I had to buy some cough syrup yesterday (early fall cold) and husband Wil found that my preferred brand had HFCS and some other god-awful sweetener in it! We checked some other brands and came up with something better. It is appalling what is on the shelves and all of us have to be extremely vigilant to avoid this sugary stuff!!!

Hi Judy–

MRE

There is hope. Ocean Spray now has a “Diet” cranberry juice, sugar free and sweetened with splenda. I’ll have to try it and see how it affects my blood sugar. Now if they could only make dried cranberries sweetened with Splenda.

Hey Dan–

MRE

this reminds me of the pinkberry frozen yoghurt craze. i’ve heard so many times, “it’s healthy, there’s no fat – and only 5g of sugar” i decided to look for myself. guess what? their website says 5g of sugar per OUNCE, with 6, 8, 12 ounces available, i think. This must run afoul of some governmental rule cuz the website now says a serving is 101g(1/2 cup)which is 14 grams of carbohydrates. sizes are 1.4 servings, 2.2 servings and 3.6 servings. kinda confusing huh?

…and it’s being promoted as being “good for you”. when a new store opens, there are lines around the block, swear-to-god…

Pretty typical. Especially the part about there being no fat so it must be healthful. What a laugh.

MRE

I’m re-reading “Good Calories, Bad Calories” because some of the science bogged me down on my initial reading, but what an eye-opener. I recently (and deliberately) went off low-carb for a couple of days and it all came back to me rapidly–the heartburn, the stomach problems, the bloating. SO not worth it. I want to get up on the roof and yell IT’S THE SUGAR, STUPID.

It is indeed the sugar, stupid. If only all the stupids in the world would get it.

MRE

Then of course there are all the juices that have sugar added to them – but notice how cleverly they advertise these by down-playing the sugar and raving about the vitamins and nutrients from the ‘natural’ fruit juices which in most cases make up a very insignificant percentage of the overall drink!

I know when I was growing up my parents were glad that I loved fruit juices and shunned fizzy drinks. I could easily drink 2-3 litres of OJ a day! The only thing they didn’t like about it was the expense but what they really should have been concerned about was the vast amounts of sugar I was taking in!

The general public have no idea.

Hi Anita–

MRE

I initially posted this comment in your “metabolism and ketosis” article, but I did not notice the date it was written, and I was afraid that you might not answer questions from older topics, so I have reposted it here. I hope that this is okay =).

I am a long time reader and health/science student just wanting to ask a few questions. I just want to make sure that this is correct first. Protein is integral to the production of ketones- when dietary protein is converted to glucose, ketones are used to fuel the process. These ketones are made from bodyfat when dietary fat runs low. Furthermore, skeletal muscle will never be burnt provided you consume adequate dietary protein.

Hence, for maximum fatloss, would it work to eat close to 0 carbs a day and eat say 60-70 percent of your macros from protein, and 30-40 percent from fats as opposed to the 65% fats/ 30% protein / 5% carb (the typical keto diet) breakdown, whilst eating hypocalorically?

This way the liver will be forced to convert dietary protein to glucose (I weigh about 90 kgs so I will need close to 150 grams of glucose I beleive), using ketones to fuel the energy expensive process. Since there will not be enough dietary fat to fuel this process (I presume), a higher percentage of bodyfat will have to be oxidised to ketone bodies equalling more BODYFAT loss. The high amount of protein (perhaps coupled with some weight lifting twice a week) will preserve muscle mass thus keeping my metabolism running well.

Is there any downside to eating so much protein and so little fat? I beleive it is a myth that if you eat lots of protein you are training your body to “burn” protein as your number one fuel source…It IS a myth right? I really see no need to eat so much fat as is prescribed in other “keto” diets. And how low can you drop your calories before leptin and hypothyroid issues come into play?

Thanks for reading! I look forward to some enlightening answers =).

Posted the answer in the metabolism and ketosis article.

MRE

One of the reasons I advocate an induction/intervention/phase 1 with new comers is to reset our taste for sweet. I know myself I’d always figured that there was no such thing as too sweet, but that sure has changed!! Now I swear I can taste added sugars in one bite.

Even foods that are touted to be “healthy” have added sugar! “Evaporated cane juice” is one of my favorites…especially if it’s “organic”

You mean it isn’t healthful if its’ organic pure cane sugar?

We sat on the train across from two chubby little kids, each of them lugging around one of those bottles.

Sad.

Very sad indeed.

Sounds good. I’ll have to mobilize MD into making it for me.

MRE

Kennedy ‘Eating Ice Cream’ After Surgery On Artery
Senator’s Carotid Artery Was 70 Percent Blocked

(WBZ) BOSTON Sen. Edward M. Kennedy is expected to remain hospitalized for a few days, while recovering from surgery to repair a partially blocked artery in his neck. The blockage was discovered during routine examination of a decades-old back injury.

Kennedy underwent the hour-long procedure at Massachusetts General Hospital on Friday morning to repair his left carotid artery – a major supplier of blood to the neck and head. WBZ has learned that artery was 70 percent blocked.

By Friday afternoon, doctors said Senator Kennedy was sitting up, eating ice cream and drinking ginger ale. He planned to watch the Red Sox game Friday night.

His recovery is expected to be quick. “After a very brief recovery period, Senator Kennedy will resume his normal schedule in Washington and in Massachusetts,” his spokesperson said.

Senator Kennedy looks like he is no stranger to the junk food line. Why stop now?