. Rather than harm the beautiful creatures with whom they share this earth, vegans are willing to risk not only accusations from family, friends, and physicians that they may become deficient in protein and calcium, but also social isolation. Vegans are industrious: They must shop and read menus carefully, sometimes turning down dinner invitations and social opportunities, as well as passing up tempting food in situations where they are hungry and the options are limited. It all requires a great deal more effort than the average person is willing to muster.

Vegans are duly rewarded for their deep sacrifice when they discover that, in fact, plants provide all of the protein, amino acids, essential fats, vitamins, and minerals they need, and that eliminating meat and dairy from their diet provides a great many health benefits. Turning away from the fatty, empty calories in harmful, processed soy foods and vegetable oils allows vegans to truly shine, inspiring a change in their public perception from being marginalized to being admired for being healthy, trim, active, strong, energetic, and committed to changing the world. Isn’t it fortunate that the same choices that best serve the planet and its inhabitants also benefit our personal health?

I admit it. I
was a failed McDougaller before becoming a successful one.

My first time following the McDougall Diet, I lost the 70 pounds I
had gained in my thirties. Afterwards, I
gradually slipped off the McDougall wagon, gaining back every pound I
had lost plus a few more. It was not eating the Standard American Diet that put the pounds back on. I have been vegetarian since 1986 and vegan since 1992. Yet I still gained back the weight when I returned to my high-fat vegan foods. I ate packaged frozen dinners, vegan burritos, “cheese” sandwiches (vegan cheese), cinnamon toast with vegan fake butter spread, French fries, potato chips, and stuff like that. But I think that most of it was from going out to eat too much, like at the very nice vegetarian restaurant in town with lots of vegan options—FULL of fat!

I hit a low of 128 pounds in 1999 and, 10 years later, a high of 207. In June 2010, I fully recommitted myself to the McDougall Diet. This time I have lost almost 90 pounds, reaching a new low of 120. At my height of 5 foot 6 inches, this gives me a very healthy BMI of
19.4. Whereas I once wore a size 16, I now shop for size 4. My cholesterol has dropped from 181 to 123 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), and my blood pressure is down from 160/100 to 122/70 millimeters of mercury (mmHg). My fasting blood glucose has gone from 113 to 79 mg/dL. I am on no medication of any kind. At age 49, I am fit and healthy, and I look and feel great. Best of all, I’m riding my horses again!

I love what I am eating: green and yellow veggies, fruits, grains, legumes, potatoes, and other starchy veggies, and as little processed food as possible. As an all-or-nothing type, picking out the foods that are best and giving up the others has not been difficult. The biggest motivation, though, is that I feel my best when I stick with whole foods. I keep my kitchen stocked with basic ingredients: canned no-salt beans and tomatoes, plenty of frozen veggies and fruits, and lots of potatoes and brown rice, adding in fresh veggies and fruits that catch my eye at the market.

The most amazing part is that I can eat until my appetite is completely satisfied without worrying about wavering from my weight goal. That can mean second, third, or even fourth helpings at times. On the McDougall Diet, I never feel deprived.

When I made this commitment, weighing 207 pounds, I was certain that following the McDougall Diet would mean suffering. I have to smile when I think about that. I most certainly am not suffering; on the contrary, I enjoy my food a great deal and am immensely grateful to have been given a second chance at a healthy weight and an active life. The payoff doubles when I remember how I dodged the serious health problems that were lurking just around the corner. I can honestly promise that this time there will be no going back. Ever.

N
obody loves me more than my mother does. Still, there were times as a child when I wasn’t convinced. The chemical aftertaste, the belching, and the nausea caused by the One A Day multivitamin capsule she forced on me with my orange juice every morning made me suspicious. She reassured me they were meant to taste bad so a little child like me wouldn’t mistake them for candy. It turns out my hunch about vitamins was right.

What I have never understood is why we take these nasty-tasting pills when there is no apparent reason to do so. Medical achievements had long before cured the deadly diseases associated with vitamin deficiencies, such as scurvy, beriberi, and pellagra, with supplements. But that didn’t stop the pharmaceutical industry from turning necessity into mythology. It has convinced many of us that if vitamins could cure these deadly illnesses, then supplementing our diets with vitamins and minerals must also be the answer to cancer, heart disease, and a host of other diseases. But is it?

With the hope of improving on Mother Nature, fueled by the desire for profit, scientists and entrepreneurs have developed thousands of
products based on isolated, concentrated nutrients. To do this, they identify a pharmacologically active ingredient in a common food, then use science and manufacturing technology to purify it, replicate it in large quantities, and sell it to eager consumers as a “potent, natural remedy.” Familiar examples include soy and whey protein isolates, omega-3 fish and flaxseed oils, and all manner of vitamins and minerals. They may be taken in the form of pills, powders, liquids, nutrition bars, “health” drinks, or fortified foods.

These concentrated nutrients are said to offset the effects of our destructive habits and to cure our ill health almost effortlessly, naturally, and with little or no side effects. Enormous profits motivate companies to keep these supplements on the market, whether or not they are effective. The consumer’s desire for a quick fix to health problems guarantees steady sales. However, doctors, dietitians, nutritionists, and health food store clerks who prescribe supplements are practicing “faith-based medicine.” They’ve got to believe, because they have no good evidence supporting their actions, no valid research to guide them, and no patient results to reward them.

Supplements can fix deficiencies, not excesses. How many friends and relatives do you know who have suffered from illnesses caused by a vitamin deficiency, such as scurvy from vitamin C deficiency, beriberi from insufficient vitamin B
₁
, or pellagra from a lack of niacin? How about protein or essential fatty acid deficiencies? Most likely
none.
Now, turn your vision 180 degrees. How many people do you know who suffer from diseases caused by nutritional
excess?
How many have health problems from consuming too much fat, cholesterol, sodium, protein, or just plain too many calories? I’m not going far out on a limb to guess you know more people who are overweight or who are suffering from heart disease, clogged arteries, high blood pressure, arthritis, and diabetes than those suffering from scurvy, beriberi, or pellagra.

Now, have any of those friends suffering from these excesses significantly reduced their weight by taking supplements? Have any cured
their arthritis, hypertension, colitis, or type 2 diabetes with vitamins and minerals? I’m quite sure they have not.

I never hear about miraculous results from supplements, but what I do hear every day, whether by telephone, e-mail, or in person, are reports from those who have achieved amazing health improvements by adopting a starch-based diet, along with a little exercise and some sunshine.