Re: Hi all... a few random questions

[Guest guest]

> What general approach would you guys recommend for health and

> longevity over time? At what age should I attempt caloric restriction

> and regimented supplementation?

I don't think there would be any reason to delay CR, but regimented

supplementation shouldn't be necessary if you eat nutrient-dense food.

> What supplements do you usually recommend? Currently, the only ones I

> take are a multivitamin and some calcium. Because I only drink about 1

> glass of skim milk a day I don't want to risk becoming deficient in

> calcium. And speaking of calcium, I've become incredibly confused as

> to which supplement is best and why (ie: calcium carbonate, calcium

> citrate, calcium magnesium, etc.). What dosage is appropriate?

I would recommend getting nutrients from food. It's extremely easy to get

tons of calcium from food (bones, greens, seeds, dairy), so that's the

last thing you'd need to supplement. It's much more likely you'd need to

supplement magnesium.

Skim milk is bad news; the fat is the healthiest part of the milk. I

would recommend avoiding any milk that's been fortified with synthetic

retinol, synthetic vit D, pasteurized, homogenized, or mixed with dried

non-fat milk, i.e. almost all milk sold commercially. If you can't get

raw, organic milk from ****grass-fed**** cows directly from a farm, then I

would skip it altogether. Check out www.realmilk.com

> Is switching from skim milk to soy milk recommended? Would alernating

> the two be good idea?

That's like asking if you should switch from apples to doritos as a snack.

Soy milk should be avoided at all costs, as it's a processed junk food

with no nutritional value and possibly harmful levels of phytoestrogens.

Check out http://westonaprice.org/soy/soy_alert.html

> What would be a safe general approach in terms of getting the

> required amount of omega 3 fatty acids per day? I've been thinking

> along the lines of 2-3tbsp flaxseeds on days where I don't eat fish

> (is fish oil at all necessary, then?) . I take it fish is a healthy

> food choice (some would argue that there is a threat posed by mercury

> poisoning, which worries me). A simple guideline, but I think it's

> about optimal at my weight. In order to balance this omega 3 intake I

> thought perhaps eating an equivalent amount of other nuts (walnuts,

> cashews, brazil nuts, almonds, hazelnuts, pumpkin seeds, peanut

> butter) daily (for the omega-6) might also be a good idea. Do you have

> any recommendations pertaining to which nuts are best to eat and in

> what quantity (as a general guideline)?

It's almost impossible to not get enough omega-6's to balance out the

omega-3's, so you don't need to eat extra nuts and things. You'll get

plenty of omega-6's from a small amount of nuts, seeds, and veggies. In

fact, risk of too much omega-6 is the main reason to eat nuts and seeds in

moderation. Flaxseed is controversial; a little is probably good, but you

can get plenty of omega-3's from other sources, like sea meats (including

the oils from these meats), pasture-fed eggs, etc. Although there is an

unresolved question about proper levels of retinol, cod liver oil is a

great source of omega-3's, with the key additional benefit of lots of vit

D to balance the retinol, and you get some natural vit E too. Cod liver

oil is a super-food with a pleasant taste.

By the way, for nuts, soaking/sprouting raw nuts is the way to go, to

neutralize the antinutrients. Works great for almonds and peanuts (and

other seeds and legumes).

> I really enjoy fruits, but I keep hearing about the potential excess

> of sugar. I use very limited sugar (at least compared to the average

> person!) so would 10% of my daily caloric intake as fruits be

> reasonable? My general strategy is to use a lot of variety (as with

> all things!) when it comes to fruits with a special emphasis on

> berries: wise idea or not?

I think with your sensible and varied approach you don't need to worry too

much. Just enjoy your food! (And aim for the highest quality from local

sources and in season as much as possible.)

> Is there such a thing as stomach shrinking the occurs after calorie

> restriction? How does this mechanism work? Have you guys found your

> cravings for unhealthy foods dissapear over time? Have your taste buds

> adjusted?

I think your taste buds will definitely change a lot throughout life.

When I was a kid, my favorite food was chicken noodle soup, but now it's

sprouts, kefir, and eel.

> Is it true that protein requires far more energy to `burn' then

> carbohydrates and fats? (I believe 30% of the calories in protein are

> used in digesting it as compared to 10% for carbs and fats). As such,

> do you guys have any macronutrient recommendations per meal (ie: no

> fats with carbs, etc.)?

Just eat more fats, preferably from whole foods. If you eat enough fat,

everything else falls into place.

> Should I get decaffeinated green tea or stick to regular green tea? I

> read that the caffeine has a synergistic effect with the anti-oxidants

> present in the green tea although I'm also aware that caffeine isn't

> particularly healthy, so I'm uncertain as to what to do.

I wouldn't worry too much about the small amounts of caffeine in green

tea. Decaf would mean using tea bags; don't cheat yourself out of the

pleasures of loose-leaf tea! Also, you can get plenty of antioxidants

from a zillion other foods too.

Don't spend too much time dwelling on tiny tweaks like caffeine vs. no

caffeine, amount of fruit, etc. If you're drinking skim milk you've got

MUCH bigger issues to think about first. If you get the big things in order,

there's a lot of leeway in the details. I recommend a nutritional

treatise/cookbook called Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon.

Mike

[Guest guest]

: welcome to the group! You probably have the distinction of being one

of the youngest (if not the youngest) Cronie. To my knowledge you are the

first person under 21 years of age that we know of to attempt CRON.

Because of your young age, I agree with that you should not

restrict calories at this stage of your life and should just concentrate on

a healthy diet.

I don't agree with his ban on soy and skim milk. Walford, to the best of my

knowledge still recommends these foods and these conclusions of some

internet boards have not yet been accepted by the mainstream scientific

community. Weston Price and a couple of other non-mainstreamers are the

only ones who carry this opinion. So until more proof is in don't stop

consuming these foods (I do and so does Walford and the noted Dr.

Weil). The Okinawans, the longest lived people in the world, and the only

people who practise CRON as a society, eat lots of soy. They should be your

role model as they are the living proof of CRON in humans.

If I may make an observation about your post: you seem preoccupied with

food and not putting so much as a " crumb " of anything bad in your mouth. I

would recommend you relax or you'll drive yourself crazy or worse yet into a

food-related mental illness. It has happened to a few cronies.

So just try to eat in a healthy manner, keep either/or your skim milk and

soy in your diet (unless you have any allergies to them) and wait til you're

older to start any restriction of calories.

I hope this helps!

on 6/6/2003 1:15 PM, paultheo2000 at paultheo2000@... wrote:

> Hi guys, this seems like a great board. I've been looking everywhere

> for information and I'm trying to piece together a general health plan

> for myself. A little about myself: I'm a 17 year old male, 5'8,

> 132lbs, 12% bf. Help with anyone one of the following questions would

> be most appreciated:

>

[Guest guest]

> Because of your young age, I agree with that you should not

> restrict calories at this stage of your life and should just concentrate on

> a healthy diet.

I suggested there's no reason to delay CR! I say go for it! I wish I

started when I was 17. I started at 24, about two years ago.

> I don't agree with his ban on soy and skim milk. Walford, to the best of my

> knowledge still recommends these foods and these conclusions of some

> internet boards have not yet been accepted by the mainstream scientific

> community. Weston Price and a couple of other non-mainstreamers are the

> only ones who carry this opinion. So until more proof is in don't stop

> consuming these foods (I do and so does Walford and the noted Dr.

> Weil). The Okinawans, the longest lived people in the world, and the only

> people who practise CRON as a society, eat lots of soy. They should be your

> role model as they are the living proof of CRON in humans.

Soy can be fine, if it's fermented and used in moderation. Soy **milk**

is not good for anyone because it's not fermented, and the commercial

stuff has other problems. It's probably better for men to eat less soy

than women because of the phytoestrogens.

Mike

[Guest guest]

According to " BT120YD " Walford says on page 50: " Studies..... have

shownthat restriction begun ......in young adulthood in the rat is just as

effective in extending life span as weaning- initiated restriction. "

Based on that and the fact that may still be growing (as he is still a

teen ager) it would be desirable for him to wait. One undesirable side

effect could be reduced body size (to say nothing of reduced testosterone

levels at a time in his life when testosterone levels should be at their

peak in a man).

on 6/7/2003 11:17 AM, Anton at bwp@... wrote:

> I suggested there's no reason to delay CR! I say go for it! I wish I

> started when I was 17. I started at 24, about two years ago.

[Guest guest]

just want to add that the views here are s own views and not the

consensous here.

for example he says

Soy milk should be avoided at all costs, as it's a processed junk food

with no nutritional value and possibly harmful levels of phytoestrogens.

this is exactly why I use soy milk and soy powder, I want phytoestrogens.

But I agree with him about skim milk. Too little fat in the diet

interferes with the absorption of some vitamins. I use 1% and soy milk

myself. However I am no paragon of virtue with regards to CRON as I need

to lose 17 kilos before even beginning CRON!

Positive dennis