How to Reverse Prediabetes. It is surprisingly easy to stop this condition from developing into full-blown diabetes. By Jill Weisenberger, M.S, RDN , CDCES Nutrition Solutions Bottom Line Health Adapted from Food, Facts and Fads
More than 96 million American adults have prediabetes — Blood sugar levels lower than type 2 diabetes but higher than normal. However, there is good news. Decades of research tells us that reversing prediabetes by restoring your blood sugar to normal levels if possible by making a few lifestyle adjustments. Much comes the results of a program called the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), a – 3 year-long study with 3,000 ,participants. Prediabetes has no obvious symptoms, only a few metabolic markers that can tell us how progressive the disease may be in time. It’s more likely if you have excess weight, smoke, are inactive, sleep poorly, have high blood pressure, low (good) HDL cholesterol, or heart disease. These factors become suggestive that these risk factors should be tested and monitored for susceptibility to diabetes type 2. If you discover that you have prediabetes (preferably there are some things you can do: improve your diet, increase your activity, and lose a little weight (if overweight) all with the permission of your primary care physician and assessment of the above risk factors.Improve Your Diet There is no best diet to lower high blood sugar. Rather, you should eat nutrient-dense foods like fruit, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, lean meats, fish, and low fat and non-fat dairy (no surprises there!!!) However, there is one category you should avoid: sugar sweetened soft drinks, fruit drinks, energy drinks, sports drinks, sweetened teas, and coffee beverages with added sugar. Watch the snacks – our diets are often snack heavy which encourages the intake of highly processed foods loaded with carbs, salt, fat and sugar. Stay away from keto, low fat, low carb, low fat- all these “diets” require willpower or deprivation of some kind that encourages binge eating. Increase activity
Keep it simple – avoid gyms and exercise programs (unless you are highly structured and motivated. “Enjoy walking? If you do, set aside at least 5 minutes every day rather than longer periods just two or three times weekly. A daily behavior is more likely to become a habit. Gradually increase the daily time you spend walking, until you’re walking about 20 to 30 minutes every day.”
Lose a Little weight“
In one study, people at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes who lost just 5 percent of their body weight improved the function of their pancreatic beta cells and decreased insulin resistance. Use small dishes (9 inches) Eat from a dish – no reaching into boxes or bags” Sometimes just a few small changes can make a big difference.
Although life span has not changed, life expectancy has increased dramatically over the past century,
With rare exceptions, life expectancy has been on the rise in the U.S. It was 47 years in 1900, 68 years in 195v0, and by 2019i it had risen to nearly 79 years. But it fell to 77 in 2020 and dropped further to just over 76 in 2021. (can you think Covid?) Harvard Health.
The causes of aging are still a mystery.Most likely, aging results from an interaction of genetic and the changes listed in the table below: The science of epigenetics also can offer lifestyle factors to further influnce the changes that normally occur with “normal aging”.
Aging occurs when: Errors occur in copying the genetic blueprint (DNA) Connective tissue stiffens. Parallel muscle proteins cross link. Electron – seeking compounds (free radicals) damage cell. Hormone functions change. Blood glucose attaches to various blood and body proteins. Occurs in poorly controllled diabetes The immune system loses some efficiency and fails to recognize foreign substances. Autoimmunity develops. Immune function cells destroy “self”. Death is programmed into the cell, e.g. each cell can only divide about 50 times; after that the cell dies and succumbs. Excess energy intake speeds body breakdown and may even cause premature death. In research, underfed animals live longer by calorie restriction. Diet can slow down some of these processes? Source: Gordon M. Wardlaw. Contemporary Nutrition: Issues and Insights. Page 518-520. Edited for Food, Facts and Fads by: Sally J. Feltner, MS, PhD
WOW!!! What else could go wrong?
Healthy lifestyles may be found to alleviate some or all of these body processes.
In a study on longevity in women, researchers from the University of California San Diego (UCSD) examined the benefits of keeping a stable weight for older women.
The scientists studied data from thousands of women to determine the likelihood of reaching the ages of 90, 95, or 100, which they called “exceptional longevity.”
Their data analysis showed that older women who maintained a stable weight may be 1.2 to 2 times more likely to reach ages 90 to 100.
While maintaining a stable weight provided benefits toward reaching exceptional longevity, unintentional weight loss was associated with a decrease in the likelihood of reaching 90.
Older women looking to extend their lifespan to the age of 90 or beyond should focus on maintaining a stable weight.
A recent multi-institutional study found that older women who maintained a stable body weight after 60 were more likely to reach their 90th birthdays.
The study involved 54,437 women from the Women’s Health Initiative. The researchers looked at short-term and long-term weight changes in women and compared that to the age they reached.
The researchers found that women who experienced unintentional weight loss had 51% lower odds of reaching 90.
While weight loss was associated with decreased longevity, a weight gain of 5% or more did not contribute to exceptional longevity, which points toward the importance of maintaining a stable weight.
This study aimed to analyze any associations between weight changes (intentional or unintentional) and exceptional longevity in older women.
The authors noted that prior studies analyzed the effects of weight loss in early to middle adulthood, such as shifting from being a person with obesity to being overweight, but that these studies had not considered whether the weight loss was intentional.
The UCSD study included nearly 55,000 postmenopausal women who participated in the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study, which began in 1991. The WHI study focused on health issues in postmenopausal women, such as heart disease and cancer.
The authors chose to use data from women who were ages 61 to 81 at the time of enrolling in the study. The women provided information, including their weight, medical conditions, alcohol consumption, and smoking status.
The researchers looked at weight changes from the beginning of each participant’s enrollment and later at the 3-year and 10-year marks. They categorized the women into one of three groups:
Stable weight (less than 5% change from starting weight)
Weight loss (more than 5% decrease from starting weight)
Weight gain (more than 5% increase from starting weight)
The authors also classified the women into “intentional weight loss” or “unintentional weight loss groups” at the 3-year weigh-in, depending on whether they reported losing more than 5 pounds on purpose.
After excluding any women who died within the first year of the 3-year weigh-in (to avoid pre-existing health conditions impacting results), the researchers found that 56.3% of women who maintained a stable weight lived to be at least 90 years old.
Women who experienced unintentional weight loss of 5% or more were less likely to reach the age of 90.
According to the authors, women who had weight loss (for any reason) of more than 5% at the 3-year checkup had 33% lower odds of reaching 90, 35% lower odds of reaching 95, and 38% lower odds of reaching 100.
They also looked at whether the weight loss was intentional or unintentional, and the women who tried to lose weight had 17% reduced odds of reaching 90. Some reasons for intentionally losing weight included diet changes and an increase in exercise.
The women who did not lose weight on purpose had 51% reduced odds of reaching 90. Some reasons the women reported for unintentionally losing weight include illness and stress.
Alternatively, a weight gain of more than 5% at the 3-year weigh-in was not associated with increased chances of survival.
“It is very common for older women in the United States to experience [being overweight or having obesity] with a body mass index range of 25 to 35. Our findings support stable weight as a goal for longevity in older women,” says Professor Aladdin H. Shadyab, the study’s lead author and professor at UCSD’s School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science.
Introduction How Did the whole Blue Zone Concept Develop?
What Are the Blue Zones? Why are they called “blue”? An epidemiologist, Pes from Sardinia, Italy began to study centenarians, he denoted those areas that appeared to be long-lived on a map He noted these areas with blue markers on a map, thus the Blue Zones. He used dietary surveys from the last century and noted that from the late 20th century, certain areas in the world had diets and similar social patterns that consisted primarily minimally processed plant foods-i mostly whole grains, greens, nuts, tubers and beans. Most people ate meat on average only five times a month They drank mostly water, herbal teas, coffee, and some wine. They drank little or no cow’s milk; sweetened sodas and fast foods. were largely unknown.
Processed foods began to penetrate these areas as well as animal products and fast foods began to invade the cultures. Not surprisingly, chronic diseases began to appear on their menus.
Sardinia, Italy: Home to the World’s Highest Concentration of Male Centenarians. In the Years after WW2, 38 people the village of Arzana in Sardinia’s Gennargentu mountains – one out of every 100 of their peers- have reached a century
To illustrate, short bios or vignettes that describe how several members of the Blue Zones have lived and practiced the ways of the centenarians they have become. Each glimpse of them is reflected in the habits they swear have contributed and shown us the way that their lifestyles may contribute to their longevity. The purpose of this is to show how they lived in their culture with a hope that we as Americans can learn how to adapt to or adopt some of the components of this way of living and show us how to adopt them to the “American” way of life. It is also important to realize that it’s not always what we eat, but how to eat”. The information is based on a real life experiment called The Blue Zones by Dan Buettner or the Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World’s Healthiest People are excellent EXAMPLES OF HOW TO USE THESE PRINCIPALS IN THE BLUE ZONES to adapt to American ways.
For example, Carbohydrates from Sardinian sourdough bread enter the bloodstream at a slower rate than those from plain white bread.”
“ Traditional diets with whole grains, greens, nuts and beans offer the promise of eluding disease and staying healthy.”
In the kitchen, ninety-year old Assunta Podda flashes a toothy smile while she vigorously stirs an earthen pot of the melange of beans, carrots, onions, garlic, tomatoes, fennel, kohlrabi, and various herbs – all of which had been doused with olive oil. On the table next to her sits the staples the evening meal: some sourdough loaves, forage greens, and a carafe of garnet red wine. With the steady hand of a younger woman, she pours wine into stout glasses and ladles the steaming soup into dishes. “Now eat”, she says with a grin.”
Bread making in Sardinia is a community affair. Women can be seen making the traditional bread served at most meals. In one village bakery. the octogenarian senior baker named Regina Boi had provided the starter dough that her family had cultivated for generations. The starter contains yeast and native Lactobacillus bacteria. From these ingredients carbon dioxide leavens the bread and the lactobacilli also break down the carbohydrates to produce lactic acid that provides tthe traditional sour taste of sour dough bread.
As Podda’s family dinner ends, a spirited exchange ensues with the local village gossip, Pes, one of the guests raises his glass in a sense of revelry and expresses the signature toast of the island, “a kent annos”. May you live to 100”. The remaining guests respond, “And may you be here to count the years”.
Nicoya, Costa Rica: Adults Here have the Longest Life Expectancy in the Americas.
Excess access to fruits such as pineapple and papayas from home gardens extends this plant-based diet year around. Costa Rica’s blue zone is a roughly 30-mile long strip that runs along the spine of the Nicoya Peninsula; it doesn’t include the tourist resorts on the coast.
Surveys show that previous to the late 20th century, these diets consisted primarily of minimally processed foods – mostly whole grains, greens, nuts, tubers and beans. They ate meat on average only five times a month. They drank water, herbal teas, coffee, and some wine. They drank little cow’s milk and sweetened drinks was largely unknown. As processed foods became available, they ate more processed animal products, and began to eat fast foods. Not surprisingly, chronic diseases have been on the rise.
“A healthy diet is part of the practice that can support longevity, e.g. having a circle of friends, and a strong sense of purpose. Every morning, Maria Elena Jimenez, Rojaz in Santa Cruz gathers to make the perfect tortilla. Three women mix black beans with onions, red peppers, and herbs. The beans will cook until tender and then be nixed with rice and sauteed peppers, onions and garlic to produce a uniquely Costa Rican version of gallo pinto.
The region’s Chorotega people have influenced the food supply by simply eating the same food for a millennia. This may be partly the reason adults there have the longest life expectancy for Americans and men older than 60 have the lowest reliably measured rate of mortality for their age group in the world.
Corn tortillas might affect longevity. The wood ash the women add when they soak the corn breaks down the cell walls of the kernels and releases niacin which helps to control cholesterol. Black beans contain the same pigment-based antioxidants found in blueberries. They are also rich in colon-cleansing fiber. The secret is pairing corn with beans the beans that then can contribute all nine essential amino acids to make muscle in addition to less cholesterol and saturated fat. as meats.
By the way, Paulina serves this breakfast so typical in the Nicoya region to her 102 – year old father, Pachito and her nephew, Sixto every day. The meal includes coffee, eggs, rice and beans, and those famous tortillas cooked on a tradition wood-fired stove known as a fogon. By the way, this adds up to a relatively high carbohydrate diet.
How is Longevity Studied? A common way if possible is to use a little genetic science. Telomeres are protective “caps”on the ends of DNA strands, which wear down over time. This effect becomes a marker of biological age. Research has shown us Nicoyans have longer telomeres (a good thing) on average than Costa Ricans overall. (Stanford Social epidemiologist, David Rehkopf and Costa Rican demographer Luis Rosero-Bixby).
Rehkopf has reported that Nicoyans seem to be up to a decade younger biologically than their chronological age.
The Most Successful Diets (Based on Nutrition Experts).
For the last 13 years U.S. News and World Report has selected a panel of health and nutriiton experts to determine which works well for individuals with diabetes, those interested in weight loss, and people with a family history or other risk factor for heart disease and more.
After examining 24 diets, the ones that scored the highest and were selected as eating plans that more people might find success with checked most of these boxes: Tasty Flexible Convenient Filling Feature nutrient-rich foods and all food groups Adaptable to the whole family or household
Diets that fell near the bottom checked the following: Require rigid eating schedules or menus Call for bland food Tend to emphsize unfamilar ingredients or specialty products Involve challenging restrictions Elminate entire food groups or severely restrict calories.
The Top Five: Flexitarian Diet Mediterranean Diet Mayo Clinic Volumetrics MIND
The Bottom Five Optavia Raw Food Keto (sorry-very restrictive) Jenny Craig
Slim Fast
The Bottom Line The diets that were rated as easist to follow offered a lot of variety, were convenient and encouraged foods that reduce risk for disease, support balanced energy levels and are simply fun to eat.
The best diet strategy of all is one that adds to your quality of life, rather than subtracts from it.
Source: By Karla Walsh – Published: January 6, 2023 Reviewed by Jessica Ball, M.S. RD Eating Well Magazine The Blue Zones Solution; Eating and Living Like the World’s Healthiest People. Dan Buettner
Higher Intake of Omega-3s Lowers Diabetics’ Mortality Risk
People with diabetes who had a higher intake of the omega-3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA had a lower risk of all-cause mortality compared to diabetics whose intake was lower, a study in Acta Diabetologica reported.
The clinical study included 4,854 diabetic participants in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2014. Mortality data were obtained through 2015.
During the follow-up, 1102 deaths occurred. People whose intake of EPA and DHA was among the highest 20% of participants, at more than 122 mg per day, had a 25% lower risk of mortality from any cause compared to those whose intake of the fatty aids was among the lowest 20%, at 9.5 mg or less.
When the risks of all-cause mortality associated with EPA and DHA were analyzed separately, greater DHA intake emerged as significantly associated with lower mortality risk.
EPA = eicosapentaenoic acid (a long-chain fatty acid ) DHA = decosahexaenoic acid (a long-chain fatty acid)
Association of fish and long-chain omega-3 fatty acids intakes with total and cause-specific mortality: prospective analysis of 421 309 individuals Y Zhang 1 , P Zhuang 1 , W He 2 , J N Chen 1 , W Q Wang 3 , N D Freedman 4 , C C Abnet 4 , J B Wang 5 , J J Jiao 3
A study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine reported that both men and women who had a high intake of fish or long-chain omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) that included EPA, DHA, and DPA had lower risks of dying from any cause.
The study population included 240, 729 men and 180,580 women. They were given questionnaires concerning lifestyle and diet and followed up after 16 years.
Results (from Abstract) “A total of 54 230 men and 30 882 women died during 6.07 million person-years of follow-up. Higher fish and LCn-3 PUFAs intakes were significantly associated with lower total mortality (P < 0.0001). Comparing the highest with lowest quintiles of fish intake, men had 9% (95% confidence interval, 6–11%) lower total mortality, 10% (6–15%) lower cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality, 6% (1–10%) lower cancer mortality, 20% (11–28%) lower respiratory disease mortality and 37% (17–53%) lower chronic liver disease mortality, while women had 8% (5–12%) lower total mortality, 10% (3–17%) lower CVD mortality and 38% (20–52%) lower Alzheimer’s disease mortality. Fried fish consumption was not related to mortality in men whereas positively associated with mortality from all causes (P = 0.011), CVD and respiratory disease in women. LCn-3 PUFAs intake was associated with 15% and 18% lower CVD mortality in men and women across extreme quintiles, respectively.”
Conclusion “Consumption of fish and LCn-3 PUFAs was robustly associated with lower mortality from major causes. Our findings support current guidelines for fish consumption while advice on non-frying preparation methods is needed. Discussion: “As the associations between long-chain omega-3 PUFAS intake and morality were similar to that of fish intake, the health benefits of fish is probably related to the abundant content of long-chain omega-3 PUFAS, which possess anti-inflammatory properties and may prevent the development of inflammation-driven disorders, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and Alzlheimer’s disease,” Dr. Zhang and associates observed.” “Overall, we provide new clinical evidence with which to address the role of fish and long-chain omega-3 PUFAs in overall health and contribute to updated dietary guidelines,” the authors concluded.” A study reported on July 18, 2018 in the Journal of Internal Medicine reveals a lower risk of dying from any cause during a 16-year follow-up period among men and women who had a high intake of fish or long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), which include EPA, DHA, and DPA.”
Before taking any PUFA supplement, check with your physician. Fish is better!!! SJF
From Eating Well:
The Bottom Line: “If you tend to eat a lot of fried food, the air fryer is definitely a good option for you. Still, the air fryer isn’t a magic machine that makes any food “healthy.” If you typically use the oven to cook food, the air fryer can be a great tool to add more variety to your cooking—start experimenting with our 30-Minute Recipes for Your Air Fryer! From Eating Well.”
The Mediterranean staple might also reduce your risk of dying from dementia by 28% if you eat just a spoonful every day.
This new finding is according to research presented Monday in Boston at Nutrition 2023, the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition.
Whether olive oil is linked with risk of dementia-related death had never been studied until now, according to the authors.
“Our study reinforces dietary guidelines recommending vegetable oils such as olive oil and suggests that these recommendations not only support heart health but potentially brain health, as well,” said Anne-Julie Tessier, a coauthor of the research and postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, in a news release. “Opting for olive oil, a natural product, instead of fats such as margarine and commercial mayonnaise is a safe choice and may reduce the risk of fatal dementia.”
Research participants included nearly 60,600 women who had participated in the Nurses’ Health Study from 1990 to 2018, and nearly 32,000 men who had been in the Health Professionals’ Follow-Up Study during the same time period. The former study investigated risk factors for major chronic diseases among women in North America, whereas the latter is looking into the same topics but for men.
The authors of the latest research assessed the diet of the participants — who were age 56 on average at the start of the study — every four years via a questionnaire. The team also reviewed diet quality using the Alternative Healthy Eating Index, which assigns ratings to foods and nutrients predictive of chronic disease. The higher people score on this index, the better.
Over a follow-up period of 28 years, regardless of diet quality, eating more than half a tablespoon of olive oil per day was associated with a 28% lower risk of dying from dementia, compared with participants who never or rarely consumed olive oil.
Additionally, replacing a daily teaspoon of mayonnaise or margarine with the same amount of olive oil was correlated with an 8% to 14% lower risk of dementia-related death, the authors found.
However, this research is early, so some experts uninvolved with it urge caution.
“These findings are simply being reported at a conference and have not undergone peer-review so there has been no examination of the study by independent experts,” said David Curtis, honorary professor at the UCL Genetics Institute at University College London, in a statement. “We do not know whether the results will end up being published in a journal. If the study does eventually result in a published paper, we do not know whether the published results will be the same as those now being presented.”
The 4,749 participants who died from dementia were more likely to have APOE e4 — the strongest known genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease — according to analysis of DNA from participants’ blood or mouth cells. But having the gene doesn’t mean a person will certainly develop the disease, and the authors’ findings were still consistent after taking this factor into account, they said.
Regardless, “it is important to note that this is not causal, as the authors point out, only an association,” said registered dietitian Duane Mellor, a senior teaching fellow at Aston Medical School of Aston University in England. “More research is needed.”
Olive oil and dementia risk
The potential benefits of olive oil for brain health could be due to antioxidant compounds that can cross the blood-brain barrier, directly affecting the brain, Tessier said.
“It is also possible that olive oil has an indirect effect on brain health by benefiting cardiovascular health,” she added.
Though participants’ overall diet quality didn’t make a difference in the findings, those who consume olive oil may have overall healthier lifestyles.
“There are many, many differences between people who consume olive oil and those who do not, and it is never possible to fully account for all possible confounding factors,” Curtis said.
Another important point to keep in mind is that about half of dementia cases are caused by vascular disease, Curtis added.
“Anything which improved cardiovascular health, such as not smoking, would be expected to reduce dementia risk,” he said. “It has been shown that olive oil consumption is associated with better cardiovascular health, so one would expect that it would also be associated with lower dementia risk.”
Olive oil is a staple of the Mediterranean diet, which has been found helpful for health of the brain, heart, bones and more. Besides cooking with olive oil, you can also use it to make salad dressings or vinaigrette, mayonnaise, pesto or bread dip. And people should also remember that when it comes to food and brain function, it’s not just about what we eat, but how we eat, Mellor said. We see examples of longevity when we study the populations living in the Blue Zones. (SJF).
“Remaining sociable around mealtimes and eating with others can benefit our mental health in the short term and cognitive function as we age,” he added.
For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Every once in a while, it is fun to go back into history and rediscover the fads that were popular then – the story of Bernaar MacFadden is one of them. He was however, very successful and in my opinion, a very fascinating human being.
“In 1913, twenty year old Mary Williamson, a runner and muscular swimmer was crowned “Great Britain’s Perfect Woman and as part of her prize was a job offer from fitness guru, forty-four year old, Bernarr MacFadden. The job involved a traveling physical fitness show billed as “The World’s Healthiest Man and Woman.” They performed feats of physical prowess with the big finale featuring Mary’s nightly jump from a seven-foot platform onto MacFadden’s stomach. Another “prize” was becoming Bernarr’s third wife. He proposed one day when the pair was halfway through a ten-mile run and when she accepted, she recalled: “He stood on his head on me for one minute and four seconds.” Who was this man?
EARLY YEARS
Bernarr MacFadden was a man that brought physical culture to America and Europe. “He stood five foot six inches tall and built a fortune from often, but not totally, misinforming the public about nutrition and health.. He was born in 1868 on a farm near Mill Springs, Missouri where his father died when he was four from chronic alcohol consumption.
Bernarr, a sickly boy, was raised by a TB-ill mother who sent him away to a cheap boarding school. He later referred to this school as the “starvation school”. Bernarr remembered often having peanuts as his only source of nourishment. His mother died from tuberculosis when he was eleven and Bernard, (he changed his name later to Bernaar) was sent to a northern Illinois farm to work for two years where his heath improved. He was then shipped off to St. Louis where his waiting relatives welcomed him, namely Uncle Harvey.
When walking in downtown St. Louis with his uncle one day, he discovered the Missouri Gymnasium and was impressed by the posters of musclemen displayed there. “The sickly young Barnard swore an oath: I’m going to be like them. I’m going to look like them.”
Bernarr obtained a copy of How to Get Strong and Stay So, a bestseller in 1879 written by William Blaikie, a strongman and endurance athlete. He was further inspired to follow his dream; therefore, in the spring of 1891, Bernarr hung a shingle out that read:
“BERNARR MCFADDEN – KINISITHERAPIST
TEACHER OF HIGHER PHYSICAL CULTURE”
He declared himself a “teacher of physical culture” to become the nation’s first personal trainer. He made up the term, kinisitherapist. No one knew what he meant.
BELIEFS
MacFadden’s core belief mimicked the philosophy of Sylvester Graham that blamed toxins, improper diet and exercise habits, lack of sunshine and the use of tobacco and alcohol to be the reasons for most diseases. Bernard despised white flour and called it “dead food” and said: “ I saw that white bread was frequently condemned and I whenever available, secured whole wheat or Graham bread.” He did not, however, carry on the sexual restrictions of Graham.
He began a lecture series on physical culture and put up posters and small ads in the local newspapers. Each lecture started with Macfadden dressed only in a loincloth posing artistically in front of a cabinet lined with black velvet and lit from below to make him appear larger than he was. His lectures became popular in both the U.S. and Europe.
He taught his nation-wide audiences that fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains were vital to good health. Today we know that his teachings about diet were relatively accurate in an era when nutrition knowledge was meager. He was not a true vegan, but used meat sparingly. His favorite food was carrots and he dutifully avoided sugar foods such as candy, cakes, pies and ice cream. He advocated eating only two meals a day and preached moderation while fasting once a week. There are some advocates that now suggest the same regimen. He did not believe in pasteurization or homogenization of milk. He said that milk could cure many diseases. He avoided alcohol, tobacco. Of course, he advocated brisk walking, lifting weights, and prescribed calisthenics. Today’s body builders consider him the “father of physical culture.”
MacFadden published a culture magazine called Physical Culture. In 1901, he wrote: “Every disease in the human body is simply an endeavor on the part of the body to correct an abnormal condition…. It is the presence of impurities in the blood that make the production of a cold possible…Disease germs consume these poisons, or render them harmless.” By 1910, he ruled over a physical fitness empire. The empire included spas called “healthatoriums”, Physical Culture City and then Physical Culture University. He continued by promoting raw foods and salads every day and used fresh fruits to keep the intestines “antiseptic” to avoid autointoxication. He continued to avoid processed white sugar and flour.
LATER YEARS
His empire began to crumble. Research led to more knowledge about food components such as vitamins and minerals in the nutrition field. People began to lose interest in MacFadden’s ideas and his popularity declined.
In the final decade of his life, his previous wealth dwindled. He did not give up, however. He jumped out of a plane on his 83rd birthday; he did the same stunt the next year. In 1955, he was 87 and was experiencing liver and urinary tract problems. He fasted to treat his condition, but ironically died three days later due to complications from jaundice and dehydration.
LEGACY
Bernaar MacFadden was one of the most flamboyant and bizarre personalities in American culture; yet many people have forgotten him or have never heard of him today. He was the first food crusader to be known internationally and single-handed created the health and fitness awareness for millions of people. He continued to support detoxing and fasting that carried on the principles of Sylvester Graham. Even though some considered him a “quack,” he fought against medical quackery that began in the early 20th century. At the same time, he supported the medical practices of chiropractic and osteopathic treatments. In many aspects of his career like publishing and advertising, he was truly a genius.
The above link about Woodstock tells the story most vividly about what the sixties were all about.
“The decade started graciously enough – by the end of the decade we were given a health-food movement based on partly by Rachel Carson and her book, Silent Spring and environmental pollution (DDT) and the hippie lifestyle of communal, back-to -nature living. The hungry and disenfranchised made their plights public with lunch-counter sit-ins and the Poor People’s March on Washington. These acts began the civil rights movement in 1960; CBS profiles the plight of migrant farmers in California.
Our cultural past changed when the Immigration Act of 1965 begins the influx of millions of people from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Thailand, Eastern Europe, the Philippines, India, the Middle East, Africa, Mexico, and Central and South America.
On the other side, humor was in full force. “Happiness is …finding two olives in your martini when you’re hungry,” writes Johnny Carson in Happiness Is a Dry Martini (Doubleday, 1965).
There were other notable events that formed this decade. From Bon Appetit, Sept. 1999.
The above link about Woodstock tells the story most vividly about what the sixties were all about.
Our cultural past changed when the Immigration Act of 1965 begins the influx of millions of people from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Thailand, Eastern Europe, the Philippines, India, the Middle East, Africa, Mexico, and Central and South America.
On the other side, humor was in full force. “Happines is …finding two olives in your martini when you’re hungry,” writes Johnny Carson in Happiness Is a Dry Martini (Doubleday, 1965).
There were other notable events that formed this decade. From Bon Appetit, Sept. 1999.
The White House: The Kennedy Years
“From the moment Jacqueline and John F. Kennedy moved into the White House in 1961, the world could see that a new generation had arrived. With their keen interest in history, literature, the arts, food and entertaining, the youthful, scholarly, charismatic Kennedys roused stodgy Washington by setting new standards in everything from clothing to table decor and cuisine.” The First Lady hired a French Chef and the “Kennedys hosted legendary dinners with dance, concerts, poetry readings, performance of Shakespeare, and other entertainment that showcased the best America had to offer.”
Kennedy wedding
The Kennedy years were often referred to “Camelot” sadly came to an end with the assassination of the President on November 22, 1963.
The French Cooking Invasion – From Bon Appetit, September, 1999
“In the 1960s, Americans learned to cook French food and Julia Child was their teacher.. With her distinctive voice and down-to-earth manner, Child rose to national fame as the host of “The French Chef” television series….an unpretentious graduate of the Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris…Julia is at ease in front of the camera, taking some delight” in her own goofs in the kitchen. Please pass the butter!!!!
One more thing:
The Beatles invaded the U.S. in 1969 with their music. Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, and George Harrison, became rock and roll legends by doing everything else in a new way. Just in one decade – The World was alive again!!!
FOOD, FACTS and FADS 