Diets like Atkins could help prevent Alzheimer's, cancer, diabetes and Parkinson's disease

By: News-Medical, Published: Monday, 26-Apr-2004

http://www.news-medical.net/view_article.asp?id=845

Though diets like Atkins and South Beach are the current rage, an emerging eating philosophy may do more than temporarily take off pounds: It could help treat disease.
Described as an "anti-inflammatory diet" by proponents such as holistic health guru Dr. Andrew Weil, the food plan addresses inflammation, a burgeoning area of medical research.

Although inflammation has long been implicated in arthritis, scientists increasingly are linking excessive inflammation to mental health problems as well as heart disease, Alzheimer's, cancer, diabetes and Parkinson's disease.

Anti-inflammatory medications have shown to be effective in lowering the risk of Alzheimer's, but critics say they don't address the problem - just the symptoms - and can have unpleasant side effects, including headaches and nausea. As a supplemental approach, some doctors recommend following the ancient Hippocratic idea that suggests using food as medicine.

At the first Nutrition and Health: State of the Science and Clinical Applications conference, held here recently, Weil told a group of more than 300 physicians, nurses, registered dietitians and chiropractors that the anti-inflammatory diet was a key part of a rising field called "nutritional medicine."

"The idea on the medical horizon is that chronic inflammation is a root cause of degenerative diseases that now seem unrelated," said Weil, founder and director of the University of Arizona's Program in Integrative Medicine, who hoped the conference would spark a movement to improve nutritional education in medical schools. "Keep your eye on the hypothesis and how it touches parts of medicine."

Inflammation, better known as redness, heat, swelling and pain that come with a jammed finger or an overused knee, for instance, is actually the cornerstone of the healing process. We need it to survive.

But when the inflammation process doesn't shut down and becomes chronic, it injures tissues. The body works to heal and repair itself but with prolonged inflammation is subjected to a vicious cycle.

One theory is that the pathetic American diet - high in processed and fast foods - promotes abnormal inflammation.

Until recently, people ate a balance of pro- and anti-inflammatory nutrients, according to Jack Challem, author of "The Inflammation Syndrome."

"Today, because of extensive food processing, our diet has become seriously unbalanced," he wrote. "The typical Western diet now contains at least thirty times more of pro-inflammatory nutrients than just a century ago."

Fatty acids might be one reason. Omega-3 fatty acids are critical in preventing inflammation, while omega-6 fatty acids promote it.

"We need both in the diet, but the ratio is changing," Weil said. One possibility is that grass-fed animals store omega-3 in their fat. But today's meat is finished on grain, a source of omega-6 fatty acids.

The science, however, is still evolving. In a 2003 study published in the journal Circulation, Harvard School of Public Health researchers found that omega-6 fatty acids did not inhibit the anti-inflammatory effects of omega-3 fatty acids and that people with high amounts of both omega-3 and omega-6 had the lowest levels of chronic inflammation.

The diet itself stresses eating foods high in omega-3 fatty acids, including wild salmon - not farm-raised - sardines, herring and walnuts.

Omega-3s can also be obtained through hempseed, flax seed and flax oil. Ginger and turmeric can be powerful anti-inflammatory agents, but the effects take time to kick in.

Pro-inflammatory foods to avoid include red meats, commercial baked goods with trans fats, saturated fats, fried foods, carbonated drinks, margarine and many microwavable foods.

Other major aspects of the diet, according to Challem, include eating a variety of fresh and whole foods, including fresh vegetables; eating more fish, especially cold-water varieties; eating lean meats (not corn-fed); and cooking with olive oil.

Well this might explain why arthritis symptoms are relieved by LCing.....same with GERD.

Unfortunately my arthritis isn't any better on low carb than on any other diet.

If anything else, this is the single most important statement in this article. This is the first step down the long road in shifting the medical profession's thinking from using "[B]scalpel and drugs" to "nutritional medicine," which, in turn, means "low-carbing," whatever plan that may be.

Wow - sounds strange coming from Dr Weil. I thought he was against LCing.

Nancy, are you still eating grains? From what I've read, the arthritis might improve if you eliminate them from your diet. Some LC authors, such as the Eadeses and Dr Mercola suggest that the autoimmune response could be caused by gluten.

My husband doesn't have arthritis, but he does have year-long allergies. We started low-carbing in late January and have completely eliminated grains. My husband's allergies are dramatically improved. We were surprised and looked on Dr. Mercola's site. Sure enough, he says that is one of the benefits of eliminating grains. We have also added Omega-3 oils to help with allergies and other health problems. Sure seems to be working.

But, that means no low-carb bread, bars, etc. Stick to whole foods.

Sure is working for us.

Weil is a longtime member of PCRM, a decidedly anti-Atkins group. If he really has come around to LC - which I doubt - it would be an astonishing conversion.

This "no" list is still sounds like PCRM - red meat is number 1 on the list, and saturated fat is listed, despite Weil having suggested above that grass fed meat/fat is not a problem. Grain is only on the list in conjunction with trans fats. In fact, processed grain is probably the biggest source of imbalance in modern diets, along with processed polyunsaturated vegetable oils.

I thought "red" meat was only one of the meats we can eat besides chicken, turkey, lamb, pork. And then there's fish. I am one of those people that has trouble with beef but the rest is ok. There's nothing wrong with calling "red" meat a pro-inflammatory if it is, in fact, one. People who have problems with their kidneys should also avoid or restrict "red" meat but they can stuff themselves on chicken, fish, et al. They don't have to become vegetarians. If you read further you will find:

"Other major aspects of the diet, according to Challem, include eating a variety of fresh and whole foods, including fresh vegetables; eating more fish, especially cold-water varieties; eating lean meats (not corn-fed); and cooking with olive oil"

As I mentioned earlier, this article is great because, for once, the thinking is shifted from treating with drugs to "nutritional medicine," something we low-carbers have been saying over and over again and having it fall on deaf ears. Now the battle will ensue as to which nutritional approach is best not for dieting but for curing disease. This is where we refer back to the title of the article:

"Diets like Atkins could help prevent Alzheimer's, cancer, diabetes and Parkinson's disease". I for one would call this "positive."

Other than being a holistic health guru (I wonder what university offers that diploma?), I wonder what credentials this doctor holds.

I love the message but I am suspicious of the messenger. I'd be a lot more confident of this if it came from people actually doing research in the area of inflammation.

Re: treating with nutrition rather than drugs.

It's not ALL the doc's fault for pushing the pills so much.

First, several studies have been done that show that patient demand medication for their various ailments. They'd much rather pop a pill than make any dietary or lifestyle change.

Second, non-medication treatment often means closer monitoring by the physician....and most don't have the time to properly monitor the patients they currently have. More frequent monitoring means more freq appts, so longer days. They also run a risk with ins companies, who might find additional appts unnecessary....or from their partners if they're in a "global" fee (they get a set fee, regardless of if a patient is seen once or fifty times in a benefit period, usually 1 yr)arrangement with the ins company .

Third, alternative treatments often take longer to show a change. People today want to see immediate results....especially if they spent money for the doc, and treatment. Stop eating something that causes an imflamation response in your body....like arthritis. If effective, it will probably be several days or weeks before a difference is noticed. OR....take a pill and get relief in 20-30 min.

There should be a national push for more "alternative" treatments, be it therapy, diet, exercise, whatever. There should also be closer monitoring of these patients....and that can be done less expensively with groups or clinics.

The medical profession, as well as the american public, wants a quick fix for everything! If you can diet for a few weeks to notice improvement in a medical issue....like blood sugar levels....or take a pill that will show results within hours, MOST people are going to take the pill. And MOST docs will too, because they get almost immediate feedback, and s/he may feel their patients are "safer" becaue the immediate threat is removed.

It's a coplex issue. Americans feel entitled to "have it all". They want to eat what they want and not have to worry about it. They don't want to "have" to do anything they don't want to do. They are also always looking for a quick fix....and will praise a treatment based on how fast it works, not the long term implications. Too many americans live in the present only and do as little long-term planning as possible. Many don't want to think about what their actions might impact down the road....because they'd rather ignore the fact that the road is even there.

Just my 2 cents.....ok 10 cents!

I've even gone so far as to refuse medication, including antibiotics to "cure" strep, which I got over naturally.

There are people on this board and many other low-carbing boards that are not your typical "Americans" who want quick fixes. Many of us have tried over, and over, and over again to lose weight and feel healthy. For decades we have been searching, without giving up, for what works for us because we have been failed by the media, our government and our doctors. Do you think Americans wanted "Low Fat," but see how deeply entrenched it has become. Why? Brainwashing. Why this article is so significant is that it is the very first step towards another "option." This does not mean that this option will be adopted today, tomorrow or even 5 years from now. It just means that this step is heading in the right direction.

I don't know how much my experiences have to do with what is being stated in this article. But I do know that since I started Atkins almost 7 weeks ago I have gotten rid of chronic neck pain that I suffered with for many years. One day I just noticed it was gone. Also, was having migraines and flashing lights, they are also gone. Depression and feeling like "something bad was going to happen" are also gone. The only thing I can attribute it to is the change from my crappy diet to Atkins. And the great side benefit is I'm also losing weight! And not going hungry or suffering to do it. I love LC!

I agree! I have chronic back pain that's almost non-existant lately....my GERD is much better....I feel great....and I'm almost never hungry.

I think part is the choice of foods....but mainly I think it's getting back to natural and not eating a lot of processed foods. But whatever it is, I love it!

Hellistile...I agree that most on here are not looking for a quick fix....but I believe the majority of the general population, if told they could loose weight easily and painlessly by taking a pill, they would.....but when you tell them to change their eating habits.....or any other habit....they will fight it and try to find something better.

I've tried so many things over the years too....never got into spending lots of money on internet and TV promos....mainly because I didn't have the money to spend! That and my daddy taught me "if it seems too good to be true, it probably is".

LCing really isnt' hard....and this from someone who pretty much hates cooking. But it does involve planning and cooking your own food....not depending on someone else to do all the work for you (in my opinion, that is). But any good meal plan involves work. Unless you're talking about some of the weirdo diets, you have to count, calulate, cook....or it's not a plan that's worthwhile. I think that was the biggest part of trying to stick with LF. You have to cook and plan too....but who the heck wants to plan and cook LF????

To us it's worth it. To many it isn't....but someday it might be.