healthiest food that is not a fruit or vegetable?

Lance, I get this sense that you always have to get the last word in. You have read my posts on health and diet well enough by now over the years to know that it was an obvious oversimplification but a very important one. Our thinking is pretty much congruent on all else. Let's throw refined, "dead" food in there as well. I was trying to bring more science to the debate that I've witnessed firsthand.

If you are saying that people need to be HELD more accountable for their own health, then you are preaching to the choir. Heart disease and diabetes, 90% of which are preventable, consume over half of the cost of medicare which is already 35-40x initial actuarial estimates as of 2010. Harvard historian Niall Ferguson, who penned "Colossus- The Rise and Fall of the American Empire" noted that medical costs as a percentage of GDP will rise from their current 1/6 to 1/3 as the Boomers fully retire if we don't radically alter medical delivery. Think that's a sustainable dynamic?

Having worked in a subsidized, prevention-oriented cardiac clinic back when I was considering medical school, I saw what an abysmal failure that model was. Until people have more skin (and less fat) in the game, nothing will change, other than PAs and NPs will become the frontline to mitigate costs.

omnivore wrote:

In your opinion, what is the single healthiest naturally occurring food that is not a fruit or vegetable? It could be a grain, a meat, an animal by-product like milk or eggs.

Well I like eating Pu**y YEAHHHH

Never did me any harm. KNOW WHAT IM SAYIN? YEAHHH

the gecko wrote:

Hey real live scientist, is there any truth the the following?

"...it would appear you would be better off eating whole grains to get calcium, iron magnesium, and zinc. Wrong. Whole grains contain numberous substances called antinutrients that can impair nutrient absorption or adversely affect health in a wide variety of ways. Phytic acid, otherwise known as phytate, is an antinutrient found in all whole grains and legumes that binds calcium, iron, magnesium, and zinc and severely inhibits their absorption. Whether whole or refined, grains are an inferior food when it comes to vitamins and minerals. Do yourself a favor and get the bulk of your carbs from fresh fruits and veggies."

I'm not familiar with phytic acid. A quick google tells me that it's a chelating agent, which mean that it can bind to metals like zinc and magnesium. It makes sense that a food high in phytic acid might interfere with nutrient absorption.

beef tartar

yogurt

THIS JUST IN:

The synthesis of glycogen in the liver following a fructose-containing meal proceeds from gluconeogenic precursors. Fructose is initially converted to DHAP and glyceraldehyde by fructokinase and aldolase B. The resultant glyceraldehyde then undergoes phosphorylation to glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate. Increased concentrations of DHAP and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate in the liver drive the gluconeogenic pathway toward glucose-6-phosphate, glucose-1-phosphate and glycogen formation. It appears that fructose is a better substrate for glycogen synthesis than glucose and that glycogen replenishment takes precedence over triglyceride formation.[2] Once liver glycogen is replenished, the intermediates of fructose metabolism are primarily directed toward triglyceride synthesis.

Now would you all please stop arguing about fructose? FRUCTOSE IS CONVERTED TO GLYCOGEN, unless your glycogen is FULLY replenished. Stop listening to internet crackpots and do your own research.

By the way, glucose is converted to triglyceride synthesis when glycogen is replenished too.

ray wrote:

Also agree that too much fructose can be a bad thing. Worst food stuff...high fructose corn syrup would be up there..

Rank these in order of fructose content (relative to glucose):

pear

apple

red pepper

HFCS (the kind used in nearly all food products)

cane sugar

If anything, this thread shows that people don't know shit about nutrition.

a fresh egg

wi|fredo wrote:

If anything, this thread shows that people don't know shit about nutrition.

That's for sure.

Gecko,

I fully agree with you. Likewise, I am no scientist. I have simply read the books. The Paleo Diet for Athletes is absolutely fantastic.

That being said, I have eaten nothing but lean meats, fruits, veggies, and nuts for the past 3 weeks (plus recovery stuff, like hammer bars, recoverite, etc.) Simply put, I feel awesome every day. My energy levels are consistent, and my training is going very well. I feel like a machine. I poop at the same time every single day (10-15 minutes after getting up). I never EVER get tired in the middle of the day. I haven't had a bad run in 3 weeks. Also, despite having stomach issues for the past 5 years while running, I have not had to poop on a run one time. I even can eat less than 10 minutes before running now.

Gluten free, dairy free = awesome. Say what you want about "pseudoscience", but it works. If the placebo effect can make me feel this good for 3 weeks, than give me some more placebo!!

dead on wrote:

Say what you want about "pseudoscience", but it works.

Whether or not it "works" depends on what you are trying to do with it.

"it works".....for you. n=1.

And if you want more placebo, there are plenty of fad diets out there that will likely convince someone like you that they've stumbled on a miracle diet.

Furthermore....

I'm pretty sure our paleolithic ancestors didn't eat hammer bars and recoverite, etc. Just saying.

also, pretty sure they never drank coffee, beer, or tea for that matter. So....... I hope you never consume these products ever again in your lifetime. You know, if want to be truly paleo and all. (and while you are at it, stop living in a climate controlled home and driving a car, etc, etc etc. Paleo is a lifestyle, not just a diet, right? Be a caveman dude!)

If you really are feeling this remarkable change in your running, well-being, etc, sure, maybe you did have celiac's disease or lactose intolerance. But for the majority of us who don't these intolerances, eliminating those foods won't do us any good.

I don't do it to be a cavemen, I do it to feel better. Recoverite and Hammer bars are made by hammer nutrition-- a great company that makes the healthiest "recovery" type stuff out there.

That's the problem: everyone assumes that do "go Paleo" or whatever, you have go do it 100% of the time simply to say you did it. I don't give a crap what the cavemen ate. I simply read the evidence behind eliminating certain foods, eliminated them, and feel better. Way better.

And to answer the previous statement about the diet "working"...

This is a running website, right? It "works" because I run better, recovery faster, and feel way better on a daily basis. That is the goal here, correct?

I am sure it works for other goals as well... in fact, it certainly has. Weight loss in particular. But I don't care about that, I care about running fast. (don't we all?)

Re: phytic acid

Soaking/sprouting grains and beans (and draining off the water greatly improves digestibility). A hOt water soak removes the most.

Food pick: spirulina- it has a pigment called phycocyanin which stimulates red blood cell production... It has been shown to be effective with the elderly:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21278762

It is expensive, however... Likely just another hyped 'superfood'

S Cort wrote:

Asian pu$$ycat is by far the most healthy.

That's Asian puttycat.

Best of luck to you, gecko. And if you find the time, take a look at those books.

Hey, those are all reasonable concepts, I was thinking you were more of the paleo purist than I guess you are. But realize, the WHOLE idea about going paleo is living/eating/exercising like our paleo ancestors did. Now firstly there is great controversy on what actually constitutes a true paleo diet, and furthermore that there were likely a variety of diets that our ancestors ate. Also, if someone like yourself tweaks the diet here, and makes an exception here, and maybe another exception there to what most people consider a "paleo diet," well then, it's no longer a paleo diet. For example, your recoverite has whey protein in it. Whey comes from milk, but I thought milk wasn't consumed by our paleo ancestors? And beer? It has grains. And on and on it can go.

So what diet are you really following? A higher protein, higher meat, slightly lower carb diet that eliminated lactose and gluten but is supplemented with man made, whey fueled nutrition products? Great. I guess there isn't a catchy label that captures that diet, so it's easier to be part of a marketing scheme or club and say: I'm going paleo dude!

I am not attacking you, simply commenting on the silliness of possibly the whole concept.

And as far as your "running be better than ever", have you REALLY treated this like an experiment? Have you changed no other aspects of your life other than diet, and specifically only changed the paleo parts of your diet (i.e., if you've also cut down on junk food, any sports nutritionist would recommend that. That's not unique to paleo, and would improve your health)? Are you setting new PR's already, or have time trials confirmed your new great running? Have you factored in the placebo effect? Just all things to consider before you proclaim "I am running better than ever, and am leaner than ever, and it's all because of this diet.....that's sort of like paleo, but not exactly."