The theory of
the Anti-Diet has one simple axiom that guides the rest of the theory,
“eat a little bit of everything and not too much of anything”. The
theory holds that if one eats from a wide variety of foods, not over
consuming any one thing, the full range of dietary therapy is made
available and there is little or no need for remedial supplementation
like vitamins and minerals.
Foreign visitors I have known coming to America for the first time are
startled and amazed by our grocery stores, it is mind boggling to them
that in out produce sections one can purchases any fruit or vegetable,
locally in season or not. You can get a pineapple 365 days a year, and
at a reasonable price. The problem most of us have is that we do not
make use of the vast richness our local groceries provide, we tend to
eat very few of the same fruits and vegetables year in, year out and,
that mundane diet makes for an unhealthy body.
The most frequently asked question by patients in my clinical practice
is, “what diet I should follow?” My answer depends a lot on what your
diet is like now. One of the main things to consider are the ratios of
foods you are eating. This is also the simplest way to modify your diet
because it may only require you to change the quantity of foods you are
eating as opposed to the types of foods you are eating.
In your mouth there are four basic types of dentition, or teeth, that
perform three basic functions, half the teeth in your mouth are of the
pre molar, incisor and molar variety. These teeth are most useful in
masticating or chewing fibrous foods that are of the fruit and vegetable
variety. The canines and incisors make up about one fourth of your
dentition and are useful for ripping and tearing meat. The third group
of teeth are the premolar and molar variety that are useful for grinding
grains, seeds and nuts. The three types of tooth overlap in function and
make it possible for us to be what we are: omnivorous, that is, we can
eat just about anything we can fit in our face.
Simple logic implies that if our dentition is structured so that half
our teeth are for fruit and vegetable matter, one fourth for seeds, nuts
and grain and one fourth for meat, then we should be following that as
our basic dietary pattern.
My advice is simple and straight forward, let half of your daily caloric
intake come from fruits and vegetables, fresh is best as is wide
variety. Let one fourth of your daily caloric intake come from whole
grains, seeds and nuts (whole grain breads and pastas are included in
this category), and let one fourth of your daily caloric intake come
from protein sources (which include meat, poultry, dairy and legumes).
The next question you have should be, “what is my optimum daily caloric
intake?” The answer is “who are you and what do you do?” If you are a
large person, 180 - 220 pounds for instance, and you have a sedentary
job and home life you may only really need 1200 - 1500 calories per day
for simple maintenance. If you have the same body type but you work high
steel all day and train for triathalons at night you may need upward of
3000 calories per day just for maintenance. The Food and Drug
Administration has touted a 2000 calorie a day diet across the board for
everyone the last twenty years and we are a nation of obese people as a
result of it. The FDA has also promoted that two thirds of your 2000
calorie a day diet come from grain products and we are a nation of
hypoglycemics as a result of it.
I advise you to ignore the food pyramid in favor of the food circle, and
as your mother used to say “eat your vegetables!” |
