**Submitted by the Weston A. Price Foundation**

**Sally Fallon, President**

## Mary Enig, Ph.D., Vice President

**Bill Sanda, Director of Public Affairs**

# December 12, 2003

The Weston A. Price Foundation makes the following recommendations:

-   **Abandon the current Food Pyramid concept;**

-   **Return the Dietary Guidelines to a plan that stresses high quality
    foods from four basic groups;**

-   **Urge avoidance of processed foods containing refined and partially
    hydrogenated vegetable oils as well as highly sugared food,
    especially those foods containing high fructose corn syrup;**

-   **Encourage use of beneficial unprocessed, unrefined saturated and
    monounsaturated fats and oils;**

-   **Limit added sugars to no more than 10 percent of daily caloric
    intake.**

Recommended Guidelines: Everyday, eat high quality, unprocessed foods
from each of the following four groups:

-   ***Animal foods: meat, poultry, fish, eggs and whole milk
    products***

-   ***Grains and legumes: whole grain baked goods, breakfast porridges,
    beans***

-   ***Fruits and Vegetables: preferably fresh or frozen***

-   ***Fats and Oils: unrefined saturated and monounsaturated fats
    including butter and other animal fats, palm oil and coconut oil,
    olive oil and peanut oil.***

> *Eat sparingly: sweets, white flour products, soft drinks, processed
> foods, polyunsaturated and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils and
> fried foods*

The Weston A. Price Foundation

The Weston A. Price Foundation is a nonprofit, tax exempt food and
nutrition education organization founded in 1999. The Foundation is
dedicated to restoring nutrient-dense foods to the American diet through
education, research and activism.

One of our goals is to disseminate the research of nutrition pioneer Dr.
Weston Price, whose studies of isolated non-industrialized peoples
established the parameters of human health and determined the optimum
characteristics of human diets. Dr. Price\'s research demonstrated that
humans achieve optimal physical form and health generation after
generation only when they consume nutrient-dense whole foods and the
vital fat-soluble activators, such as vitamins A and D, found
exclusively in animal foods.

The Foundation supports a number of movements that contribute to this
objective including accurate nutrition instruction, organic and
biodynamic farming, pasture feeding of livestock, community-supported
farms, honest and informative labeling, prepared parenting and nurturing
therapies.

The board and membership of the Weston A. Price Foundation stand united
in the belief that modern technology should be harnessed as a servant to
the wise and nurturing traditions of our ancestors rather than used as a
force destructive to the environment and human health; and that science
and knowledge can validate those traditions.\
\
The Foundation\'s quarterly journal, *Wise Traditions in Food, Farming,
and the Healing Arts*, is dedicated to exploring the scientific
validation of dietary, agricultural and medical traditions throughout
the world. It features illuminating and thought-provoking articles on
current scientific research, human diets, non-toxic agriculture, and
holistic therapies. The journal also serves as a reference for sources
of foods that have been conscientiously grown and processed.

Members of the Weston A. Price Foundation have created a network of 180
local chapters throughout the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand,
Europe and now Moscow to help find locally grown meat, eggs, dairy
products and produce; and work towards the return of nutrient-dense
foods to American tables through educational and activist activities.

The Foundation is member-driven and does not receive funding from any
industry source.

The Foundation invites you to visit its informative and educational
website at [www.westonaprice,org]().

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Recommendations 1

Weston A. Price Foundation 2

Table of Contents 3

Summary of Findings 4

Introduction 8

Fats 10

Polyunsaturated Fats and Vegetable Oils 12

*Trans* Fatty Acids 13

Essential Fatty Acids 16

Saturated Fats 17

Cholesterol 18

Carbohydrates 20

Refined Carbohydrates 21

Sugars 22

High Fructose Corn Syrup 24

Proteins 26

Refined Proteins 28

Conclusions 30

Tables:

Table I: COMPOSITION OF DIFFERENT FATS 31

Table II: MODERN METHODS OF PROCESSING FATS 33

Table III: ADVERSE EFFECTS OF EXCESS POLYUNSATURATED OILS 35

Table IV: SATURATED FATS ARE BENEFICIAL, NOT HARMFUL 36

Table V: BENEFITS OF CHOLESTEROL 38

Table VI: HEALTH IMPLICATIONS OF FRUCTOSE 39

References 42

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

-   There is no conclusive evidence from epidemiologic studies that
    dietary fat intake promotes the development of obesity independently
    of total energy intake;

-   Many researchers now recognize that the most important factor in
    preventing weight gain involves the total amount of calories
    consumed; when a significant portion of these calories come from
    healthy fats, the body experiences satiety and overall caloric
    intake is reduced;

-   Americans spend approximately 90 percent of their food dollars on
    processed foods;

-   Processed foods are fortified with synthetic vitamins.  Most of the
    pantothenic acid, folic acid, biotin, cholin, inositol, vitamins
    B~6~ and E are discarded in the milling of breads and the refining
    of flour for cereals. To make up for the loss of nutrients during
    processing, synthetic vitamins and minerals are added.  Although
    helpful, these synthetics are not as well assimilated as their
    natural counterparts;

-   All fats and oils, whether of vegetable or animal origin, are some
    combination of saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids
    and polyunsaturated fats;

-   Commercial, refined vegetable oils (polyunsaturated oils) contain
    free radicals and dangerous breakdown products that can cause heart
    disease, cancer, inflammation and aging, as well as increased
    obesity;

-   Modern diets can contain as much as 30% of calories as
    polyunsaturated oils, but scientific research indicates that this
    amount is far too high for humans;

-   Recent research has revealed that too much omega-6 essential fatty
    acids (EFA) in the diet from excess polyunsaturated oils in
    processed foods creates an imbalance that can interfere with
    production of prostaglandins, leading to increased tendency to form
    blood clots, inflammation, high blood pressure, irritation of the
    digestive tract, depressed immune function, sterility, cell
    proliferation, cancer and weight gain;

-   Modern agricultural and industrial practices have reduced the amount
    of beneficial omega-3 EFA in commercially available vegetables,
    eggs, fish and meat. Americans must increase the level of
    consumption of omega-3 essential fatty acids from fish and flax seed
    sources;

-   *Trans* fatty acids from modern partially hydrogenated vegetable
    oils are new to the human physiology and by the early 1970s a number
    of researchers had expressed concern about their presence in the
    American diet, noting that their increasing use had paralleled the
    increase in both heart disease and cancer and upsetting cell
    membranes;

-   Most of the *trans* fatty acids in the current American diet come
    not from margarine but from shortening used in fried and fabricated,
    processed foods;

-   American shortening consumption of 10 grams per person per day held
    steady until the 1960's, although the content of that shortening had
    changed from mostly lard, tallow and coconut oil---all natural
    fats---to partially hydrogenated soybean oil. Then shortening
    consumption shot up and by 1993 had tripled to over 30 grams per
    person per day;

-   Approximately 70 percent of all the vegetable oils used in processed
    foods such as crackers, cookies, pastries, cakes, and fried foods
    are partially hydrogenated and therefore contain high levels of
    *trans* fats;

-   *Trans* fatty acids lower HDL cholesterol, increase LDL and increase
    the heart disease marker Lipoprotein \[a\] (Lp\[a\]) while saturated
    fats lower Lp\[a\] - *trans* fatty acids raise blood sugar levels
    and contribute to diabetes;

-   The scientific evidence, honestly evaluated, does not support the
    assertion that \"artery-clogging\" saturated fats cause heart
    disease;

-   Animal fats are stable, do not easily develop free radicals, and
    contain nutrients that are vital for good health;

-   Children, in particular, require high levels of quality animal fats
    to achieve optimal physical and neurological development;

-   Cholesterol is not the cause of heart disease but rather a potent
    antioxidant weapon against free radicals in the blood, and a repair
    substance that helps heal arterial damage, although the arterial
    plaques themselves contain very little cholesterol;

-   Damaged or oxidized cholesterol seems to promote both injury to the
    arterial cells as well as a pathological buildup of plaque in the
    arteries and is found in powdered eggs, in powdered milk (added to
    reduced-fat milks to give them body) and in meats and fats that have
    been heated to high temperatures in frying and other
    high-temperature processes;

-   Babies and children need cholesterol-rich foods throughout their
    growing years to ensure proper development of the brain and nervous
    system;

-   High serum cholesterol levels often indicate that the body needs
    cholesterol to protect itself from high levels of altered,
    free-radical-containing fats;

-   High levels of carbohydrate in a diet do not provide the satiety
    that natural fats do, and the result is that there is a tendency to
    overeat carbohydrates;

-   Only during the last century has man's diet included a high
    percentage of refined carbohydrates;

-   Refined carbohydrates are inimical to life because they are devoid
    of bodybuilding elements;

-   The refining process strips grains, vegetables and fruits of both
    their vitamin and mineral components. Refined carbohydrates have
    been called \"empty\" calories. \"Negative\" calories is a more
    appropriate term because consumption of refined calories depletes
    the body's precious reserves;

-   A diet high in refined carbohydrates stimulates an abnormal
    pancreatic insulin response in order to moderate blood sugar levels;

-   As the consumption of sugar has increased, so have all the
    \"civilized\" diseases;

-   Constant high intake of simple dietary sugar over-stimulates or
    \"burns out\" normal, healthy pancreas and adrenal function;

-   Until the 1970s most of the sugar we ate came from sugar beets or
    sugar cane, called sucrose.  During the 1970s, sugar from corn -
    corn syrup, fructose, dextrose, dextrine, and/or high fructose corn
    syrup - began to gain popularity as a sweetener;

-   In the past, fructose was considered to be beneficial to diabetics
    because it is absorbed only 40 percent as quickly as glucose and
    causes only a modest rise in blood sugar; however, research on other
    hormonal factors suggests that fructose actually promotes disease
    more than glucose;

-   Glucose is metabolized in every cell in the body but all fructose in
    metabolized in the liver; the livers of test animals fed large
    amounts of fructose develop fatty deposits and cirrhosis, similar to
    the livers of alcoholics;

-   Research indicates that free fructose interferes with the heart\'s
    use of key minerals like magnesium, copper and chromium; among other
    consequences, it has been implicated in elevated blood cholesterol
    levels and blood clotting;

-   The more carbohydrate that is eaten, the more fat the liver and
    adipose tissue make from any excess carbohydrate;

-   Just as animal fats are our only sources of natural vitamins A and D
    and other bodybuilding factors, so also animal protein is our only
    source of complete protein;

-   The two best sources of protein in the vegetable kingdom are legumes
    and cereal grains, but all plant foods are low in the amino acids
    tryptophan, cystine and threonine. Legumes, such as beans, peanuts
    and cashews are high in the amino acid lysine but low in methionine.
    Cereal grains have the opposite profile;

-   Scientific evidence, honestly evaluated, argues against relying too
    heavily on grains and legumes as sources of protein or for severely
    reducing animal products in the diet;

-   Inadequate protein intake leads to loss of myocardial muscle and may
    therefore contribute to coronary heart disease;

-   Usable vitamin B~12~ occurs only in animal products;

-   Isolated protein powders made from soy, whey, casein and egg whites
    are currently popular as basic ingredients in diet beverages and
    many so-called health food products. These protein isolates are
    usually obtained by a high-temperature process that over-denatures
    the proteins to such an extent that they become virtually useless
    while increasing nitrates and other carcinogens and decreasing
    vitamin A levels;

-   Animal protein foods---fish, meat, eggs and milk---always come with
    fat and this is how we should eat them. Animal fat supplies vitamins
    A and D needed for the assimilation of protein. Consumption of low
    fat milk products, egg whites and lean meat can lead to serious
    deficiencies of these vital fat-soluble nutrients;

-   Over the long term, low-fat diets have been shown to be
    disadvantageous for preventing the diseases they have been
    recommended for - most people are at risk for lowered intakes of the
    important fat-soluble vitamins and other fat-soluble nutrients when
    they consume low-fat diets for any length of time.

**INTRODUCTION**

Obesity is clearly on the rise in America. Over 65 percent of Americans
are considered to be overweight with 25 percent clinically obese.
According to the Surgeon Generals' 2001 report on obesity, 13 percent of
children and adolescents were overweight in 1999. African-American and
Mexican-American children are twice as likely as non-Hispanic white
children to have a body mass index of more than 25, the definition of
overweight. During the last three decades, the number of overweight
young Americans has tripled, with no sign the trend is abating.

The question we are asking is, "To what degree are the foods we eat and
the kind of foods we eat contributing to this epidemic of obesity?" The
Weston A. Foundation would say, "We are what we eat." Food and the types
of foods consumed by Americans today play a significant role in creating
this situation. We will explore why this is so and what we can do to
reverse this trend.

A 1971 USDA study on nutrition titled, "An Evaluation of Research in the
Untied States on Human Nutrition"[^1] reported:

-   Major health issues are diet related;

-   The solution to illness can be found in nutrition

-   The real potential from improved diet is preventative in that it may
    defer or modify the development of a disease state

-   Better health, a longer lifespan and greater satisfaction from work,
    family and leisure time are some of the benefits from improved
    nutrition

From these statements, it would appear that nutrition and food intake
play an extremely important role in the development of obesity and its
associated illnesses.

Fifty years ago, grocery stores stocked about 200 items. Seventy percent
of those were grown, produced or processed within a 100-mile radius of
the store. Today, the average supermarket carries 50,000 food items or
more,[^2] most of these foods are highly processed and refined, most of
which are transported thousands of miles from their final destination.
Americans spend over 90 percent of their food dollars on these processed
foods[^3] - foods that contain high levels of refined sugars, high
fructose corn syrup, refined polyunsaturated oils and *trans* fatty
acids as well as highly processed proteins. Is it no wonder that
Americans have such a high rate of obesity and complimentary disease
states?

The current Dietary Guidelines and Food Pyramid recommend a diet based
largely on carbohydrates in the form of grains such as bread, crackers,
pasta, rice, etc., with smaller amounts of fruits and vegetables; with
small amounts of lean meat, legumes and low-fat dairy as protein sources
and sparing use of fats and oils. In fact, the current Guidelines
strongly favor a low-fat, high-carbohydrate, high glycemic index/load
diet. The caloric proportions of protein to fat to carbohydrates are
5-25% protein, 30% fat and 45-65% carbohydrates.

In fact, the proportions of proteins, fats and carbohydrates advocated
by the USDA Food Pyramid and Dietary Guidelines are alarmingly similar
to the USDA guidelines for fattening cattle and other livestock, which
are approximately 10% protein, 29% fats and 61% carbohydrates.[^4]

The Guidelines were first developed during the late 1970s in response to
the growing incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD) in this country
and research that purportedly showed that saturated fat and cholesterol
were the culprits in the escalation of CHD. The lipid theory of heart
disease became the prevailing mantra of the health and medical
community.

What actually happened, though, can be likened to the stock market.[^5]
Stock markets often give rise to a boom-bust process, or bubble. Bubbles
go not grow out of the blue; they have a basis in reality -- but a
reality distorted by a misconception (lipid theory of heart disease).
Under normal conditions misconceptions are self-correcting. The stock
markets will move toward some form of equilibrium. Upon occasion, a
misconception is reinforced by a trend prevailing in reality (escalating
incidence of heart disease), and that is when the boom-bust process
begins. Eventually, the gap between reality and its false interpretation
becomes unsustainable and the bubble bursts (currently heading towards a
burst of the lipid theory).

During the self-reinforcing phase, participants are under the spell of
the prevailing bias (lipid theory and low-fat diets). Clinical events
and research seem to confirm their beliefs, strengthening their
misconceptions. This widens the gap and sets the stage for a moment of
truth and eventual reversal. When the reversal comes, it can have major
consequences. However, the momentum of the bubble can be reversed at any
time and adverse effects can be reduced or avoided altogether. Such
noted bubbles that burst with consequences include the extremes of the
information-technology boom -- dot.com's -- that ended in 2000.

The lipid theory of heart disease is the element of reality that is
being distorted. Significant current research abounds refuting this
theory.[^6] The proposition that low fat diets and the Food Pyramid are
the way to better health is the misconception. Growing incidence of
obesity as well the fact that heart disease that has not decreased since
the launch of the misconceptions are bursting the bubble

We are at a place when the bubble that has led to the current levels of
obesity can be reversed. Let us see now how that can take place.

Public health officials have recommended "low-fat" diets for most modern
diseases, particularly for treatment of obesity.[^7] However, not all
researchers accept the theory that fat intake causes obesity. In fact,
there is no conclusive evidence from epidemiologic studies that dietary
fat intake promotes the development of obesity independently of total
energy intake. [^8]

Many researchers now recognize that the most important factor in
preventing weight gain involves the total amount of calories consumed, a
view that matches the understanding of clinicians half a century ago.
When a significant portion of these calories comes from healthy fats,
the body experiences satiety and overall caloric intake is reduced.
Nevertheless the common recommendation continues to be a "low-fat" diet
for treating obesity in spite of research reporting better results with
the lower-carbohydrate, higher fat diet.
[^9]^,^[^10]^,^[^11]^,^[^12]^,^[^13]^,^[^14]^,^[^15]

Pediatrician clinicians have noted a number of years ago that children
put onto a low fat and low cholesterol diets failed to grow
properly.[^16] When researchers prominently associated with the American
Heart Association fed children lower fat diets and measured some of the
health markers they consider important predictors of heart disease, they
learned that these lower fat diets were causing the very problems they
wanted to prevent. The children whose genes would normally have been
producing the desirable form of low-density lipoproteins - light fluffy
LDL - started to make the dangerous form of LDL - small dense
LDL's.[^17]

**FATS**

The current Guidelines stipulate that total fats should make up 30
percent or less of total calories, with saturated fats contributing to
not more than 10 percent of total calories. The Guidelines are based on
the assumption that we should reduce our intake of fats, particularly
saturated fats from animal sources. Fats from animal sources also
contain cholesterol, presented as the twin villain of the civilized
diet.

However, dietary fats play many vital roles in the body chemistry. Fats
provide a concentrated source of energy in the diet; they also provide
the building blocks for cell membranes and a variety of hormones and
hormone-like substances. Fats as part of a meal slow down absorption so
that we can go longer without feeling hungry. In addition, they act as
carriers for important fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K. Dietary fats
are needed for the conversion of carotene to vitamin A, for mineral
absorption and for a host of other processes.

By analyzing menus from early 20^th^ century cookbooks, we can estimate
that the fat content of the diets at that time was about 35-40 percent
of energy as fat.[^18] Fats contain about twice as many calories per
gram as protein or carbohydrate foods. In a diet of 2500 calories, 35
percent of calories as fat translates to 97 grams of fat (slightly less
than 1/2 cup) per day, as added fat or distributed in the foods.

All fats and oils, whether of vegetable or animal origin, are some
combination of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty
acids. In general, animal fats such as butter, lard and tallow contain
about 40-60% saturated fat and are solid at room temperature. Vegetable
oils from northern climates contain a preponderance of polyunsaturated
fatty acids and are liquid at room temperature. But vegetable oils from
the tropics are highly saturated. Coconut oil, for example, is 92%
saturated. These fats are liquid in the tropics but hard as butter in
northern climes. Vegetable oils are more saturated in hot climates
because the increased saturation helps maintain stiffness in plant
leaves. Olive oil with its preponderance of oleic acid (a
monounsaturate) is the product of a temperate climate. It is liquid at
warm temperatures but hardens when refrigerated. See Table I for a
description of the composition of the different fats.

During the early 20^th^ century, most of the fatty acids in the diet
were either saturated or monounsaturated, primarily from butter, lard,
tallows, coconut oil and small amounts of olive oil. Today, most of the
fats in our diet are polyunsaturated, primarily from vegetable oils
derived from soy, corn, safflower, sunflower, cottonseed and rape seed
(canola -- primarily monounsaturated).

Fatty acids found in foods that are natural to the human body
include:[^19]

Saturated Fats

-   Palmitic acid \*\*

-   Stearic acid \*\*

-   Myristic acid \*\*

-   Lauric acid \*\*\*

> Monounsaturated Fats

-   Palmitoleic acid \*\*

-   Oleic acid \*\*

> Polyunsaturated Fats

-   Linoleic (omega 6) essential fatty acid \*

-   Alpha linolenic (omega 3) essential fatty acid \*

-   Gamma linolenic acid \*\*

-   Arachidonic acid \*\*

-   Eicosapentaenoic acid \*\*

-   Docosahexaenoic acid \*\*

> \* these fatty acids are used and needed by the body, but the body
> does not make them; they are called essential fatty acids (EFA)
>
> \*\* these fatty acids are used and needed by the body and the body
> makes them
>
> \*\*\* this fatty acid is made by certain parts of the body such as
> the lactating mammary gland, but must come from the diet so it is a
> conditionally essential fatty acid

Fatty acids found in foods that are *not* natural to the human body
include almost all of the *trans* fatty acids, commonly found in
processed foods.

**Polyunsaturated Fats and Vegetable Oils**

Polyunsaturated fatty acids occur in small amounts in all foods.
Polyunsaturated oils contain large amounts of polyunsaturated fatty
acids. Commercial polyunsaturated oils made from corn, soy, safflower
and sunflower seeds are new to human diets. The use of these
industrially processed oils is four fold higher today than it is was in
1900.[^20]

Since the early part of the 20^th^ century, when the Department of
Agriculture (USDA) had begun to keep track of food "disappearance"
data---the amount of various foods going into the food supply---a number
of researchers had noticed a change in the kind of fats Americans were
eating. Butter consumption was declining while the use of vegetable
oils, especially oils that had been hardened to resemble butter by a
process called hydrogenation, was increasing. By 1950 butter consumption
had dropped from eighteen pounds per person per year to just over ten.
Margarine filled in the gap, rising from about two pounds per person at
the turn of the 20^th^ century to about eight. Consumption of vegetable
shortening---used in crackers and baked goods---remained relatively
steady at about twelve pounds per person per year but vegetable oil
consumption had more than tripled---from just under three pounds per
person per year to more than ten.[^21]

Polyunsaturated fatty acids are very fragile. When exposed to heat and
oxygen, as during commercial processing, they form free radicals and
other harmful breakdown products that damage the body in many ways.[^22]
Modern processing destroys the vitamins and antioxidants in vegetable
oils, but the pesticides used on the seeds are retained.[^23] Seed oils
are highly sprayed. (See Table II for modern methods of processing
fats). Because polyunsaturates are highly subject to rancidity, they
increase the body's need for vitamin E and other antioxidants.

**Researchers have found that commercial vegetable oils (polyunsaturated
oils) contain free radicals and dangerous breakdown products that can
cause heart disease, cancer, inflammation and aging, as well as
increased obesity.** In the young, diets based on vegetable oils depress
learning and cause growth problems. Furthermore, these oils are often
partially hydrogenated and contain dangerous *trans* fatty acids.[^24]

Research has determined that:

-   Polyunsaturated oils cause the formation of black-brown ceroid
    pigment deposits, a sign of aging.[^25]

-   In animal studies, polyunsaturated oil shortens life span and
    increases the possibility of atherosclerosis, cancer and other
    disease.[^26]

-   Polyunsaturated oils increase the levels of uric acid in the body, a
    sign of the destruction of protein. An elevated level of uric acid
    is a heart disease risk factor.[^27]

-   In animals, consumption of excessive polyunsaturates causes
    cirrhosis of the liver, similar to that caused by excessive
    alcohol.[^28]

-   Many studies have shown that polyunsaturated oils cause cancer.[^29]

-   Polyunsaturated oils are particularly damaging to the reproductive
    organs and the lungs.[^30]

-   Polyunsaturated oils depress learning ability, especially under
    conditions of stress.[^31]

-   Polyunsaturated oils given to young animals impair growth.[^32]

-   When heated, as in cooking, polyunsaturated oils bond to each other
    forming polymers, leading to digestive problems (varnish and shellac
    are polymers).[^33]

Excess use of commercial vegetable oils interferes with the production
of prostaglandins leading to an array of complaints ranging from
autoimmune disease to PMS. Disruption of prostaglandin production leads
to an increased tendency to form blood clots, and hence myocardial
infarction.[^34]

See Table III "Adverse Effects of Excess Polyunsaturated Oils" for
detailed list of the health impact of these oils.

**Trans Fatty Acids**

*Trans* fatty acids are found in very minor amounts, usually less than 2
percent but sometimes up to 5 percent of the total fat, in all naturally
occurring ruminant fats (antelope, buffalo, cow, deer, goat and sheep).
They are found in major amounts, as much as 50 to 60 percent or more of
the total fat, in partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.[^35]

Actually the kinds of *trans* fatty acids found in ruminant fats differ
considerably from those found in partially hydrogenated vegetable oils
because of the average placement of the *trans* double bonds. This form
of *trans* fats found in ruminant animals is a precursor to conjugated
linoleic acid (CLA), which is reported to be anticarcinogenic.[^36]

The major *trans* fatty acids found in partially hydrogenated vegetable
oils have the majority of their double bonds in sites along the 18
carbon fatty acid that are found to raise health problems. When people
eat fats containing these forms of *trans* fatty acids, the fatty acids
are deposited in varying amounts in some of the tissues. *Trans* fats
from partially hydrogenated vegetable oils also can have a negative
impact on the functioning of organs in the body. *Trans* fatty acids
from partially hydrogenated vegetable oils disrupt cellular function,
which affects enzyme functionality. These *trans* fats interfere with
the necessary conversions of both the omega-6 and omega-3 essential
fatty acids (EFA) to their elongated forms and consequently escalate the
adverse effects of EFA deficiency (see next section on essential fatty
acids).

Most of the *trans* isomers in modern hydrogenated fats are new to the
human physiology and by the early 1970's a number of researchers had
expressed concern about their presence in the American diet, noting that
their increasing use had paralleled the increase in both heart disease
and cancer.[^37] In fact, as early as 1958 Ancel Keys originally claimed
that partially hydrogenated vegetable oils with their *trans* fatty
acids were the culprits in heart disease, not saturated fats.[^38]

Most of the *trans* fats in the current American diet come not from
margarine but from shortening used in fried and processed foods.
American shortening consumption of 10 grams per person per day held
steady until the 1960's, although the content of that shortening had
changed from mostly lard, tallow and coconut oil---all natural fats---to
partially hydrogenated soybean oil. Then shortening consumption shot up
and by 1993 had tripled to over 30 grams per person per day.[^39]

Approximately 70 percent of all the vegetable oils used in processed
foods such as crackers, cookies, pastries, cakes, and fried foods are
partially hydrogenated and therefore contain high levels of *trans*
fats.[^40] The commercial shortenings used in these products have 25-50
percent of the fat as *trans* fats; commercial shortenings made with
partially hydrogenated canola oils have the same or even higher levels
of *trans* fatty acids. **This means that the fat ingredient in cookies,
crackers, donuts, cakes, frostings, etc. is between one-quarter and one
half *trans* fatty acids.**[^41]

***Trans* fatty acids in the diet, created from partially hydrogenating
vegetable oils, have been implicated as causing or exacerbating most of
our modern diseases, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity,
immune dysfunction and bone loss.** Some adverse effects of consuming
t*rans* fatty acids reported in humans and animals are the following:

-   increases blood insulin levels in humans in response to glucose
    load, increasing risk for diabetes;

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```
-   interfere with the ability of new mothers to nurse successfully and
    increase the likelihood of developing diabetes (lowers the amount of
    cream by volume in milk from lactating females in all species
    studied, including humans, thus lowering the overall quality
    available to an infant);

-   predispose pregnant mothers to low-birth-weight babies;

-   causes a dose response decrease in visual acuity in infants who are
    fed human milk with increasing levels of *trans* fatty acids, which
    extends to 14 months of age;

-   affects immune response by lowering efficiency of B cell response
    and increasing proliferation of T cells;

-   decreases the response of the red blood cell to insulin, thus having
    a potentially undesirable effect on diabetes;

-   causes alterations in adipose cell size, cell number, lipid class,
    and fatty acid composition;

-   contributes to osteoporosis;

-   decreases testosterone, causes the production of abnormal sperm and
    altered gestation;

-   causes adverse alterations in the activities of the important enzyme
    system that metabolizes chemical carcinogens and drugs;

-   precipitates childhood asthma;

-   interferes with the body's use of omega-3 fatty acids found in fish
    oils, grains and green vegetables, leading to impaired prostaglandin
    production;

-   increases the incidence of heart disease because t*rans* fatty acids
    lower HDL cholesterol, increase LDL and increase the heart disease
    marker Lipoprotein \[a\] (Lp\[a\]) while saturated fats lower
    Lp\[a};

-   raises total serum cholesterol levels 20-30mg%; and

-   causes adverse alterations in physiological properties of biological
    membranes including measurements of membrane transport and membrane
    fluidity.

(Table derived from Mary Enig, PhD, *Trans Fatty Acids in the Food
Supply: A Comprehensive Report Covering 60 Years of Research*, 2^nd^
Edition, Bethesda Press, 1995 and Mary Enig, *Know Your Fats: The
Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of Fats, Oils and
Cholesterol*, Bethesda Press, 2000, pp 42-44 and 85-86).

The Foundation is pleased with the recent FDA ruling requiring food
labels to incorporate information on *trans* fatty acid content by
2006.[^42] However, we wish to make it very clear that *trans* fatty
acids are not natural saturated fats and should not be considered as
such. Many researchers, health organizations and food companies tend to
lump saturated fats and *trans* fatty acids together as the same,
particularly for food labeling purposes. This is a grave mistake that
has contributed to incorrectly associating beneficial saturated fatty
acids with the negative health implications of *trans* fatty acids.

# Essential Fatty Acids

Essential fatty acids are required for human and animal life. The body
cannot make the most common form of EFA's - omega-3 and omega-6
essential fatty acids - and must be provided by the diet. EFA's are
precursor molecules to prostaglandins, which are locally produced
hormones that control different physiological functions. Essential fatty
acids and their elongated forms are part of the structural matrix of the
cell membrane along with many other fatty acids.

Problems associated with an excess polyunsaturated consumption are
exacerbated by the fact that most polyunsaturates in commercial
vegetable oils are in the form of omega-6 linoleic essential fatty acid
(EFA), with very little of vital omega-3 linolenic EFA. Some of the
published research has shown that we currently consume a ratio of
omega-6 to omega-3 of 20 to one, far beyond the beneficial range of one
to one to four to one.

Analyses have revealed that too much omega-6 in the diet creates an
imbalance that can interfere with production of important
prostaglandins.[^43] This disruption can result in increased tendency to
form blood clots, inflammation, high blood pressure, irritation of the
digestive tract, depressed immune function, sterility, cell
proliferation, cancer and weight gain.[^44]

A number of researchers have argued that along with a surfeit of omega-6
fatty acids the American diet is deficient in the more unsaturated
omega-3 linolenic acid. This fatty acid is necessary for cell oxidation,
for metabolizing important sulphur-containing amino acids and for
maintaining proper balance in prostaglandin production. Deficiencies
have been associated with asthma, heart disease and learning
deficiencies.[^45]

Modern agricultural and industrial practices have reduced the amount of
omega-3 fatty acids in commercially available vegetables, eggs, fish and
meat. For example, organic eggs from hens allowed to feed on insects and
green plants can contain omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids in the
beneficial ratio of approximately between one-to-one to four to one; but
commercial supermarket eggs can contain as much as nineteen times more
omega-6 than omega-3.[^46] Factory farmed cattle are fed grains rich in
omega-6 EFAs in order to achieve maximum size in the least amount of
time. The result is that grain-fed beef have almost undetectable amounts
of omega-3 EFAs, while grass-fed cattle contain the beneficial
ratios.[^47]

**Modern diets can contain as much as 30% of calories as polyunsaturated
oils, but scientific research indicates that this amount is far too
high. The best evidence indicates that our intake of polyunsaturates
should not be much greater than 4% of the caloric total, in approximate
proportions of 1 1/2 % omega-3 linolenic acid and 2 1/2 % omega-6
linoleic acid.**[^48]

**In the last 100 years, since the advent of liquid vegetable oils and
trend towards grain-fed livestock escalated, there has been an
unprecedented shift in the balance of essential fatty acids in our diet.
According to Dr. Mitra Ray, "To my knowledge, there is no precedent for
such a drastic change in diet over such a short period of time."**[^49]

It should be noted that the Office of Management and Budget recently
requested that information about the benefits of omega 3 essential fatty
acids and what kinds of foods are sources of this EFA (fish oils and
flaxseed oil) be incorporated into the Dietary Guidelines and Food
Pyramid.[^50]

**Saturated Fats**

**The Foundation recommends that the USDA discontinue its unscientific
opposition to animal fats.** Animal fats are stable, do not easily
develop free radicals, and contain nutrients that are vital for good
health. Children, in particular, require high levels of quality animal
fats to achieve optimal physical and neurological development. Although
consumption of saturated fatty acids in an institutional setting has
been shown to temporarily raise serum cholesterol levels, there is no
evidence that consumption of saturated fats from animal sources and the
tropical oils contributes to heart disease.[^51]

During the sixty-year period from 1910 to 1970, the proportion of
traditional animal fat in the American diet declined from 83% to 62%,
and butter consumption plummeted from eighteen pounds per person per
year to four. During the past eighty years, dietary cholesterol intake
has increased only 1%. During the same period the percentage of dietary
vegetable oils in the form of margarine, shortening and refined oils
increased about 400% while the consumption of sugar and processed foods
increased about 60%.[^52]

Foods containing *trans* fat sell because the American public is afraid
of the alternative---saturated fats found in tallow, lard, butter, palm
and coconut oil, fats traditionally used for frying and baking. Yet the
scientific literature delineates a number of vital roles for dietary
saturated fats:

-   Saturated fatty acids constitute at least 50% of most of the cell
    membranes. They are what furnish our cells necessary stiffness and
    integrity.

-   They play a vital role in the health of our bones. For calcium to be
    effectively incorporated into the skeletal structure, at least 50%
    of the dietary fats should be saturated.[^53]

-   They lower Lp(a), a substance in the blood that indicates proneness
    to heart disease.[^54] They protect the liver from alcohol and other
    toxins, such as Tylenol.[^55]

-   They enhance the immune system.[^56]

-   They are needed for the proper utilization of essential fatty acids.
    Elongated omega-3 fatty acids are better retained in the tissues
    when the diet is rich in saturated fats.[^57]

-   Stearic acid and palmitic acid are the preferred foods for the
    heart, which is why the fat around the heart muscle is highly
    saturated.[^58] The heart draws on this reserve of fat in times of
    stress.

-   Short- and medium-chain saturated fatty acids have important
    antimicrobial properties. They protect us against harmful
    microorganisms in the digestive tract.

The scientific evidence, honestly evaluated, does not support the
assertion that \"artery-clogging\" saturated fats cause heart
disease.[^59] Actually, evaluation of the fat in artery clogs reveals
that only about 26% is saturated. The rest is unsaturated, of which more
than half is polyunsaturated.[^60]

See Table IV "Saturated Fats are Beneficial, Not Harmful" for a more
complete list of the benefits of saturated fats.

# Cholesterol

Our blood vessels can become damaged in a number of ways---through
irritations caused by free radicals or viruses, or because they are
structurally weak---and when this happens, the body's natural healing
substance steps in to repair the damage. That substance is cholesterol.
Cholesterol is a high-molecular-weight alcohol that is manufactured in
the liver and in most human cells. Like saturated fats, the cholesterol
we make and consume plays many vital roles.

**Cholesterol is not the cause of heart disease but rather a potent
antioxidant weapon against free radicals in the blood, and a repair
substance that helps heal arterial damage, although the arterial plaques
themselves contain very little cholesterol.** The cholesterol in your
diet (dietary cholesterol) has very little effect on the cholesterol in
your blood (serum cholesterol). You could completely eliminate all
cholesterol from your diet and your liver would just produce more of it,
because your body needs cholesterol. On the other hand, eating more
cholesterol would cause your liver to reduce production to maintain
consistent levels.

More than 60 percent of all heart attacks occur in people with normal
cholesterol levels. The majority of people with high cholesterol never
suffer heart attacks and half of all heart attack victims have none of
the standard risk factors, i.e., obesity, high cholesterol, smoking or
genetics.

Like fats, however, cholesterol may be damaged by exposure to heat and
oxygen. This damaged or oxidized cholesterol seems to promote both
injury to the arterial cells (endothelium -- the layer of tissue that
lines all of our arteries and veins) as well as a pathological buildup
of plaque in the arteries.[^61] Damaged cholesterol is found in powdered
eggs, in powdered milk (added to reduced-fat milks to give them body)
and in meats and fats that have been heated to high temperatures in
frying and other high-temperature processes.

See Table V for a more complete list of the benefits of cholesterol.

Mother's milk is especially rich in cholesterol and contains a special
enzyme that helps the baby utilize this nutrient. Babies and children
need cholesterol-rich foods throughout their growing years to ensure
proper development of the brain and nervous system.

High serum cholesterol levels often indicate that the body needs
cholesterol to protect itself from high levels of altered,
free-radical-containing fats. Just as a large police force is needed in
a locality where crime occurs frequently, so cholesterol is needed in a
poorly nourished body to protect the individual from a tendency to heart
disease and cancer. Dietary cholesterol plays an important role in
maintaining the health of the intestinal wall,[^62] which is why
low-cholesterol vegetarian diets can lead to leaky gut syndrome and
other intestinal disorders.[^63]

Poor thyroid function (hypothyroidism) will often result in high
cholesterol levels. When thyroid function is poor, usually due to a diet
high in sugar and low in usable iodine, fat-soluble vitamins and other
nutrients, the body floods the blood with cholesterol as an adaptive and
protective mechanism, providing a superabundance of materials needed to
heal tissues and produce protective steroids. Hypothyroid individuals
are particularly susceptible to infections, heart disease and
cancer.[^64]

Framingham Heart Study is often cited as proof of that cholesterol and
saturated fats cause heart disease. This study began in 1948 and
involved some 6,000 people from the town of Framingham, Massachusetts.
Two groups were compared at five-year intervals---those who consumed
little cholesterol and saturated fat and those who consumed large
amounts. After 40 years, the director of this study, Dr. William
Castelli, had to admit: **\"In Framingham, Mass, the more saturated fat
one ate, the more cholesterol one ate, the more calories one ate, the
lower the person's serum cholesterol. . . we found that the people who
ate the most cholesterol, ate the most saturated fat, ate the most
calories, weighed the least and were the most physically
active.\"**[^65] The study did show that those who weighed more and had
abnormally high blood cholesterol levels were slightly more at risk for
future heart disease; but weight gain and cholesterol levels had an
inverse correlation with fat and cholesterol intake in the diet.[^66]

Animal foods containing saturated fat and cholesterol provide vital
nutrients necessary for growth, energy and protection from degenerative
disease. Like sex, animal fats are necessary for reproduction. Humans
are drawn to both by powerful instincts. "Whatever is the cause of heart
disease," said the eminent biochemist Michael Gurr, "it is not primarily
the consumption of saturated fats.[^67]

When you lower the amount of fat in the diet, you must raise something
else. That something else is usually carbohydrate, and invariably today
it would be mostly simple carbohydrates such as white flour, corn syrup
or refined sugar.

**CARBOHYDRATES**

The Guidelines state that carbohydrates should comprise between 45 to 65
percent of food intake by calories. Carbohydrates provide fuel for the
body in the form of glucose, which is a sugar. There are two types of
carbohydrates \-- simple and complex. Simple carbohydrates are sugars,
such as the ones found in candy, fruits and baked goods. Complex
carbohydrates are starches found in beans, nuts, vegetables and whole
grains.

Sugar comes in many forms. Sucrose, or common table sugar, is a
disaccharide, which breaks down during digestion into the simple sugars
glucose and fructose. Glucose is the primary sugar in the blood;
fructose is the primary sugar in fruit and high fructose corn syrup.
Other common disaccharides are maltose (malt sugar) and lactose (milk
sugar). Chemical terms ending in -*ose* indicate a sugar.

Complex sugars are longer-chain sugars composed of fructose and other
simple sugars. Relatively short complex sugars called stachynose and
raffinose occur in beans and other legumes; longer ones occur in certain
plant foods like the Jerusalem artichoke and seaweed. Unlike herbivorous
animals, humans lack digestive enzymes needed to break down these sugars
into their simple components. Cooking breaks down these complex sugars
to a certain extent.

In contrast, most humans are able to digest starch, a polysaccharide
composed exclusively of glucose molecules. During the process of
cooking, chewing and especially through prolonged enzymatic action
during digestion, the starches are broken into separate glucose
molecules. Glucose enters the bloodstream via the small intestine where
it supplies energy wherever the body needs it---for accomplishing
cellular processes, for thinking or for moving an arm or a leg**.**

As the body uses glucose for all its processes, it can be said that
sugar is essential to life. But the body does not need to ingest sugar,
or even large quantities of carbohydrates, to produce it. Certain
isolated traditional groups, such as the Eskimos, the pre-Columbian
plains Indians and the medieval inhabitants of Greenland, subsisted on
diets composed almost entirely of animal products---protein and fats.
Examination of the skulls of these groups shows a virtual absence of
tooth decay, indicative of a high general level of health on a diet
almost completely devoid of carbohydrate foods.

Only during the last century has man's diet included a high percentage
of refined carbohydrates. Our ancestors ate fruits and grains in their
whole, unrefined state. In nature, sugars and carbohydrates---the energy
providers---are linked together with vitamins, minerals, enzymes,
protein, fat and fiber---the bodybuilding and digestion-regulating
components of the diet. In whole form, sugars and starches support life,
but refined carbohydrates are inimical to life because they are devoid
of bodybuilding elements.

## Refined Carbohydrates

Digestion of refined carbohydrates calls on the body's own store of
vitamins, minerals and enzymes for proper metabolization. When B
vitamins are absent, for example, the breakdown of carbohydrates cannot
take place, yet most B vitamins are removed during the refining process.

**The refining process strips grains, vegetables and fruits of both
their vitamin and mineral components. Refined carbohydrates have been
called \"empty\" calories. \"Negative\" calories is a more appropriate
term because consumption of refined calories depletes the body's
precious reserves.**

Whole grains provide vitamin E, B vitamins in abundance, and many
important minerals, all of which are essential to life. These are
discarded in the refining process. Fiber---indigestible cellulose that
plays an important role in digestion and elimination---is also removed.
Refined flour is commonly fortified, but this is of little value.
Fortification adds a handful of synthetic vitamins and minerals to white
flour and polished rice after a host of essential factors have been
removed or destroyed. Some of the vitamins added during the
fortification process may even be dangerous. Some researchers believe
that excess iron from fortified flour can cause tissue damage, and other
studies link excess or toxic iron to heart disease.[^68] Vitamins B~1~
and B~2~ added to grains without B~6~ lead to imbalances in numerous
processes involving B vitamin pathways. The safety of bromating and
bleaching agents, almost universally applied to white flour, has never
been established.

We recommend the use of a variety of whole grains but with an important
caveat. Phosphorus in the bran of whole grains is tied up in a substance
called phytic acid. Phytic acid combines with iron, calcium, magnesium,
copper and zinc in the intestinal tract, blocking their absorption.[^69]
Whole grains also contain enzyme inhibitors that can interfere with
digestion. Traditional societies usually soak or ferment their grains
before eating them, processes that neutralize phytates and enzyme
inhibitors and, in effect, predigest grains so that all their nutrients
are more available.[^70] Sprouting, overnight soaking and old-fashioned
sour leavening can accomplish this important predigestion process in our
own kitchens. Many people who are allergic to grains will tolerate them
well when they are prepared according to these procedures. Proper
preparation techniques also help break down complex sugars in legumes,
making them more digestible.

Whole grains that have been processed by high heat and pressure to
produce puffed wheat, oats and rice are actually quite toxic and have
caused rapid death in test animals.[^71] Breakfast cereals that have
been slurried and extruded at high temperatures and pressures to make
little flakes and shapes should also be avoided. Most, if not all,
nutrients are destroyed during processing, and they are very difficult
to digest. Studies show that these extruded whole grain preparations can
have even more adverse effects on the blood sugar than refined sugar and
white flour.[^72] The process leaves phytic acid intact but destroys
phytase, an enzyme that breaks down some of the phytic acid in the
digestive tract.

Consumption of sugar and white flour may be likened to drawing on a
savings account. If continued withdrawals are made faster than new funds
are put in, the account will eventually become depleted. Some people may
go longer than others without overt suffering, but eventually all will
feel the effects of this inexorable law. If you were fortunate enough to
be born with an excellent constitution, you may be able to eat unlimited
quantities of sugar with relative impunity, but your children's or your
grandchildren's inheritance will be one of impoverished reserves.

The all-important level of glucose in the blood is regulated by a finely
tuned mechanism involving insulin secretions from the pancreas and
hormones from several glands, including the adrenal glands and the
thyroid. When sugars and starches are eaten in their natural, unrefined
form, as part of a meal containing beneficial and unrefined fats and
protein, they are digested slowly and enter the bloodstream at a
moderate rate over a period of several hours. If the body goes for a
long time without food, this mechanism will call upon reserves stored in
the liver. When properly working, this blood sugar regulation process
provides our cells with a steady, even supply of glucose. The body is
kept on an even keel, so to speak, both physically and emotionally.

But when we consume refined sugars and starches, particularly alone,
without fats or protein, they enter the blood stream in a rush, causing
a sudden increase in blood sugar. The body's regulation mechanism kicks
into high gear, flooding the bloodstream with insulin and other hormones
to bring blood sugar levels down to acceptable levels. Repeated
onslaughts of sugar will eventually disrupt this finely tuned process,
causing some elements to remain in a constant state of activity and
others to become worn out and inadequate to do the job. A diet high in
refined carbohydrates stimulates an abnormal pancreatic insulin response
in order to moderate blood sugar levels, while high sugar intake may
also increase adrenal cortisone and cholesterol levels. Constant high
intake of simple dietary sugar over-stimulates or \"burns out\" normal,
healthy pancreas and adrenal function.

The situation is exacerbated by the fact that a diet high in refined
carbohydrates will also be deficient in vitamins, minerals and enzymes,
those bodybuilding elements that keep the glands and organs in good
repair. When the endocrine system thus becomes disturbed, numerous other
pathological conditions soon manifest---degenerative disease, allergies,
obesity, alcoholism, drug addiction, depression, learning disabilities
and behavioral problems.

## Sugars

**As the consumption of sugar has increased, so have all the
\"civilized\" diseases.** **In 1821, the average sugar intake in America
was 10 pounds per person per year; today it is 170 pounds per person,
representing over one-fourth the average caloric intake.**[^73]
**Another large portion of total calories comes from white flour and
refined vegetable oils.**[^74] **This means that less than half the diet
must provide all the nutrients to a body that is under constant stress
from its intake of sugar, white flour and rancid and** **hydrogenated
vegetable oils. Herein lies one of the root causes of the vast increase
in degenerative diseases that plague modern America.**

Sweetness in fruits, grains and vegetables is an indication that they
are ripe and have reached maximum vitamin and mineral content. The
naturally sweet foods from which sugar is extracted---sugar beet, sugar
cane and corn---are particularly high in nutrients such as B vitamins,
magnesium and chromium. All of these seem to play an important role in
the blood sugar regulation mechanism. These nutrients are discarded---or
made into animal feed---when the raw product is refined into sugar.
Refining strips foods of vital nutrients while concentrating sugars,
thus allowing us to fulfill our body's energy requirements without
obtaining the nutrients needed for bodybuilding, digestion and repair.

**Scientific evidence against** **sugar has been mounting for decades.**
As early as 1933, research showed that increased consumption of sugar
caused an increase in various disease conditions in school
children.[^75] Sugar, especially fructose, has been shown to shorten
life in numerous animal experiments.[^76] Sugar consumption has recently
been cited as the root cause of anorexia and eating disorders.[^77] In
the 1950s, British researcher Yudkin published persuasive findings that
excessive use of sugar was associated with the following conditions:
release of free fatty acids at the aorta; rise in blood cholesterol;
rise in triglycerides; increase in adhesiveness of the blood platelets;
increase in blood insulin levels; increase in blood corticosteroid
levels; increase in gastric acidity; shrinkage of the pancreas and
enlargement of the liver and adrenal glands.[^78]

Numerous subsequent studies have positively correlated sugar consumption
with heart disease.[^79] These results are far more unequivocal than the
presumed association of heart disease with saturated fats. Researchers
Lopez in the 1960s and Ahrens in the 1970s have repeatedly pointed out
the role of sugar as a cause of coronary heart disease, but their work
has not received recognition by government agencies or by the press.

Sugar consumption is a cause of bone loss and dental decay. Tooth decay
and bone loss occur when the precise ratio of calcium to phosphorus in
the blood varies from the normal ratio of four parts phosphorus to ten
parts calcium. At this ratio, all blood calcium can be properly
utilized. Dr. Melvin Page, a Florida dentist, demonstrated in numerous
studies that sugar consumption causes phosphorus levels to drop and
calcium to rise.[^80] Calcium rises because it is pulled from the teeth
and the bones. The drop in phosphorus hinders the absorption of this
calcium, making it unusable and therefore toxic. Thus, sugar consumption
causes tooth decay not because it promotes bacterial growth in the
mouth, as most dentists believe, but because it alters the internal body
chemistry.

More health issues than heart disease and dental decay can be laid at
sugar's door. A survey of medical journals in the 1970s produced
findings implicating sugar as a causative factor in kidney disease,
liver disease, shortened life span, increased desire for coffee and
tobacco, atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease.[^81] Sugar
consumption is associated with hyperactivity, behavior problems, lack of
concentration and violent tendencies.[^82] Sugar consumption encourages
the overgrowth of *candida* *albicans*, a systemic fungus in the
digestive tract, causing it to spread to the respiratory system, tissues
and internal organs. Sugar consumption is positively associated with
cancer in humans and test animals.[^83] Tumors are known to be enormous
sugar absorbers.

Moderate use of natural sweeteners is found in many traditional
societies. Thus it is perfectly acceptable to satisfy your sweet tooth
by eating fully ripened fruit in season and limited amounts of certain
natural sweeteners high in vitamins and minerals, such as raw honey,
date sugar, dehydrated cane sugar juice and maple syrup. Avoid all
refined sugars including table sugar, so-called raw sugar or brown sugar
(both composed of about 96 percent refined sugar), corn syrup, fructose
and large amounts of fruit juice.

Research indicates that it is the fructose, not the glucose, moiety of
sugar that is the most harmful, especially for growing children.[^84]
Yet the greatest increase in sugar consumption during the last two
decades is from high fructose corn syrup used in soft drinks, ketchup
and many other fabricated foods aimed at children.

## High Fructose Corn Syrup

Until the 1970s most of the sugar we ate came from sugar beets or sugar
cane, called sucrose.  During the 1970s, sugar from corn - corm syrup,
fructose, dextrose, dextrine, and/or high fructose corn syrup - began to
gain popularity as a sweetener because it was much less expensive to
produce. Cane sugar and beet sugar are made up of approximately 50%
glucose and 50% fructose. Corn sweetener is approximately 20% glucose
and 80% fructose.[^85]

In 1980 the average person ate 39 pounds of fructose and 84 pounds of
sucrose. In 1994 the average person ate 66 pounds of sucrose and 83
pounds of fructose, providing 19 percent of total caloric energy.[^86]
Today approximately 25 percent of our average caloric intake comes from
sugars.

High fructose corn syrup is extremely soluble and mixes well in many
foods. It is cheap to produce, sweet and easy to store. It's used in
everything from bread to pasta sauces to bacon to beer. It is used in
\"health products\" like protein bars and \"natural\" sodas. High
fructose corn syrup is the primary sweetener used in soft drinks, now
readily available to children in school vending machines.

In the past, fructose was considered to be beneficial to diabetics
because it is absorbed only 40 percent as quickly as glucose and causes
only a modest rise in blood sugar.[^87] However, research on other
hormonal factors suggests that fructose actually promotes disease more
than glucose. Glucose is metabolized in every cell in the body but all
fructose in metabolized in the liver.[^88] The livers of test animals
fed large amounts of fructose develop fatty deposits and cirrhosis,
similar to the livers of alcoholics.

Fructose has no enzymes, vitamins, and minerals and robs the body of its
micronutrient treasures in order to assimilate itself for physiological
use.[^89] While naturally occurring sugars, as well as sucrose, contain
fructose bound to other sugars, high fructose corn syrup contains a good
deal of \"free\" or unbound fructose.  Research indicates that this free
fructose interferes with the heart\'s use of key minerals like
magnesium, copper and chromium. Among other consequences, it has been
implicated in elevated blood cholesterol levels and blood clotting.  It
has been found to inhibit the action of white blood so that they are
unable to defend against harmful foreign invaders. [^90]

See Table VI for a more expansive list of detrimental health
implications of the use of fructose.

The magnitude of the deleterious effects of fructose varies depending on
such factors as age, sex, baseline glucose, insulin, and triglyceride
concentrations, the presence of insulin resistance, and the amount of
dietary fructose consumed.[^91] Some people are more sensitive to
fructose. They include hypertensive, hyperinsulinemic,
hypertriglyceridemic, non-insulin dependent diabetic people, people with
functional bowel disease and postmenopausal women.[^92]

According to a recent *Wall Street Journal* article, childhood weight
gain in America might be caused in good measure by \"the sweetening of
America.\"[^93] **When sugar is consumed in high quantities as \"liquid
candy\" (high fructose corn syrup in processed drinks and foods), unused
amounts are stored as fat cells. The more carbohydrate that is eaten,
the more fat the liver and adipose tissue make from any excess
carbohydrate. The end product of much of the carbohydrate that is eaten
is fat.** This fat is stored either for the short term or for long term,
depending on the energy requirements of the body. Instead of burning
this energy, sedentary children store more and more of the sugar as
fat.[^94]

Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended limiting
intake of added sugars found in food and drink to no more than 10
percent of daily calories, a step the WHO said could help stop the
worldwide rise in obesity that is fueling the growth of such chronic
diseases as type 2 diabetes.[^95] On the other hand, the Institute of
Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences recently provided
guidelines that recommended up to 25 percent of one's daily calories as
added sugar.[^96] The WHO recommendation is far stricter than the
Institute of Medicine added sugar limit of 25 percent of calories, the
average level found in today's American food intake.

**The Foundation concurs with WHO guidelines, with the particular caveat
that consumption of refined sugars and syrup be limited. Most of the
carbohydrates consumed should be in the form of whole grains, legumes,
fresh or frozen fruits and fresh or frozen vegetables.**

# PROTEINS

Proteins are the building blocks of the animal kingdom. The human body
assembles and utilizes about 50,000 different proteins to form organs,
nerves, muscles and flesh. Enzymes---the managers and catalysts of all
our biochemical processes---are specialized proteins. So are antibodies.

All proteins are combinations of just 22 amino acids, eight of which are
\"essential\" nutrients for humans, meaning that the human body cannot
make them. When the essential amino acids are present in the diet, the
body can usually build the other \"nonessential\" amino acids; however,
if just one essential amino acid is low or missing, the body is unable
to synthesize the other proteins it needs, even when overall protein
intake is high. Of particular importance to the health of the brain and
nervous system are the sulphur-containing amino acids---methionine,
cysteine and cystine---found most plentifully in eggs and meat. Some
individuals cannot manufacture amino acids considered \"nonessential,\"
such as taurine and carnitine, but must obtain them from dietary
sources, namely red meat.

Protein is essential for normal growth, for the formation of hormones,
for the process of blood clotting and for the formation of milk during
lactation. Protein helps regulate the acid-alkaline balance of tissues
and blood. When protein is lacking in the diet, there is a tendency for
the blood and tissues to become either too acid or too alkaline,
depending on the acidity or the alkalinity of the foods eaten.

**Just as animal fats are our only sources of** **vitamins A and** **D
and other bodybuilding factors, so also animal protein is our only
source of complete protein.** All of the essential amino acids, and many
considered \"nonessential,\" are present in animal products. Sources of
protein from the vegetable kingdom contain only incomplete protein; that
is, they are low in one or more essential amino acids, even when overall
protein content is high. The body must ingest all the essential amino
acids in order to use any of them.

The two best sources of protein in the vegetable kingdom are legumes and
cereal grains, but all plant foods are low in tryptophan, cystine and
threonine. Legumes, such as beans, peanuts and cashews are high in the
amino acid lysine but low in methionine. Cereal grains have the opposite
profile. In order to obtain the best possible protein combination from
vegetable sources, pulses and grains should be eaten together and
combined with at least a small amount of animal protein. Most
grain-based cuisines instinctively incorporate this principle. For
example, animal products plus corn and beans are staple fare in Mexican
cuisine, as are chick peas and whole wheat in the Middle East.

**Scientific evidence, honestly evaluated, argues against relying too
heavily on grains and legumes as sources of protein or for severely
reducing animal products in the diet.** Our primitive ancestors
subsisted on a diet composed largely of meat and fat, augmented with
vegetables, fruit, seeds and nuts. Studies of their remains reveal that
they had excellent bone structure, heavy musculature and flawless teeth.
Agricultural man added milk, grains and legumes to this diet. These
foods allowed him to pursue a more comfortable life style than the
hunter-gatherer, but at a price. In his studies of isolated
\"primitive\" peoples, Dr. Weston A. Price found that those whose diets
consisted largely of grains and legumes, while far healthier than
civilized moderns, had, nevertheless, more dental caries than those
living primarily on meat and fish. Skulls of prehistoric peoples
subsisting almost entirely on vegetable foods have teeth containing
caries and abscesses and show evidence of bone problems and tuberculosis
as well.[^97]

A study by Dr. Emmanuel Cheraskin corroborates Dr. Price's observations.
He surveyed 1040 dentists and their wives. Those who had the fewest
problems and diseases as measured by the Cornell Medical Index had the
most protein in their diets.[^98] The claim that high-protein diets
cause bone loss is supported neither by scientific research nor by
anthropological surveys.[^99] However, inadequate protein intake leads
to loss of myocardial muscle and may therefore contribute to coronary
heart disease.[^100] However, protein cannot be adequately utilized
without dietary fats. That is why protein and fats occur together in
eggs, milk, fish and meats. A high-protein, low fat diet can cause many
problems including too rapid growth and depletion of vitamin A and
vitamin D reserves.[^101]

Not only is it difficult to obtain adequate protein on a diet devoid of
animal products, but such a diet often leads to deficiencies in many
important minerals as well. This is because a largely vegetarian diet
lacks the fat-soluble catalysts needed for mineral absorption.
Furthermore, phytates in grains block absorption of calcium, iron, zinc,
copper and magnesium. Unless grains are properly prepared to neutralize
phytates, the body may be unable to assimilate these minerals. Zinc,
iron, calcium and other minerals from animal sources are more easily and
readily absorbed. We should not underestimate the dangers of
deficiencies in these minerals. The effects of calcium and iron
deficiency are well known, those of zinc less so. Even a minor zinc
deficiency in pregnant animals results in offspring with deformities,
such as clubfeet, cleft palates, domed skulls and fused and missing
ribs. In humans, zinc deficiency can cause learning disabilities and
mental retardation. In men, zinc depletion decreases fertility. Man's
best source of zinc is animal products, particularly oysters and red
meat.

**Usable** **vitamin B~12~ occurs only in animal products.** The body
stores a supply of vitamin B~12~ that can last from two to five years.
When this supply is depleted, B~12~ deficiency diseases result. These
include pernicious anemia, impaired eyesight, panic attacks,
schizophrenia, hallucinations and nervous disorders, such as weakness,
loss of balance and numbness in the hands and feet. Vitamin B~12~
deficiency has been found in breast-fed infants of strict
vegetarians.[^102] Fermented soy foods and spirulina contain compounds
that resemble B~12;~ however, humans do not absorb these forms because
they are not picked up by the \"intrinsic factor,\" a specialized
protein secreted in the stomach that allows B~12~ to be assimilated. In
fact, the plant forms of B~12~ may even create B~12~ deficiencies.[^103]
(Viability of the intrinsic factor depends on a number of factors
including calcium status, pancreatic enzymes and proper pH in the upper
intestine. The ability to assimilate B~12~ frequently declines with age
so that many elderly people suffer from B~12~ deficiency even though
they continue to eat animal products.)

Current wisdom dictates that Americans should at least reduce their
consumption of red meats and the dark meat of birds because these meats
contain more saturated fat than fish or white poultry meat; but even
this stricture is ill advised, especially for those who tend to be
anemic. Red meat is rich in iron and zinc, both of which play important
roles in the body's use of essential fatty acids; and, as we have seen,
consumption of saturated fat poses no threat to our health.

A few highly publicized studies have claimed a link between consumption
of meat and saturated fats with cancer, especially cancer of the
colon.[^104] Studies claiming a correlation of animal product
consumption with cancer do not stand up to careful scrutiny. In many of
these studies, the databases combined saturated fats from animal sources
with hydrogenated vegetable oils, known to be carcinogenic.[^105]
Furthermore, these studies did not include sugar and white flour in
their surveys, even though researcher Lopez and others have shown that
in industrialized countries high meat consumption and high sugar intake
often occur together.[^106] Actually, the pathway for colon cancer is
well understood. It involves high levels of omega-6 linoleic acid and
hydrogenated fats, which in the presence of carcinogens and acted on by
certain enzymes in the cells lining the colon lead to tumor
formation.[^107] This explains why colon cancer is prevalent in some
industrialized countries where there are many carcinogens in the diet
and where consumption of vegetable oils and sugar is high; but in
traditional societies, where sugar and vegetable oils are absent and the
food is free of additives, meat-eating is not associated with cancer.

## Refined Proteins

We have already seen that processing and refining can devitalize both
fats and carbohydrates. The same can be said of proteins. Isolated
protein powders made from soy, whey, casein and egg whites are currently
popular as basic ingredients in diet beverages and many so-called health
food products. **Protein isolates are usually obtained by a
high-temperature process that over-denatures the proteins to such an
extent that they become virtually useless**.[^108] while increasing
nitrates and other carcinogens.[^109] Protein powders are often consumed
as part of a low-fat diet and can thereby lead to depletion of vitamin A
and D reserves. Soy protein isolates are high in mineral-blocking
phytates, thyroid-depressing phytoestrogens and potent enzyme inhibitors
that depress growth and cause cancer.[^110]

Diets in which non-natural isolated powdered proteins from soy, eggs or
milk are fed to animals or humans cause a negative calcium balance that
can lead to osteoporosis. Critics of meat eating have seized on these
results to claim that meat causes bone loss. But meat or milk---as
opposed to protein powders---fed to human subjects do not cause calcium
loss nor do they contribute to osteoporosis.[^111] The healthy
meat-eating groups studied by Weston Price did not show any evidence
whatsoever of osteoporosis.

In summary, animal products are important sources of bodybuilding
elements in the diet. Furthermore, animal fats supply vitamin A and
vitamin D and animal protein is rich in minerals, vitamin B~6~ and
vitamin B~12~. The traditional groups of people studied by Dr. Price
especially valued certain high-vitamin animal products like organ meats,
butter, fish eggs and shellfish for growing children and for parents of
both sexes during the childbearing years.

**We cannot stress too highly that animal protein foods---meat, eggs and
milk---always come with fat and this is how we should eat them.** Animal
fat supplies vitamins A and D needed for the assimilation of protein.
Consumption of low fat milk products, egg whites and lean meat can lead
to serious deficiencies of these vital fat-soluble nutrients.[^112]

The amount of meat you include in your diet depends on your genetic
makeup and on hormonal factors. Some people require more meat while
others do not produce enough hydrochloric acid in their stomachs to
handle large amounts very well. Some researchers claim that our need for
protein declines in later years. Requirements for individual essential
amino acids vary enormously. For example, dark-skinned people may need
more tryptophan, found in eggs and dairy products, as this essential
amino acid is used in the production of melanin; deficiencies may lead
to insomnia, hyperactivity and other nervous disorders. Some individuals
have high requirements for carnitine, a nonessential amino acid found
plentifully in lamb or beef, because they have difficulty manufacturing
enough of it for proper functioning of the heart.

Our endorsement of animal products must be tempered with this important
caveat: The meat, milk and eggs in our supermarkets are highly
contaminated and vastly inferior in nutritional quality to those
available to our predecessors just a few decades ago. Modern
cattle-raising techniques include the use of steroids to make meat
tenderer and antibiotics that allow cattle to survive in crowded
feedlots. Many cattle supplying meat to the American table have never
seen the open range, and calves raised for veal are often confined to
crates for the whole of their short lives. Diseased animals routinely
pass inspection and find their way into the food supply. Chickens are
raised in crowded pens, often under artificial light both night and day,
and fed on substandard food. They, too, must be guarded from infection
by antibiotics. Their eggs are inferior in nutritional qualities to
those of free-range, properly nourished hens.

The kinds of proteins we eat are just as important as the types of fats
and carbohydrates consumed. Grass fed beef, free range chickens and
eggs, bacon and ham from non-factory farmed raised pigs, and fresh fish
that is not factory farmed are to be consumed for their natural
nutritional basis.

# CONCLUSIONS

We, as a nation, have an immense opportunity to reverse the effects of
the prevailing bubble on our health and well being. Obesity and
overweight and concomitant diseases can be alleviated, but it will take
a radical shifting of our current thinking on nutrition and food.

Over the long term, low-fat diets have been shown to be disadvantageous
for preventing the diseases they have been recommended for. Most people
are at risk for lowered intakes of the important fat-soluble vitamins
and other fat-soluble nutrients when they consume low-fat diets for any
length of time. So it would seem that the fat content of natural fats
that our ancestors used, with an average of 35-40 percent of energy as
fat, makes sense.

For those who are prone to hypoglycemia, seizures or who are recovering
from an operation or illness, the percent of energy from fat should be
higher. Growing infants and children also need a higher proportion of
fat in the diet. Whatever level of fat works for an individual, it
should be a mixture of natural fats that were common in the diets 60 and
more years ago. Americans today consume in excess refined vegetable oils
and *trans* fatty acids from partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.

The consumption of processed foods containing refined and partially
hydrogenated vegetable oils as well as highly sugared food, especially
those foods containing high fructose corn syrup, should be limited as
much as possible as well as highly processed protein sources. Naturally
occurring, unprocessed fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes with
non-factory farmed animal and fish protein sources are recommended for
longevity and well-being. Beneficial fats include the primarily
saturated butter and other animal fats, coconut and palm oils;
monounsaturated fats such as olive oil and peanut oil; and the
polyunsaturated omega-3 essential fatty acid from flaxseed oil and fish.

In conclusion, the Weston A. Price Foundation urges the U.S. Departments
of Health and Human Services and Agriculture to abandon the current Food
Pyramid concept. They should return to a plan that stresses high quality
foods from four basic groups: animal foods, grains and legumes, fruits
and vegetables, and beneficial oils and fats.

We believe that by following these recommendations to the dietary
guidelines, overweight and obesity, as well as many other health
problems, will dramatically decrease in the United States.

**Table I**

COMPOSITION OF DIFFERENT FATS

It is worthwhile examining the composition of vegetable oils and other
animal fats in order to determine their usefulness and appropriateness
in food preparation:

**Duck and Goose Fat** are semisolid at room temperature, containing
about 35% saturated fat, 52% monounsaturated fat (including small
amounts of antimicrobial palmitoleic acid) and about 13% polyunsaturated
fat. The proportion of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids depends on what
the birds have eaten. Duck and goose fat are quite stable and are highly
prized in Europe for frying potatoes.

**Chicken Fat** is about 31% saturated, 49% monounsaturated (including
moderate amounts of antimicrobial palmitoleic acid) and 20%
polyunsaturated, most of which is omega-6 linoleic acid, although the
amount of omega-3 can be raised by feeding chickens flax or fish meal,
or allowing them to range free and eat insects. Although widely used for
frying in kosher kitchens, it is inferior to duck and goose fat, which
were traditionally preferred to chicken fat in Jewish cooking.

**Lard** or pork fat is about 40% saturated, 48% monounsaturated
(including small amounts of antimicrobial palmitoleic acid) and 12%
polyunsaturated. Like the fat of birds, the amount of omega-6 and
omega-3 fatty acids will vary in lard according to what has been fed to
the pigs. In the tropics, lard may also be a source of lauric acid if
the pigs have eaten coconuts. Like duck and goose fat, lard is stable
and a preferred fat for frying. It was widely used in America at the
turn of the 20^th^ century. It is a good source of vitamin D, especially
in third-world countries where other animal foods are likely to be
expensive. Some researchers believe that pork products should be avoided
because they may contribute to cancer. Others suggest that only pork
meat presents a problem and that pig *fat* in the form of lard is safe
and healthy.

**Beef and Mutton Tallows** are 50-55% saturated, about 40%
monounsaturated and contain small amounts of the polyunsaturates,
usually less than 3%. Suet, which is the fat from the cavity of the
animal, is 70-80% saturated. Suet and tallow are very stable fats and
can be used for frying. Traditional cultures valued these fats for their
health benefits. They are a good source of antimicrobial palmitoleic
acid.

**Olive Oil** contains 75% oleic acid, the stable monounsaturated fat,
along with 13% saturated fat, 10% omega-6 linoleic acid and 2% omega-3
linolenic acid. The high percentage of oleic acid makes olive oil ideal
for salads and for cooking at moderate temperatures. Extra virgin olive
oil is also rich in antioxidants. It should be cloudy, indicating that
it has not been filtered, and have a golden yellow color, indicating
that it is made from fully ripened olives. Olive oil has withstood the
test of time; it is the safest vegetable oil you can use, but do not
overdo. The longer chain fatty acids found in olive oil are more likely
to contribute to the buildup of body fat than the short- and
medium-chain fatty acids found in butter, coconut oil or palm kernel
oil.

**Peanut Oil** contains 48% oleic acid, 18% saturated fat and 34%
omega-6 linoleic acid. Like olive oil, peanut oil is relatively stable
and, therefore, appropriate for stir-frys on occasion. But the high
percentage of omega-6 presents a potential danger, so use of peanut oil
should be strictly limited.

**Sesame Oil** contains 42% oleic acid, 15% saturated fat, and 43%
omega-6 linoleic acid. Sesame oil is similar in composition to peanut
oil. It can be used for frying because it contains unique antioxidants
that are not destroyed by heat. However, the high percentage of omega-6
militates against exclusive use.

**Safflower, Corn, Sunflower, Soybean and Cottonseed Oils** all contain
over 50% omega-6 and, except for soybean oil, only minimal amounts of
omega-3. Safflower oil contains almost 80% omega-6. Researchers are just
beginning to discover the dangers of excess omega-6 oils in the diet,
whether rancid or not. Use of these oils should be strictly limited.
They should never be consumed after they have been heated, as in
cooking, frying or baking. High oleic safflower and sunflower oils,
produced from hybrid plants, have a composition similar to olive oil,
namely, high amounts of oleic acid and only small amounts of
polyunsaturated fatty acids and, thus, are more stable than traditional
varieties. However, it is difficult to find truly cold-pressed versions
of these oils.

**Canola Oil** contains 5% saturated fat, 57% oleic acid, 23% omega-6
and 10%-15% omega-3. The newest oil on the market, canola oil was
developed from the rapeseed, a member of the mustard family. Rapeseed is
unsuited to human consumption because it contains a very-long-chain
fatty acid called erucic acid, which under some circumstances is
associated with fibrotic heart lesions. Canola oil was bred to contain
little if any erucic acid and has drawn the attention of nutritionists
because of its high oleic acid content. But there are some indications
that canola oil presents dangers of its own. It has a high sulphur
content and goes rancid easily. Baked goods made with canola oil develop
mold very quickly. During the deodorizing process, the omega-3 fatty
acids of processed canola oil are transformed into *trans* fatty acids,
similar to those in margarine and possibly more dangerous.^1^ A recent
study indicates that \"heart healthy\" canola oil actually creates a
deficiency of vitamin E, a vitamin required for a healthy cardiovascular
system.^2^ Other studies indicate that even low-erucic-acid canola oil
causes heart lesions, particularly when the diet is low in saturated
fat.^3^

**Flax Seed Oil** contains 9% saturated fatty acids, 18% oleic acid, 16%
omega-6 and 57% omega-3. With its extremely high omega-3 content, flax
seed oil provides a remedy for the omega-6/omega-3 imbalance so
prevalent in America today. Not surprisingly, Scandinavian folklore
values flax seed oil as a health food. New extraction and bottling
methods have minimized rancidity problems. It should always be kept
refrigerated, never heated, and consumed in *small* amounts in salad
dressings and spreads.

**Tropical Oils** are more saturated than other vegetable oils. Palm oil
is about 50% saturated, with 41% oleic acid and about 9% omega-6
linoleic acid. Coconut oil is 92% saturated with over two-thirds of the
saturated fat in the form of medium-chain fatty acids (often called
medium-chain triglycerides). Of particular interest is lauric acid,
found in large quantities in both coconut oil and in mother's milk. This
fatty acid has strong antifungal and antimicrobial properties. Coconut
oil protects tropical populations from bacteria and fungus so prevalent
in their food supply; as third-world nations in tropical areas have
switched to polyunsaturated vegetable oils, the incidence of intestinal
disorders and immune deficiency diseases has increased dramatically.
Because coconut oil contains lauric acid, it is often used in baby
formulas. Palm kernel oil, used primarily in candy coatings, also
contains high levels of lauric acid. These oils are extremely stable and
can be kept at room temperature for many months without becoming rancid.
Highly saturated tropical oils do not contribute to heart disease but
have nourished healthy populations for millennia.^4^ Red palm oil has a
strong taste that most will find disagreeable---although it is used
extensively throughout Africa---but clarified palm oil, which is
tasteless and white in color, was formerly used as shortening and in the
production of commercial French fries, while coconut oil was used in
cookies, crackers and pastries. The saturated fat scare has forced
manufacturers to abandon these safe and healthy oils in favor of
hydrogenated soybean, corn, canola and cottonseed oils.

For a more complete review of the various fats and oils, please refer to
Know Your Fats: The Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of
Fats, Oils, and Cholesterol by Mary Enig, PhD, Bethesda Press, 2000, pp.
113-152.

References:

1.  Personal communication, Mary G Enig, PhD

2.  Sauer, F D, et al, *Nutr Res*, 1997, 17:2:259-269

3.  Kramer, J K G, et al, *Lipids*, 1982, 17:372-382; Trenholm, H L, et
    al, *Can Inst Food Sci Technol J*, 1979, 12:189-193

4.  Prior, I, et al, *Am J of Clin Nutr*, 1981, 34:1552

**Table II**

# MODERN METHODS OF PROCESSING FATS

It is important to understand that, of all substances ingested by the
body, it is polyunsaturated oils that are most easily rendered dangerous
by food processing, especially unstable omega-3 linolenic acid. Consider
the following processes inflicted upon naturally occurring fatty acids
before they appear on our tables:

**Extraction:** Oils naturally occurring in fruits, nuts and seeds must
first be extracted. In the old days slow-moving stone presses achieved
this extraction. But oils processed in large factories are obtained by
crushing the oil-bearing seeds and heating them to 230 degrees. The oil
is then squeezed out at pressures from 10 to 20 tons per inch, thereby
generating more heat. During this process the oils are exposed to
damaging light and oxygen. In order to extract the last 10% or so of the
oil from crushed seeds, processors treat the pulp with one of a number
of solvents---usually hexane. The solvent is then boiled off, although
up to 100 parts per million may remain in the oil. Such solvents,
themselves toxic, also retain the toxic pesticides adhering to seeds and
grains before processing begins.

High-temperature processing causes the weak carbon bonds of unsaturated
fatty acids, especially omega 3 linolenic acid, to break apart, thereby
creating dangerous free radicals. In addition, antioxidants, such as
fat-soluble vitamin E, which protect the body from the ravages of free
radicals, are neutralized or destroyed by high temperatures and
pressures. BHT and BHA, both suspected of causing cancer and brain
damage, are often added to these oils to replace vitamin E and other
natural preservatives destroyed by heat.

There *is* a safe modern technique for extraction that drills into the
seeds and extracts the oil and its precious cargo of antioxidants under
low temperatures, with minimal exposure to light and oxygen. These
expeller-expressed, unrefined oils will remain fresh for a long time if
stored in the refrigerator in dark bottles. Crushing olives between
stone or steel rollers produces extra virgin olive oil. This process is
a gentle one that preserves the integrity of the fatty acids and the
numerous natural preservatives in olive oil. If olive oil is packaged in
opaque containers, it will retain its freshness and store of
antioxidants for many years.

**Hydrogenation:** This is the process that turns polyunsaturates,
normally liquid at room temperature, into fats that are solid at room
temperature---margarine and shortening. A French chemist named Sabatier
first discovered the technology by which liquid vegetable oils could be
hardened to make margarine. He found that a nickel catalyst would cause
the hydrogenation---the addition of hydrogen to unsaturated bonds to
make them saturated---of ethylene gas to ethane. Subsequently the
British chemist Norman developed the first application of hydrogenation
to food oils and took out a patent. In 1909, Procter & Gamble acquired
the U.S. rights to the British patent that made liquid vegetable oils
solid at room temperature. The process was used on both cottonseed oil
and lard to give "better physical properties"---to create shortenings
that did not melt as easily on hot days.

To produce hydrogenated oils, manufacturers begin with the cheapest
oils---soy, corn, cottonseed or canola, already rancid from the
extraction process---and mix them with tiny metal particles---usually
nickel oxide. The oil with its nickel catalyst is then subjected to
hydrogen gas in a high-pressure, high-temperature reactor. Next,
soap-like emulsifiers and starch are squeezed into the mixture to give
it a better consistency; the oil is yet again subjected to high
temperatures when it is steam-cleaned. This removes its unpleasant odor.
Margarine's natural color, an unappetizing grey, is removed by bleach.
Dyes and strong flavors must then be added to make it resemble butter.
Finally, the mixture is compressed and packaged in blocks or tubs and
sold as a health food.

Partially hydrogenated margarines and shortenings are even worse for you
than the highly refined vegetable oils from which they are made because
of chemical changes that occur during the hydrogenation process. Under
high temperatures, the nickel catalyst causes the hydrogen atoms to
change position on the fatty acid chain. Before hydrogenation, pairs of
hydrogen atoms occur together on the chain, causing the chain to bend
slightly and creating a concentration of electrons at the site of the
double bond. This is called the *cis* formation, the configuration most
commonly found in nature. With hydrogenation, one hydrogen atom of the
pair is moved to the other side so that the molecule straightens. This
is called the *trans* formation, rarely found in nature. Most of these
man-made *trans* fats are toxic to the body, but unfortunately your
digestive system does not recognize them as such. Instead of being
eliminated, *trans* fats are incorporated into cell membranes as if they
were cis fats---your cells actually become partially hydrogenated. Once
in place, *trans* fatty acids with their misplaced hydrogen atoms wreak
havoc in cell metabolism because chemical reactions can only take place
when electrons in the cell membranes are in certain arrangements or
patterns, which the hydrogenation process has disturbed.

In the 1940's, researchers found a strong correlation between cancer and
the consumption of fat---the fats used were hydrogenated fats although
the results were presented as though the culprit were saturated fats.^1^
In fact, until recently saturated fats were usually lumped together with
*trans* fats in the various U.S. data bases that researchers use to
correlate dietary trends with disease conditions.^2^ Thus, natural
saturated fats were tarred with the black brush of unnatural
hydrogenated vegetable oils.

Altered partially hydrogenated fats made from vegetable oils actually
block utilization of essential fatty acids, causing many deleterious
effects including sexual dysfunction, increased blood cholesterol and
paralysis of the immune system.^3^ Consumption of hydrogenated fats is
associated with a host of other serious diseases, not only cancer but
also atherosclerosis, diabetes, obesity, immune system dysfunction,
low-birth-weight babies, birth defects, decreased visual acuity,
sterility, difficulty in lactation and problems with bones and
tendons.^4^ Yet hydrogenated fats continue to be promoted as health
foods. The popularity of partially hydrogenated margarine over butter
represents a triumph of advertising over common sense. The best defense
is to avoid all products with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.

**Homogenization:** This is the process whereby the fat particles of
cream are strained through tiny pores under great pressure. The
resulting fat particles are so small that they stay in suspension rather
than rise to the top of the milk. This makes the fat and cholesterol
more susceptible to rancidity and oxidation, and some research indicates
that homogenized fats may contribute to heart disease.^5^

\[Table extracted from Enig, Mary, The Skinny on Fats, Weston A. Price
Foundation, http://www.westonaprice.org/know_your_fats/skinny.html, pp.
12-14\]

References:

1.  Enig, Mary G, PhD, *Nutr Quarterly*, 1993, 17:(4):79-95

2.  Enig, Mary G, PhD, *Trans Fatty Acids in the Food Supply: A
    Comprehensive Report Covering 60 Years of Research*, 2nd Edition,
    Enig Associates, Inc, Silver Spring, MD, 1995, 148-154; Enig, Mary
    G, PhD, et al, *J Am Coll Nutr*, 1990, 9:471-86

3.  Holman, R T, *Geometrical and Positional Fatty Acid Isomers*, E A
    Emkin and H J Dutton, eds, 1979, American Oil Chemists\' Society,
    Champaign, IL, 283-302; *Science News Letter*, Feb 1956; Schantz, E
    J, et al, J Dairy Sci, 1940, 23:181-89.

4.  Enig, Mary G, PhD, *Trans Fatty Acids in the Food Supply: A
    Comprehensive Report Covering 60 Years of Research*, 2nd Edition,
    Enig Associates, Inc, Silver Spring, MD, 1995; Watkins, B A et al,
    *Br Pouli Sci*, Dec 1991, 32(5):1109-1119

5.  Zikakis, et al, *J Dairy Sci*, 1977, 60:533; Oster, K, *Am J Clin
    Res*, Apr 1971, Vol II(I)

**Table III**

ADVERSE EFFECTS OF EXCESS POLYUNSATURATED OILS

-   Polyunsaturated fatty acids occur in small amounts in all foods.
    Polyunsaturated oils contain large amounts of polyunsaturated fatty
    acids. Commercial polyunsaturated oils made from corn, soy,
    safflower and sunflower seeds are new to human diets. The use of
    these industrially processed oils is 4 fold higher today than it is
    was in 1900.^1^

-   Polyunsaturated fatty acids are very fragile. When exposed to heat
    and oxygen, as during industrial processing, they form free radicals
    and other harmful breakdown products that damage the body in many
    ways.^2^

-   Modern processing destroys the vitamins and antioxidants in
    vegetable oils, but the pesticides are retained. (Seed oils are
    highly sprayed.)^3^

-   Polyunsaturated oils cause the formation of black-brown ceroid
    pigment deposits, a sign of aging.^4^

-   In animal studies, polyunsaturated oil shorten life-span and
    increase the possibility of atherosclerosis, cancer and other
    disease.^5^

-   Polyunsaturated oils increase the levels of uric acid in the body, a
    sign of the destruction of protein. An elevated level of uric acid
    is a heart disease risk factor.^6^

-   In animals, consumption of excessive polyunsaturates causes
    cirrhosis of the liver, similar to that caused by excessive
    alcohol.^7^

-   Many studies have shown that polyunsaturated oils cause cancer.^8^

-   Polyunsaturated oils are particularly damaging to the reproductive
    organs and the lungs.^9^

-   Polyunsaturated oils depress learning ability, especially under
    conditions of stress.^10^

-   Polyunsaturated oils given to young animals and impair growth.^11^

-   When heated, as in cooking, polyunsaturated oils bond to each other
    forming polymers, leading to digestive problems (varnish and shellac
    are polymers).^12^

References:

> 1\. Mary G. Enig, PhD, *Know Your Fats*, Bethesda Press, Silver
> Spring, MD, 2000, p 94
>
> 2\. *Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences*, August 1971.
>
> 3\. Unpublished research by the Food and Drug Administration, cited in
> Edward R. Pinckney, MD, *The Cholesterol Controversy*, Sherborne
> Press, 1973, p 53.
>
> 4\. Lipid Pigments in Relation to Aging and Dietary Factors,"
> *Pigments in Pathology*, M Wolman, ed., New York, Academic Press,
> 1969.
>
> 5\. *Medical Counterpoint*, March 1969.
>
> 6\. W. Stan Wilson, *The American Journal of Medicine* 51:491;
> *Lancet* 2:358, February 15, 1969; *Internal Medicine News*, November
> 15, 1971.
>
> 7\. *Archives of Pathology*, 82:596, December 1966; *Modern Medicine*,
> June 14, 1971.
>
> 8\. "Nutrition in Relation to Cancer," *Advances in Cancer Researc*h,
> New York, Academic Press, 1953; "Some thoughts on Food and Cancer,"
> *Nutrition Today*, January, 1972.
>
> 9\. A. L. Tappel, *Nutrition Today*, December, 1967.
>
> 10\. *Psychological Reports*, 29:79, 1971
>
> 11\. *Journal of Nutrition*, 55:577, April 1955; *Journal of the
> American Oil Chemists' Society*, 33:630, December 1956; *Lipids*
> 1:254, July 1966.
>
> 12\. *Journal of Nutrition* , 60:13, September 1956.

**Table IV**

**SATURATED FATS ARE BENEFICIAL, NOT HARMFUL**

-   Saturated fats (or, more properly, saturated fatty acids) occur in
    large amounts in animal fats such as butter, lard (pig fat) and beef
    tallow, and in tropical oils such as coconut oil and palm oil. Fats
    containing high levels of saturated fatty acids tend to be solid at
    room temperature.

-   Saturated fatty acids are said to cause cancer, heart disease and
    obesity. Yet these diseases were rare at the turn of the century
    when consumption of saturated fats was much higher than it is today.
    The likely culprits for these conditions are polyunsaturated fatty
    acids and *trans* fats, which came into widespread use after
    WWII.^1^

-   As saturated fats are stable, they do not become rancid easily, do
    not call upon the body's reserves of antioxidants, do not initiate
    cancer and do not irritate the artery walls.

-   Saturated fats actually play many important roles in the body
    chemistry. Because they are needed in large amounts, the body makes
    the saturated fats it needs out of carbohydrates when they are not
    supplied in sufficient amounts in the diet.^2^

-   Vitamins A and D, which are vital for proper growth and for protein
    and mineral assimilation, are found only in mostly saturated animal
    fats.

-   Saturated fats enhance the immune system, thereby protecting us
    against infection and cancer.^3^

-   Saturated fats help the body lay down calcium in the bones and help
    prevent osteoporosis.^4^

-   Saturated fats provide energy and structural integrity to the
    cells.^5^ At least 50 percent of many, if not most, of the cell
    membrane must be saturated fat for the cells to work properly.

-   Saturated fats protect the liver from alcohol, drugs, pesticides and
    other poisons.^6^

-   Saturated fats enhance the body's use of essential fatty acids,
    which the body needs in small amounts and obtains from whole
    foods.^7^

-   Stearic acid, found in beef tallow and butter, has
    cholesterol-lowering properties and is a preferred food for the
    heart.^8^

-   Saturated fats are needed for the kidneys to work properly.^9^

-   The lung surfactants are composed of saturated fatty acids.^10^ The
    lungs cannot work without adequate amounts of saturated fats.

References:

1\. Uffe Ravnskov, MD, PhD, *The Cholesterol Myth*s, NewTrends
Publishing, Washington, DC, pp 217-234.

2\. Mary G. Enig, PhD, *Know Your Fats*, Bethesda Press, Silver Spring,
MD 2000, p 5.

3\. J J Kabara, *The Pharmacological Effects of Lipids*, J J Kabara, ed,
The American Oil Chemists' Society, Champaign, IL, 1978, 1-14; L A
Cohen, et al, *J Natl Cancer Inst,* 1986, 77:43

4\. B A Watkins, et al, "Importance of Vitamin E in Bone Formation and
in Chrondrocyte Function" Purdue University, Lafayette, IN, *AOCS
Proceedings*, 1996; B A Watkins, and M F Seifert, "Food Lipids and Bone
Health," *Food Lipids and Health*, R E McDonald and D B Min, eds, Marcel
Dekker, Inc. New York, NY, p 101

5\. J F Mead, et al, *Lipids: Chemistry, Biochemistry and Nutrition,
Plenum Press*, 1986, New York

6\. A A Nanji, et al, *Gastroenterology*, Aug 1995, 109(2):547-54; Y S
Cha, and D S Sachan, *J Am Coll Nutr*, Aug 1994, 13(4):338-43

7\. M L Garg, et al, *The FASEB Journal,* 1988, 2:(4):A852; R M Oliart
Ros, et al, *Meeting Abstracts*, *AOCS Proceedings*, May 1998, p 7,
Chicago, IL

8\. L D Lawson and F Kummerow, "B-Oxidation of the Coenzyme A Esters of
Vaccenic, Elaidic and Petroselaidic Acids by Rat Heart Mitochondria,"
*Lipids*, 1979, 14:501-503

9\. Busconi and Denker, Biochum J 1997;328:23

10\. Mary G. Enig, PhD, *Know Your Fats*, Bethesda Press, Silver Spring,
MD 2000, p 31.

**Table V**

**BENEFITS OF CHOLESTEROL**

-   Along with saturated fats, cholesterol in the cell membrane gives
    our cells necessary stiffness and stability. When the diet contains
    an excess of polyunsaturated fatty acids, these replace saturated
    fatty acids in the cell membrane, so that the cell walls actually
    become flabby. When this happens, cholesterol from the blood is
    \"driven\" into the tissues to give them structural integrity. This
    is why serum cholesterol levels may go down temporarily when
    saturated fats are replaced with polyunsaturated oils in the
    diet.^1^

-   Cholesterol acts as a precursor to vital corticosteroids, hormones
    that help us deal with stress and protect the body against heart
    disease and cancer; and to the sex hormones like androgen,
    testosterone, estrogen and progesterone.

-   Cholesterol is a precursor to vitamin D, a very important
    fat-soluble vitamin needed for healthy bones and nervous system,
    proper growth, mineral metabolism, muscle tone, insulin production,
    reproduction and immune system function.

-   The bile salts are made from cholesterol. Bile is vital for
    digestion and assimilation of fats in the diet.

-   Research shows that cholesterol acts as an antioxidant.^2^ This is
    the likely explanation for the fact that cholesterol levels go up
    with age. As an antioxidant, cholesterol protects us against free
    radical damage that leads to heart disease and cancer.

-   Cholesterol is needed for proper function of serotonin receptors in
    the brain.^3^ Serotonin is the body\'s natural \"feel-good\"
    chemical. Low cholesterol levels have been linked to aggressive and
    violent behavior, depression and suicidal tendencies.

-   Mother\'s milk is especially rich in cholesterol and contains a
    special enzyme that helps the baby utilize this nutrient. Babies and
    children need cholesterol-rich foods throughout their growing years
    to ensure proper development of the brain and nervous system.

-   Dietary cholesterol plays an important role in maintaining the
    health of the intestinal wall.^4^ This is why low-cholesterol
    vegetarian diets can lead to leaky gut syndrome and other intestinal
    disorders.

References:

1.  Jones, P J, *Am J Clin Nutr*, Aug 1997, 66(2):438-46; Julias, A D,
    et al, *J Nutr*, Dec 1982, 112(12):2240-9

2.  Cranton, E M, MD, and J P Frackelton, MD, *Journal of Holistic
    Medicine*, Spring/Summer 1984, 6-37

3.  Engelberg, Hyman, *Lancet*, Mar 21, 1992, 339:727-728; Wood, W G, et
    al, *Lipids*, Mar 1999, 34(3):225-234

4.  Alfin-Slater, R B, and L Aftergood, \"Lipids,\" *Modern Nutrition in
    Health and Disease*, 6th ed, R S Goodhart and M E Shils, eds, Lea
    and Febiger, Philadelphia 1980, 134

**Table VI**

**HEALTH IMPLICATIONS OF FRUCTOSE**

1.  Fructose has no enzymes, vitamins, and minerals and robs the body of
    its micronutrient treasures in order to assimilate itself for
    physiological use.

2.  Fructose browns food more readily (Maillard reaction) than with
    glucose. The Maillard reaction, a browning reaction, happens with
    any sugar. With fructose it happens seven times faster with than
    glucose, results in a decrease in protein quality and a toxicity of
    protein in the body.^1^ This is due to the loss of amino acid
    residues and decreased protein digestibility. Maillard products can
    inhibit the uptake and metabolism of free amino acids and other
    nutrients such as zinc and some advanced Maillard products have
    mutagenic and/or carcinogenic properties. The Maillard reactions
    between proteins and fructose, glucose, and other sugars may play a
    role in aging and in some clinical complications of diabetes.^2^

3.  Research showed that in subjects that had healthy glucose tolerance
    and those that had unhealthy glucose tolerance, fructose caused a
    general increase in both the total serum cholesterol and in the low
    density lipoproteins (LDL) in most of the subjects.^3^ This puts a
    person at risk for heart disease.

4.  Another study showed that the very low-density lipoproteins (VLDL)
    increased without an apparent change in high-density lipoproteins
    (HDL). The VLDL and the LDL should be as low as possible and the HDL
    should be as high as possible.^4^

5.  There is a significant increase in the concentration of uric acid
    that is dependent on the amount of fructose digested. After glucose
    no significant change occurs. An increase in uric acid can be an
    indicator of heart disease.^5^

6.  Fructose ingestion in humans results in increases in blood lactic
    acid, especially in patients with preexisting acidotic conditions
    such as diabetes, postoperative stress, or uremia. The significance
    to human health is that extreme elevations cause metabolic acidosis
    and can result in death.^6^

7.  Fructose is absorbed primarily in the jejunum and metabolized in the
    liver. Fructose is converted to fatty acids by the liver at a
    greater rate than is glucose.^7^ When consumed in excess of dietary
    glucose, the liver cannot convert all of the excess of fructose in
    the system and it may be malabsorbed. What escapes conversion and
    being absorbed into the cells may be thrown out in the urine.
    Diarrhea can be a consequence.^8^

8.  Fructose interacts with oral contraceptives and elevates insulin
    levels in women on \"the pill.\" ^9^

9.  Fructose reduced the affinity of insulin for its receptor. This is
    the first step for glucose to enter a cell and be metabolized. As a
    result, the body needs to pump out more insulin, to handle the same
    amount of glucose.^10^

10. Fructose consistently produced higher kidney calcium concentrations
    than did glucose in a study with rats. Fructose generally induced
    greater urinary concentrations of phosphorus and magnesium and
    lowered urinary pH compared with glucose.^11^ The balance of
    minerals in the body is very important for the function of vitamins,
    enzymes and other body function. When the minerals are out of the
    right relationship, the body chemistry suffers. The presence of
    diarrhea might be the cause of decreased absorption of minerals.

11. Fructose-fed subjects lose minerals. They had higher fecal
    excretions of iron and magnesium than did subjects fed sucrose.
    Apparent iron, magnesium, calcium, and zinc balances tended to be
    more negative during the fructose feeding period as compared to
    balances during the sucrose feeding period.^12^

12. A study of 25 patients with functional bowel disease showed that
    pronounced gastrointestinal distress may be provoked by
    malabsorption of small amounts of fructose.^13^

13. Many times fructose and sorbitol are substituted for glucose in
    parenteral nutrition (intervenious feeding, IV). This can have
    severe consequences with people with hereditary fructose
    intolerance, a congenital disorder affecting one in 21,000. A
    European doctor declared: \"Fructose and sorbitol containing
    infusion fluids have no further place in our hospital pharmacies.\"
    ^14^

14. There is significant evidence that high sucrose diets may alter
    intracellular metabolism, which in turn facilitates accelerated
    aging through oxidative damage. Scientists found that the rats given
    fructose had more undesirable cross-linking changes in the collagen
    of their skin than in the other groups. These changes are also
    thought to be markers for aging. The scientists say that it is the
    fructose molecule in the sucrose, not the glucose, which plays the
    larger problem.

15. Fructose is not metabolized the same as other sugars. Instead of
    being converted to glucose which the body uses, it is removed by the
    liver.^15^

16. Because it is metabolized by the liver, fructose does not cause the
    pancreas to release insulin the way it normally does. Fructose
    converts to fat more than any other sugar. This may be one of the
    reasons Americans continue to get fatter. Fructose raises serum
    triglycerides significantly. As a left-handed sugar, fructose
    digestion is very low. For complete internal conversion of fructose
    into glucose and acetates, it must rob ATP energy stores from the
    liver.^16^

17. Fructose inhibits copper metabolism. A deficiency in copper leads to
    bone fragility, anemia, defects of the connective tissue, arteries,
    and bone, infertility, heart arrhythmias, high cholesterol levels,
    heart attacks, and an inability to control blood sugar levels.^17^

Although these studies were not designed to test the effects of fructose
on weight gain, the observation of increased body weight associated with
fructose ingestion is of interest. One explanation for this observation
could be that fructose ingestion did not increase the production of two
hormones, insulin and leptin, that have key roles in the long‑term
regulation of food intake and energy expenditure.

\[Table developed by Nancy Appleton, Ph.D., clinical nutritionist,
researcher, lecturer, and author of *Lick the Sugar Habit, Healthy
Bones, Heal Yourself With Natural Foods and the Curse Of Louis Pasteur
and Lick the Sugar Habit Sugar Counter*\]

References:

1.  H. F. Bunn and P. J. Higgins, \"Reaction of Nonosaccharides with
    Proteins; Possible Evolutionary Significance.\" SCIENCE 213
    (1981):2222-2244.

2.  William L Dills Jr., \"Protein Fructosylation: Fructose and the
    Maillard Reaction,\" AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NUTRITION 58
    (suppl) (1993): 779S-787S.

3.  J. Hallfrisch et al., \"The Effects of Fructose on Blood Lipid
    Levels,\" AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NUTRITION 37, no, 3 (1983):
    740-748.

4.  Claire B. Hollenbeck, \"Dietary Fructose Effects on Lipoprotein
    Metabolism and Risk for Coronary Artery Disease,\" AMERICAN JOURNAL
    OF CLINICAL NUTRITION 58 (suppl), (1993): 800S-807S.

5.  J. MacDonald, Anne Keyser, and Deborah Pacy, \"Some Effects, in Man,
    of Varying the Load of Glucose, Sucrose, Fructose, or Sorbitol on
    Various Metabolites in Blood,\" AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL
    NUTRITION 31 (August 1978)): 1305-1311.

6.  Hallfrisch, 1990.

7.  D. Zakim and R. H. Herman, "Fructose Metabolism II," AMERICAN
    JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NUTRITION 21: 315-319, 1968.

8.  A. E. Bender and K. B. Damji, \"Some Effects of Dietary Sucrose,\"
    WORLD REVIEW OF NUTRITION AND DIETETICS 15 (1972): 104-155.

9.  Hunter,Beatrice Trum,\"Confusing Consumers About Sugar Intake,\"
    CONSUMERS\' RESEARCH 78, no 1 (January 1995): 14-17.

10. Hunter.

11. A. E. Bergstra, A. G. Lemmens, and A. C. Beynens, \"Dietary Fructose
    vs. Glucose Stimulates Nephrocalcinogenesis in Female Rats,\"
    JOURNAL OF NUTRITION 123, no. 7 (July 1993): 1320-1327.

12. R. Ivaturi and C. Kies, \"Mineral Balances in Humans as Affected by
    Fructose, High Fructose Corn Syrup and Sucrose,\" PLANT FOODS FOR
    HUMAN NUTRITION 42, no. 2 (1992): 143-151.

13. J. J. Rumessen and E. Gudmand-Hoyer, \"Functional Bowel Disease:
    Malabsorption and Abdominal Distress After Ingestion of Fructose,
    Sorbitol, and Fructose-Sorbitol Mixtures,\" GASTROENTEROLOGY 95, no.
    3 (September 1988): 694-700.

14. Mc Donald, Roger B., \"Influence of Dietary Sucrose on Biological
    Aging,\" AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NUTRITION 62 (suppl), (1995):
    284s-293s.

15. www.NutritionNewsFocus.com, May 25, 2000.

16. H. Hallfrisch, et al.,The Effects of Fructose on Blood Lipid Levels,
    AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NUTRITION, 37: 5, 1983, 740-748.

17. Klevay, Leslie, acting director of the U.S. Agriculture Department's
    Human Nutrition Research Center, Grand Forks, N.D.

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    Sucrose,* 1971, Daniel Davey, Hartford, CT.

[^79]: Lopez, A, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1966,
    18:149-153.

[^80]: Page, Melvin, DDS, *Degeneration, Regeneration*, 1949,
    Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation, San Diego, CA.

[^81]: Howell, Edward, MD, *Enzyme Nutrition,* 1985, Avery Publishing,
    Wayne, NJ, 88, 104.

[^82]: Beasley, Joseph D, MD, and Jerry J Swift, MA, *The Kellogg
    Report*, 1989, The Institute of Health Policy and Practice,
    Annandale-on-Hudson, NY, p. 132; Yudkin, John, Dr, *Sweet &
    Dangerous*, 1973, Bantam Books, New York, NY.

[^83]: Beasley, Joseph D, MD, and Jerry J Swift, MA, *The Kellogg
    Report*, 1989, p.129.

[^84]: Fields, M, Proceedings of the Society of Experimental Biology and
    Medicine, 1984, 175:530-537.

[^85]: Appleton, Nancy, PhD, Fructose is No Answer For a Sweetener,
    <http://www.mercola.com/2002/jan/5/fructose.htm>.

[^86]: Beatrice Trum Hunter, \"Confusing Consumers About Sugar Intake,\"
    Consumer's Research 78, no 1 (January 1995): 14-17.

[^87]: Hallfrisch,Judith,\"Metabolic Effects of Dietary Fructose,\"
    FASEB JOURNAL 4 (June 1990): 2652-2660.

[^88]: [American Journal of Clinical
    Nutrition](http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/abstract/76/5/911),
    November 2002 Vol. 76, No. 5, 911-922.

[^89]: Appleton, Nancy Ph.D., Fructose is No Answer For a Sweetener.

[^90]: <http://www.mcvitamins.com/cornsyrup.htm>.

[^91]: Hollenbeck, Claire B.,Dietary Fructose Effects on Lipoprotein
    Metabolism and Risk for Coronary Artery Disease,\" American Journal
    of Clinical Nutrition 58 (suppl), (1993): 800S-807S.

[^92]: Appleton, Nancy Ph.D., Fructose is No Answer For a Sweetener.

[^93]: Waldholz, Michael, Wall Street Journal, February 20, 2003.

[^94]: Enig, Know Your Fats, p. 52.

[^95]: Joint WHO/FAO Expert Consultation, WHO Technical Repost Series
    916, Diet, Nutrition and the Prevention of Chronic Disease, April
    23, 2003.

[^96]: Food and Nutrition Board, Institute of Medicine, Dietary
    Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids,
    Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids (Macronutrients) (2002).

[^97]: Abrams, H Leon, *Journal of Applied Nutrition*, 1980, 32:2:70-71.

[^98]: Cheraskin, E, et al, *Journal of Orthomolecular Psychiatry*,
    1978, 7:150-155.

[^99]: Spencer, H, et al, *Federation Proceedings,* Nov 1986,
    45:12:2758-2762 ; Spencer, H and L Kramer*, American Journal of
    Clinical Nutrition,* June 1983, 37:6:924-929; Fallon, Sally, and
    Mary G Enig, PhD, \"Dem Bones---Do High Protein Diets Cause Bone
    Loss?\" *Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation Health Journal*, 1996,
    20:2:1-4, also posted at www.westonaprice.org.

[^100]: Webb, J G, et al, *Canadian Medical Association Journal*, Oct 1,
    1986, 135:7:753-8.

[^101]: Fallon, Sally, \"Vitamin A Vagary,\" *Price-Pottenger Nutrition
    Foundation Health Journal*, 1995, 19:2:1-3, also posted at
    www.westonaprice.org; Jennings, I W, *Vitamins in Endocrine
    Metabolism*, 1970, Heineman, London, UK.

[^102]: *Nutrition Reviews*, 1979, 37:142-144.

[^103]: Specker, B L, et al, *American Journal of Clinical Nutrition*
    1988, 47:89-92; Berg H van den, et al, *The Lancet,* 1988, 1:242-3;
    Herbert, V, *American Journal of Clinical Nutrition,* 1987,
    46:387-402; Murray, M T, *American Journal of Natural Medicine*,
    April 1996, 3:(3):10-15; Ensminger, A H, et al, *Encyclopedia of
    Foods & Nutrition*, 1994, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 1284.

[^104]: A good example is the Haenszel, et al study of Japanese American
    men which showed a correlation with consumption of beef and colon
    cancer, but stronger correlations with consumption of macaroni,
    green beans and peas. Extensive press coverage emphasized the
    connection of beef and colon cancer but ignored the stronger
    correlation with other Western foods. The study used the
    questionable technique of dietary recall and did not have matched
    controls. Haenszel, W, et al, *Journal of the National Cancer
    Institute*, Dec 5, 1973, 51(6):1765-79.

[^105]: Enig, Mary G, PhD, *Townsend Letter for Doctors,* December 1993,
    1214-1215.

[^106]: Lopez, A, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1996, 18:149.

[^107]: Merrill, Alfred J, et al, Annual Reviews of Nutrition, 1993,
    13:539-559.

[^108]: Wallace, G M, Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture,
    Oct 1971, 22:526-35.

[^109]: Rackis, J J, et al, Qualitative Plant Foods in Human Nutrition,
    1985, 35:225

[^110]: Rackis, J J, et al, Qualitative Plant Foods in Human Nutrition,
    1985, 35:232; Fallon, Sally, and Mary G Enig, PhD, \"Soy Products
    for Dairy Products - Not So Fast,\" Health Freedom News, Sept 1995,
    12-20; Fallon, Sally and Mary G Enig, PhD, The Ploy of Soy,
    Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation, San Diego, CA. See also Soy
    Alert! at www.westonaprice.org.

[^111]: Fallon, Sally, and Mary G Enig, PhD, \"Dem Bones---Do High
    Protein Diets Cause Bone Loss?\" Price-Pottenger Nutrition
    Foundation Health Journal, 1996, 20:2:1-4, also posted at
    www.westonaprice.org.

[^112]: Fallon, Sally, \"Vitamin A Vagary,\" Price-Pottenger Nutrition
    Foundation Health Journal, 1995, 19:2:1-3, also posted at
    www.westonaprice.org; Jennings, I W, Vitamins in Endocrine
    Metabolism, 1970, Heineman, London, UK.